cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Kinesiology Faculty Citations Across Academic Rank

Citations to research reports are used as a measure for the influence of a scholar’s research line when seeking promotion, grants, and awards. The current study documented the distributions of citations to kinesiology scholars of various academic ranks. Google Scholar Citations was searched for user profiles using five research interest areas related to kinesiology. Total Google Scholar Citations, rank, and country were collected for 741 scholars from 68 countries. Citation data for all ranks had large positive skews and wide variation, so percentile data were reported for scholars from four English-speaking countries with large numbers of Google Scholar Citations profiles (n = 233). There was a significant difference in the distribution of citations across the top three academic ranks. The current data provide confirmatory information on kinesiology scholar research influence from English-speaking countries, which can be used to supplement peer-evaluation of the research reports themselves.
Incorporation of [14C]histidine into homocarnosine and carnosine of frog brain in vivo and in vitro

1. Homocarnosine, carnosine and histidine were determined in brain from several species and the results compared with values in the literature. 2. [(14)C]Homocarnosine and [(14)C]carnosine were isolated from frog brain after intracerebral injection of [(14)C]histidine in vivo. 3. Whole frog brain, incubated in vitro with l-[(14)C]histidine, formed labelled homocarnosine and carnosine. 4. A frog brain homogenate or supernatant fraction catalysed the incorporation of l-[(14)C]histidine into homocarnosine and carnosine. 5. The results indicate that brain tissue can synthesize homocarnosine and carnosine.
Comments on R. P. Inman

Consider the legislative process leading to school finance reform. Various coalitions of legislators have the potential to pass reform measures on which their members agree. The outcomes achievable by a coalition are constrained by the technology of school operation and by social and legal constraints on redistribution between coalition members. Subject to these constraints, the members of a potential coalition will bargain over the terms of reform. A coalition will fail if its members are unable to come to an agreement, or some members abandon the coalition to join a second which offers preferred outcomes.
Unusual Food Items from Stomachs of American Badgers (Taxidea taxus) in Expanding Range in Arkansas

Abstract Taxidea taxus (American Badger), historically a prairie species, has expanded its range southeastward in Arkansas likely due to habitat alterations resulting from agricultural modification of the landscape. Its typical foods are an array of small mammals, and seldom have amphibians been documented in its diet. Northeastern Arkansas was prone to flooding prior to the construction of levees, and American Badgers have since colonized the agricultural habitat that developed after flooding stopped. We found that 2 road-killed badgers collected from a newly established population in northeastern Arkansas had consumed many frogs. This is the first account of numerous amphibians documented in the diet of badgers.
Science, clinical outcomes and the popularization of diabetes surgery.

Purpose of reviewBariatric surgery is an important option for the treatment of severe (type III) obesity. Its role in the management of type 2 diabetes in overweight and obese patients needs to be defined.Recent findingsIntensified medical therapy can achieve target metabolic goals in many but not a
The Designation of the First Recurrent Vein in Ichneumonidae (Hymenoptera)

In naming the veins of the fore wings in Ichneumonidae, the name “first recurrent” has been frequently miss-applied to the second abscissa of the discoideus. This error is pointed out, and the concept of the first recurrent vein in ichneumonids is explained.
Enhanced resistance to fall armyworm (Lepidoptera: Noctudiae) in Acremonium endophyte-infected turfgrasses

Variation in resistance to insects in Acremonium endophyte-infected turfgrasses was studied using fall armyworms, Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith), and southern armyworms, Spodoptera eridania (Cramer). Third instars were fed one of three to four genotypes each of five turfgrass species. Development on Acremonium-infected grasses was compared with development on genetically identical endophyte-free controls. No differences in consumption, weight, survival, or developmental time were detected in fall armyworms fed tall fescue, Festuca arundinacea Schreb., infected with Acremonium coenophialum Morgan-Jones & Gams compared with endophyte-free tall fescue. Fall armyworm development was affected to different degrees in larvae fed four genotypes of perennial ryegrass, Lolium perenne L., infected with Acremonium lolii Latch Christensen & Samuels. Fall armyworms fed hard fescue, Festuca longifolia Thuill, and Chewings fescue, Festuca rubra L. subsp. commutata Gaud, infected with Acremonium spp. showed dramatic reductions in larval weight, consumption, and survival relative to endophyte-free controls. Larvae that fed on infected grasses did not survive to pupation. However, development of fall armyworms fed blue fescue, Festuca glauca Lam., infected with Acremonium spp. did not differ from that of those feeding on endophyte-free blue fescue. Endophyte concentration within blue fescue was less than in the hard and Chewings fescues. In contrast to fall armyworms, southern armyworms preferred and had improved development on endophyte-infected tall fescue. These results indicate that endophyte-enhanced resistance varies among and within species of grasses and endophytes. Researchers need to be aware of the potential of endophytes for breeding purposes and as sources of variation in natural populations.
Interconnected metal-ceramic composites by chemical means

