cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Metabolism and metabolic effects of ethanol, including interaction with drugs, carcinogens and nutrition

Different pathways of alcohol metabolism, the alcohol dehydrogenase pathway, the microsomal ethanol-oxidizing system and the catalase pathway are discussed. Alcohol consumption leads to accelerated ethanol metabolism by different mechanisms including an increased microsomal function. Microsomal induction leads to interactions of ethanol with drugs, hepatotoxic agents, steroids, vitamins and to an increased activation of mutagens/carcinogens. A number of ethanol-related complications may be explained by the production of its first metabolite, acetaldehyde, such as alterations of mitochondria, increased lipid peroxidation and microtubular alterations with its adverse effects on various cellular activities, including disturbances of cell division. Nutritional factors in alcoholics such as malnutrition are discussed especially with respect to its possible relation to cancer.
Effects of ultrasonic root-end cavity preparation on the root apex

This study determined the effect of bur and ultrasonic preparation on the root apex. After cleaning, shaping, and obturation of root canals of 47 single-rooted teeth and resection of their apexes were done, 24 root-end cavities were prepared with a bur, and the rest were prepared with ultrasonic tips attached to two different ultrasonic units. After photographs of the prepared root ends were taken, their resin replicas were prepared and examined with a scanning electron microscope. Photographs and scanning electron microscope photomicrographs were examined for the presence or absence of cracks. The results showed a significantly higher incidence of crack formation in the walls of root-end cavities prepared by ultrasonic tips compared with those made by the bur.
On the accuracy of direct forcing immersed boundary methods with projection methods

Direct forcing methods are a class of methods for solving the Navier-Stokes equations on nonrectangular domains. The physical domain is embedded into a larger, rectangular domain, and the equations of motion are solved on this extended domain. The boundary conditions are enforced by applying forces near the embedded boundaries. This raises the question of how the flow outside the physical domain influences the flow inside the physical domain. This question is particularly relevant when using a projection method for incompressible flow. In this paper, analysis and computational tests are presented that explore the performance of projection methods when used with direct forcing methods. Sufficient conditions for the success of projection methods on extended domains are derived, and it is shown how forcing methods meet these conditions. Bounds on the error due to projecting on the extended domain are derived, and it is shown that direct forcing methods are, in general, first-order accurate in the max-norm. Numerical tests of the projection alone confirm the analysis and show that this error is concentrated near the embedded boundaries, leading to higher-order accuracy in integral norms. Generically, forcing methods generate a solution that is not smooth across the embedded boundaries, and it is this lack of smoothness which limits the accuracy of the methods. Additional computational tests of the Navier-Stokes equations involving a direct forcing method and a projection method are presented, and the results are compared with the predictions of the analysis. These results confirm that the lack of smoothness in the solution produces a lower-order error. The rate of convergence attained in practice depends on the type of forcing method used.
Changes in Cholesterol-Lowering Medications Use Over a Decade in Community-Dwelling Older Adults

BACKGROUNDThe impact of evidence-based guidelines and controlled trial data on use of cholesterol-lowering medications in older adults is unclear.OBJECTIVETo examine whether utilization patterns of cholesterol-lowering medications in community-dwelling older adults changed following the release of the National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III guidelines and results from the Prospective Study of Pravastatin in the Elderly at Risk in 2002.METHODSCommunity-dwelling elderly individuals who were enrolled in the Health, Aging and Body Composition Study in 1997–1998 were followed for up to 11 years. An interrupted time series analysis with multivariable generalized estimating equations (GEEs) was used to examine changes in level and trend in cholesterol-lowering medication use before and after 2002, adjusting for sociodemographics, health-related behaviors, and health status.RESULTSCholesterol-lowering medication use increased nearly 3-fold from 14.9% in 1997–1998 to 42.6% in 2007–2008, wi...
Untethering Education: Creating a Pilot Hybrid Class to Enhance Learning in Intercultural Communication

Improvements in educational technology in the past couple of decades have led institutions of higher learning to encourage and implement various types of distance education courses. This article reports on the conversion process of a face-to-face Intercultural Communication class at a mid-Atlantic university in the USA. First, the impetus for its creation is described, followed by the process of creating this course. Then a description of the course is presented, followed by the assessment design and results comparing the hybrid course to its face-to-face version offered in the past in terms of cognitive, behavioural, and attitudinal measures. The assessment results show that students enrolled in the hybrid course performed as well or better on knowledge questions. Students in the hybrid course outperformed face-to-face students in terms of attendance, but performed similarly for other behavioral measures. Overall, students in the hybrid course had positive attitudes toward the course.
Analysis of curved frequency selective surfaces using the hybrid volume-surface integral equation approach

