cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The effect of cirrhosis on the risk for failure of nonoperative management of blunt liver injuries

Background The purpose of this study was to delineate the association between cirrhosis and failure of nonoperative management (F-NOM) after blunt liver trauma. Methods We carried out a review of the National Trauma Databank from 2007 to 2011 including patients ≥16 years old admitted after a blunt injury. Propensity score was used to match each cirrhotic to 3 noncirrhotic patients. Primary outcome was F-NOM (liver procedure >2 hours after admission and/or operative intervention directed at the liver after angiography). Results A total of 57 cirrhotic patients who met inclusion criteria were matched with 171 noncirrhotic patients. Splenic injury was present in 41% (35% vs 43%; P = .31) and 28% had a high-grade liver injury III/VI/V (26% vs 29%; P = .73). The majority of patients in both groups were selected for a trial of NOM (77% vs 85%; P = .15). There was no difference in the rate of F-NOM between the 2 groups (14% vs 14%; P = 1.00), even for high-grade injuries (13% vs 20%; P = .72). Cirrhotic patients had a greater overall mortality (28% vs 7%; P Conclusion Cirrhosis has no effect on the selection of patients with blunt liver injuries for a trial of nonoperative management and does not seem to be associated with a greater risk for failure of nonoperative management within the constraints of our study. Nonoperative management in this population is highly successful and failure is rarely related directly to the liver injury itself. Failure of non-operative management increases the already high mortality risk in this population.
Response to Letter Regarding Article, “Obesity and Cardiovascular Disease”

We appreciate Dr Hendricks' interest in our recent Clinician Update on Obesity and Cardiovascular Disease.1 We would like to point out that the purpose of the article was not to compare surgical versus medical therapy, but rather educate readers at large of the many options available for the treatment of obesity. We utilized a case vignette of a severely obese individual who underwent gastric bypass surgery and benefited significantly from the intervention. We clearly do not imply that the only effective treatment for obesity is surgical, as this treatment option is reserved for a minority of obese individuals …
Sampling Theorem Associated With the Discrete Cosine Transform

One way of deriving the discrete Fourier transform (DFT) is by equispaced sampling of periodic signals or signals on a circle. In this paper, we show that an analogous derivation can be used to obtain the DCT (type 2). To achieve this goal, we replace the circle by a line graph with symmetric boundary conditions, and define signal space, filter space, and filtering operation appropriately. Further, we derive the corresponding sampling theorem including the proper notions of “bandlimited” and “sinc function.” The results show that, in a rigorous sense, the DCT is closely related to the DFT, and can be introduced without concepts from statistical signal processing as is the current practice.
Surfactant-stabilized contrast agent on the nanoscale for diagnostic ultrasound imaging

Abstract Ultrasound contrast agents (CA) are generally micron-sized stabilized gas bubbles, injected IV. However, to penetrate beyond the vasculature and accumulate in targets such as tumors, CA must be an order of magnitude smaller. We describe a method of achieving nanometer-sized, surfactant-stabilized CA by differential centrifugation. High g force was shown to destroy bubble integrity. Optimal conditions (300 rpm for 3 min) produced an agent with a mean diameter of 450 nm, which gave 25.5 dB enhancement in vitro at a dose of 10 μL/mL, with a 13 min half-life. In vivo , the CA produced excellent power Doppler and grey-scale pulse inversion harmonic images at low acoustic power when administered. In vivo dose-response curves obtained in three rabbits showed enhancement between 20 and 25 dB for dosages above 0.025 mL/kg. These results encourage further investigation of the possible diagnostic and therapeutic benefits of using nanoparticles as CA, including passive targeting and accumulation in tumors. (E-mail: wheatley@coe.drexel.edu)
Global turnover of histone post-translational modifications and variants in human cells.

Background Post-translational modifications (PTMs) on the N-terminal tails of histones and histone variants regulate distinct transcriptional states and nuclear events. Whereas the functional effects of specific PTMs are the current subject of intense investigation, most studies characterize histone PTMs/variants in a non-temporal fashion and very few studies have reported kinetic information about these histone forms. Previous studies have used radiolabeling, fluorescence microscopy and chromatin immunoprecipitation to determine rates of histone turnover, and have found interesting correlations between increased turnover and increased gene expression. Therefore, histone turnover is an understudied yet potentially important parameter that may contribute to epigenetic regulation. Understanding turnover in the context of histone modifications and sequence variants could provide valuable additional insight into the function of histone replacement.
A hybrid spectral-element/finite-element method with the implicit-explicit Runge-Kutta Time Stepping Scheme for Multiscale Computation

Realistic system level electromagnetic problems such as electronic packaging are often multiscale, where electrically fine structures and electrically coarse structures coexist. Simulating the transient multiscale problems can be very challenging for conventional numerical techniques: the dense mesh/grid for fine structures will lead to a large number of wasted unknowns in the coarse domains. Besides, small cells for fine structures make the size of time steps extremely small, thus lead to an unaffordable number of steps in time integration. Here we propose a hybrid spectral-element/finite-element method (SEM/FEM) combined with the implicit-explicit Runge-Kutta (IMEX-RK) scheme for multiscale electromagnetic computation. This method is flexible in spatial discretization and efficient in time stepping. The basic idea and numerical results are presented in following sections.
Spin lifetimes in III-V heterostructures originating from zincblende symmetry

