cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Anaphylactoid Reaction to Ciprofloxacin

OBJECTIVE:To report a case of anaphylactoid reaction in an HIV-negative patient associated with the administration of intravenous ciprofloxacin.CASE SUMMARY:A 79-year-old Armenian man developed an anaphylactoid reaction following a first-time exposure to intravenous ciprofloxacin. This reaction was characterized by severe hypotension, wheezing, tachypnea, tachycardia, and pruritus. The patient had complete recovery once ciprofloxacin treatment was terminated and supportive care was provided.DISCUSSION:Fluoroquinolones are important therapeutic agents in the management of infectious diseases and are generally safe and well tolerated. Anaphylactoid and anaphylactic reactions have been documented as adverse effects of ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, norfloxacin, levofloxacin, and moxifloxacin. To date, >33 cases have been reported with ciprofloxacin, of which at least 10 occurred in HIV-positive patients. In Europe, 15 cases of anaphylactoid reactions to ofloxacin have been reported and, more recently, with moxifl...
Supplier performance and the environment

Concerns about the environment have evolved from primarily being single country concerns such as polluted air, polluted water and threats of certain species extinction to international or global concerns (i.e. global warming). Solutions to environmental concerns that negatively impact any number of countries simultaneously i.e. acid rain and ozone layer depletion are being developed jointly by countries today. Environmental issues present companies that operate multinationally with many challenges, one of which is to manage a global enterprise in an environmentally responsible manner while simultaneously addressing numerous country specific issues. Suppliers are an integral part of most programs to the environment. Therefore, measures to understand and communicate differences in supplier performance toward improving the environment should be developed. This paper presents a set of selection criteria for developing a supplier performance measure on the environment that accounts for geographical differences. A methodology for integrating an environmental performance measure into existing traditional supplier performance measures is also presented. >
Probability intervals over influence diagrams

A mechanism for performing probabilistic reasoning in influence diagrams using interval rather than point-valued probabilities is described. Procedures for operations corresponding to conditional expectation and Bayesian conditioning in influence diagrams are derived where lower bounds on probabilities are stored at each node. The resulting bounds for the transformed diagram are shown to be the tightest possible within the class of constraints on probability distributions that can be expressed exclusively as lower bounds on the component probabilities of the diagram. Sequences of these operations can be performed to answer probabilistic queries with indeterminacies in the input and for performing sensitivity analysis on an influence diagram. The storage requirements and computational complexity of this approach are comparable to those for point-valued probabilistic inference mechanisms. >
The Socioeconomics of Hypertension How $50 000 May Buy a Drop in Blood Pressure

See related article, pp 161–166 Socioeconomic status (SES) is a known risk factor for cardiovascular disease.1,2 However, unlike traditional Framingham risk factors, SES does not directly impact the cardiovascular system but exerts its cardiovascular effects via a complex interaction of biobehavioral factors, such as exercise and diet (Figure). Because these mediating behavioral factors are potentially modifiable, elucidating the pathways by which SES influences cardiovascular disease offers important opportunities for preventive interventions that may, in turn, help to address health disparities among social groups. Figure. Pathways through which socioeconomic status (SES) may relate to systolic blood pressure (SBP). It was toward this aim of understanding the role of mediating factors in the association between SES and hypertension that Brummett et al3 conducted a large cross-sectional study using data from Wave IV (2007–2009) of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Using path models, they found that, in 14 299 “nationally representative” Americans aged 24 to 35 years: (1) higher household income and being married were independently associated with lower systolic blood pressure (SBP), whereas older age, male sex, black ethnicity, higher body mass index (BMI), greater waist circumference, smoking, and higher alcohol intake were independently associated with higher SBP in multivariable modeling; (2) higher household income was associated with lower SBP by way of lower resting heart rate (offsetting the SBP-raising effects of increased alcohol consumption) and remained inversely associated with SBP even after adjusting for all measured covariates, and, in fact, each $50 000 increase was related to a decrease in SBP of 0.61 mm Hg; and (3) higher education level was similarly associated with …
Utilizing visual art to enhance the clinical observation skills of medical students

Background: Clinical observation is fundamental in practicing medicine, but these skills are rarely taught. Currently no evidence-based exercises/courses exist for medical student training in obser...
Depletion of Bovine Pituitary Prolactin by Cysteamine Involves a ThiolrDisulfide Mechanism

Cysteamine [2-aminoethanethiol (CySH)] reduces measurable PRL concentrations in vivo and in vitro. Since secretion is also inhibited, CySH may block conversion from a poorly assayable hormone storage form(s) to readily assayable, releasable PRL. This would represent a previously unrecognized mechanism for secretory regulation. We undertook the present study to identify the sites involved in the loss of measurable PRL (depletion) induced by cysteamine. The disulfide cystamine was ineffective on secretory granules unless combined with reduced glutathione, indicating the generation of the active CySH-thiol form. Pretreatment of granules with thiol-blocking agents resulted in dose-dependent enhancement of CySH inhibition, achieving nearly complete inhibition with 5 mm iodoacetamide. In contrast, pretreatment with reduced glutathione or dithiothreitol, respectively, impaired or abolished the CySH effect. Similar results were obtained when tissues were exposed to thiols and/or alkaline conditions after CySH tre...
Effects of hallucinogens on locomotor and investigatory activity and patterns: influence of 5-HT2A and 5-HT2C receptors.