The hybrid volume-surface integral equation (VSIE) approach has been applied to investigate the curved FSS with the dielectric substrates of finite extent. The scattering RCS of a curved structure and a planar finite periodic structure have been presented. An important advantage of the VSIE algorithm is that it can be used to simulate the finite and arbitrary curved structure. When the finite structure size increases, the multilevel fast multipole algorithm can be applied to reduce the computational complexity.
Using basic statistics on the individual patient's own numeric data

Abstract Introduction This theoretical report gives an example for how coefficient of variation (CV) and quartile analysis (QA) to assess outliers might be able to be used to analyze numeric data in practice for an individual patient. Methods A patient was examined for 8 visits using infrared instrumentation for measurement of mastoid fossa temperature differential (MFTD) readings. The CV and QA were applied to the readings. The participant also completed the Short Form–12 health perception survey on each visit, and these findings were correlated with CV to determine if CV had outcomes support (clinical significance). Results An outlier MFTD reading was observed on the eighth visit according to QA that coincided with the largest CV value for the MFTDs. Correlations between the Short Form–12 and CV were low to negligible, positive, and statistically nonsignificant. Conclusion This case provides an example of how basic statistical analyses could possibly be applied to numerical data in chiropractic practice for an individual patient. This might add objectivity to analyzing an individual patient's data in practice, particularly if clinical significance of a clinical numerical finding is unknown.
The Role of Chemokines in Transplant Graft Arterial Disease

Despite the development of effective immunosuppressive therapy, transplant graft arterial disease (GAD) remains the major limitation to long-term graft survival. Multiple immune and nonimmune risk factors contribute to this vasculopathic intimal hyperplastic process. Thus, initial interplay between host inflammatory cells and donor endothelial cells triggers alloimmune responses, whereas alloantigen-independent factors such as prolonged ischemia, surgical manipulation, ischemia-reperfusion injury, and hyperlipidemia enhance the antigen-dependent events. Intrinsic to all stages of this process are chemokines, a family of 8- to 10-kDa proteins mediating directional migration of immune cells to sites of inflammation and injury. Beyond their role in immune-cell chemotaxis, chemokines also contribute to cellular activation, vascular remodeling, and angiogenesis. Expression of chemokines and their cognate receptors in allografts correlates with acute organ rejection, as well as GAD. Moreover, chemokine or chemokine receptor blockade prolongs graft survival and attenuates GAD in experimental models. Further studies will likely confirm a substantial utility for antichemokine therapy in human organ transplantation.
Applying the Theory of Task-Technology Fit to Mobile Information Systems: The Role of User Mobility

In this paper, we apply the theory of task technology fit to information systems that are used by mobile professionals. We describe the results of an empirical study of 216 users of mobile devices that included various smart phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and laptop computers. Our findings suggest that (1) the relationship between task difficulty and functional requirements of the mobile devices is stronger for highly mobile users than for less mobile users; (2) user mobility is associated with increased user-perceived importance of a number of nonfunctional features; and (3) for a number of functions and features, highly mobile users indicated a stronger relationship between task-technology fit, and overall evaluation of the technology. We conclude that user mobility needs to be taken into account when applying the theory of task-technology fit to mobile information systems. In addition, our study provides specific insights about the information system requirements of mobile professionals.
Use of an Ecosystem-Based Model to Evaluate Alternative Conservation Strategies for Juvenile Chinook Salmon in a Headwater Stream

AbstractDeclining abundance of Chinook Salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha across the Pacific Northwest is an issue of great concern ecologically, culturally, and economically. Growth during the first summer is vitally important for juvenile Chinook Salmon, as it influences not only life history decisions (to smolt or not to smolt) but also subsequent river and ocean survival. Using Ecopath with Ecosim, we developed a food web model for a representative stream in the Salmon River basin, Idaho, to evaluate potential species-specific and food web effects of three management strategies: (1) adding salmon carcasses or carcass analogs to promote primary production and detrital availability that were lost due to declining salmon returns; (2) removal of nonnative Brook Trout Salvelinus fontinalis, which are competitors with and predators on juvenile Chinook Salmon; and (3) stocking hatchery Chinook Salmon into streams to supplement wild production. Overall, juvenile Chinook Salmon responded strongly to increases in ...
Physical exercise as a preventive or disease-modifying treatment of dementia and brain aging

