cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Guided path exploration for regression test generation

Regression test generation aims at generating a test suite that can detect behavioral differences between the original and the modified versions of a program. Regression test generation can be automated by using Dynamic Symbolic Execution (DSE), a state-of-the-art test generation technique, to generate a test suite achieving high structural coverage. DSE explores paths in the program to achieve high structural coverage, and exploration of all these paths can often be expensive. However, if our aim is to detect behavioral differences between two versions of a program, we do not need to explore all paths in the program as not all these paths are relevant for detecting behavioral differences. In this paper, we propose a guided path exploration approach that avoids exploring irrelevant paths and gives priority to more promising paths (in terms of detecting behavioral differences) such that behavioral differences are more likely to be detected earlier in path exploration. Preliminary results show that our approach requires about 12.9% fewer runs on average (maximum 25%) to cause the execution of a changed statement and 11.8% fewer runs on average (maximum 31.2%) to cause program-state differences after its execution than the search strategies without guidance.
The Response of Alaskan Arctic Tundra to Experimental Warming: Differences Between Short- and Long-term Responses

Global climate models predict continued rapid warming for most of the Arctic throughout the next century. To further understand the response of arctic tundra to climate warming, four sites in northern Alaska were warmed for five to seven consecutive growing seasons using open-top chambers. Sites were located in dry heath and wet meadow communities near Barrow (71118 0 N, 156140 0 W) and Atqasuk (70129 0 N, 157125 0 W). Change in plant community composition was measured using a point frame method. During the period of observation, species richness declined in control plots by up to 2.7speciesplot � 1 . Responses to warming varied by site but similar trends included increased canopy height (� 0.1 to 2.3cm) and relative cover of standing dead plant matter (1.5‐6.0%) and graminoids (1.8‐5.8%) and decreased species diversity (0.1‐1.7 speciesplot � 1 ) and relative cover of lichens (0.2‐9.1%) and bryophytes (1.4‐4.6%) (parentheses enclose the range of average values for the sites). The response to warming was separated into an initial short-term response assessed after two growing seasons of warming and a secondary longer-term response assessed after an additional three to five growing seasons of warming. The initial responses to warming were similar in the four sites, while the secondary responses varied by site. The response to warming was greater at Barrow than Atqasuk because of a greater initial response at Barrow. However, the long-term response to warming was projected to be greater at Atqasuk because of a greater secondary response at Atqasuk. These findings show that predictions of vegetation change due to climate warming based on manipulative experiments will differ depending on both the duration and plant community on which the study focuses.
Asymptotic equipartition and long time behavior of solutions of a thin-film equation☆

We investigate the large-time behavior of classical solutions to the thin-film type equation ut =− (uuxxx)x . It was shown in previous work of Carrillo and Toscani that for non-negative initial data u0 that belongs to H 1 (R) and also has a finite mass and second moment, the strong solutions relax in the L 1 (R) norm at an explicit rate to the unique self-similar source type solution with the same mass. The equation itself is gradient flow for an energy functional that controls the H 1 (R) norm, and so it is natural to expect that one should also have convergence in this norm. Carrillo and Toscani raised this question, but their methods, using a different Lyapunov functions that arises in the theory of the porous medium equation, do not directly address this since their Lyapunov functional does not involve derivatives of u. Here we show that the solutions do indeed converge in the H 1 (R) norm at an explicit, but slow, rate. The key to establishing this convergence is an asymptotic equipartition of the excess energy. Roughly speaking, the energy functional whose dissipation drives the evolution through gradient flow consists of two parts: one involving derivatives of u, and one that does not. We show that these must decay at related rates—due to the asymptotic equipartition—and then use the results of Carrillo and Toscani to control the rate for the part that does not depend on derivatives. From this, one gets a rate on the dissipation for all of the excess energy.
Vitamin E can be used to hinder scissioning in radiation cross-linked UHMWPE during high-temperature melting

High-temperature melting (HTM) of ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) was shown to improve its elongation and toughness. This was believed to be due to increased scissioning and increased diffusion of polymer chains. It was hypothesized here that the toughness of previously radiation cross-linked UHMWPEs could also be improved by HTM. To test this hypothesis, the wear resistance, tensile mechanical properties, and Izod impact strength of radiation cross-linked virgin (no additive) and antioxidant-blended (with vitamin E) UHMWPEs were tested. The results suggested that although the impact strength of cross-linked UHMWPEs could be improved significantly by HTM, the wear resistance was decreased. Thus, this procedure can be optimized to be especially suited in high-stress applications, such as total knee replacements with lessened wear concerns. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015, 132, 42735.
Best Strategies for Hypertension Management in Type 2 Diabetes and Obesity

Insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, hypertension, obesity, cardiovascular disease, and chronic kidney disease cluster together, and the incidence of all of these disease states is increasing throughout the world. Current strategies for hypertension management-including the use of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, angiotensin receptor blockers, calcium antagonists, and thiazide diuretics-are effective for most patients. However, as the incidence of hypertension increases in this target population, so does that of resistant hypertension. As such, significant research and effort must be put forth to bring blood pressure to goal and delay or prevent target organ damage. Such efforts should frequently include a dihydropyridine calcium channel blocker such as amlodipine. Other agents that are currently underused in this population for the treatment of resistant hypertension include nebivolol, carvedilol, aliskiren, and aldosterone antagonists. Finally, significant potential is seen for darusentan, an endothelin antagonist, if it comes to market.
Vision-based guidance and control of a hovering vehicle in unknown, GPS-denied environments

This paper describes the system architecture and core algorithms for a quadrotor helicopter that uses vision data to navigate an unknown, indoor, GPS-denied environment. Without external sensing, an estimation system that relies only on integrating inertial data will have rapidly drifting position estimates. Micro aerial vehicles (MAVs) are stringently weight-constrained, leaving little margin for additional sensors beyond the mission payload. The approach taken in this paper is to introduce an architecture that exploits a common mission payload, namely a video camera, as a dual-use sensor to aid in navigation. Several core algorithms, including a fast environment mapper and a novel heuristic for obstacle avoidance, are also presented. Finally, drift-free hover and obstacle avoidance flight tests in a controlled environment are presented and analyzed.
Accessibility analysis on data flow graph: an approach to design for testability

Increasing the accessibility of an internal circuit node is one way to achieve design for testability. An algorithm for accessibility analysis based on a data flow graph (DFG) is presented. Based on this analysis, an approach is proposed for improving total accessibility. This is accomplished by selecting the minimum set of circuit nodes that need to be made accessible to ensure that all other nodes are accessible. A simple modification to the DFG that increases accessibility is presented. >
Agent-Based Stochastic Modeling of Driver Decision at Onset of Yellow Light at Signalized Intersections

This paper introduces two logistic statistical models for the driver stop-run decision at the onset of yellow at signalized intersections to capture the stochastic nature of the driver stop-run decision. One model is a classical frequentist model, whereas the other uses a Bayesian statistics approach. The Bayesian model parameters were calibrated by using the Markov Chain Monte Carlo slice procedure implemented within the MATLAB software. Both models were developed with 3,328 stop-run records, which were collected in a field experiment on the Virginia Smart Road, a limited-access highway between Blacksburg and Interstate 81 in Montgomery County, Virginia. The variables included in each model were driver gender, age, time to intersection, yellow time, approaching speed, and speed limit. Both models were shown to be consistent. For the Bayesian model application, two procedures were illustrated: cascaded regression and Cholesky decomposition. Both procedures produced replications consistent with the Bayesia...
Handling Movement Epenthesis and Hand Segmentation Ambiguities in Continuous Sign Language Recognition Using Nested Dynamic Programming

We consider two crucial problems in continuous sign language recognition from unaided video sequences. At the sentence level, we consider the movement epenthesis (me) problem and at the feature level, we consider the problem of hand segmentation and grouping. We construct a framework that can handle both of these problems based on an enhanced, nested version of the dynamic programming approach. To address movement epenthesis, a dynamic programming (DP) process employs a virtual me option that does not need explicit models. We call this the enhanced level building (eLB) algorithm. This formulation also allows the incorporation of grammar models. Nested within this eLB is another DP that handles the problem of selecting among multiple hand candidates. We demonstrate our ideas on four American Sign Language data sets with simple background, with the signer wearing short sleeves, with complex background, and across signers. We compared the performance with conditional random fields (CRF) and latent dynamic-CRF-based approaches. The experiments show more than 40 percent improvement over CRF or LDCRF approaches in terms of the frame labeling rate. We show the flexibility of our approach when handling a changing context. We also find a 70 percent improvement in sign recognition rate over the unenhanced DP matching algorithm that does not accommodate the me effect.
Rare Species Loss Alters Ecosystem Function – Invasion Resistance

The imminent decline in species diversity coupled with increasing exotic species introductions has provoked investigation into the role of resident diversity in community resistance to exotic species colonization. Here we present the results of a field study using an experimental method in which diversity was altered by removal of less abundant species and the resulting disturbance was controlled for by removal of an equivalent amount of biomass of the most common species from paired plots. Following these manipulations, the exotic grass, Lolium temulentum, was introduced. We found that exotic species establishment was higher in plots in which diversity was successfully reduced by removal treatments and was inversely related to imposed species richness. These results demonstrate that less common species can significantly influence invasion events and highlight the potential role of less common species in the maintenance of ecosystem function.
Defects in Tetrahedrally Coordinated Amorphous Semiconductors.