Using a sol-gel technique, Ni/α-Al2O3 composites with ceramic content ranging from 33–95 vol.% have been synthesized. The process involves dispersing the metal and ceramic precursors in solution followed by calcination in a reducing environment. Fully dense composites are obtained by hot pressing at 1,400°C in an oxygen partial pressure of 10-12 atm. For the composites containing 20 vol.% metal or higher, the metallic phase was been found to be completely continuous. All of the composites exhibited enhanced fracture toughness behavior relative to the pure ceramic.
Ruach Hakodesh: The Epiphanic and Cosmic Nature of Imagination in the Art of Michael Jackson and His Influence on My Image-Making

Rich and layered are the meanings surrounding the concept of Ruach Hakodesh. The book of Genesis describes a “rushing spirit of God over the face of the waters.” A brooding and hovering wind, the animating breath of the cosmos, a Divinely disruptive force of inspiration and imagination are but a few possible flavors of poetic exegesis. In many cultures, dance is considered a sacred link between the realm of the Divine and ordinary life. When contemplating these thoughts, I am entrained by both the scriptural and poetic interpretations of Ruach Hakodesh and how they may relate to the multifaceted creative imagination of artist and performer, Michael Jackson. From my perspective as a visual artist, I offer reflections on Jackson’s archetypal gestures, his performance art aesthetic, and the unconventional religious witness inherent in his creative process. For decades my art has been devoted to the expression of spiritual experience through allegorical figuration. Within that context, I also share images that were directly informed by the epiphanic and cosmic nature of the art of Michael Jackson.
Characterization of creep feed consumption and its subsequent effects on immune response, scouring index and performance of weanling pigs.

Four trials were conducted to characterize the consumption of creep feed by nursing pigs and the effects of creep feeding (from 10 d to weaning at 28 d) on the immune response, scouring index and subsequent performance of weanling pigs. Pigs were fed a ground 20% CP corn-soybean meal-whey diet with 1.0% chromic oxide (control, 9 litters), this diet with 2.7% ovalbumin added as a dietary antigen (ovalbumin, 14 litters), or no creep feed (unexposed, 11 litters). At weaning, pigs within a litter were fed a 20% CP corn-soybean meal diet either with or without 2.7% ovalbumin. Creep-fed litters began eating at 11 d of age and disappearance of creep feed increased linearly until weaning (P less than .01). However, based on the chronic oxide coloring of the feces, total creep feed consumption was quite variable from pig to pig (13 to 194 g) and from litter to litter (107 to 1,550 g). Preweaning daily gain was similar between creep-fed and noncreep-fed litters; larger litters generally had lower daily gains (P less than .09) and less feed disappearance per pig (P less than .02). Weekly blood sampling showed that pigs fed the antigen diet had a higher (P less than .001) antibody titer to ovalbumin at 14, 21 and 28 d of age than did pigs fed the control diet or pigs unexposed to creep feed. At 56 and 63 d of age, all pigs given an ovalbumin injection at 49 d (1 ml containing 3 mg of ovalbumin) had responded (P less than .001) to injection, with the lowest titers for pigs fed the control creep diet and the highest titers for pigs fed the ovalbumin creep diet; titers were intermediate for pigs not fed creep. Regardless of preweaning or postweaning treatment, most pigs began scouring 4 to 5 d postweaning; scouring peaked at d 10 and returned to normal after d 15. Although the magnitude of difference was small, creep-fed pigs tended to scour more than pigs not fed creep (P less than .01). Postweaning performance was not influenced by preweaning treatments.
Performance of Private Health Insurers in the Commercial Market

This article examines the performance of private insurers operating in the individual and employer group markets in the United States. Premiums charged by health insurers reflect expected claims as well as administrative expenses and profits. Empirical evidence suggests notable differences in insurer performance between the individual and group markets. Studies also suggest that insurer performance varies by insurance market structure and the regulatory environment in which firms operate.
Stress-Relief Cracking in Simulated-Coarse-Grained Heat Affected Zone of a Creep-Resistant Steel

Cracking has been reported in newly constructed water wall panels of fossil power plants during startup testing. Both high hardness (exceeding 350 HV) and high level of welding residual stress have been reported in welds of waterwall panels made of T23 and T24 steels. Stress-relief cracking (SRC) is being considered as a possible failure mechanism during high temperature exposure such as PWHT. High temperature exposure of non PWHT-ed welds of Grade T23 and T24 steels leads to hardening in the weld and coarse-grained heat-affected zone (CGHAZ). It has been suggested that such a hardening mechanism can lead to stress-relief cracking (SRC). The objective of this study is to evaluate the susceptibility to SRC in the coarse grained heat affected zone (CGHAZ) of Grade T24 steel utilizing a Gleeble-based SRC test developed at The Ohio State University. The strain-age cracking test developed at The Ohio State University was modified in order to better replicate the conditions of PWHT in highly restrained welds and quantify the stress-relief cracking susceptibility in creep resistant steels. In addition to reduction in area and time to failure, the modified test allows quantification of the stress and strain that cause failure during SRC testing. This test utilizes the Gleeble® 3800 thermo-mechanical simulator. SRC testing of simulated-CGHAZ in Grade T24 Steel has revealed ductile failure for the sample tested at 600 °C, predominantly intergranular with ductile features for the sample tested at 650 °C, and brittle intergranular failures for the samples tested at temperatures of 675 °C and above. For PWHT above 600 °C at residual stress levels close to the yield stress, the CGHAZ in Grade T24 steel welds may be susceptible to SRC.
The Genetics of Personality