A rapidly growing literature strongly suggests that exercise, specifically aerobic exercise, may attenuate cognitive impairment and reduce dementia risk. We used PubMed (keywords exercise and cognition) and manuscript bibliographies to examine the published evidence of a cognitive neuroprotective effect of exercise. Meta-analyses of prospective studies documented a significantly reduced risk of dementia associated with midlife exercise; similarly, midlife exercise significantly reduced later risks of mild cognitive impairment in several studies. Among patients with dementia or mild cognitive impairment, randomized controlled trials (RCTs) documented better cognitive scores after 6 to 12 months of exercise compared with sedentary controls. Meta-analyses of RCTs of aerobic exercise in healthy adults were also associated with significantly improved cognitive scores. One year of aerobic exercise in a large RCT of seniors was associated with significantly larger hippocampal volumes and better spatial memory; other RCTs in seniors documented attenuation of age-related gray matter volume loss with aerobic exercise. Cross-sectional studies similarly reported significantly larger hippocampal or gray matter volumes among physically fit seniors compared with unfit seniors. Brain cognitive networks studied with functional magnetic resonance imaging display improved connectivity after 6 to 12 months of exercise. Animal studies indicate that exercise facilitates neuroplasticity via a variety of biomechanisms, with improved learning outcomes. Induction of brain neurotrophic factors by exercise has been confirmed in multiple animal studies, with indirect evidence for this process in humans. Besides a brain neuroprotective effect, physical exercise may also attenuate cognitive decline via mitigation of cerebrovascular risk, including the contribution of small vessel disease to dementia. Exercise should not be overlooked as an important therapeutic strategy.
State description for the root-signal set of median filters

Median filtering is a simple digital technique for smoothing signals. One main characteristic of the filter is that it maps the input signal space into a root signal space, where signals invariant to median filters are called roots of the signal. In this paper, we develop the theory for the root signal set of median filters. A tree structure for the root signal set is obtained for binary signals. The number of roots R (n) for a signal of length "n" and window size filter "2s- 1" is exactly represented by the difference equation R(n) = R(n - 1) + R(n - s). A general solution is obtained in a Z domain approach. Finally, a method for faster one dimensional median filter operation is introduced.
Public Employees and Performance Appraisal: A Study of Antecedents to Employees’ Perception of the Process

There is considerable agreement that organizations can benefit from using performance appraisal. Nevertheless, some studies find that both supervisors and employees have negative reactions to the p...
Parental feeding practices and concerns related to child underweight, picky eating, and using food to calm differ according to ethnicity/race, acculturation, and income.

The purpose of this study was to examine differences in parental feeding practices according to ethnicity/race, household income, parent education level, acculturation (for Hispanic participants only), and participation in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program among parents living in a southern state in the United States. For this cross-sectional study, parents of children ages 1–5 years living throughout Texas were recruited through random digit dialing with screening questions during Fall 2006. Eligible parents who agreed to participate completed the Preschooler Feeding Questionnaire (PFQ) and a demographic questionnaire over the phone in either English or Spanish. The PFQ included five subscales: child overeating concerns, child underweight concerns, difficulty with picky eating, using food to calm, and pushing child to eat. Demographic questions assessed ethnicity/race, household income, parent education level, acculturation, and WIC participation. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), with the demographic variables as predictors, was used to predict the five PFQ subscales. Complete data were obtained from 721 parents, 50% of whom were Hispanic. Significant differences for the PFQ subscales were noted for ethnicity/race, acculturation, and income level. Spanish-speaking Hispanic participants were significantly more worried about their child being underweight than English-speaking Hispanic participants. High-income non-WIC respondents were more likely to report that they have difficulty with picky eaters compared to WIC respondents. Spanish-speaking Hispanics and Black respondents were more likely than English-speaking Hispanics to use food to calm the child. Health practitioners need to be aware of differences in parental feeding practices and concerns among parents of diverse demographic backgrounds. Results from this study can be used to tailor health programs that promote healthy feeding practices among parents.
Plant Resistance Components of Two Greenbug (Homoptera: Aphididae) Resistant Wheats

Several biotypes of the greenbug, Schizaphis graminum (Rondani), attack winter wheat, Triticum aestivum L., on the Southern Plains every year. Two wheat germplasm sources of resistance (‘Largo’ and ‘GRS 1201’) have been developed that provide protection against the three predominant greenbug biotypes (E, I, and K). Each source has agronomic and end-use quality advantages and disadvantages for the breeder to consider in choosing a greenbug-resistant breeding line. We compared these two germplasms to determine their levels of resistance against biotype E. Components of resistance (i.e., antibiosis, antixenosis, and tolerance) were measured on seedlings of GRS 1201, Largo, and ‘TAM W-101’ (a susceptible control). Several aphid and plant measurements (e.g., total number of aphids produced per plant, aphid selection preferences, and plant damage ratings) were recorded for each plant entry. Select data recorded for each resistance component were normalized and combined to derive a plant resistance index for each wheat entry. Results indicated that GRS 1201 had a higher level of combined resistance components than did Largo, followed by TAM W-101, the susceptible control. These data provide additional information for the breeder to consider in selecting a greenbug-resistant breeding line.
Comparing species diversity in the modern and fossil record of lakes

