cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A blinded, randomized, paired, placebo-controlled trial of 20-minute EMLA cream to reduce the pain of peripheral IV cannulation in the ED

A eutectic mixture of local anesthetics (EMLA) in cream form has been used as a topical anesthetic to reduce the pain of procedures penetrating the skin. It is generally applied for 45 to 60 minutes before the painful procedure. The purpose of this study was to determine whether a 20-minute application of EMLA is useful in reducing the pain of routine peripheral intravenous cannulation in the emergency department (ED). A blinded, randomized, placebo-controlled, paired trial compared the pain of intravenous cannulation in both hands of study subjects: one hand was treated with 20-minute EMLA cream and the other hand was treated with 20-minute placebo cream. Forty subjects identified the more painful hand and scored pain measurements of each hand using a 10-cm visual analog scale. These data failed to demonstrate any significant benefit of EMLA compared with placebo. EMLA is not useful for intravenous cannulation when used for 20-minute application times. There may be more effective and less costly ways of reducing the pain of intravenous cannulation that patients would prefer.
Diffractive Optics From Self-Assembled DNA

An algorithm is presented for assembling tiles into a variable spaced grating, the one-dimensional analog of a Fresnel zone plate. The algorithm supports multi-level gratings. The x-ray properties of such a grating, assumed to be constructed from DNA are estimated, leading to the conclusion that thick structures may be useful for intermediate energy x rays, but that thin structures for soft x rays are best used as disposable masks. The diffraction of cold, coherent atoms is a plausible application for single layer stencils.
A General Approach to Error Estimation and Optimized Experiment Design, Applied to Multislice Imaging ofT1in Human Brain at 4.1 T

In this report, a procedure to optimize inversion-recovery times, in order to minimize the uncertainty in the measured T1 from 2-point multislice images of the human brain at 4.1 T, is discussed. The 2-point, 40-slice measurement employed inversion-recovery delays chosen based on the minimization of noise-based uncertainties. For comparison of the measured T1 values and uncertainties, 10-point, 3-slice measurements were also acquired. The measured T1 values using the 2-point method were 814, 1361, and 3386 ms for white matter, gray matter, and cerebral spinal fluid, respectively, in agreement with the respective T1 values of 817, 1329, and 3320 ms obtained using the 10-point measurement. The 2-point, 40-slice method was used to determine the T1 in the cortical gray matter, cerebellar gray matter, caudate nucleus, cerebral peduncle, globus pallidus, colliculus, lenticular nucleus, base of the pons, substantia nigra, thalamus, white matter, corpus callosum, and internal capsule.
Added benefits: reduced depressive symptom levels among African-American female adolescents participating in an HIV prevention intervention

Adolescents experience elevated depressive symptoms which health promotion interventions may reduce. This study investigated whether HIV prevention trial participation decreased depressive symptoms among African-American female adolescents. Adolescents (N = 701; M age = 17.6) first received a group-delivered HIV prevention intervention and then either 12 sexual health (intervention condition) or 12 general health (comparison condition) phone counseling contacts over 24 months. ACASI assessments were conducted at baseline, and at 6-, 12-, 18-, and 24-months post-baseline. Linear generalized estimating equations were used to detect percent relative change in depressive symptoms. Participants reported a 2.7 % decrease in depressive symptoms (p = 0.001) at each assessment. Intervention participants endorsed an additional 3.6 % decrease in depressive symptoms (p = 0.058). Trial participation was associated with reduced depressive symptomatology, particularly among those receiving personalized sexual health counseling. HIV prevention interventions may benefit from incorporating additional content to address adolescents’ mental health needs.
Transient Behavior of Inclusion Chemistry, Shape, and Structure in Fe-Al-Ti-O Melts: Effect of Gradual Increase in Ti

During the processing of liquid steels, nonmetallic inclusions precipitate and evolve under conditions that often involve transient changes in chemistry or temperature, which could be reflected in the final products unless sufficient time is provided for equilibration to be established. The current study is focused on documenting the changes that inclusions undergo in terms of chemistry, shape, and structure when Ti is added in smaller batches, to avoid reactions caused by locally high Ti concentrations and result in a final melt chemistry with a Ti/Al ratio of 1 in the melt corresponding to the chemistry of interstitial free (IF) steel melts in the ladle furnace. When Ti was added in two increments, the inclusion composition was altered from spherical and irregular Al2O3 to mostly irregular inclusions that included both Al and Ti after the first addition. The second addition did not cause any change, but with time, the inclusion chemistry reverted back to Al2O3 with the morphology change remaining. For the case when Ti was added in four increments, however, the inclusion chemistry was modified largely after the first Ti addition, but the inclusion morphology did not change to the irregular-dominant case until the second Ti addition was made. Part of the Ti-containing inclusions was the result of the dissolution of TiOx into Al2O3. It seems that a critical Ti/Al ratio exists in between 1/4 and 1/2, which determines the morphological change. This finding might be coincident with the required increase in Ti and the decrease of local oxygen, which causes a precipitation of a new TiOx phase as opposed to dissolution of TiOx in Al2O3. Prolonging the interval between each Ti addition would allow the inclusion change in composition, reverting from the Ti-containing dominant stage to primarily Al2O3, but not in morphology.
Effects of the Number of Trials per Session on Autoshaping in Rats

