cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Influences on the removal of tastes and odours by PAC

Geosmin and 2 methylisoborneol (MIB) are earthy/musty odour compounds produced as secondary metabolites by some cyanobacteria and actinomycetes. At levels as low as 5–10 ng l −1 in drinking water they can result in consumer complaints, and consequently their removal from potable water is a priority for many suppliers. In water treatment plants where taste and odour episodes are common, the homogenous surface diffusion model (HSDM) can be used to estimate powdered activated carbon dose requirements under a range of conditions including inlet concentration and plant flow rates (controlling PAC contact time). Water quality, in particular dissolved organic carbon concentration and character, can affect the required doses of PAC, as can the addition of chemicals such as alum and chlorine. There is significant scope for the more cost-effective utilisation of powdered activated carbon for the mitigation of taste and odours, as well as a wider range of other micro-contaminants, using tools such as the HSDM, in conjunction with knowledge of the effects of water quality and water treatment processes.
Teaching Military Geoscience in the Twenty-first Century Classroom: Virtual Field Explorations of the Gettysburg Battlefield

Access to the internet in today s classrooms has opened the door to a variety of new pedagogies that enhance learning in the geosciences while being easily adopted with minimal investment. Web-based virtual tours, explorable gigapixel panoramas, GIS and Google Fusion Tables allow users access to a wealth of information for conducting in-depth investigations and analyses of locations that are impractical to visit due to time or budgetary constraints. Several of these emerging techniques have been combined to bring field investigations of battlefield terrain into the classroom through virtual fieldwork. The Battle of Gettysburg, the largest ever fought in North America, was significantly influenced by the topography and geology of the farmland surrounding the small Pennsylvania town. This makes the battlefield an excellent venue for teaching the impacts of geology and landscapes on military operations. Several Gettysburg-based projects have been developed to introduce concepts of military geoscience to students and the public and integrate virtual fieldwork into the classroom. One virtual tour of the battlefield (https://sites.google.com/site/gettysburggeologyfieldguide/home) utilizes a traditional webpage platform to explore the effects of geology and topography on the fighting, while another (https://sites.google.com/site/gettysburgvirtualfieldwork/home) uses the unique interactive environment of Google Earth, with traverses, annotations, and immersive high-resolution panoramas that give the user a soldier’s-eye view of the terrain. In-depth investigations of the battlefield can be conducted in the classroom with rock samples (both physical samples and 3D scans), topographic maps, explorable gigapixel petromicrographs, and geolocated GigaPan panoramas of the battlefield (www.gigapan.com). Students are provided samples representing the prominent rocks of the Gettysburg area and topographic maps with marked field stops. They orient themselves using Google Earth, make field observations (including locations of outcrops, weathering patterns of rocks, and topography), and identify rocks in outcrop. After compiling their data and creating a geologic map, they investigate how geology and topography affected the strategies of the Union and Confederate armies and the heavy casualties suffered by both sides. By creating interactive environments, these new tools promote learning through experience and exploration rather than memorization.
Kernelized Information-Theoretic Metric Learning for Cancer Diagnosis Using High-Dimensional Molecular Profiling Data

With the advancement of genome-wide monitoring technologies, molecular expression data have become widely used for diagnosing cancer through tumor or blood samples. When mining molecular signature data, the process of comparing samples through an adaptive distance function is fundamental but difficult, as such datasets are normally heterogeneous and high dimensional. In this article, we present kernelized information-theoretic metric learning (KITML) algorithms that optimize a distance function to tackle the cancer diagnosis problem and scale to high dimensionality. By learning a nonlinear transformation in the input space implicitly through kernelization, KITML permits efficient optimization, low storage, and improved learning of distance metric. We propose two novel applications of KITML for diagnosing cancer using high-dimensional molecular profiling data: (1) for sample-level cancer diagnosis, the learned metric is used to improve the performance of k-nearest neighbor classification; and (2) for estimating the severity level or stage of a group of samples, we propose a novel set-based ranking approach to extend KITML. For the sample-level cancer classification task, we have evaluated on 14 cancer gene microarray datasets and compared with eight other state-of-the-art approaches. The results show that our approach achieves the best overall performance for the task of molecular-expression-driven cancer sample diagnosis. For the group-level cancer stage estimation, we test the proposed set-KITML approach using three multi-stage cancer microarray datasets, and correctly estimated the stages of sample groups for all three studies.
Scanning HEPA Filters with Photometers

High-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters and ultra low penetration air (ULPA) filters such as those used in cleanrooms and clean benches are frequently scanned or probed for leaks. Historically, filters were scanned with a light-scattering photometer that measures the light scattered from many particles simultaneously. While particle counting methods have been introduced, the photometer methods are still used in many cases. There has not been a documented basis for the scanning speed when using photometers. The photometer response time and the time that the probe is over a leak affects the magnitude of the meter response. This paper sets forth a model for the photometer response characteristics. Photometer response to a leak while scanning is modeled as a simple exponential process. The model is verified with experimental data. Time constants for the experimental system were determined. The effect of the response time on the ability to detect leaks is discussed. Methods to compenstate for the loss o...
Abstract 428: Progression Patterns of Carotid Atherosclerotic Plaques with and Without Intraplaque Hemorrhage Monitored for 6 Months: A Multicenter Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study

