cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Influence of various dietary fats on hypercholesterolemia and atherogenesis in cockerels.

When cockerels were given a cholesterol supplemented, fat-free, semi-synthetic diet as the basic ration, all oils and solid fats were atherogenic and caused elevated serum cholesterol levels. The degree of hypercholesterolemia and atherogenesis was related to fatty acid composition of the fat fed. Margarines were less atherogenic and less hypercholesterolemic than oils. The additives used in the preparation of margarine have some influence on maintaining lower cholesterol levels, but do not appear to have any significant effects on atherogenesis. The structural isomers formed during margarine manufacture may be responsible through an alteration of lipid metabolism.
Thermal Diffusivities of Molybdenum/Alumina Cermets

The thermal diffusivities of several molybdenum/alumina cermets were measured using a transient heat-flow, semi-infinite plate method. The cermets had thermal diffusivities significantly greater than those of 94% Al/sub 2/O/sub 3/ alumina. A 50/50 wt% cermet had a thermal diffusivity of 0.102 cm/sup 2//s at 313 K, while the alumina had a value of 0.067 cm/sup 2//s. 7 refs.
Effect of retinol palmitate on ovulation rate and embryo quality in superovulated cattle

Abstract We evaluated the influence of administration of retinol palmitate (Vitamin A) on ovulation rate and embryo quality in 48 beef cows superovulated with 2 different doses of FSH. Synchronization of estrus was accomplished by giving 2 injections of prostaglandin F 2α (PGF) 11 d apart. Multiple ovulation was induced by giving a total of either 32.5 mg or 27 mg of FSH over 4 d beginning on the 8th to 10th d post estrus. Within FSH dose, cows received either 1 million IU of Vitamin A (im) in corn oil or an equivalent volume of corn oil alone on the 1st d of FSH injections. Embryos were recovered nonsurgically and evaluated 7 d post estrus. Ovulation rate was estimated on the day of embryo recovery by use of transrectal ultrasonography and actual counts of corpora lutea were made on ovaries taken at slaughter following embryo recovery. The FSH response rate (percentage of cows with multiple ovulations) for all cows was 65.9% and was not affected by FSH dose or Vitamin A. Cows with less than 20 ovulations had a higher percentage of total embryos recovered (59.6 vs 35.8%; P = 0.002), and more of those embryos were transferable (36.2 vs 14.3%; P = 0.005) compared to cows with more than 20 ovulations. The dose of FSH did not affect embryo quality or the total number of embryos recovered, but the lower dosage resulted in more ovulations per cow (26.7 vs 18.0; P = 0.03). Vitamin A did not affect ovulation rate or total embryos recovered, but it increased the mean number of high quality (Grades 1 and 2; 4.25 vs 1.86; P = 0.01) and total transferable embryos (Grades 1, 2 and 3; 5.87 vs 3.13; P = 0.04). The mean number of blastocysts was greater for Vitamin A-treated cows (2.25 vs .73; P = 0.02). Means for nontransferable embryos were not different between FSH dose or Vitamin A treatment groups. These findings suggest that 1) ovulation rates above 20 per cow do not yield gains in total or transferable embryos, and 2) Vitamin A may improve embryo quality without affecting ovulation rate in superovulated cattle.
Scalable content-aware request distribution in cluster-based networks servers

We present a scalable architecture for content-aware request distribution in web server clusters. In this architecture, a level-4 switch acts as the point of contact for the server on the Inernet and distributes the incoming requests to a number of back-end nodes. The switch does not perform any contect-based distribution. This function is performed by each of the back-end nodes, which may forward the incoming request to another back-end based on the requested contect. In terms of scalability, this architecture compares favorably to existing approaches where a front-end node performs contect-based distribution. In our architecture, the expensive operations of TCP connection estabilishment and handoff are distributes among the back-ends, rather than being centralized in the front-end node. Only a minimal additional latency penatly is paid for much improved scalability. We have implemented this new architecture, and we demonstrate its superior scalability by comparing it to a system that performs contect-aware distribution in the front-end, both under synthetic and trace-drive workloads.
A comparison of invasive and non‐invasive dayflowers (Commelinaceae) across experimental nutrient and water gradients

Little is known about the traits and mechanisms that determine whether or not a species will be invasive. Invasive species are those that establish and spread after being introduced to a novel habitat. A number of previous studies have attempted to correlate specific plant traits with invasiveness. However, many such studies may be flawed because they fail to account for shared evolutionary history or fail to measure performance directly. It is also clear that performance is context dependent. Thus, an approach that corrects for relatedness and incorporates multiple experimental conditions will provide additional information on performance traits of invasive species. I use this approach with two or three pairs of invasive and closely related noninvasive species of Commelinaceae grown over experimental gradients of nutrient and water availability. Invasive species have been introduced, established, and spread outside their native range; non-invasive species have been introduced, possibly (but not necessarily) established, but are not known to have spread outside their native range. The invasive species had higher relative growth rates (RGR) than non-invasive congeners at high nutrient availabilities, but did not differ from non-invasive species at low nutrient availabilities. This is consistent with a strategy where these particular invasive species are able to rapidly use available resources. Relative growth rates were also higher for two out of three invasive species across a water availability gradient, but RGR did not differ in plasticity between the invasive and non-invasive species. This suggests that nutrient addition, but not changes in water availability, might favour invasion of dayflowers. This approach is novel in comparing multiple pairs of invasive and non-invasive congeners across multiple experimental conditions and allows evaluation of the robustness of performance differences. It also controls for some of the effects of relatedness that might confound multispecies comparisons.
Using Event Structure Analysis to Understand Planned Social Change

