cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
On the origin of excess cool gas in quasar host haloes

Previous observations of quasar host halos at z=2 have uncovered large quantities of cool gas that exceed what is found around inactive galaxies of both lower and higher masses. To better understand the source of this excess cool gas, we compiled an exhaustive sample of 195 quasars at z=1 with constraints on chemically enriched, cool gas traced by MgII absorption in background quasar spectra from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. This quasar sample spans a broad range of luminosities from Lbol=10^44.4 to 10^46.8 erg/s and allows an investigation of whether halo gas properties are connected with quasar properties. We find a strong correlation between luminosity and cool gas covering fraction. In particular, low-luminosity quasars exhibit a mean gas covering fraction comparable to inactive galaxies of similar masses, but more luminous quasars exhibit excess cool gas approaching what is reported previously at z=2. Moreover, 30-40% of the MgII absorption occurs at radial velocities of |v|>300 km/s from the quasar, inconsistent with gas bound to a typical quasar host halo. The large velocity offsets and observed luminosity dependence of the cool gas near quasars can be explained if the gas arises from: (1) neighboring halos correlated through large-scale structure at Mpc scales, (2) feedback from luminous quasars, or (3) debris from the mergers thought to trigger luminous quasars. The first of these scenarios is in tension with the lack of correlation between quasar luminosity and clustering while the latter two make distinct predictions that can be tested with additional observations.
NDE of timber bridges

A study was recently conducted to assess the technical feasibility of using stress wave nondestructive evaluation methods to locate decayed members in timber bridges. Stress wave nondestructive evaluation techniques were used to locate decayed components in several timber bridges in eastern Oregon. Various stress wave techniques were used to conduct an in-situ evaluation of stringers, decking, and compression members. Components suspected as having decay were identified and evaluated in a laboratory after dismantling. Both visual evaluation of the members and subsequent laboratory testing indicated that the stress wave techniques were able to locate decayed components with a high degree of accuracy.© (1996) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Sexual Minority Status and Self-Rated Health: The Importance of Socioeconomic Status, Age, and Sex

Objectives. I examined how sexual minority status, as indicated by sex of sexual partners, is associated with self-rated health and how socioeconomic status suppresses and age and sex moderate this association.Methods. I used multinomial logistic regression to analyze aggregated data from the 1991 to 2010 General Social Survey, a population-based data set (n = 13 480).Results. Respondents with only different-sex partners or with any same-sex partners reported similar levels of health. With socioeconomic status added to the model, respondents with any same-sex partners reported worse health than those with only different-sex partners, but only if sexual intercourse with same-sex partners occurred in the previous 5 years. Age and sex moderated this relationship: having any same-sex partners was associated with worse health for women but not men and among younger adults only.Conclusions. The relationship between sexual minority status and self-rated health varies across sociodemographic groups. Future resear...
Study on the use of transmission scans for whole body PET attenuation correction

Transmission scans for attenuation correction of whole body PET studies are not acquired routinely, since noise considerations impose acquisition time constraints that make conventional scanning techniques infeasible. The aim of this work is to optimize data acquisition and processing parameters and improve the SNR of whole body transmission scans, in order to achieve within a reasonable time frame, an attenuation correction of the same quality as in cardiac PET. Methods to improve the scanner sensitivity by using additional coincidence planes, as well as smoothing methods for the randoms and the transmission data were investigated. Phantom and patient studies show that transmission scans are feasible for whole body PET studies, with equivalent noise introduced in the chest area as in a typical cardiac PET attenuation correction, at fractions of the time required by conventional transmission scan protocols. >
Prospective randomized comparison of gastrotomy closure associating tunnel access and over-the-scope clip (OTSC) with two other methods in an experimental ex vivo setting

Background: Safe transgastric natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (NOTES) procedures require a reliable closure of the gastrotomy. Recently a novel peritoneal access method via a submucosal tunnel has been described with encouraging preliminary results. Aim: The aim is to compare a submucosal tunnel access plus over-the-scope clip (OTSC) system for closure with two other closure modalities. Patients and methods: This is a prospective ex vivo study conducted on 42 porcine stomach models equally randomized into three groups in an academic medical center. The procedures performed in each group included: (1) Tunnel (6 cm) + endoclips; (2) Knife + balloon dilation access + OTSC; and (3) Tunnel + OTSC. A pressurized air-leak test was performed to evaluate the strength of the closure. Stomach volumes, procedure times, number of clips, and incision sizes were also registered. Results: The mean air-leak pressure was statistically higher in Group 3 than in Groups 1 and 2–95.2 ± 19.3 mmHg versus 72.5 ± 35.2 and 79.0 ± 24.5 mmHg (P Conclusion: The combination of a submucosal tunnel access and OTSC offers a stronger closure than the other methods studied.
Moniker: etymology and lexicographical history

