cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The experience and performance of community health centers under managed care.

OBJECTIVES To (1) analyze the performance of 7 community health centers (CHCs) under managed care contracts and (2) identify key planning and operational components that all CHCs must address to remain viable as populations shift to managed care. DESIGN AND METHODS In-depth studies of 7 geographically diverse CHCs were conducted. Centers with multiple years of managed care contracting experience were selected. A detailed questionnaire about CHC operations under managed care was administered on-site to management staff from the 7 participating CHCs. Cost and utilization performance data were collected from managed care organizations, and their staff were interviewed to gauge the performance of the 7 CHCs within managed care networks. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS The shift of state Medicaid and other insured populations to managed care and changes in federal protection for CHCs suggest that CHCs must participate in managed care delivery systems to remain economically viable. In-depth studies of 7 CHCs with extended contracting histories with managed care organizations demonstrated that the CHCs offered comparable performance to other network providers, with lower cost and utilization for specialty care. Centers also experienced lower per-member monthly pharmacy costs. In addition, CHCs served as important sources of enrollment for managed care organizations. To succeed under managed care, CHCs must undertake substantial changes in their planning and operations, including developing appropriate risk relationships, diversifying their revenue base, mainstreaming operations, and improving performance monitoring.
Integrated Path Detection of Co2 and CH4 Using a Waveform Driven Electro-Optic Single Sideband Laser Source

Integrated path concentrations of ambient levels of carbon dioxide and methane have been measured during nighttime periods at NIST, Boulder (CO, USA), using a ground-based, eyesafe laser system. In this contribution, we describe the transmitter and receiver system, demonstrate measurements of CO2 and CH4 in comparison with an in situ point sensor measurement using a commercial cavity ring-down instrument, and demonstrate a speckle noise reduction method.
A patient-level data meta-analysis of standard-of-care treatments from eight prostate cancer clinical trials

Open clinical trial data offer many opportunities for the scientific community to independently verify published results, evaluate new hypotheses and conduct meta-analyses. These data provide valuable opportunities for scientific advances in medical research. Herein we present the comparative meta-analysis of different standard of care treatments from newly available comparator arm data from several prostate cancer clinical trials. Comparison of survival rates following treatment with mitoxantrone or docetaxel in combination with prednisone as well as prednisone alone, validated the previously demonstrated superiority of treatment with docetaxel. Additionally, comparison of four testosterone suppression treatments in hormone-refractory prostate cancer revealed that subjects who had undergone surgical castration had significantly lower survival rates than those treated with LHRH, anti-androgen or LHRH plus anti-androgen, suggesting that this treatment option is less optimal. This study illustrates how the use of patient-level clinical trial data enables meta-analyses that can provide new insights into clinical outcomes of standard of care treatments and thus, once validated, has the potential to help optimize healthcare delivery.
A high-voltage compliant neural stimulator with HF wireless power and UHF backscatter communication

A dual-band wireless neural stimulation device with high frequency (HF) wireless power transfer (WPT) at 13.56MHz and ultra high frequency (UHF) backscatter communication (BSC) at 915MHz is presented. Neural interfaces hold great promise in the development of future treatment/therapy for debilitating neurological disorders, spinal cord damage, and loss of limb function. Most state-of-the-art wireless neural interfaces use either HF or UHF for both WPT and communication, with UHF used in low power systems (neural recording systems) and HF in high power systems (neuromodulation systems). In contrast, this work demonstrates the efficient use of two separate frequencies for WPT and communication, with negligible interference between the two. The higher signal strength of received power using HF WPT enables the implementation of high-voltage (HV) electrical stimulation which is critical (and typically battery-powered) for treatment-oriented neuromodulation devices. Simultaneously, BSC provides improved bi-directional communication data-rates and reduced power consumption, compared to typical active radios. The wireless stimulator has been implemented on a printed circuit board (PCB) using custom and off-the-shelf discrete parts. Measurements are provided demonstrating the efficiency of simultaneously operating WPT and BSC interfaces. The results of in vivo measurements (anesthetized rat) demonstrating the efficacy of the wirelessly-powered stimulator are also provided.
Reactor Multiphase Flows and Accidents

Multiphase Flows in Nuclear Reactors This and the following sections will include descriptions of how multiphase flow is pertinent to the understanding and analysis of nuclear power generation and nuclear reactor accidents. The focus is on those multiphase issues that arise in the reactor itself, though, of course, there are many multiphase flow issues associated with the conventional components of the power generation process such as the steam generators and steam turbines. Multiphase flows that might or do occur in a nuclear reactor are most conveniently subdivided into those that occur during nominal reactor operation and those that might occur and have occurred during a reactor accident. Both sets of issues are complex and multifaceted, and many of the complexities are beyond the scope of this monograph. The reader is referred to texts such as Hsu and Graham (1976), Jones and Bankhoff (1977a, 1977b), Jones (1981), Hewitt and Collier (1987), and Todres and Kazimi (1990) for a broader perspective on these issues. Multiphase Flow in Normal Operation The most obvious multiphase flow occurring during normal operation is the process of boiling in a BWR core. Sections 6.5.4, 6.5.5, and 6.5.6 described how boiling is initiated within a BWR reactor core (Section 6.5.3), how the flow pattern within the coolant passages would change from bubbly flow to annular flow as the fluid rose (Section 6.2.3), and the circumstances under which the wall film might undergo burnout (Section 6.5.4), leading to the critical heat flux condition (CHF) and a rapid rise in the temperature (Figure 6.9) of the interface between the fuel rod cladding and the coolant. Boiling water reactors are designed to operate at a comfortable margin short of CHF at any location within the reactor. This requires a coupled calculation of the multiphase flow and the neutronics (Section 5.5) as well as a criterion that determines the CHF. For a review of the thermohydraulic data on CHF in nuclear reactors, the reader is referred to Groeneveld and Gardiner (1977). Void Fraction Effect on Reactivity In most reactors, it is important to recognize that any change in the geometry of the core or change of phase of its components may alter the reactivity of the reactor.
Statistical analysis of feeder and locational PV hosting capacity for 216 feeders

