cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Abstract LB-291: Environment or accident? A more stringent bound on environmental contributions to cancerogenesis

Finding the right balance between cancer prevention and early detection is essential for an efficient anti-cancer strategy. Yet, the underlying biological question “how much cancer risk results from chance, how much from environmental factors’’ continues to be controversial. Recently, the “bad luck’’ hypothesis was strengthened based on observing a tight correlation between a tissues cancer risk and its number of stem cell divisions [1]. This interpretation was later challenged by pointing out that certain even drastic changes of environmental risk factors would not affect theat correlation [2]. Based on this argument they derived an estimate of the upper bound of environmental contributions to canceriogenesis. Here we argue that the argument made in [2] did not fully appreciate that typically several mutations are requited before cancer initiation occurs [3]. We show that by incorporating this aspect into the analysis the correlation between the number of stem cell divisions and cancer risk would respond to changes of environmental factors. We re-analyze the data in [1] to derive a slightly more stringent upper bound of the environmental risk contributions for a number of cancers than the ones obtained in [2]. [1] C. Tomasetti, B. Vogelstein, Science 347(6217), 78-81 (2015) [2] S. Wu, S.Powers et al., Nature 529, 43-47 (2015) [3] C. Nordling, British Journal of Cancer 7(1), 68-72 (1953) Citation Format: Sven Bilke, Paul S. Meltzer. Environment or accident? A more stringent bound on environmental contributions to cancerogenesis. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2016 Apr 16-20; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(14 Suppl):Abstract nr LB-291.
Promise and Pitfalls of Mitochondrial Replacement for Prevention and Cure of Heritable Neurodegenerative Diseases Caused by Deleterious Mutations in Mitochondrial DNA.

Citation: Paine A and Jaiswal MK (2016) Promise and Pitfalls of Mitochondrial Replacement for Prevention and Cure of Heritable Neurodegenerative Diseases Caused by Deleterious Mutations in Mitochondrial DNA. Front. Cell. Neurosci. 10:219. doi: 10.3389/fncel.2016.00219 Promise and Pitfalls of Mitochondrial Replacement for Prevention and Cure of Heritable Neurodegenerative Diseases Caused by Deleterious Mutations in Mitochondrial DNA
Functional and oncological outcome after surgical resection of the scapula and clavicle for primary chondrosarcoma.

The scapula is a relatively common site for chondrosarcoma to develop in contrary to the clavicle, which is rarely affected by these tumors. The aim of this study is to determine the functional and oncological outcome for patients treated operatively for scapular or clavicular chondrosarcoma. In this single-center retrospective study, we included a sample of 20 patients that received the diagnosis of a primary chondrosarcoma of the scapula or clavicle. Of the surviving patients, the functional function was assessed using the DASH and the PROMIS Physical Function—Upper Extremity. Patients were longitudinally tracked for their oncological outcome. All patients were followed for at least 2 years or until death. The mean age of the cohort was 47 years. Eighteen patients suffered from a chondrosarcoma of the scapula, and in 2 patients, the tumor was located in the clavicle. Metastasis, local recurrence and a higher tumor grade were all associated with a decreased overall survival. For the patients with a chondrosarcoma of the scapula, the average DASH score was 16 ± 16 and the mean PROMIS Physical Function—Upper Extremity score was 48 ± 10. Patients with both an intact rotator cuff and glenoid had a better physical function. Upper extremity function after (partial) scapulectomy varied depending on whether the glenoid was spared and whether a functioning shoulder abductor remained. When the resection spared these structures, then excellent functional outcomes were reported. Oncologic outcomes depended upon the grade of the tumor and whether local recurrence and metastases occurred.
Tire Pressure Monitoring System encryption to improve vehicular security

Vehicles are increasingly wirelessly connected and each wireless connection is a potential cyber threat surface. Many of these wireless communications are related to the infotainment systems and are optional, some are not. Since 2008, when the U.S. government mandated the need for real-time tire pressure diagnostics, automotive manufacturers have inserted Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS)-based devices in all vehicles sold domestically. These sensors are divided into “direct” and “indirect” TPMS based on the mechanisms used to observe the tire pressure, temperature, and other characteristics; while marginally more expensive, most such systems are directly embedded in the tire to achieve the diagnostics requirements stated in National Highway Traffic Safety Administration [1], [2], necessitating a wireless communications link back to a car's Controller Area Network (CAN) bus and engine control unit (ECU). In this paper, we seek to evaluate the cyber-security of that TPMS wireless communications interface, proposing and evaluating the viability of incorporating a more secure TPMS protocol that takes advantage of simple linear feedback shift register (LFSR)-based message encryption. The proposed models were designed and implemented in both a Universal Serial Radio Peripheral (USRP) N210 software defined radio (SDR) testbed that replicates each side of the TPMS link; the resulting capabilities were also simulated on an inexpensive Arduino platform to demonstrate cost realism in the threat to the TPMS system.
Wrongful Convictions and Criminal Justice: A Challenge and Invitation