In this article, the authors explore the application of Event Structure Analysis in understanding the linkages between events in planned social change. An illustrative example from the Comprehensive Strategy for Serious, Violent and Chronic Juvenile Offenders is used to highlight the key features of Event Structure Analysis.
Platform Architecture and Features for Thin-Client/Server Delivery for Oracle Interface and Tools

As the popularity of eLearning continues to grow, more and more academic institutions and corporate training and development departments are developing content and delivery systems for Internet based “online” education, training and development. Oracle lab environments may call for access to specific Oracle applications, products, and tools, and the feasibility of having every user or student locally install a required lab environment is low due to constraints with licensing, technical support, local hardware and software available, and the level of expertise of the end-user. The use of thin-client technology appears to present a solution to this problem. This report reviews the design and implementation of an extensible eLearning Information Systems architecture that allows integration of Oracle 8i and 9i development and administration tools with content delivery systems in online corporate training and development initiatives, and distance education and eLearning programs by delivering a “virtual-lab” (V-lab) environment. By utilizing current compression and streaming technology from protocol vendors such as Citrix, the advent of the “thin-client/ server laboratory”, or V-lab, is here and is supported by an educational format (pedagogy) and information systems architecture that significantly advances the ability of corporate and educational institutions to deliver viable, quality instruction of Oracle application development tools, GUI based resources, and Information System modeling and data analysis tools via the web. Attendees of this presentation will be familiarized with the platform architecture and associated technologies used to integrate and deliver GUI application based tools with the academic course content through the Internet, as well as the concept of “infomediation”. The principle outcomes of the report will be a detailed analysis of the platform architecture and associated Internet, broadband, and application integration technologies used to deliver Oracle via thin-client/server technologies, the performance metrics of the platform, a suggested academic support model, and associated deliverables for designing and implementing the system with new and existing organizational information systems.
Optimization of scenario construction for loss estimation in lifeline networks

Natural disasters have become a pressing national and international problem. Population growth, aging infrastructure, and climate change suggest that mounting losses will continue into the foreseeable future, hence mitigation and response planning is of increasing importance. The conduct of studies to support this type of regional planning often requires an estimation of the impacts of a single earthquake scenario on a region. This paper describes a method to identify a set of consequence scenarios that can be used in regional loss estimation for lifeline systems when computational demands are of concern, and the spatial coherence of individual consequence scenarios is important. This method is compared with Monte Carlo simulation.
Understanding complex network attack graphs through clustered adjacency matrices

We apply adjacency matrix clustering to network attack graphs for attack correlation, prediction, and hypothesizing. We self-multiply the clustered adjacency matrices to show attacker reachability across the network for a given number of attack steps, culminating in transitive closure for attack prediction over all possible number of steps. This reachability analysis provides a concise summary of the impact of network configuration changes on the attack graph. Using our framework, we also place intrusion alarms in the context of vulnerability-based attack graphs, so that false alarms become apparent and missed detections can be inferred. We introduce a graphical technique that shows multiple-step attacks by matching rows and columns of the clustered adjacency matrix. This allows attack impact/responses to be identified and prioritized according to the number of attack steps to victim machines, and allows attack origins to be determined. Our techniques have quadratic complexity in the size of the attack graph
The Tears Make Me Paint: The Role of Responsive Artmaking in Adolescent Art Therapy.

The intent of this article is to provide art therapists with a theoretical, historical, professional, and personal examination of the art as therapy approach and art psychotherapy (Moon, 1998). The...
The evolution of American College of Surgeons alcohol screening and brief intervention mandates

Over the past five years, trauma-center alcohol screening and brief intervention (SBI) implementation has advanced considerably. A key catalyst has been the willingness of the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma (ACS/COT) to consider policy guidelines based on empiric investigation. We summarized data on and policy discussions pertaining to the college’s current implementation of the alcohol SBI mandate at US trauma centers. Trauma programs at all US level-I trauma centers (N = 204) were contacted and asked to complete a survey regarding alcohol SBI practices in the year before the ACS/COT requirement became standard practice. A questionnaire that assessed alcohol screening methods and intervention capacity was developed to evaluate premandate SBI practices. Of the 204 level-1 trauma centers contacted, 148 (73%) responded to the survey. Over 70% of responding centers routinely employed laboratory tests to screen patients for alcohol; 39% routinely used a screening questionnaire or standardized screening instrument. Patients who screen positive for an alcohol use disorder (AUD) receive a formal alcohol consult or an informal alcohol discussion with a staff member approximately 25% of the time. We conclude that there was marked variability across level-I trauma centers in the percentage of patients screened for AUD and in the nature and extent of intervention among those who screened positive before implementation of the ACS/COT alcohol SBI mandate. In the wake of the mandate, orchestrated research and policy efforts could systematically implement and evaluate training in the delivery of evidence-based SBI as well as training in the development of trauma-center organizational capacity for the sustained delivery of SBI.
Enhanced effect of glycyl-L-glutamine on mouse preimplantation embryos in vitro.