The 5-HT2A and 5-HT2C antagonists MDL 100,907 and SER-082 were tested with the 5-HT2A/C agonist DOI and the 5-HT1A/2A/2C agonist LSD in the Behavioral Pattern Monitor, which provides multiple measures of locomotor and investigatory activity. Previous investigations have shown that these measures load onto three independent behavioral factors: amount of activity, exploratory behavior, and behavioral organization. Rats pretreated with saline, MDL 100,907 (0.25-2.0 mg/kg), or SER-082 (0.5-1.0 mg/kg) were treated with saline, 0.25 mg/kg DOI, or 60 μg/kg LSD. All effects of DOI were blocked by all doses of MDL 100,907, but only by the highest dose of SER-082. While the effects of LSD on activity and exploratory behavior were largely unaffected, either pretreatment antagonized the effects of LSD on behavioral organization. Thus, all of these effects of DOI were attributable to 5-HT2A receptors, whereas the effect of LSD on behavioral organization was influenced by both 5-HT2A and 5-HT2C receptors.
Computing linear functions with linear network codes

We study the problem of computing linear functions over a finite field in arbitrary networks with a single receiver node. We follow an algebraic approach similar to the one developed by Koetter and Medard for conventional network coding problems. First, we find a necessary and sufficient condition for the existence of a linear solution; then we identify a class of linear functions over the binary field that are solvable whenever the network min-cut is at least one. For linear functions outside this class, we shown that there always exists a network of min-cut one which has no linear solution.
A set-based association test identifies sex-specific gene sets associated with type 2 diabetes.

Single variant analysis in genome-wide association studies (GWAS) has been proven to be successful in identifying thousands of genetic variants associated with hundreds of complex diseases. However, these identified variants only explain a small fraction of inheritable variability in many diseases, suggesting that other resources, such as multilevel genetic variations, may contribute to disease susceptibility. In this work, we propose to combine genetic variants that belong to a gene set, such as at gene- and pathway-level to form an integrated signal aimed to identify major players that function in a coordinated manner conferring disease risk. The integrated analysis provides novel insight into disease etiology while individual signals could be easily missed by single variant analysis. We apply our approach to a genome-wide association study of type 2 diabetes (T2D) with male and female data analyzed separately. Novel sex-specific genes and pathways are identified to increase the risk of T2D. We also demonstrate the performance of signal integration through simulation studies.
Resolving Ethical Conflicts in a Managed Health Care Environment

The managed health care environment is replete with situations that create ethical conflicts for the professional social worker. This article examines two such conflicts--competing fiduciary relationships and justice versus injustice--as they relate to social work practice and the 1996 revised NASW Code of Ethics. Mechanisms to reduce these ethical conflicts are presented. The obligation for social workers to participate in social action as a method of reducing injustices found in managed care environments is examined through the principle of distributive justice, egalitarianism, and the NASW Code of Ethics.
Effects of nitrogen availability on competition between Bromus tectorum and Bouteloua gracilis

Exotic plant invasions are a serious concern for land managers and conservationists. There is evidence that increased nitrogen availability favors exotic species and decreased nitrogen availability favors non-weedy native species. This study was conducted to test the effect of nitrogen availability on competition between two grass species with contrasting life histories, cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum), a North American exotic, and blue grama (Bouteloua gracilis), a North American native. We investigated the effects of nitrogen availability and competition on aboveground biomass, belowground biomass, height, and % nitrogen tissue concentrations by growing the two species in the greenhouse under five levels of nitrogen and six levels of competition. Nitrogen availability affected competition between Bromus tectorum and Bouteloua gracilis. At the lowest level of N availability, neither species was affected by competition. As N availability increased, aboveground biomass gain of Bromus was more negatively affected by intraspecific competition relative to interspecific competition while the opposite occurred for Bouteloua. At the competition level at which each species gained the most aboveground biomass, Bromus had a linear response to increasing N availability while the response of Bouteloua was asymptotic. Our results do provide some support for the theory that fast growing exotic species have a rapid response to nutrient enrichment while native non-weedy species do not, and that low N levels can reduce competitive pressure from the exotic on the native.
From Chirp to Chip, a Beginning