Theoretical, methodological and empirical advances have created a resurgence of interest in personality within the behavioral sciences. Theoreticians have made progress in explicating the nature of personality by identifying a reduced set of dimensions that capture much, albeit not all, of the between-individual variation in personality. Clinical researchers have documented the importance of this variation in predicting and understanding the etiology of mental illness and other important life outcomes and neurobiologists are beginning to identify the neural structures and processes that are the biological basis of personality. Twin and adoption research has consistently implicated the importance of genetic influences on individual differences in personality, suggesting that approximately 50% of the variance in personality characteristics is associated with inherited genetic factors, some of which may be nonadditive in effect. Remarkably, the environmental factors that account for the remaining 50% of the variance appear to be those that create differences rather than similarities among reared-together relatives. The substantial heritability of personality characteristics has provided justification for investigations aimed at identifying the specific genes that underlie individual differences in personality. Despite considerable effort, candidate genes studies have yielded only a few promising leads over the past 20 years. More recently, genome-wide association studies have similarly failed to yield any confirmed associations of specific genetic variants with personality, in all likelihood, because the effect associated with any single genetic variant is very small and so will require massive sample sizes to detect. One promising area of personality research that sets this phenotype apart from most that are studied by geneticists involves characterizing the complex interplay between genetic and environmental factors in the development of personality.
Effective faculty evaluation at the teaching-centered university: Building a fair and authentic portfolio of faculty work

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to determine the most fair, authentic, and reliable elements to include in a portfolio of faculty work, specifically at teaching-centered institutions. Design/methodology/approach – This paper examines and evaluates relevant literature pertaining to faculty portfolios of work and recommends portfolio formats for teaching-centered institutions. Findings – The author concludes that the four most essential components of a faculty member’s portfolio at a teaching-centered university are mindful student evaluations, critical peer evaluations, a sample of teaching materials, and evidence of collegial behavior. Originality/value – This paper is valuable for administrators, deans, and department chairs who are evaluating their current rank, tenure, and promotions criteria and processes.
Accidental pediatric ingestion, hospital charges and failure to utilize a poison control center.

PROBLEM: Telephone contact with a poison control center may determine that accidental poison ingestion may not pose a risk of developing adverse clinical effect. Over 50% of reported human poisonings occur in children less than 6 years old. Yet most of these accidental childhood ingestions do not produce clinical toxicity. Such nontoxic ingestions can be managed by telephone rather than treated in a health care facility. This study evaluated the clinical effects produced, and the cost of emergency department care, versus obtaining telephone advice from a poison control center, following accidental poison ingestion in children age 6 and under. METHODS: 1 year review of all cases of accidental ingestion in children 6 years and under evaluated in a pediatric emergency department. Utilizing the hospital's poison control center criteria, cases were grouped as nontoxic (no risk of adverse effect) or toxic (significant risk for adverse effect). Groups were compared for demographics, clinical effect, dispositions, charges. RESULTS: 467 cases were seen; 141 met nontoxic criteria. Toxicity was not related to race or gender. Children age 2 and less accounted for the majority of cases (p = .003) [table: see text] Estimated poison control center costs are less than $25 per telephone call. CONCLUSION: Significant charges are billed to health care payers when an emergency department is utilized as the primary means of evaluating children with nontoxic ingestions. Utilization of a poison control center as the initial means of intervention following an accidental pediatric ingestion results in significant savings in health care expenditures. Language: en
Mechanics of finite cracks in dissimilar anisotropic elastic media considering interfacial elasticity

Abstract Interfacial crack fields and singularities in bimaterial interfaces (i.e., grain boundaries or dissimilar materials interfaces) are considered through a general formulation for two-dimensional (2-D) anisotropic elasticity while accounting for the interfacial structure by means of an interfacial elasticity paradigm. The interfacial elasticity formulation introduces boundary conditions that are effectively equivalent to those for a weakly bounded interface. This formalism considers the 2-D crack-tip elastic fields using complex variable techniques. While the consideration of the interfacial elasticity does not affect the order of the singularity, it modifies the oscillatory effects associated with problems involving interface cracks. Constructive or destructive “interferences” are directly affected by the interface structure and its elastic response. This general formulation provides an insight on the physical significance and the obvious coupling between the interface structure and the associated mechanical fields in the vicinity of the crack tip.
High-resolution study of $sup 208$Pb with 35-MeV protons