Background: Carotid magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is emerging as an effective tool for monitoring plaque progression noninvasively. However, data from multi-center studies are scarce. Intraplaque hemorrhage (IPH) has been shown to promote plaque growth. In this multi-center study over 6 months, we sought to study plaque progression in subjects with and without IPH. Methods: As the placebo arm of a multi-center clinical trial, 59 subjects with 16-79% carotid stenosis by ultrasound and a lipid core (LC) on baseline MRI completed a follow-up MRI at the end of a 6-month period. Thirty-nine (66.1%) were on concurrent rosuvastatin therapy. Lumen, wall and LC volumes, and IPH presence were measured on both scans blinded to time sequence at a core lab. Plaque progression was calculated as annualized changes within the common coverage between scans using the carotid bifurcation as a landmark. Results: IPH was present on 14 slices from 3 (5.1%) subjects at baseline. Subjects without IPH (n=56) showed a significant reduction in LC volume (p=0.031), a trend towards reduction in wall volume (p=0.215) and no apparent change in lumen volume (p=0.910). Although all subjects with IPH were on rosuvastatin during the study period, compared to subjects without IPH, they had increased LC (62.9±46.2 mm3/year vs. -8.8±29.9 mm3/year, p Conclusion: This multi-center study over 6 months demonstrated significant regression in LC volume in plaques without IPH. By contrast, plaques with IPH may be poorly controlled despite statin therapy.
Making Bibliographic Researchers More Efficient: Tools for Organizing and Downloading PDFs, Part 1: iCyte, Mendeley Desktop, Papers, PDF Stacks, PubGet PaperPlane, WizFolio, and Zotero

Researcher-writers need integrated systems to help them increase productivity. These systems should enhance the intellectual aspects of writing, such as analysis and synthesis of existing research, while lessening the burden of more routine but still necessary duties, such as bibliographic editing. Although a robust, fully integrated system for researcher-writer support does not exist, new resources are moving closer to that goal. Third-party programs that connect bibliographic search results to full-text PDFs of cited articles can save time and effort and result in discoveries that may not have been obvious using existing approaches and processes. Questions considered in this column are: What types of programs exist? What are their purposes? How do these programs operate? Do they always behave as advertised? How do they compare? Part 1 of this exploration, published here, covers iCyte®, Mendeley™, Papers, PDF Stacks, PubGet PaperPlane™, WizFolio, and Zotero™. Part 2 in the next issue will cover a robust ...
Clinical and Genetic Predictors of Delayed Remission After Multiple Levels of Antidepressant Treatment: Toward Early Identification of Depressed Individuals for Advanced Care Options.

OBJECTIVE To identify clinical and genetic characteristics that can be used to recognize depressed patients who are likely to respond quickly versus those who will have a more delayed response following multiple treatment trials. METHODS The data used were obtained from the National Institute of Mental Health-sponsored Sequenced Treatment Alternatives to Relieve Depression (STAR*D) study, which was conducted between July 2001 and September 2006. Of the 4,041 treatment-naive participants in the original study, 1,953 with DNA samples were included. Major depressive disorder (DSM-IV criteria) was defined as baseline score > 14 on the 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale. Time to remission was defined from the entry point to when a score ≤ 5 on the Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology, Clinician Rating was achieved, irrespective of the type or number of treatments received. A Kaplan-Meier estimator was used for data description, proportional hazard regression for model building, and logistic regression for measures of predictive accuracy. RESULTS The overall rate of remission across all levels of treatment was 65.6%, and the overall median (interquartile range) of time to remission was 11.4 (6.0-17.9) weeks. The predictors of delayed remission included unemployment (P = .004), severe medical comorbidity (P < .0001), severe baseline depression (P < .0001), more than 4 dysthymic symptoms (P = .005), more than 9 posttraumatic stress symptoms (P = .005), and serotonin receptor 1A (P = .006) and cytochrome P450 2D6 (P = .002 for C/T and P = .0004 for T/T) genetic variants. The final model had good predictive measures of accuracy of area under the curve (70%) and sensitivity (88%). CONCLUSIONS The results offer clinical tools for clinicians to identify depressed individuals who are likely to have delayed remission with multiple antidepressant treatments and therefore might be candidates for advanced care options.
What is the accuracy of multi-parametric magnetic resonance imaging in predicting adverse pathology in patients undergoing radical prostatectomy?

139Background: Few studies have examined the accuracy of preoperative multi-parametric magnetic resonance imaging (MP-MRI) in predicting adverse pathological features in patients undergoing radical prostatectomy (RP) for localized prostate cancer (PCa). Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) of preoperative MP-MRI for adverse pathologic features [extracapsular extension (ECE), seminal vesicle invasion (SVI), lymph node involvement (LNI) and high Gleason score) on postoperative pathologic staging after RP in 30 patients with localized PCa . Results: The median age and preoperative PSA were 62.5 years and 8.5 ng/mL, respectively.17 patients had ECE, 5 had SVI, 5 had LNI, and 15 had high risk Gleason score (4+3, tertiary pattern 5, 4+4 or higher). The sensitivity, specificity, PPV and NPV of MP-MRI for ECE was 64.71% (95%CI 38.33 - 65.79), 92.31% (95% CI 63.97 - 99.81), 91.67% (95% CI 61.52 - 99.79), and 66.67% (9...
The effect of cigarette smoking on the clinical and serological phenotypes of polymyositis and dermatomyositis.