A comparison of the effects of replacing L-glutamine with either glycyl-L-glutamine or alanyl-L-glutamine in a KSOM-type medium on the development of mouse preimplantation embryos in vitro has been made. Alanyl-L-glutamine has no significant effect on the rates of blastocyst formation, onset or completion of hatching, and on the numbers of inner cell mass and trophectoderm cells that develop. Glycyl-L-glutamine has no effect on the rate of blastocyst formation; it stimulates slightly the onset of hatching, but significantly increases the numbers of inner cell mass and trophectoderm cells that develop. Embryo transfer experiments comparing media containing either glutamine or glycyl-L-glutamine have not produced any gross abnormal fetal development. Recently, alanyl-L-glutamine has been used to replace glutamine in media for the culture of human preimplantation embryos. The results in this paper suggest that glycyl-L-glutamine may be a better choice of dipeptide.
Copula-Based Fusion of Correlated Decisions

Detection of random signals under a distributed setting is considered. Due to the random nature of the spatial phenomenon being observed, the sensor decisions collected at the fusion center are correlated. Assuming that local detectors are single threshold binary quantizers, a novel approach for the fusion of correlated decisions is proposed using the theory of copulas. The proposed approach assumes only the knowledge of the marginal distribution of sensor observations but no prior knowledge of their joint distribution. Using a Neyman-Pearson (NP) framework for detection at the fusion center, the optimal fusion rule is derived. An example involving the detection of nuclear radiation is presented to illustrate the proposed approach, and results demonstrating the efficiency of the copula-based fusion rule are shown.
POSTER: a pairing-free certificateless hybrid sign-cryption scheme for advanced metering infrastructures

CertificateLess Hybrid SignCryption (CL-HSC) scheme is useful for efficiently encapsulating symmetric keys for secure communications. It solves the key escrow problem and the certificate management problem. However, the existing scheme is not suitable for Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) networks because of the utilization of expensive pairing operations. As smart meter devices have limited computing power, we need efficient algorithms for AMI networks. In this poster, we propose a novel CL-HSC scheme without pairing operations. In order to evaluate its performance, we implemented our CL-HSC scheme and conventional hybrid encryption approaches. The experimental results show that our CL-HSC scheme is efficient and suitable for secure communications in AMI networks.
Printing Ink Formulations

This chapter is focusing on individual ink components. Inks may be comprised of main components, such as pigments to add color, resins or polymers to disperse the pigment, and carry the ink to the substrate and anchor it there. Usually, resins or polymers have to be dissolved in the solvent. Depending on type of the solvent, inks may be solvent-based or water-based. Obviously, there may be thermoplastic hot melt inks, and energy curable UV or EB inks. The former group uses melted polymer as an ink carrier, and the later is taking advantage of low-viscosity monomers and prepolymers, which eventually become polymers. This chapter is then introducing pigment dispersing and making finished ink. Selected ink formulations are discussed. Attention is concentrated on the difference between water-based solution and emulsion resins. The difference between colored and functional inks is highlighted. In conclusion, this chapter is briefly introducing functional inks for printed electronics.
Noise exposure assessment among groundskeepers in a university setting: A pilot study

ABSTRACTApproximately 870,000 U.S. workers are employed as landscaping and groundskeeping workers who perform various tasks and use a variety of tools that expose them to high noise levels, increasing their risk to noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). Several studies on noise exposure and NIHL in other job sectors have been published, but those on groundskeepers are very limited. This study aims to characterize the noise exposure of groundskeepers. Participants were monitored over their entire work shift for personal noise exposure by wearing noise dosimeters at shoulder level, 4 in from the ear. Using two different dosimeter settings (OSHA and NIOSH), the time-weighted averages (TWAs) and 1-min averages of noise exposure levels in decibels (dBA) were obtained. The participants were also asked to fill out an activity card daily to document their tasks, tools used, location and noise perception. Sound pressure levels (SPLs) produced by various groundskeeping equipment and tools were measured at full throttle...
Time Evolving Fission Chain Theory and Fast Neutron and Gamma-Ray Counting Distributions

AbstractWe solve a simple theoretical model of time evolving fission chains due to Feynman that generalizes and asymptotically approaches the point model theory. The point model theory has been used to analyze thermal neutron counting data. This extension of the theory underlies fast counting data for both neutrons and gamma rays from metal systems. Fast neutron and gamma-ray counting is now possible using liquid scintillator arrays with nanosecond time resolution. For individual fission chains, the differential equations describing three correlated probability distributions are solved: the time-dependent internal neutron population, accumulation of fissions in time, and accumulation of leaked neutrons in time. Explicit analytic formulas are given for correlated moments of the time evolving chain populations. The equations for random time gate fast neutron and gamma-ray counting distributions, due to randomly initiated chains, are presented. Correlated moment equations are given for both random time gate ...
Office-Based Subglottic Evaluation in Children With Risk of Subglottic Hemangioma.

