cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
On the Reliability of Multi-Hop Dynamic Spectrum Access Networks Supporting QoS Driven Applications

This paper addresses the problem of evaluating the reliability of a single-radio, multi-channel, multi-hop dynamic spectrum access (DSA) network supporting QoS-driven network services. We define reliability as the reciprocal of the probable number of transmission attempts required to ship each unit of application data successfully under a given demand. The demand represents the flow rate (per unit of time) at which an application needs to be served. We provide analytical methods of reliability evaluation for two classes of DSA network service. 1. A network servicing a single source-destination pair and 2. A network servicing a broadcasting or multicasting application where common data has to be disseminated to all or a subset of nodes in the network. All the nodes involved in data communication are secondary nodes, which access the channels reserved for primary users, in an unlicensed manner. Our methods take into account the channel capacities of the links and provide an useful and an important metric for the effectiveness of a dynamic spectrum access network for a given demand. These methods can also be used to find robust routing paths in such networks. The approach we use is based on concepts in mathematical theory of reliability and theory of network flows. Our methodologies are scalable, simple to implement and can be extended to all other types of communication networks and network applications. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first work to address reliability issues in DSA networks.
High CO2 emissions through porous media: transport mechanisms and implications for flux measurement and fractionation

Abstract Diffuse emissions of CO2 are known to be large around some volcanoes and hydrothermal areas. Accumulation-chamber measurements of CO2 flux are increasingly used to estimate the total magmatic or metamorphic CO2 released from such areas. To assess the performance of accumulation chamber systems at fluxes one to three orders of magnitude higher than normally encountered in soil respiration studies, a test system was constructed in the laboratory where known fluxes could be maintained through dry sand. Steady-state gas concentration profiles and fractionation effects observed in the 30-cm sand column nearly match those predicted by the Stefan-Maxwell equations, indicating that the test system was functioning successfully as a uniform porous medium. Eight groups of investigators tested their accumulation chamber equipment, all configured with continuous infrared gas analyzers (IRGA), in this system. Over a flux range of ∼200–12,000 g m−2 day−1, 90% of their 203 flux measurements were 0–25% lower than the imposed flux with a mean difference of −12.5%. Although this difference would seem to be within the range of acceptability for many geologic investigations, some potential sources for larger errors were discovered. A steady-state pressure gradient of −20 Pa/m was measured in the sand column at a flux of 11,200 g m−2 day−1. The derived permeability (50 darcies) was used in the dusty-gas model (DGM) of transport to quantify various diffusive and viscous flux components. These calculations were used to demonstrate that accumulation chambers, in addition to reducing the underlying diffusive gradient, severely disrupt the steady-state pressure gradient. The resultant diversion of the net gas flow is probably responsible for the systematically low flux measurements. It was also shown that the fractionating effects of a viscous CO2 efflux against a diffusive influx of air will have a major impact on some important geochemical indicators, such as N2/Ar, δ15N–N2, and 4He/22Ne.
Estimation of maximum achievable end-to-end throughput in IEEE 802.11 based wireless mesh networks

Wireless mesh networks can be quickly deployed in various situations to provide temporary to permanent wireless network coverage. To assess the feasibility and reliability of a given end-to-end communication need, it is essential for communication end points to accurately estimate their achievable end-to-end throughput. Several capacity, end-to-end throughput, and available bandwidth estimation techniques have been studied in the past for wired and wireless networks. The contention among wireless nodes arising due to the IEEE 802.11 medium access control protocol's channel access mechanism renders the estimation of such network attributes challenging in multi-hop networks. This paper evaluates one state-of-the-art capacity estimation approach for ad hoc wireless networks and shows that it in fact measures achievable throughput instead of capacity and its estimated achievable throughput is not realizable. An analysis of end-to-end delays of injected probe packets is presented to show the effects of medium access contention and network queuing on the delays and estimated achievable throughput subject to different network traffic patterns and multi-hop collisions. Based on the observations, an alternative less intrusive delay distribution based achievable throughput estimation solution is proposed. With ns-2 simulation, the scheme was shown to accurately estimate the achievable throughput under various cross traffic conditions.
On the computation of a minimum-phase spectral factor

The problem of finding the minimum-phase spectral factor of a linear-phase digital filter having double zeros on the unit circle is addressed. It is shown that a simple Newton-Raphson iterative algorithm can compute this factor quickly and accurately and a short Matlab program for doing the computation is given. The Newton-Raphson method is also compared to an alternative approach by finding the zeros of polynomials. The accuracy of solutions obtained is of major emphasis in the work.
Development of Mouse Cremaster Transplantation Model for Intravital Microscopic Evaluation