Summary form only given. We have calculated the spin lifetimes for GaAs/AlGaAs and InGaAs/InP quantum wells using a fourteen bulk band basis which accounts for the zincblende symmetry of the heterostructure constituents. The spin lifetimes agree with recent experiments within a factor of two, indicating the importance of accurate band structure calculations for zincblende type heterostructures.
Predictive Modeling of Tumor Regression Kinetics Using a Murine Model of Oncogene-Addicted Lung Cancers

Purpose/Objective(s): Oncogene-addiction or -dependence is a biological phenomenon whereby tumors following oncogene-inactivation exhibit dramatic regression revealing tumor cells that are dependent on their initiating oncogene for survival. This phenomenon has become more widely appreciated clinically with the emergence of oncogene targeted therapies that expose a subset of human malignancies with this phenotype. A human example are "oncogene-addicted" patients with EGFR-mutated bronchioloalveolar carcinomas (BACs). A critical question is the identification of patients who most benefit from these targeted therapies. Novel methods for determining and predicting treatment response are therefore needed. The Myc and Ras oncogenes have pleiotropic effects on cell autonomous functions such as proliferation, apoptosis and DNA damage repair and cell non-autonomous functions such as angiogenesis, the sum of which can drive the process of oncogenesis. The murine counterpart to "oncogene-addicted" human BACs are Ras-induced "oncogene-addicted" non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLCs). Corroborating this supposition are human mutational studies that suggest Ras and EGFR mutations are mutually exclusive in NSCLC. Materials/Methods: We constructed mouse preclinical lung cancer model systems to address these issues. Using a conditional lung specific gene expression system we analyzed transgenic mouse models of Myc, Ras or Myc/Ras induced lung adenocarcinoma. Results: These transgenic mice develop primary lung adenocarcinomas with variable latency (26-51 weeks) and clinical presentation that is dependent on their genotype. Upon oncogene-inactivation in these murine models, we have found that Ras, but not Myc induced lung adenocarcinomas regress in a matter of weeks completely. We measured quantitatively the clinical behavior of murine lung tumors in situ after oncogene-inactivation by use of serial micro-computed tomography (microCT) imaging. By modeling the regression curves of each transgenic system, we were able to express the difference mathematically between the tumor regression of Rasand Myc-induced tumors. The modeling also allowed us to distinguish that double mutant, Ras/Myc-induced tumors, were likely composed of two dominant populations with behavior similar to single Rasand Myc-induced tumors. We then used our data array as a training set for a predictive support vector machine algorithm which is highly accurate at predicting the regression of murine tumors based on only three serial weekly microCT scans at the initiation of oncogeneinactivation. Conclusions: Our work incorporates highly penetrant spontaneously arising murine lung tumor models, non-invasive serial tumor imaging and predictive mathematically modeling. This system serves as a more clinically relevant bridge for studies transitioning from the bench to the clinic and can also be used to probe basic questions of oncogene-addiction. Furthermore, these preclinical studies suggest a novel method for predicting tumor responses in human BACs.
Influence of ozone and soil magnesium status on the cold hardiness of loblolly pine (Finns taeda L.) seedlings

summary One-year-old half-sib loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) seedlings were planted in a sandy loam soil having approximately 15 or 35 mg kg−1 of exchangeable Mg and were exposed to subambient, ambient, or twice ambient (0.02, 0.05, or 0.09 μl O3 1−1, respectively) concentrations of O3 in open-top chambers from April to October 1988. The cold hardiness of seedlings was tested on October 24, January 24, and March 21 by subjecting needle samples from the first and last growth flush to temperatures of -5, -10, -15, and - 20 °C and determining relative electrical conductivity of the diffusate. Seedlings exposed to twice ambient O3 levels during the growing season were less hardened in early autumn and spring than seedlings exposed to ambient or subambient levels of O3, suggesting that O3 affects the plant's hardening and dehardening processes. Ozone and soil Mg treatments had no significant effects on visible injury of shoots following freezing treatments, nor were any visible symptoms of injury due to O3 evident during the study. Water potential components of excised shoots were estimated using pressure-volume analysis. Osmotic potentials became more negative over the dormant period, suggesting that solutes had accumulated in the cells as seedlings hardened. Seedlings grown in high Mg soil had less negative osmotic potentials in January and March than those grown in low Mg soil, suggesting that seedlings in high Mg soil were more susceptible to cold temperatures, probably due to greater physiological activity.
Short and long sleep duration associated with race/ethnicity, sociodemographics, and socioeconomic position.