Purpose:Children with V3 cutaneous infantile hemangiomas (IH) and PHACE syndrome have a high incidence for airway hemangioma, 29% and 52%, respectively. Therefore, a clinical evaluation for these high-risk children is essential. We report our experience with in-office lower airway evaluation (OLAE) in these high-risk children.Results:Since 2003, 5 children with IH of the V3 cutaneous distribution and 3 children with PHACE syndrome underwent OLAE. Average age of presentation was 2.75 months. Two children had stridor at initial evaluation, and 1 child had subglottic hemangioma. This child was evaluated serially with OLAE to monitor disease progression and treatment response. A total of 10 upper tracheoscopies were performed on the 8 patients without respiratory complications.Conclusion:An airway evaluation is essential to evaluate and manage this high-risk population. Typically, operative endoscopy requires general anesthesia. However, in these high-risk children, we have performed OLAE without sedation to ...
Electrostatic and Hydrophobic Interactions Mediate Single-Stranded DNA Recognition and Acta2 Repression by Purine-Rich Element-Binding Protein B

Myofibroblast differentiation is characterized by an increased level of expression of cytoskeletal smooth muscle α-actin. In human and murine fibroblasts, the gene encoding smooth muscle α-actin (Acta2) is tightly regulated by a network of transcription factors that either activate or repress the 5' promoter-enhancer in response to environmental cues signaling tissue repair and remodeling. Purine-rich element-binding protein B (Purβ) suppresses the expression of Acta2 by cooperatively interacting with the sense strand of a 5' polypurine sequence containing an inverted MCAT cis element required for gene activation. In this study, we evaluated the chemical basis of nucleoprotein complex formation between the Purβ repressor and the purine-rich strand of the MCAT element in the mouse Acta2 promoter. Quantitative single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) binding assays conducted in the presence of increasing concentrations of monovalent salt or anionic detergent suggested that the assembly of a high-affinity nucleoprotein complex is driven by a combination of electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions. Consistent with the results of pH titration analysis, site-directed mutagenesis revealed several basic amino acid residues in the intermolecular (R267) and intramolecular (K82 and R159) subdomains that are essential for Purβ transcriptional repressor function in Acta2 promoter-reporter assays. In keeping with their diminished Acta2 repressor activity in fibroblasts, purified Purβ variants containing an R267A mutation exhibited reduced binding affinity for purine-rich ssDNA. Moreover, certain double and triple-point mutants were also defective in binding to the Acta2 corepressor protein, Y-box-binding protein 1. Collectively, these findings establish the repertoire of noncovalent interactions that account for the unique structural and functional properties of Purβ.
A Concurrency Theorem and Geometer's Sketchpad

(1997). A Concurrency Theorem and Geometer's Sketchpad. The College Mathematics Journal: Vol. 28, No. 2, pp. 129-132.
Performance tuning of Newton-GMRES methods for discontinuous Galerkin discretizations of the Navier-Stokes equations

In this work, we investigate numerical solvers and time integrators for the system of Ordinary Differential Equations (ODEs) arising from the Discontinuous Galerkin Finite Element Method (DG-FEM) semi-discretization of the Navier-Stokes equations to explore potential speedup opportunities. DG-FEMs have many desirable properties such as stability, high-order accuracy, and ability to handle complex geometries. However, they are notorious for their high computational cost and storage. In this document, our problems are spatially discretized with DG-FEM, temporally discretized with various implicit ODE solvers, and the nonlinear systems are solved using a Newton-GMRES method [1, 2]. We study the effects of varying several parameters, including the ODE solver, predictors for Newton’s method, GMRES tolerance, and Jacobian recycling. We show that by properly choosing these parameters, speedup factors of between 5 and 14 can be achieved over nonoptimal choices. The numerical experiments are performed on two model flow problems: An Euler vortex and the viscous flow over a 2D NACA wing at a high angle of attack.
Influences of Teacher Delivery, Student Engagement, and Observation Focus on Preservice Teachers' Perceptions of Teaching Effectiveness.