Although no interest in recording slang, cant, the popular speech of what was then perceived as the lower, itinerant, vagrant, or criminal classes and groups is evident in the history of English lexicography —defined in its broadest terms— from the Elizabethan period onwards, as reflected in such writers as Robert Greene, and selective use of such popular vocabulary can be found as early as Chaucer (Blake 1999), OED has shown little interest in pursuing etymologies, and often seems content with a simple class affiliation. Cove is a good case in point. The dictionary speculates that it may be identical with Scottish coffe ‘chapman, pedlar’ (cf. chap) and relegates it to “a lower and more slangy stratum of speech”. Despite OED’s concluding judgment, “the origin of the word still remains obscure”, it has long been accepted that cove reflects the masculine singular demonstrative pronoun of Anglo-Romany, kov ‘that (man)’. Shiv/chive ‘knife’, which OED calls “thieves’ cant”, is another example. Chiv is the standard Anglo-Romani word for ‘knife’. As for the word cant itself, the dictionary, seemingly only reluctantly, lists Gaelic MONIKER: ETYMOLOGY AND LEXICOGRAPHICAL HISTORY
Cultural Differences in the Abortion Discourse of the Catholic Church: Evidence from Four Countries*

L'A. etudie les themes mobilises par l'Eglise catholique contre l'avortement. Il porte son attention sur quatre pays : l'Irlande, les Etats-Unis, la Pologne, le Pays de Galles et l'Angleterre. Il se demande si l'Eglise utilise un langage different sur le plan culturel selon son statut institutionnel a l'interieur des divers pays ou en fonction du contexte dans lequel s'exprime son opposition a l'avortement. Il porte son attention sur les themes culturels concernant les femmes. Il montre que dans chacun des pays etudies l'Eglise catholique fait appel a des elements culturels plutot que doctrinaux pour legitimer ses perspectives en ce domaine
The continuing professional education role of ASIS: fifty years of learning together, reaching out, seeking identity

A brief review highlights those events in the history of ASIS that have contributed to its evolution as a significant source of continuing professional education. The role of conferences, publications, and workshops is discussed in terms of their contribution to the formation of a professional identity. The article concludes with conjecture about the appropriate niche for ASIS as a continuing education provider in information science.
The Beaver Dam Eye Study: The Relation of Age-related Maculopathy to Smoking

There are conflicting reports regarding the relation of cigarette smoking to age-related maculopathy, a major cause of blindness in the United States. In this report, the authors examined this association in people aged 43-86 years (n = 4,771) who participated in the Beaver Dam Eye Study, Beaver Dam, Wisconsin (1988-1990). Exposure data on cigarette smoking were derived from questions about present and past smoking, duration of smoking, and the number of cigarettes smoked per day. Age-related maculopathy status was determined by grading stereoscopic color fundus photographs using the Wisconsin Age-related Maculopathy Grading System. Smoking status, pack-years smoked, and current exposure to passive smoking were not associated with drusen characteristics (type, area, and confluence) or signs of early age-related maculopathy in any age-sex group studied, except for a higher frequency of increased retinal pigment in males who had ever smoked compared with those who had never smoked. The relative odds for exudative macular degeneration, one form of late age-related maculopathy, in females who were current smokers was 2.50 (95% confidence interval 1.01-6.20) compared with those who were ex-smokers or never smokers; for males, it was 3.29 (95% confidence interval 1.03-10.50). There was no significant relation between smoking status and pure geographic atrophy, another form of late age-related maculopathy. These results suggest that exudative macular degeneration is associated with cigarette smoking and that different forms of macular degeneration may have different etiologies.
Late Pleistocene-Holocene sedimentation surrounding an active seafloor gas-hydrate and cold-seep field on the Northern Gulf of Mexico Slope

Abstract A chronostratigraphic framework is constructed from sediments surrounding an active gas-hydrate and cold-seep field, situated on the northern Gulf of Mexico slope within federal offshore lease block Mississippi Canyon 118 (MC118). Accelerator mass spectrometer (AMS) radiocarbon dating, foraminiferal biostratigraphy and nannofossil biostratigraphy are used to constrain the age of sediments from 10 gravity cores collected around the field. X-ray fluorescence (XRF) core scanning is employed to develop continuous down-core elemental profiles, which are used to evaluate biogenic calcium and siliciclastic titanium sediment inputs, and provide a means to correlate sediments across the study area and infer changes in sedimentation through time. Spatial reconstruction of sedimentation surrounding the field indicates the following: (1) a consistent pattern of stratigraphic thinning in close proximity to the field over the past 14,000 yrs and (2), temporal changes in sedimentation that primarily reflect deglacial sea-level rise as well as regional factors such as Mississippi delta lobe switching. These results highlight the variability of sedimentation along a continental slope setting where marine cold seeps and gas hydrate persist, yet do not suggest slope failure or destabilization of the seafloor at this site, at least during the past 14,000 yrs. The evaluation of sedimentation at this location provides an important context for ongoing biogeochemical and geophysical monitoring of the MC118 site, which has been designated the first National Gas Hydrate Seafloor Observatory by the Gulf of Mexico Hydrate Research Consortium.
Incorporating Cultural Perspectives into Diabetes Self-Management Programs for East Asian Immigrants: A Mixed-Study Review