STUDY OBJECTIVES Short and/or long sleep duration are associated with cardiometabolic disease risk and may be differentially experienced among minorities and the socioeconomically disadvantaged. The present study examined nationally representative data along multiple dimensions of race/ ethnicity and socioeconomic status. DESIGN Cross-sectional. SETTING Survey. PATIENTS OR PARTICIPANTS 2007-2008 NHANES (N = 4,850). INTERVENTIONS None. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS Self-reported sleep duration was classified as very short ( $75,000. Compared to college graduates, increased very short sleep was seen among all lower education levels. Those with public insurance reported more very short (OR = 1.67, P = 0.31) and long (OR = 1.83, P = 0.011) sleep versus uninsured. Very low food security was associated with very short (OR = 1.86, P = 0.036) and short (OR = 1.44, P = 0.047) sleep. CONCLUSIONS Minority status and lower socioeconomic position were associated with shorter self-reported sleep durations.
Localization in Two Dimensions, Gaussian Field Theories, and Multifractality.

We calculate nonperturbatively the multifractal scaling exponents of the critical wave function for two dimensional Dirac fermions in the presence of a random magnetic field. We do so by arguing that the multifractal scaling exponents can be expressed in terms of the free energy of random directed polymers on a Cayley tree. We find a weak-strong disorder transition for the multifractal scaling exponents of the wave function that is parallel to the freezing or glassy transition of the random polymer model.
Quantum Ray Tracing: A New Approach to Quantum Transport in Mesoscopic Systems

The method of QRT and its possible advantages over the other methods used to study quantum transport in mesoscopic systems are outlined. The problem of quantum diffraction is mentioned in the context of QRT. Preliminary results are shown for a T-shape Quantum Modulated translstor and a trumpet-shaped polygon.
Current strategies with 2-staged prosthetic breast reconstruction

Over the last decade, prosthetic-based breast reconstruction has been revolutionized with technological advancements. Reconstructive surgeons now have a multitude of prosthetic devices and tissue expanders, tools for intraoperative perfusion analysis, implantable bioprosthetic materials and a technique for autoaugmentation within their armamentarium to reconstruct natural breasts today like never before.
Credit Management Strategies for Small Firms

When a small firm sells goods or services to another firm, it generally grants trade credit to the buyer for these purchases. While the acade1nic and practitioner literature on credit management for large firms is voluminous, there is little in this literature which suggests appropriate credit Management strategies, given the particular characteristics of the small firm. Several characteristics of small firms can lead to advantageous credit policies which are different from larger firms. Among these are returns-to-scale problems in adopting several credit management strategies, Management which has limited expertise in finance, and restricted access to outside financing. In this paper, the effects of these differences on trade credit strategy are considered. Four areas of credit strategy are analyzed: credit investigation and risk assessment, credit-granting decisions, collections, and bearing credit risk. The paper presents and critiques trade credit policies for the small firm in each of these areas, including policy alternatives which involve the outsourcing of one or more aspects of credit management.
On Robert Chrisman's poetry

Robert Chrisman did not feature himself as a poet, at least not to me during the years we did scholarly work together at the University of Michigan. I served as director of his PhD dissertation on Robert Hayden and then we coedited the volume Robert Hayden: Essays on the Poetry for the University of Michigan Press’s Under Discussion Series in 2001. I had read his slim volume Minor Casualties when it appeared in 1993, and occasionally remarked on some favorite poem, but he waved away any reference to the book and insisted that his best work would appear in his next volume—a customary gesture of modesty for all poets who always imagine that their achievement follows an upward trajectory. yet he never showed me these poems, perhaps worried that I would feel constrained by friendship to publish some in the journal I edited, Michigan Quarterly Review. He was right that I would have wanted to print them, but not from a sense of obligation. I would have felt privileged to circulate verse of such high quality. Though we never had a chance to talk about the poems eventually gathered into The Dirty Wars I at least had those precious months between publication and his death to correspond with him about the volume. It was such a significant advance over Minor Casualties, I wrote him, that it had the range and texture of a lifetime’s gathering, more like the capaciousness of Hayden’s Angle of Ascent than one of his chapbooks. He wrote me in response, “you are right on all counts regarding the composition of the volume—it has been slow work and cumulative, thus it took on the feel of a Selected Poems, as I sought to integrate its various strands.” from the stunning multicolor image on the cover—the sculpture of a female African head referred to in the poem “Olmecca”—to the final poem of blessing for a young child born “from the dawn of waters,” the book takes the entirety of time and space as its subject matter, though it focuses most intensively on the poet’s own journey through life. The cover image calls attention to “Olmecca” as a key poem within the volume’s overall purposes. The mysterious icon is blunt, “the jaws heavy,” but “the eyes global, gaze serene.” He writes of the body that suffered from decapitation, “its absence is an ache / for us”; the body carries a message to our epoch of the wounds undergone by Africans brought to this land as slaves, “born in a baptism of boats” with new names but no free choice of action. The loss of that an-
Testicular testosterone concentration following testicular vein ligation.

