cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Carbamazepine dose–concentration relationship in elderly nursing home residents

Summary Purpose To describe the dose–concentration relationships of carbamazepine (CBZ) in elderly nursing home residents and the effect of sex, age, and type of co-medications. Results This is a cross-sectional study of elderly (≥65 years) nursing home residents across the United States ( N =92). Data collection was from 1 June 1998 to 31 December 2000. The mean CBZ dose was 9.2±5.4mg/(kgday −1 ) (±Standard Deviation) and serum concentration was 5.9±2.2mg/L. The daily dose was significantly lower in the oldest-old age group (≥85 years, mean 476.9mg/day (95% confidence interval CI) 326.5–627.3) as compared to the dose in the young-old (65–74 years, mean 724.4mg/day (CI) 603.4–845.4) ( p =0.016). Adjusted for body weight, doses were similar on a mg/(kgday −1 ) basis. The majority of observed CBZ serum concentrations were at the lower end (67.4%) or below (20.7%) the suggested therapeutic range for younger adult outpatients. Conclusions Total daily CBZ doses and patient weight decreased with age. The average dose for elderly nursing home residents was approximately 9mg/(kgday −1 ). Carbamazepine serum concentrations were lower than those used for younger adults, suggesting that these patients may be more sensitive to CBZ.
Learning Journals and Learning Communities

To build learning communities, teachers must become colearners. Everyone must be a teacher; all must be learners. One mechanism for developing a learning community is for us to be more purposefully reflective about what we do and to use learning journals for ourselves, not just for students. This article describes the learning derived from the author's writing and sharing journal entries in a graduate course on learning organizations. Excerpts from student feedback on the author's journals further illustrate the benefits of keeping a journal.
Data Collection and Preliminary Data Analysis

This chapter starts by presenting some basic notions and characteristics of different types of data collection systems and types of sensors. Next, simple ways of validating and assessing the accuracy of the data collected are addressed. Subsequently, salient statistical measures to describe univariate and multivariate data are presented along with how to use them during basic exploratory data and graphical analyses. The two types of measurement uncertainty (bias and random) are discussed and the concept of confidence intervals is introduced and its usefulness illustrated. Finally, three different ways of determining uncertainty in a data reduction equation by propagating individual variable uncertainty are presented; namely, the analytical, numerical and Monte Carlo methods.
Assessing public “participation” in environmental decision-making: Lessons learned from the UK Marine Conservation Zone (MCZ) site selection process

Abstract As part of implementing the 2009 Marine and Coastal Access Act (MCAA), the UK Government undertook an ambitious program of stakeholder-led site selection projects from 2009–2011 to designate a network of Marine Conservation Zones (MCZs). This process resulted in a list of 127 proposed MCZs designed to conserve biodiversity and reconcile socioeconomic concerns, however, citing budgetary constraints and evidence-related issues, the UK Government has proceeded with a tranche approach, designating far fewer sites than stakeholders had expected. Concerned with the Government's lack of progress on the MCZ process, Parliament conducted two inquiries, highlighting problems with the Government's approach. In addition, public confidence in the participative process has eroded, with particular despair expressed by participants in the regional projects, who invested considerable time and effort in the site-selection process. This outcome has implications not only for the UK's future coastal and marine planning, but also with regard to the implementation of the Aarhus Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters. Drawing on interviews with participants in the consultation process, this paper examines the role of stakeholder participation in the UK MCZ site selection process, in particular how well the UK Government implemented its obligations under the Aarhus Convention, and the meaning of “participation” in a climate of political change and budgetary constraint.
How to live a long time: facts, factoids and descants.

It's a special challenge to give an after dinner talk. First of all, most people come to dinners to eat dinner and to enjoy the people they're sitting with, not to be impaled on an oration, so the speaker is at an a priori disadvantage. Second, most after dinner talks are preceded by a cocktail hour and wine with dinner, a gradient not to be trivialized, even in a group as modest in its bibulosity as this one. Yet another caution is suggested by a recent comment by William Germano, who mentions slumped and glassy-eyed audiences listening to scholarly talks, who may actually be wondering how late the dry cleaner stays open or whether the Sopranos is on tonight. Therefore this talk will not be scholarly. In addition, Germano notes that people who doze through talks are often freshly attentive afterward for the question period. Therefore there will be no question period after this talk. Finally, I read somewhere that Warren Harding's political speeches were once described by Senator William McAdoo as “an army of pompous phrases moving across the landscape in search of an idea.” I have taken that as a caution. This talk will, I hope, be devoid of pompous phrases and, more importantly, will not be organized around an idea. I tell you in advance so you won't waste your time searching for one.
LES for Simulating the Gas Exchange Process in a Spark Ignition Engine