It is important to understand East Asian immigrants (EAIs)’ unique perspectives in managing diabetes in order to provide culturally-competent care. However, it is not known whether EAIs’ perspectives are addressed in diabetes self-management interventions developed for EAIs. Therefore, a mixed-study review was conducted to identify EAIs’ perspective from qualitative research (n = 9 studies) and to evaluate the components of EAI diabetes self-management interventions (n = 7). Themes from the qualitative synthesis demonstrated that EAIs have unique cultural values and traditional health beliefs while struggling with multi-contextual barriers due to immigration. The evaluation of EAI diabetes self-management interventions revealed that there was a lack of consensus on cultural strategies for EAIs’ across the interventions. Addressing language barriers was the only factor consistently integrated in the cultural components of intervention by employing bilingual interventionists. EAIs’ perspectives and experiences need to be incorporated in the future diabetes self-management interventions to better provide culturally-competent care.
Effects of El Niño events on Darwin's finch productivity

We studied the effects of heavy and prolonged rainfall associated with four El Nino events on the reproduction of Darwin's finches on the Galapagos island of Daphne Major. Rainfall varied in the El Nino years from 195 mm to 1359 mm, exceeding the maximum in the other years by 40% to 1000%. Two species were studied: Geospiza fortis, Medium Ground Finch, and G. scandens, Cactus Finch. Almost all eggs, nestlings, and fledglings produced by banded females were recorded in the El Nino years of 1983, 1987, 1991, and 1998. Finch production in these years was compared with production in 10 other years of breeding in the period 1976-1990; there was no breeding in three drought years, 1985, 1988, and 1989. Breeding differed in the two sets of years in several ways. More broods were produced in El Nino years than in non-El Nino years (maximum 10 clutches per female vs. five clutches), the period of breeding was longer (maximum eight months vs. four), average clutch sizes (range 2-6 eggs) were distinctly larger (four vs. three), and average egg and fledgling production per female was larger by a factor of four. The two species differed in some features of breeding, but differences were minor in comparison with the marked seasonal and annual variation. Finch production varied among El Nino years, being greatest in the year of most rain over the longest period (1983), and least in the next wettest year (1998). The surprisingly low production in 1998 is attributed in part to interactions with other finches, and in part to exceptionally high temperatures. Temperature, although postively correlated with rainfall, had an independent negative effect upon hatching and overall breeding success of G. fortis. Breeding by both species in the year of birth (hatch) occurred in two El Nino years with the most extended wet seasons: 1983 and 1987. Young breeders had lower clutch sizes and breeding success than did contemporaneously breeding older birds. Observations in different El Nino years show that finch population responses to major climatic perturbations such as elevated rainfall vary for two major reasons: the perturbations themselves vary in strength and duration, and responses to them are determined, in part, by preceding conditions. Those preceding conditions, in turn, are determined by whether drought or normal conditions precede the perturbation, and on the interval since the previous El Nino event. Thus, perturbations of natural systems can be fully understood only in a broad temporal context.
Right ventricular infarction

Right ventricular infarction commonly occurs in association with acute inferior left ventricular infarction, but is uncommon when infarction involves other areas of the left ventricle. Evidence of right ventricular infarction often can be detected by physical examination, electrocardiography, echocardiography, or radionuclide ventriculography. However, hetnodynamically signifcant infarction (i. e., hypotension or shock) is much less frequent, occurring in approximately 10% of patients with other evidence of right ventricular infarction. Right ventricular infarction increases ventricular stiffness, thereby impeding diastolic filling. This results in hemodynamic changes similar to those found in constrictive pericarditis: elevated systemic venous pressure, a Y descent greater than the X descent, and an inspiratory increase in venous pressure. The increase in venous pressure generally equals or even exceeds left atrial pressure. When hypotension or shock occurs, expansion of vascular volume is generally employed as initial therapy. in nonresponders, dobutamine or similar inotropic agents may be helpful. The prognosis during the acute phases is guarded, but, in survivors, prognosis is favorable and generally related to the extent of left ventricular involvement.
Clinical implementation of an automated planning system for gamma knife radiosurgery.

Purpose: To evaluate an automated treatment planning system for gamma knife radiosurgery. This planning system was developed in our clinic and is now in routine clinical use. The system simultaneously optimizes the shot sizes, locations, and weights. It also guides the user in selecting the total number of radiation shots. Methods and Materials: We assessed the clinical significance of the automated system by comparing an optimized plan with a manual plan for 10 consecutive patients treated at our gamma knife facility. Each treatment plan was analyzed using dose‐volume histograms in conjunction with the conformity index, the minimum target dose, and the integral normal tissue dose. Results: On average, the treatment plan produced by the inverse planning tool provided an improved conformity index, a higher minimum target dose, and a reduced volume of the 30% isodose line as compared to the corresponding plan developed by an experienced physician. An optimized treatment plan can typically be produced in 10 min or less. Conclusions: The automated planning system consistently provides a high-quality treatment plan while reducing the time required for gamma knife treatment planning. © 2003 Elsevier Inc.
Nutrition Management of Infants With Surgical Short Bowel Syndrome and Intestinal Failure