Engineering workstations will be used in conjunction with a silicon compiler to design a Very Large Scale Integrated Circuit for a specific use, called an Application Specific Integrated Circuit, to analyze chirped signals of the form f(t) = A 1 cos (ωt + αt 2) + A 2 sin (ωt + αt 2). This circuit should have the ability to analyze chirped signals from audio to 10MHz. The preliminary design of the chip is complete and fabrication will follow as soon as practical.
Cutaneous Manifestations of Chemotherapeutic Drugs

Chemotherapy is well known to both clinicians and patients for its ability to cause unwanted adverse effects. The skin is an organ commonly affected by treatment with chemotherapy, leading to presentations ranging from mild to life-threatening. Recognition of these cutaneous effects is important as they impact morbidity and mortality as well as patient compliance. This review aims to discuss several of the most common cutaneous side effects of chemotherapies as well as recommendations for their diagnosis and management.
Public Approval of State Legislatures

The determinants of public approval for state legislatures have not received much attention, but one important finding is that more professionalized legislatures experience lower levels of public support.We argue that this result is an artifact of limited data and problematic model specifications. Analyzing a large national survey sample, we demonstrate that the negative relationship holds primarily for conservatives and to a lesser extent for moderates but not liberals. Additionally, we find that legislative approval in states with term limits and ballot initiatives is no different than in states without these institutions.
Structure-Aware Stochastic Storage Management in Smart Grids

Demand-side management has been proposed as an important solution for improving the energy consumption efficiency in smart grids. However, traditional pricing-based demand-side management methods usually rely on the assumption that the statistics of the system dynamics (e.g., the time-varying electricity price, the arrival distribution of consumers' demanded load) are known a priori, which does not hold in practice. In this paper, we propose a novel price-aware energy storage management algorithm for consumption scheduling which, unlike previous works, can operate optimally in systems where such statistical knowledge is unknown. We consider a power grid system where each consumer is equipped with an electrical energy storage device. Each consumer proactively determines how much energy to purchase from the energy producers by taking into consideration the time-varying and a priori unknown system dynamics, in order to maximize its own energy consumption utility. We first formulate the real-time energy storage management and demand response of the consumers as a Markov decision process and then propose an online learning algorithm that enables the consumers to learn the unknown system dynamics on-the-fly and have their energy storage management policies converge to the optimum. Our simulation results validate the efficacy of our algorithm, which helps consumers achieve higher average utility as opposed to other state-of-the-art online learning algorithms and energy storage management algorithms.
The Agaric Flora of Texas. I. New Species of Agarics and Boletes

(1957). The Agaric Flora of Texas. I. New Species of Agarics and Boletes. Mycologia: Vol. 49, No. 5, pp. 707-722.
Comparative evaluation of radioimmunoassay kits used for testing blood for hepatitis B surface antigen.

A comparative evaluation of six licensed radioimmunoassay kits for the detection of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) has been performed. Each method met the federal licensure requirements for the test. The performance of the kits varied considerably, however, when they were challenged to the limits of their sensitivities. During the period December 1978 through March 1979, four kits were judged to be of equivalent high sensitivity, whereas two were less sensitive. Three of the kits, including two of those with high sensitivity, generated a high (6%–7%) proportion of false reactive results. The sensitivities of all kits decreased during the shelf lives of the reagents.
Ionophores: their effect on production efficiency and mode of action

Carboxylic polyether ionophores, when fed to growing ruminants improve efficiency of production. This review summarizes the observed effects of ionophores on the ruminal fermentation and the host animal. The effect of ionophores on prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells is described and this knowledge is then utilized to explain many of the observed ionophore effects on the rumen fermentations and host gastrointestinal physiology.
Introduction: Bridging the Two Cultures

This chapter sets out the basic problematic: can the theory of evolution provide us with a fully scientific theory of human behavior? A subset of this question is whether the fields of the social sciences and the humanities have proven to be failures, and will have to be assimilated into the field of biology or at least be Darwinized, that is, interpreted in terms of evolutionary principles. At the heart of both issues is the question of whether the mechanistic, materialistic model adopted by science is appropriate to understanding human behavior, which unlike particles appears to be rational and goal-directed.
The Common Notion of Free Will

A number of studies within the domain of neuroscience have shown that conscious awareness of the decision to perform an action is preceded by unconscious activity in the brain. This in turn is taken to indicate that unconscious brain activity is the cause of action and not conscious willing. In this chapter, I assess arguments that unconscious brain activity is a threat to the common notion of free will. I dispute the idea that the common view of free will requires conscious willing. Additionally, I argue for the claim that unconscious processes play a role in the formation of conscious volitions. Based on that, I argue against the view that volition must be conscious. In this chapter, I also tackle the purported incompatibility between free will and scientific determinism. After assessing calls for the elimination of the commonsense concept of free will, I conclude that the incompatibility between the two notions rests on an unfavorable characterization of commonsense free will. I further argue that any concept of free will requires endorsement of a particular background theory and because of that I question whether any such concept can be properly characterized as common sense.
Do parents invest less in worse-performing children? Evidence from the east asian financial crisis