The gas exchange process is known to be a significant source of cyclic variability in Internal Combustion Engines (ICE). Traditionally, Large Eddy Simulations (LES) are expected to capture these cycle-to-cycle variations. This paper reports a numerical effort to establish best practices for capturing cyclic variability with LES tools in a Transparent Combustion Chamber (TCC) spark ignition engine. The main intention is to examine the sensitivity of cycle averaged mean and Root Mean Square (RMS) flow fields and Proper Orthogonal Decomposition (POD) modes to different computational hardware, adaptive mesh refinement (AMR) and LES sub-grid scale (SGS) models, since these aspects have received little attention in the past couple of decades. This study also examines the effect of near-wall resolution on the predicted wall shear stresses. LES is pursued with commercially available CONVERGE code. Two different SGS models are tested, a one-equation eddy viscosity model and dynamic structure model. The results seem to indicate that both mean and RMS fields without any SGS model are not much different than those with LES models, either one-equation eddy viscosity or dynamic structure model. Computational hardware results in subtle quantitative differences, especially in RMS distributions. The influence of AMR on both mean and RMS fields is negligible. The predicted shear stresses near the liner walls is also found to be relatively insensitive to near-wall resolution except in the valve curtain region.Copyright © 2015 by ASME and General Motors
Physician assistant specialty choice: A factor analysis

Purpose The purpose of this study was to identify factors related to physician assistant (PA) graduates' specialty choice. Methods A web-based cross-sectional study of PAs graduating between 2007 and 2009 was conducted (N = 12,128). Factor analysis was performed on 897 useable survey responses. The cohort profile resembles that of recent AAPA census data regarding demographic and specialty choice distribution. Results Principal component factor analysis of perception items identified five factors that explained 52.6% of the response variance. Factors included personal satisfaction, intellectual challenge, patient care commitment, image of primary care, and professional satisfaction. The influence items analysis yielded five factors, explained 45.2% of the variance, and included practice environment, nature of patient care, lifestyle, employment opportunities, and risk aversion. These factors parallel previous findings of Hauer, et al. Conclusions Identification of factors affecting specialty choice should provide an enhanced understanding to organizations as they explore strategies to increase recruitment and expansion of the primary care workforce.
Dermatologic therapy: 1989

This article reviews significant therapeutic advances that have been reported in the English-language literature during 1989. Readers should review the original article in toto before attempting any new experimental or controversial therapy.
Implementing High-Value Care.

Objectives Our objectives were to assess physician knowledge of costs of products, tests, and services commonly used by obstetrician/gynecologists (OB/GYNs) and identify those items that could be eliminated without decreasing quality of care by performing a prospective observational pilot study. Methods An anonymous electronic survey was distributed to 70 OB/GYN providers at Greenville Memorial Hospital. Survey items included common laboratory tests, medications, and clinical services. The survey was used to identify items with high cost for which there were less costly but equally efficacious alternatives. As an educational intervention, grand rounds reviewing the survey results, as well as recommendations that would allow for lean healthcare changes, were conducted. Utilization and cost savings were tracked for a 1-year preintervention and a 1-year postintervention. Results In total, 50 of 70 providers (71%) completed the survey. Hydrocortisone acetate/pramoxine hydrochloride and dinoprostone vaginal inserts were targeted for intervention. Use of the dinoprostone vaginal insert decreased 50.5% with a savings of $66,500 when comparing the preintervention period with the postintervention period. Use of hydrocortisone acetate/pramoxine hydrochloride decreased 90% with a savings of $92,655. Combined, the decreased use of these products led to a $159,155 cost savings in the 1-year postintervention period. Conclusions OB/GYN providers at our institution had a poor working knowledge of costs. Through the use of a survey and educational intervention, we demonstrated that simple interventions could lead to high-quality, lean healthcare changes.
High-Energy Antiproton-Proton Collisions — The Collider Detector at Fermilab

Recent results from experiments at antiproton-proton colliders are presented with emphasis on those from the Collider Detector at Fermilab (CDF). The data on hadron jet, W, and Z production are all in excellent agreement with the standard model. The lower limit for the top quark mass is found to be somewhat above the W mass. No evidence is found for W’ or Z’ states or for supersymmetric particles.
Teamwork and Electronic Health Record Implementation: A Case Study of Preserving Effective Communication and Mutual Trust in a Changing Environment

This article describes how trust among team members and in the technology supporting them was eroded during implementation of an electronic health record (EHR) in an adult outpatient oncology practice at a comprehensive cancer center. Delays in care of a 38-year-old woman with high-risk breast cancer occurred because of ineffective team communication and are illustrated in a case study. The case explores how the patient's trust and mutual trust between team members were disrupted because of inaccurate assumptions about the functionality of the EHR's communication tool, resultant miscommunications between team members and the patient, and the eventual recognition that care was not being effectively coordinated, as it had been previously. Despite a well-established, team-based culture and significant preparation for the EHR implementation, the challenges that occurred point to underlying human and system failures from which other organizations going through a similar process may learn. Through an analysis and evaluation of events that transpired before and during the EHR rollout, suggested interventions for preventing this experience are offered, which include: a thorough crosswalk between old and new communication mechanisms before implementation; understanding and mitigation of gaps in the communication tool's functionality; more robust training for staff, clinicians, and patients; greater consideration given to the pace of change expected of individuals; and development of models of collaboration between EHR users and vendors in developing products that support high-quality, team-based care in the oncology setting. These interventions are transferable to any organizational or system change that threatens mutual trust and effective communication.
Thermal Unthreading of the Lasso Peptides Astexin-2 and Astexin-3.