Abstract : In the tetrahedrally coordinated amorphous semiconductors the dominant defects deep in the gap are attributed to dangling bonds on the group IV atoms. These defects are commonly thought to have effective electron-electron correlation energies Ueff which are positive, although some tight-binding estimates suggest negative Ueff. Defect states near the band gap edges are invoked to account for many experimental results including the usual appearance of an Urbach absorption edge. These shallow defect states are usually attributed to strained bonds but two-fold-coordinated group IV atoms have also been suggested. The application of light of near-band-gap energies alters the density of paramagnetic dangling bonds. For large spin densities (n(s) greater than or equal to 10 to the 17th power per cu cm) this increase is probably due to the creation of new defects, but it is possible that at lower densities (n(s) less than or equal to 10 to the 16th power per cu cm) the rearrangement of electronic charge in existing defects is important. Impurities also contribute to the defects observed in tetrahedral amorphous semiconductors. Particular species include trapped atomic and molecular hydrogen, trapped NO-2 molecules, singly-coordinated oxygen atoms and E' centers. Keywords include: Hydrogenated amorphous silicon, Amorphous silicon alloys, Defects, States in the gap, and Impurities.
Accuracy in Clinical Chemistry

Improved accuracy of clinical laboratory measurements requires a broad range concept of quality control. Items considered include standardization, precision, specificity, recovery studies, interlaboratory comparisons, and long-range stability of laboratory performance.
Broad-band, beam-space, signal-subspace source localization

A general reconfigurable real-time preprocessing structure is proposed and discussed for broadband signal-subspace spatial-spectral estimators. This reduced-dimension beam-space (RDBS) focusing preprocessor focuses broadband sources and effectively reduces the observation dimension before a source localization computation. The preprocessing structure is considered for use in estimating the locations of broadband sources from array data using both H. Wang and M. Kaveh's (1985) coherent-signal-subspace method and K.M. Buckley and L.J. Griffiths' (1986) broadband signal subspace spatial spectrum (BASS-ALE) estimation technique. An example of RDBS used with BASS-ALE to simulate a linear equispaced broadband array of 16 omnidirectional elements is included. >
Satellite-measured growth of the urban heat island of Houston, Texas

Growth of the surface temperature urban heat island (UHI) of Houston, TX is determined by comparing two sets of heat island measurements taken 12 years apart. Individual heat island characteristics are calculated from radiative temperature maps obtained using the split-window infrared channels of the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) on board National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration polar-orbiting satellites. Eighty-two nighttime scenes taken between 1985 and 1987 are compared to 125 nighttime scenes taken between 1999 and 2001. Analysis of the UHI characteristics from these two intervals reveals a mean growth in magnitude of 0.8 K, or 35%. The growth of the mean area of the UHI is found to range between 170 and 650 km 2 , or from 38% to 88%, depending on the method of analysis.
A distributed scheduling mechanism to improve quality of service in IEEE 802.11 ad hoc networks

We introduce a queue-adaptive scheduling mechanism that facilitates scheduling differentiation among nodes having traffic within the same access category in IEEE 802.11-based ad hoc networks, which to the best of our knowledge, has not been previously addressed. We investigate the effectiveness of the proposed mechanism, which is easy to implement and requires minimal overhead, via simulation. More specifically, we investigate the effectiveness of dynamically controlling the values of the interframe space, contention window, and the transmission opportunity in the context of voice over IP in a distributed IEEE 802.11 ad hoc network. Our simulation results show that the proposed mechanism considerably lowers the percentage of dropped packets as the number of active calls increases beyond the network's call carrying capacity, dramatically improves system stability at higher traffic loads, and results in a significant improvement in call carrying capacity.
ExpertRank: An Expert User Ranking Algorithm in Online Communities

As computer-mediated communication services in the Web 2.0 arena, online communities have become very important places for Web users to share knowledge and experiences. One important research issue in online communities is how to find expert users in the community. In this paper, we investigate the expertise that users displayed in online communities, especially in discussion groups and propose an effective expert ranking algorithm, which integrates both discussion thread contents and social network extracted from massive social interactions. We present a vector space model to compute the content relevance part and a PageRank style algorithm for the expert network part. Considering the expert spamming issue caused by mutually referencing in a small group, we modify the original PageRank algorithm and propose a novel ranking algorithm. The two parts are lastly integrated using a cascade strategy. The experimental results show that our so-called ExpertRank algorithm is an effective expert ranking algorithm, which can guarantee that the highly ranked experts are both highly relevant to the specific queries and highly authoritative in corresponding areas.
A Fine-Grained Reputation System for Reliable Service Selection in Peer-to-Peer Networks