AbstractThis paper uses data from Indonesia around the time of the economic crisis in late 1990s to examine the role of parental preferences in human capital accumulation. Using a household fixed effects estimation, I test whether parental education spending is affected by child mathematics test scores. I find that parents are more sensitive to the human capital of younger children, penalizing them for having lower skills compared to their older siblings. No differences in investment by child gender or birth order exist in 1997, before the East Asian Financial crisis hit Indonesia. This suggests that only when resource constrained, parents may have an efficiency investment strategy and that education of the younger children may be a luxury good.
A new time calibration method for switched-capacitor array-based waveform samplers

We have developed a new time calibration method for DRS4 waveform sampler. The method is based on the correlation between differential amplitude and time interval of adjacent switched-capacitor cells responding to a simple saw-tooth shape pulses. In the experiment, saw-tooth pulse with 40ns period from a Tektronix AWG7104 is fed to DRS4 evaluation board for calibrating all 1024 cells of the board. The electronic time resolution of the DRS4 board with the new time calibration is measured to be ∼5.6ps FWHM using two identical simulataneous Gaussian pulses. The time resolution dependencies on the delay and the sampling speed are measured also. The new method is applicable for other switched-capacitor array technology-based waveform samplers for precise time calibration.
Bestimmung der schwingenden Massen

Bei Langs- und bei Biegungsschwingungen ist dieselbe einfach, vorausgesetzt, das die Schwerpunkte der betreffenden Massen in einer Geraden liegen bzw. bei Biegungsschwingungen in die neutrale Faser der elastischen Verbindung fallen. Es ist lediglich das Gewicht (kg) durch die Erdbeschleunigung 981 cm/sek2 zu dividieren, um die Masse in \(\frac{\text{kg/sek}^2}{\text{cm}}\) zu erhalten.
Field decomposition for analysis of hyperbolic media

A field decomposition of Maxwell's equations for uniaxial hyperbolic media based on the 2D Helmholtz theorem is provided. This decomposition is particularly useful since it produces TE and TM field sets that are orthogonal and allows for identification of two independent scalar potential formulations. It is shown that these formulations provide substantial mathematical simplification, enhanced physical insight, ease of boundary condition enforcement and a trivial field recovery process. An example involving a parallel-plate waveguide filled with hyperbolic media is given to demonstrate the functionality and practicality of the decomposition.
5. Dickinson's Farther in Summer than the Birds

(1952). 5. Dickinson's Farther in Summer than the Birds. The Explicator: Vol. 11, No. 1, pp. 10-12.
Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Patiromer and Sodium Zirconium Cyclosilicate: A New Armamentarium for the Treatment of Hyperkalemia

Objective To compare and contrast the efficacy and safety of patiromer and sodium zirconium cyclosilicate (ZS-9) in the treatment of hyperkalemia. Design A systematic review and meta-analysis of phase II and III clinical trial data was completed. Patients or Participants Eight studies (two phase II and four phase III trials with two subgroup analyses) were included in the qualitative analysis, and six studies (two phase II and four phase III trials) were included in the meta-analysis. Measurements and Results Significant heterogeneity was found in the meta-analysis with an I2 value ranging from 80.6–99.6%. A random-effects meta-analysis was applied for all end points. Each clinical trial stratified results by hyperkalemia severity and dosing; therefore, these were considered separate treatment groups in the meta-analysis. For patiromer, a significant −0.70 mEq/L (95% confidence interval [CI] −0.48 to −0.91 mEq/L) change was noted in potassium at 4 weeks. At day 3 of patiromer treatment, potassium change was −0.36 mEq/L (range of standard deviation 0.07–0.30). The primary end point for ZS-9—change in potassium at 48 hours—was −0.67 mEq/L (95% CI −0.45 to −0.89 mEq/L). By 1 hour after ZS-9 administration, change in potassium was −0.17 mEq/L (95% CI −0.05 to −0.30). Analysis of pooled adverse effects from these trials indicates that patiromer was associated with more gastrointestinal upset (7.6% constipation, 4.5% diarrhea) and electrolyte depletion (7.1% hypomagnesemia), whereas ZS-9 was associated with the adverse effects of urinary tract infections (1.1%) and edema (0.9%). Conclusion Patiromer and ZS-9 represent significant pharmacologic advancements in the treatment of hyperkalemia. Both agents exhibited statistically and clinically significant reductions in potassium for the primary end point of this meta-analysis. Given the adverse effect profile and the observed time-dependent effects, ZS-9 may play more of a role in treating acute hyperkalemia.
Conditional Human Immunodeficiency Virus Transactivator of Transcription Protein Expression Induces Depression-like Effects and Oxidative Stress