Lasso peptides are a class of knot-like polypeptides in which the C-terminal tail of the peptide threads through a ring formed by an isopeptide bond between the N-terminal amine group and a side chain carboxylic acid. The small size (∼20 amino acids) and simple topology of lasso peptides make them a good model system for studying the unthreading of entangled polypeptides, both with experiments and atomistic simulation. Here, we present an in-depth study of the thermal unthreading behavior of two lasso peptides astexin-2 and astexin-3. Quantitative kinetics and energetics of the unthreading process were determined for variants of these peptides using a series of chromatography and mass spectrometry experiments and biased molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. In addition, we show that the Tyr15Phe variant of astexin-3 unthreads via an unprecedented “tail pulling” mechanism. MD simulations on a model ring-thread system coupled with machine learning approaches also led to the discovery of physicochemical descr...
Inhibition of Drug Metabolism

Rates of drug metabolism in animals can be reduced in a variety of ways: adrenalectomy (Remmer, 1958a, b), alloxan induced diabetes (Dixon et al., 1961, 1963), administration of inhibitors of protein synthesis, such as ethionine (Conney et al., 1956, 1960; Fujimoto and Plaa, 1961), actinomycin D (Orrenius and Ernster, 1964; Gelboin and Blackburn, 1964), puromycin (Orrenius and Ernster, 1964; Gelboin and Blackburn, 1964) and thioacetamide (Sladek and Mannering, 1969a). Drug metabolism can also be inhibited by X-irradiation (Varagic et al., 1962; Hietbrink and Dubois, 1964; Dubois, 1967) and alkylating agents which mimic the action of X-irradiation (Tardiff and Dubois, 1969), administration of yellow phosphorus (Herken et al., 1958; Neubert and Maibauer, 1959) or radioactive phosphate (Sulser et al., 1966), starvation (Dixon et al., 1960; Kato and Gillette, 1965), and vitamin C deficiency (Axelrod et al., 1954b; Conney et al., 1961). This chapter is not concerned with these indirect means of depressing drug metabolism; it will restrict itself to inhibition as it is more narrowly denned to mean the interference of the metabolism of one agent by another agent at the enzymic site. This automatically excludes such agents as thyroxin (Cochin and Sokoloff, 1960; Conney and Garren, 1961; Mannering et al., 1969), morphine (Axelrod, 1956a; Mannering and Takemori, 1959; Chaplin et al., 1968), CCl4 (Castro et al., 1968; Dingell and Heimberg, 1968; Sasame et al., 1968), 3-amino-1,2,4-triazole (Kato, 1967; Baron and Tephly, 1969), and p-aminosalicylic acid (Rogers et al., 1963a), which are thought to reduce drug metabolism by mechanisms other than direct inhibition at the metabolic site.
An Extension of Schensted's Theorem

Publisher Summary This chapter presents an extension of Schensted's theorem. σ = ( a 1 , a 2 , …, a n ) is a sequence of integers whose terms are distinct. The chapter presents a theorem that states that the length of the longest increasing subsequence of σ is λ 1 , which is the number of columns of S , and the length of the longest decreasing subsequence is λ 1 *, which is the number of rows of S . According to Schensted's algorithm, if λ = { λ 1 ≥ λ 2 ≥ … ≥ λ q } is a partition of n , a Young tableau of shape λ is a doubly indexed array {s( i, j ) 1 ≤ i ≤ q , 1 ≤ j ≤ λ i } such that the entries s(i, j) are distinct integers, and each row and column forms an increasing sequence.
Providing Experiential Business and Management Training for Biomedical Research Trainees

Many biomedical PhD trainees lack exposure to business principles, which limits their competitiveness and effectiveness in academic and industry careers. To fill this training gap, we developed Business and Management Principles for Scientists, a semester-long program that combined didactic exposure to business fundamentals with practical team-based projects aimed at solving real business problems encountered by institutional shared--resource core facilities. The program also included a retreat featuring presentations by and networking with local life science entrepreneurs and final team presentations to expert judges. Quantitative and qualitative metrics were used to evaluate the program's impact on trainees. A pretest-posttest approach was used to assess trainees' baseline knowledge and mastery of module concepts, and each individual's pretest and posttest responses were compared. The mean score improved by more than 17 percentage points. Trainees also took an online survey to provide feedback about the module. Nearly all participants agreed or strongly agreed that the module was a valuable use of their time and will help guide their career decisions and that project work helped drive home module concepts. More than 75% of trainees reported discussing the module with their research advisors, and all of these participants reported supportive or neutral responses. Collectively, the trainee feedback about the module, improvement in test scores, and trainee perception of advisor support suggest that this short module is an effective method of providing scientists with efficient and meaningful exposure to business concepts.
Judgmental vs. time series vs. deterministic models in local revenue forecasting: a florida case study

This article presents a study of revenue forecasting in a Florida municipal government. Seven techniques, including the budget officers' judgmental approach, time series models, a deterministic model, and an optimized model, are employed with franchise and utility receipts in the Town of Davie. The authors found that simple time series models outperformed deterministic models and the judgmentally derived forecasts of local officials. Consistent with prior research, findings here suggest that the time series models are not only accurate, but also easy to implement and readily comprehensible by local officials.
Disease progression and variation in clinical practice for isolated bicuspid aortic valve in children.