Abstract Lake faunal diversity has been the focus of many modern studies; however, there have been few studies comparing the lacustrine diversity in the modern and fossil record. Whether or not this comparison is possible is dependent on preservation. By comparing the exceptional preservation of the Konservat Lagerstatten of the Eocene Green River Formation with its various modern analogs in East Africa, unique factors controlling diversity within a lake system can be determined. Such factors would include lake surface area, lake longevity, productivity, and lake type. In order to effectively compare lake diversity in the modern and fossil record, we first estimated the potential preservational bias of the fauna from modern Lake Tanganyika and determined that, at maximum, approximately 43.8% of species, 59.3% of genera, and 65.8% of families would be identifiable. With this taphonomic filter in place, we compared fish species diversity versus lake area; no strong relationship was found. Faunal species div...
Electromigration characteristics of TiN barrier layer material

Electromigration reliability of TiN barrier layer itself has been studied. Our results show no electrically measurable electromigration. Resistance increase and open failure under high density current stress are apparently due to a purely thermally activated process with an activation energy of 1.5 eV. TiN resistance is projected to be stable for 10 years if the temperature of the hottest spot in TiN is kept below 408/spl deg/C, which together with electrical sheet resistance and thermal resistance determine the acceptable current density in TiN.
Gender Identification and Sex Role Attribution in Sexually Abused Adolescent Females

An exploratory study of the association between child sexual abuse and subsequent gender identification and sex role attribution was conducted with 93 adolescent females. Victims of intrafamilial sexual abuse with a history of psychotherapeutic treatment were compared with nonabused subjects with a history of treatment and nonabused control subjects with no treatment history. Measures of gender identity found that sexually abused and nonabused treatment groups differed significantly from the no-treatment controls. Distinct patterns of gender identification emerged for the sexually abused victims. Hypothesized differences in sex role attribution were not found. Potential directions for future research are proposed and implications and recommendations for treatment are discussed.
Standard Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization–Time of Flight Mass Spectrometry Reagents May Inactivate Potentially Hazardous Bacteria

Rapid and accurate identification of bacterial colonies is important in providing high-quality patient care. If not properly handled, however, colonies such as those of Neisseria meningitidis and Brucella species, pose an exposure risk to those working in clinical laboratories. As a reference
NMR of 89Y in T′-Phase La1.5Y0.5CuO4

We report measurements of NMR spin-lattice (T1) and spin-spin (T2) relaxation times for89Y in the parent structure of the electron–doped copper–oxide superconductors. T1data exhibit non–exponential recovery with T1 ≍ 20 s. T2decreases rapidly with temperature above the Neel temperature, but remains constant above 425 K. We discuss these behaviors by considering fluctuating antiferromagnetic spin clusters associated with oxygen defects.
Magnetic-field-dependent spin decoherence and dephasing in room-temperature CdSe nanocrystal quantum dots

We perform and analyze a series of time-resolved Faraday rotation measurements of coherent spin dynamics in a room-temperature ensemble of CdSe nanocrystal quantum dots (NCQDs) to study the decoherence and dephasing mechanisms that limit the transverse spin lifetime. Coherent spin lifetimes on the order of nanoseconds have been previously observed in CdSe NCQDs, but the presence of multiple components with distinct dynamics and strong inhomogeneous dephasing have made it difficult to study the relevant spin decay mechanisms quantitatively. Here, we obtain reliable fitting results by ensuring that cross-correlations between model parameters are minimized for the parameters of interest. Furthermore, we characterize the morphological inhomogeneity of the NCQD ensemble using transmission electron microscopy to constrain the model parameters that specify inhomogeneous dephasing. We find that $g$-factor inhomogeneity-induced dephasing (gID) is not sufficient to explain the magnetic-field-dependent decay of the spin signal. We propose an additional decoherence mechanism arising from rapid transitions between the fine structure states of the exciton referred to as fine-structure decoherence (FSD). By including both gID and FSD in the model, excellent fits are obtained to the data, including a prominent short-time-scale feature, which has typically been excluded from the fits in previous work.
Sudden death for a challenge to federal funding of stem-cell research.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) and researchers using human embryonic stem cells (ESCs) have been operating under some uncertainty since the August 2010 ruling by federal districtcourt judge Royce Lamberth that the Dickey–Wicker Amendment (which Congress has attached to all appropriations bills for the Department of Health and Human Services [DHHS] since 1996) prohibits the NIH from funding human ESC research.1 Two scientists had challenged the NIH's 2009 guidelines that permitted the agency to fund research using human ESCs that had been derived without the use of federal funds. Judge Lamberth found the funding prohibition in Dickey–Wicker unambiguous and . . .
Broadband optical mammography instrument for depth-resolved imaging and local dynamic measurements