The purpose of this study was to examine how teacher delivery, student engagement, and observation focus influenced preservice teachers’ ratings of teaching effectiveness. Participants (N = 84 preservice teachers) viewed short teaching excerpts of orchestral and choral rehearsals wherein the teacher displayed either high or low teacher delivery, the students displayed high or low student engagement, and the camera was focused on either the teacher or the students. Participants were asked to rate the overall effectiveness of the lesson on a 7-point Likert-type scale. Results indicated that lessons with high teacher delivery and high student engagement, with a view of the teacher, were rated as most effective, and lessons with low teacher delivery and low student engagement, with a view of the students, were rated as least effective. There were significant main effects for observation focus, teacher delivery, and student engagement, and significant two-way interactions between each of the variables.
Prevalence and control of diabetes mellitus among older residents in Wuhan municipality

Objective To describe the prevalence,awareness and control status of diabetes mellitus( DM) among older residents in Wuhan city,Hubei province and to provide reference for making intervention measures. Methods By using cluster sampling,357 684 urban and rural residents aged 65 years and above participating in a physical examination free of charge were selected for a blood sugar test and questionnaire survey in 2012 in Wuhan city. Results In the participants,the DM prevalence rate was 12. 55% and the standardization prevalence rate was 12. 51%; the rate of impaired fasting glucose( IFG) was 9. 06%. The prevalence rate of DM in the urban residents( 15. 78%) was higher than that in the rural( 9. 43%),but the IFG rate of the urban residents( 8. 90%) was lower than that of the rural( 9. 21%),with statistically significant difference( P 0. 01). In the urban residents,the prevalence rate of DM in the males( 15. 04%) was lower than in the females( 16. 40%),but the IFG rate of the males( 9. 06%) was higher than that of the females( 8.77%). However,in the rural residents,the prevalence rates of DM and IFG in the males( 8.26%,8.72%) were lower than those in the females( 10. 50%,9. 66%),with statistically significant differences( P 0. 01). In all the residents,the awareness rate and control rate were 62. 57%,35. 08% and the rates of urban residents( 74. 61%,42. 80%) were higher than those of the rural residents( 43. 19%,22. 64%),with statistically significant differences( P 0. 01). Conclusion The DM prevalence rate is high among the residents aged 65 years and older in Wuhan city,but the awareness rate and control rate of DM are low,with obviously lower rates in rural older people than in the urban.
Survey on Immunization Coverage of National Immunization Program Among the Children,Pulandian City,2014

Objective To study the coverage of national immunization program(NIP)among the children in Pulandian city,2014. Methods The two stage probability proportional to size sampling(PPS)was adopted on the immunization coverage in 200 children born during January 1,2010-September 30,2012,Pulandian city. Results Totally 200 children were surveyed,the rate of establishing immunization certificates was 100%,establishing immunization cards was 100%,coincidence of certificates and cards was 91.33%.The basic immunization coverage rate was BCG 99.50%,OPV100.00%,DPT 100.00%,HepB 99.00%,MV 99.00%,JE 97.50%,MenA 98.00%,HepA 97.00%.99.00% children were immunized with timely HepB1,the full immunization coverage rate of 8vaccines was 90.00%. Conclusion The immunization coverage of national immunization program in children is relatively high in Pulandian city,yet with unqualified and missing vaccinations.
The structure of plasmalogens: VI. Configuration of the double bond in the α,β-unsaturated ether linkage of phosphatidal choline

The infrared spectrum of α-1-alkenyl glyceryl ether, prepared from pure phosphatidal choline, shows a singlet at 6.00 μ (1667 cm−1) and a band at 13.55 μ (738 cm−1). These two bands disappear after hydrogenation of the unsaturated ether. No appreciable absorption at 10–11 μ (1000-910 cm−1) was found. This evidence is consistent with the properties of cis- and not with those of trans-1-alkenyl alkyl ethers, and permits the assignment of the cis configuration to the double bond in the α,β-unsaturated ether linkage.
Effect of high and low doses of ursodeoxycholic acid on gallstone dissolution in humans.

To test the effectiveness of ursodeoxycholic acid as a gallstone dissolving agent, doses of 250 mg/day and 1000 mg/day were administered for 1 year to two groups of 10 and 11 subjects each. Success was defined as a reduction in stone size and number of 50% or more. Both groups of subjects were similar when comparing age, height, weight, gallstone size, and number although more men were enrolled in the high-dose treatment group. After 1 yr of high-dose ursodeoxycholic acid, successful treatment occurred in 70% of subjects associated with a rise in biliary ursodeoxycholic acid (1.7 to 51%) and a decline in the proportions of cholic acid (36 to 16%), deoxycholic acid (19 to 10%), chenodeoxycholic acid (41 to 23%), and lithocholic acid (1.9 to 0.4%). The mean cholesterol saturation index decreased from 1.5 to 0.7 and was accompanied by a 3.0-fold reduction in the activity of HMG CoA reductase (81 to 29 units) in 2 subjects. With low-dose ursodeoxycholic acid, successful treatment occurred in 30% of subjects accompanied by a rise in biliary ursodeoxycholic acid to 29% of total bile acids; and a decline in deoxycholic acid (33 to 25%), chenodeoxycholic acid (46 to 22%), and lithocholic acid (4.0 to 2.4%), while cholic acid (22%) did not change. The mean cholesterol saturation index fell from 1.9 to 1.2. No untoward effects (diarrhea or elevated serum transaminase levels) were noted in either group. These results confirm that both high and low doses of ursodeoxycholic acid dissol ve gallstones in humans and were not associated with uncomfortable side effects. However, high doses of ursodeoxycholic acid were more effective and produced a greater reduction in the cholesterol saturation index, presumably by reducing hepatic cholesterol synthesis. Thus, the smallest effective dose of ursodeoxycholic acid probably lies between 250 mg and 1000 mg/day.
VA residency programs in optometry: characteristics of the applicants.

