cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Integrating Modern Research into Numerical Computation Education

Scientific computation has grown in scope over the years, but today's needs are far beyond what people have experienced in traditional scientific fields such as physics, chemistry, and biology. Although the term "computing" might also mean information processing as opposed to numerical computation, it's increasingly difficult to draw a clear boundary between the two. As more disciplines require or desire computational skills, the crowds we teach will include not only future engineers and natural scientists but also social scientists, business analysts, or even casual learners. People in this learning community will contribute to computational science not by theoretically exploring the properties of numerical algorithms, but by applying or modifying existing numerical methods or methodologies to successfully solve problems in their respective fields. How we teach numerical computation to the crowds must be taken far beyond the discussions on the relevance and advantages of computational software or programming languages. Whether repackaging what we teach would prepare students better - numerically speaking - remains to be seen. However, we must find ways to integrate modern scientific computation research results into our curricula.
Is cytomegalovirus reactivation increasing the mortality of patients with severe sepsis

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a ubiquitous virus present in approximately two-thirds of the healthy population. This virus rarely causes an active disease in healthy individuals, but it is among the most common opportunistic infections in immunocompromised patients such as solid organ transplant recipients, patients receiving chemotherapy for cancer or patients with human immunodeficiency virus. Critically ill patients who are immunocompetent before intensive care unit admission may also become more prone to develop active CMV infection if they have prolonged hospitalizations, high disease severity, and severe sepsis. The development of active CMV infection in these critically ill patients has been associated with a significantly higher risk of death in several previous studies. The present issue of Critical Care brings a new study by Heininger and colleagues in which the authors found that patients with severe sepsis who developed active CMV infection had significantly longer intensive care unit and hospital stays, prolonged mechanical ventilation, but no changes in mortality compared to patients without CMV infection. We discuss the possible reasons for their findings (for example, selection bias and low (20%) statistical power to detect mortality endpoints), and also perform an update of our previous meta-analysis with the addition of Heininger and colleagues' study to verify whether the higher mortality rate with CMV holds. Our updated meta-analysis with approximately 1,000 patients shows that active CMV infection continues to be associated with a significant 81% higher mortality rate than that in critically ill patients without active CMV infection.
A Method of Neutralizing Hum and Feed-Back Caused by Variations in the Plate Supply

A method is described whereby hum and feedback can be reduced in multistage screen-grid resistance-coupled amplifiers. By the method described it is possible to reduce degenerative and regenerative feedback and hum. The principle involves using the screen grid of a multigrid tube in such a manner that it produces a variation upon the grid of the followling tube substantially equal to and out of phase with the variation appearing at that grid directly through the plate-circuit resistor. The two thus neutralize out. The theory giving the conditions under which neutralization takes place is described. Experimental data prove that such neutralization does take place. Typical graphs giving the conditions for neutralization using a 6C6 tube are given.
Why do residents leave general surgery? The hidden problem in today's programs.

Objective Much has been written and discussed about the reasons for reduced interest in surgery, but few institutions have chosen to examine the loss or attrition of general surgery residents from their own programs. In preparation for an upcoming Residency Review Committee analysis of our program, we took the opportunity to examine the reasons for attrition in our own institution. Design, setting, and participants During the years 1990 to 2003, 120 categorical residents were admitted into our general surgery residency program. Residents who matched into preliminary positions or non-5-year categorical positions were not included in this study. During this period of time, 20 residents (9 female and 11 male) left the program for a variety of reasons. The folders of those 20 residents along with all of the correspondence pertaining to each resident were reviewed in detail. Results Our overall attrition rate during this 13-year period of time was 20 of 120 residents or 17%. This is comparable with the often-quoted figure of approximately 20% attrition in other general surgery programs. The reasons for leaving could be divided into 4 categories: (1) lifestyle, (2) opportunity for early specialization, (3) asked to leave the program because of emotional or performance difficulties, or (4) decided to leave medicine entirely. The largest group was related to lifestyle issues and comprised 13 of the total of 20 residents who left the program. Of this group of 13, 3 went into plastic surgery, 4 went into anesthesiology, 2 went into radiology, and the remaining 4 went into public health, internal medicine, pathology, and emergency medicine. Seven of these 13 individuals were women. Two individuals entered residency with the goal of specializing in plastic surgery. They both left their 5-year categorical general surgery positions after the third year when they were offered the opportunity to enter three-year plastic surgery fellowship positions. The third category was composed of 4 individuals who were asked to leave the program during this 13-year period because of performance or emotional problems, with 3 of these 4 being men. Only 1 person left medicine entirely, and he is now the vice-president of a successful software company. Of the total of 20 residents who left our program, 9 (45%) were female. Given that there were 33 females in our program during the subject period of time, these 9 females represent an attrition rate of 27%. The 11 males who left during this period represent, however, an attrition rate of only 13%. Conclusions Although much concern has been expressed over the declining numbers of medical students interested in surgery, loss of residents after matching in general surgery is an equally significant problem. In our program over a 13-year period, 20 out 120 residents, or 17% dropped out or were released. The attrition rate for females (27%) was approximately twice that of males (13%), with 7 out of 9 females (78%) leaving for lifestyle reasons.
Algorithms for defining mixed radix FFT flow graphs