Background Disease progression of an isolated bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) in children is poorly understood and adult management guidelines may not be applicable. Thus, we sought to evaluate disease progression of pediatric isolated BAV and its relationship to current management practices. Methods Children with a BAV and ≤mild aortic stenosis (AS) and/or aortic regurgitation (AR) at the time of initial evaluation were included in this retrospective cohort study (1/2005-12/2014). Outcomes included change in z-scores for aortic root and ascending aorta diameters, cardiac interventions, adverse outcomes, recommended follow-up interval, and frequency of cardiac imaging studies at each follow up evaluation, as well as AS/AR severity at final evaluation. Outcomes were analyzed using generalized mixed-effect models with subject and provider clustering. Results BAV disease progression was evaluated in 294 subjects over 4.1 ± 2.4 (range 0.2-9.5) years. Ascending aorta z-scores increased by 0.1/year (P mild in 9 (3%), 1 subject underwent cardiac intervention, and none had a major complication. Management was evaluated in 454 subjects (1343 encounters) with 27 different cardiologists. The average recommended follow-up interval was 1.5 ± 0.9 years. Younger age at diagnosis, greater aortic root or ascending aorta z-score at diagnosis, ≥mild AS/AR at follow-up, and earlier diagnosis era were associated with shorter recommended follow-up interval (P < .001 for all). Imaging was obtained at 87% of follow-up encounters and was associated with age at encounter with children ≥12 years most frequently imaged (P < .001). Provider accounted for 14% of variability in recommended follow-up interval and 24% of imaging variability (P < .001 for both). Conclusions We found little to no evidence of disease progression in children with an isolated BAV. Given the low risk, close follow-up and frequent cardiac imaging for BAV surveillance may not be warranted for children.
Evidence for the formation of a γ-phosphorylated glutamyl residue in the Escherichia coli acetate kinase reaction☆

Abstract Studies of phosphorylated Escherichia coli acetate kinase, which has been reduced with [ 3 H]sodium borohydride and subjected to acid hydrolysis, suggest that [ 3 H] α-amino-δ-hydroxyvaleric acid is formed with a 20–25% overall yield. This finding is compatible with the formation of a γ-phosphorylated glutamyl residue upon incubation of enzyme with acetyl-P.
Assessment of Repetitive Behavior Disorders

The purpose of this chapter is to provide an overview of methods for assessing repetitive behavior (RB) disorders (e.g., tic disorders, trichotillomania). The chapter begins by discussing two general approaches, behavioral assessment and functional assessment. These methods produce quite different outcomes than traditional diagnostic assessments or evaluations. The primary function of a diagnostic assessment is to determine whether an individual's problem behaviors meet the specific criteria for a psychological disorder, as defined by a classification system such as the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - 4th edition (American Psychiatric Association, 1994). In contrast, the goal of a behavioral assessment is to define and quantify an individual's presenting problem behaviors so that treatment can be targeted and progress can be monitored. The purpose of functional assessment, a branch of behavioral assessment, is to identify the environmental variables (i.e., reinforcers) that maintain problem behavior. Behavioral and functional assessments can both be conducted regardless of whether the criteria for a psychological diagnosis have been met, as they each involve the description and explanation of the variables related to the occurrence of specific target behaviors, rather than diagnostic conditions. These behaviors may result in a psychological
DD31: „Sie sind Q negativ!“ Alle abnormal! Alle krank! (Januar 2007)

Die Gesellschaft will uns als rechteckige Ziegelsteine in der Mauer formen. Wir sollen alle gleich aussehen, wie „Quads“ oder Quader. Leider sind wir nicht gleich. Deshalb muss Zwang angewendet werden. Wir werden neuerdings wissenschaftlich untersucht, ob wir gleich sind.
In Vivo Electrophysiologic Studies in Mice

Genetically-manipulated animals have become efficient models for the study of human cardiac electrophysiological diseases. These examples highlighted above illustrate experiences with In vivo murine electrophysiology. Electrophysiological properties have been evaluated in many species by a variety of methods, from patch-clamping of an isolated myocyte for assessment of ion channel function, to transmembrane potential measurement in myocardial tissue strips, to Langendorff model whole-heart preparations and intact whole-animal studies. The In vivo mouse EP model can be used to obtain EP parameters by pacing and recording directly from the epicardium and endocardium of intact mice simultaneously with monophasic action potentials, and surface ECG recordings. Potential therapies may be appraised with murine EP studies, including assessment of drugs, pacing, and novel gene replacement approaches. Specific disease models can be studied to further understand the relationship between gene defects and their electrophysiologic consequence in vivo. Mice harboring mutations in genes encoding proteins that are highly expressed in myocytes or that lead to cardiovascular abnormalities may prove to have interesting and informative electrophysiologic phenotypes.
A Visible Light Channel Based Access Control Scheme for Wireless Insulin Pump Systems