This article asks: (1) Should criminal justice and criminological research related to wrongful conviction be more extensive?; (2) What is innocence scholarship?; and (3) How have criminologists and criminal justice researchers contributed to the study of wrongful convictions and what are the paths forward? This article is framed by the observation that crime scholars play a small role in innocence scholarship hence the challenge and invitation.
Actor-Network Theory

Actor–network theory (ANT) began at the end of the 1970s as an attempt to account for scientific activity without distinguishing a priori between its so-called social and technical aspects. The concept of actor–network captures the idea that for any actor to act, many others must act as well. In other words, action is shared with a multitude of people and things – for, indeed, things play a part in our collective lives. Actors, whether individual or collective, whether human or not, are therefore a mystery whose constitution must be explained; they are not at all the obvious starting point of action. Those few premises have had a significant impact on some organizational communication scholars, in particular those interested in interorganizational networks and partnerships, in questions of agency, or in the ability of communication to constitute organizations.
Accurate Reduced Dimensional Polynomial Chaos for Efficient Uncertainty Quantification of Microwave/RF Networks

This paper presents a polynomial chaos (PC) formulation based on the concept of dimension reduction for the efficient uncertainty analysis of microwave and RF networks. This formulation exploits a high-dimensional model representation for quantifying the relative effect of each random dimension on the network responses surface. This information acts as problem-dependent sensitivity indices guiding the intelligent identification and subsequent pruning of the statistically unimportant random dimensions from the original parametric space. Performing a PC expansion in the resultant low-dimensional random subspace leads to the recovery of a sparser set of coefficients than that obtained from the full-dimensional random space with negligible loss in accuracy. Novel methodologies to reuse the preliminary PC bases and SPICE simulations required to estimate the sensitivity indices are presented, thereby making the proposed approach more efficient and accurate than standard sparse PC approaches. The validity of the proposed approach is demonstrated using three distributed network examples.
The Arp2/3 complex binding protein HS1 is required for efficient dendritic cell random migration and force generation

Dendritic cell migration to the T-cell-rich areas of the lymph node is essential for their ability to initiate the adaptive immune response. While it has been shown that the actin cytoskeleton is required for normal DC migration, the role of many of the individual cytoskeletal molecules is poorly understood. In this study, we investigated the contribution of the Arp2/3 complex binding protein, haematopoietic lineage cell-specific protein 1 (HS1), to DC migration and force generation. We quantified the random migration of HS1−/− DCs on 2D micro-contact printed surfaces and found that in the absence of HS1, DCs have greatly reduced motility and speed. This same reduction in motility was recapitulated when adding Arp2/3 complex inhibitor to WT DCs or using DCs deficient in WASP, an activator of Arp2/3 complex-dependent actin polymerization. We further investigated the importance of HS1 by measuring the traction forces of HS1−/− DCs on micropost array detectors (mPADs). In HS1 deficient DCs, there was a significant reduction in force generation (3.96 ± 0.40 nN per cell) compared to WT DCs (13.76 ± 0.84 nN per cell). Interestingly, the forces generated in DCs lacking WASP were only slightly reduced compared to WT DCs. Taken together, these findings show that HS1 and Arp2/3 complex-mediated actin polymerization are essential for the most efficient DC random migration and force generation.
Multi-institutional Validation Study of Pancreatic Cyst Fluid Protein Analysis for Prediction of High-risk Intraductal Papillary Mucinous Neoplasms of the Pancreas

Objective:Preliminary work by our group suggested that proteins within the pancreatic cyst fluid (CF) may discriminate degree of IPMN dysplasia. We sought to externally validate these markers and determine whether their inclusion in a preoperative clinical nomogram could increase diagnostic accuracy
A Collaborative, Network-Based Approach to Advance Women's Depression Research in the United States: Preliminary Findings.

Abstract Objective: Translation of women's mental health research has yet to impact overall prevalence and burden of Mood Disorders in the United States. The lack of standard measures and methodological coordination across studies has contributed to the slow impact of research on outcomes. The primary aims of this project were to demonstrate the process by which multiple investigators, sites, and settings administered a standard women's mental health questionnaire within a new Women's Depression Network. Information on the prevalence of mental health and service use across sites is provided. Methods: A standard women's mental health questionnaire was developed and administered across seven different women's health sites in the United States. Validated measures of depression and anxiety were included (Patient Health Questionnaire Depression Scale [PHQ-9] and Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale [GAD-7]). Administration of the questionnaire was embedded into existing clinical or research activities at each si...
An Engineered Optogenetic Switch for Spatiotemporal Control of Gene Expression, Cell Differentiation, and Tissue Morphogenesis.