Abstract Acquisition in Pavlovian conditioning is usually faster the fewer the number of trials per session (TPS). Three experiments studied this TPS effect in autoshaping with rats. In Experiment 1, a group receiving 40 1-trial sessions acquired faster than a group receiving 2 20-trial sessions, and faster than an unpaired control. In Experiment 2, nonreinforced preexposure to the lever produced more lever-pressing when it involved a single TPS than when it involved 20 TPS. Additionally, subsequent acquisition was positively correlated with the amount of responding during preexposure, but only significantly so in the group trained with 20 TPS. In Experiment 3, acquisition with 1 TPS was faster with a long-delay procedure than with a trace procedure. The implications of the TPS effect for an understanding of the impact of multiple-trials training procedures on acquisition is discussed in relation to the role of habituation, sensitization, and temporal contiguity in conditioning.
The hot rolling requirement for high induction in boron silicon-iron

Abstract The development of high induction in boron silicon-iron requires that the ingot be heated sufficiently for hot rolling to dissolve boron nitride. This is accomplished at a temperature as low as 1200°C, which is appreciably lower than that required for hot rolling either conventional or high induction silicon-iron containing aluminum.
Continine: an oxidation product of nicotine formed by rabbit liver.

A MAJOR advance in the elucidation of nicotine metabolism was the demonstration by McKennis et al. 1 that dogs receiving nicotine excreted small amounts of γ-(3-pyridyl)-γ-methylaminobutyric acid and its lactam, cotinine. These workers favoured the view that cotinine was formed in urine by spontaneous lactamization of the acid. However, they also suggested that cotinine might be an intermediate in nicotine metabolism which was hydrolysed to the acid in vivo.
Interactions of EGF, Wnt and HOM-C genes specify the P12 neuroectoblast fate in C. elegans

We investigate how temporal and spatial interactions between multiple intercellular and intracellular factors specify the fate of a single cell in Caenorhabditis elegans. P12, which is a ventral cord neuroectoblast, divides postembryonically to generate neurons and a unique epidermal cell. Three classes of proteins are involved in the specification of P12 fate: the LIN-3/LET-23 epidermal growth factor signaling pathway, a Wnt protein LIN-44 and its candidate receptor LIN-17, and a homeotic gene product EGL-5. We show that LIN-3 is an inductive signal sufficient to promote the P12 fate, and the conserved EGF signaling pathway is utilized for P12 fate specification; egl-5 is a downstream target of the lin-3/let-23 pathway in specifying P12 fate; and LIN-44 and LIN-17 act synergistically with lin-3 in the specification of the P12 fate. The Wnt pathway may function early in development to regulate the competence of the cells to respond to the LIN-3 inductive signal.
Destination tag routing techniques based on a state model for the IADM network

A 'state model' is proposed for solving the problem of routing and rerouting messages in the inverse augmented data manipulator (IADM) network. Necessary and sufficient conditions the reroutability of messages are established using this model, and destination tag schemes are derived. These schemes are simpler, more efficient, and require less complex hardware than previously proposed routing schemes. Two destination tag schemes are proposed. A universal rerouting algorithm is constructed based on one of the schemes. It finds a blockage-free path for any combination of multiple blockages if there exists such a path, and indicates the absence of such a path if there exists none. In addition, the state model is used to derive constructively a lower bound on the number of subgraphs which are isomorphic to the indirect binary n-cube network in the IADM network. This knowledge can be used to characterize properties of the IADM networks and for permutation routing in the IADM networks. >
Differential growth factor regulation of aspartyl-(asparaginyl)-β-hydroxylase family genes in SH-Sy5y human neuroblastoma cells

Aspartyl (asparaginyl)-β-hydroxylase (AAH) hydroxylates Asp and Asn residues within EGF-like domains of Notch and Jagged, which mediate cell motility and differentiation. This study examines the expression, regulation and function of AAH, and its related transcripts, Humbug and Junctin, which lack catalytic domains, using SH-Sy5y neuroblastoma cells. Real time quantitative RT-PCR demonstrated 8- or 9-fold higher levels of Humbug than AAH and Junctin, and lower levels of all 3 transcripts in normal human brains compared with neuroblastic tumor cells. AAH and Humbug expression were significantly increased in response to insulin and IGF-I stimulation, and these effects were associated with increased directional motility. However, over-expression of AAH and not Humbug significantly increased motility. Treatment with chemical inhibitors of Akt, Erk MAPK, or cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (Cdk-5) significantly reduced IGF-I stimulated AAH and Humbug expression and motility relative to vehicle-treated control cells. In addition, significantly increased AAH and Humbug expression and directional motility were observed in cells co-transfected with Cdk-5 plus its p35 or p25 regulatory partner. Further studies demonstrated that activated Cdk-5 mediated its stimulatory effects on AAH through Erk MAPK and PI3 kinase. AAH and Humbug are over-expressed in SH-Sy5y neuroblastoma cells, and their mRNAs are regulated by insulin/IGF-1 signaling through Erk MAPK, PI3 kinase-Akt, and Cdk-5, which are known mediators of cell migration. Although AAH and Humbug share regulatory signaling pathways, AAH and not Humbug mediates directional motility in SH-Sy5y neuroblastoma cells.
APPLICATION OF PHOTODYNAMIC OXIDATION TO THE DISINFECTION OF TAPWATER, SEA WATER, AND SEWAGE CONTAMINATED WITH POLIOVIRUS