A unified set of algorithms is presented to define the intraconnection and phase rotation structure of flow graphs for arbitrary fast Fourier transforms (FFTs). The same set of basic equations is applied to arbitrary-length FFTs; mixed-radix FFTs; either decimation-in-time or decimation-in-frequency FFTs; and FFTs with ordered inputs, ordered outputs, or both. These equations, which define input and output point indexing of each FFT stage and the twiddle factors used in each stage, are based on forward and backward products of radixes. The same basic products of radixes can be used to represent a wide variety of FFT structures. These equations also permit HOL (high-order language) specification of FFTs for programming signal processors. >
C/EBPα, C/EBPα Oncoproteins, or C/EBPβ Preferentially Bind NF-κB p50 Compared with p65 Focusing Therapeutic Targeting on the C/EBP:p50 Interaction

Canonical nuclear factor kappaB (NF-κB) activation signals stimulate nuclear translocation of p50:p65, replacing inhibitory p50:p50 with activating complexes on chromatin. C/EBP interaction with p50 homodimers provides an alternative pathway for NF-κB target gene activation, and interaction with p50:p65 may enhance gene activation. We previously found that C/EBPα cooperates with p50, but not p65, to induce Bcl-2 transcription and that C/EBPα induces Nfkb1/p50, but not RelA/p65, transcription. Using p50 and p65 variants containing the FLAG epitope at their N- or C-termini, we now show that C/EBPα, C/EBPα myeloid oncoproteins, or the LAP1, LAP2, or LIP isoforms of C/EBPβ have markedly higher affinity for p50 than for p65. Deletion of the p65 transactivation domain did not increase p65 affinity for C/EBPs, suggesting that unique residues in p50 account for specificity, and clustered mutation of HSDL in the "p50 insert" lacking in p65 weakens interaction. Also, in contrast to Nfkb1 gene deletion, absence of the RelA gene does not reduce Bcl-2 or Cebpa RNA in unstimulated cells or prevent interaction of C/EBPα with the Bcl-2 promoter. Saturating mutagenesis of the C/EBPα basic region identifies R300 and nearby residues, identical in C/EBPβ, as critical for interaction with p50. These findings support the conclusion that C/EBPs activate NF-κB target genes via contact with p50 even in the absence of canonical NF-κB activation and indicate that targeting C/EBP:p50 rather than C/EBP:p65 interaction in the nucleus will prove effective for inflammatory or malignant conditions, alone or synergistically with agents acting in the cytoplasm to reduce canonical NF-κB activation.
Radiation hardening of polytetrafluoroethylene against chemical etching

Exposure of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) to MgKα x-rays (1253.6 eV) for times as short as 10 min is observed to lead to permanent radiation hardening toward chemical etching. X-ray-dosed surfaces are visibly less etched, and the loss of F is over a factor of 2 smaller. For PTFE itself, the x-ray photoelectron spectrum shows only slight changes for x-ray exposures up to several hours, but thermal desorption spectroscopy yields a direct correlation between the desorption of low-molecular-weight fluorocarbons and x-ray exposures down to the order of minutes. Irradiation of PTFE is know to lead to molecular weight degradation and branching and/or crosslinking through free radical reactions. The degradation reactions are the source of the low-molecular-weight fluorocarbons which desorb at elevated temperatures. Branching and/or crosslinking, which produce a more rigid, thermally stable structure, are proposed as the mechanism for resistance to chemical etching. Similar resistance to chemical etching, in the absence of x-rays, is observed for the fluorinated ethylene-propylene copolymer which contains intrinsic fluorinated methyl group side chains.
Adaptive and Reflective Middleware for Distributed Real-Time and Embedded Systems

Software has become strategic to developing effective distributed real-time and embedded (DRE) systems. Next-generation DRE systems, such as total ship computing environments, coordinated unmanned air vehicle systems, and national missile defense, will use many geographically dispersed sensors, provide on-demand situational awareness and actuation capabilities for human operators, and respond flexibly to unanticipated run-time conditions. These DRE systems will also increasingly run unobtrusively and autonomously, shielding operators from unnecessary details, while communicating and responding to mission-critical information at an accelerated operational tempo. In such environments, it's hard to predict system configurations or workloads in advance. This paper describes the need for adaptive and reflective middleware systems (ARMS) to bridge the gap between application programs and the underlying operating systems and network protocol stacks in order to provide reusable services whose qualities are critical to DRE systems. ARMS middleware can adapt in response to dynamically changing conditions for the purpose of utilizing the available computer and network infrastructure to the highest degree possible in support of mission needs.
Parallaxis: A Flexible Parallel Programming Environment For AI Applications