Abstract Background The prevalence of major depression in people with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is substantially higher than in the general population. Mechanisms underlying this comorbidity are poorly understood. HIV transactivator of transcription (Tat) protein, produced and excreted by HIV, could be involved. We determined whether conditional Tat protein expression in mice is sufficient to induce depression-like behaviors and oxidative stress. Further, as oxidative stress is associated with depression, we determined whether decreasing or increasing oxidative stress by administering methylsulfonylmethane (MSM) or diethylmaleate, respectively, altered depression-like behavior. Methods GT-tg bigenic mice received intraperitoneal saline or doxycycline (25–100 mg/kg/day) to induce Tat expression. G-tg mice, which do not express Tat protein, also received doxycycline. Depression-like behavior was assessed with the tail suspension test and the two-bottle saccharin/water consumption task. Reactive oxygen species and reactive nitrogen species were assessed ex vivo. Medial frontal cortex oxidative stress and temperature were measured in vivo with 9.4T proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Results Tat expression increased tail suspension test immobility time in an exposure-dependent manner and reduced saccharin consumption. MSM decreased immobility time, whereas diethylmaleate increased it in saline-treated GT-tg mice. Tat and MSM behavioral effects persisted for 28 days. Tat and diethylmaleate increased reactive oxygen species and reactive nitrogen species levels, whereas MSM decreased levels. Tat expression increased medial frontal cortex glutathione levels and temperature. Conclusions Tat expression induced rapid and enduring depression-like behaviors and oxidative stress. Increasing oxidative stress increased depression-like behavior, whereas decreasing oxidative stress decreased depression-like behavior. Thus, Tat produced by HIV may contribute to high depression prevalence among people with HIV. Mitigation of oxidative stress could reduce depression severity.
Using portable physiological sensors to estimate energy cost for ‘body-in-the-loop’ optimization of assistive robotic devices

Lower-limb assistive robotic devices have the potential to restore ambulation in people with movement disorders. The assistance provided by these devices is governed by a large number of parameters that must be tuned on a subject-specific basis. Recently, our group developed ‘body-in-the-loop’ optimization algorithms, and demonstrated that they can be used to automatically determine the user's energetically optimal parameter setting. However, this algorithm relies on real-time estimates of energetic cost collected via indirect calorimetry, which is unsuited for long-term use. The purpose of this study was to estimate energy cost using data from portable, wearable sensors. We collected global signals (heart rate, electrodermal activity, skin temperature, oxygen saturation) and local signals (EMG, accelerometry) from 10 healthy subjects performing 6 different activities. We trained five multiple linear regression models with different subsets of the collected data, and concluded that the regression model trained with both global and local signals performed the best for all subjects (R2=0.94±0.02). This work has the potential to result in translational, clinically-relevant tuning algorithms for assistive robotic devices. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program under Grant No. 1256260. This material is also based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 1536188. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.
China’s ‘regionalism foreign policy’ and China-India relations in South Asia

This article focuses on relations between China and India in South Asia, the two major powers’ ‘shared neighborhood’. Assessing the objectives underlying Beijing's interest in engaging in regional ...
Cognitive impairment and intracranial atherosclerotic stenosis in general population.

Objective To investigate the association between asymptomatic intracranial atherosclerosis and cognitive impairment in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) cohort. Methods ARIC participants underwent high-resolution 3T magnetic resonance angiography and a neuropsychology battery and neurologic examination adjudicated by an expert panel to detect mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementia. We adjusted for demographic and vascular risk factors in weighted logistic regression analysis, accounting for stratified sampling design and attrition, to determine the association of intracranial atherosclerotic stenosis (ICAS) with cognitive impairment. Results In 1,701 participants (mean age 76 ± 5.3, 41% men, 71% whites, 29% blacks) with adequate imaging quality and no history of stroke, MCI was identified in 578 (34%) and dementia in 79 (4.6%). In white participants, after adjustment for demographic and vascular risk factors, ICAS ≥50% (vs no ICAS) was strongly associated with dementia (odds ratio [OR] 4.1, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.7–10.0) and with any cognitive impairment (OR 1.7, 95% CI 1.1–2.8). In contrast, no association was found between ICAS ≥50% and MCI or dementia in blacks, although the sample size was limited and estimates were imprecise. Conclusion Our results suggest that asymptomatic ICAS is independently associated with cognitive impairment and dementia in whites.
Mobile Health Technology in Transplantation

Mobile health (mHealth) technology encompasses a wide range of potential clinical tools, with end-users ranging from the individual patient to national healthcare systems. This chapter focuses on mHealth with the patient as the end-user. It describes mHealth applications studied within solid organ transplant, as well as applications that have been used in non-transplant patients with chronic diseases common in transplant. It also provides an overview of fundamental necessities for successful mHealth systems and provides a roadmap to addressing current barriers to widespread study and implementation of mHealth.
Evolution of clinical characteristics and outcomes of synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonist exposure in the United States: analysis of National Poison Data System data from 2010 to 2015