The precise spatial and temporal control of gene expression, cell differentiation, and tissue morphogenesis has widespread application in regenerative medicine and the study of tissue development. In this work, we applied optogenetics to control cell differentiation and new tissue formation. Specifically, we engineered an optogenetic “on” switch that provides permanent transgene expression following a transient dose of blue light illumination. To demonstrate its utility in controlling cell differentiation and reprogramming, we incorporated an engineered form of the master myogenic factor MyoD into this system in multipotent cells. Illumination of cells with blue light activated myogenic differentiation, including upregulation of myogenic markers and fusion into multinucleated myotubes. Cell differentiation was spatially patterned by illumination of cell cultures through a photomask. To demonstrate the application of the system to controlling in vivo tissue development, the light inducible switch was used ...
Future Directions and Conclusion

For the future directions of my work, I hope to continue my pursuits of understanding optical properties at the nanoscale and take both EELS and CL to the next level.
GaSb solar cells grown on GaAs via interfacial misfit arrays for use in the III-Sb multi-junction cell

Growth of GaSb with low threading dislocation density directly on GaAs may be possible with the strategic strain relaxation of interfacial misfit arrays. This creates an opportunity for a multi-junction solar cell with access to a wide range of well-developed direct bandgap materials. Multi-junction cells with a single layer of GaSb/GaAs interfacial misfit arrays could achieve higher efficiency than state-of-the-art inverted metamorphic multi-junction cells while forgoing the need for costly compositionally graded buffer layers. To develop this technology, GaSb single junction cells were grown via molecular beam epitaxy on both GaSb and GaAs substrates to compare homoepitaxial and heteroepitaxial GaSb device results. The GaSb-on-GaSb cell had an AM1.5g efficiency of 5.5% and a 44-sun AM1.5d efficiency of 8.9%. The GaSb-on-GaAs cell was 1.0% efficient under AM1.5g and 4.5% at 44 suns. The lower performance of the heteroepitaxial cell was due to low minority carrier Shockley-Read-Hall lifetimes and bulk shu...
A Note on Animal and Political Economy in Quesnay

In this article, I argue that Francois Quesnay’s physiocratic writings on economics entail the working through not only of formal principles of circulatory flow developed in his earlier physiologic...
Book review: Aaron Panofsky (2014), Misbehaving Science: Controversy and the Development of Behavior Genetics:

Aaron Panofsky (2014), Misbehaving Science: Controversy and the Development of Behavior Genetics. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. 321 pp., $27.50 (Paperback), ISBN: 9780226058450. $89.00 ...
Population-representative analysis of dietary supplementation among Americans with diabetes mellitus.

BACKGROUND Few population-representative studies have examined dietary supplement use among Americans with diabetes mellitus (DM). This investigation analyzed dietary supplementation and DM data from the 2013-2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). METHODS Data from 5040 adult participants were analyzed, including 639 participants reporting a diagnosis of DM (Method 1), which increased to 1036 after including participants reporting "borderline" DM or prediabetes (Method 2). Participants reported dietary supplements used over the past month. The prevalence of supplementation was compared among participants with and without DM using the Rao-Scott likelihood Chi-squared test; multivariate logistic regression was used to examine whether DM was an independent predictor of supplementation. RESULTS Regardless of whether Method 1 or Method 2 was used, dietary supplementation was more prevalent among participants with DM (Method 1, 61.4% vs. 54.4%, P = 0.024; Method 2, 62.7% vs. 53.5%, P < 0.001). After adjusting for a variety of demographic and health-related variables, the presence of DM was no longer associated with supplementation for Method 1 (odds ratio [OR] 1.01; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.78-1.32; P = 0.925) or Method 2 (OR 1.13; 95% CI 0.91-1.41; P = 0.238). Approximately four of every five products taken for the purpose of managing DM were self-prescribed, the most common being multivitamins-minerals, cinnamon-containing supplements, and chromium-containing supplements. CONCLUSIONS Slightly more than six out of 10 Americans with DM use dietary supplements each month and, although this is higher than Americans without DM, it does not appear to be due to DM per se.
Malalignment and Malorientation in the Frontal Plane

Malalignment refers to the loss of collinearity of the hip, knee, and ankle in the frontal plane. Therefore, if the MAD exceeds the normal range, there is malalignment of the hip, knee, and ankle (see ► Fig. 1-8a). Frontal plane MAD may arise from four anatomic sources (► Fig.2-1): (a) femoral frontal plane deformity; (b) tibial frontal plane deformity; (c) frontal plane knee joint laxity, including subluxation or dislocation; and (d) femoral or tibial condylar deficiency. These sources can be categorized as osseous, interosseous, and condylar.
Letters: Neighborhood discriminant tensor mapping

Linear dimensionality reduction (feature extraction) methods have been widely used in computer vision and pattern recognition. Two of the most representative methods are principal component analysis (PCA) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA). However, when dealing with a multidimensional dataset of dimension R^m^"^[email protected]?R^m^"^[email protected][email protected]?R^m^"^N (e.g. for images N=2, videos N=3), these methods usually first transform the original data to high dimensional vectors in R^m^"^1^x^m^"^2^x^...^x^m^"^N, and then analyze the data in such a high dimensional space. In this paper, we propose a supervised dimensionality reduction method called neighborhood discriminative tensor mapping (NDTM), which can directly process the multidimensional data as tensors. Moreover, NDTM can make use of the local information of the dataset to achieve a better classification result. Experimental results on face recognition show the superiority of our algorithm to traditional dimensionality reduction methods.
Multimedia software engineering