Objective: In this study, we investigated the possibility of transplanting cremaster muscle in mice. After transplantation, we measured the microcirculatory parameters and compared with the cremaster-control values with no transplantation. Methods: In group 1 (n 10, C57BL/6N), normal cremaster microcirculation parameters were measured without transplantation. In group 2 (n 6), isograft transplantations were performed between C57BL/6N mice. After transplantation, standard microcirculatory parameters were measured for 3 hours in both groups. Results: The procedure was performed with a 95% success rate and 75 minutes of ischemia time. Functional capillary perfusion, diameters, and red blood cell velocities of the first-, second-, and third-order arterioles and veins showed significant decreases in the isograft group within the first 2 hours (p < 0.05) but returned to normal values at the third hour. The number of rolling, adhering, and transmigrating leukocytes and lymphocytes also showed an increase in the isograft group within the first and second hours (p < 0.05, compared to cremaster control). Conclusions: Leukocyte/endothelial interaction and hemodynamic parameters of muscle flap circulation displayed the effects of ischemia in the isograft group. The cremaster muscle transplantation in mice was found to be a reliable and reproducible model offering the unique possibility of observing and studying the leukocyte-endothelial interaction during ischemia/reperfusion injury and allograft rejection using intravital microscopy. Microcirculation (2002) 9, 487–495. doi:10.1038/sj.mn.7800161
Enantioselective inhibition of d -serine transport by (S)-ketamine

Background and Purpose Patients with major depressive disorder receiving racemic ketamine, (R,S)-ketamine, experience transient increases in Clinician-Administered Dissociative States Scale scores and a coincident drop in plasma d-serine levels. The results suggest that (R,S)-ketamine produces an immediate, concentration-dependent pharmacological effect on d-serine plasma concentrations. One potential source of this effect is (R,S)-ketamine-induced inhibition of the transporter ASCT2, which regulates intracellular d-serine concentrations. In this study, we tested this hypothesis by examining the effect of (S)- and (R)-ketamine on ASCT2-mediated transport of d-serine in PC-12 and 1321N1 cells and primary neuronal cells in culture. Experimental Approach Intracellular and extracellular d-serine levels were determined using capillary electrophoresis–laser-induced fluorescence and liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry respectively. Expression of ASCT2, Asc-1 and serine racemase was determined utilizing Western blotting. Key Results (S)-Ketamine produced a concentration-dependent increase in intracellular d-serine and reduced extracellular d-serine accumulation. In contrast, (R)-ketamine decreased both intracellular and extracellular d-serine levels. The ASCT2 inhibitor, benzyl-d-serine (BDS), and ASCT2 gene knockdown mimicked the action of (S)-ketamine on d-serine in PC-12 cells, while the Asc-1 agonist d-isoleucine reduced intracellular d-serine and increased extracellular d-serine accumulation. This response to d-isoleucine was not affected by BDS or (S)-ketamine. Primary cultures of rat neuronal cells expressed ASCT2 and were responsive to (S)-ketamine and BDS. (S)- and (R)-ketamine increased the expression of monomeric serine racemase in all the cells studied, with (S)-ketamine having the greatest effect. Conclusions and Implications (S)-Ketamine decreased cellular export of d-serine via selective inhibition of ASCT2, and this could represent a possible source of dissociative effects observed with (R,S)-ketamine.
Overcoming antigenic diversity and improving vaccines using DNA shuffling and screening technologies.

Viral, bacterial and parasitic pathogens have evolved multiple strategies to evade the immune response, facilitate transmission and establish chronic infections. One of the underlying strategies that pathogens have evolved is antigenic variation of immune response targets that reduce the affinity of antigen binding to antibodies and major histocompatability complex class I and II receptors. Vaccine candidates generally target a limited number of these antigen variants or combine antigens from several variants to include in multivalent vaccine formulations. DNA shuffling and screening technologies, also known as MolecularBreedingTM (Maxygen, Inc.) directed molecular evolution, have been successfully used to identify and develop novel and chimaeric vaccine candidates capable of inducing immune responses that recognise and control multiple antigenic variants. DNA shuffling and screening strategies also select vaccine candidates with improved immunogenicity, increased expression as recombinant polypeptides an...
Respiratory restriction and elevated pleural and esophageal pressures in morbid obesity.

To explore mechanisms of restrictive respiratory physiology and high pleural pressure (PPl) in severe obesity, we studied 51 obese subjects (body mass index = 38–80.7 kg/m2) and 10 nonobese subject...
Making an omelet.