Smart personal insulin pumps have been widely adopted by type 1 diabetes. However, many wireless insulin pump systems lack security mechanisms to protect them from malicious attacks. In previous works, the read-write attacks over RF channels can be launched stealthily and could jeopardize patients' lives. Protecting patients from such attacks is urgent. To address this issue, we propose a novel visible light channel based access control scheme for wireless infusion insulin pumps. This scheme employs an infrared photodiode sensor as a receiver in an insulin pump, and an infrared LED as an emitter in a doctor's reader (USB) to transmit a PIN/shared key to authenticate the doctor's USB. The evaluation results demonstrate that our scheme can reliably pass the authentication process with a low false accept rate (0.05% at a distance of 5cm).
Are generalized spillover indices overstating connectedness

Abstract Spillover indices computed from VAR models are intended to measure the connectedness between the variables in the system. The generalized spillover index ( g S O I ) computed using the generalized forecast error variance decomposition is often considerably larger than the conventional spillover index computed from specific Cholesky decompositions leading to the speculation that the g S O I produces an unreasonable measure of connectedness. We demonstrate that the g S O I does not produce unrealistic values.
The Shape Bias in Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder: Potential Sources of Individual Differences

Purpose Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) demonstrate many mechanisms of lexical acquisition that support language in typical development; however, 1 notable exception is the shape bias....
Accelerating HIV vaccine development using non-human primate models.

Introduction: The search for a preventative HIV vaccine is ongoing after three decades of research. Contributions of non-human primate (NHP) models to this research are irrefutable, however interpr...
New nighttime roadway lighting documentation applied to public safety at night: A case study in San Antonio, Texas

Abstract Built environment and public safety professionals view street lighting as an important factor in improving the well-being of the community at night. Extant research that has examined the relationship between street lighting and public safety has found inconclusive or mixed results and has called for more extensive lighting metrics. Using new lighting measurement technologies and geographic information science, this study builds on previous work to demonstrate new metrics to consider when evaluating public safety, specifically crime and traffic accidents. Downtown San Antonio, Texas is used as a case study to explore illuminance levels on roadways and the driver’s eye, and how these metrics can be used to understand the lighting characteristics of where crime and traffic accidents occur. The findings indicate that the central downtown district in San Antonio has higher illuminance levels than the existing roadway lighting guidelines while the residential downtown neighborhoods have insufficient light levels. Statistical analysis reveals that roadway illuminance levels are higher in areas where no crime occurred and driver’s eye illuminance levels are lower in areas with no traffic accidents. The findings prove the usefulness of new lighting documentation techniques and support the importance of considering illuminance metrics when assessing crime and traffic accidents at night.
Device exchange from Heartmate II to HeartWare HVAD.

Background Despite technological advancements, pump durability and pump-related complications continue to affect and adversely impact the lives of patients with end-stage heart failure on left ventricular assist device (LVAD) support. In an attempt to avoid recurrent LVAD-related complications, there may be circumstances where it is clinically advantageous to exchange a patient's device from HeartMate II to HeartWare HVAD. However, there is a paucity of data that describes the safety and feasibility of such an approach. Objective We present the largest single-center series of HeartMate II (HMII) to HeartWare (HVAD) device exchanges. Methods A retrospective review of 11 patients who underwent HMII to HVAD exchange from 2012 to 2017 was conducted to evaluate patient characteristics, incidence of postoperative complications, and survival. Results Eleven male patients (mean age 55 ± 14.4 years) underwent HMII to HVAD device exchange. One patient expired on postoperative day 7 secondary to sepsis. One patient was lost-to-follow-up after 23 months. An additional three patients died at 5, 7, and 24 months. Mean follow-up after device exchange was 1555 ± 311 days for the remaining six patients. None of the 11 study patients underwent LVAD explant, further device exchange, or heart transplant. Conclusion Exchange of an HMII LVAD to an HVAD can be performed safely with acceptable perioperative morbidity and mortality.
Haplotype Analysis for Irish Ancestry

Forensic haplotype analysis of the male Y chromosome is currently used to establish the number of male donors in sexual assaults, the number of male bleeders in blood pattern analysis, and for ance...
Blunt use and menthol cigarette smoking: An examination of adult marijuana users.