BACKGROUND Residency programs in optometry have become an important part of the training of doctors of optometry. Although there have been many studies on the subject, there are no known reports which concentrate solely on the characteristics of residency programs' applicants. METHODS Applicant data obtained from the application and matching services utilized by VA programs for the 1991-92 and 1992-93 residency years was analyzed and, in certain circumstances, compared against appropriate national data. RESULTS The ratio of applicants to available residency positions exceeded 2:1. The majority of applicants were women. During each residency application year studied, at least one applicant came from each of the accredited schools and colleges of optometry. Stronger scores from the National Board of Examiners in Optometry and higher grade point averages from the optometry curriculum correlated with the matching of an applicant to a residency program. CONCLUSIONS As the practice of optometry continues to evolve, the profile of many aspects of optometric education, including residency training, will also change over the years. This paper, as baseline information, may serve in future analyses to demonstrate these changes with respect to applicant characteristics.
GENETIC CHARACTERIZATION OF VIF, VPR, AND VPU SEQUENCES FROM LONG-TERM SURVIVORS OF HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS TYPE 1 INFECTION

Abstract The identification of HIV-1-infected individuals who remain asymptomatic despite prolonged infection presents a unique opportunity to understand virologic and host factors involved in the pathogenesis of AIDS. We have previously identified 10 long-term survivors (LTS) who are clinically healthy and immunologically normal despite 13 to 15 years of HIV-1 infection. In this study, we examined three accessory genes of HIV-1, vif, vpr, and vpu, in these LTS. A total of 52 vif, 54 vpr, and 55 vpu nucleotide sequences were obtained from the peripheral blood mononuclear cells of these patients. Analysis of these sequences revealed no gross deletions or insertions. Most of the clones were full-length with an intact open reading frame. Phylogenetic analyses of the vif, vpr, and vpu sequences from the LTS suggested that the HIV-1 strains found in the study subjects are not significantly different from those found in patients with AIDS and that the viruses in the LTS are unlikely to share a common genetic origin. Furthermore, a similar degree of overall genetic diversity between viruses from the LTS and AIDS patients suggests that there is unlikely a significant correlation between the degree of genetic diversity and the rate of disease development. Factors other than genetic divergence, such as viral load and phenotype, are likely to impact more on disease status.
Initial Reactions in Anaerobic Glycolysis

Abstract: The “Polyol Pathway” is responsible for conversion of glucose to fructose in diabetic cataract, and in diabetic nerve cells. Sorbitol dehydrogenase is present and aldose reductase absent from liver tissue. Phosphofructokinase (PFK) catalyzes a key regulatory reaction in glycolysis. ATP and citrate powerfully inhibit PFK, while ADP, insulin and NH3 stimulate its activity. Glucagon inhibits hepatic PFK. Epinephrine stimulates PFK activity in muscle tissue.
Paleosol Diagenesis and Its Deep-Time Paleoenvironmental Implications, Pennsylvanian–Permian Lodève Basin, France

Abstract Sedimentological, petrographic, and geochemical investigations of the Permo-Carboniferous Lodeve Basin, France show complete diagenetic resetting of soil-formed minerals. Carbonate cements include diagenetic end-member phreatic-zone and burial cements in nodules and veins. Cement stratigraphy reveals multiple generations, including low-Mg calcite, ferroan calcite, dolomite, barite, and silica cements that record the burial and exhumation history of the basin. Stable-isotope analysis of calcite nodules yields uncorrected δ13C values of −5.0‰ and −0.7‰, and between 0.4‰ and −3.8‰ for calcite veins; corresponding δ18O values of the calcite nodules are −3.6‰ and 0.2‰, while veins are between −3.1‰ and −11.0‰. Dolomite cements have uncorrected δ13C values of −0.2‰ to −6.7‰ and δ18O values of 2.0‰ to −6.1‰. These values represent micritic calcite as well as mimetic dolomite, dolomite rhombs, microspar calcite, sparry calcite, and ferroan calcite. Isotopic values record multiple fluids of increasing temperature that flowed through the basin from the Triassic through Cenozoic, and are affiliated with the burial of the basin as well as lithospheric thinning during Pangean breakup. Following careful screening of groundwater nodules, veins and paleosols (n = 46), no carbonate retains its primary pedogenic signal or utility for use in quantitative paleoclimate reconstructions. These data document the importance of careful petrographic and geochemical screening for diagenetic alteration of paleosol carbonates before quantitative paleoclimate proxies are applied.
Defining social entrepreneurship: a Schumpeterian non-solution