Distributed peer-to-peer (P2P) applications have been gaining momentum recently. In such applications, all participants are equal peers simultaneously functioning as both clients and servers to each other. A fundamental problem is, therefore, how to select reliable servers from a vast candidate pool. To answer this important open question, we present a novel reputation system built upon the multivariate Bayesian inference theory. Our system offers a theoretically sound basis for clients to predict the reliability of candidate servers based on self-experiences and feedbacks from peers. In our system, a fine-grained quality of service (QoS) differentiation method is designed to satisfy the diverse QoS needs of individual nodes. Our reputation system is also application-independent and can simultaneously serve unlimited P2P applications of different type. Moreover, it is semidistributed in the sense that all application-related QoS information is stored across system users either in a random fashion or through a distributed hash table (DHT). In addition, we propose to leverage credits and social awareness as reliable means of seeking honest feedbacks. Furthermore, our reputation system well protects the privacy of users offering feedbacks and is secure against various attacks such as defaming, flattering, and the Sybil attack. We confirm the effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed system by extensive simulation results.
Impact of Lymph Node Ratio on Survival in Papillary Thyroid Cancer

In papillary thyroid cancer, the role of lymph node dissection remains controversial, and staging systems consider metastatic lymph nodes as a binary entity. The purpose of this study was to determine a threshold lymph node ratio (LNR) that impacted disease-specific mortality (DSM). We utilized the surveillance, epidemiology, and end results (SEER) database to analyze adult patients who underwent thyroidectomy with lymph node dissection. A LNR (metastatic lymph nodes to total lymph nodes) was calculated after eliminating patients with less than three nodes collected. Kaplan–Meier estimates for DSM were plotted for LNRs and compared by the log rank test. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to evaluate LNR with other known clinical and pathologic determinants of prognosis. A total of 10,955 cases contained data on lymph nodes. Median follow-up time was 25 months (range 0–59 months), and the mean LNR was 0.28 ± 0.37. After comparing Kaplan–Meier survival estimates and overall DSM rates, we found that a LNR ≥0.42 best divided those with lymph node metastasis based on DSM (p < 0.01). Those with a LNR ≥0.42 experienced a DSM rate of 1.72 % while those with a LNR <0.42 had a DSM rate of 0.65 % (p < 0.01). In addition, patients with a LNR ≥0.42 experienced a 77 % higher DSM rate compared to those with metastatic lymph nodes as a whole. When considered with other known determinants of prognosis, we found that LNR was strongly associated with DSM (hazard ratio 4.33, 95 % confidence interval 1.68–11.18, p < 0.01). LNR is a strong determinant of DSM, and a threshold LNR of 0.42 can be used to risk-stratify patients with metastatic lymph nodes.
Too Many Boys Are Failing in American Schools: What Can We Do about It?.

This research studied those factors that impact the failure of boys in American schools. Multiple areas were explored. Among the broadly investigated area were: physiological, social and cognitive. Attributing to the failure of boys included brain structure, cultural standards, teaching practices, economics, environmental factors, and familial expectations. Included among the list of negative factors attributed to the failure of boys were: poor academic performance, behavioral penalties, substance abuse, and self inflicted death. Greater emphasis was give to seeking solutions to the failure of the African American male because the data reflected higher failure rates among this group. Alternatives to these negative attributes are offered to a range of publics in soliciting their support in ameliorating the problem. Among the public are: parents, educators, community organizers, government personnel, and medical professionals.
Close encounters with creative chemical thinking: An outreach presentation using movie clips about the elemental composition of aliens and extraterrestrial minerals

To introduce more chemistry into a middle and high school bioengineering camp experience, we developed an educational and entertaining presentation that examines the chemistry in movies about aliens and minerals from outer space. Our goal was to help the campers to think creatively about the bioengineering projects they are doing and about its chemistry. After watching each movie clip, we explain whether the chemistry in the clip is real or fake, and then describe the real chemistry that inspired it. The chemical touchstone for the presentation is the periodic table. First, the campers learn that aliens in five movies are composed of the same elements as those found on Earth, although some do not have the same biochemistry. The second half of the talk is about the utility of extraterrestrial minerals of known composition. The campers learn that moviemakers speculate that people of the future might visit other celestial bodies to collect scarce minerals with known properties. The topics of alien biochemistry and extraterrestrial minerals are not often taught in the classroom. The pairing works well, however, for chemical outreach because it shows students how to bring divergent thoughts together to solve problems and, therefore, encourages creative chemical thinking.
Parkinson’s Disease Is Associated With Enhanced Pain-Related Disability And The Selective Loss Of Gray Matter In Subcortical Regions Of The Brain Related To Pain Processing (P6.079)