The inelastic scattering of 35-MeV protons by $^{208}\mathrm{Pb}$ was measured with a resolution of 5-8 keV. Angular distributions of states up to an excitation energy of about 8 MeV were obtained. Collective model calculations enabled the $l$ transfers of many states to be identified. The possibility of excitation of ${1}^{+}$ states is discussed. Microscopic model calculations were made with both phenomenological and theoretical information. The large number of observed unnatural parity states permitted the role of noncentral forces in these transitions to be investigated.NUCLEAR REACTIONS $^{208}\mathrm{Pb}(p, p)$, $E=35$ MeV; measured $\ensuremath{\sigma}(\ensuremath{\theta})$, $\ensuremath{\theta}=10\ensuremath{-}100\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}$. Deduced $L$, ${{\ensuremath{\beta}}_{L}}^{2}$. Microscopic DWBA analysis.
Measurement Error Models

In many areas of application, response variables are modeled in terms of one or more covariates that are not directly observable. Instead, substitute variables that can be observed are used in place of the covariates of interest in the model. Because these substitute variables measure the original covariates with error, we use the term measurement error models to describe those models. In the simple additive case, measurement error has the effect of masking or attenuating the relationship between the response variable and the covariate measured with error. A correction for attenuation can be carried out only if replicate observations are available, or if information about the measurement error can be obtained from other sources. Results derived for the simple case can be extended, but not in a straightforward manner, to the multivariate regression case. Measurement error problems in a nonlinear setting have also been addressed in recent years. Logistic regression models with measurement error in one or more of the covariates have received much attention since the 1980s.
Targeted Treatment of Brain Metastases

Purpose of Review Brain metastases are the most common intracranial tumors in adults. Historically, the median survival after the diagnosis of brain metastases has been dismal and medical therapies had a limited role in the management of these patients.
Cross-Subsidization of Teacher Pension Normal Cost: The Case of CalSTRS

Under traditional defined benefit pension plans, annual contributions are set at a uniform percentage of pay to fund accruing benefits. That normal cost rate masks wide variation in the cost of individual benefits, generating an extensive and non-transparent pattern of cross-subsidization. We provide a comprehensive analysis of cross-subsidies in employer contributions across all entry and exit ages. The gains and losses of winners and losers must add up to zero, and we explain why they do not in some previous work, which claims that nearly all teachers are winners in the California Teachers Retirement System. To the contrary, we find about two-thirds of all entrants are losers. The losers earn benefits with an average annual employer cost of 0.8 percent of pay, vs. 5.7 percent for the winners. In effect, this is a system of widely varying, but non-transparent employer matches to the employee contribution, unlike a retirement account plan with a uniform match.
Fundamental issues on the influence of starch in amine adsorption by quartz

Abstract Apart from being a resource for iron/steel production, the iron oxide mineral, hematite, is used in the paint, cosmetics, and other industries as a pigment. Reverse flotation of quartz from hematite is used extensively in the processing of iron ore containing quartz as the gangue mineral. It has been observed that depression of quartz takes place when excessive starch is used in the reverse flotation of iron ore, thus reducing the grade of the hematite concentrate. In the present work, the reason for the depression of quartz in the presence of excess starch has been investigated. Contact angle, bubble attachment time, quartz crystal micro balance with dissipation (QCM-D), and sum frequency vibrational spectroscopy (SFVS) measurements have been used to examine the interaction between mono ether amine and starch, and molecular dynamics simulation (MDS) was used to visualize the interaction between the amine and starch molecules. On the basis of these measurements it appears that a clathrate interaction takes place in such a way that the starch masks the hydrophobic tail of the mono ether amine, decreasing the contact angle at the quartz surface to 43° from 62° in the presence of excess starch.
Unsolicited Reporting to Prescribers of Opioid Analgesics by a State Prescription Drug Monitoring Program: An Observational Study with Matched Comparison Group.

Objective State prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) can help detect individuals with multiple provider episodes (MPEs; also referred to as doctor/pharmacy shopping), an indicator of prescription drug abuse and/or diversion. Although unsolicited reporting by PDMPs to prescribers of opioid analgesics is thought to be an important practice in reducing MPEs and the potential harm associated with them, evidence of its effectiveness is mixed. This exploratory research evaluates the impact of unsolicited reports sent by Massachusetts' PDMP to the prescribers of persons with MPEs. Methods Individuals with MPEs were identified from PDMP records between January 2010 and July 2011 as individuals having Schedule II prescriptions (at least one prescription being an opioid) from four or more distinct prescribers and four or more distinct pharmacies within six months. Based on available MA-PDMP resources, an unsolicited report containing the patient's 12-month prescription history was sent to prescribers of a subset of patients who met the MPE threshold; a comparison group closely matched on demographics and baseline prescription history, whose prescribers were not sent a report, was generated using propensity score matching. The prescription history of each group was examined for 12 months before and after the intervention. Results There were eighty-four patients (intervention group) whose prescribers received an unsolicited report and 504 matched patients (comparison group) whose prescribers were not sent a report. Regression analyses indicated significantly greater decreases in the number of Schedule II opioid prescriptions (P < 0.01), number of prescribers visited (P < 0.01), number of pharmacies used (P < 0.01), dosage units (P < 0.01), total days' supply (P < 0.01), total morphine milligram equivalents (MME; P < 0.01), and average daily MME (P < 0.05) for the intervention group relative to the comparison group. A post hoc analysis suggested that the observed intervention effects were greater for individuals with an average daily dose of less than 100 MMEs. Conclusions This study suggests that PDMP unsolicited reporting to prescribers can help reduce risk measures in patients' prescription histories, which may improve health outcomes for patients receiving opioid analgesics from multiple providers.
Atomistic modeling of helium segregation to grain boundaries in tungsten and its effect on de-cohesion