As PV penetration on the distribution system increases, there is growing concern about how much PV each feeder can handle. A total of 216 medium-voltage distributions feeders have been analyzed in detail for their individual PV hosting capacity and the locational PV hosting capacity at all the buses on the feeder. A statistical analysis is performed on the hosting capacity results in order to compare correlation with feeder load, percent of issues caused, and the variation for different feeder voltages. Due to the large number of distribution systems simulated, the analysis provides novel insights into each of these areas. Investigating the locational PV hosting capacity also expands the conventional analytical methods that study only the worst-case PV scenario.
Altered expression of polyamine transporters reveals a role for spermidine in the timing of flowering and other developmental response pathways

Changes in the levels of polyamines are correlated with the activation or repression of developmental response pathways, but the role of polyamine transporters in the regulation of polyamine homeostasis and thus indirectly gene expression, has not been previously addressed. Here we show that the A. thaliana and rice transporters AtPUT5 and OsPUT1 were localized to the ER, while the AtPUT2, AtPUT3, and OsPUT3 were localized to the chloroplast by transient expression in N. benthamiana. A. thaliana plants that were transformed with OsPUT1 under the control the PUT5 promoter were delayed in flowering by 16days. In contrast, put5 mutants flowered four days earlier than WT plants. The delay of flowering was associated with significantly higher levels of spermidine and spermidine conjugates in the leaves prior to flowering. A similar delay in flowering was also noted in transgenic lines with constitutive expression of either OsPUT1 or OsPUT3. All three transgenic lines had larger rosette leaves, thicker flowering stems, and produced more siliques than wild type plants. In contrast, put5 plants had smaller leaves, thinner flowering stems, and produced fewer siliques. Constitutive expression of PUTs was also associated with an extreme delay in both plant senescence and maturation rate of siliques. These experiments provide the first genetic evidence of polyamine transport in the timing of flowering, and indicate the importance of polyamine transporters in the regulation of flowering and senescence pathways.
Localization in Matrix Computations: Theory and Applications

Many important problems in mathematics and physics lead to (non-sparse) functions, vectors, or matrices in which the fraction of nonnegligible entries is vanishingly small compared the total number of entries as the size of the system tends to infinity. In other words, the nonnegligible entries tend to be localized, or concentrated, around a small region within the computational domain, with rapid decay away from this region (uniformly as the system size grows). When present, localization opens up the possibility of developing fast approximation algorithms, the complexity of which scales linearly in the size of the problem. While localization already plays an important role in various areas of quantum physics and chemistry, it has received until recently relatively little attention by researchers in numerical linear algebra. In this chapter we survey localization phenomena arising in various fields, and we provide unified theoretical explanations for such phenomena using general results on the decay behavior of matrix functions. We also discuss computational implications for a range of applications.
‘Contributions to Capital’ from Nonowners

Under current law, a corporation excludes non-shareholder ‘‘contributions to capital’’ from tax. The proposal would end the exclusion because the transfers from non-shareholders are economic income as they improve the net worth of the corporation and its owners. A transfer from a non-owner is not capital to the corporation in any meaningful sense of the word: The corporation does not have any basis recovered by the transfer, and the amount received does not have to be retained by the corporation as a cushion for creditors. The exclusion and related deduction grant a federal subsidy to transactions that do not merit one. Contributions by shareholders in return for stock or pro rata to stock holdings can properly be excluded because they represent a mere pooling by owners of assets previously held apart from the corporate form, in which case the owners recapture the value given up by value or enhanced value of their stock. Transfers by non-owners, by contrast, are an expenditure, even considering value recaptured by shareholdings. The proposal would apply to partnerships, and to shareholder contributions that are not justified by increase in stock. This proposal is made as a part of the Shelf Project, a collaboration among tax professionals to develop and perfect proposals to serve Congress when it is ready to raise revenue. Shelf Project proposals should become part of a new Treasury study, like the one that preceded the Tax Reform Act of 1986. Congress faces a revenue crisis because government revenue is at 13.4 percent of GDP, and long-term projections for government spending are at 22.4 percent of GDP, which implies an increase in necessary revenue of 168 percent of current yields. Provisions that are politically impossible in ordinary times become political necessities in a revenue crisis. Shelf Project proposals defend the tax base and improve the rationality and efficiency of the tax system. They are designed to raise revenue without raising rates because the best tax systems have the broadest possible base to allow for the lowest feasible tax rates.
Time trends in births and cesarean deliveries among women with disabilities