Abstract. Poliovirus when added to tapwater, sewage or seawater was readily photoinactivated by methylene blue and visible light. Typically, almost 2.5 logs of virus could be inactivated upon a 5-min exposure to 670 nm light (20 W/m2) in solutions containing 13 μM methylene blue at pH 10.0. A biphasic inactivation curve was produced for poliovirus, regardless of dye concentration, pH, temperature, sensitization time, nature of suspending solution or sequence of light exposure. These results indicated that a multi-hit inactivation event was occurring. Preincubation of the dye-virus mixture at 24°C increased the rate of virus photoinactivation. Dye concentrations above 26 μM have little advantage in increasing the amount of virus photoinactivated. Significant inactivation of the virus in the dark occurred at high dye concentrations (52–130μM).
Using Single-Nucleotide Polymorphisms To Discriminate Disease-Associated from Carried Genomes of Neisseria meningitidis

Neisseria meningitidis is one of the main agents of bacterial meningitis, causing substantial morbidity and mortality worldwide. However, most of the time N. meningitidis is carried as a commensal not associated with invasive disease. The genomic basis of the difference between disease-associated and carried isolates of N. meningitidis may provide critical insight into mechanisms of virulence, yet it has remained elusive. Here, we have taken a comparative genomics approach to interrogate the difference between disease-associated and carried isolates of N. meningitidis at the level of individual nucleotide variations (i.e., single nucleotide polymorphisms [SNPs]). We aligned complete genome sequences of 8 disease-associated and 4 carried isolates of N. meningitidis to search for SNPs that show mutually exclusive patterns of variation between the two groups. We found 63 SNPs that distinguish the 8 disease-associated genomes from the 4 carried genomes of N. meningitidis, which is far more than can be expected by chance alone given the level of nucleotide variation among the genomes. The putative list of SNPs that discriminate between disease-associated and carriage genomes may be expected to change with increased sampling or changes in the identities of the isolates being compared. Nevertheless, we show that these discriminating SNPs are more likely to reflect phenotypic differences than shared evolutionary history. Discriminating SNPs were mapped to genes, and the functions of the genes were evaluated for possible connections to virulence mechanisms. A number of overrepresented functional categories related to virulence were uncovered among SNP-associated genes, including genes related to the category "symbiosis, encompassing mutualism through parasitism."
Cluster growth revisited: fast, mixed-signal placement of blocks and gates

A method for placement of circuit elements using fast clustering is presented. The method uses bi-level cost functions and efficient storage structures to keep the search space reasonable, even with very large layouts. These cost functions allow for not just general path-delay minimization and aspect ratio maintenance, but also mixed signal and diagonalized routing criteria. Thermal profiling, noise thresholding, device matching, and bounding box ratios can all be constrained in the placement. This method expands and builds upon the classical cluster growth algorithm; the true advantage of this method lies in its ability to scale up to problems too large to be considered using traditional, heuristic algorithms, and without assumptions about layout styles.
Wavelets for a vision

Early on, computer vision researchers have realized that multiscale transforms are important to analyze the information content of images. The wavelet theory gives a stable mathematical foundation to understand the properties of such multiscale algorithms. This tutorial describes major applications to multiresolution search, multiscale edge detection, and texture discrimination.
Core principles and policy reasoning in mass publics: A test of two theories

Political scientists have debated whether citizens can use core principles in lieu of ideological orientations to deduce their policy preferences. The ‘General Use’ model of public opinion holds that everyone draws equally on core principles to determine their preferences. The ‘Expertise Interaction’ model holds that the extent to which core principles influence policy preferences is a function of political expertise. Unfortunately, research design and measurement problems in extant work preclude a resolution of this debate. Here I account for these problems, test the predictions of both models, and find empirical support for each. The results demonstrate that while there is a moderate tendency for political expertise to strengthen the relationship between core beliefs and policy preferences, virtually all citizens use core beliefs to deduce preferences. Virtually all variants of democratic theory emphasize the importance of communication between citizens and their elected representatives. Most political philosophers and political scientists believe that citizens should send clear policy signals to their representatives. Policy signals provide general guidance about what citizens want their representatives to accomplish in office and serve as benchmarks by which citizens hold them accountable for their performance in office. If people send clear policy messages to elected officials, the behaviour of the latter will be constrained by the preferences of the former. Given the normative importance of this topic, public opinion specialists have exhaustively studied how citizens make political judgements. While it is now widely accepted that political expertise promotes ideological reasoning, 1 the extent to which citizens use core beliefs and values to deduce issue preferences is an open and contentious question. This is a critical research question because if most people can use core beliefs and values, then the possibility of meaningful mass-elite communication is within reach. Numerous public opinion specialists hold that most citizens use their core beliefs and values to deduce preferences on social and political issues. 2 The ‘General Use’ model
Comparing Ecological Site Descriptions to Habitat Characteristics Influencing Greater Sage-Grouse Nest Site Occurrence and Success