A parallel language has to match or reflect the hardware underneath to use these resources efficiently. Though every parallel language has to have some kind of parallel machine model, no existing language states this explicitly. The Parallaxis parallel programming environment introduces a different approach. The system comprises the specification of the parallel algorithm and the parallel hardware as well. Parallaxis has been designed for single instruction, multiple data (SIMD) system architectures, consisting of identical processing elements (PEs) with local memory. Data exchange is handled by message passing through a local network. In Parallaxis , the hardware structure is specified in the beginning of each program to establish the environment for coding the parallel algorithm. This is necessary for actually arranging this topology using a reconfigurable system, but it is also profitable for performing a simulation, or just stating the used topology. Parallelizable AI applications that demonstrate Parallaxis' usefulness include computer vision, productions systems, neural networks and robot control.© (1989) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
UDP-galactose transporter is required for Theiler's virus entry into mammalian cells.

Abstract Theiler's murine encephalomyelitis viruses (TMEV) are divided into two groups: high-neurovirulence strains, such as GDVII, cause fatal encephalitis, while low-neurovirulence strains, such as BeAn and DA, cause persistent infection and demyelination in mice. Cell surface sialic acid is bound by the low-neurovirulence DA and BeAn viruses, but not by the high-neurovirulence GDVII virus. We have identified a clone from a BHK-21 cell cDNA library that mediates TMEV entry and infection by viruses of both TMEV groups in a receptor-negative BHK-21 cell variant (R26). The sequence of this clone is 96.4% identical to the human UDP-galactose transporter (UGT), which belongs to a family of nucleotide-sugar transporter proteins involved in the biosynthesis of complex carbohydrate structures in the trans -Golgi network. UGT mRNA from R26 cells was found to have a 490-nucleotide deletion involving the C-terminal amino acids 255 to 392 and 81 nucleotides of the 3′ noncoding region. These results suggest two possibilities by which UGT may mediate TMEV entry and infection. The most likely one relates to the transporter function of adding galactose to another receptor protein. This possibility suggests the requirement for a specific glycoprotein interaction for GDVII virus cell binding and entry, e.g., galactose for GDVII and sialic acid for BeAn. Alternatively, UGT might be a TMEV receptor itself, acting via UGT cycling to the cell surface.
Scatter search and path relinking

The evolutionary approach called scatter search, and its generalized form called path relinking, originated from strategies for creating composite decision rules and surrogate constraints. Recent studies demonstrate the practical advantages of these approaches for solving a diverse array of optimization problems from both classical and real world settings. Scatter search and path relinking contrast with other evolutionary procedures, such as genetic algorithms, by providing unifying principles for joining solutions based on generalized path constructions (in both Euclidean and neighborhood spaces) and by utilizing strategic designs where other approaches resort to randomization. Additional advantages are provided by intensification and diversification mechanisms that exploit adaptive memory, drawing on foundations that link scatter search and path relinking to tabu search. The goal of this paper is to clarify the connection between these developments in evolutionary methods, and to highlight key ideas and research issues that offer promise of yielding future advances.
Planar Imaging Versus Gated Blood-Pool SPECT for the Assessment of Ventricular Performance: A Multicenter Study

Gated blood-pool SPECT (GBPS), inherently 3-dimensional (3D), has the potential to replace planar equilibrium radionuclide angiography (ERNA) for computation of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), analysis of regional wall motion (RWM), and analysis of right heart function. The purpose of this study was to compare GBPS and ERNA for the assessment of ventricular function in a large, multicenter cohort of patients. Methods: One hundred seventy-eight patients referred in the usual manner for nuclear medicine studies underwent ERNA followed by GBPS. Each clinical site followed a GBPS acquisition protocol that included 180° rotation, a 64 by 64 matrix, and 64 or 32 views using single- or double-head cameras. Transverse GBPS images were reconstructed with a Butterworth filter (cutoff frequency, 0.45–0.55 Nyquist; order, 7), and short-axis images were created. All GBPS studies were processed with a new GBPS program, and LVEF was computed from the isolated left ventricular chamber and compared with standard ERNA LVEF. Reproducibility of GBPS LVEF was evaluated, and right ventricular ejection fraction (RVEF) was computed in a subset of patients (n = 33). Using GBPS, RWM and image quality from 3D surface-shaded and volume-rendered cine displays were evaluated qualitatively in a subset of patients (n = 30). Results: The correlation between GBPS LVEF and planar LVEF was excellent (r = 0.92). Mean LVEF was 62.2% for GBPS and 54.1% for ERNA. The line of linear regression was GBPS LVEF = (1.04 × ERNA LVEF) + 6.1. Bland–Altman plotting revealed an increasing bias in GBPS LVEF with increasing LVEF (Y = 0.13x + 0.61; r = 0.30; mean difference = 8.1% ± 7.0%). Interoperator reproducibility of GBPS LVEF was good (r = 0.92). RVEF values averaged 59.8%. RWM assessment using 3D cine display was enhanced in 27% of the studies, equivalent in 67%, and inferior in 7%. Conclusion: GBPS LVEF was reproducible and correlated well with planar ERNA. GBPS LVEF values were somewhat higher than planar ERNA, likely because of the exclusion of the left atrium.
Academic sexual intimacy violations: Ethicality and occurrence reports from undergraduates