Abstract Background Although it is likely that childbearing among women with disabilities is increasing, no empirical data have been published on changes over time in the numbers of women with disabilities giving birth. Further, while it is known that women with disabilities are at increased risk of cesarean delivery, temporal trends in cesarean deliveries among women with disabilities have not been examined. Objective To assess time trends in births by any mode and in primary cesarean deliveries among women with physical, sensory, or intellectual/developmental disabilities. Methods We conducted a retrospective cohort study using linked vital records and hospital discharge data from all deliveries in California, 2000–2010 (n = 4,605,061). We identified women with potential disabilities using ICD-9 codes. We used descriptive statistics and visualizations to examine time patterns. Logistic regression analyses assessed the association between disability and primary cesarean delivery, stratified by year. Results Among all women giving birth, the proportion with a disability increased from 0.27% in 2000 to 0.80% in 2010. Women with disabilities had significantly elevated odds of primary cesarean delivery in each year, but the magnitude of the odds ratio decreased over time from 2.60 (95% CI = 2.25 = 2.99) in 2000 to 1.66 (95% CI = 1.51–1.81) in 2010. Conclusion Adequate clinician training is needed to address the perinatal care needs of the increasing numbers of women with disabilities giving birth. Continued efforts to understand cesarean delivery patterns and reasons for cesarean deliveries may help guide further reductions in proportions of cesarean deliveries among women with disabilities relative to women without disabilities.
Calcareous Nannofossils of the Louisiana Continental Shelf: Additions and Corrections

In a recent paper (Sachs and Skinner, 1973a), the first occurrence of the placolith Gephyrocapsa caribbeanica Boudreaux and Hay on the Louisiana Continental Shelf was used as one of the bases for recognition of the Pliocene-Pleistocene boundary in this area. The base of the early Pleistocene Terrebonne Shale (interpreted as Zone N. 22) lies a short distance below the first observed Gephyrocapsa caribbeanica (rare, 1 to 5 specimens per traverse) and the first abundant occurrence of the planktonic foraminifer Globorotalia truncatulinoides (d'Orbigny) in the strata beneath the Louisiana Continental Shelf.
Application of water-assisted ultraviolet light in combination of chlorine and hydrogen peroxide to inactivate Salmonella on fresh produce

With the demand for fresh produce increases in recent decades, concerns for microbiological safety of fresh produce are also raised. To identify effective ultraviolet (UV) light treatment for fresh produce decontamination, we first determined the effect of three forms of UV treatment, dry UV (samples were treated by UV directly), wet UV (samples were dipped in water briefly and then exposed to UV), and water-assisted UV (samples were treated by UV while being immersed in agitated water) on inactivation of Salmonella inoculated on tomatoes and fresh-cut lettuce. In general, the water-assisted UV treatment was found to be the most effective for both produce items. Chlorine and hydrogen peroxide were then tested to determine whether they could be used to enhance the decontamination efficacy of water-assisted UV treatment and prevent transfer of Salmonella via wash water by completely eliminating it. Neither of them significantly enhanced water-assisted UV inactivation of Salmonella on tomatoes. Chlorine significantly improved the decontamination effectiveness of the water-assisted UV treatment for baby-cut carrots and lettuce, but not for spinach. In general, the single water-assisted UV treatment and the combined treatment of water-assisted UV and chlorine were similar or more effective than the chlorine washing treatment. In most of the cases, no Salmonella was detected in the wash water when the single water-assisted UV treatment was used to decontaminate tomatoes. In a few cases when Salmonella was detected in the wash water, the populations were very low,≤2CFU/mL, and the wash water contained an extremely high level of organic load and soil level. Therefore, the single water-assisted UV treatment could potentially be used as an environmentally friendly and non-chemical alternative to chlorine washing for tomatoes after validation in industrial scale. For lettuce, spinach and baby-cut carrots, the combined treatment of water-assisted UV treatment and chlorine was needed to maintain a pathogen free environment in the wash water so that cross contamination could be prevented during fresh produce washing.
What's happening in Innovations in Care Delivery

Innovations in Care Delivery strives to highlight articles that feature advances in care delivery in our Editor's Blog, Editor's Top 5 Recommended Reading, and Latest Articles sections. Periodically, we also include interviews with leaders in the field of health services research.
Dosing optimization of CCR4 immunotoxin for improved depletion of CCR4 + Treg in nonhuman primates

Recently, we have developed a diphtheria toxin-based recombinant anti-human CCR4 immunotoxin for targeting CCR4+ tumors and Tregs. In this study, we further optimized the dosing schedule for improved CCR4+ Treg depletion. We have demonstrated that up to a 90% depletion was achieved and the depletion extended to approximately 2 weeks in the peripheral blood and more than 48 days in the lymph node at 25 μg·kg-1 , BID for 8 consecutive days in cynomolgus monkeys. Expansion was observed including monocytes and NK cells. Antibody against the CCR4 immunotoxin was detected after approximately 2 weeks, affecting further depletion efficacy for multiple course treatment.
Alcohol and its Effects on the Alcoholic as well as the Family