Appropriate nutrition recommendations are important for the successful management of the infant with an injured gastrointestinal tract postsurgery who is at risk for intestinal failure. Management strategies that can be used to augment successful adaptation and prevent liver disease are summarized in this review. These include appropriate postoperative fluid and electrolyte management, modification of parenteral nutrition to minimize intestinal failure-associated liver disease, early and aggressive enteral feeding advancement, the use of hormonal and trophic agents, prevention of central line-associated bloodstream infections using ethanol lock, appropriate treatment, and prevention of pathologic small bowel bacterial overgrowth.
Clathrin in mitotic spindles

Subconfluent cultures of Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) and CV-1 cells were immunostained with two monoclonal antibodies (MAbs), MAb X-22 and MAb 23, against clathrin heavy chain and with polyclonal antiserum against a conserved region of all mammalian clathrin light chains. In interphase MDCK and CV-1 cells, staining by all three antibodies resulted in the characteristic intracellular punctate vesicular and perinuclear staining pattern. In mitotic cells, all three anti-clathrin antibodies strongly stained the mitotic spindle. Staining of clathrin in the mitotic spindle was colocalized with anti-tubulin staining of microtubular arrays in the spindle. Staining of the mitotic spindle was evident in mitotic cells from prometaphase to telophase and in spindles in mitotic cells released from a thymidine-nocodazole block. In CV-1 cells, staining of clathrin in the mitotic spindle was not affected by brefeldin A. On Western blots, clathrin was detected, but not enriched, in isolated spindles. The immunodetection of clathrin in the mitotic spindle may suggest a novel role for clathrin in mitosis. Alternatively, the recruitment of clathrin to the spindle may suggest a novel regulatory mechanism for localization of clathrin in mitotic cells.
The α-arrestin ARRDC3 mediates ALIX ubiquitination and G protein–coupled receptor lysosomal sorting

The sorting of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) to lysosomes is critical for proper signaling and cellular responses. We previously showed that the adaptor protein ALIX regulates lysosomal degradation of protease-activated receptor-1 (PAR1), a GPCR for thrombin, independent of ubiquitin-binding ESCRTs and receptor ubiquitination. However, the mechanisms that regulate ALIX function during PAR1 lysosomal sorting are not known. Here we show that the mammalian α-arrestin arrestin domain-containing protein-3 (ARRDC3) regulates ALIX function in GPCR sorting via ubiquitination. ARRDC3 colocalizes with ALIX and is required for PAR1 sorting at late endosomes and degradation. Depletion of ARRDC3 by small interfering RNA disrupts ALIX interaction with activated PAR1 and the CHMP4B ESCRT-III subunit, suggesting that ARRDC3 regulates ALIX activity. We found that ARRDC3 is required for ALIX ubiquitination induced by activation of PAR1. A screen of nine mammalian NEDD4-family E3 ubiquitin ligases revealed a critical role for WWP2. WWP2 interacts with ARRDC3 and not ALIX. Depletion of WWP2 inhibited ALIX ubiquitination and blocked ALIX interaction with activated PAR1 and CHMP4B. These findings demonstrate a new role for the α-arrestin ARRDC3 and the E3 ubiquitin ligase WWP2 in regulation of ALIX ubiquitination and lysosomal sorting of GPCRs.
Comparison of Modeling Approaches for Open-Fire Hearth Furnace Heat Transfer

Modeling of heat transfer processes for controls applications requires that the modeler make a set of assumptions that strikes a balance between accuracy and simulation run time. Common points of consideration include choosing the appropriate dimension of the model, the importance of transient effects, numerical and temporal discretization, etc. The results of these decisions directly impact the speed and accuracy of the model. It can be useful for the modeler to build a framework containing a set of models for a given system where each model contains a different set assumptions. This allows for easy comparison of different classes of models and aids in the decision process for selecting the model that best fits the needs of the user.This work takes the modeling of an open-flame hearth furnace as a case study and examines the implications of different modeling simplifications. This scenario is similar to plug-flow reactors (PFRs) and continuous stirred-tank reactors (CSTRs) in that reactions are occurring in a chamber where mass is flowing in to and out of the system. Modeling of these systems focuses on the concentration of the reactants, whereas the hearth furnace model seeks to capture the heat transfer to the work-piece and walls. Numerous models of PRFs and CSTRs exist in literature as well as several open-fire furnace models using Hottel’s zone method. This work builds off of these modeling techniques by testing several types of models for speed and accuracy.Both steady-state and transient operation are considered and each of the different heat transfer phenomena are modeled in varying dimensions. The open-flame environment inside the furnace produces gases that participate in radiative heat transfer for which there are a number of different models. The P1 approximation to the method of spherical harmonics is used, both in three dimensions and a simplification to one dimensional radiation. The flow of gases inside the furnace is considered to be plug flow with a series of burners injecting hot gases along the length of the furnace. Conduction to the walls and work-piece occurs at much longer time scales than convection, i.e. the combustion gases are moving through the furnace much faster than the characteristic thermal response time of the walls and work-pieces (τgas ≪ τwall). This brings the modeler to the question of how to model transient effects at such disparate time scales. A model is posited that is a combination of quasi-steady radiative heat transfer, transient fluid evolution, and lumped transient conduction. This formulation takes advantage of the disparity in time scales to take large steps in time when solving the radiation equation while solving the energy equation at each time step for the internal gas control volumes. This model is then compared on the grounds of speed and accuracy to the more traditional explicit advancement of a consistent time step in both the gas energy balance and radiative transfer solution.Copyright © 2015 by ASME
Edge-disjoint rainbow spanning trees in complete graphs