We used 119 greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) nests located in the Powder River Basin of northeastern Wyoming during 2004–2007 to assess the ability of US Department of Agriculture–Natural Resource Conservation Service (USDA–NRCS) ecological site descriptions (ESDs) to predict nest occurrence and success. We used nesting data from a regional study in the Powder River Basin that documented effects of local and landscape scale habitat characteristics on nest occurrence and success. We compared ESD metrics to these predictive local and landscape habitat variables where NRCS ESD field surveys overlapped our regional nest data set. We specifically asked three questions: 1) Are ESDs useful in predicting sage-grouse nest site occurrence and success as a univariate explanatory variable? 2) Can ESD information refine predictions of local scale nest site occurrence and success models? 3) Can ESD information refine landscape scale nest site occurrence models by serving as a surrogate for local scale information that cannot be mapped in a geographic information system (GIS)? Our results demonstrated that all models using ESD information were within 6 2 Akaike’s Information Criterion points of a constant only model (i.e., null model) for local-scale data, or a baseline model where local- and landscape-scale habitat metrics were held constant while allowing ESD models to compete for remaining variation. No ESD metrics were statistically significant at the 95% level (P , 0.05), although some were significant at the 80–90% level (P 5 0.09–0.14). Our study does not support the use of ESDs to predict habitat use or base sage-grouse management decisions in the Powder River Basin, but in some instances the refutation was weak. Local and landscape based habitat metrics showed high discrimination between null models with highly significant relationships on the subset data.
Local Onset of Voltage and Calcium Alternans in the Heart

A beat-to-beat variation in cardiac action potential durations (APD) is a phenomenon known as electrical alternans. Alternans desynchronizes depolarization, increases dispersion of refractoriness and creates a substrate for ventricular fibrillation. In the heart, APD alternans can be accompanied by alternans in intracellular calcium ([Ca2+ ]i ) transients. Recently, we demonstrated experimentally that the onset of APD alternans in the heart is a local phenomenon that undergoes complex spatiotemporal dynamics as pacing rate increases. Moreover, the local onset of APD alternans can be predicted by measuring the restitution properties of periodically paced cardiac tissue. The purpose of this research is to investigate the interplay between local onsets of APD and [Ca2+ ]i alternans using 2D simulation of action potential model of cardiac myocytes.© 2011 ASME
Learning in Networks: An Experimental Study ∗

This paper reports an experimental test of the model of social learning in networks described in Gale and Kariv (2003). We focus on three-person networks and investigate: the complete network, in which each subject can observe the other two subjects, and two incomplete networks, the circle, in which each agent observes one other agent, and the star, in which the subject in the center of the star is connected to the two subjects at the periphery. Learning in networks is challenging because of the lack of common knowledge about the history of play. Subjects must draw inferences about the actions other subjects have observed as well as about their private signals. Nonetheless, the
The dispersive behavior of triangular edge elements in the finite-element method

The numerical dispersion of a time-harmonic plane wave propagating through a number of infinite, two-dimensional, finite-element meshes composed of triangular edge elements is investigated. The numerical dispersion is characterized by a cumulative phase error. The phase error is quantified as a function of the electrical size of the elements, the direction of propagation of the plane wave, and the orientation of the elements.
Oncofertility: a grand collaboration between reproductive medicine and oncology

In 2007, I was asked by the University of Calgary to participate in a symposium called 'Pushing the Boundaries--Advances that Will Change the World in 20 Years'. My topic was oncofertility, a word I had just coined to describe the intersection of two disciplines--oncology and fertility--and I was thrilled to share my passion for this new field and help young women with cancer protect their future reproductive health. Fertility preservation in the cancer setting lacked a concerted effort to bridge the disciplines in an organized manner. In early 2015, I was delighted to deliver a presentation for the Society for Reproduction and Fertility titled 'Sex in Three Cities', where I gave an update on the oncofertility movement, a remarkable cross-disciplinary, global collaboration created to address the fertility preservation needs of young cancer patients. During my tour of the UK, I was impressed by the interest among the society and its members to engage colleagues outside the discipline as well as the public in a dialogue about cutting-edge reproductive science. In this invited review, I will describe the work of the Oncofertility Consortium to provide fertility preservation options in the cancer setting and accelerate the acceptance of this critical topic on a global scale. I hope that one day this word and field it created will change the world for women who had been left out of the equation for far too long.
Enhanced Optical Transmission through MacEtch‐Fabricated Buried Metal Gratings

Metallic films with subwavelength apertures, integrated into a semiconductor by metal-assisted chemical etch (MacEtch), demonstrate enhanced transmission when compared to bare semiconductor surfaces. The resulting "buried" metallic structures are characterized spectroscopically and modeled using rigorous coupled wave analysis. These composite materials offer potential integration with optoelectronic devices, for simultaneous near-uniform electrical contact and strong optical coupling to free space.
Factors associated with willingness to participate in an acupuncture clinical trial for arthralgia among breast cancer patients.