Due to their low sputtering yield, low intrinsic tritium retention, high melting point, and high thermal conductivity, W and W alloys are promising candidates for the divertor region in a magnetic fusion device. Transmutation reactions under neutron irradiation lead to the formation of He and H particles that potentially degrade material performance and might lead to failure. High He fluxes ultimately lead to the formation and bursting of bubbles that induce swelling, a strong decrease in toughness, and a nanoscale microstructure that potentially degrades the plasma. Understanding the behavior of He in polycrystalline W is thus of significant importance as one avenue for controlling the material properties under operating conditions. This paper studies the interaction of substitutional He atoms with various grain boundaries in pure W and the effect of the He presence on the system response to external loading. We observe that He segregates to all the interfaces tested and decreases the cohesion of the system at the grain boundary. Upon simple tension, the presence of He significantly decreases the yield stress, which depends considerably on the bubble pressure. Increasing pressure reduces cohesion, as expected. More complex stress states result in more convoluted behavior, with He hindering grain boundary sliding upon simple shear.
Cardiolipin Synthesis and Outer Membrane Localization Are Required for Shigella flexneri Virulence.

ABSTRACT Cardiolipin, an anionic phospholipid that resides at the poles of the inner and outer membranes, is synthesized primarily by the putative cardiolipin synthase ClsA in Shigella flexneri. An S. flexneri clsA mutant had no cardiolipin detected within its membrane, grew normally in vitro, and invaded cultured epithelial cells, but it failed to form plaques in epithelial cell monolayers, indicating that cardiolipin is required for virulence. The clsA mutant was initially motile within the host cell cytoplasm but formed filaments and lost motility during replication and failed to spread efficiently to neighboring cells. Mutation of pbgA, which encodes the transporter for cardiolipin from the inner membrane to the outer membrane, also resulted in loss of plaque formation. The S. flexneri pbgA mutant had normal levels of cardiolipin in the inner membrane, but no cardiolipin was detected in the outer membrane. The pbgA mutant invaded and replicated normally within cultured epithelial cells but failed to localize the actin polymerization protein IcsA properly on the bacterial surface and was unable to spread to neighboring cells. The clsA mutant, but not the pbgA mutant, had increased phosphatidylglycerol in the outer membrane. This appeared to compensate partially for the loss of cardiolipin in the outer membrane, allowing some IcsA localization in the outer membrane of the clsA mutant. We propose a dual function for cardiolipin in S. flexneri pathogenesis. In the inner membrane, cardiolipin is essential for proper cell division during intracellular growth. In the outer membrane, cardiolipin facilitates proper presentation of IcsA on the bacterial surface. IMPORTANCE The human pathogen Shigella flexneri causes bacterial dysentery by invading colonic epithelial cells, rapidly multiplying within their cytoplasm, and then spreading intercellularly to neighboring cells. Worldwide, Shigella spp. infect hundreds of millions of people annually, with fatality rates up to 15%. Antibiotic treatment of Shigella infections is compromised by increasing antibiotic resistance, and there is no approved vaccine to prevent future infections. This has created a growing need to understand Shigella pathogenesis and identify new targets for antimicrobial therapeutics. Here we show a previously unknown role of phospholipids in S. flexneri pathogenesis. We demonstrate that cardiolipin is required in the outer membrane for proper surface localization of IcsA and in the inner membrane for cell division during growth in the host cell cytoplasm.
Deimination in Multiple Sclerosis: The Bad, the Good, and the Ugly

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic, autoimmune, demyelinating, and degenerative disease that affects the central nervous system. The majority of patients are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 40, and it is a leading cause of disability among young adults (Hauser and Goodin 2015; Lavery et al. 2014). MS typically presents with acute attacks of neurologic symptoms such as weakness, imbalance, vision loss, or numbness that are called “relapses,” and these occur early in the course of the most common form, historically known as relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS). Over time, increasing numbers of relapses contribute to disability accumulation (Fig. 18.1). At 19 years of disease duration, 75% of RRMS patients will have developed a more progressive course, whereby their worsening occurs in a steady decline and with fewer relapses (Confavreux and Vukusic 2006), a disease process historically known as secondary progressive MS (SPMS). In contrast, about 15% of patients will have progressive neurologic decline from the start, and this has been referred to as primary progressive MS (PPMS) (Lublin and Reingold 1996). In a 2013 effort to align the nomenclature with the underlying pathological changes, these diagnoses were renamed simply relapsing MS (RMS) and progressive MS (PMS) along with other, more subtle changes in diagnostic terminology that are beyond the scope of this chapter (Lublin et al. 2014).
Environmental variations promotes adaptation in artificial evolution