Students at a state university (N = 583) and a nearby community college (N = 229) in a Southeastern state rated the ethicality and reported the occurrence of 15 behaviors related to student‐faculty sexual intimacy. The overt, covert, and ambiguous sexual behaviors were phrased in a nonpersonalized or a personalized manner. Students from both schools offered similar ethicality ratings and occurrence reports. The women's reports of personal sexual involvement with faculty members were consistent with previously reported incidence rates. However, the men's reports of such involvement were considerably higher than those reported in the literature. Limited participant gender differences were found in the ethicality ratings and the occurrence reports. Both ethicality ratings and occurrence reports were significantly related to the manner of questioning. An ethicality hierarchy for student‐faculty sexual intimacy was found, with overt behaviors perceived as most ethically inappropriate and ambiguous behaviors as...
Re-imaging Reader-Response in Middle and Secondary Schools: Early Adolescent Girls’ Critical and Communal Reader Responses to the Young Adult Novel Speak

Reader-response has become one of the most influential literary theories to inform the pedagogies of middle and secondary English classrooms. However, many English and literacy educators have begun to advocate for more critical and culturally responsive versions of reader-response pedagogies, arguing that teachers move beyond valuing students’ personal responses to literature. This article, based on a yearlong qualitative study that explored how urban middle school girls participated in an after-school book club, presents a conceptualization of reading as critical and communal practice; and shows how early adolescent girls engaged with the young adult novel Speak and with one another. The adolescent girls, through reading communally, gained deeper understanding of the written text, and also encountered different ways of looking at themselves and others.
QUARK MASSES IN DUAL THEORIES

We consider the N=2, N f =2 Seiberg-Witten dual theory with two bare quark masses. We find that it is possible to have an arbitrary large mass ratio.
Microbially-Mediated Environmental Influences on Metazoan Colonization of Matground Ecosystems: Evidence from the Lower Cambrian Harkless Formation

Prior to the advent of widespread bioturbation during Cambro–Ordovician times, microbial mats may have covered large expanses of the continental shelf. Evidence of matgrounds in shallow-marine settings is provided by abundant wrinkle structures in Lower Cambrian strata of the Great Basin, United States. Wrinkle structures from the Lower Cambrian Harkless Formation commonly co-occur with a distinctive assemblage of invertebrate fossils, providing evidence for the possibility of selective metazoan colonization of matground substrates. Molds of linguliform brachiopods are abundant on many wrinkle surfaces. The agglutinated problematicum, Volborthella tenuis , also is found on wrinkle surfaces and in laminations beneath wrinkle-structure surfaces. Bedding-parallel trace fossils, such as Planolites , Diplichnites , and Taphrhelminthopsis , commonly crosscut wrinkle structures, while vertically oriented trace fossils are absent. Microbial mats containing layered microbial communities would have considerably compressed stratified redox zones beneath the sediment-water interface in marine-shelf settings. Sulfidic and anoxic conditions within and beneath microbial mats would have precluded habitation by many metazoans, while those that adapted to such conditions may have found matgrounds a unique, though temporally fleeting, ecological niche. The distinctive, low-diversity fossil assemblage found in association with the wrinkle structures in the Great Basin suggests that some early animals may have been adapted to hypoxic and sulfidic conditions found in matground substrates, while others may have been physiologically excluded from these environments.
Optimization of system architecture for Big Data analysis in climate science

In this paper, we describe an emergent tool called DAWN (short for "Distributed Analytics, Workflows and Numeric") which is a model for simulating, analyzing and optimizing system architectures for executing arbitrary data processing pipelines. As an example, we will apply DAWN to the investigation of a real-life Big Data use case in climate science: the evaluation of simulated rainfall characteristics using high-resolution observational data. We will show how DAWN can help in determining the optimal architecture, and science algorithms, to execute this case study analyzing distributed datasets, as a tradeoff between the overall time cost and the uncertainty of calculated metrics for model evaluation. We will also show how DAWN can guide architectural decisions for future research, specifically impacting how data should be generated and analyzed to cope with future projected data volumes.
Transforming Growth Factor-β and Cancer

Normal tissue homeostasis is maintained by strict regulation of interactions between cells and their microenvironment. How a cell responds to stimulatory and inhibitory signals it receives from the microenvironment will directly impact whether or not that particular cell will proceed through the cell cycle and proliferate or stop cell cycle progression and undergo assessment. When cells no longer respond to their microenvironmental cues and proliferate autonomously, tumors arise. The major known negative regulators of cell proliferation are the transforming growth factor βs (TGF-βs). The TGF-β signaling pathways are tumor suppressive, yet once tumors have developed, TGF-β signaling can enhance tumor progression.
Are Men at High Risk for Osteoporosis Underscreened? A Quality Improvement Project.