OBJECTIVE: We tested the hypothesis that patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD) experience greater levels of pain-related disability as a result of a disorder of pain modulation specifically related to the pathophysiology of PD. BACKGROUND: Pain in PD has been attributed to the musculoskeletal complications of the movement disorder. Recent attention has also focused on the likely presence of a disturbance of central pain processing, which may be evident from both pharmacologic interventions as well as with deep brain stimulation. Lacking definition are: 1) the functional consequences of this central disorder of pain processing, and 2) its neurological mechanisms. DESIGN/METHODS: From a federally funded investigation studying the neuroanatomical contribution to cognitive profiles of individuals with non-demented idiopathic Parkinson’s disease (PD; n=39; UPDRS-III =17.78(10.87); age=67.72(5.42)) plus non-PD healthy demographically matched peers (n=36; UPDRS-III=2.78(3.49); age=68.19(4.36)), we used the Brief Pain Inventory-Short Form (Cleeland, 1991) to examine hypotheses regarding group differences in pain intensity versus pain disability and associated neuroanatomical contributions. RESULTS: PD reported significantly higher levels of pain-related disability (PD=11.69 ±12.68); non-PD=4.42±9.32; p=.006) despite similar levels of pain intensity. Only for PD, pain ratings were negatively associated with thalamic (interference = r =-.51, p=.001; intensity r= -.36, p=.01;) and amygdala (interference=-.35, p=.02; intensity r= -.31; p=.03) volumes after controlling for total intracranial volume. There were no associations with loss of gray matter in other cortical or subcortical structures such as the caudate, globus pallidus, or hippocampus. Pain ratings were not associated with motor severity, but did increase with years of PD. CONCLUSIONS: Data show evidence for a central disorder of pain regulation in PD whose mechanisms may be distinct from the specific pathophysiology of the movement disorder. Study Supported by: NINDS K23NS060660 (CP); 1R01NS082386 (CP) Disclosure: Dr. Ahn has received personal compensation for activities with CoLucid Pharmaceuticals as a consultant. Dr. Tanner has nothing to disclose. Dr. Horgas has nothing to disclose. Dr. Okun has received royalty payments from Demos, Humana, Amazon and Cambridge. Dr. Okun has received research support from the Michael J. Fox Foundation, the National Parkinson Foundation, the Parkinson Alliance, the Smallwood Foundation, the Tourette Syndrome Association, the Bachmann-Strauss Foundation, and the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Price has nothing to disclose.
Spray Rig Design for Airborne Icing Tankers

An experimental and numerical study was performed to design a spray system for existing icing tankers to produce both Appendix C and SLD icing clouds. The study assessed the characteristics of the spray clouds generated by air-atomizing nozzles in terms of the plume size, air and water flow rates, cloud intensity and droplet size distributions. Two commercially available nozzles, single-jet and multi-jet nozzles, which can produce both Appendix C and SLD icing conditions, were evaluated using an in-house developed spray control system. The system monitors the performance of the spray nozzle and documents the volume air and water flow rates of the nozzles for a range of air and water pressures. Droplet sizes were measured using a two-component Phase Doppler Particle Analyzer (PDPA). The effect of the air speed on the spray cloud were investigated in the 7-ft x 10-ft wind tunnel at Wichita State University. The spray cloud intensity and plume sizes at several axial locations from the nozzle in the wind tunnel were measured using a laser sheet illumination technique. The experimental measurements were used to validate a 3-D numerical spray model in the FLUENT software, which was used to simulate the Appendix C and SLD clouds generated by a multi-nozzle spray rig. The simulated results from a preliminary 6-nozzle spray rig design produced an Appendix C plume diameter of approximately 31 inches, and the diameter of the SLD plume was approximately 54 inches. The validated spray model is being used to optimize the nozzle spacing in a new spray rig design in order to increase plume diameter and to improve cloud intensity distribution.
Does Celiac Disease Ever Travel Alone

Celiac disease is a genetic disease that can affect many different organs in susceptible individuals. It is a common digestive disease with an incidence of 1% in the general population. Celiac disease has a wide variety of gastrointestinal as well as extraintestinal signs and symptoms. The disease is unrecognized or undiagnosed in 75% to 90% of cases because of subclinical or unusual symptoms. Many nonmalignant and malignant complications have been associated with celiac disease, the most common of which are associated autoimmune disorders, altered liver and thyroid function, and lymphoma. The risk of developing complications from celiac disease is much higher with adult-onset disease. Most of the associated complications are related to the chronic inflammation that occurs with continued gluten exposure. A strict gluten-free diet is advised for patients with celiac disease. However, the risk of malignancy associated with celiac disease is not high enough to warrant mass screening of all individuals.
Induction of Haploid Fruiting by Mechanical Injury in Schizophyllum Commune

The present paper reports the results of investigations concerning a number of mutually interacting factors that affect the fruiting response of haploid mycelia of S. commune to mechanical injury. ...
Endovascular treatment of intracranial infectious aneurysms in eloquent cortex with super-selective provocative testing: Case series and literature review

Intracranial infectious aneurysms (IIAs) are a rare subgroup of intracranial aneurysms. Often erroneously termed mycotic aneurysms, these lesions most often result from infectious endocarditis and involve the distal anterior cortical circulation. Diagnosis typically follows headaches or septic infarcts, although increasing numbers of lesions are found incidentally, during screening protocols for infectious endocarditis. Open surgical treatment was previously the mainstay of treatment; however, these IIAs are often fusiform and quite fragile, making open surgical obliteration difficult and typically requiring lesion trapping. Current treatment techniques more commonly involve endovascular coil embolization or parent vessel occlusion. Many of these lesions occur distally, in or around the eloquent cortex, making embolization potentially dangerous. We present cases that highlight the use of super-selective provocative testing with sodium amobarbital and lidocaine, to help clarify and predict the risk of parent vessel occlusion in IIAs located in the eloquent cortex.
Comparison of Conventional and Bisecting K-Means Algorithms on Color Quantization