Preface. 1. A Framework for Multimedia Software Engineering. 2. Perspectives in Multimedia Software Engineering. 3. Syntax: Visual Languages. 4. Syntax: Multimedia Languages. 5. Semantics: The Active Index. 6. Semantics: Teleaction Objects. 7. Pragmatics: Tools for a Multimedia Development Environment. 8. Pragmatics: Prototyping Multimedia Applications. 9. Systems: The Design of Multimedia Languages. 10. Systems: Distributed Multimedia Systems Design. 11. Systems: The Specification of Multimedia Applications. 12. Exercises and Project Suggestions. References. Index.
Modeling and Experiments on the Propagation of Transient Ultrasound in a Thick Annulus

Fatigue cracks often develop on the inner surface of annular components such as collars. In some instances, these cracks have been identified as the cause of catastrophic failures. Traditional ultrasonic inspection of such parts can be difficult and time- consuming. Instead, circumferential waves guided in the annular structure interrogate at once the entire path between the source and the receiver thus enabling for fast inspection of relatively inaccessible regions. However, the modal complexity of the ultrasonic signals is a challenge which must be addressed before practical implementation of the technique. Specifically, it is important to control and select the desired modes of propagation in the waveguide [1–4].The approach taken in this paper is analytical, numerical and experimental.
Towards a Neurotransmitter-Based Retinal Prosthesis Using an Inkjet Print-head

Electronic chips that provide a patterned stimulus to cells in the retina may provide a viable treatment for age-related macular degeneration. A surrogate MEMS device, in the form of a print-head from a desktop printer, has been used to eject a pattern of neurotransmitters (bradykinin) onto living rat pheochromocytoma (PC12) cells. Fluorescent calcium imaging was used to measure the patterned stimulation of individual cells. The chemical stimulation of cells by directed microfluidic delivery may have applications in retinal prosthetic devices, and in other prosthetic implants in the nervous system.
PhotoSpec: A new instrument to measure spatially distributed red and far-red Solar-Induced Chlorophyll Fluorescence

Solar-Induced Chlorophyll Fluorescence (SIF) is an emission of light in the 650–850 nm spectral range from the excited state of the chlorophyll-a pigment after absorption of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR). As this is directly linked to the electron transport chain in oxygenic photosynthesis, SIF is a powerful proxy for photosynthetic activity. SIF observations are relatively new and, while global scale measurements from satellites using high-resolution spectroscopy of Fraunhofer bands are becoming more available, observations at the intermediate canopy scale using these techniques are sparse. We present a novel ground-based spectrometer system - PhotoSpec - for measuring SIF in the red (670–732 nm) and far-red (729–784 nm) wavelength range as well as canopy reflectance (400–900 nm) to calculate vegetation indices, such as the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), the enhanced vegetation index (EVI), and the photochemical reflectance index (PRI). PhotoSpec includes a 2D scanning telescope unit which can be pointed to any location in a canopy with a narrow field of view (FOV = 0.7°). PhotoSpec has a high signal-to-noise ratio and spectral resolution, which allows high precision solar Fraunhofer line retrievals over the entire fluorescence wavelength range under all atmospheric conditions using a new two-step linearized least-squares retrieval procedure. Initial PhotoSpec observations include the diurnal SIF cycle of single broad leaves, grass, and dark-light transitions. Results from the first tower-based measurements in Costa Rica show that the instrument can continuously monitor SIF of several tropical species throughout the day. The PhotoSpec instrument can be used to explore the relationship between SIF, photosynthetic efficiencies, Gross Primary Productivity (GPP), and the impact of canopy radiative transfer, viewing geometry, and stress conditions at the canopy scale.
Designing and implementing asynchronous online deliberate practice to develop interprofessional communication competency

Communicating with healthcare providers is a core tenant in the Quality and Safety Education for Nurses and Institute of Medicine teamwork and collaboration competency but remains a major concern for pre-licensure nursing students and novice nurses. Pre-licensure nursing students rarely have opportunities to practice interprofessional communication skills with other healthcare providers even though lack of this skill competency may lead to patient harm. This article explores the feasibility of using story-guided online deliberate practice sessions as an educational strategy to improve students' interprofessional critical communication competency. The design and testing of asynchronous online deliberate practice session prototypes is described and the implementation and evaluation of two online deliberate practice sessions into a nursing course is reported. The online format provided students with convenient opportunities to develop competency in critical communication skills using SBAR in a safe environment. Results from the prototype testing and student evaluation indicated that students had an overall positive experience. The online deliberate practice sessions provided a low-cost, flexible practice experience to develop critical communication skills and were evaluated as highly satisfactory and easy to navigate. The optimal number of practice sessions needed to attain competency, retain skills, and impact patient outcomes require further longitudinal study.
Developmental Considerations for Assessment and Treatment of Impulsivity in Older Adults