Let G be an edge-colored copy of K n , where each color appears on at most n / 2 edges (the edge-coloring is not necessarily proper). A rainbow spanning tree is a spanning tree of G where each edge has a different color. Brualdi and Hollingsworth (1996) conjectured that every properly edge-colored K n ( n ź 6 and even) using exactly n - 1 colors has n / 2 edge-disjoint rainbow spanning trees, and they proved there are at least two edge-disjoint rainbow spanning trees. Kaneko etźal. (2003) strengthened the conjecture to include any proper edge-coloring of K n , and they proved there are at least three edge-disjoint rainbow spanning trees. Akbari and Alipour (2007) showed that each K n that is edge-colored such that no color appears more than n / 2 times contains at least two rainbow spanning trees.We prove that if n ź 1 , 000 , 000 , then an edge-colored K n , where each color appears on at most n / 2 edges, contains at least ź n / ( 1000 log n ) ź edge-disjoint rainbow spanning trees.
The Food-borne Pathogenic Bacteria Monitoring Results in Nanping in 2012

OBJECTIVE The purposes of this research are as follows: to analyze the main pollutants and detrimental fautors in food of Nanping. To comprehand the pollution level of various harmful factors. To understand their trends. To determine the distribution and possible sources of hazard factors. To evaluate pollution control as well as the implementation of food safety standards in each section of food production and serving. All the data provide the scientific basis for drafting food safety standards, conducting food safety risk assessment and undertaking effective control strategies in practice. METHODS Foodborne pathogenic bacteria monitoring approaches adopted are based on "food-borne pathogenic bacteria monitoring handbook, Fujian, 2012"; 7 kinds of food-borne pathogenic bacteria detections are conducted to the samples: detection of Salmonella, Escherichia Coli O157: H7, Listeria Monocytogenes, Staphylococcus Aureus, Shigella, Enterobacter Sakazakii and Bacillus Cereus. RESULTS 186 samples are examined for pathogenic bacteria pollution, including cooked meat products, baking food, cooked rice products, fruits and vegetables, food for infants, sauces, and so on; 49 of which are tested positive, accounting for 26.34% of all samples. 56 strains are found positive during a total of 672 tests, accounting for 8.33% of all the tests, including: 3 strains of Listeria Monocytogenes, 5 strains of Enterobacter Sakazakii, 24 strains of Staphylococcus Aureus and 24 strains of Bacillus Cereus. CONCLUSION Nanping foodborne pathogens pollution situation is not optimistic it, should strengthen the supervision on the food processing production and sales of each link.
Tailorable Thermal Properties Through Reactive Blending Using Orthogonal Chemistries and Layer‐by‐Layer Deposition of Poly(1,3,5‐hexahydro‐1,3,5‐triazine) Networks

The ability to tune both the thermal and mechanical properties of poly(1,3,5-hexahydro-1,3,5-triazine)s (PHTs) is critical to meet the increasingly stringent demands of structural materials. To this end, PHTs are modified during the process of vitrification using a reactive blending technique. Two strategies are employed: (i) the incorporation of a monomer or oligomer that contains amino end groups that are integrated into the network via hemiaminal chemistry and (ii) the incorporation of functional monomers bearing reactive end groups capable of self-polymerization, as well as insertion by copolymerization with the PHT-forming reagents to form mixed networks. Both strategies produce homogeneous materials, mitigating any adverse thermal properties of the parent PHT material. Here, a deposition method bringing the PHT technology platform to more diverse, economical and large-scale applications is also introduced. A unique layer-by-layer spray-coating approach of solutions containing 4,4′-oxydianiline (ODA) and multifunctional amines obtained by conjugate addition to acrylates is developed, allowing for the preparation of large-scale PHT-polymer blend films. The ODA–PHT enables high strength and modulus of the final material, while incorporation of acrylates provide an economical approach to polymer blends with tremendous functional group diversity and will allow for recyclability under mild conditions.
Invariant Quantum Mechanical Equations of Motion