We present a continuous-wave instrument for non-invasive diffuse optical imaging of the breast in a parallel-plate transmission geometry. The instrument measures continuous spectra in the wavelength range 650–1000 nm, with an intensity noise level <1.5% and a spatial sampling rate of 5 points/cm in the x- and y-directions. We collect the optical transmission at four locations, one collinear and three offset with respect to the illumination optical fiber, to recover the depth of optical inhomogeneities in the tissue. We imaged a tissue-like, breast shaped, silicone phantom (6 cm thick) with two embedded absorbing structures: a black circle (1.7 cm in diameter) and a black stripe (3 mm wide), designed to mimic a tumor and a blood vessel, respectively. The use of a spatially multiplexed detection scheme allows for the generation of on-axis and off-axis projection images simultaneously, as opposed to requiring multiple scans, thus decreasing scan-time and motion artifacts. This technique localizes detected inhomogeneities in 3D and accurately assigns their depth to within 1 mm in the ideal conditions of otherwise homogeneous tissue-like phantoms. We also measured induced hemodynamic changes in the breast of a healthy human subject at a selected location (no scanning). We applied a cyclic, arterial blood pressure perturbation by alternating inflation (to a pressure of 200 mmHg) and deflation of a pneumatic cuff around the subject’s thigh at a frequency of 0.05 Hz, and measured oscillations with amplitudes up to 1 μM and 0.2 μM in the tissue concentrations of oxyhemoglobin and deoxyhemoglobin, respectively. These hemodynamic oscillations provide information about the vascular structure and functional integrity in tissue, and may be used to assess healthy or abnormal perfusion in a clinical setting.
Clinical research strategies for imported drugs registration

The clinical trial requirements for imported drug are under serious discussion.This article gives the answers for the following questions:are the clinical trials absolute necessary if the drugs want to launch on China's market? How to conduct clinical trials to fulfill the regulation requirements? Base on ICHE5 guideline,the amount and content of clinical trials depend on the "demand".The key point considered to the "demand" is the difference of ethnic and clinical practice,which lies on two important aspects:the disease being treated and molecular characters.Invesitegators should analysis the pharmacokinetic and pharmakcoinetic/pharmacodynamic characters in different ethnics.And invesitegators should also analysis the clinical practice difference on efficacy and safety.Aim at these difference,the investigators design the corresponding clinical trials.This article will give suggestions to the post-marketing clinical trials and global multi-national clinical trials too.
A novel retrovirally induced embryonic lethal mutation in the mouse: assessment of the developmental fate of embryonic stem cells homozygous for the 413.d proviral integration

A genetic screen of transgenic mouse strains, carrying multiple copies of an MPSV neo retroviral vector, has led to the identification of a recessive embryonic lethal mutation, termed 413.d. This mutation is associated with a single proviral insertion and when homozygous, results in the failure of the early postimplantation embryo at the gastrulation stage of development. Embryonic stem cell lines (ES cells) were derived from 413.d intercross embryos. Genotyping, with respect to the 413.d integration site, identified wild-type, heterozygous and homozygous ES cell lines. The differentiation abilities and developmental potential of the ES cell lines were assessed using a number of in vitro and in vivo assays. Results indicate that the ES cell lines, regardless of genotype, are pluripotent and can give rise to tissue and cell types derived from all three germ layers. Furthermore, analysis of midgestation conceptuses (10.5 p.c.) and adult chimeras generated by injecting mutant ES cells into host blastocysts, provides strong evidence that the mutant cells can contribute to all extraembryonic tissues and somatic tissues, as well as to functional germ cells. These results indicate that the homozygous mutant cells can be effectively ‘rescued’ by the presence of wild-type cells in a carrier embryo.
Multimodal Maps: An Agent-Based Approach

In this paper, we discuss how multiple input modalities may be combined to produce more natural user interfaces. To illustrate this technique, we present a prototype map-based application for a travel planning domain. The application is distinguished by a synergistic combination of handwriting, gesture and speech modalities; access to existing data sources including the World Wide Web; and a mobile handheld interface. To implement the described application, a hierarchical distributed network of heterogeneous software agents was augmented by appropriate functionality for developing synergistic multimodal applications.
Mechanical approach to chemical transport

Nonequilibrium thermodynamics describes the rates of transport phenomena with the aid of various thermodynamic forces, but often the phenomenological transport coefficients are not known, and the description is not easily connected with equilibrium relations. We present a simple and intuitive model to address these issues. Our model is based on Lagrangian dynamics for chemical systems with dissipation, so one may think of the model as physicochemical mechanics. Using one main equation, the model allows a systematic derivation of all transport and equilibrium equations, subject to the limitation that heat generated or absorbed in the system must be small for the model to be valid. A table with all major examples of transport and equilibrium processes described using physicochemical mechanics is given. In equilibrium, physicochemical mechanics reduces to standard thermodynamics and the Gibbs–Duhem relation, and we show that the First and Second Laws of thermodynamics are satisfied for our system plus bath model. Out of equilibrium, our model provides relationships between transport coefficients and describes system evolution in the presence of several simultaneous external fields. The model also leads to an extension of the Onsager–Casimir reciprocal relations for properties simultaneously transported by many components.
Concomitant Endografting of a Type B Aortic Dissection During Transfemoral Aortic Valve Replacement.