Defining social entrepreneurship has found to be a daunting task for many scholars over the last 20 years. Yet this is important, both due to scholarship requirements, and because the social entrepreneur faces the ongoing challenge of validating his or her vision and purpose both to business and to society. This relatively new entrepreneur must be able to define, assess and deliver value in contrast to the traditional economic performance expected of business entrepreneurs. This value is most often termed social value, or social wealth. Sustainable entrepreneurship, environmental and eco-preneurship are even newer concepts, which also struggle to find a proper definition. Why such difficulty? We believe it boils down to clearly defining entrepreneurship and social value. The aim of this paper is to provide clarity in these two primary areas of confusion. To do this, we will bring the insights from the most quoted author on the issue, the late Gregory Dees, and the undisputed foremost scholar in the field of entrepreneurship, Joseph Schumpeter. With Schumpeter's help, we end up offering a non-solution, one that questions the tradition within social entrepreneurship, which is the only one Schumpeter has to offer.
A New Development in Trypanosoma cruzi Detection.

Chagas disease is caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi and is an important cause of morbidity and mortality in areas of Latin America where Chagas disease is endemic and among infected individuals who have migrated to nonendemic areas of North America and Europe. There are many diagnostic tests that are employed in the serological diagnosis of this infection. In this issue of the Journal of Clinical Microbiology, Bautista-Lopez et al. provide characterization of excretory vesicles (EVs) from Vero cells infected with T. cruzi and provide data on the EVs produced by trypomastigotes and amastigotes (N. L. Bautista-Lopez et al., J Clin Microbiol 55:744-758, 2017, https://doi.org/10.1128/JCM.01649-16). Their proteomic study defines potential targets to evaluate for improved diagnostic tests, effects on host cell biology that contribute to the pathogenesis of infection, and vaccine candidates. If any of the EV-associated proteins identified were to be correlated to cure of infection, this would be a major advance.
Stretchable and ultraflexible organic electronics

Stretchable and ultraflexible electronic devices have a broad range of potential uses, from robust devices for energy storage and conversion to biomedical devices that make conformal interfaces with the skin and internal organs. Organics have long been associated with mechanical compliance, which enables inexpensive manufacturing via roll-to-roll printing. This article provides an overview of the use of organic electronic materials, including π-conjugated polymers and small molecules, in highly deformable devices. It begins with a comparison of devices based on organic devices to those based on inorganic composites. The thin-film nature of organic semiconductor devices has also led to the development of several techniques for metrology that can be applied specifically to brittle organic thin films. The article concludes with a brief discussion of the applications of stretchable and ultraflexible organic electronic devices and a prescriptive outlook for successful collaborative work in this exciting, interdisciplinary field.
Ocular safety assessment of sodium iodate in cynomolgus monkeys: Characterization of a classic retinal toxicant

Although sodium iodate (NaIO3)-induced retinal injury model has been widely used in rodents, its application in large animal species has encountered variation in retinal toxicity. NaIO3 induced ret...
Protein Turnover Measurements in Human Serum by Serial Immunoaffinity LC-MS/MS

BACKGROUND: The half-life of target proteins is frequently an important parameter in mechanistic pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) modeling of biotherapeutics. Clinical studies for accurate measurement of physiologically relevant protein turnover can reduce the uncertainty in PK/PD model-based predictions, for example, of the therapeutic dose and dosing regimen in first-in-human clinical trials. METHODS: We used a targeted mass spectrometry work flow based on serial immunoaffinity enrichment ofmultiple human serum proteins from a [5,5,5- 2 H 3 ]-L-leucine tracer pulse-chase study in healthy volunteers. To confirm the reproducibility of turnover measurements from serial immunoaffinity enrichment, multiple aliquots from the same sample set were subjected to protein turnover analysis in varying order. Tracer incorporation was measured by multiple–reaction-monitoring mass spectrometry and target turnover was calculated using a four-compartment pharmacokinetic model. RESULTS: Five proteins of clinical or therapeutic relevance including soluble tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily member 12A, tissue factor pathway inhibitor, soluble interleukin 1 receptor like 1, soluble mucosal addressin cell adhesion molecule 1, and muscle-specific creatine kinase were sequentially subjected to turnover analysis from the same human serum sample. Calculated half-lives ranged from 5–15 h; however, no tracer incorporation was observed for mucosal addressin cell adhesion molecule 1. CONCLUSIONS: The utility of clinical pulse-chase studies to investigate protein turnover can be extended by serial immunoaffinity enrichment of target proteins. Turnover analysis from serum and subsequently from remaining supernatants provided analytical sensitivity and reproducibility for multiple human target proteins in the same sample set, irrespective of the order of analysis.
How Common are Dominated Health Plan Options? Evidence from Employer Health Benefits with High-Deductible Plans