BACKGROUND AND AIMS New synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonists (SCRAs) are synthesized each year to evade US governmental regulation and sold for recreational use. Our aim was to estimate the changes in the clinical effects and patient disposition associated with SCRA exposure from 2010 to 2015. DESIGN A retrospective observational cohort study. SETTING National Poison Data System that collects data on reports of poisonings from US poison centers. PARTICIPANTS A total of 19 388 isolated SCRA cases between 1 January 2010 and 31 December 2015 were identified. The mean age was 24.6 years and 77.8% were male. MEASUREMENTS Primary outcome was the change in the trend of patient disposition, i.e. treated and released versus hospitalization (e.g. non-critical care, critical care unit or psychiatry) between 2010 and 2015. Secondary outcomes included the trends in the clinical effects and their duration, and therapeutic interventions nationally and regionally. FINDINGS Reports of SCRA exposure peaked in 2011 (n = 5305) and 2015 (n = 5475). The majority of patients required supportive care and were treated and released from an emergency department. Hospitalization increased by annual percentage change in the log odds (APCO) of 21.0% (P < 0.0001) during the 6 years, with significant increases in admissions to critical care units and non-critical care units. Overall, tachycardia (32.1%), agitation/irritation (25.6%) and drowsiness/lethargy (20.4%) were the most frequently reported clinical effects from SCRA exposure. Clinical effects resolved within 2-8 hours in 52.8% of cases, but their duration increased markedly by 2015. Regionally, the largest number of SCRA cases was reported in the South (n = 9374, 48.6%). SCRA cases in the Northeast were hospitalized more frequently (27.4%), with cases in the Midwest being admitted more frequently to critical care units (15.3%). However, there were no significant differences in clinical toxicity or disposition among the regions. CONCLUSION Hospitalization resulting from toxicity from synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonists exposure in the United States increased significantly between 2010 and 2015.
Trends in the Prevalence and Awareness of High Cholesterol among Adults in Mississippi, United States

Elevated level of blood cholesterol (total cholesterol >240 mg/dL) is one of the major risk factor for heart disease, which is the leading cause of death in the United States. This challenge makes public health organizations and their partners to design programs that will reduce the prevalence of high cholesterol by increasing public awareness and screening. The purpose of this study was to determine trends in the prevalence and awareness of high cholesterol among adults in Mississippi. Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System(BRFSS) of 2015, a cross-sectional, stratified, multistage probability sample survey of the Mississippi residents, noninstitutionalized population examined the prevalence and trend of high cholesterol according to sex and ethnicity for 5039 (n=1703 male and n=3336 females) adults aged 18 to 65 and above. The trends in the percentage of adults screened for elevated level of cholesterol and its awareness was examined using t-test statistical and frequency distribution to determine the percentage differences in the groups. About 38.6% male and 38.3% females had high cholesterol when screened. In addition, 41.9% of non-Hispanic whites was aware of high cholesterol which is higher when compared to 34.2% non-Hispanic blacks. These findings indicated an increased level of awareness of high cholesterol among non-Hispanic whites than non-Hispanic blacks. More attention should be focused on cholesterol screening and awareness, specifically among non-Hispanic blacks in Mississippi.
Distributive Justice Norms and Family Work: What Is Perceived as Ideal, What Is Applied, and What Predicts Perceived Fairness?

Members of married couples rated how ideal communal, exchange, and equality rules were for their marriages. They also reported on whether they and their spouses followed each norm in general in their marriages and in the domains of housework and child care. Both men and women considered a communal norm to be more ideal than the other norms and reported that they and their spouse followed a communal norm to a greater extent than an exchange or equality rule, both in general and in the domains of housework and child care. In addition, links between reports of actual division of labor in each domain, as well as reports of norm use, and perceived fairness of the division of family work were examined. Greater inequalities in the division of labor were linked to decreased perceptions of fairness. Controlling for reports of division of labor, women's reports of the self and of the spouse following a communal norm were linked with increased perceptions of fairness as were women's reports of the spouse following an equality rule. In contrast, and again after controlling for reports of division of labor, women's reports of the self following an exchange rule and men's reports of the self and of the spouse following an exchange rule were associated with greater perceived unfairness of the division of family work.
Imprinting and paternal genome elimination in insects.