A rat model to study the local effects of testicular vein ligation is described. One hour after unilateral testicular vein ligation, the testicular concentration of testosterone was significantly greater (P
Schulische Bildungsbiographien, Peers und soziale Ungleichheit

In diesem Beitrag will ich einige zentrale Ergebnisse eines von der DFG fi - nanzierten Forschungsprojektes vorstellen, das den Stellenwert von Gleichaltrigengruppen fur die schulischen Bildungsbiographien von zunachst elfjahrigen Kindern untersucht und dabei gleichzeitig auch die Rolle der Peergroups fur die Reproduktion von Bildungsungleichheit mit in den Blick nimmt.
Adjudicating Risk: AIDS, Crime, and Culpability

The AIDS epidemic continues to pose significant public health challenges, especially given that the spread of the virus outpaces the AIDS response. Importantly, HIV continues to disproportionately impact socially and economically marginalized communities. In countries with concentrated epidemics, it is racial minorities, sex workers, men who have sex with men, and drug users who face the brunt of the epidemic. In the United States, the data is startling: 44% of new infections were among African-Americans, and among African-Americans contracting HIV, 57% were among gay and bisexual men. In 2016, the CDC found that one in two Black men who have sex with men (MSM), one in four Hispanic MSM, and one in eleven White MSM will contract HIV.One of the many tools mobilized to curb the spread of HIV is the criminal law. In particular, the criminalization of HIV transmission and exposure sets out to penalize individuals who expose or transmit HIV to another person. New advancements in the science of HIV transmission suggest, however, that individuals on anti-retroviral therapy (ART) that have a low viral load are significantly less infectious. This new data, in turn, impacts the potential culpability of the individual living with HIV accused of exposing another to HIV.In a novel contribution to the existing literature on the criminalization of HIV, this paper examines two cases, R v. Mabior and Rhoades v. State, in which courts adjudicate the question of risk of transmission. This paper argues that while the court’s consideration of treatment and low viral load to mitigate culpability is a positive move forward, it is important to note that the pre-existing maldistribution of access to HIV treatment means that only some of the accused will benefit legally from these scientific advancements. This could have a disparate effect on racial minorities who have less access to ART and, in turn, will not have the capacity to mitigate potential culpability by arguing that they are less likely to transmit HIV.This paper proceeds as follows. Part I draws on emerging scholarship on the carceral state to place the criminalization of HIV transmission and exposure in its broader historical and social context. Part II provides an overview of scientific advances on the risk of transmission. Part III considers two prosecutions of individuals living with HIV for exposing another to the virus and examines the role of scientific advances on risk in the courts’ deliberations on culpability. Part IV examines the distributional consequences of these decisions for those without access to ART.
Higher Education Analytics: A Study of the Flow of College Applicants between US States

The dispersion of talent within the United States is not uniform. There is sufficient statistical evidence to suggest that there is an interstate brain drain phenomenon occurring within the country. The authors set out to examine this by first determining whether states could be classified into four broad categories of talent: 'repel', 'loyal', 'magnet' and 'boring'. To do this they observed the relative pull or push of talent and looked at the results relative to which states tended to retain or lose their native talent, as well as which states tended to attract a large or small number of the migratory student population seeking education outside of their own respective home states. Once they completed this categorization, the authors attempted to see whether within these groupings, a set of randomly selected independent attributes or themes could be statistically significant to support these categorizations.
Simultaneous Measurement and Correlation of PPG Signals Taken from Two Different Body Parts for Enhanced Biometric Security via Two-level Authentication

In this paper we present a novel, multi-mode physiological photoplethysmogram (PPG) signal based biometric security system to be deployed in conjunction with existing face and finger recognition systems for enhanced security. We propose a two-level authentication system and use two PPG signals collected through face and finger of the subject for cross-correlation. PPG signals are generated due to involuntary body processes and therefore cannot be mimicked. Conventional face and finger print recognition is performed as the first-level security clearance. However, both these can be breached by wearing 3D printed finger tips or masking the face by undergoing surgery or 3D printed wearable face masks. Therefore, a second level security based on involuntary PPG signals is employed for enhanced security. This simultaneous measurement of these heart signals and their correlation is used as a biometric criterion for second level authentication and corresponding results are presented in this paper.
Cartan frames and algebras with links to integrable systems differential equations and surfaces

Moving frames and Clifford algebras will be used to illustrate an interconnected approach to the study of integrable systems, their surfaces, and methods for producing integrable partial differential equations. After a system of one-forms is defined, moving frame equations can be integrated and the resulting equations for the surface can be obtained. Other differential equations which involve quantities relevant to the surface are obtained. For the case of minimal and constant mean curvature surfaces, the coordinate functions can be calculated in closed form. In the case of constant mean curvature, they can be expressed in terms of Jacobi elliptic functions.
A progressive three-phase innovation to medical education in the United States.