One of the last few years’ most important developments in theoretical physics is the recognition that it is useful to extend to complex numbers the definition domain of intrinsically real variables, such as energy or angular momentum. This leads one to review many subjects which were considered to be closed. It should not have surprised me, therefore, when Dr. Salam asked me to report, at this seminar, on equations for elementary particles which are not believed to exist in nature, such as particles with imaginary mass. Even though the equations which describe such particles will play no role in the theory as long as the variables such as energy or angular momentum have physically meaningful values, that is, as long as they are real, they may play a significant role when the definition domain of these variables is extended.
Criminal Justice, Ethics of: Aspects of Human Dignity

Important ethical issues can be identified at many levels of crime control in the modern state, but one central issue is the difficulty of imposing limits on state power in the punishment of criminals. Because criminals are hated, their punishment is desired and more difficult to limit than state power in other areas of governance. The strategic importance of criminal punishment is thus in defining the minimum obligation of state to citizen. For this reason, prisoners' rights are always a necessary element in any human rights program to limit governmental power.
Vitamin D Repletion in Kidney Stone Formers: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Purpose: Vitamin D deficiency is often detected during metabolic evaluation in the nephrolithiasis population. Multiple vitamin D repletion protocols exist, although their differing impact on urinary stone formation risk factors is unclear.Materials and Methods: Patients with a history of calcium stones and vitamin D deficiency (less than 30 ng/ml) were randomized to receive either 1,000 IU daily or 50,000 IU weekly of vitamin D supplementation for 6 weeks. Patients completed a pretreatment and posttreatment serum vitamin D level evaluation and 24-hour urine collections to assess the response and any changes in urine stone formation risk parameters.Results: A total of 21 patients completed the study, including 8 who received 1,000 IU daily and 13 who received 50,000 IU weekly. The 50,000 IU weekly group showed a significant increase in median serum vitamin D levels of 23 ng/ml (135%, p <0.01), while the 1,000 IU daily group showed a nonsignificant median increase of 9 ng/ml (49%, p = 0.12). Post-repletion...
Young children with Down syndrome show normal development of circadian rhythms, but poor sleep efficiency: a cross-sectional study across the first 60 months of life.

Objectives To evaluate sleep consolidation and circadian activity rhythms in infants and toddlers with Down syndrome (DS) under light and socially entrained conditions within a familiar setting. Given previous human and animal data suggesting intact circadian regulation of melatonin across the day and night, it was hypothesized that behavioral indices of circadian rhythmicity would likewise be intact in the sample with DS.
The Emotional Contagion Scale: A Measure of Individual Differences

Three studies (N = 1988) describe the development and validation of the Emotional Contagion (EC) Scale, a 15-item unidimensional measure of susceptibility to others' emotions resulting from afferent feedback generated by mimicry. Study 1 assesses the EC Scale's reliability (Cronbach's α = .90). Study 2 finds susceptibility (a) positively related to reactivity, emotionality, sensitivity to others, social functioning, self-esteem, and more associated with emotional than cognitive modes of empathy, (b) negatively related to alienation, self-assertiveness, and emotional stability and, (c) unrelated to masculinity and approval motivation. Study 3, an experiment, finds that EC Scale scores reliably predict biases in participants' evaluations and are correlated with a measure of responsiveness to afferent feedback and self-reports of emotional experience following exposure to emotional expressions.
EXAMINING FRANK ADAIR JR. AS AN AFRICAN AMERICAN CPA PIONEER: A HISTORICAL NOTE

ABSTRACT In 1932, Frank Adair Jr. achieved his Certified Public Accountant (CPA) status as the sixth African American CPA in the US and only the second in the Deep South. Although his active professional career was brief (5 years), it typifies not only the difficulty experienced by an African American achieving this designation in the Jim Crow South, but also the factors that were necessary for such an achievement to occur in that time period. First, Adair Jr. practiced in a dynamic and vibrant segregated business community. Second, he was educated at a black college. An African American who wanted to stay in the Deep South would have had no other option. Third, he benefitted from a strong professional mentoring relationship that enabled him to forge his career path. Inadvertently, Adair Jr. was omitted from the 1990 NABA report of the first one hundred African American CPAs. This historical note seeks to correct that omission.
Hey network, can you understand me?

In this paper, we introduce Natural Language Processing to network management by leveraging the capabilities of Natural Language Processing tools, such as speech recognition and text parsing, to extract useful information to build network tasks. We propose an intermediate network-agnostic layer that acts as the medium between natural language input (spoken or written) and different network implementations. We have leveraged the programmability that Software Defined Networks (SDN) offers to build a prototype tool that takes natural language text as an input and uses it to build abstract tasks. Such tasks are then passed to a network controller to be performed in real time. To our knowledge, this is the first work that provides such interface between network users (in the form of natural language) and different network systems.
Reflections on the Last 25 Years of the American Otological Society and Thoughts on its Future