Impulsivity is an important factor in many clinical disorders, especially alcohol and substance use disorders. Most of the research on impulsivity in this domain has focused on adolescence and young adulthood, as this developmental period is characterized by onset of and escalation in alcohol and substance use, likely driven in part by brain development patterns. Although many individuals eventually "mature out" of these behaviors in middle adulthood, a critical subset of people do not. The role of impulsivity in middle-to-older adulthood, when certain individuals transition from normative to disordered substance use, has not been carefully examined. The goal of this paper is to review the literature on measuring and modifying impulsivity from adolescence through older adulthood, with a special focus on middle-to-older adulthood. We propose that impulsivity research should include data on middle-to-older adulthood as an important time of transition to disordered use. We consider how impulsivity might have unique meaning at different stages of the adult lifespan and suggest modifications for assessing and treating impulsivity in older adults.
Real-time visual feedback reduces patellofemoral joint forces during squatting in individuals with patellofemoral pain.

Abstract Background Elevated patellofemoral joint forces appear to contribute to the development of patellofemoral pain. As a result, treatment of patellofemoral pain often includes movement retraining intended to reduce patellofemoral joint forces. Real-time visual feedback has been shown to be effective for retraining running kinematics; however, we are not aware of a previous study that has examined the influence of real-time visual feedback on patellofemoral joint mechanics during a squat. Methods Twenty individuals with patellofemoral pain completed squats before (baseline) and immediately after (post-feedback) completing a real-time visual feedback training session. During the session, participants received visual feedback related to their patellofemoral joint forces (estimated via a musculoskeletal model) during squatting and were asked to alter their movement pattern to minimize these forces. Patellofemoral joint forces and hip, knee, and ankle joint mechanics were compared for the baseline and post-feedback trials in order to examine how feedback influenced squat performance. Findings Participants demonstrated a 14.4% reduction in patellofemoral joint forces following the feedback session. They appeared to achieve this reduction in patellofemoral joint forces by squatting with less knee flexion (97.26 ± 17.11° vs. 102.96 ± 16.55°) and lower knee extension moments (0.10 ± 0.02 Nm/bodyweight vs. 0.11 ± 0.02 Nm/bodyweight) and quadriceps forces (4.06 ± 0.87 bodyweights vs. 4.67 ± 0.98 bodyweights). Interpretation Real-time visual feedback appears to be effective for reducing patellofemoral joint forces during squatting in individuals with patellofemoral pain. As a result, training of this nature may be beneficial when treating patellofemoral pain.
Leptin, Obesity, and Hypertension: A Review of Pathogenetic Mechanisms

The adipokine leptin is expressed at higher concentrations in obese subjects, who also incidentally have a higher prevalence of hypertension. The pathogenesis of this obesity-related hypertension is controversial and is believed to be related to many factors including increased sympathetic activity, abnormalities of the renin-angiotensin system, sodium retention, and an endotheliopathy acting independently or in concert with increased circulating leptin. This review discusses the potential mechanisms through which changes in leptin signal transduction pathways in tissues with the leptin receptor, especially the hypothalamus, mediate the pathogenetic relationships between obesity and hypertension. The hypothesis is explored that leptin effects on blood pressure (BP) are meditated by the downstream effects of hypothalamic leptin signaling and ultimately result in activation of specific melanocortin receptors located on sympathetic neurons in the spinal cord. The physiological consequences of this sympathetic activation of the heart and kidney are activation of the renin-angiotensin system, sodium retention and circulatory expansion and finally, elevated BP. This sequence of events has been elegantly demonstrated with leptin infusion and gene knockout studies in animal models but has not been convincingly reproducibly confirmed in humans. Further studies in human subjects on the specific roles of hypothalamic leptin in essential hypertension are indicated as elucidation of the signaling pathways should provide better understanding of the role of weight loss in BP control and afford an additional mechanism for pharmacologic control of BP in adults and children at risk of cardiovascular disease.
Examining How Health Navigation Affects Mental Health Among Gay, Bisexual, and Other Men Who Have Sex with Men Living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus in Guatemala

Gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (GBMSM) are disproportionately affected by mental health problems and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Health navigation has the potential to i...
Novel Approach for Laparoscopically Placed Chronic Amniotic Fluid Catheters in Sheep.

INTRODUCTION Several fetal therapies involve repeated amniotic fluid intervention. We hypothesize that a minimally invasive approach can be used to safely implant an intrauterine catheter infusion system in a fetal ovine model for chronic use during pregnancy. METHOD Five pregnant sheep underwent operation between gestational days 110 and 115 (term 145 days). A Codman® implantable infusion pump was adapted for intrauterine use. The chamber was placed in the maternal flank and the tunneled catheter laparoscopically inserted into the amniotic cavity, secured with a pursestring. Three had an additional uterine anchoring suture. Ewes were sacrificed after natural delivery, and the uterus underwent gross and microscopic analyses. RESULTS There were no maternal mortalities, abortions, or preterm labor. Pumps were accessed and remained functional throughout gestation. Four ewes delivered healthy term lambs; the other delivered twins with failure to progress and demise. On necropsy, catheters secured with an anchoring suture remained in place, while the other 2 dislodged during labor. There was no chorioamnionitis by culture or histology. CONCLUSION Laparoscopically placed intra-amniotic infusion catheters were implanted safely and remained functional until delivery in an ovine model. This novel approach has promise in providing safe, durable amniotic fluid access for the potential treatment of fetal disease.
Epidemiological characteristics of three SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern and implications for future COVID-19 pandemic outcomes