An 87-year-old woman with severe aortic stenosis underwent a transfemoral transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). Intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography demonstrated a well-seated valve with no paravalvular leak; however, a new acute type B aortic dissection was identified. Endografts were delivered through the TAVR sheath and deployed, effectively treating the dissection. The patient did well postoperatively, with imaging at 2 years demonstrating a well-functioning aortic valve and no migration or endoleak of the thoracic endografts. To our knowledge, this is the first report of successful concomitant thoracic endografting during TAVR for the treatment of iatrogenic aortic dissection in this setting.
Prevalence, predictors, and outcomes of advance directives in implantable cardioverter-defibrillator recipients

Background Little is known about advance directive (AD) utilization in implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) recipients. Objective The purpose of this study was to define the prevalence and predictors of ADs in patients with ICDs. Methods We identified ICD recipients with ADs at our institution. The primary end point was the prevalence of an AD documented up to 1 year after device implant and the secondary end point was the cumulative prevalence of an AD. Results Of 2549 patients with ICDs, 701 (27.5%) were followed for at least 1 year after device implant, and of those 701 patients, 164 (23.4%) had ADs documented before or within 1 year of ICD implant. The prevalence of ICD recipients with ADs increased overtime, reaching approximately 10% in the most recent years of analysis. However, only 1 AD specifically addressed the ICD as part of end-of-life decision making. In multivariable analysis, more recent year of device implant and prior cardiovascular hospitalization were positively associated with having an AD within 1 year of implant. The cumulative prevalence of an AD at any time after implant reached about 30%, with more recent implant year, prior cardiovascular hospitalization, and palliative care consultation positively associated with the presence of an AD and black race associated with a lower cumulative prevalence. Conclusion In a tertiary academic medical center, most patients with ICDs still do not have ADs, and even when they do, the ICDs are rarely addressed as part of the directive. Several predictors of ADs emerged, which may provide opportunities to improve utilization of ADs in ICD recipients.
Photo-mediated ultrasound therapy (PUT): a novel method of selectively treating neovascularization (Conference Presentation)

Retinal and choroidal neovascularization play a pivotal role in the leading causes of blindness including macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy (DR). Current therapy by focal laser photocoagulation can damage the normal surrounding cells, such as the photoreceptor inner and outer segments which are adjacent to the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), due to the use of high laser energy and millisecond pulse duration. Therapies with pharmaceutical agents involve systemic administration of drugs, which can cause adverse effects and patients may become drug-resistant. We have developed a noninvasive photo-mediated ultrasound therapy (PUT) technique as a localized antivascular method, and applied it to remove micro blood vessels in the retina. PUT takes advantage of the high native optical contrast among biological tissues, and has the unique capability to self-target microvessels without causing unwanted damages to the surrounding tissues. This technique promotes cavitation activity in blood vessels by synergistically applying nanosecond laser pulses and ultrasound bursts. Through the interaction between cavitation and blood vessel wall, blood clots in microvessels and vasoconstriction can be induced. As a result, microvessels can be occluded. In comparison with other techniques that involves cavitation, both laser and ultrasound energy needed in PUT is significantly lower, and hence improves the safety in therapy.
A Language for Specification of Control Law Tests

Abstract This paper proposes a domain-specific language for specifying tests of control law designs and implementations. The intent of the language is to lead to a formalization of the testing process. Formalization leads in turn to tests that are more comprehensive, more standardized, and more repeatable. In addition, formalization is a prerequisite to the automation of the testing process. The Honeywell toolkit SIFT is described. SIFT is a partial implementation of the language, and automation of the testing process
An experimental study on storing thermal energy in packed beds with saturated steam as heat transfer fluid

Abstract Large number of solar thermal power plants operating or being designed use steam as a working fluid or heat transfer fluid. Therefore, a thermal energy storage (TES) system which can directly store the energy from steam can improve the demand-supply mismatch of thermal or electrical energy. Packed bed TES systems with solid rocks as packing material are one of the most economical and robust energy storage solutions available. This study investigates thermal energy storage process in packed bed systems with steam as heat transfer fluid (HTF). Experiments were conducted to understand thermal response of cylindrical packed bed filled with uniform and chemically inert alumina particles upon saturated steam injection along the axial direction. Axial thermal gradients determine the efficiency of the storage process. Saturated steam is introduced at different flow rates leading to different thermal gradients in the axial direction during different stages of thermal storage process. Rate of steam injection significantly impacts the modes of heat transfer– advection and diffusion. These experimental studies were extended with air as a HTF to compare thermal gradients in the bed under extremely different heat injection rates. In case of steam injection, wall heat loss rate is significantly lower than heat injection rate whereas, wall heat loss rate is comparable to heat injection rate in case of hot air injection.
Natural Products as Platforms To Overcome Antibiotic Resistance