Abstract Introduction Use of menthol cigarettes remains highly prevalent among African American smokers and has increased among White and Hispanic/Latino smokers. Research is needed to examine if behavioral factors, such as marijuana use, are differentially associated with menthol cigarette use among racially/ethnically diverse samples of marijuana users. Methods Using data from the 2017 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, this study examined the association between past month marijuana (blunt versus non-blunt) and cigarette (non-menthol cigarette versus menthol cigarette versus no cigarette) use, as well as racial/ethnic differences in this relationship. Results Among all marijuana users (N = 5,137), 34.1% smoked blunts, 28.7% smoked non-menthol cigarettes and 18.0% smoked menthol cigarettes, with the highest rates of blunt (63.8%) and menthol cigarette (38.9%) use found among African American adults. Multinomial logistic regression analyses revealed a significant association between blunt use and non-menthol cigarette use (versus non-use) and menthol cigarette use (versus non-menthol cigarette and no cigarette use) among the full sample. When stratified by race/ethnicity, this finding was consistent for non-Hispanic White (n = 3,492) and partially consistent for Hispanic/Latino (n = 839) adults. However, among African American adults (n = 806), blunt use was not significantly associated with non-menthol cigarette use or menthol cigarette use. Discussion Blunt use is associated with increased odds of non-menthol and menthol cigarette use, but only among Hispanic/Latino and White adults. Examining racial/ethnic differences in the association between marijuana and tobacco use is important to understanding disparities and informing prevention and treatment interventions and drug policies.
Remotely Controlled Manufacturing: A New Frontier for Systems Research

It has now become commonplace for applications that run on smartphones, IoT devices, and even personal computers to rely on services hosted either in the cloud or on edge servers. Some of the motivations for this trend-augmenting thin clients and enabling a shared view across users/devices-also apply to manufacturing machines such as 3D printers, laser cutters, and machine tools. Off-device control of manufacturing devices can help outdated machines benefit from the most advanced control algorithms, which they are incapable of running locally. Cloud/edge support can also enable coordinated manufacturing of a product's parts across multiple machines, thereby reducing production time and cost compared to the use of a single machine. In this paper, we highlight the challenges in realizing these benefits for the manufacturing domain.
Human Computation and Collaboration: Identifying Unique Social Processes in Virtual Contexts

Continued technological advances have allowed human computation to span geographical, cultural, and temporal boundaries giving rise to technology-mediated collaborations. Yet, there is little consistency across disciplines about the definitions and roles of social processes in technology-mediated collaborations. This chapter highlights the variability in definitions for social processes across disciplines that might be responsible for inconsistent conclusions about technology-mediated collaboration effectiveness. We encourage researchers to critically compare definitions of social process variables across disciplines and to consider using an inductive approach to identify new social processes that might be uniquely adaptive in technology-mediated collaborations.
Experimental philosophy within its proper bounds

In Philosophy Within its Proper Bounds, Edouard Machery argues that the results of experimental philosophy (‘x-phi’) should lead us to abandon much of traditional philosophical practice. In its pla...
Investigation of structural effects of aromatic compounds on sooting tendency with mechanistic insight into ethylphenol isomers

Abstract Small aromatic molecules with oxygen-containing functional groups are a promising class of fuel additives, as they can be readily sourced from depolymerized lignin. These oxygenated aromatic compounds (OACs) show a lower sooting tendency than aromatic hydrocarbons, but OACs having alkyl groups such as ethylphenol show a higher sooting tendency than other OACs such as phenol and anisole, despite the oxygen moiety. In this study, we investigate the relationship between chemical structure and soot precursor formation to explain observed differences in the sooting tendency of OACs and to gain insight into how alkyl or oxygenated substituents on the aromatic ring affect soot precursor formation. The weakest bond for 15 aromatic compounds was identified and cleavage of these bonds was shown to generate either benzyl or phenoxy radicals. A linear relationship between standard enthalpy of formation (ΔHfo) of these radicals and the yield sooting index (YSI) was found, and thus ΔHf° can be applied as a metric to estimate YSIs of various aromatic compounds; higher ΔHfo of a radical indicates an increase in the radical reactivity and leads to more soot precursor formation. Flow reactor experiments were performed for 2-ethylphenol and 3-ethylphenol to elucidate how ortho and meta substitution effects the sooting tendency. Soot precursors were identified from the experiment and their formation pathways were investigated computationally. 2-ethylphenol produces more oxygenated products than 3-ethylphenol since the ortho position has increased resonance stabilization of radical intermediates, which leads to lower YSI. These results further inform the selection of potential biomass-derived fuel blendstocks that have favorable sooting tendencies.
A Compact Measurement Technique for Detector Capacitance of Charge Amplifiers

A detector connected to a charge amplifier adds parasitic input capacitance that alters the amplifier's gain. The detector capacitance therefore must be characterized so as to properly account for its effect. This paper presents a novel, compact technique to measure the detector capacitance by exploiting the circuit elements within the charge amplifier itself. Reconfiguring the charge amplifier with programmable switches, a capacitor divider network emerges to measure the detector capacitance without the need for any accurate timing references and complex controls. Experimental results of the proposed charge amplifier fabricated in a 180-nm CMOS technology demonstrate the ability to measure the detector capacitance to within 3% of its actual value. An actual charge measurement is also presented.
Naturalism’s Dietary Discourse: From Fasting Fads to Sinclair’s Social Reforms