In lieu of an abstract, below is the essay's first paragraph. Alcoholism, the continued, excessive, and usually uncontrollable use of alcoholic drinks , continues to have many devastating effects on today's society. Some of the devastating consequences of alcoholism include accidental injury or death resulting from drunk drivers, loss of employment, unstable, dysfunctional families, and health problems. Not only does alcohol harm the alcoholic, but it also has a negative impact on the family, causing extreme emotional pain and suffering. With continuous therapy the alcoholic and friends and family of the alcoholic can control the disease of alcoholism. This article is available in The Review: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Research: http://fisherpub.sjfc.edu/ur/vol2/iss1/13 Alcohol and its Effects on the Alcoholic as well as the Family
Metallography of Dissimilar Fe-Ni Joint By Friction Stir Welding

Friction stir welding (FSW) of commercially pure iron and nickel was carried out using the polycrystalline cubic boron nitride (PCBN) tool. The interface region revealed striations of the phases suggesting a complex flow pattern. TEM and Auger analyses revealed that the width of the interdiffusion zone was about 1.5 m in single pass and 1.8 m in double pass joints. The measured concentration profiles could be fitted using calculated profiles generated with static diffusion rates reported for iron and nickel. The diffusion profiles also indicated stabilization of the austenite phase at the interface with a nickel content of about 12 at.% Ni, considerably lower than what is predicted for diffusional or shear transformation to ferrite or martensite, which is proposed to be the result of high levels of plastic strain.
Polyene antibiotic - sterol interaction.

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the chemistry and structure of the class of polyene antibiotics. It also discusses the biology of the action of the polyenes in the affected organism and in both natural and artificial membrane systems. The polyene compounds amphotericin B and nystatin are the chief substances employed clinically. They have been employed in relieving dermatophytic infections and in treating monilial infections, particularly in obstetrical and gynecological cases. Additionally, the hypocholesterolemic activity of orally administered polyene antibiotics has been reported as has their possible use in treating prostatic hypertrophy. Elemental analyses of the polyene antibiotics indicate that they contain only carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and, in some instances, nitrogen. The amino group present in some of the polyene antibiotics is associated with an amino sugar that is connected to the macrolide ring through a glycosidic bond. Polyene antibiotics are all characterized by a macrolide ring, which is a large ring of carbon atoms whose closure is affected by the formation of an internal ester or lactone. The presence of the lactone confers a highly characteristic peak on the infrared spectra of these compounds.
Shale-fluid interactions during forced lmbibition and flow-back

Abstract One way to minimize the need for disposal of flow-back waters produced during the hydraulic fracturing of unconventional reservoirs is, potentially, to recycle these fluids by recovering and re-injecting them during hydraulic fracturing of nearby new wells. These flow-back waters contain, however, large concentrations of dissolved salts. During hydraulic fracturing of unconventional reservoirs, a well may undergo extended shut-in periods, following the initial hydraulic-fracture stimulation. The concern here, therefore, is that the salts dissolved in the re-injected flow-back waters may precipitate in the subsurface, thus promoting scale formation; or alternately, because of their high salinity, these same fluids may cause the dissolution of various minerals present in the subsurface. Large divalent cations (e.g., Ca2+, Ba2+ and Sr2+) and anions (e.g., CO32− and SO42) may chemically interact with and cause the swelling of clay fractions, thus blocking pores in certain pore size ranges. All these phenomena (i.e., scale formation, clay swelling, minerals dissolution) can influence the petrophysical properties of the formation, including its permeability, porosity, contact angle, etc. One way to potentially overcome some of these technical challenges, is to pre-treat these flow-back waters, prior to re-injection (e.g., via chemical precipitation, followed by membrane filtration) in order to remove unwanted salts. However, such pre-treatment is costly, and the degree of salt removal needed to prevent formation damage is important in determining the economic viability of flow-back water recycle via re-injection. A key focus of this work, therefore, is to study the impact that the injection of flow-back waters, that have undergone varying degrees of pre-treatment and clean-up, will have on the flow-through characteristics of a tight-gas reservoir, particularly of the Marcellus Shale formation. To do so, we have carried-out forced-imbibition experiments with shale samples from various depths in the Marcellus formation, whose properties span high to low ranges of TOC, clay content and matrix permeabilities. We have studied the forced-imbibition characteristics, at an injection pressure of 24,233 kPa (3500 psig), of various flow-back fluids into shale cores saturated with methane at a pore pressure of 17,338 kPa (2500 psig) and a confining stress of 27,680 kPa (4000 psig). Following the forced imbibition experiments, we analyzed the cores for potential changes in permeability and porosity. Quantification of the ion content of the injected and recovered fluids was also performed using Ion Chromatography (IC). The IC analysis of the recovered fluids indicates substantial interactions and geochemical reactions between the invading fluids and the shale cores. The injection of flow-back fluids shows significant impact on the flow-through characteristics, with untreated flow-back fluids, which have the highest cation and anion content, also exhibiting the highest observable reductions in permeability (>90%).
Elevated Amygdala Activity in Young Adults With Familial Risk for Depression: A Potential Marker of Low Resilience.