Natural products have served as powerful therapeutics against pathogenic bacteria since the golden age of antibiotics of the mid-20th century. However, the increasing frequency of antibiotic-resistant infections clearly demonstrates that new antibiotics are critical for modern medicine. Because combinatorial approaches have not yielded effective drugs, we propose that the development of new antibiotics around proven natural scaffolds is the best short-term solution to the rising crisis of antibiotic resistance. We analyze herein synthetic approaches aiming to reengineer natural products into potent antibiotics. Furthermore, we discuss approaches in modulating quorum sensing and biofilm formation as a nonlethal method, as well as narrow-spectrum pathogen-specific antibiotics, which are of interest given new insights into the implications of disrupting the microbiome.
Catalytic Dehydrative Lactonization of Allylic Alcohols.

A convenient strategy for the synthesis of phthalides and γ-butyrolactones is reported. The method utilizes readily prepared allylic alcohols in formal Au(I)- and Pd(II)-catalyzed SN2′ reactions. Using these catalysts, exclusive formation of the desired five-membered lactones is observed, completely avoiding the competing direct lactonization pathway that forms the undesired seven-membered ring with protic acids and alternative metal salts. This mild and operationally simple method notably tolerates exomethylene groups and should find use in both phthalide and terpene syntheses.
La ciencia en `La vida es sueño´: una lectura experimental

Considering that, as Saint Augustine affirms, stars may predict the future of man but cannot produce it, I propose that Pedro Calderon de la Barca in La vida es sueno subscribes to these ideas and uses science to criticize King Basilio, who erroneously interprets the stars. The references to sciences and the stars are used in this work not only to show that Basilio is imprudent by hastily reading the stars, but also that he is negligent in his responsibilities as king and father. Basilio will not be a worthy king because he devotes himself to science and he allows it to guide his decisions. Also, he is a bad father because he denies Segismundo the education he deserves as prince. On the one hand, Basilio deprives the people of their legitimate prince by misinterpreting the stars. On the other hand, he does not follow the Christian doctrine to educate his son as he should have done.
Fields of Motion in Gravity Waves and Energy

Now that we have the dispersion relation, i.e., the dependence of frequency on wave number (we define the magnitude, K, of the wave vector K to be the wave number), we can ask what the fluid motion is in the wave field.
Improving response accuracy for classification- based conversational IT services

Conversational IT services are expected to reduce user wait times and improve overall customer satisfaction. Cloud-based solutions are readily available for enterprise subject matter experts (SMEs) to train user-question classifiers and build conversational services with little effort. However, methodologies that the SMEs can use to improve the response accuracy and conversation quality are merely stated and evaluated. In complex service scenarios such as software support, the scope of topics is typically large and the training samples are often limited. Thus, training the classifier based on labeled samples of plain user utterances is not effective in most cases. In this paper, we identify several methods for improving classification quality and evaluate them in concrete training set scenarios. Particularly, a process-based methodology is described that builds and refines on top of service domain knowledge in order to develop a scalable solution for training accurate conversation services. Enterprises and service providers are continuously seeking new ways to improve customer experience on working with IT systems, where user wait times and service resolution quality are critical business metrics. One of the latest trends is the use of conversational IT services. Customers can interact with a conversational service to express their questions in natural language and the system can automatically return relevant answers or execute back-end processes for automated actions. Various text classification techniques have been developed and applied to understand the user questions and trigger the correct responses. For instance, in the context of IT software support, customers can use conversational systems to get answers about software product errors, licenses, or upgrade processes. While the potential benefits of building conversational services are huge, it is often difficult to effectively train classification models that cover well the scope of realistically complex services. In this paper, we propose a training methodology that addresses the limitations in both the scope of topics and the scarcity of the training set. We further evaluate the proposed methodology in a real service support scenario and share the lessons learned.
Unsteady vortex structures in the wake of nonaxisymmetric bumps using spiral MRV

The temporal characteristics of the wake structure behind a nonaxisymmetric bump are studied using spiral magnetic resonance velocimetry (MRV) to measure time-series of all three velocity components in y–z-planes for bump orientations of $$5^\circ$$ , $$10^\circ$$ , $$15^\circ$$ , and $$20^\circ$$ relative to the freestream flow. The mean wake structure was shown previously to be highly sensitive to bump orientation (Ching et al. Exp Fluids, 2018). The spiral MRV method is validated by comparison to the established MRV techniques in a flow with forced periodicity. Measured velocity fluctuations in the bump wake decrease significantly as the bump angle is increased. A quasi-periodic shedding cycle is reconstructed using spectral proper orthogonal decomposition. The reconstructed cycles of each velocity component are matched through a divergence minimization method to examine the structure of the shed vortices. The vortex shed from the trailing edge side of the bump weakens as the bump angle is increased, whereas the vortex shed from the leading edge side maintains its strength. The alternating vortices move across the centerline as they are advected downstream, explaining the common-down vortex pair observed in the far wake mean fields.
Using Entropy and Mutual Information to Extract Threat Actions from Cyber Threat Intelligence