Abstract Objective Cigarette smoking is associated with immune-mediated disorders. We explored the contribution of smoking to polymyositis (PM) and dermatomyositis (DM) phenotypes and attempted to determine whether cigarette smoking effects differ by race and genotype. Methods Associations of tobacco smoking with disease features, autoantibodies, HLA types, and race were evaluated using multiple logistic regressions in 465 patients. Results Caucasian ever-smokers (n = 140) were more likely to have PM (adjusted OR = 2.24, 95% CI: 1.41\x963.57), anti-synthetase (adjusted OR = 1.93, 95% CI: 1.12\x963.34) and anti-Jo-1 autoantibodies (adjusted OR = 1.94, 95% CI: 1.08\x963.46) and less likely to have anti-p155/140 autoantibodies (adjusted OR = 0.36, 95% CI: 0.14\x960.92). In Caucasians, ever-smokers had a greater interstitial lung disease (ILD) frequency than never-smokers, while in African-Americans this relationship was inverted, but neither trend reached statistical significance. Pack-years of cigarette smoking showed significant positive associations with PM (adjusted OR = 1.02, 95% CI: 1.002\x961.04) and ILD (adjusted OR = 1.02, 95% CI: 1.001\x961.03) and was inversely associated with anti-p155/140 autoantibodies (adjusted OR = 0.93, 95% CI: 0.87\x960.99) in Caucasians. Caucasian heavy smokers (=20 pack-years) were more likely to have PM (adjusted OR = 2.52, 95% CI: 1.25\x965.09), ILD (adjusted OR = 2.48, 95% CI: 1.23\x965.00) and anti-Jo-1 autoantibodies (adjusted OR = 2.65, 95% CI: 1.16\x966.08) than never-smokers. In Caucasians, compared to never-smokers without HLA-DRB1*03:01 allele, ever-smokers with HLA-DRB1*03:01 allele had the highest odds of PM, ILD, ASA, and anti-Jo-1 autoantibodies. Risks for those with only one of these two factors were intermediate. An inverse pattern was observed regarding anti-p155/140 autoantibodies. Conclusion Tobacco smoking was associated with clinical and autoantibody phenotypes in Caucasians. Our findings also suggest possible interactions among HLA-DRB1*03:01 and smoking on the risk of PM and ILD, as well as, anti-synthetase, anti-Jo-1, and anti-p155/140 autoantibodies in Caucasians.
Geriatric Trauma Book: Skin

There are a number of physiological changes that occur with aging that make the older adult more susceptible to traumatic wounds, as well as pressure ulcers following a traumatic injury. Nursing care of wounds in the older adult trauma patient should include control of comorbidities, particularly those that may inhibit wound healing. Additional risk factors for the older adult that can impair the wound-healing process include dehydration, malnutrition, unresolved pressure/shear and friction, excessive skin moisture, pruritus and dry skin, increased levels of wound exudate, and inappropriate management of wound exudate [1].
The X-claim argument against religious belief offers nothing new

Stephen Law has recently offered an argument against the rationality of certain religious beliefs that he calls the X-claim argument against religious beliefs (Law in Relig Stud, 2017, https://doi.org/10.1017/s0034412526000330 ). The argument purports to show that it is irrational to believe in the existence of extraordinary beings associated with religions. However, the X-claim argument is beset by certain ambiguities that, once resolved, leave the argument undifferentiated from two other common objections to the rationality of religious belief: the objection from religious diversity and the objection from unreliable sources. And though the latter pose serious obstacles to the rationality of religious belief, the X-claim argument adds no further difficulty.
The global impact of soil erosion on productivity. II. Effects on crop yields and production over time

Abstract Soil is one of the most important natural resources and a major factor in global food production. Soil erosion is widely considered the most serious form of soil degradation, posing a significant threat to world's food production capacity and global food security. In this report, we combine the estimates of absolute and relative yield declines per unit of soil erosion from the previous report with estimates, by soil order, of the extent of water-induced erosion, crop production areas and crop yields within a GIS. Analysis of six crops (maize, millet, potatoes, sorghum, soybeans and wheat) generates production loss estimates that vary across crops, soils, and regions but average 0.3%yr −1 at the global level, assuming that farmers' practices do not change. These losses correspond to an estimated economic value of $523.1 million yr −1 . Reducing production losses by limiting soil erosion would, therefore, go a long way to attain food security, especially in the developing countries of the tropics and subtropics.
Developing a Graduate Program in Health Advocacy

In the past decade, over 1400 hospitals in the United States have instituted health advocacy programs in response to the growing awareness that our complex health care systems frequently fail to meet the needs of patients. With doctors, nurses, and administrators already overburdened with a multitude of medical responsibilities, patients increasingly find themselves treated with a brisk impersonality that can be both confusing and frightening. The demand for a new kind of health worker, the health advocate (a generic term for a variety of positions, for example, patient representative) represents a nationwide effort to resolve this problem and to improve the quality and delivery of health care services.
General Principles of Pharmacokinetics