Context: Osteoporosis is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in both men and women. The mortality rate in men within 1 year of hip fracture is 37.5%, which is 51% higher than in women. Although clear guidelines exist for osteoporosis screening in women, these are less clear for men. The available guidelines recommend screening high-risk men; however, screening does not appear to be a standard practice. Objective: To increase screening rates of osteoporosis in high-risk men in our primary care clinic by 50%. Design: The screening rate of osteoporosis was determined in high-risk male veterans more than 50 years of age enrolled in the resident physician- and nurse practitioner-staffed primary care clinics at a Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Cleveland, OH. High-risk factors included prolonged use of steroids; hypogonadism; and autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, and systemic lupus erythematosus, which are known to be associated with osteoporosis. We surveyed health care professional trainees and nurses to explore their barriers to screening for osteoporosis in high-risk men. Main Outcome Measures: After creating awareness about the importance of this condition among the health care professionals, we analyzed whether this education had any impact on the screening rate. Results: The baseline screening rate in high-risk men was 11%. After phased surveys and awareness building, the screening rate increased to 20%. Conclusion: Osteoporosis in high-risk men is underscreened. Creating more awareness about the impact of this condition among health professional trainees and nurses can lead to improved screening rates.
Contact Pressure Sensitivity Analysis in N95 Filtering Facepiece Respirator With Strap Location, Friction, and Headform Material Property

The contact pressure between an N95 filtering facepiece respirator (FFR) and the human face plays an important role in FFR performance. In this paper, the effects of several important factors (strap locations on headback, friction, and facial soft tissue material property) on contact pressures are studied using validated N95 FFR/headform finite element models. Sixteen different FFR/headform combinations including six FFRs and five digital headforms (small, medium, large, long/narrow, and short/wide) are studied. For each FFR/headform combination, the facial contact pressure distribution is recorded from the finite element results. The maximum contact pressures from six key areas are recorded for sensitivity study. The results show that the strap locations on the headback produce the largest effect on the maximum contact pressure values and the pressure distribution. The friction and the facial soft tissue material property have limited effects on the maximum contact pressure although they can affect the pressure distribution.Copyright © 2015 by ASME
Lumbar Puncture for First Simple Febrile Seizure

Compliance with American Academy of Pediatrics consensus statement recommendations regarding lumbar puncture for infants 6-18 months of age with a first simple febrile seizure was investigated by a retrospective review of 704 infants evaluated in the pediatric emergency medicine division at Children’s Hospital Boston, MA, Oct 1995-Oct 2006.
Effects of Scroll Bar Orientation and Item Justification When using List Boxes

List boxes are a common user interface component in graphical user interfaces. In practice, most list boxes use right-oriented scroll bars to control left-justified text items. A two-way interaction hypothesis favoring the use of a scroll bar orientation consistent with list box item justification was examined for speed of use and user preference in two experiments. A two-way interaction was obtained in both experiments. Item selection was faster with a scroll bar orientation consistent with list item justification. Subjects preferred right-oriented scroll bars with right-oriented text items. There was no difference in preference between right and left-oriented scroll bars for left-justified text items. These results support a design principle of locality for user interface controls and controlled objects.
Non-equilibrium α-particle emission at 20 MeVnucleon☆

Abstract Energy and angular correlations between α particles and heavier products of the reactions of 310 MeV 16 O with Ti reveal two non-equilibrium components in the particle emission observed in coincidence with heavy products.
Aero-engine dual-variable decoupling control with single neuron

Aero-engine is a kind of multi-variable plant,which is difficult to control with the possible interaction between input variable and output variables.This paper introduces a multi-variable decoupling control with single neuron,adopting the modified Hebb learning algorithm to fast convergence.The turbojet engine is further simulated on-the-ground and in-the-air,which proves several advantages of this control system such as complete decoupling,fast response,small static error,and easy algorithm.And the author concludes that using two single neurons as Dual-Variable controller is effective to reduce the number of controller all over the flight envelope.
Synthetic evolutionary origin of a proofreading reverse transcriptase