6596 Background: Many breast cancer patients use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), which warrant rigorous evaluation of the safety and efficacy of these therapies. As with conventional ...
Guided-wave Optical Circuits in Silicon-on-Insulator Technology

Silicon-on-insulator (SOI) structures offer the unique ability to integrate long wavelength photonic devices into the CMOS integrated circuit (IC) process. The large index step between SiO2 and Si (Δn~2.0) permits the use of thin layers ( < 1.0 µm cladding ) in SiO2/Si/SiO2 waveguide structures, making them compatible with VLSI technology. This large index step does not prevent single-mode wave propagation and single mode waveguides with low loss have been demonstrated at λ = 1.55 µm [1]. Further, the use of Si-Ge heterostructures permits the realisation of Si-based optoelectronic detectors in the 1.2 to 1.6 µm wavelength range [2]. Therefore, development of optical and optoelectronic devices in SOI offers a path towards low-cost, monolithic optoelectronic circuits. We report here the fabrication of a number of guided wave optical circuits in SOI technology including 3 dB directional couplers with excess insertion loss of~1.9dB at λ = 1.55 µm, an asymmetric Mach-Zehnder wavelength filter, and a 5 × 9 integrated optical star coupler with excess insertion loss of 1.3 dB and good uniformity. These optical circuits are used in cascaded Mach-Zehnder wavelength filters and phased-array waveguide grating filters for wavelength-division-multiplexed (WDM) networks.
Metabolism of lactic acid and glycerol in C14-glyceryl lactopalmitate.

Summary1. The fate of lactic acid-2-C14 following administration of glyceryl lacto-2-C14-palmitate was studied by converting lactate from blood or lymph to acetaldehyde which was counted as the dimedon derivative and as 2,2,7,7,9-pentamethyl-4,5-dioxo-octahydroxanthene. 2. The lactic acid content of lymph samples from the thoracic duct of the dog is subject to variation which arises from the speed with which samples are obtained through a cannula. 3. Appearance of radioactive CO2 in the expired air of rats following the administration of glyceryl lacto-2-C14-palmitate or glyceryl-1,3-C14-lactopalmitate, as well as the low fecal radioactivities, indicates a high degree of utilization of the fat. 4. In comparison with glycerol and glyceryl esters the metabolism of glyceryl-1-3-C14-lactopalmitate, as determined by the radioactivity of expired CO2, follows a path consistent with that expected from a normal ester of glycerol.
Evaluation of real-time PCR combined with plate culture method in detecting enteric Salmonella and Shigella from swabs of practitioners

Objective:To evaluate the application of real-time PCR combined with plate culture method in detecting Salmonella and Shigella from swabs of practitioners in food industry and public places.Methods: The classical plate culture method was used to examine Salmonella and Shigella from 19818 swabs sampled from practitioners.The same samples were also tested with real-time PCR and plate culture method consecutively.Results: For Salmonella,six swabs were positive with combined method,with positive rate being 0.30‰ and five were positive with plate culture method,with positive rate being 0.25‰.For Shigella,twenty were positive with combined method,with positive rate being 1.01‰ and five were positive with plate culture method,with positive rate being 0.25‰.Sensitivity of real-time PCR for Salmonella and Shigella are all 100% and Specificity of real-time PCR is 99.99% and 99.94%,respectively.Conclusion:Application of this combined method can improve detection rate and accuracy of Salmonella and Shigella from swabs of practitioners in CDCs at basic level,reducing work load at the same time.It also lay a good foundation for inter-laboratory comparison during the process from sampling to reporting.
Genetics: Clinical Implications of Transthyretin Amyloidosis

Transthyretin (TTR) is a fascinating protein. Its transport properties for thyroxin and Vitamin A, its classic β-barrel structure, stable homo-tetrameric structure in solution and its phylogenetic evolution have all been of great interest to scientific study. Even the lack of pathology in its absence, in TTR gene knockout mice, has been of great interest. Its entire notoriety in the area of human pathology, however, is that it readily forms amyloid fibrils, usually due to single amino acid mutations in its primary structure but in some cases even when there is no gene or amino acid structural alteration. TTR amyloidosis is strictly a human disease and more than 100 TTR mutations having been associated with the disease. A few of the mutations are found in large kindreds worldwide while many mutations have been found in only single individuals or single families. In depth analysis of this autosomal dominant disease with an appreciation of the variations in phenotypes suggests clues which may help rationalize basic physical and chemical studies of TTR with biochemical processes which must be involved in the generation of clinical disease. This chapter discusses the clinical aspects of the disease and tries to use these observations to contemplate the intricacies of pathogenesis.
Dietary ecology of ungulates from the La Brea tar pits in southern California: A multi-proxy approach