A number of general pharmacokinetic principles and properties apply to all drugs; these include absorption, distribution, metabolism, elimination, half-life and steady-state concentration, and linear versus nonlinear pharmacokinetics. Factors that can affect the pharmacokinetics of a drug include protein binding, cardiac function and hepatic arterial blood flow, hepatic integrity, renal factors, aging, disease, and gender. An understanding of basic pharmacokinetic principles provides a background for understanding the pharmacokinetic properties of the major classes of antidepressants. The chapter reviews the absorption, distribution, metabolism and elimination, half-life, linear versus nonlinear pharmacokinetics, and pharmacokinetically mediated drug-drug interactions associated with each of the following classes of antidepressants: tricyclics, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, bupropion, serotonin-norepinephrine-specific reuptake inhibitors (venlafaxine and duloxetine), phenylpiperazine agents (trazodone and nefazodone), monoamine oxidase inhibitors, and mirtazapine.
Improved very high cycle bending fatigue behavior of Ni microbeams with Au coatings

Abstract This work investigated the effect of an 850-nm-thick electroplated Au coating on the very high cycle bending fatigue behavior of electroplated Ni microbeams tested under resonance in air at high frequencies (∼9 kHz). The S N curves show longer fatigue lives for the coated microbeams by at least a factor of 5 compared to the uncoated ones. This beneficial effect is demonstrated to be related to the delay in oxygen-assisted void formation, and therefore in void-assisted fatigue crack nucleation and growth in Ni. The improvement in fatigue life is limited by the fatigue degradation of the Au coating, which is also controlled by the formation of nanosized voids. Once a fatigue crack in the coating reaches the interface, delamination occurs, leading to exposure of the underlying Ni to air and faster, “uncoated-like”, fatigue degradation thereafter. This study highlights that thin, noble metal coatings can significantly improve the fatigue lives of metallic microbeams whose very high cycle fatigue behavior is sensitive to the environment and controlled by void formation.
Transborder identities, bias, and third-party conflict management:

Which third parties are more likely to manage interstate conflicts? Once they do, what kind of conflict management methods do they use? I argue that ethnic, language, and/or religious ties between ...
Multiscale modeling of glioblastoma.

As reviewed in the Editorial “ Targeting glioblastoma stem- cells: a recurrent challenge in neuro-oncology ” (1), we recently developed a 3D mathematical model of glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) progression and response to therapy (2). The development of the model necessarily required assumptions to be made about which key biological processes to incorporate and which to exclude. We aimed to develop a model that extensively defined the main features of GBM, which, as described in the Editorial, include invasiveness, intense proliferation, necrosis and neovascularization, as well as the crosstalk among GBM cells and cells in the microenvironment, and to use this model to test the effectiveness of different anti-GBM treatment strategies available in the clinical practice.
Validation of a 5-item tool to measure patient assessment of clinician compassion in the emergency department

To test if the 5-item compassion measure (a tool previously validated in the outpatient setting to measure patient assessment of clinician compassion) is a valid and reliable tool to quantify a distinct construct (i.e. clinical compassion) among patients evaluated in the emergency department (ED). Cross-sectional study conducted in three academic emergency departments in the U.S. between November 2018 and April 2019. We enrolled adult patients who were evaluated in the EDs of the participating institutions and administered the 5-item compassion measure after completion of care in the ED. Validity testing was performed using confirmatory factor analysis. Cronbach’s alpha was used to test reliability. Convergent validity with patient assessment of overall satisfaction questions was tested using Spearman correlation coefficients and we tested if the 5-item compassion measure assessed a construct distinct from overall patient satisfaction using confirmatory factor analysis. We analyzed 866 patient responses. Confirmatory factor analysis found all five items loaded well on a single construct and our model was found to have good fit. Reliability was excellent (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.93) among the entire cohort. These results remained consistent on sub-analyses stratified by individual institutions. The 5-item compassion measure had moderate correlation with overall patient satisfaction (r = 0.66) and patient recommendation of the ED to friends and family (r = 0.57), but reflected a patient experience domain (i.e. compassionate care) distinctly different from patient satisfaction. The 5-item compassion measure is a valid and reliable tool to measure patient assessment of clinical compassion in the ED.
Can Memantine Improve Catatonia and Co-occurring Cognitive Dysfunction? A Case Report and Brief Literature Review.