ABSTRACTThe practice of medicine has changed greatly over the past 100 years, yet the structure of undergraduate medical education has evolved very little. Many schools have modified their curricula to incorporate problem-based learning and organ systems-based curricula, but few schools have adequately addressed rising tuition costs. Undergraduate medical education has become cost-prohibitive for students interested in primary care. In the meanwhile, the concept of a separate dedicated intern year is outdated and mired in waste despite remaining a requirement for several hospital-based and surgical specialties. Described here is an innovative approach to medical education which reduces tuition costs and maximizes efficiency, based on principals already employed by several schools. This integrated curriculum, first suggested by the author in 2010, keeps the current USMLE system in place, exposes medical students to patient care earlier, expands and incorporates the ‘intern’ year into a four-year medical tr...
Influence of Systems Design and Operation Parameters on Membrane Performance

During the past 10 years membrane technology has made rapid advances in the chlor-alkali industry both in terms of the development of the technology and penetration into commercial plants. Figures 1–3 highlight these developments.
Heat Transfer during Cryopreservation

One of the technical difficulties encountered by surgeons in organ transplantation is caused by the shortage of available organs and the need for a close donor-recipient interaction in terms of time and the compatibility of the organ. A possible solution for these difficulties is to establish an organ bank, similar to the existing blood banks, in which organs with different immunological properties could be stored for longer periods of time. Cryopreservation, a method for storing organs at low temperatures, below freezing, appears to be promising.
Abstract TMP120: Sildenafil Treatment of Vascular Dementia in Aged Rats

Background and Purpose: Vascular Dementia (VaD) caused by silent or mini strokes, affects cognition and memory predominantly in the elderly. Sildenafil, a cGMP-specific phosphodiesterase type 5 inh...
Future numerical consiliences

Abstract The contemporary fictional descriptions of harsh landscape and human consequences from the coal dust of surface mining in south Wales by A.J. Cronin in 1937 may have been more benign than the reality of dealing with more dust from extant results of other terrestrial ecosystem modifications in the 1930s. The Midwestern US top-soil losses and dust clouds over ~400,000 km 2 of Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, Kansas, and Nebraska during 1935–40, which at times expanded 2500–2600 km to Washington, D.C., and New York City as downstream dust storms in May 1934 and March 1935, were not really a natural catastrophe but the result of prior land mismanagement— miles to water, miles to wood, and only 6 inches to hell . In an unwise attempt to convert a steady-state evolved climax community of prior arid-adapted plants to agricultural crops, US farmers had imprudently deep-plowed native soils. They then no longer trapped deep-rooted moisture, preserving short buffalo grasses Buchloe dactyloides , which used to be dominant members of those drought-resistant plant communities of the Western prairies.
Heartbeat: sex differences in patient-reported outcomes with atrial fibrillation.

Patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) now are recognised as an essential element in clinical cardiovascular research studies. In addition, we are increasing aware of significant sex differences, not only in risk factors, clinical presentation and outcomes, but in the treatments provided to patients with cardiovascular disease. In this issue of Heart , a study by Gleason and colleagues1 compared atrial fibrillation (AF) therapy and PROMs in women versus men in a cohort of 953 AF patients (mean age 72 years). Overall, women reported more severe AF symptoms, a lower AF-related quality of life, poorer functional status, higher anxiety levels and more symptoms of depression (figure 1); these sex differences persisted even when the type of AF therapy was considered. However, in both men and women, rate control alone was associated with lower functional status and AF-related quality of life compared to a rhythm control strategy. Figure 1 The association of therapies and key patient characteristics with atrial fibrillation-related quality of life in propensity score matched adjust models. Results presented as β, 95% CI. The reference groups for sex, education level, comorbidity index and weight were male sex, greater than college, comorbidity index of 0 and normal weight. *Comorbidity index. In the accompanying editorial, Hendriks and Stromberg2 remind us that current guidelines for management of AF recommend an integrated care approach in which PROMs are considered and decisions about treatment are made with the patient, not for the patient. They conclude: ‘Given the projected increase in AF prevalence to global epidemic levels in the near future, there is a substantial demand on healthcare services to deliver value-based healthcare. This requires a paradigm shift in …
The Nazification of the Radio Clubs, 1929–1935

This chapter shows the development of the radio hobby from 1931 to 1934. This is the crucial period of the Great Depression, rise of National Socialism and “Gleichschaltung” or Nazification of the entire public sphere, leading to the near extinction of all private associations, including radio hobby clubs. Well before 1933, the hobby clubs were infiltrated by pro-Nazi elements, and the coarsening of the political debate prepared the ground for Nazi violence. Once in power, the Nazis destroyed all but a small part of the radio hobby. Yet changes in manufacturing and design of radios at just this time would have led to a decline in the radio hobby in any case. Once again, both technology and society together set the context for radio use.
Advances in Immuno-PET for the Detection of Cancer and Assessment of Response to Therapy