Most reverse transcriptase (RT) enzymes belong to a single protein family of ancient evolutionary origin. These polymerases are inherently error prone, owing to their lack of a proofreading (3′- 5′ exonuclease) domain. To determine if the lack of proofreading is a historical coincidence or a functional limitation of reverse transcription, we attempted to evolve a high-fidelity, thermostable DNA polymerase to use RNA templates efficiently. The evolutionarily distinct reverse transcription xenopolymerase (RTX) actively proofreads on DNA and RNA templates, which greatly improves RT fidelity. In addition, RTX enables applications such as single-enzyme reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction and direct RNA sequencing without complementary DNA isolation. The creation of RTX confirms that proofreading is compatible with reverse transcription.
Country Market Sequential Order-of-Entry: A Learning Effects Approach

ABSTRACTIn this article, we identify and describe the sequential order-of-entry problem. The sequential order-of-entry problem arises when, after having identified a desirable set of country markets to enter, firms are unable (because of budgetary constraints), or unwilling (because of possible learning or strategic issues), to enter all at once. The question then arises whether some sequences to entering the desirable set of country markets are better than others? Answering this question is shown to be nontrivial. The article outlines a number of arguments for the existence of superior sequences to entering a set of desirable country markets, and develops normative and dynamic frameworks to aid in the identification and evaluation of sequences.
Compliance with guideline-directed therapy in diabetic patients admitted with acute coronary syndrome: Findings from the American Heart Association's Get With The Guidelines-Coronary Artery Disease (GWTG-CAD) program.

Background To evaluate and compare baseline characteristics, outcomes and compliance with guideline based therapy at discharge among diabetic and non-diabetic patients admitted with acute coronary syndromes (ACS). Methods and results Study population consisted of 151,270 patients admitted with ACS from 2002 through 2008 at 411 sites participating in the American Heart Association's Get with the Guidelines (GWTG) program. Demographic variables, physical exam findings, laboratory data, left ventricular ejection fraction, length of stay, in-hospital mortality and discharge medications were compared between diabetic and non-diabetic patients. Temporal trends in compliance with guidelines directed therapy were evaluated. Of 151,270 patients, 48,938 (32%) had diabetes. Overall, diabetic patients were significantly older and more likely non-white. They had significantly more hypertension, atherosclerotic disease, CKD, and LV dysfunction and were more likely to present as NSTEMI. They had longer hospital stay and higher hospital mortality than non-diabetic patients. Diabetic patients were less likely to get LDL checks (65% vs 70%) and less frequently prescribed statins (85% vs 89%), RAAS blockers for LV dysfunction (80% vs 84%) and dual-antiplatelet therapy (69% vs 74%). Diabetic patients were less likely to achieve BP goals before discharge (75% vs 82%). Fewer diabetic patients met first medical contact to PCI time for STEMI (44% vs 52%). Temporal trends, however, showed continued progressive improvement in most performance measures from 2002 to 2008 (all P Conclusions These data from a large cohort of ACS patients demonstrate gaps in compliance with guidelines directed therapy in diabetic patients but also indicate significant and continued improvement in most performance measures over time. Concerted efforts are needed to continue this positive trend.
Comparing Public Safety Outcomes for Traditional Probation vs Specialty Mental Health Probation.

Importance Probation is a cornerstone of efforts to reduce mass incarceration. Although it is understudied, specialty probation could improve outcomes for the overrepresented group of people with mental illness. Objective To test whether specialty probation yields better public safety outcomes than traditional probation. Design, Setting, and Participants A longitudinal observational study with group matching on age, sex, race/ethnicity, probation time, and offense at 2 urban agencies that exemplify specialty and traditional probation. Enrollment began October 19, 2005; follow-up data were complete January 26, 2013. Participants were 359 diverse probationers with serious mental health problems and functional impairment. Probationers and officers were assessed 3 times (for probationers, 6-month retention, 315 of 359 [88%]; 12-month retention 304 of 359 [85%]) and follow-up records were obtained. Machine learning algorithms were combined with a targeted maximum likelihood estimation, a double robust estimator that accounts for associations between confounders and both treatment assignment and outcomes. Statistical analysis was conducted from January 1, 2016 to May 5, 2017. Interventions Specialty probationers were assigned to small, homogeneous caseloads supervised by experts. Prior data indicate that specialty officers had better relationships with probationers, participated more in probationers’ treatment, and relied more on positive compliance strategies than traditional officers. Main Outcomes and Measures Violence during 1 year, determined by probationer report, officer report, and records, and rearrest during a period of 2 to 5 years, according to Federal Bureau of Investigation records. Results Participants were 183 specialty (73.8% of 248 eligible) and 176 traditional (56.6% of 311 eligible) probationers (205 men and 154 women; mean [SD] age, 36.9 [10.6]). Although specialty probation had no significant effect on violence (odds ratio, 0.97; 95% CI, 0.69-1.36), the odds of rearrest were 2.68 times higher for traditional probationers than for specialty probationers (95% CI, 1.86-3.84;P Conclusions and Relevance Although it did not specifically reduce violence, well-implemented specialty probation appears to be effective in reducing general recidivism. Reform efforts for people with mental illness could leverage probation—a ubiquitous and revitalized node of the justice system.
Core crushing and dynamic response of sandwich steel beams with sinusoidal and trapezoidal corrugated cores: A parametric study:

This paper presents a finite element based parametric study of the dynamic response and strength of sandwich steel beams with either sinusoidal or trapezoidal corrugated core subjected to impulsive...
CrmA Protects against Apoptosis and Ceramide Formation in PC12 Cells

TNF-α activated caspase 8 and caspase 3 in PC12 cells, leading to cell death by apoptosis (DNA fragmentation). TNF-α caspase activation and cell killing were blocked by transfection and overexpression of the viral protein CrmA, which specifically inhibits caspase 8. CrmA was also able to block the TNF-α-induced increase in ceramide formation in PC12 cells. Conversely, if caspase 8 was activated by light-activated Rose Bengal, there was an increase in both ceramide and caspase 3–mediated apoptosis, which was blocked by CrmA overexpression. This suggested that caspase 8 increases ceramide either by increasing its synthesis or by activating sphingomyelinase. Since fumonisin B1 did not block and sphingomyelin decreased when ceramide increased, we concluded that activation of sphingomyelinase is the most likely mechanism. The Rose Bengal activation of caspase 8 and increased ceramide formation was blocked with IETD-CHO, to show that reactive oxygen species (also generated by Rose Bengal) were not responsible for the observed increase in ceramide. Thus in PC12 pheochromocytoma cells, ceramide appears to amplify the death signal and there appears to be a sequence of events: TNF; TRADD, pro-caspase 8, caspase 8, sphingomyelinase, ceramide, caspase 3, apoptosis.
Kent R. Wilson (1937–2000)

Kent R. Wilson — inspiring architect of laser chemistry who developed techniques to probe the molecular dynamics of chemical and biochemical reactions.
Automated quantification of microvascular perfusion.

OBJECTIVE Changes in microvascular perfusion have been reported in many diseases, yet the functional significance of altered perfusion is often difficult to determine. This is partly because commonly used techniques for perfusion measurement often rely on either indirect or by-hand approaches. METHODS We developed and validated a fully automated software technique to measure microvascular perfusion in videos acquired by fluorescence microscopy in the mouse gastrocnemius. Acute perfusion responses were recorded following intravenous injections with phenylephrine, SNP, or saline. RESULTS Software-measured capillary flow velocity closely correlated with by-hand measured flow velocity (R2 = 0.91, P < 0.0001). Software estimates of capillary hematocrit also generally agreed with by-hand measurements (R2 = 0.64, P < 0.0001). Detection limits range from 0 to 2000 μm/s, as compared to an average flow velocity of 326 ± 102 μm/s (mean ± SD) at rest. SNP injection transiently increased capillary flow velocity and hematocrit and made capillary perfusion more steady and homogenous. Phenylephrine injection had the opposite effect in all metrics. Saline injection transiently decreased capillary flow velocity and hematocrit without influencing flow distribution or stability. All perfusion metrics were temporally stable without intervention. CONCLUSIONS These results demonstrate a novel and sensitive technique for reproducible, user-independent quantification of microvascular perfusion.
Receptor-mediated activation of a Cl(-) current by LPA and S1P in cultured corneal keratocytes.

PURPOSE This study was designed to examine the effects of lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) and sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) on Cl(-) currents (ICl(LPA)) in cultured corneal keratocytes isolated from the corneas of New Zealand White rabbits. METHODS ICl(LPA) and resting voltages were recorded with the amphotericin perforated-patch technique. Phenotype was determined with antibodies to alpha-smooth muscle actin. RESULTS Keratocytes cultured in serum have a phenotype (myofibroblast) and ionic currents similar to those of keratocytes isolated directly from corneas during wound healing. LPA and S1P both activated ICl(LPA) in a dose-dependent manner, and the LPA receptor-specific antagonist dioctyl-glycerol pyrophosphate (DGPP) blocked the LPA response, but not the S1P response. In addition, a relatively inactive form of LPA (LPA 8:0) was relatively ineffective in activating ICl(LPA). Activation of ICl(LPA) significantly depolarized the cells, and this depolarization was reversed by blocking ICl(LPA) with 4,4'-diisothiocyanostilbene-2,2'-disulfonic acid (DIDS) or 5-nitro-2-(3-phenylpropylamino) benzoic acid (NPPB). CONCLUSIONS These results demonstrate that activation of ICl(LPA) by LPA in cultured corneal keratocytes is receptor mediated and that ICl(LPA) can also be activated by S1P. From a functional standpoint, this work confirms that the current, which is typically thought of as purely volume-activated, can be activated through a receptor. In addition, activation of ICl(LPA) results in depolarization of the keratocyte. Finally, this work demonstrates that cultured corneal keratocytes can act as a model for the study of ion channel function in keratocytes during corneal wound healing.
Hospital Performance and Ownership Type: A Re-Assessment of the Evidence