In many insects and other arthropods, males transmit only maternally inherited chromosomes (White 1973; Brown and Chandra 1977; Nur 1980, 1990a,b,c; Bell 1982; Bull 1983; Lyon and Rastan 1984; Lyon 1993; Wrensch and Ebbert 1993; Brun et al. 1995; Borsa and Kjellberg 1996). This remarkable genetic asymmetry can result from any of three principal systems of paternal genome exclusion, each of which has evolved several times. The most familiar and widespread exclusion system is arrhenotoky, in which fatherless males develop from unfertilized eggs and therefore lack paternal chromosomes at all stages of development. Most arrhenotokous systems are genetically haplodiploid, but a few are based on other modes of inheritance (see Nur 1980, 1990c; Bell 1982; Suomalainen et al. 1987). In the two other kinds of exclusion systems, a male’s paternally inherited chromosomes are actively eliminated: males begin life as seemingly conventional diploid zygotes but then either (1) lose their paternal chromosomes during embryonic development, becoming true maternal haploids (embryonic elimination), or (2) exhibit dramatically non-Mendelian patterns of meiosis and spermiogenesis, such that mature sperm carry only maternal chromosomes (germline elimination). To denote their formal (transmission-genetic) similarity to haplodiploid arrhenotoky, the embryonic and germline elimination systems are often characterized as parahaplodiploid or pseudoarrhenotokous.
Goodbye Gauley Mountain, hello eco-camp: Queer environmentalism in the Anthropocene:

This article considers the effectiveness of queer environmental ethics in the Anthropocene, a word increasingly used to describe the anthropogenic destruction of ecosystems that marks our current g...
Bagged one‐to‐one matching for efficient and robust treatment effect estimation

Observational studies present challenges due to bias from imbalance in baseline confounders. One-to-one matching (OOM), a popular cohort-construction technique for observational studies, reduces bias and provides a compelling basis for inference but generally leads to at least some loss of efficiency due to the exclusion of potentially informative subjects. We introduce the bagged one-to-one matching (BOOM) estimator, which combines the bias-reducing properties of OOM with the variance-reducing properties of bootstrap aggregation (bagging). We describe the BOOM algorithm in detail, provide R code for its implementation, and investigate its performance in simulation studies and a case study. In the simulation studies, under different types of model misspecification, we compare the BOOM estimator's performance in terms of mean squared error, bias, variance, accuracy of standard error estimation, and coverage of nominal 95% confidence intervals to that of OOM and to that of ordinary least squares estimation, inverse probability weighting, and targeted maximum likelihood estimation, all on the full unmatched cohort. In our simulations, the BOOM estimator achieves as much bias reduction as the estimator based on OOM, while having much lower variance. In all of the settings examined in the simulations, the BOOM's mean squared error is comparable to or better than that of the comparison methods. In the case study, BOOM yields estimates similar to those from the established methods, with narrower 95% confidence intervals.
Sensitivity of surface drag predictions using Monin–Obukhov similarity theory in non-ideal flow conditions

Turbulent flux measurements in the atmospheric surface layer (ASL), acquired from a vertical tower of sonic anemometers, are used to investigate the transient behavior of the drag coefficient over a relatively flat, homogeneous, desert playa surface. The goal of the study is to quantify the extent to which Monin–Obukhov similarity theory (MOST) successfully predicts the empirical drag coefficient when the data are not necessarily restricted to idealized conditions. Here, “idealized” refers to the conditions under which MOST is assumed to be valid, namely that the ASL exhibits statistically stationary behavior and stresses are constant with height. In order to quantify the agreement between the empirical and theoretical drag coefficients, uncertainty bands as a function of time of day were calculated for each. These uncertainty bands account for random errors and nonstationarity effects in the momentum flux, horizontal wind velocity, and stability parameter, as well as uncertainties associated with the model parameters appearing in MOST, i.e., the von Karman constant and aerodynamic roughness length. Results show that the average uncertainties in the empirical and theoretical drag coefficients are about $$\pm \,30\%$$ and $$\pm \,20\%$$ , respectively. In the case of the former, the major contribution lies from uncertainty in the momentum flux measurements; while, the latter is dominated by uncertainty in the von Karman constant. Joint probability density functions reveal that large differences between the empirical and theoretical drag coefficient have a high probability of occurrence when the ASL is nonstationary and/or exhibits a non-constant stress layer.
The effect of landing surface on landing error scoring system grades

Different landing surfaces may affect lower extremity biomechanical performance during athletic tasks. The magnitude of this effect on clinical screening measures such as jump-landings is unknown. ...
How to combine two methods to restore populations cost effectively

Ecosystems worldwide have become degraded due to global change, and therefore, restoration of these ecosystems is critical for the prolonged provision of ecosystem services. Specifically, major restoration efforts are directed toward the restoration of key species that provide important services and functions. There are often several alternative methods to restore a species population, such as the reintroduction of its individuals, improvement of its habitat quality, and removal of competing invasive species. However, these methods can be expensive, and hence, it is important to determine how to cost effectively combine them over time. In this paper, we use optimal control theory and we find a general rule of thumb for combining two restoration methods. The general rule, which applies to a wide variety of ecosystems, is that cost‐effective restoration entails one of the following two strategies: (1) using a single method until the system approaches a “restoration threshold” or (2) combining both methods to approach an “investment benchmark,” which is a certain configuration of the system that does not depend on the system's initial state. After either the restoration threshold or the investment benchmark has been approached, investment should stop and the system should be left to recover naturally. Therefore, finding the restoration threshold and the investment benchmark is key for guiding effective restoration, and we demonstrate a simple method for finding them.
Enhanced Electrochemical Detection of Multiheavy Metal Ions Using a Biopolymer-Coated Planar Carbon Electrode