Color quantization represents an important technique with both many applications, as well as outstanding challenges in the field of image processing. Numerous clustering techniques have been applied to the task of achieving the optimal quantization with varying results. In this paper, we compare the results of the conventional k-means algorithm, indisputably the most celebrated nonhierarchical clustering algorithm, to those of a recent hierarchical variant of it named bisecting k-means. We show that, while bisecting k-means often produces slightly higher quantization distortion than k-means, the former more than makes up for this in stability and computational efficiency.
Noise-Induced Frequency Modifications of Tamarin Vocalizations: Implications for Noise Compensation in Nonhuman Primates.

Previous research suggests that nonhuman primates have limited flexibility in the frequency content of their vocalizations, particularly when compared to human speech. Consistent with this notion, several nonhuman primate species have demonstrated noise-induced changes in call amplitude and duration, with no evidence of changes to spectral content. This experiment used broad- and narrow-band noise playbacks to investigate the vocal control of two call types produced by cotton-top tamarins (Saguinus Oedipus). In ‘combination long calls’ (CLCs), peak fundamental frequency and the distribution of energy between low and high frequency harmonics (spectral tilt) changed in response to increased noise amplitude and bandwidth. In chirps, peak and maximum components of the fundamental frequency increased with increasing noise level, with no changes to spectral tilt. Other modifications included the Lombard effect and increases in chirp duration. These results provide the first evidence for noise-induced frequency changes in nonhuman primate vocalizations and suggest that future investigations of vocal plasticity in primates should include spectral parameters.
Total History: The Meaning of Hacienda Tabi

Archaeological investigations at Hacienda Tabi have allowed us a glimpse into the lives of workers on the hacienda by making explicit connections between the social and cultural history of the area and the archaeological record. Using a total history approach, I first documented the rise of the hacienda system in Yucatan – beginning with its pre-Hispanic and Spanish Colonial antecedents – in order to identify aspects of continuity and change within local social and economic organization that resulted from the incorporation of households within an evolving capitalist system. I then related specific archaeological materials with aspects of social organization on the hacienda, such as social stratification, household organization, and occupational status by making explicit the links between the built environment, material culture, and individual and household behavior at Hacienda Tabi.
Toward RNA Repair of Diamond Blackfan Anemia Hematopoietic Stem Cells.

Diamond blackfan anemia (DBA) is a well-known inherited bone marrow failure syndrome mostly caused by mutations in ribosomal protein (RP) genes but also rarely in the hematopoietic transcription factor gene, GATA1, or TSR2, a ribosomal protein (Rps26) chaperone gene. About 25% of patients have heterozygous mutations in the RPS19 gene, which leads to haploinsufficiency of Rps19 protein in most cases. However, some RPS19 missense mutations appear to act in a dominant negative fashion. DBA typically leads to a hypoplastic anemia that becomes apparent during the first year of life, and standard treatment includes steroids or red blood cell transfusions, each modality having attendant side effects. The only curative therapy is allogeneic stem-cell transplantation, but this option is limited to patients with a histocompatible donor. DBA-mutant embryonic, induced pluripotent, and hematopoietic stem cells all exhibit growth abnormalities that can be corrected by DNA gene transfer, suggesting the possibility of ex...
Spread through Air Spaces (STAS) Is an Independent Predictor of Recurrence and Lung Cancer-Specific Death in Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

Abstract Introduction Spread through air spaces (STAS) is a recently recognized pattern of invasion in lung adenocarcinoma; however, it has not yet been characterized in squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). Methods We reviewed 445 resected stage I to III lung SCCs and investigated the clinical significance of STAS. Cumulative incidence of recurrence and lung cancer–specific death were evaluated by competing risks analyses and overall survival by Cox models. Results Of the total 445 patients, 336 (76%) were older than 65 years. Among the 273 patients who died, 91 (33%) died of lung cancer whereas the remaining ones died of competing events or unknown cause. STAS was observed in 132 patients (30%) and the frequency increased with stage. The cumulative incidences of any, distant, and locoregional recurrence as well as lung cancer–specific death were significantly higher in patients with STAS compared with in those without STAS, whereas there was no statistically significant difference in overall survival. In multivariable models for any recurrence and lung cancer–specific death, STAS was an independent predictor for both outcomes ( p = 0.034 and 0.016, respectively). Conclusion STAS was present in one-third of resected lung SCCs. In competing risks analysis in a cohort in which three-fourths of the patients were elderly, STAS was associated with lung cancer–specific outcomes. Our findings suggest that STAS is one of the most prognostically significant histologic findings in lung SCC.
Environmental change in the equatorial Andes: Linking climate, land use, and land cover transformations