Abstract The La Brea Tar Pits are a highly fossiliferous late Pleistocene locality, with over 230 vertebrate species, and the potential to help clarify the ecology of Pleistocene megafauna prior to their extinction. Here, we analyze dental microwear textures, dental mesowear, and stable carbon isotopes to assess the dietary behavior of the three most abundant ungulates at La Brea. We examined Bison antiquus , Camelops hesternus , and Equus occidentalis teeth from pits spanning the latest Pleistocene, focusing on pit 77 (~ 35 Ka, glacial period), and pits 61/67 (~ 11.5 Ka, interglacial period). Dental microwear attributes demonstrate that B . antiquus and E . occidentalis consumed foods with similar textural properties to those preferred by mixed feeding and browsing bovids, as well as significantly different food textures than the diet of modern bison and horses. Camelops hesternus has attributes most similar to modern browsing bovids and giraffes, revealing that all taxa studied likely consumed at least some woody browse. Complexity values ( Asfc ) in B . antiquus and E . occidentalis are significantly greater at pit 77 than at pits 61/67 and modern populations, suggesting a dietary decrease in woody vegetation and shrubs from the glacial to interglacial period. Dental mesowear values further indicate that B . antiquus and C . hesternus consumed woody vegetation, whereas E . occidentalis grazed. The different dietary interpretation for E . occidentalis may reflect a discrepancy between its average diet inferred from mesowear and its most recent diet inferred from microwear. Lastly, stable carbon isotopes reveal diets composed mostly of C 3 vegetation, with B . antiquus incorporating significantly more C 4 vegetation than either of the other dominant herbivores during the accumulation of both assemblages. Collectively, these data suggest that the dietary ecology of the dominant La Brea herbivores was more nuanced than previously thought, shifting coincident with changing climates, and not necessarily predictable from morphology or any one proxy method.
Preventing the Onset of Child Sexual Abuse by Targeting Young Adolescents With Universal Prevention Programming

Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a serious public health problem that increases risk for physical and mental health problems across the life course. Young adolescents are responsible for a substantial portion of CSA offending, yet to our knowledge, no validated prevention programs that target CSA perpetration by youth exist. Most existing efforts to address CSA rely on reactive criminal justice policies or programs that teach children to protect themselves; neither approach is well validated. Given the high rates of desistance from sexual offending following a youth's first CSA-related adjudication, it seems plausible that many youth could be prevented from engaging in their first offense. The goal of this article is to examine how school-based universal prevention programs might be used to prevent CSA perpetrated by adolescents. We review the literature on risk and protective factors for CSA perpetration and identify several promising factors to target in an intervention. We also summarize the literature on programs that have been effective at preventing adolescent dating violence and other serious problem behaviors. Finally, we describe a new CSA prevention program under development and early evaluation and make recommendations for program design characteristics, including unambiguous messaging, parental involvement, multisession dosage, skills practice, and bystander considerations.
Describing the Mental Health Profile of First Responders: A Systematic Review [Formula: see text].

BACKGROUND: First responders (FRs) are responsible for providing multiple services during various critical events. Considering the frequency, nature, and intensity of duty-related traumatic exposur...
Randomized controlled trials in mild cognitive impairment Sources of variability

Objective: To examine the variability in performance among placebo groups in randomized controlled trials for mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Methods: Placebo group data were obtained from 2 National Institute on Aging (NIA) MCI randomized controlled trials, the Alzheimer9s Disease Cooperative Study (ADCS) MCI trial and the Alzheimer9s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI), which is a simulated clinical trial, in addition to industry-sponsored clinical trials involving rivastigmine, galantamine, rofecoxib, and donepezil. The data were collated for common measurement instruments. The performance of the placebo participants from these studies was tracked on the Alzheimer9s Disease Assessment Scale–cognitive subscale, Mini-Mental State Examination, and Clinical Dementia Rating–sum of boxes, and for progression on these measures to prespecified clinical study endpoints. APOE status, where available, was also analyzed for its effects. Results: The progression to clinical endpoints varied a great deal among the trials. The expected performances were seen for the participants in the 2 NIA trials, ADCS and ADNI, with generally worsening of performance over time; however, the industry-sponsored trials largely showed stable or improved performance in their placebo participants. APOE 4 carrier status influenced results in an expected fashion on the study outcomes, including rates of progression and cognitive subscales. Conclusions: In spite of apparently similar criteria for MCI being adopted by the 7 studies, the implementation of the criteria varied a great deal. Several explanations including instruments used to characterize participants and variability among study populations contributed to the findings.
Cell-Intrinsic Defense at the Epithelial Border Wall: Salmonella Pays the Price

Within the gut, Salmonella-infected enterocytes are expelled into the lumen, limiting pathogen replication. In this issue of Immunity, Rauch et al. (2017) expand our understanding of this cell-intrinsic response by characterizing the genetic determinants that control the expulsion and death of epithelial cells.
ETHNIC CONFLICT IN NIGERIA: A CHALLENGE TO INCLUSIVE SOCIAL AND POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT

Nigeria, is a product inequality among the various ethnic groups orchestrated by a long period of colonialism; a period which witnessed the ascendancy of three major ethnic groups to the socio-political domination of other ethnic groups and a period when the three major ethnic groups were used as a pedestal for the distribution of socio-political goods, resulting in the inability of other ethnic groups to access these socio-political goods. This situation has continued to impact negatively on the forces of national integration and cohesion in ethnically divided Nigeria. Considering the relationship between ethnicity and development; socio-political exclusion is not only ethically dangerous to development but also economically unproductive. It deprives groups and individuals of the opportunity for the necessary development that can be beneficial to the society. Thus, it is important to develop an integrative socio-political frame-work that explicitly recognizes the participatory role of every ethnic group in governance. Hence, there is a need for the adoption of inclusive governance to manage ethnicity in Nigeria. Notwithstanding, ethnic conflict still persists and an attempt will be made in this study to identify the reasons. Central to socio-political sustainability in Nigeria is a system that should recognize that differences are important to development and encompass notions of equality. Such a system should acknowledge the socio-political and economic power of every ethnic group and promote a system devoid of ethnocentric ideology.
Amyloidosis diagnosed in cytology specimen of pleural effusion: A case report

Amyloidosis is a rare condition resulting from extracellular deposition of amyloid, a fibrillary material derived from various precursor proteins. Involvement of the pleura by amyloidosis is a rare but serious complication. Pleural amyloidosis is primarily diagnosed by identifying amyloid deposition by histology on pleural biopsy specimens. Hereby, we report a case of systemic amyloidosis where we were able to identify amyloid in a pleural effusion specimen sent for cytopathology evaluation. A 59-year-old male with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma and systemic amyloidosis underwent therapeutic thoracentesis. The H&E stained cell block sections revealed a single, less than one millimeter focus of waxy material surrounded by a rim of reactive mesothelial cells suspicious for amyloid deposit in a background of fibrin, lymphocytes, and reactive mesothelial cells. The focus stained salmon pink with Congo-red special stain and showed apple-green birefringence under polarized light. Our finding suggests that pleural involvement in patients with systemic amyloidosis can be identified on effusion specimens and avert the need for more invasive procedures like pleural or pulmonary parenchymal biopsies.
Charging a Smartphone Across a Room Using Lasers

We demonstrate a novel laser-based wireless power delivery system that can charge mobile devices such as smartphones across a room. The key challenges in achieving this are multi-fold: delivering greater than a watt of power across the room, minimizing the exposure of the resulting high-power lasers to human tissue, and finally ensuring that the design meets the form-factor requirements of a smartphone and requires minimal instrumentation to the environment. This paper presents a novel, and to the best of our knowledge, the first design, implementation and evaluation of an end-to-end power delivery system that satisfies all the above requirements. Our results show that we can deliver more than 2 W at ranges of 4.3 m and 12.2 m for a smartphone (25 cm2) and table-top form factor (100 cm2) receiver respectively. Further, extensive characterization of our safety system shows that we can turn off our laser source much before a human moving at a maximum speed of 44 m/s can even enter the high-power laser beam area.
Baseline peripheral blood biomarkers associated with clinical outcome of advanced lung cancer in patients treated with anti-PD-1 antibody.

e20599Background: The anti-PD-1 antibodies nivolumab and pembrolizumab have demonstrated improved overall survival (OS) and progression free survival (PFS) in a subset of patients with metastatic o...
Abstract # 3173 An investigation into the impact of neuroimmune function after pregnancy or stress: Are there potential links to the onset of depression?

The National Institute of Mental Health has identified postpartum depression as one of several types of depression that affects 10–15% of mothers. It has previously been hypothesized that postpartum depression may be caused by dramatic changes in hormone levels that occur throughout pregnancy and the immediate postpartum period (Harris et al., 1994); however, the exact underlying mechanisms are still unknown. Like the dramatic change in hormone levels, the peripheral immune system is also altered to protect the developing semi-allogenic fetus from being rejected by the maternal immune system (Fallon et al., 2002). Despite this well-known phenomenon, the literature on how the central immune system is altered during pregnancy is still very limited. Increased circulating cytokines have been associated with numerous types of depression as well as chronic stress (Dantzer, 2009). Recently, we have observed depressive-like behaviors on the day of birth and following sub-chronic stress, and increased IL-6 expression in the maternal brain on the day of birth (Posillico and Schwarz, 2016). Thus, we sought to determine whether blocking the function of this pro-inflammatory cytokine may prevent the anhedonia observed following birth or sub-chronic stress. Treatment with an IL-6 receptor antibody effectively attenuated depressive-like behavior immediately postpartum, but had no effect following sub-chronic stress. These results suggest that the molecular mechanisms that underlie the onset of anhedonia following birth and sub-chronic stress may be distinct.
ENVIRONMENTAL STRESS AND ITERATIVE PAEDOMORPHISM IN SHELLS OF POECILOZONITES (GASTROPODA: GASTRODONTIDAE) FROM BERMUDA