Abstract Background In addition to the motor and behavioral symptoms of catatonia, an emerging literature describes co-occurring cognitive dysfunction with catatonia. Memantine is an NMDA receptor antagonist used for some neurocognitive disorders and off-label for catatonia. Objective The objective of this case report is to demonstrate improvement of catatonic symptoms and co-occurring cognitive dysfunction, measured with serial MOCA testing after the administration of memantine. A literature review was also completed examining the effects of memantine on catatonia and co-occurring cognitive dysfunction. Methods We describe the case of a 66 year old female with catatonia who was prescribed memantine. Her cognition was assessed serially utilizing the Montreal Cognitive Assessment. Ten case reports and 3 case series were reviewed examining the treatment effects of memantine on catatonia and co-occurring cognitive dysfunction. Conclusion This case report suggests improvement of both catatonic symptoms and co-occurring cognitive dysfunction with memantine.
A test of the interpersonal theory of suicide in a large, representative, retrospective and prospective study: Results from the Army Study to Assess Risk and Resilience in Servicemembers (Army STARRS)

Abstract The interpersonal theory of suicide hypothesizes that perceived burdensomeness, thwarted belongingness, and hopelessness lead to active suicidal thoughts and individuals with active suicidal thoughts and elevated capability for suicide are most likely to attempt suicide. We retrospectively and prospectively tested this theory in a large sample of 7677 U.S. Army soldiers followed post-deployment for up to nine months. The interaction of perceived burdensomeness and hopelessness (OR = 2.59) was significantly associated with lifetime suicidal thoughts; however, the interactions of thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness and of thwarted belongingness and hopelessness were not. Consistent with the theory, capability for suicide prospectively predicted suicide attempts during and following deployment (OR = 1.22); however, among soldiers reporting lifetime suicidal thoughts, capability did not predict attempts, only perceived burdensomeness did (OR = 1.36). Results supported some, but not all, theory hypotheses, suggesting that additional constructs may be needed to better identify the psychological factors that lead soldiers to attempt suicide.
Surgical versus Nonsurgical Management of Postmastectomy Lymphedema: A Prospective Quality of Life Investigation.

Background Postmastectomy secondary lymphedema can cause substantial morbidity. However, few studies have investigated longitudinal quality of life (QoL) outcomes in patients with postmastectomy lymphedema, especially with regard to surgical versus nonoperative management. This study prospectively investigated QoL in surgically versus nonsurgically managed patients with postmastectomy upper extremity lymphedema. Methods This was a longitudinal cohort study of breast cancer-related lymphedema patients at a single institution, between February 2017 and January 2020. Lymphedema Quality of Life Instrument (LyQLI) and RAND-36 QoL instrument were used. Mann–Whitney U and Fisher's exact tests were used for descriptive statistics. Wilcoxon's signed-rank testing and linear modeling were used to analyze longitudinal changes in QoL. Results Thirty-two lymphedema patients were recruited to the study (20 surgical and 12 nonsurgical). Surgical and nonsurgical cohorts did not significantly differ in clinical/demographic characteristics or baseline QoL scores, but at the 12-month time point surgical patients had significantly greater LyQLI overall health scores than nonsurgical patients (79.3 vs. 58.3, p = 0.02), as well as higher composite RAND-36 physical (68.5 vs. 38.3, p = 0.04), and mental (77.0 vs. 52.7, p = 0.02) scores. Furthermore, LyQLI overall health scores significantly improved over time in surgical patients (60.0 at baseline vs. 79.3 at 12 months, p = 0.04). Besides surgical treatment, race, and age were also found to significantly impact QoL on multivariable analysis. Conclusion Our results suggest that when compared with nonoperative management, surgery improved QoL for chronic, secondary upper extremity lymphedema patients within 12-month postoperatively. Our results also suggested that insurance status may have influenced decisions to undergo lymphedema surgery. Further study is needed to investigate the various sociodemographic factors that were also found to impact QoL outcomes in these lymphedema patients.
Sculpting Optical Properties of Thin Film IR Filters through Nanocrystal Synthesis and Additive, Solution Processing

Plasmonic band-stop filters with tunable optical absorbance in the near- and mid-IR are important for wireless communications, bioimaging, and filtering applications. However, their design is const...
Dynamic Transfer Learning from Physics-Based Simulated SAR Imagery for Automatic Target Recognition

In this paper, we present a two-step deep learning technique in support of DDDAS for achievement of robust ATR via transfer learning using simulated SAR imagery. The first Deep Learning (DL) model performs noise suppression of input SAR images via a Multi-resolution Stacked Denoising Autoencoder (MSDAE) architecture. The second DL model includes a Multi-output Convolutional Neural Network (M-CNN) architecture suitable for multi-feature classification of ATR pertaining to the DDDAS paradigm. In this approach, we train each DL model independently, then, streamline this process as a standalone deep learning ATR classifier. Primarily, we employed the IRIS Electromagnetic (IRIS-EM) modeling and simulation system to systematically generate our own multi-look large-scale simulated SAR images of multi-platform (i.e., ground, aerial, and marine) vehicles. To improve situational awareness of a DDDAS with respect to ATR, we devised dynamic transfer learnings which employ a step-wise retraining inspired by the observational statistical sampling technique. In this paper, we demonstrate the efficiency and effectiveness of the proposed approach in performing multi-feature ATR of test target vehicles applicable to DDDAS. Lastly, we discuss our classification results using a streamlined denoising and classification system and justify its implication for the DL-based DDDAS.
Paraneoplastic Neurologic Symptoms in a Pediatric Patient with Hodgkin Lymphoma.