Three SARS-CoV-2 variants classified as variants of concern - B.1.1.7, B.1.351, and P.1 - have spread globally. To characterize their viral and epidemiological properties in support of public health planning, we develop and apply a model-inference system to estimate the changes in transmissibility and immune escape for each variant, based on case and mortality data from the country where each variant emerged. Accounting for under-detection of infection, disease seasonality, concurrent non-pharmaceutical interventions, and mass-vaccination, we estimate that B.1.1.7 has a 46.6% (95% CI: 32.3 - 54.6%) increase in transmissibility but nominal immune escape from protection induced by prior wild-type infection; B.1.351 has a 32.4% (95% CI: 14.6 - 48.0%) increase in transmissibility and 61.3% (95% CI: 42.6 - 85.8%) immune escape; and P.1 has a 43.3% (95% CI: 30.3 - 65.3%) increase in transmissibility and 52.5% (95% CI: 0 - 75.8%) immune escape. Model simulations indicate that B.1.351 and P.1 could supplant B.1.1.7 dominance and lead to increased infections. Our findings highlight the importance of preventing the spread of B.1.351 and P.1, in addition to B.1.1.7, via continued preventive measures, prompt mass-vaccination of all populations, continued monitoring of vaccine efficacy, and possible updating of vaccine formulations to ensure high efficacy.
No Difference Between Hemiarthroplasty and Total Hip Arthroplasty in the Treatment of Pathologic Femoral Neck Fractures

Abstract Background Hemiarthroplasty (HA) and total hip arthroplasty (THA) have been widely discussed as treatment options for displaced osteoporotic femoral neck fractures. Pathologic femoral neck fractures from primary or metastatic tumors are comparatively rare and poorly investigated. The purpose of this study was to compare outcomes, complications, and perioperative survival for HA and THA in the treatment of pathologic femoral neck fractures of neoplastic etiology. Methods A multicenter retrospective cohort study identified patients with pathologic femoral neck fractures treated with HA or THA from 2005 to 2018. Demographics, American Society of Anesthesiologists classification, Charlson comorbidity index, Dorr classification, histopathologic diagnosis, and surgical data were compared. The primary outcome was reoperation. Secondary outcomes included 90-day mortality, estimated blood loss, length of stay, periprosthetic fracture, periprosthetic joint infection, and Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status. Results There were 116 patients with HA and 48 patients with THA, with no differences between groups with regard to American Society of Anesthesiologists classification, Charlson comorbidity index, or Dorr classification. There were no differences between HA and THA in the primary outcome of reoperation (5.2% vs 4.2%, P = 1.00) or secondary outcomes of perioperative 90-day overall mortality (30.2% vs 25.0%, P = .51), estimated blood loss, transfusion rates, length of stay, discharge location, periprosthetic joint infection, periprosthetic fracture, or preoperative or postoperative Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status. Conclusions Both HA and THA are viable options for the treatment of patients with pathologic femoral neck fractures and demonstrated no differences in reoperations, complications, perioperative 90-day mortality, or functional outcome scores. Level of Evidence Level III.
Nineteenth-Century Developments in Statistics

Chapter 5 follows eighteenth- and nineteenth-century developments in astronomy, upon which modern theories of statistical inference were built in the 1920s and 1930s. Significance testing derived ultimately from the controversial use of probabilistic criteria for the rejection of discordant observations in astronomy. From an unelaborated remark of Jeffreys (Jeffreys H (1961) Theory of probability (3rd ed.). Clarendon Press, Oxford. (1st ed., 1939)), I believe I have identified the origin of the 5% criterion as a side consequence of the typical size of a batch of astronomical observations. Belgian astronomer and sociologist Adolphe Quetelet applied the normal curve to whole populations of different individuals. His work was quickly picked up by Francis Galton, who was working with the English biometricians to study the Darwinian hypothesis by means of the rates of change in natural populations. Francis Edgeworth (Transact Cambridge Philosophical Soc 14:138–169, 1885b) was the first to speak of a “significant difference,” drawing on the double meaning of significant as indicative (of a real difference in the population). Gosset, a statistician who worked for the Guinness brewers in Dublin, and was friends with the biometric group, derived the distribution of the z statistics for small samples and took the dubious step of applying the methods of the biometricians for normal populations to the yields of different fields of barley.
Can Careproviders Still Bond with Patients after They Are Turned Down for a Treatment They Need