Global climate change is implicated in major socio-ecological transformations across a range of locations and geographic scales. Recent research has shown that climate change will be more pronounced in high-elevation mountain sites than in nearby lowland locales with consequences that may be felt much sooner and directly affect millions of people. In this study, we follow a land change science approach based on remote sensing, downscaled climate modeling, and regression analyses to investigate the connections between land use and land cover transformations and climate variation in the Cotopaxi National Park and its buffer zone in Ecuador. Results show an overall reduction of native grasslands between 1987 and 2013 and a significant glacier extent loss on the Cotopaxi volcano between 1976 and 2013. Decadal altitudinal shifts of main land cover types, specifically herbaceous vegetation, denuded soils, glacier, and upper montane evergreen vegetation are finely attuned with decadal changes in temperature. Results confirmed that decadal surface area changes of major land cover types in the region may be weakly associated with decadal changes in precipitation and moisture. If climate change and current land use practices continue to affect both the vertical and horizontal distribution major ecotypes, we could expect an overall restructure of the landscape across the latitudinal, longitudinal, and altitudinal dimensions in the short term. Resource users may need to adapt their land use systems to these new environmental conditions and search for resource management strategies that will enable them to sustain their livelihood practices in the long term.
Personal Identity Development in Hispanic Immigrant Adolescents: Links with Positive Psychosocial Functioning, Depressive Symptoms, and Externalizing Problems.

The present study was designed to examine trajectories of personal identity coherence and confusion among Hispanic recent-immigrant adolescents, as well as the effects of these trajectories on psychosocial and risk-taking outcomes. Personal identity is extremely important in anchoring young immigrants during a time of acute cultural change. A sample of 302 recently immigrated (5 years or less in the United States at baseline) Hispanic adolescents (Mage = 14.51 years at baseline; SD = 0.88 years, range 14–17) from Miami and Los Angeles (47 % girls) completed measures of personal identity coherence and confusion at the first five waves of a six-wave longitudinal study; and reported on positive psychosocial functioning, depressive symptoms, and externalizing problems at baseline and at Time 6. Results indicated that identity coherence increased linearly across time, but that there were no significant changes in confusion over time and no individual differences in confusion trajectories. Higher baseline levels of, and improvements in, coherence predicted higher levels of self-esteem, optimism, and prosocial behavior at the final study timepoint. Higher baseline levels of confusion predicted lower self-esteem, greater depressive symptoms, more aggressive behavior, and more rule breaking at the final study timepoint. These results are discussed in terms of the importance of personal identity for Hispanic immigrant adolescents, and in terms of implications for intervention.
Sarcopenia is a Predictor of Surgical Morbidity in Inflammatory Bowel Disease.

Background Sarcopenia is associated with an increased risk of operative morbidity and mortality. The impact of sarcopenia in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has not been evaluated. This study assessed the role of sarcopenia on operative outcomes in IBD. Methods A retrospective review of American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program data of patients with IBD was completed. Records were abstracted for comorbidities and perioperative complications. The Hounsfield unit average calculation was used from preoperative computed tomography (CT). Criteria for sarcopenia were based on the lowest 25th percentile. Complications were graded using the Clavien-Dindo classification system. Statistical analysis was completed using SAS. Results There were 178 patients included. Sarcopenic patients were more likely to be older (P = 0.001), have hypertension (odds ratio = 2.23), and be diabetic (5.27). In those patients younger than 40 years, sarcopenia was an independent predictor of complications. This subset was significantly more likely to have a normal or elevated body mass index. Conclusions In this population, the average age of sarcopenic patients is increased from those who do not meet criteria. Among patients younger than 40 years, sarcopenia affects surgical outcomes. Assessment of sarcopenia can be used to improve preoperative management and describe risks before surgery in patients with IBD.
The Effect of Water on Rheology of Native Cellulose/Ionic Liquids Solutions.

Cellulose coagulates upon adding water to its solutions in ionic liquids. Although cellulose remains in solution with much higher water contents, here we report the effect of 0–3 wt % water on solution rheology of cellulose in 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride and 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermal gravimetric analysis, and polarized light microscopy were also used to study water absorbance to the solutions. Tiny amounts of water (0.25 wt %) can significantly affect the rheological properties of the solutions, imparting a yield stress, while dry solutions appear to be ordinary viscoelastic liquids. The yield stress grows linearly with water content and saturates at a level that increases with the square of cellulose content. Annealing the solutions containing small amounts of water at 80 °C for 20 min transforms the samples to the fully dissolved “dry” state.
Use of the photoelectric effect as a reservoir quality indicator in the Niobrara Formation, Piceance Basin, northwest Colorado