Considerable refinement of the surficial geology and biostratigraphy Bermuda has resulted in the proper ordering of the phylogenetic sequence of Poecilozonites, and thus offers an opportunity to examine evolutionary pathways within this taxon. Paedomorphism, the retention of juvenile ontogenetic characteristics into adulthood, is a recurrent morphological manifestation in fossil land snail shells of the subgenus P. (Poecilozonites) on this isolated oceanic island. The paleontology of this endemic taxon has been examined over the past century and was a key example of “punctuated equilibria” (PE) in the late 1960s and early 1970s. In a previous study, we documented the biostratigraphy and geochronology from the known fossil record of P. (Poecilozonites) representing atleast the past 500 kyr. Here we focus specifically on paedomorphic forms that appeared in shells at the onset of the last interglaciation, marine isotopes stages (MIS) 6/5e and again at the beginning of the Holocene (MIS 2/1). There are many possible mechanisms to explain the occurrence of paedomorphism including PE, but of importance to this discussion is that neither the size nor the fossil record of Poecilozonites show three independent lineages as proposed by Gould (1969). Gould's several named paedomorphic forms supposedly branching from P. bermudensis over the past 300 kyr, occur only during the last interglacial (sensu lato) MIS 5, and the Holocene (MIS 1). Both punctuation and stasis characterize the morphological changes of this taxon over the past 140 ka, but these changes are reversible, and no speciation is evident.
Soil health characterization in smallholder agricultural catchments in India

Abstract Soil health (SH) of managed lands in India is affected by anthropogenic activities such as nutrient mining, excessive tillage, and monocropping, which reduce the productive capacity of soils. A comprehensive SH characterization was conducted in 27 catchments in six districts of Jharkhand, India. Each was stratified into four landscape positions: (i) uncultivated upland in tree vegetation, (ii) cultivated upland in garden or orchard use, and (iii) midland and (iv) lowland areas in rice-fallow fields, yielding 113 soil samples from 0 to 15 cm and 20 from 30 to 40 cm depths. Soil textural separates as well as 15 dynamic physical, biological, and chemical properties were assessed using the Comprehensive Assessment of Soil Health framework. Nutrient analyses indicate low to very low P and K values, but high micronutrient levels. A district level ANOVA shows effects of inherent soil factors on the indicators. The influence of tillage, nutrient extraction as well as landscape hydrology on soil health indicators was apparent, notably showing uncultivated soils with higher overall SH. Puddle tillage affected the surface and subsurface soil, the latter showing reduced water holding capacity and less favorable biological indicators. Multivariate analyses showed directional separation of biological and chemical indicators in the first two principal components. A Best Subsets Regression analysis revealed organic matter, soil respiration and active carbon as the most predictive in determining overall SH scores (R2adj = 0.87). In conclusion, a comprehensive soil health assessment using a spatial framework in Jharkhand, India identified multiple SH constraints related to farmer management, associated organic matter dynamics, and natural factors.
Second-Order Differential Equations

Second-order differential equations are one of the most widely studied classes of differential equations in mathematics, physical science, and engineering. One sure reason is that Newton’s second law of motion is expressed as a law that involves acceleration of a particle, which is the second derivative of position. Thus, general one-dimensional mechanical systems are governed naturally by second-order equations.
Use of 3D Model in Laparoscopic Myomectomy

Video Objective The objective of this video is to review the utility of patient-specific 3D printed models of the uterus in surgical planning and as an intraoperative visual aid in laparoscopic myomectomy. Setting Patients undergoing a laparoscopic myomectomy with the Minimally Invasive Gynecologic Surgery department at Brigham and Women's Hospital were prospectively identified. Women with three or more fibroids and a preoperative MRI for their planned laparoscopic myomectomy were approached for the study, and verbal consent was obtained. Models were printed for three patients in the series, and one case is reviewed in detail in this video. Interventions MRI of the pelvis was acquired for each patient. The DICOM images resulted from the MRI were converted to Standard Tesselation Language (STL), using image segmentation and postprocessing software (Mediprint, Chester, NY). The STL file was printed using a 3D printer (PolyJet J750; Stratasys, Eden Prairie, MN). The models are printed in a clear polymer with fibroids selectively colorized. Transverse slices allow visualization of the intramural extent of fibroids. The models were provided to surgeons for preoperative planning and were also available to the surgeon intraoperatively. Intraoperatively, the models were manipulated outside the sterile field by the research assistant. Conclusion 3D printing is a developing technology with potential for use in surgery. In laparoscopic myomectomy, patient-specific 3D models present an additional tool for preoperative and intraoperative planning. Primary uses include planning of hysterotomies, assessment of the depth of myometrial involvement and proximity to the uterine cavity, and intraoperative identification of fibroids which are not visible or palpable laparoscopically. Additionally, the 3D model can serve as an educational tool for patients and trainees. Currently cost and the time to print 3D models are limiting factors for widespread use. As this technology develops, 3D printing may become a more promising surgical tool.