In this paper we analyze the role of environmental variations in the evolution of artificial agents situated in an external environment. By comparing the results of experiments carried out in different conditions we demonstrate how environmental variations promote the evolution of better solutions. The beneficial effect is maximized at intermediate rates of variations, i.e. when the dynamics of the environment displays a sufficient level of stability and variability. The advantage of intermediate rates of variation is due to the fact that the occurrence of new environmental conditions favors the retention of phenotypic variations that can eventually provide an advantage also in different environmental conditions. Moreover, a relative stability of the new environmental conditions constitutes a prerequisite for the generation and retention of such variations.
Soil Invertebrate Species Diversity and Abundance in Endophyte-Infected Tall Fescue Pastures

The reduced ability of many herbivorous insects and nematodes to subsist on grasses infected by endophytic fungi is well-documented (Clay, 1989;1991). These effects upon insects are mostly due to the presence of a diverse array of alkaloids and other compounds produced by the fungus-grass symbiosis (Garner et al., 1993; Rottinghaus et al., 1991) but the mechanisms that account for nematode resistance have not yet been elucidated. Despite much research devoted to single-species herbivory on endophyte-infected grasses, little effort has yet been made to understand effects of such symbioses on soil invertebrate communities. The purpose of this review is to analyze recent progress made in the understanding of the role of the endophyte (Neotyphodium coenophialum)-tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea) symbiosis in regulation of invertebrate communities, and to suggest fruitful lines of research for the future. Because litter, fermentation, and mineral layers are a continuum and most soil arthropods move within this continuum (Eisenbeis and Wichard, 1987), “soil invertebrates” is used in the broad sense to include surface-dwelling arthropods.
Architecture-Centric modeling of design decisions for validation and traceability

Access to previously made architectural design decisions allows for faster understanding and more educated decisions during software evolution. Templates and ontologies have been proposed to document such decisions. In this paper we argue that documenting the architectural design decisions can be intertwined with a standard architecture documentation process. For that, we propose architecture-specific decision types equipped with OCL constraints capable for decision conformance checks. We present an initial evaluation based on a preliminary case study with a typical three-tier web-application and the decisions associated with its implementation.
EPR signals of redox active copper in EDTA washed membrane of the cyanobacterium Synechococcus 6311

A signal of Cu2+ (g = 2.03) was detected by electron paramagmetic resonance spectroscopy in oxidized membrane preparations of Synechococcus 6311. The membranes were prepared and washed in the presence of EDTA (10mM, pH 8.0) and, hence, were depleted of adventitious copper; the treatment also would remove any membrane-associated soluble redox proteins and other paramagnetic metal ions. 0.1% Triton X-100 facilitated detection of the Cu2+ signal which was fully reduced by dithionite or ascorbate plus N,N,N′,N′,-tetramethyl-p-phenylenediamine, and partially reduced NADPH and NADH, which are known to donate electrons to the terminal oxidase of cyanobacteria via the respiratory chain. Using temperature dependence and power saturation of the EPR copper signal, we conclude that copper is a firmly bound constituent of the terminal oxidase in an environment which is very similar if not identical to other cytochrome c oxidase preparations.
Staging laparotomy with splenectomy in Stage I and II Hodgkin’s disease. No therapeutic benefit

During the last two decades, staging laparotomy with splenectomy was adopted by many centers as a routine procedure in the work-up of patients with early stage Hodgkin’s disease (HD). This staging procedure determines accurately subdiaphragmatic involvement with HD, thus reduces the extent of radiation therapy (RT). However, despite negative findings at laparotomy, RT continues to be delivered to the upper paraaortic nodes and splenic bed in many centers [1, 2, 3]. Since dissemination of HD in the abdomen appears to begin in the spleen and/or in the lymph nodes of the upper abdomen [4], this routine extention of the RT port to the upper abdomen makes it difficult to assess the role of staging with laparotomy procedure in the prevention of abdominal relapse.
Impact of Hearing Loss on Patient–Provider Communication Among Hospitalized Patients: A Systematic Review:

Age-related hearing loss is a highly prevalent chronic condition in older adults, but hearing loss is rarely accounted for in patient-provider communication studies. This systematic review synthesizes current evidence on the impact of age-related hearing loss on patient-provider communication in hospitalized older adults. Five databases were queried to identify original research that examined patient-provider communication in older adults with hearing loss in an inpatient setting. Of 1053 studies, 13 were included in the final review. All studies reported an adverse effect of hearing loss on patient-provider communication. Among studies that evaluated an intervention to improve communication in older adults with hearing loss, simple interventions such as low-cost voice amplifiers were found to improve communication. An understanding of the effect of hearing loss on patient-provider communication and strategies to mitigate the impact are needed in order to provide safe, quality, patient-centered care to older adults with hearing loss.
The Shear Stiffness of Flat-sided Corrugated Webs

A method of analysis is presented for the shear stiffness of a flat-sided corrugated web, attached at a series of discrete points to flanges either on one side or on both sides of the web. Simple expressions are obtained for the shear stiffness of both types of web, and it is shown that there may be a considerable loss of stiffness due to the method of attachment. A comparison is made with experimental results for corrugated webs with both types of attachment.
Complementary and alternative treatments for autism part 1: evidence-supported treatments.

There is evidence that some complementary and alternative treatments improve physiological abnormalities in autism and thus hold promise for improving symptoms.
Assistive Technology for Literacy in Students With Physical Disabilities: A Systematic Review:

The purpose of this study was to systematically review literature on assistive technology (AT) used to develop literacy skills in students with physical disabilities. Primary databases were searche...
Geoacoustic Inversion for a New England Mud Patch Sediment Using the Silt-Suspension Theory of Marine Mud

This article provides an application of the silt-suspension theory to a Bayesian-inference inversion for the geo-acoustic parameters in marine mud. The theory, with consequences that have been developed recently, postulates a suspension of water and clay mineral card-houses that supports moderately dilute concentrations of silt particles. The approach is an example of a physically based model inversion, in which parameters representing physical mud-layer properties are obtained by inversion and used to produce estimates of geoacoustic properties, including their frequency dependence. The acoustic data are from a combustive source signal propagated along a track, located over several meters of fine-grained mud in the New England Mud Patch, to a single hydrophone on a receiver array during the 2017 Seabed Characterization Experiment. Data extracted from a nearby piston core inform the physical modeling, with selections of inversion parameters guided by both sensitivity analyses and bounds from archival and core measurements. Results show the feasibility of this inversion approach. The estimates of mud density and sound speed are close to values obtained independently. The frequency dependence of attenuation is estimated over the full low-frequency source band and has an approximate power exponent of 1.72.
Abstract 45: The Association of Cumulative Systolic Blood Pressure With Cardiovascular Disease: Findings From the Lifetime Risk Pooling Project Cohorts

Background: Blood pressure (BP) is a known risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD), but prior studies have predominantly focused on single measurements of BP. Previous studies which have exami...
The Relation Between Linguistic Awareness Skills and Spelling in Adults: A Comparison Among Scoring Procedures

Purpose Spelling is a skill that relies on an individual's linguistic awareness, the ability to overtly manipulate language. The ability to accurately spell is important for academic and career success into adulthood. The spelling skills of adults have received some attention in the literature, but there is limited information regarding which approach for analyzing adults' spelling is optimal for guiding instruction or intervention for those who struggle. Thus, we aimed to examine the concurrent validity of four different scoring methods for measuring adults' spellings (a dichotomous scoring method and three continuous methods) and to determine whether adults' linguistic awareness skills differentially predict spelling outcomes based on the scoring method employed. Method Sixty undergraduate college students who were determined to be average readers as measured by a word reading and contextual word reading task were administered a spelling task as well as morphological, orthographic, phonemic, and syntactic awareness tasks. Results All four scoring methods were highly correlated suggesting high concurrent validity among the measures. Two linguistic awareness skills, morphological awareness and syntactic awareness, predicted spelling performance on both the dichotomous and continuous scoring methods. Contrastively, phonemic awareness and orthographic awareness predicted spelling performance only when spelling was scored using a continuous measure error analysis. Conclusions The results of this study confirm that multiple linguistic awareness skills are important for spelling in adults who are average readers. The results also highlight the need for using continuous measures of spelling when planning intervention or instruction, particularly in the areas of orthographic and phonemic awareness.
Sediment Selection: Range Expanding Fiddler Crab are Better Burrowers Than Their Natal Counterparts