AbstractThis paper examines the literature of Upton Sinclair, famed American author of The Jungle, and how this 1906 novel led to the formation of Theodore Roosevelt's Food and Drug Administration. I am particularly interested in Sinclair's fascination with fasting fads, which reflect a larger Progressive-era preoccupation with physical fitness and the white male body. American literary naturalism, the late nineteenth and early twentieth-century movement to which Sinclair contributes, is a literature of and about human hunger. Many scholars have focused on The Jungle, a seminal book that revolutionized the food industry; however, little work has been done on the narratives about fasting and fitness that followed. My work therefore draws attention to a dietary discourse that reveals a great deal about early twentieth-century conceptions of masculinity, health, and the body. This paper is part of a larger effort to reconcile a counter-narrative of culturally disordered eating and self-restraint on the one h...
Birth Complications and Negative Emotionality Predict Externalizing Behaviors in Young Twins: Moderations with Genetic and Family Risk Factors.

We examined interactions among genetic, biological, and ecological variables predicting externalizing behaviors in preschool and middle childhood. Specifically, we examined prediction of externalizing behaviors from birth complications and negative emotionality, each moderated by genetic risk for aggression and ecological risk factors of insensitive parenting and low family income. At ages 4 and 5 years, 170 twin pairs and 5 triplet sets (N = 355 children) were tested; 166 of those children were tested again at middle childhood (M = 7.9 years). Multilevel linear modeling results showed generally that children at high genetic risk for aggression or from low-income families were likely to have high scores on externalizing, but for children not at high risk, those with increased birth complications or more negative emotionality had high scores on externalizing. This study underscores the importance of considering biological variables as moderated by both genetic and ecological variables as they predict externalizing behaviors across early childhood.
DC-Ripple-Energy Adaptive-Minimization (DREAM) Modulation Scheme for a High Power Density Inverter

The DC bus capacitor is one of the major power-density and reliability hurdles of electric drive systems. It is hard to shrink because it is constrained by the DC bus RMS ripple current, which is only load dependent. A dual-inverter based segmented drive can reduce the ripple current by ~50% compared to a non-segmented case. This paper analyzes the origin of this ripple current and points out the path for minimization. An optimal DC-ripple-energy adaptive-minimization (DREAM) modulation method is proposed to further reduce the ripple current. It is observed in experimental results that the proposed method can achieve additional 38% reduction over the traditional segmented drive system.
TRPV5 and TRPV6 in Transcellular Ca 2+ Transport: Regulation, Gene Duplication, and Polymorphisms in African Populations

TRPV5 and TRPV6 are unique members of the TRP super family. They are highly selective for Ca2+ ions with multiple layers of Ca2+-dependent inactivation mechanisms, expressed at the apical membrane of Ca2+ transporting epithelia, and robustly responsive to 1,25-dihydroxivitamin D3. These features are well suited for their roles as Ca2+ entry channels in the first step of transcellular Ca2+ transport pathways, which are involved in intestinal absorption, renal reabsorption of Ca2+, placental transfer of Ca2+ to fetus, and many other processes. While TRPV6 is more broadly expressed in a variety of tissues such as esophagus, stomach, small intestine, colon, kidney, placenta, pancreas, prostate, uterus, salivary gland, and sweat gland, TRPV5 expression is relatively restricted to the distal convoluted tubule and connecting tubule of the kidney. There is only one TRPV6-like gene in fish and birds in comparison to both TRPV5 and TRPV6 genes in mammals, indicating TRPV5 gene was likely generated from duplication of TRPV6 gene during the evolution of mammals to meet the needs of complex renal function. TRPV5 and TRPV6 are subjected to vigorous regulations under physiological, pathological, and therapeutic conditions. The elevated TRPV6 level in malignant tumors such as prostate and breast cancers makes it a potential therapeutic target. TRPV6, and to a lesser extent TRPV5, exhibit unusually high levels of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in African populations as compared to other populations, indicating TRPV6 gene was under selective pressure during or after humans migrated out of Africa. The SNPs of TRPV6 and TRPV5 likely contribute to the Ca2+ conservation mechanisms in African populations.
Homoconjugate Addition of Nucleophiles to Cyclopropane-1,1-Dicarboxylate Derivatives: 2-Oxo-1-Phenyl-3-Pyrrolidinecarboxylic Acid

Homoconjugate addition of nucleophiles to cyclopropane-1,1-dicarboxylate derivatives: 2-Oxo-1-phenyl-3-pyrrolidinecarboxylic acid intermediate: 6,6-Dimethyl-5,7-dioxaspiro[2.5]octane-4,8-dione product: 2-Oxo-1-phenyl-3-pyrrolidinecarboxylic acid (3) intermediate: cyclopropane-1,1-dicarboxylic acid intermediate: 1-cyanocyclopropanecarboxylic acid intermediate: 1-acetylcyclopropanecarboxylic acid Keywords: alkylation, C-alkylation; alkylation, N-alkylation; annulation, heterocyclic-[5]; cyclization, condensation; esterification, of dicarboxylic acids; rearrangements; ring expansion reactions; aqueous 50% sodium hydroxide; benzyltriethylammonium chloride; triethylbenzylammonium chloride, preparation of
Supramolecular Recognition Forces: An Examination of Weak Metal-Metal Interactions in Host-Guest Formation