We analyze detailed data on plan designs from the Kaiser Family Foundation Employer Health Benefits Survey for 331 firms that offered employees both a qualifying high-deductible health plan and a lower-deductible option. For an employee at these firms selecting the lower-deductible option will decrease the deductible by $1,300 on average. However, the cost of that additional coverage for the employee, from increased employee premiums and forgone firm contributions to health savings accounts, is nearly as large, averaging $1,100. In 65% of firms the high-deductible option would result in lower maximum possible spending for the employee for the year. Further, we estimate based on simplified plan representations that the high-deductible plan financially dominates the lower-deductible option for employees at roughly half of the firms. Employees facing a range of possible medical-spending distributions would save on average over $500 per year with the high-deductible option, often with no additional annual financial risk. While we cannot pin down the mechanism behind these patterns conclusively, the evidence is consistent with firms passing through lower average costs for high-deductible plans generated by adverse selection patterns to the employees choosing those plans. These results raise questions about the net effect of offering employees choices over plans with different coverage levels. Rather than creating a classic trade-off between risk and expected spending, at many firms plan options generate disparities in overall benefit value for employees who opt into different levels of coverage.
Sensory Reinforcement Strategies for the Treatment of Nonsocially Mediated Self-Injury

Although self-injurious behavior (SIB) is often reinforced by social-positive reinforcement or social-negative reinforcement, it sometimes occurs independent of social consequences. In this paper, literature on the assessment of nonsocially mediated SIB and its treatment through the use of substitute sensory stimulation is reviewed. A brief look at biological factors that may play a role in the maintenance of nonsocially mediated SIB as well as suggestions for future research are also included.
Electron beam processing to improve the functionality of biodegradable food packaging

Abstract This chapter discusses applications of electron beam (eBeam) technology for modification of polyesters, polysaccharides, and proteins. The outcomes of eBeam on biopolymers include cross-linking and/or molecular weight reduction. Depending on the desired outcome, the eBeam can be applied to already formed films or to solutions of biopolymers, in the presence or absence of oxygen. Thus, this technology can be used to form laminate films as well as to prepare materials with tailored biodegradability.
Toward Approximating Job Completion Time in Vehicular Clouds

Motivated by the phenomenal success of conventional cloud computing, vehicular clouds (VCs) were introduced as a group of vehicles whose corporate computing, sensing, communication, and physical resources can be coordinated and dynamically allocated to authorized users. Just as in conventional clouds, job completion time ranks high among the fundamental quantitative performance figures of merit. Recently, the authors have analytically investigated the effect of a redundancy-based job assignment on job completion time in VCs. However, these analytical expressions require full knowledge of the distribution functions of various random variables contributing to job completion time. In a practical context, the data center manager does not know these distribution functions. Instead, using accumulated empirical data, they may be able to estimate the first and, perhaps, the second moments of these random variables. Yet, getting a handle on the expected job completion time is a very important problem that must be addressed. Consequently, it is of great theoretical interest and practical relevance to be able to approximate the expression of job completion time. With this in mind, the main contribution of this paper is to offer easy-to-compute approximations of job completion time when estimates of the first or the first two moments of the intervening random variables are available. A comprehensive set of simulations have shown that our approximations are very close to the analytical predictions.
Reduced Dimensional Chebyshev-Polynomial Chaos Approach for Fast Mixed Epistemic-Aleatory Uncertainty Quantification of Transmission Line Networks

This paper presents a hybrid Chebyshev-polynomial chaos (CPC) metamodel for the uncertainty quantification of multiconductor transmission line networks. The key feature of this metamodel is its capacity to account for two different types of uncertainty simultaneously present in a network—uncertainty arising from imprecise knowledge regarding the network parameters (epistemic uncertainty) and uncertainty arising from the random variability in the network parameters (aleatory uncertainty). Unfortunately, when investigating such mixed epistemic-aleatory problems, the CPU costs to construct the hybrid CPC metamodel becomes exorbitantly large. To address this issue, a new sensitivity sweeping-based dimension reduction algorithm especially tailored for mixed epistemic-aleatory problems has been developed in this paper. Numerical techniques based on iterative model enrichment and priority-based sampling have also been developed to further enhance the efficiency of the algorithm.
Means of Optimizing Physical Activity in the Preschool Environment

During early childhood, the preschool years serve as a formative time for the development of movement skills and healthy, active behaviors. Currently, one fifth of children in this population are overweight or obese and only half of the children participate in sufficient activity to meet recommendations. Physical activity guidelines for preschool children include both structured and unstructured activities of various intensities, limitations on sedentary behaviors, fundamental motor skill competence, and the inclusion of caregivers to facilitate activity. The majority of US children are enrolled in preschool programs, so this environment has the potential to significantly influence young children's activity levels. Factors that have been associated with physical activity levels within the preschool setting include the influence of caregivers, the preschool environment, outdoor play, and motor skill development and competence. This review evaluated 16 publications in order to examine whether these factors had a significant impact on physical activity in the preschool setting. The findings from this review suggest the use of a multicomponent model, including the factors evaluated, may be the optimal strategy to increase activity levels in preschool children. Policy related to these factors should be created and implemented in order to facilitate optimal physical activity environments for preschool children.