Abstract Background Amygdala overactivity has been frequently observed in patients with depression, as well as in nondepressed relatives of patients with depression. A remaining unanswered question is whether elevated amygdala activity in those with familial risk for depression is related to the presence of subthreshold symptoms or to a trait-level vulnerability for illness. Methods To examine this question, functional magnetic resonance imaging data were collected in nondepressed young adults with (family history [FH+]) (n = 27) or without (FH−) (n = 45) a first-degree relative with a history of depression while they viewed images of “looming” or withdrawing stimuli (faces and cars) that varied in salience by virtue of their apparent proximity to the subject. Activation of the amygdala and 2 other regions known to exhibit responses to looming stimuli, the dorsal intraparietal sulcus (DIPS) and ventral premotor cortex (PMv), were measured, as well as levels of resilience, anxiety, and psychotic and depressive symptoms. Results Compared with the FH− group, the FH+ group exhibited significantly greater responses of the amygdala, but not the dorsal intraparietal sulcus or ventral premotor cortex, to looming face stimuli. Moreover, amygdala responses in the FH+ group were negatively correlated with levels of resilience and unrelated to levels of subthreshold symptoms of psychopathology. Conclusions These findings indicate that elevated amygdala activity in nondepressed young adults with a familial history of depression is more closely linked to poor resilience than to current symptom state.
Utility of image fusion software in identifying shunt malfunction

Pediatric shunt malfunction occurs frequently and is important to recognize due to the high associated morbidity and mortality. Although neuroimaging plays a crucial role in the diagnosis, it remains imperfect. We sought to identify the effect of image fusion software in predicting shunt malfunction. A total of 248 rapid shunt series brain MRIs performed between 2013 and 2017 were compared with prior neuroimaging for changes in ventricular size by two methods: radiology report and Brainlab fusion. Shunt malfunction was defined by an operative report confirming malfunction within 72 h of neuroimaging. The two methods were compared by logistic regression models, with sensitivity and specificity subsequently calculated. Shunt malfunction was identified in 40 cases (16.1%). Imaging report demonstrated a lower Akaike information criterion than the Brainlab fusion and is therefore a better fitting model. While sensitivity is similar for the two models, 0.94 (0.90 to 0.97, 95% CI) for imaging report, and 0.95 (0.91 to 0.98, 95% CI) for Brainlab, the specificity was significantly different, 0.50 (0.37 to 0.63, 95% CI) and 0.33 (0.24 to 0.44, 95% CI) respectively. Our data indicate that an increased ability to detect subtle changes in ventricular size does not translate to improved accuracy, but instead leads to decreased specificity, and therefore an overdiagnosis of shunt malfunction in children with normally functioning shunts. While imaging continues to play a prominent role in the identification of shunt malfunction, neurosurgical clinical evaluation remains crucial to the final diagnosis.
Does the Bar Exam Protect the Public

I study the effects of requiring lawyers to pass the bar exam on whether they are later publicly disciplined for misconduct. In the 1980s, four states began to require graduates from all law schools to pass the bar exam by abolishing what is known as a diploma privilege. My research design exploits these events to estimate the effect of the bar passage requirement on the share of lawyers who receive public sanctions by state discipline bodies. I find that lawyers licensed without a bar passage requirement receive public sanctions at similar rates to lawyers licensed after passing a bar exam for the first decade of their careers, but small differences begin to emerge after a decade, and larger but modest differences emerge after two decades.
Neither laziness nor workaholism: The Protestant ethic and economic prosperity among young urban Christians in contemporary China:

Focused on the religious and economic practices of young Chinese Christian in Beijing, this article examines how Chinese Christians confront and resolve the post-socialist challenges in relation to...
Systems Biology Guided Gene Enrichment Approaches Improve Prediction of Chronic Post-surgical Pain After Spine Fusion.