Prior empirical research on US hospitals mostly concludes that ownership type – not-for-profit (NFP) versus for-profit (FP) – does not affect financial performance. This is surprising, in light of strong predictions from theories of NFP firm behavior. We revisit the issue with a comprehensive dataset covering the sixteen-year period 2000-2015, and find that ownership type matters a great deal, increasingly so over time, and in a manner consistent with theory. NFPs have higher operating expenses, broadly similar revenues and lower operating margins compared to FPs, findings that are robust to alternate specifications. The main reason for the higher costs in NFPs appears to be excess employment, especially of non-care provider staff. Further, hospitals that convert from NFP to FP status achieve lower cost and lower employment post-conversion. Quality measures and patient satisfaction scores are, however, somewhat higher for NFPs. Consistent with theory, ownership type creates a trade-off between efficiency and quality in the delivery of US hospital care.
Review of qualitative studies related to safer sex among college students and adolescents: Directions for Research

Objective: To review various published peer-reviewed literature conducted in the arena of qualitative studies concerned with HIV related sexual practice among adolescents and college students and discuss implications for research. Data source: An extensive search of five databases was completed. The inclusion criteria for all researches consisted of all qualitative peer-reviewed research articles pertaining to adolescents and college students published in the English language since 1981. The exclusion criteria were all peer-reviewed articles related to qualitative research published in languages other than English and articles related to populations other than adolescents and college students. Data synthesis: An instrument developed by the McMaster University Occupational Therapy Evidence-Based Practice Research Group called Guidelines for Critical Review Form was used to synthesize collected articles. Results: Important findings were: support of participants for sexuality education, attitudes towards safer sex, parents support for safer sex messages in schools, and sexual risk behaviors being due to gender power differentials. Conclusions: Qualitative research methodologies enable researchers to explore how and why persons think, feel and behave as they do in sexual behaviors.
Swimming Performance of Rainbow Trout and Westslope Cutthroat Trout in an Open-Channel Flume

Abstract We used an open-channel flume to characterize the swimming performance of Rainbow Trout Oncorhynchus mykiss and Westslope Cutthroat Trout Oncorhynchus clarki lewisi ranging nominally in fo...
When to Pull Starting Pitchers in Major League Baseball? A Data Mining Approach

One of the most important decisions made by managers in a baseball game is when to pull the starting pitcher. It has a direct consequence on the outcome of the game and also on the physical fitness of the pitcher. Traditionally, managers rely on various heuristics for this decision. In this paper, we propose a machine learning based approach to determine when to replace the starting pitcher. We curate a large dataset of more than one million samples, spanning more than 10 years of baseball games (2007 - 2017), and study the performance of various classification algorithms on this dataset. We further perform feature analysis to gain insights on the most important features influencing the replacement of starting pitchers. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first research effort to leverage machine learning and data analytics to model managers' decisions of pulling a starting pitcher from historic data. Such a system can be immensely useful in assisting managers make more informed decisions during an ongoing game and has the potential to reduce the risk of baseball related injuries. We hope that our curated dataset and initial research findings will promote further work toward this important problem of deciding when to pull a starting pitcher in an ongoing baseball game.
Biological Extinction and Climate Change

What are the current dimensions of biological diversity? Taxonomists have described approximately two million species of eukaryotic organisms. Many more remain unknown, and the global total may approximate 12 million species or more. Generally, for the past 65 million years, the rate of extinction of these species appears to have been ~0.1 extinctions per million species per year. Now, however, as a result of human activities, it has increased by about 1000 times, to ~100 species per million per year. We are losing species at about 1000 times the rate at which new ones are evolving. Many species are local and particularly liable to extinction, with climate change and increasing human-related pressures of all kinds pushing very strongly on life as it exists. Most of the species cannot be saved by forming parks and protected areas or away from their natural habitats unless human pressures are lessened by general action among nations, a prospect that is not being well realized at present. The strong call for the preservation of biodiversity in the encyclical Laudato Si’ represents the kind of ethical responsibility that must be adopted if there is to be any hope for the survival of our civilization.
Circuit Theory for Waveguiding Systems

This chapter contains sections titled: Equivalent Voltages and Currents Impedance Description of Waveguide Elements and Circuits Foster's Reactance Theorem Even and Odd Properties of Z in N-Port Circuits Two-Port Junctions Scattering-Matrix Formulation Scattering Matrix for a Two-Port Junction Transmission-Matrix Representation Signal Flow Graphs Generalized Scattering Matrix for Power Waves Excitation of Waveguides Waveguide Coupling by Apertures This chapter contains sections titled: Problems References