Molecular receptors consisting of two parallel-disposed terpy−M−Cl units (M = Pd2+, Pt2+) are used to form host−guest adducts with aromatic molecules and with neutral square-planar Pt2+ complexes. Host−guest formation is controlled by several factors including π−π interactions and, in some cases, weak Pt−Pt interactions between the host and the guest. This latter interaction was examined by comparing the host−guest stability of adducts formed by isoelectronic Pt2+ and Au3+ complexes with the Pt2+ receptor. Consistently, the former is more stable.
Extremal distances between sections of convex bodies

Let K, D be centrally symmetric convex bodies in \(\mathbb{R}^n .\) Let k < n and let dk(K, D) be the smallest Banach–Mazur distance between k-dimensional sections of K and D. Define $$ \Delta (k,n) = \sup d_k (K,D), $$ where the supremum is taken over all n-dimensional convex symmetric bodies K, D. We prove that, for any k < n, $$ \Delta (k,n) \sim _{{\text{log}}\,n} \left\{ {\begin{array}{*{20}l} {\sqrt k } & {{\text{if}}\;k \leq n^{2/3} ,} \\ {\frac{{k^2 }} {n}} & {{\text{if}}\;k > n^{2/3} ,} \\ \end{array} } \right. $$ where \(A \sim _{\log n} B\) means that \(1/(C\log ^a n) \cdot A \leq B \leq (C\log ^a n) \cdot A\) for some absolute constants C, a > 0.
Comparing three theories in predicting reproductive health behavioral intention in adolescent women with diabetes.

Background: Understanding factors that affect decision-making in using preconception planning is important to reduce the rate of unplanned pregnancies and pregnancy-related complications in all women with diabetes. Previously, there were no studies of reproductive health-related beliefs, attitudes, or behaviors of adolescent women with diabetes. Constructs from social cognitive models, such as, the health belief model (HBM), theory of reasoned action, and social cognitive theory, are factors that can influence these behavioral outcomes. Objective: To compare the predictive powers of these three theories in regard to decision-making with reproductive health behaviors in teens with diabetes and to identify a composite model of the strongest predictors across all three theories. Method: Data were collected from a telephone interview by same-gender research assistants on a sample of 87 female adolescents with type 1 diabetes (T1D) from four medical centers using the reproductive health attitudes and behavior (RHAB) questionnaire. Measures represent demographic variables, constructs of the three theories, and behavioral outcomes. Standard multiple regression analyses were used to examine the prediction of the three theories in the outcome variable [intention for using birth control (BC)]. Results: Among the three theories considered, the HBM explained the highest percent of variance (24.4%) in intention to using BC. The best composite model consisted of perceived barriers, cues to action, and self-efficacy (explaining 26.1% of the variance). These three variables were also the strongest predictors among all constructs considered. Conclusion: In this sample of adolescent females with T1D, the strongest predictors from the three theories for intention to using BC appeared to be perceived barriers, cues to action, and self-efficacy. Intervention studies to decrease future unplanned pregnancies in this high-risk population could focus on strategies to target these factors that are amenable to change.
A note on sum-quota sampling

Kremers'(1986) sum-quota sampling for estimating the mean of a finite population is reviewed. The objective of this note is to point out that the estimate of the variance of Kremers’ estimator could be negative. This negativity also occurs in the sampling schemes discussed in Kremers and Robson (1987). An example is given to substantiate these remarks.
The effect of PCAOB inspections on Big 4 audit quality

Abstract This paper examines whether the PCAOB inspection process results in an improvement in the quality of audits provided by Big 4 firms. We measure audit quality by examining changes in auditee abnormal accruals following each of the first two PCAOB inspections. We find a significant reduction in abnormal accruals in the year following the first PCAOB inspection, and we find a further reduction in abnormal accruals in the year following the second PCAOB inspection. These results are generally stronger for auditees that reported positive abnormal accruals before the initial PCAOB inspection. Our results provide preliminary evidence that the PCAOB inspection process has led to improved audit quality, at least as measured by a reduction in auditee earnings management.
An empirical exploration of the relation among diversity, stability, and performance in economic systems

Abstract This paper analyses the relation among diversity, stability, economic performance, and economic shocks. The results of an empirical analysis indicate that diversity creates stability and this stability buffers an economic system from the effects of a shock. Stability generates a relation between diversity and performance when the system is shocked because the effects of the shock are reflected most strongly in the least diverse economic systems. The relation between diversity and stability, positive or negative, depends on the nature of the shock. A shock that depresses economic activity generates a positive relation between diversity and performance. Conversely, a shock that stimulates economic activity generates a negative relation between diversity and performance.