Objectives Incorporation of genetic factors in psychosocial/perioperative models for predicting chronic postsurgical pain (CPSP) is key for personalization of analgesia. However, single variant associations with CPSP have small effect sizes, making polygenic risk assessment important. Unfortunately, pediatric CPSP studies are not sufficiently powered for unbiased genome wide association (GWAS). We previously leveraged systems biology to identify candidate genes associated with CPSP. The goal of this study was to use systems biology prioritized gene enrichment to generate polygenic risk scores (PRS) for improved prediction of CPSP in a prospectively enrolled clinical cohort. Methods In a prospectively recruited cohort of 171 adolescents (14.5 ± 1.8 years, 75.4% female) undergoing spine fusion, we collected data about anesthesia/surgical factors, childhood anxiety sensitivity (CASI), acute pain/opioid use, pain outcomes 6-12 months post-surgery and blood (for DNA extraction/genotyping). We previously prioritized candidate genes using computational approaches based on similarity for functional annotations with a literature-derived "training set." In this study, we tested ranked deciles of 1336 prioritized genes for increased representation of variants associated with CPSP, compared to 10,000 randomly selected control sets. Penalized regression (LASSO) was used to select final variants from enriched variant sets for calculation of PRS. PRS incorporated regression models were compared with previously published non-genetic models for predictive accuracy. Results Incidence of CPSP in the prospective cohort was 40.4%. 33,104 case and 252,590 control variants were included for association analyses. The smallest gene set enriched for CPSP had 80/1010 variants associated with CPSP (p < 0.05), significantly higher than in 10,000 randomly selected control sets (p = 0.0004). LASSO selected 20 variants for calculating weighted PRS. Model adjusted for covariates including PRS had AUROC of 0.96 (95% CI: 0.92-0.99) for CPSP prediction, compared to 0.70 (95% CI: 0.59-0.82) for non-genetic model (p < 0.001). Odds ratios and positive regression coefficients for the final model were internally validated using bootstrapping: PRS [OR 1.98 (95% CI: 1.21-3.22); β 0.68 (95% CI: 0.19-0.74)] and CASI [OR 1.33 (95% CI: 1.03-1.72); β 0.29 (0.03-0.38)]. Discussion Systems biology guided PRS improved predictive accuracy of CPSP risk in a pediatric cohort. They have potential to serve as biomarkers to guide risk stratification and tailored prevention. Findings highlight systems biology approaches for deriving PRS for phenotypes in cohorts less amenable to large scale GWAS.
Accessibility Support in Web Frameworks

Despite the existence of accessibility testing tools, software still largely inaccessible mainly due to lack of awareness among developers and issues with existing tools [14, 18]. This motivated us to evaluate the accessibility support of development tools that do not require specific accessibility knowledge such as web frameworks. We tested the accessibility support of three JavaScript web frameworks; Angular, React, and Vue. For each of the three frameworks, we built a web application with 32 pages, each of which violated a single accessibility guideline. We found that only React generated a warning for one of the accessibility violations that is lack of label for non-text content. The rest of the accessibility violations went unnoticed by the three frameworks.
What Have We Lost? Modeling Dam Impacts on American Shad Populations Through Their Native Range

American shad (Alosa sapidissima) are native to the east coast of North America from the St. Johns River, Florida, to the St. Lawrence River region in Canada. Since the 1800s, dams have reduced access to spawning habitat. To assess the impact of dams, we estimated the historically accessed spawning habitat in coastal rivers (485,618 river segments with 21,113 current dams) based on i) width, ii) distance from seawater, and iii) slope (to exclude natural barriers to migration) combined with local knowledge. Estimated habitat available prior to dam construction (2,752 km2) was 41% greater than current fully accessible habitat (1,639 km2). River-specific population models were developed using habitat estimates and latitudinally appropriate life history parameters (e.g., size at age, maturity, iteroparity). Estimated coast-wide annual production potential was 69.1 million spawners compared with a dammed scenario (41.8 million spawners). Even with optimistic fish passage performance assumed for all dams (even if passage is completely absent), the dam-imposed deficit was alleviated by fewer than 3 million spawners. We estimate that in rivers modeled without dams, 98,000 metric tons of marine sourced biomass and nutrients were annually delivered, 60% of which was retained through carcasses, gametes and metabolic waste. Damming is estimated to have reduced this by more than one third. Dams represent a significant and acute constraint to the population and, with other human impacts, reduce the fishery potential and ecological services attributed to the species.
New York City OTB: Is the Model Broken?

The memorandum argues that the bankruptcy of the New York City Off Track Betting Corporation is not due to the laws governing how the corporation pays part of its retention on wagers to the racing industry and the State. Rather, the problems have been caused by the inefficiencies within the corporation.
A Very High-speed FFT Device Architecture

A study was conducted to determine the maximum speed that could be coaxed from an FFT architecture using a pin-limited a rchitecture and an off-the-shelf technology. A radix-4 building block was selected, with on-chip distributedarithmetic t widdle-factor multipliers. A unique data-formatting scheme was developed which completely eliminated the c arry-propagatio n-delay problem. With 32 input-signal pins and 32 output signal pins, the four 16-bit real plus 1 6-bit imaginary data a re loaded in four clock cycles. The building blocks a re arrayed such that an epoch of data can be transformed every four clock cycles. The relationship between the device clock frequency, fc; the i nput-data sampling frequency, f,; and the number of points in the complex transform, N, is given by
A RhoA-derived peptide inhibits syncytium formation induced by respiratory syncytial virus and parainfluenza virus type 3

The fusion glycoproteins of human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and human parainfluenza virus type-3 (PIV-3) mediate virus entry and syncytium formation. Interaction between the fusion protein of RSV and RhoA, a small GTPase, facilitates virus-induced syncytium formation. We show here a RhoA-derived peptide inhibits RSV and syncytium formation induced by RSV and PIV-3, both in vitro by inhibition of cell-to-cell fusion and in vivo by reduction of peak titer by 2 log10 in RSV-infected mice. These findings indicate that the interaction between these two paramyxovirus fusion proteins and RhoA is an important target for new antiviral strategies.
Future Developments in Electronically Controlled Body and Safety Systems