After COVID-19 first began to spread in the United States, dentists developed new guidelines that limited whom they could treat under these emergency conditions. Patients who faced greater limits to accessing treatment included children. Using a case of a child who was not able to access treatment, I discuss how careproviders might best seek to maintain their emotional bonding with patients and their loved ones, even if they must turn them down for an intervention. I also address whether and when to give patients and their loved ones warning that access to treatment could be limited, using illness caused by COVID-19 as an example of how careproviders may better anticipate patients' needs at all times. Finally, I discuss careproviders' needs. I suggest that medical professionals' culture should make it as easy as possible for them to acknowledge their feelings of vulnerability, so that they may better determine, in times of disaster, whether they should treat or triage patients. Careproviders who triage may choose to share with patients and loved ones that they also feel pain when they deny patients an intervention.
Motivational Interviewing to Increase Physical Activity: A Teaching Activity for Exercise Psychology Students

Health behavior change, such as increasing physical activity and reducing sedentary behavior, is difficult. Given the complex nature of adopting new behaviors, exercise psychologists and other prof...
Ensemble ALBERT on SQuAD 2.0

Machine question answering is an essential yet challenging task in natural language processing. Recently, Pre-trained Contextual Embeddings (PCE) models like Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers (BERT) and A Lite BERT (ALBERT) have attracted lots of attention due to their great performance in a wide range of NLP tasks. In our Paper, we utilized the fine-tuned ALBERT models and implemented combinations of additional layers (e.g. attention layer, RNN layer) on top of them to improve model performance on Stanford Question Answering Dataset (SQuAD 2.0). We implemented four different models with different layers on top of ALBERT-base model, and two other models based on ALBERT-xlarge and ALBERT-xxlarge. We compared their performance to our baseline model ALBERT-base-v2 + ALBERT-SQuAD-out with details. Our best-performing individual model is ALBERT-xxlarge + ALBERT-SQuAD-out, which achieved an F1 score of 88.435 on the dev set. Furthermore, we have implemented three different ensemble algorithms to boost overall performance. By passing in several best-performing models' results into our weighted voting ensemble algorithm, our final result ranks first on the Stanford CS224N Test PCE SQuAD Leaderboard with F1 = 90.123.
Babesiosis of Humans

1 Introduction 2 Classification 3 Structure and Life Cycle 4 Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, and Genetics 5 Clinical Aspects 6 Immunology 7 Pathology 8 Diagnosis 9 Epidemiology and Control 10 Chemotherapy 11 Vaccination 12 Integrated Control 13 Acknowledgments Keywords: babesiosis; Ixodes dammini; intra-erythrocytic parasites; Babesia microti infection; antilymphocyte serum; WA1-infected hamsters; zoonotic piroplasm; tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) pathway
Submeter bathymetric mapping of volcanic and hydrothermal features on the East Pacific Rise crest at 9°50′N

[1] Recent advances in underwater vehicle navigation and sonar technology now permit detailed mapping of complex seafloor bathymetry found at mid-ocean ridge crests. Imagenex 881 (675 kHz) scanning sonar data collected during low-altitude (∼5 m) surveys conducted with DSV Alvin were used to produce submeter resolution bathymetric maps of five hydrothermal vent areas at the East Pacific Rise (EPR) Ridge2000 Integrated Study Site (9°50′N, “bull's-eye”). Data were collected during 29 dives in 2004 and 2005 and were merged through a grid rectification technique to create high-resolution (0.5 m grid) composite maps. These are the first submeter bathymetric maps generated with a scanning sonar mounted on Alvin. The composite maps can be used to quantify the dimensions of meter-scale volcanic and hydrothermal features within the EPR axial summit trough (AST) including hydrothermal vent structures, lava pillars, collapse areas, the trough walls, and primary volcanic fissures. Existing Autonomous Benthic Explorer (ABE) bathymetry data (675 kHz scanning sonar) collected at this site provide the broader geologic context necessary to interpret the meter-scale features resolved in the composite maps. The grid rectification technique we employed can be used to optimize vehicle time by permitting the creation of high-resolution bathymetry maps from data collected during multiple, coordinated, short-duration surveys after primary dive objectives are met. This method can also be used to colocate future near-bottom sonar data sets within the high-resolution composite maps, enabling quantification of bathymetric changes associated with active volcanic, hydrothermal and tectonic processes.
Chromatographic identification of a new subform of carbonic anhydrase in rabbit erythrocytes.

Abstract In addition to the two forms of carbonic anhydrase (CA) known to occur in rabbit erythrocytes, a third enzyme species has been isolated and partially characterized. The three Chromatographic forms elute from diethylaminoethyl-Sephadex roughly in the proportions of 3:5:2, in that order. They do not appear to be interconvertible. Their molecular weights are approximately 30,000. Initial kinetic studies of ester hydrolysis and of CO2 hydration by these carbonic anhydrases identify the first peak to elute as a low-activity form (CA I) and the following two as high-activity forms (CA II, CA II′). Inhibition studies indicate that equal concentrations of all three enzyme species are equally inhibited by equal concentrations of benzenesulfonamide or acetazolamide. The amino acid compositions of the three species support their identification as high- and low-activity forms and indicate substantial differences between CA I and CA II or CA II′, while the latter two differ only slightly. Peptide maps obtained from tryptic digests show considerable differences between the peptides of the high- and low-activity forms, while the peptides of CA II and CA II′ are almost indistinguishable. The available evidence suggests that the newly isolated CA II′ species is a subform of the major high-activity isoenzyme and that a very slight difference in amino acid composition is responsible for a net charge difference between CA II and CA II′, which is reflected in their different Chromatographic properties.
Autotaxin inhibition: development and application of computational tools to identify site-selective lead compounds.