Neurological paraneoplastic syndromes are exceedingly rare, and often difficult to recognize clinically. Paraneoplastic achalasia is a condition characterized by new-onset dysphagia that is unrelat...
Prospective validation of the Kaiser Permanente prostate cancer risk calculator in a contemporary, racially diverse, referral population

Abstract Purpose To prospectively validate a new prostate cancer risk calculator in a racially diverse population. Materials and Methods We recently developed, internally validated and published the Kaiser Permanente Prostate Cancer Risk Calculator. This study is a prospective validation of the calculator in a separate, referral population over a 21-month period. All patients were tested with a uniform PSA assay and a standardized systematic, ultrasound-guided biopsy scheme. We report on 3 calculator models: Model 1 included age, race, PSA, prior biopsy status, body mass index, and family history of prostate cancer; Model 2 added digital rectal exam to Model 1 variables; Model 3 added prostate volume to Model 2 variables. We considered three outcomes: high-grade disease (Gleason score ≥7), low-grade disease (Gleason score=6), and no cancer. Predictive discrimination and calibration were calculated. How each model might alter biopsy frequency and outcomes at various thresholds of risk was assessed. We compared the performance of our calculator with two other calculators. Results In 4178 patients (16.2% Asian, 11.3% African American, 13.5% Hispanic), cancer was found in 53%; 62% were Gleason score ≥7. Using a high-grade risk threshold for biopsy of ≥10%, Model 2 predictions would result in 9% of men avoiding a biopsy, while only missing 2% of high-grade cancers. At the same threshold, Model 3 predictions would result in 26% of men avoiding a biopsy, while only missing 5% of high-grade cancers. The c-statistics for Models 1, 2, and 3 to predict high-grade disease vs. low-grade or no cancer were 0.76, 0.79 and 0.85, respectively. The c-statistics for Models 1, 2, and 3 to predict any prostate cancer vs. no cancer were 0.70, 0.72 and 0.80, respectively. All models were well calibrated for all outcomes. Our Model 3 calculator had superior discrimination for high grade disease (c-statistic=0.85, 0.84-0.86) and any cancer (0.80, 0.79-0.82) compared to the PBCG calculator [(0.79, 0.78-0.80); 0.72 (0.70-0.73)] and the PCPT calculator [(0.75, 0.74-0.77); 0.69 (0.67-0.70)], respectively. In the high-grade cancer predicted risk range of 0-30%, our Model 2 was better calibrated than the PCPT and PBCG calculators. Conclusions This validation of our calculator showed excellent performance characteristics.
A mitochondrial long-chain fatty acid oxidation defect leads to uncharged tRNA accumulation and activation of the integrated stress response in the mouse heart

The heart relies mainly on mitochondrial fatty acid β-oxidation (FAO) for its high energy requirements. Cardiomyopathy and arrhythmias can be severe complications in patients with inherited defects in mitochondrial long-chain FAO, reinforcing the importance of FAO for cardiac health. However, the pathophysiological mechanisms that underlie the cardiac abnormalities in long-chain FAO disorders remain largely unknown. Here, we investigated the cardiac transcriptional adaptations to the FAO defect in the long-chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase (LCAD) knockout (KO) mouse. We found a prominent activation of the integrated stress response (ISR) mediated by the eIF2α/ATF4 axis in both fed and fasted states, accompanied by a reduction in cardiac protein synthesis during a short period of food withdrawal. Notably, we found an accumulation of uncharged tRNAs in LCAD KO hearts, consistent with a reduced availability of cardiac amino acids, in particular, glutamine. We replicated the activation of the cardiac ISR in hearts of mice with a muscle-specific deletion of carnitine palmitoyltransferase 2 deletion (Cpt2M-/-). Our results show that perturbations in amino acid metabolism caused by long-chain FAO deficiency impact cardiac metabolic signaling, in particular the ISR, and may play a role in the associated cardiac pathology
Breast cancers observed in transplant patients in a single institution.

Abstract Objective Document occurrence of breast cancer in females after liver, kidney, or pancreas transplantation seen at a tertiary medical center. Methods Medical records of adult female patients with liver, kidney, or pancreas transplants from 1/1/1995 to 4/4/2014 were retrospectively reviewed. Patients with a history of breast cancer, no mammogram post-transplant, or no research authorization were excluded. Mammogram findings and pathology results were reviewed and recorded. Cancer rates could not be measured in patients followed up outside the institution. Descriptive statistics summarized the cohort. Occurrence rates were estimated using Poisson regression. Results 1095 women were included and 33 were diagnosed with breast cancer post-transplant. Median age at diagnosis was 58 years. Average interval from transplant to cancer diagnosis was 82.6 months. Observed occurrence of invasive and in-situ breast cancer (reported as per 100,000 person-years [95% confidence interval]) was 353 [243–496]. Liver transplant patients showed the lowest rate (181 [95% CI 73–372]), vs. kidney (476 [305–708]) or pancreas (467 [57–1688]). Patients with the highest breast density showed increased occurrence despite younger age (1001 [367–2178]) compared to those with lower breast density (range 239 [109–454] to 372 [186–666]). Conclusions Female patients after organ transplant experienced increased breast cancer occurrence in this observational study. Those who developed breast cancer also had increased breast density. The findings underscore the importance of breast cancer screening in this population.
Practices in Social Ecological Research: Interdisciplinary Collaboration in ‘Adaptive Doing’.: by Andrea Rawluk, Ruth Beilin, Helena Bender, & Rebecca Ford. Palgrave Macmillan, 2020. 225 pp., $59.99, ISBN 978-3-030-31188-9.