The global automotive market is in the midst of the most significant changes in it's history. Multiple factors are changing the very nature of the market and the players. Globalization is accelerating with non-global players being replaced by more efficient, lower cost global ones. Suppliers are combining forces in order to position themselves in key segments and create the ability to supply large "chunks" of the vehicle. New legislation is driving increasing intelligence into safety systems. The importance of electronics continues to increase with car sales increasingly being driven by style and feature content. This paper looks at trends in electronic safety and convenience systems that affect the auto makers ability to personalize the driving experience. For the covering abstract see ITRD E108169.
Leptonic decays of the charged B meson

The authors present a search for the decay B{sup +} {yields} {ell}{sup +}{nu}{sub {ell}} ({ell} = {tau}, {mu}, or e) in (458.9 {+-} 5.1) x 10{sup 6} {Upsilon}(4S) decays recorded with the BABAR detector at the SLAC PEP-II B-Factory. A sample of events with one reconstructed exclusive semi-leptonic B decay (B{sup -} {yields} D{sup 0}{ell}{sup -}{bar {nu}}X) is selected, and in the recoil a search for B{sup +} {yields} {ell}{sup +}{nu}{sub {ell}} signal is performed. The {tau} is identified in the following channels: {tau}{sup +} {yields} e{sup +}{nu}{sub e}{bar {nu}}{sub {tau}}, {tau}{sup +} {yields} {mu}{sup +}{nu}{sub {mu}}{bar {nu}}{sub {tau}}, {tau}{sup +} {yields} {pi}{sup +}{bar {nu}}{sub {tau}}, and {tau}{sup +} {yields} {pi}{sup +}{pi}{sup 0}{bar {nu}}{sub {tau}}. The analysis strategy and the statistical procedure is set up for branching fraction extraction or upper limit determination. They determine from the dataset a preliminary measurement of {Beta}(B{sup +} {yields} {tau}{sup +}{nu}{sub {tau}}) = (1.8 {+-} 0.8 {+-} 0.1) x 10{sup -4}, which excludes zero at 2.4{sigma}, and f{sub B} = 255 {+-} 58 MeV. Combination with the hadronically tagged measurement yields {Beta}(B{sup +} {yields} {tau}{sup +}{nu}{sub {tau}}) = (1.8 {+-} 0.6) x 10{sup -4}. They also set preliminary limits on the branching fractions atmore » {Beta}(B{sup +} {yields} e{sup +}{nu}{sub e}) < 7.7 x 10{sup -6} (90% C.L.), {Beta}(B{sup +} {yields} {mu}{sup +}{nu}{sub {mu}}) < 11 x 10{sup -6} (90% C.L.), and {Beta}(B{sup +} {yields} {tau}{sup +}{nu}{sub {tau}}) < 3.2 x 10{sup -4} (90% C.L.).« less
Revised Accounting For Business Combinations

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) has recently issued Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 141 (Revised 2007) Business Combinations. The object of this Statement is to improve the relevance, representational faithfulness, and comparability of reported information about a business combination and its effects. This Statement replaces FASB Statement No. 141, but retains the fundamental requirements that the acquisition method of accounting (previously called the purchase method) be used for all business combinations. Some of the changes related to the accounting for business combinations as a result of the new requirements are discussed and illustrated below.
Turning molehills into mountains: Sleepiness increases workplace interpretive bias

Summary Three studies draw from evolutionary theory to assess whether sleepiness increases interpretive biases in workplace social judgments. Study 1 established a relationship between sleepiness and interpretive bias using ambiguous interpersonal scenarios from a measure commonly used in personnel selection (N = 148). Study 2 explored the boundary conditions of the sleepiness–interpretive bias link via an experimental online field survey of U.S. adults (N = 433). Sleepiness increased interpretive bias when social threats were clearly present (unfair workplace) but did not affect bias in the absence of threat (fair workplace). Study 3 replicated and extended findings from the previous two studies using objective measures of sleep loss and a quasi-experimental manipulation of minor sleep loss (N = 175). Negative affect, ego depletion, or personality variables did not influence the observed relationships. Overall, results suggest that a self-protection/evolutionary perspective best explains the effects of sleepiness on workplace interpretive biases. These studies advance the current research on sleep in organizations by adding a cognitive “threat interpretation” bias approach to past work examining the emotional reaction/behavioral side of sleep disruption. Interpretive biases due to sleepiness may have significant implications for employee health and counterproductive behavior. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Superoxide‐lowering therapy with TEMPOL reverses arterial dysfunction with aging in mice