Abstract Autotaxin (ATX) catalyzes the conversion of lysophosphatidyl choline (LPC) to lysophosphatidic acid (LPA). Both ATX and LPA have been linked to pathophysiologies ranging from cancer to neuropathic pain. Inhibition of LPA production by ATX is therefore of therapeutic interest. Here we report the application of previously-developed, subsite-targeted pharmacophore models in a screening workflow that involves either docking or binary QSAR as secondary filters to identify ATX inhibitors from previously unreported structural types, four of which have sub-micromolar inhibition constants. Cell-based assays demonstrate that ATX inhibition and cytotoxicity structure–activity-relationships (SAR) exhibit selectivity cliffs, characterized by structurally similar compounds exhibiting similar biological activities with respect to ATX inhibition but very different biological activities with respect to cytotoxicity. Thus, general cytotoxicity should not be used as an early filter to eliminate candidate ATX inhibitor scaffolds from further SAR studies. Assays using two substrates of vastly different sizes demonstrate that the tools developed to identify compounds binding outside the central core of the active site did identify compounds acting at an allosteric site. In contrast, tools developed to identify active-site directed compounds did not identify active-site directed compounds. The stronger volume overlap imposed when selecting screening candidates expected to bind outside the active site is likely responsible for the stronger match between intended and actual target site.
Cosmogenic 10Be as a potential dating tool in peat.

Because ombrotrophic peat bogs receive inputs of water, nutrients, pollutants, and xerobiotic materials solely from the atmosphere, and accumulate organic matter vertically, dated peat cores can provide a historical record of deposition. We propose a novel method for accurately determining dates of peat, based on cosmogenic 10Be. In a laboratory study, we document limited post-depositional mobility of atmospherically-deposited Be, a requisite for 10Be dating. We provide an example of how the 210Pb-dated upper portion of a peat core can be used to back-calculate a site-specific 10Be deposition rate, which can then be used to estimate dates for peat throughout a core, and also discuss limitations to the application of cosmogenic 10Be to the dating of peat deposits.
The behavior of rats during copulation as a function of prior copulatory experience

The behavioral patterns accompanying the copulatory behavior of nine male rats with no prior adult copulatory experience were compared with those of nine males that had experienced four prior tests. Age was controlled. Effects of experience on standard measures of copulatory behavior were similar to those in earlier work. There were no significant differences in other behavioral patterns as a function of experience. Thus, the tendency to display various behavioral patterns during copulatory activity appears completely formed prior to the first such activity and generally unaffected by adult copulatory experience.
A fast computer architecture for the control of robots

Abstract This paper proposes a practical robot control system based on off-the-shelf parts that will be used as a testbed for evaluating the performance of advanced, servo-level control algorithms. As designed the system is capable of implementing the distributed sampling control concept as applied to the model-based control of robots. Besides closed-loop position control, the proposed system also incorporates force/torque feedback. This is of particular interest in space-based robotics applications. Unimation's Puma 562 manipulator was chosen as the target plant for the control system called the Robotic Arm Control System (RACS). The control system replaces the existing low-level servo controllers in the associated VAL-II MkIII controller.
Simultaneous Batching and Scheduling in Multistage Multiproduct Processes

In this article, we present a mixed-integer programming formulation for the simultaneous batching and scheduling in multiproduct multistage processes. The proposed sequence-based formulation addresses limitations of existing approaches where batching and scheduling decisions are carried out sequentially. To account for batching decisions, we use additional batch-selection and batch-size variables and introduce demand-satisfaction and unit-capacity constraints. Assignment constraints are active only for the subset of batches that are selected, and sequencing is carried out between batches that are assigned on the same processing unit. We also propose an alternate formulation to handle sequence-dependent changeover costs. Finally, to enhance the computational performance of the model, we present methods that allow us to fix a subset of sequencing variables and we develop a class of tightening inequalities based on time windows.
An integral square self-optimalyzing adaptive control

A digital adaptive control is introduced to maintain an optimal transient response in a minimum integral square sense without any perturbation required. The principal features of the control are discussed, and an analysis of some of the principal error sources is presented.
Extending self-similarity for fractional Brownian motion

The fractional Brownian motion (fBm) model has proven to be valuable in modeling many natural processes because of its persistence for large time lags. However, the model is characterized by one single parameter that cannot distinguish between short- and long-term correlation effects. This article investigates the idea of extending self-similarity to create a correlation model that generalizes discrete fBm referred to as asymptotic fBm (afBm). Namely, afBm is parameterized by variables controlling short- and long-term correlation effects. It proposes a fast parameter estimation algorithm for afBm based on the Haar transform, and demonstrates the performance of this parameter estimation algorithm with numerical simulations. >