Species ranges are shifting in response to climate change. In New England salt marshes, the mud fiddler crab, Minuca (Uca) pugnax, is expanding north of Cape Cod, MA into the Gulf of Maine (GoM) due to warming waters. Physical habitat, in addition to temperature change, may be important in mediating the expansion of several species into novel habitats. M. pugnax burrows in the muddy Spartina alterniflora dominated low marsh of Eastern U.S. salt marshes. Sediment compaction may influence the ability for M. pugnax to burrow, with more compact soils being more resilient to burrowing. Previous studies indicate that salt marshes along the coast of the GoM have higher soil strength (i.e., soil compaction) relative to marshes south of Cape Cod. Taken together, physical characteristics and temperature of this habitat may be influencing the burrowing behavior/performance of M. pugnax, and therefore the ability for the mud fiddler crab to continue its northward range expansion into the GoM. To determine if sediment compaction affects burrowing activity of M. pugnax in natal and range expanded populations, we conducted a controlled laboratory experiment. We manipulated soil compaction in standardized lab assays and measured the number of burrows and burrow volume created by crabs in trials with one and three crabs over a 4 hour period with crabs collected from Nantucket (i.e., native range) and the Plum Island Estuary (PIE, i.e., expanded range). Soil strength measurements were taken before and after each trial to determine how soil strength influences burrowing behavior, and how burrowing behavior in turn influences soil strength. We determined that crabs from both sites burrowed were less likely to burrow at higher soil strengths; however, crabs from PIE burrowed in 0-25 psi (1.8 kg/cm2) peat, whereas Nantucket crabs were limited to 0-10 psi (0.7 kg/cm2) peat. In addition, PIE crabs were more likely to burrow in each soil strength treatment. We also observed no relationship between soil strength and burrow volume between crab source populations and between crab densities. We conclude that site level differences in soil compaction are likely altering fiddler crab burrowing behavior in its expanded range territory by either phenotypic plasticity or rapid evolution. Our study demonstrates that non-temperature physical habitat traits can be as important as temperature in influencing the ability for species to expand their ranges in the face of climate change.
Performance Bounds for Target Parameter Estimation From Frequency-Domain Electromagnetic Induction Data

We derive the Cramer-Rao lower bounds (CRBs) for all target parameters associated with noisy measurements of a specific class of targets using a frequency-domain electromagnetic induction (EMI) system. The target parameters include the target tensors, the relaxation frequencies and their corresponding amplitudes, as well as the target location. We validate the derivation through Monte Carlo simulation. We then derive approximate CRB (ACRB) expressions based on a new low-rank model perspective for EMI data. These approximate expressions are significant simplifications over the full CRB expressions. They also facilitate the analysis and improve the understanding of the factors impacting the lower bounds on the target parameters. We demonstrate the utility and accuracy of the ACRB expressions for two example targets.
Measurement of equatorial sclera mechanical anisotropy of using acoustic radiation force optical coherence elastography

Most soft tissues, such as cornea and sclera, exhibit mechanical anisotropy. Obtaining the anisotropy properties of the sclera can be helpful in understanding the mechanical properties of the eyes in the development and progression of glaucoma and myopia. In this work, we have demonstrated a method of quantifying the anisotropic Young’s modulus values for sclera, using a confocal Lamb wave based acoustic radiation force optical coherence elastography (ARF-OCE). We have measured mechanical anisotropy in porcine sclera by measuring the Young’s modulus along both the equator direction and anterior to posterior direction. The results demonstrate the Young’s modus in the equator direction is 15-30% higher than that in the anterior to posterior direction.
White matter abnormalities are key components of cerebrovascular disease impacting cognitive decline.

While cerebrovascular disease can be observed in vivo using MRI, the multiplicity and heterogeneity in the mechanisms of cerebrovascular damage impede accounting for these measures in ageing and dementia studies. Our primary goal was to investigate the key sources of variability across MRI markers of cerebrovascular disease and evaluate their impact in comparison to amyloidosis on cognitive decline in a population-based sample. Our secondary goal was to evaluate the prognostic utility of a cerebrovascular summary measure from all markers. We included both visible lesions seen on MRI (white matter hyperintensities, cortical and subcortical infarctions, lobar and deep microbleeds) and early white matter damage due to systemic vascular health using diffusion changes in the genu of the corpus callosum. We identified 1089 individuals aged ≥60 years with concurrent amyloid-PET and MRI scans from the population-based Mayo Clinic Study of Aging. We divided these into discovery and validation datasets. Using the discovery dataset, we conducted principal component analyses and ascertained the main sources of variability in cerebrovascular disease markers. Using linear regression and mixed effect models, we evaluated the utility of these principal components and combinations of these components for the prediction of cognitive performance along with amyloidosis. Our main findings were (i) there were three primary sources of variability among the CVD measures-white matter changes are driven by white matter hyperintensities and diffusion changes; number of microbleeds (lobar and deep); and number of infarctions (cortical and subcortical); (ii) Components of white matter changes and microbleeds but not infarctions significantly predicted cognition trajectories in all domains with greater contributions from white matter; and (iii) The summary vascular score explained 3-5% of variability in baseline global cognition in comparison to 3-6% variability explained by amyloidosis. Across all cognitive domains, the vascular summary score had the least impact on memory performance (∼1%). Though there is mechanistic heterogeneity in the cerebrovascular disease markers measured on MRI, these changes can be grouped into three components and together explain variability in cognitive performance equivalent to the impact of amyloidosis on cognition. White matter changes represent dynamic ongoing damage, predicts future cognitive decline across all domains and diffusion measurements help capture white matter damage due to systemic vascular changes. Therefore, measuring and accounting for white matter changes using diffusion MRI and white matter hyperintensities along with microbleeds will allow us to capture vascular contributions to cognitive impairment and dementia.