Background Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) against tumor-associated antigens have been shown to target tumors with specificity and selectivity; therefore, it was hypothesized that cancer could be treated with mAbs without side effects. In the early 1980s, clinical studies demonstrated that tumors could be visualized using radiolabeled mAbs. However, with the introduction of positron emission tomography (PET) with 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG), antibody-based imaging became less important because of its limited diagnostic accuracy. During the last two decades, a revival of imaging with radiolabeled mAbs has taken place, specifically PET with longer half-life isotopes. Development of immune checkpoints as targets for immunotherapy has opened opportunities for the development of a wide variety of antibodies, such as anti-CTLA-4, anti-PD-L1, and anti-PD1. Thus, imaging with these antibodies radiolabeled with 89Zr or another long-half-life PET isotope, known as immuno-PET, has become mainstream. Objective This study aimed to review the rapid development of immuno-PET for the detection of cancer and assessment of therapeutic response combining surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, and/or immunotherapy. This review includes reports on the radiolabeling, imaging and clinical utility of 89Zr-, 64Cu- and 124I-labeled mAbs. Results More than 120 research and review articles on immuno-PET were reviewed. Conclusion Many mAbs have been developed and used for the treatment of cancer; however, a limited number of antibodies have been radiolabeled for immuno-PET. While much progress has been made with the therapeutic applications of mAbs, immuno-PET for diagnosis and treatment assessment needs more research. Improved chelating agents and extensive imaging studies are needed to refine immuno-PET for the diagnosis of cancers and assessment of response to therapy.
A Comparative Analysis of Foiled and Completed Mass Shootings

This study provides a comparative analysis of foiled and completed mass shootings in the United States between 2000 and 2019. Specifically, this work quantitatively examines differences in mass shooting perpetrator, motivation, and target characteristics. Findings identify significant predictors of foiled mass shootings including student-aged perpetrators, dyads, fame and ideological motivations, as well as school and religious targets. Completed mass shootings more often involved perpetrators with a criminal history, victim-specific motivations, and targeting workplace or open-space locations. A discussion of findings highlights implications for scholars, law enforcement, policymakers, and the general public.
Impact of IN718 bimodal powder size distribution on the performance and productivity of laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing process

Abstract Bimodal powders of IN718 were obtained by adding a fine powder (D10–D90: 6.2–16.9 μm) to a typical laser powder bed fusion (L-PBF) powder (coarse powder, D10–D90: 26.5–50.5 μm) in various volume fractions. The fine powder was selected to generate an Alpha (Rosin-Rammler fit parameter) of 3.17 based on literature data and powder availability. The 83.75/16.25 Vol% of coarse/fine blend was chosen for the combination of reduced interparticle spacing/improved particle coordination number while retaining free flowing behavior. A new index, termed Raking Index (R), is defined to incorporate apparent density and Confined Specific Flow Energy as one parameter for assessing rakeability. Our results show that when R > 36 mJ/cm3 IN718 forms a dense and rakeable powder bed. After L-PBF processing, the use of the 83.75/16.25 blend resulted in 10% increase in process productivity, higher IN718 tensile strength, and reduced mechanical anisotropy.
Hypofractionated radiation therapy for early breast cancer: Follow up of a new treatment standard.

Abstract Aim To assess the oncological outcomes of patients with early breast cancer treated with breast-conserving surgery and adjuvant hypofractionated radiation therapy. Methods and Material This retrospective analysis included all patients ≥50 year of age with T1-2 N0 M0 breast cancer treated at our Radiation Oncology Unit between 2008 and 2011. Whole-breast radiation therapy was delivered to a dose of 42.5 Gy in 16 fractions, without boost. The primary outcome was local control. Results 212 patients were identified. With a median follow up of 60 months, we found 3% local recurrence and 5.3% regional and/or distant recurrences. At the moment of data analysis, 17 patients had died. Out of 5 local recurrences, 2 had previously had a distant recurrence, both of them died. The other three were still alive at the last follow up. These results are comparable to those observed in Phase III trials that use this fractionation scheme. Conclusions The results obtained with this retrospective analysis are comparable to those obtained in large randomized trials. This data also supports the use of hypofractionated radiation therapy in Latin America. Hypofractionated radiation therapy for early breast cancer patients should be the standard adjuvant treatment.
Review of Cognitive Behavioral Group Therapy: Challenges and Opportunities

Ingrid Sochting’s Cognitive Behavioral Group Therapy: Challenges and Opportunities is a well-researched and clearly written integration of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) with various forms of g...
The Hyades Cluster: Identification of a Planetary System and Escaping White Dwarfs

Recently, some hot DA-type white dwarfs have been proposed to plausibly be escaping members of the Hyades. We used hydrogen Balmer lines to measure the radial velocities of seven such stars and confirm that three, and perhaps two others, are/were indeed cluster members and one is not. The other candidate Hyad is strongly magnetic and its membership status remains uncertain. The photospheres of at least one quarter of field white dwarf stars are ''polluted'' by elements heavier than helium that have been accreted. These stars are orbited by extended planetary systems that contain both debris belts and major planets. We surveyed the seven classical single Hyades white dwarfs and the newly identified (escaping) Hyades white dwarfs and found calcium in the photosphere of LP 475-242 of type DBA (now DBAZ), thus implying the presence of an orbiting planetary system. The spectrum of white dwarf GD 31, which may be, but probably is not, an escaping member of the Hyades, displays calcium absorption lines; these originate either from the interstellar medium or, less likely, from a gaseous circumstellar disk. If GD 31 was once a Hyades member, then it would be the first identified white dwarf Hyad with a cooling agemore » >340 Myr.« less
Recovery of Secondary Metabolites with Minimal Loss of Cell Viability