Collaborative research among social and ecological scholars is essential for addressing critical problems arising from social–ecological interaction. Interdisciplinary research, however, introduces...
Bilirubin. Quod Erat Faciendum

In current times, the complete proof of structure of a natural product may take weeks to months, less often days, occasionally a year. Yet, before the advent of modern organic spectroscopy techniques and powerful isolation-purifi cation methods, structure proof tended to consume years, if not decades.
α-Keto Acid Dehydrogenase Complexes XII. EFFECTS OF ACETYLATION ON THE ACTIVITY AND STRUCTURE OF THE DIHYDROLIPOYL TRANSACETYLASE OF ESCHERICHIA COLI

Dihydrolipoyl transacetylase, one of the three enzymes comprising the Escherichia coli pyruvate dehydrogenase complex, consists of 24 identical polypeptide chains that are linked by noncovalent bonds. There appear to be 3 tyrosyl residues per chain of molecular weight about 40,000. Treatment of the transacetylase with increasing amounts of N-acetylimidazole resulted in gradual loss of enzymatic activity and concomitant O-acetylation of tyrosyl residues. This treatment also caused the enzyme to dissociate into subunits. The partially inactivated transacetylase was separated into two classes of subunits, with sedimentation coefficients of 4 to 7 S and 11 to 15 S, by gel filtration and by sucrose density gradient centrifugation. The former class of subunits contained a species with a molecular weight of about 120,000. Both classes of subunits exhibited approximately the same specific activity. It appears that inactivation and dissociation of the transacetylase are parallel, rather than sequential, phenomena. The various subunits retained the capacity to combine with pyruvate dehydrogenase and dihydrolipoyl dehydrogenase, forming complexes capable of catalyzing the oxidation of pyruvate to acetyl coenzyme A. The smallest functional unit had a molecular weight of about 500,000.
Effects of Direct Load Control and Residential PV System on Demand Response and Its Cost Benefit Analysis

This paper presents the effect of direct load control and residential PV system during peak demand events. Load was controlled via scheduling HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioner) shut off cycle and penetrating PV at residential level. Cost benefit analysis were performed to evaluate the profitability of residential PV investment and direct load control program. These results will help guide utilities that are using demand response for peak reduction, and should help increase consumer participation in such programs.
Approaches to Amyloid Therapies for the Treatment of Alzheimer's Disease

Recognized as the most common of the neurodegenerative disorders, Alzheimer's disease (AD) affects greater than 18 million people worldwide and is predicted to become the largest socioeconomic burden of the twenty-first century. The underlying mechanism of Alzheimer's disease is as yet unknown, but the growing body of pathophysiologic evidence is beginning to point to two main causes, the formation of β-amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles. This review will cover approaches to disease modification that are based on the amyloid hypothesis; that being, the prevention of the accumulation, aggregation, and deposition of β-amyloid peptide (Aβ) monomers, leading first to multiple oligomeric species and then to fibrils and ultimately senile plaques, is the center of focus for an approach to disease modification. There is a wealth of evidence to implicate this peptide and its subsequent aggregation in the etiology of the disease and approaches, both small molecule and biopharmaceutical, to prevent its accumulation have been the subject of much research. The vast majority of this research over the last decade has been, and continues to be, focused on these disease-modifying, antiamyloidogenic approaches to AD. It is this subject, and the various approaches, past and present to amelioration of AD through the various agents being explored, that will be the focus of this chapter. Keywords: active immunization; Alzheimer's disease; amyloid hypothesis; amyloid precursor protein; disease modifying treatments; fibrillization inhibitors; neurodegeneration; passive immunization; secretase
The Philosophy of African Medical Practice

The philosophy of African medical practice is rooted in the African world view. Those locating the cause and cure of sickness in traditional practice ask about the ultimate who, rather than what. The answers given are in terms of the cosmological beliefs of the people. I shall deal with the philosophical issues in African medicine with particular reference to causes and cures of sickness in the traditional practice, the human person in this practice, the Christian, the colonial, and modern impact on this view, and a look towards the future. In doing this, I shall show that African traditional medical practice has important contributions to make in technologically oriented medicine.
The computer defense immune system: current and future research in intrusion detection

The Computer Defense Immune System is an artificial immune system for detecting computer viruses and network intrusions. This paper discusses the system architecture, presents current research and results in enhancing the system, and discusses planned future research topics that will be used to improve the system's capabilities.
Degenerate Fermi Gas of 87 Sr

We report quantum degeneracy in a gas of ultracold fermionic (87)Sr atoms. By evaporatively cooling a mixture of spin states in an optical dipole trap for 10.5 s, we obtain samples well into the degenerate regime with T/T(F)=0.26(-0.06)(+0.05). The main signature of degeneracy is a change in the momentum distribution as measured by time-of-flight imaging, and we also observe a decrease in evaporation efficiency below T/T(F) ∼0.5.
Environmental factors affecting human development, before and after birth.