To test the hypothesis that the antioxidant enzyme superoxide dismutase (SOD) mimetic TEMPOL improves arterial aging, young (Y, 4-6 months) and old (O, 26-28 months) male C57BL6 mice received regular or TEMPOL-supplemented (1mM) drinking water for 3 weeks (n = 8 per group). Aortic superoxide was 65% greater in O (P < 0.05 vs. Y), which was normalized by TEMPOL. O had large elastic artery stiffening, as indicated by greater aortic pulse wave velocity (aPWV, 508 ± 22 vs. 418 ± 22 AU), which was associated with increased adventitial collagen I expression (P < 0.05 vs. Y). TEMPOL reversed the age-associated increases in aPWV (434 ± 21 AU) and collagen in vivo, and SOD reversed the increases in collagen I in adventitial fibroblasts from older rats in vitro. Isolated carotid arteries of O had impaired endothelial function as indicated by reduced acetylcholine-stimulated endothelium-dependent dilation (EDD) (75.6 ± 3.2 vs. 94.5 ± 2.0%) mediated by reduced nitric oxide (NO) bioavailability (L-NAME) associated with decreased endothelial NO synthase (eNOS) expression (P < 0.05 vs. Y). TEMPOL restored EDD (94.5 ± 1.4%), NO bioavailability and eNOS in O. Nitrotyrosine and expression of NADPH oxidase were ~100-200% greater, and MnSOD was ~75% lower in O (P < 0.05 vs. Y). TEMPOL normalized nitrotyrosine and NADPH oxidase in O, without affecting MnSOD. Aortic pro-inflammatory cytokines were greater in O (P < 0.05 vs. Y) and normalized by TEMPOL. Short-term treatment of excessive superoxide with TEMPOL ameliorates large elastic artery stiffening and endothelial dysfunction with aging, and this is associated with normalization of arterial collagen I, eNOS, oxidative stress, and inflammation.
Validation of the Perceived Stress Scale in a community sample of older adults

Background: Three versions of Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-14, PSS-10, and PSS-4) are among the most widely used measures of stress. The aim of the current study was to validate this instrument in a sample of nondemented older adults to facilitate studies of the impact of stress on health. Methods:Seven hundred sixty-eight nondemented adults over the age of 70years completed the PSS-14 questionnaire and other neuropsychological tests. Exploratory factor analysis was used to determine the underlying factor structure of all PSS versions, and confirmatory factor analysis was used to test the construct validity of factors. The internal consistency reliability of the scales was assessed using Cronbach’s alpha, and concurrent validity was evaluated by examining PSS relation with age, gender, depression, anxiety, and Positive Affect and Negative Affect Schedule. Results:A two-factor model was the optimal fit for the 14-item and 10-item versions of PSS. For PSS-14, all items’loadings exceeded 0.4 for one of the two factors except item 12. Therefore, we studied a 13-item version of PSS and 10-item and 4-item subsets representing PSS-10 and PSS-4. Internal consistency coefficients were satisfactory for the full scale of PSS-13 and PSS-10 but not for PSS-4. Women reported higher levels of stress than men. Higher levels of total PSS scores showed association with higher levels of depression, anxiety, and negative affect, and lower level of positive affect. Conclusions: The 13-item and 10-item versions of PSS may be used to understand the experience of stress among older adults. Copyright # 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Identification of aqueous phase amino acid phenylthiohydantoins on polyamide sheets

The aqueous phase phenylthiohydantion (PTH) derivatives of arginine, histidine, and S-pyridylethylcysteine are successfully separated by thin-layer chromatography on polyamide sheets using 10% aqueous pyridine as solvent. Trials on fractions from sequenator runs show that this solvent also separates these PTHs from contaminants which are usually present in the aqueous phase. Development with a second-dimension solvent containing a fluorescent indicator provides a method for identifying these PTHs in subnanomole quantities.
Disruption of the NMDA receptor–PSD-95 interaction in hippocampal neurons with no obvious physiological short-term effect

PSD-95 binds to and co-localizes with NMDA receptors at postsynaptic sites. Their co-expression in COS7 cells induces the formation of aggregates containing both proteins. These findings have lead to the hypothesis that PSD-95 helps to cluster NMDA receptors at postsynaptic sites. In addition, PSD-95 binds various regulatory proteins including Src, Pyk2, SynGAP, and nNOS and may recruit signaling proteins to NMDA receptors. We tested whether synaptic transmission or plasticity was affected by acute dissociation of the PSD-95-NMDA receptor interaction with various peptides that bound to the first two PDZ domains of PSD-95 and its homologs and with antibodies directed against the very C-terminus of the NR2A and NR2B subunits of the NMDA receptor. Membrane-impermeable peptides injected via whole cell patch electrodes distributed within minutes throughout dendritic branches into spines in acute hippocampal slices and membrane-permeable peptides containing 11 arginine residues effectively accumulated in neurites in slices and primary hippocampal cultures. Neither peptides nor antibodies showed any effect on basal synaptic transmission or induction of long-term potentiation (LTP) in hippocampal slices. Pharmacologically isolated NMDA receptor activity was also not affected. However, the membrane-permeable peptide disrupted the NMDA receptor-PSD-95 interaction in slices as tested by immunoprecipitation and subsequent immunoblotting. These findings suggest that acute dissociation of PSD-95 and its homologs from the NMDA receptor and likely from other protein complexes does not result in any easily detectable physiological effects in hippocampal slices. However, we cannot exclude a role of PSD-95 in early events that lead to clustering of NMDA receptors or of other proteins including stargazin and AMPA receptors at postsynaptic sites nor do these experiments address the possibility of long-term changes in the slices. In fact, incubation of primary hippocampal cultures with the membrane-permeable peptide lead to a moderate decrease in the number of dendritic clusters of PSD-95 and NMDA receptors and their colocalization by 20-30%, suggesting some role of PSD-95 and its homologs in NMDA receptor clustering.