The late Cretaceous Niobrara Formation and underlying lower Mancos Group has significant petroleum potential in the Piceance Basin of NW Colorado. Relative to the Denver Basin Niobrara, the Piceance Basin Niobrara has had significantly less drilling activity and therefore less subsurface data are available. There are several key geologic differences pertaining to the Niobrara depositional history in these two basins. First, overall thickness of the formation increases greatly to the west. Thicknesses of 300 ft, common in the Denver Basin, become thicknesses of as much as 1800 ft in the Piceance Basin. Second, to date, maximum TOC values from the Piceance Basin are ∼3 wt.% whereas in the Denver Basin TOC values may be as high as 8 wt.%. Several factors may contribute to the lesser TOC but a significant factor is the dilution of organic material by increasing siliciclastic deposition.Unlike the Denver Basin stratigraphy of organic-rich marls providing the bulk of sourcing to carbonate-rich benches of greate...
Microtubular remodeling and decreased expression of Nav1.5 with enhanced EHD4 in cells from the infarcted heart

Abstract Cardiac Na+ channel remodeling provides a critical substrate for generation of reentrant arrhythmias in border zones of the infarcted canine heart. Recent studies show that Nav1.5 cytoskeletal- and endosomal-based membrane trafficking and function are linked to tubulin, microtubular (MT) networks, and Eps15 homology domain containing proteins like EHD4. Aim Our objective is to understand the relation of tubulin and EHD4 to Nav1.5 channel protein remodeling observed in border zone cells (IZs) when arrhythmias are known to occur; that is, 3-h, 48-h and 5-day post coronary occlusion. Materials methods findings Our voltage clamp and immunostaining data show that INa density is decreased in the epicardial border zone cells of the 48 h infarcted heart (IZ48h). Immunostaining studies reveal that in post MI cells the cell surface staining of Nav1.5 was reduced and Nav1.5 distribution changed. However, intense co-staining of Nav1.5 and tubulin occurs in core planes and the perinuclear areas in post MI cells. At the same time, there were marked changes in the subcellular location of the EHD4 protein. EHD4 is co-localized with tubulin protein in discrete intracellular “highway” structures. Significance The distribution and expression of the three proteins are altered dynamically in post MI cells. In sum, our work illustrates the spatiotemporal complexity of remodeling mechanisms in the post-infarct myocyte. It will be important in future experiments to further explore direct links between MT, EHD proteins, and cell proteins involved in forward trafficking.
The Imperative of Solving Nurses' Usability Problems With Health Information Technology.

Background Health information technology (IT) usability issues are a key concern for nurse executives and nurses. Objectives The aims of this study are to understand usability pain points faced by nurses regarding the use of health IT, identify their impact and importance, discuss responsibilities, and develop possible solutions to improve the health IT-user experience for nurses. Methods Twenty-seven experts were interviewed including nursing leaders, informaticists, executives, engineers, researchers, and human factors experts across acute care, long-term care, and vendor settings. Semistructured questions guided the interviews, and content analysis was used to identify themes. Results Four themes emerged: 1) user experience pain points, 2) importance of the issues, 3) the responsibility gap, and 4) acting on usability issues. Conclusion Nurses continue to endure significant health IT-usability issues that negatively impact patients, nurses, and healthcare organizations. Solutions include enhancing the voice of nursing at the national and local levels, creating a digital strategy for nursing, providing incentives to improve usability in health IT, and accelerating the understanding of nurses' work intended to inform and translate nurses' work into health IT design.
Signal sequences in the genome of Mononegavirales regulate the generation of copy-back defective viral genomes

Copy-back defective viral genomes (cbDVGs) are the primary initiators of antiviral immunity during infection with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), parainfluenza virus, and other common pathogens. However, the mechanism governing cbDVG generation remains unknown limiting our ability to manipulate their content during infection. Here we developed VODKA (Viral Opensource DVG Key Algorithm) to identify cbDVGs from RNA-Seq data from infected samples and used these DVG sequences to identify signals that regulate cbDVG generation. After validation using data from an in vitro Sendai virus infection and Ebola virus-infected non-human primates, we applied VODKA to datasets from RSV-positive patients. VODKA identified common cbDVGs across multiple samples, and predicted specific genomic regions that mediate RSV cbDVG formation. Using an RSV minigenome system, we demonstrate that these viral sequences drive cbDVG wroduction. Importantly, the region involved in polymerase rejoin and reinitiation was highly conserved and its nucleotide composition determined the quality of cbDVGs generated. Our results indicate that generation of cbDVGs during natural infection is regulated by specific viral sequences and open the possibility to manipulate DVG formation during infection.
Blinding Kashmiris: The Right to Maim and the Indian Military Occupation in Kashmir

Since July 2016, Indian-administered Kashmir has again raged with mass protests favouring self-determination and freedom from India. In the protests more than ninety-eight people have been killed, ...