With the rapid growth of the cyber attacks, cyber threat intelligence (CTI) sharing becomes essential for providing advance threat notice and enabling timely response to cyber attacks. Our goal in this paper is to develop an approach to extract low-level cyber threat actions from publicly available CTI sources in an automated manner to enable timely defense decision making. Specifically, we innovatively and successfully used the metrics of entropy and mutual information from Information Theory to analyze the text in the cybersecurity domain. Combined with some basic NLP techniques, our framework, called ActionMiner has achieved higher precision and recall than the state-of-the-art Stanford typed dependency parser, which usually works well in general English but not cybersecurity texts.
Patient and practitioner experience with clinical lumbar motion monitor wearable technology

Low back pain (LBP) is the leading cause of disability worldwide. Unfortunately, there is no gold standard for objectively quantifying low back function. The clinical lumbar motion monitor (CLMM), a wearable technology, has been developed to provide an objective measure of low back function. The evaluation for the patient is like playing a video game with their back. For health care practitioners the CLMM provides three metrics including overall impairment, structural/muscular and test reliability (do we have good data). This study had two goals. 1) To evaluate the ease of use for the patients. 2) To evaluate how the health care practitioners were able to use the results. Sixty-six low back pain patients were evaluated in the study and 18 health care practitioners were interviewed after receiving CLMM results on their patients. The patients were given a survey immediately after evaluation completion. The practitioners participated in a phone survey after all patient evaluations were completed. Ninety-two percent of the patients either agreed or strongly agreed that the monitor was comfortable and 98% either agreed or strongly agreed that the instructions were clear. One hundred percent of the health care practitioners agreed the test reliability metric was informative and provided a new perspective to their clinical impression. Overall LBP patients were satisfied with the evaluation and health care practitioners thought the results added to their clinical impression. The CLMM technology provides an objective quantitative measure of low back function that may change the way health care practitioners treat LBP patients.
Abstract 2760: Photoinducible detection of the oncometabolite fumarate

Dysregulated metabolism is an important marker of many disease states, including cancer. For example, in hereditary leiomyomatosis and renal cell cancer (HLRCC), inactivating mutations in fumarate hydratase (FH) lead to accumulation of high levels of fumarate, a so-called “oncometabolite.” Substantial evidence indicates that fumarate stimulates various oncogenic signaling pathways, necessitating sensitive methods to detect the oncometabolite in order to more rapidly diagnose HLRCC as well as to identify new disease settings in which fumarate may play a signaling role. Here, we report development of novel photoactivatable, fluorogenic chemical probes for detection and profiling of fumarate in biological systems. These chemical probes, diaryl tetrazoles, are by themselves inert towards fumarate. However, upon irradiation with UV light, they release nitrileimines that can form fluorescent cycloadducts with fumarate. We have demonstrated that diaryl tetrazoles can sensitively detect FH activity as well as low micromolar levels of fumarate in complex biological samples. We have also shown that diaryl tetrazoles can be used to monitor changes in intracellular fumarate levels in biological samples by live-cell imaging and flow cytometry. Moreover, these compounds are capable of visualizing differences between patient-derived primary HLRCC tumors lacking FH activity and the adjacent normal kidney, highlighting their potential utility in clinical diagnostics. By offering new insights into fumarate reactivity, our studies provide the chemical basis for novel approaches to therapy and diagnosis in cancers driven by oncometabolite accumulation. Citation Format: Chloe Briney, Sarah Bergholtz, Rhushikesh Kulkarni, Daniel Crooks, Chandrasekhar Mushti, Stephen Lockett, Rolf Swenson, W. Marston Linehan, Jordan Meier. Photoinducible detection of the oncometabolite fumarate [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2019; 2019 Mar 29-Apr 3; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 2760.
The University of St. Thomas's Service- Learning Program: Matching the University's Catholic Mission to Greater Community Needs

The University of St. Thomas (UST) is a private Catholic liberal arts university in Houston, Texas, whose mission includes a commitment to service. The pedagogy of service-learning aligns well with the school’s mission and with the teachings and social doctrine of the Catholic Church. Designed to expand opportunities for the procurement of the Catholic principle of subsidiarity , UST service-learning programs are considered as more than an educational tool. This article illustrates how concrete service-learning ideas help the University fulfill its mission. The virtues of the projects featured in the article, whether assisting elementary school kids to succeed in math or helping the poor help themselves, exemplifi es active student engagement and provides UST opportunities to promote justice, to enhance solidarity, and to defend human dignity.