The high cost of producing natural products from plant tissues in culture are due in part to slow growth and production rates associated with plant tissue, and the extraction of products. Hairy roots produced by transformation with Agrobacterium rhizogenes, offer rapid, stable growth and product synthesis (1,2).
The Unethical Nature of Abuse of Childless Women in African Traditional Thought/Practice

One of the major challenges confronting marriages and families in African from the past to the present is the issue of barrenness or childlessness. Childlessness was often blamed on the woman, even though at times it may arise from the medical conditions of a man. African traditional culture had great value for children and childless marriage was seen as cursed and the woman in particular was even labelled a “man” or a witch. The woman is often verbally abused, and physical violence was meted on her. The marriage is often made unbearable and uncomfortable for the woman by the man or the in-laws of the woman. In some exceptional cases, the man and his relatives were understanding and coped with the situation or the man was allowed to marry another woman, while bearing with the childless woman. In order to cope with the challenge of childlessness women even encouraged their husbands to marry another woman (women). This paper written from critical philosophical analysis and hermeneutics argues that this abuse of childless women is unethical/immoral. The paper will draw upon instances from both written and oral literature to bring light on this belief and practice. No woman or man gives children. Even though a woman may have conditions that may impede the birth of children, it is rare to see a woman causing her own childlessness. These cultural practices that still influence the attitude and (mal) treatment of women need to be denounced and abrogated. The paper finds and concludes there is a need to end these unethical treatments of childless women.
Review the safety of Covid-19 mRNA vaccines: a review

The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has infected more than 100 million people globally within the first year of the pandemic. With a death toll surpassing 500,000 in the United States alone, containing the pandemic is predicated on achieving herd immunity on a global scale. This implies that at least 70-80 % of the population must achieve active immunity against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), either as a result of a previous COVID-19 infection or by vaccination against SARS-CoV-2. In December 2020, the first two vaccines were approved by the FDA through emergency use authorization in the United States. These vaccines are based on the mRNA vaccine platform and were developed by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna. Published safety and efficacy trials reported high efficacy rates of 94-95 % after two interval doses, in conjunction with limited side effects and a low rate of adverse reactions. The rapid pace of vaccine development and the uncertainty of potential long-term adverse effects raised some level of hesitation against mRNA vaccines in the global community. A successful vaccination campaign is contingent on widespread access to the vaccine under appropriate storage conditions, deployment of a sufficient number of vaccinators, and the willingness of the population to be vaccinated. Thus, it is important to clarify the objective data related to vaccine safety, including known side effects and potential adverse reactions. The present review was designed to provide an update on the current state of science related to the safety and efficacy of SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccines.
Adaptive systems and closed-loop reference models

An integral part of adaptive control is the selection of a reference model that provides a desired target error that adaptive laws are designed to minimize. The classical approach towards this selection is to choose a corresponding desired output for the adaptive system as the output of linear time-invariant system with desired performance characteristics. A distinct departure from this approach has been suggested of late, in an attempt to improve the transient characteristics of the adaptive system. Here, the reference model is derived through a closed-loop where a tracking error is fed back. The challenge then is to determine this feedback loop so as to meet specifications of stability, transient performance, and learning, and ensure that any trade-offs that may be present are efficiently dealt with. This tutorial will provide the fundamentals of the design of closed-loop reference models, their role in adaptive systems where (i) states are accessible, (ii) multiple-inputs are present, and (iii) multi time-scales are present, and derive their properties of stability and transient performance.
Emotional Reason: Deliberation, Motivation, and the Nature of Value

Acknowledgements 1. Two problems of practical reason Part I. Felt Evaluations: 2. Emotions and the cognitive-conative divide 3. Constituting import 4. Varieties of import: cares, values and preferences Part II. Practical Reason: 5. Single evaluative perspective 6. Rational control: freedom of the will and the heart 7. Deliberation about value 8. Persons, friendship and moral value Select bibliography Index.
Eotaxin/CCL11 Suppresses IL-8/CXCL8 Secretion from Human Dermal Microvascular Endothelial Cells