Purpose To review contributions of the American Otological Society (AOS) over the most recent quarter century (1993-2018) and to comment on possible future evolution of the field during the quarter century to come. Methods Retrospective review of selected topics from the AOS transactions, distinguished lectureships over the past 25 years, and selective reflection by the authors. Speculation on potential advances of the next quarter century derived from emerging topics in the current literature and foreseeable trends in science and technology are also proffered for consideration (and possible future ridicule). Results Integration of multiple disciplines including bioengineering, medical imaging, genetics, molecular biology, physics, and evidence based medicine have substantially benefitted the practice of otology over the past quarter century. The impact of the contributions of members of the AOS in these developments cannot be over estimated. Conclusions Further scientific advancement will certainly accelerate change in the practice of otologic surgery and medicine over the coming decade in ways that will be marvelous to behold.
Hypervirulent Group A Streptococcus of Genotype emm3 Invades the Vascular System in Pulmonary Infection of Mice

ABSTRACT Natural mutations of the two-component regulatory system CovRS are frequently associated with invasive group A Streptococcus (GAS) isolates and lead to the enhancement of virulence gene expression, innate immune evasion, systemic dissemination, and virulence. How CovRS mutations enhance systemic dissemination is not well understood. A hypervirulent GAS isolate of the emm3 genotype, MGAS315, was characterized using a mouse model of pulmonary infection to understand systemic dissemination. This strain has a G1370T mutation in the sensor kinase covS gene of CovRS. Intratracheal inoculation of MGAS315 led to the lung infection that displayed extensive Gram staining at the alveolar ducts, alveoli, and peribronchovascular and perivascular interstitium. The correction of the covS mutation did not alter the infection at the alveolar ducts and alveoli but prevented GAS invasion of the peribronchovascular and perivascular interstitium. Furthermore, the covS mutation allowed MGAS315 to disrupt and degrade the smooth muscle and endothelial layers of the blood vessels, directly contributing to systemic dissemination. It is concluded that hypervirulent emm3 GAS covS mutants can invade the perivascular interstitium and directly attack the vascular system for systemic dissemination.
An experimental examination of foam stability under pressure for EPB TBM tunneling

Abstract Foam as a soil conditioning agent has been extensively employed in earth pressure balanced (EPB) tunnel boring machines (TBM) to change the mechanical and hydraulic properties of soils for effective excavation. Foam stability is a critical parameter that influences the performance of foam and foam-conditioned soils. This paper examines foam stability under pressure through a novel foam generation – pressure chamber – foam capture testing system. A comprehensive suite of foam experiments was performed to examine the physical phenomenon of foam degradation and time-dependent foam properties under pressure. Testing results suggest that foam liquid loss is not an effective indicator for characterizing foam stability, while foam volume loss is a more appropriate measure of foam stability. Results also reveal that foam liquid drainage is significantly retarded at higher chamber pressure because foam bubbles are smaller and more uniform. Bubble size was not appreciably different in dry and wet foams.
Contributions of metabolic and temporal costs to human gait selection

Humans naturally select several parameters within a gait that correspond with minimizing metabolic cost. Much less is understood about the role of metabolic cost in selecting between gaits. Here, we asked participants to decide between walking or running out and back to different gait specific markers. The distance of the walking marker was adjusted after each decision to identify relative distances where individuals switched gait preferences. We found that neither minimizing solely metabolic energy nor minimizing solely movement time could predict how the group decided between gaits. Of our twenty participants, six behaved in a way that tended towards minimizing metabolic energy, while eight favoured strategies that tended more towards minimizing movement time. The remaining six participants could not be explained by minimizing a single cost. We provide evidence that humans consider not just a single movement cost, but instead a weighted combination of these conflicting costs with their relative contributions varying across participants. Individuals who placed a higher relative value on time ran faster than individuals who placed a higher relative value on metabolic energy. Sensitivity to temporal costs also explained variability in an individual's preferred velocity as a function of increasing running distance. Interestingly, these differences in velocity both within and across participants were absent in walking, possibly due to a steeper metabolic cost of transport curve. We conclude that metabolic cost plays an essential, but not exclusive role in gait decisions.
Age and Regional Dependence of Collagen Crimp in Heart Valves

The hierarchical structure and organization of collagen plays an integral role in the mechanical behavior of heart valve tissues, but with few exceptions the degree of collagen fiber crimp has not been extensively quantified. Given our recent demonstration of age-dependent and region-dependent variations in mechanical behavior of heart valves, this study quantified crimp period and amplitude in all four heart valves as a function of orientation (circumferential vs. radial), age (6 week, 6 month, and 6 year old pigs), and region (mitral anterior leaflet center vs. free edge). Polarized light microscopy of picrosirius red stained sections revealed that collagen crimp was generally consistent between the circumferential and radial directions, although for the pulmonary valve there was a greater crimp period circumferentially than radially. Comparing all valves and orientations showed that the crimp period was greatest circumferentially in the center of the mitral anterior leaflet. With respect to age, crimp period was lowest in the 6 month old aortic valve (matching previously reported patterns of aortic valve leaflet extensibility) and highest in the 6 month old mitral anterior leaflet center. Interestingly, the differences in magnitudes of crimp amplitude mimicked the crimp period data, suggesting a scaling phenomenon in collagen fiber crimping.
Abstract TP118: Dizziness Rule Out Posterior Circulation Stroke