In this paper, a chitosan biopolymer-coated planar carbon electrode was developed for in situ determination of heavy metals (Zn2+ and Pb2+) using square-wave anodic stripping voltammetry. The experimental conditions were optimized with respect to deposition time, amplitude, and frequency. With 300-s deposition time, the heavy metal stripping was conducted at 0.05-V pulse amplitude, 20-Hz pulse frequency, and 0.004-V square-wave step voltage in 0.1-M acetate buffer at pH 4.6. Two distinguished peaks were observed at −0.86 and −0.37 V, which are associated with the stripping of Zn2+ and Pb2+, respectively. The limit of detection was 0.6 and 1 ppb for Zn2+ and Pb2+, respectively, and the relative standard deviations for repetitive measurements of Zn2+ and Pb2+ were in the range of 4.8%–5.4% ( $n = 30$ with two identical electrodes). The chitosan biopolymer-coated carbon electrode was successfully applied for detecting Pb2+ in tap water, mining wastewater, and soil leachate, and showed a reliable performance for measuring heavy metals with acceptable reproducibility. Overall, the developed biopolymer-coated carbon electrode exhibited excellent representativeness and reproductivity for in situ multiheavy metal ions detection in spiked samples, holding a great promise for on-site testing of heavy metals in drinking water.
Linking statistical and hydrodynamic modeling for compound flood hazard assessment in tidal channels and estuaries

Abstract A method to link bivariate statistical analysis and hydrodynamic modeling for flood hazard estimation in tidal channels and estuaries is presented and discussed for the general case where flood hazards are linked to upstream riverine discharge Q and downstream ocean level, H. Using a bivariate approach, there are many possible combinations of Q and H that jointly reflect a specific return period, T, raising questions about the best choice as boundary forcing in a hydrodynamic model. We show, first of all, how possible Q and H values depend on whether the definition of T corresponds to the probability of exceedance of “H OR Q” or “H AND Q”. We also show that flood hazards defined by “OR” return periods are more conservative than “AND” return periods. Finally, we introduce a new composite water surface profile to represent the spatially distributed hazard for return period T. The composite profile synthesizes hydrodynamic model results from the “AND” hazard scenario and two scenarios based on traditional univariate analysis, a “Marginal Q” scenario and a “Marginal H” scenario.
Optical coherence tomography correlates multiple measures of tissue damage following acute burn injury.

Background The visual assessment of burned skin is inherently subjective, and whilst a number of imaging modalities have identified quantifiable parameters to characterize vascular and structural changes following burn damage, none have become common place in the assessment protocol. Here, we use optical coherence tomography (OCT)-based angiography (OCTA) to introduce novel correlations between vessel depth, i.e., the depth of functional blood vessels beneath the tissue surface, edema depth, i.e., the depth of interstitial fluid buildup beneath the tissue surface, and tissue injury depth, i.e., the depth of collagen denaturation beneath the tissue surface, following burn injury. Methods A clinical prototype OCT system was used to collect OCT images from various sites of burned skin in patients. Optical microangiography (OMAG) algorithm was used to derive OCTA information from the acquired OCT images, from which the presence of blood vessels and edema were detected. The optical attenuation mapping of structural OCT information was used to detect tissue injury depth. The depths of vessel, edema and tissue injury were measured using a semi-automatic segmentation algorithm. Correlation analysis was performed using a Pearson correlation coefficient using one-tailed analysis with significance being established by a P value ≤0.05. Results Four burn patients were recruited and scanned at multiple sites using the prototype system within 3-6 days of injury. Approximate measurements include a vessel depth range of 320-1,360 µm, an edema depth range of 0-400 µm, and a tissue injury depth range of 130-420 µm. Correlations were subsequently observed between vessel depth and edema depth (r=0.8521, P=0.0001), and vessel depth and tissue injury depth (r=0.6296, P=0.0106). Conclusions OCT is feasible to provide the critical information of vessel depth, edema depth, and tissue injury depth of skin burns, which may represent viable assessment criteria for the characterization of cutaneous burns in future.
Younger Relative Metabolic Age Is Associated with a More Favorable Body Composition and Plant-based Dietary Pattern (P21-038-19)

Objectives Metabolic age serves as an emerging marker for metabolic health. We investigated whether relative metabolic age, defined as an individual's metabolic age relative to their chronological age, was associated with markers of body composition, blood pressure, and dietary intake.