The CC chemokine eotaxin/CCL11 is known to bind to the receptor CCR3 on eosinophils and Th2-type lymphocytes. In this study, we demonstrate that CCR3 is expressed on a subpopulation of primary human dermal microvascular endothelial cells and is up-regulated by TNF-alpha. We found that incubation of human dermal microvascular endothelial cells with recombinant eotaxin/CCL11 suppresses TNF-alpha-induced production of the neutrophil-specific chemokine IL-8/CXCL8. The eotaxin/CCL11-suppressive effect on endothelial cells was not seen on IL-1beta-induced IL-8/CXCL8 release. Eotaxin/CCL11 showed no effect on TNF-alpha-induced up-regulation of growth-related oncogene-alpha or IFN-gamma-inducible protein-10, two other CXC chemokines tested, and did not affect production of the CC chemokines monocyte chemoattractant protein-1/CCL2 and RANTES/CCL5, or the adhesion molecules ICAM-1 and E-selectin. These results suggest that eotaxin/CXCL11 is not effecting a general suppression of TNF-alphaR levels or signal transduction. Suppression of IL-8/CXCL8 was abrogated in the presence of anti-CCR3 mAb, pertussis toxin, and wortmannin, indicating it was mediated by the CCR3 receptor, G(i) proteins, and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase signaling. Eotaxin/CCL11 decreased steady state levels of IL-8/CXCL8 mRNA in TNF-alpha-stimulated cells, an effect mediated in part by an acceleration of IL-8 mRNA decay. Eotaxin/CCL11 may down-regulate production of the neutrophil chemoattractant IL-8/CXCL8 by endothelial cells in vivo, acting as a negative regulator of neutrophil recruitment. This may play an important biological role in the prevention of overzealous inflammatory responses, aiding in the resolution of acute inflammation or transition from neutrophilic to mononuclear/eosinophilic inflammation.
Reflections on the Development of Mathematics in the 20th Century

Let us compare mathematics as it was at the beginning of the century with contemporary mathematics. What has happened in the past hundred years?
Obesity-related sleepiness and fatigue : The role of the stress system and cytokines

Obesity has epidemic proportions in Western societies and, because of its significant association with morbidity and mortality, is a major public health issue. Excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) and fatigue (tiredness without increased sleep propensity)--which have been associated with obesity--have a significant impact on individual well-being and public safety. In this article, we review data that challenge the belief that sleep apnea and sleep disruption per se are the primary determinants of obesity-related daytime sleepiness and fatigue. Specifically, it appears that obesity per se is associated with objective and subjective daytime sleepiness compared to normal-weight controls regardless of sleep apnea and sleep loss. Indeed, obese patients without sleep apnea are sleepier compared to nonobese controls whereas within the morbidly obese, those who have high sleep efficiency at night are sleepier than those who have low sleep efficiency. In addition, in recent studies based on large random samples of the general population, the primary determinants of subjective EDS were depression and metabolic disturbances, that is, obesity/diabetes, and not sleep apnea or objective sleep disruption. Furthermore, sleepiness and fatigue are very prevalent in conditions associated with insulin resistance, for instance, the polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), independently of sleep apnea or obesity, or in conditions of insufficient physical activity. On the basis of these data, we propose that obesity-related objective daytime sleepiness and fatigue are associated primarily with metabolic and psychological factors and less with sleep apnea and sleep disruption per se. Furthermore, we suggest that objective sleepiness is primarily related to metabolic factors, whereas fatigue appears to be related to psychological distress. Finally, based on data from studies in normal controls and patients with sleep disorders, we propose that the interaction of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and proinflammatory cytokines determines the level of sleep/arousal within the 24-h cycle, that is, "hypercortisolemia" plus hypercytokinemia is associated with low sleep efficiency and fatigue, whereas "eucortisolemia" or "hypocortisolemia" plus hypercytokinemia is associated with high sleep efficiency and objective sleepiness.
Brief alcohol interventions for mandated college students: comparison of face-to-face counseling and computer-delivered interventions.

Aims College students who violate alcohol policies are often mandated to participate in alcohol-related interventions. This study investigated (i) whether such interventions reduced drinking beyond the sanction alone, (ii) whether a brief motivational intervention (BMI) was more efficacious than two computer-delivered interventions (CDIs) and (iii) whether intervention response differed by gender. Design Randomized controlled trial with four conditions [brief motivation interventions (BMI), Alcohol 101 Plus™, Alcohol Edu for Sanctions(®) , delayed control] and four assessments (baseline, 1, 6 and 12 months). Setting Private residential university in the United States. Participants Students (n = 677; 64% male) who had violated campus alcohol policies and were sanctioned to participate in a risk reduction program. Measurements Consumption (drinks per heaviest and typical week, heavy drinking frequency, peak and typical blood alcohol concentration), alcohol problems and recidivism. Findings Piecewise latent growth models characterized short-term (1-month) and longer-term (1-12 months) change. Female but not male students reduced drinking and problems in the control condition. Males reduced drinking and problems after all interventions relative to control, but did not maintain these gains. Females reduced drinking to a greater extent after a BMI than after either CDI, and maintained reductions relative to baseline across the follow-up year. No differences in recidivism were found. Conclusions Male and female students responded differently to sanctions for alcohol violations and to risk reduction interventions. BMIs optimized outcomes for both genders. Male students improved after all interventions, but female students improved less after CDIs than after BMI. Intervention effects decayed over time, especially for males. Language: en