Objective: Dizziness is the 3rd most common major medical symptom reported and accounts for 3-5% of visits across care settings. In the United States, this translates to 10 million visits per year ...
Tailoring properties of polymeric biomedical foams

Abstract: Synthetic polymers are versatile materials that can be processed into biomedical foams with a wide range of mechanical, thermal, and degradation properties. Tailoring of these properties can be achieved by using different polymeric families such as polyesters, polyurethanes, and tyrosine-derived polymers. Final properties also depend on the porous structure achieved. Foaming techniques such as porogen leaching, gas foaming, emulsion templating, and thermal induced phase separation each offer different ways to control pore structure. The current chapter focuses on polymeric biomedical foam formulations based on synthetic polymers with macropores and offers perspectives on future directions in the advancement of polymeric biomedical foam formulations.
Incidence and risk of celiac disease after type 1 diabetes: A population-based cohort study using the health improvement network database.

Objective To determine the incidence of and risk factors for development of celiac disease (CD) in individuals with type 1 diabetes. Methods Cohort study using The Health Improvement Network (THIN), a UK primary care database of >13 million people. Individuals with incident type 1 diabetes diagnosed at 1 to 35 years of age between 1995 and 2015 with no previous diagnosis of CD were included. Cox regression was used to identify risk factors for CD, including age at diabetes diagnosis and sex, while adjusting for year of diagnosis to control for potential rising incidence in CD over time. Results Subjects (n = 9180; 43% female) had a median observation time of 5.1 years (interquartile range 2.0-10.1). CD was diagnosed in 196 (2%) during follow up. Median time to diagnosis was 2.1 years, but 25% were diagnosed more than 5 years after diabetes diagnosis. Incidence (per 10 000 person-years) was greater in females (43.0 [95% confidence interval [CI] 35.2-52.0]) vs males (26.8 [95% CI 21.5-32.9]). In multivariable Cox regression stratified by childhood- vs young adult-onset diabetes, younger age at diabetes diagnosis within childhood (hazard ratio [HR] 0.91 [95% CI 0.88-0.94]) and female sex among the adult-onset diabetes group (HR 3.19 [95% CI 1.39-7.34]) were associated with greater risk of CD. Conclusions As expected, incidence of CD was higher in individuals with childhood-onset diabetes vs those with adult-onset diabetes. However, individuals with diabetes are at risk of developing CD throughout childhood and adulthood, and prolonged screening after diagnosis may be warranted. Prospective studies are needed in order to guide risk-stratified approaches to screening.
3D Microfibrous Scaffolds Selectively Promotes Proliferation and Glial Differentiation of Adult Neural Stem Cells: A Platform to Tune Cellular Behavior in Neural Tissue Engineering

Biomaterials are essential for the development of innovative biomedical and therapeutic applications. Biomaterials-based scaffolds can influence directed cell differentiation to improve cell-based strategies. Using a novel microfluidics approach, poly (e-caprolactone) (PCL), is used to fabricate microfibers with varying diameters (3-40 µm) and topographies (straight and wavy). Multipotent adult rat hippocampal stem/progenitor cells (AHPCs) are cultured on 3D aligned PCL microfibrous scaffolds to investigate their ability to differentiate into neurons, astrocytes, and oligodendrocytes. The results indicate that the PCL microfibers significantly enhance proliferation of the AHPCs compared to control, 2D planar substrates. While the AHPCs maintained their multipotent differentiation capacity when cultured on the PCL scaffolds, there is a significant and dramatic increase in immunolabeling for astrocyte and oligodendrocyte differentiation when compared with growth on planar surfaces. Our results show a 3.5-fold increase in proliferation and 23.4-fold increase in astrocyte differentiation for cells on microfibers. Transplantation of neural stem/progenitor cells within a PCL microfiber scaffold may provide important biological and topographic cues that facilitate the survival, selective differentiation, and integration of transplanted cells to improve therapeutic strategies.
Modeling and Control of a Bio-Inspired Underwater Vessel with Undulating-Fin Propulsion

Undulating-fin propulsion, where an elongated membrane is used to generate thrust, can enhance the mobility and station keeping capabilities of underwater vessels. Fish using this type of propulsion are able to maneuver in multiple directions including forward, backward, rapid reverse, upward, forward-lateral and station-keeping. Despite this potential, the use of undulating fin propulsion to control the six-degree of freedom of an underwater vessel has remained elusive, in part due to the lack of platform that allows studying the dynamics in free-swimming conditions. In this work, we present a self-contained physical model equipped with a bio-inspired fin-based propulsion. The propulsive mechanism is a single undulating fin running along the length of the robot, which controls both forward motion and directional maneuvers. We present a hydrodynamic characterization of the vessel in addition to a modeling framework to estimate forces, torques and motion control. As first step, we focus on the control for surge, sway and yaw.