The relationship of socioeconomic factors to pregnancy experience and later neuropsychiatric functioning was investigated by a series of retrospective and anterospective epidemiologic studies. The studies demonstrated an increased amount of brain damage in the lower socioeconomic strata, where a higher incidence of complications of pregnancy and a greater number of babies with low birth weights are found. In 992 infants examined at 40 weeks of age, pregnancy experience, birth weight and later physical status were the only major factors which could explain group differences in developmental quotients. The studies further indicated that the relatively small amount of variability found in infancy could be explained largely by the presence of damage to the central nervous system, and supported the view that at this period of life social factors affect the psychologic level of integration primarily through biologic mechanisms. Later, during the preschool period, the direct influence of the sociocultural forces on the psychologic performance becomes manifest.
Selective manipulation of spinal microglia by chemogenetics: Implications for allodynia and inflammatory signaling

The absence of selective pharmacological tools is a major barrier to the in vivo study of microglia. To address this issue, we developed a Gq- and Gi-coupled Designer Receptor Exclusively Activated by a Designer Drug (DREADD) to enable selective stimulation or inhibition of microglia, respectively. DREADDs under a CD68 (microglia/macrophage) promoter were intrathecally transfected via an AAV9 vector. Naive rats intrathecally transfected with Gq (stimulatory) DREADDs exhibited significant allodynia following intrathecal administration of the DREADD-selective ligand clozapine-N-oxide (CNO), which was abolished by intrathecal IL-1ra. Chronic constriction injury-induced allodynia was attenuated by intrathecal CNO in rats intrathecally transfected with Gi (inhibitory) DREADDs. To explore mechanisms, BV2 cells were stably transfected with Gq or Gi DREADDs in vitro. CNO treatment induced pro-inflammatory mediator production per se from cells expressing Gq-DREADDs, and inhibited lipopolysaccharide-induced pro-inflammatory mediator production from cells expressing Gi-DREADDs. These studies are the first to manipulate microglia using DREADDs, which allow the role of glia in pain to be conclusively demonstrated, unconfounded by neuronal off-target effects that exist for all other glial inhibitors. Hence, these studies are the first to conclusively demonstrate that in vivo stimulation of resident spinal microglia in intact spinal cord is (a) sufficient for allodynia, and (b) necessary for allodynia induced by peripheral nerve injury. DREADDs are a unique tool to selectively explore the physiological and pathological role of microglia in vivo.
Coarse‐graining of multiscale crack propagation

A method for coarse graining of microcrack growth to the macroscale through the multiscale aggregating discontinuity (MAD) method is further developed. Three new features are: (1) methods for treating nucleating cracks, (2) the linking of the micro unit cell with the macroelement by the hourglass mode, and (3) methods for recovering macrocracks with variable crack opening. Unlike in the original MAD method, ellipticity is not retained at the macroscale in the bulk material, but we show that the element stiffness of the bulk material is positive definite. Several examples with comparisons with direct numerical simulations are given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the method. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The secret Vietnam War : the United States Air Force in Thailand, 1961-1975

Details the hardware, targets, campaigns, history, and politics of the Vietnam War as it was pursued from seven foreign-owned bases in Thailand, focusing on the contributions of individual participants from airmen to generals, and examining the plight of POWs who flew from Thai bases. Draws on previ
VLSI implementation of a wide band, high dynamic range digital drop receiver

The authors discuss the VLSI implementation of a wideband high-dynamic-range digital drop receiver (DDR) in a three-chip set. The chip set is composed of one numerically controlled oscillator/modulator (NCOM) followed by two decimating digital filters (DDFs). A 16 bit real or 32 bit complex sampled data sequence is input into the NCOM at up to 33 megasamples per second. The NCOM performs a tunable complex down-conversion with greater than 90 dB of spurious-free dynamic range and 0.007 Hz accuracy. The real and imaginary output of the NCOM are each sent to a DDF where they are low-pass-filtered with a stop-band attenuation of up to 120 dB and decimated by up to a factor of 16384. The filter characteristics are fully programmable. >
Heat transfer in shape memory alloy thin films

The thermal response of periodic, shape memory alloy (SMA) island structures is addressed in this paper. Incorporated into the thermal modeling are several ingredients that are encountered at length scales typical to micron-sized thin films: (i) the microstructure may be heterogeneous, e.g., there may be a mix of an amorphous layer, a non-transforming crystalline layer and a crystalline layer that does undergo phase transformation; (ii) given the typical large surface-to-volume ratios and the attendant thermal losses to the environment, the strength of the heat source as well as its duration during a martensite to austenite transformation become very important. These issues, especially the latter, are investigated for a range of periodic structures with different spacings including the limiting structures of vanishing inter-island spacing on the one hand (infinitely extended thin film) and infinite inter-island spacing on the other (isolated islands). It is seen that a reduced inter-island spacing results in lower heat losses to the substrate, that a heterogeneous microstructure has a minimal effect on the thermal field, and that there appears to be a threshold in the strength of the heat source (represented by a current density, if the heat source is electrical in origin) above which the reduction in the heating time does not improve substantially. Interestingly, the evolution of martensite volume fraction with respect to time seems to be insensitive to the thickness of the film undergoing transformation to austenite.