When we consider the challenges facing academic medicine today, none seems more pressing than negotiating the balance between supervision and autonomy of trainees. As a result of recent duty hour restrictions for residents, many programs have instituted “24/7” attending physician coverage models, thereby increasing the amount of time during which residents have direct faculty supervision.1 Proponents of increased supervision espouse the primary importance of patient safety, citing the most recent iteration of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education task force recommendation on duty hours and its call for increased supervision of residents, particularly in the first year of training.2 Less-often mentioned, however, is that these guidelines also “affirm the responsibility of faculty to make sure that residents are prepared for the independent practice of medicine” and propose that “senior residents or fellows should serve in a supervisory role for junior residents.” It seems to us that 24/7 attending coverage models, while certainly increasing supervision, may impinge on these last 2 aims. How is one to prepare a resident for independent practice while implementing a system whereby that resident is granted less autonomy? Similarly, how are senior residents and fellows to learn the crucial skill of supervision, if they are being overstepped in the process by a more senior physician? This debate is often framed as a choice between increased supervision and patient safety or increased resident autonomy and resultant patient harm. On one side is the argument that trainees need more supervision, thereby preventing mistakes that occur early in a career. Some evidence seems to show that more mistakes do happen when trainees are at the beginning of their practice of medicine.3 Proponents of this side of the argument cite studies reporting that increased overnight supervision led to residents reporting higher educational value without a perceived …
JOINING UNFOLDINGS OF 3-D SURFACES

Origami-based design methods enable complex devices to be fabricated quickly in plane and then folded into their final 3-D shapes. So far, these folded structures have been designed manually. This paper presents a geometric approach to automatic composition of folded surfaces, which will allow existing designs to be combined and complex functionality to be produced with minimal human input. We show that given two surfaces in 3-D and their 2-D unfoldings, a surface consisting of the two originals joined along an arbitrary edge can always be achieved by connecting the two original unfoldings with some additional linking material, and we provide an algorithm to generate this composite unfolding. The algorithm is verified using various surfaces, as well as a walking and gripping robot design.
Plane wave reflection from a rectangular-mesh ground screen

The theory of scattering of electromagnetic plane waves of arbitrary incidence and polarization from an infinite rectangular-mesh ground screen is treated. The screen is composed of thin wires of circular cross section, and is parallel to the interface between two homogeneous media. The theoretical results for parallel-wire screens are obtained in the limit of large wire spacing for one dimension of the mesh screen. Results presented for incident parallel polarized plane waves indicate that both the parallel-wire and mesh screens may exhibit a change in reflecting properties as the plane of incidence is varied from the wire axis direction. In addition, it is shown that the parallel-wire screen can produce appreciably higher cross-polarized fields than a square-mesh screen of the same wire spacing.
Planning multi-step error detection and recovery strategies

Robots must plan and execute tasks in the presence of uncer tainty. Uncertainty arises from sensing errors, control errors, and the geometry of the environment. By employing a com bined strategy offorce and position control, a robot program mer can often guarantee reaching the desired final configura tion from all the likely initial configurations. Such motion strategies permit robots to carry out tasks in the presence of significant uncertainty. However, compliant motion strategies are very difficult for humans to specify. For this reason we have been working on the automatic synthesis of motion strategies for robots. In previous work (Donald 1988b; 1989), we presented a framework for computing one-step motion strategies that are guaranteed to succeed in the presence of all three kinds of uncertainty. The motion strategies comprise sensor-based gross motions, compliant motions, and simple pushing motions.However, it is not always possible to find plans that are guaranteed to succeed. For example, if tole...
Placing limits on channel flow: Insights from the Bhutan Himalaya

article i nfo Article history: Along the majority of the Himalayan orogenic belt, high-grade metamorphic rocks of the Greater Himalaya (GH) are separated from lower-grade metasedimentary rocks by two shear zones, the basal, top-to-the- south Main Central Thrust (MCT), and the upper, top-to-the-north South Tibetan Detachment (STD). Seemingly pervasive ductile deformation within GH rocks and a lack of exposed hanging wall or footwall cut- offs for the MCT and STD have permitted models that predict 100's of km of coeval displacement on both structures, extruding the GH section via gravitational loading from Tibet and focused erosion along the Himalayan topographic front. We present new mapping, stratigraphic columns, mineral assemblages, U/Pb zircon ages, and a suite of structural data from GH and Tethyan Himalayan (TH) rocks in eastern and central Bhutan. Our observations highlight significant, ∼250-300 °C along-strike changes in the deformation temperature conditions recorded by GH rocks. In eastern Bhutan, TH rocks are separated from GH rocks displaying ubiquitous partial melt textures by a top-to-the-north sense shear zone correlated with the STD. However, in central Bhutan, limited partial melt textures are only present near the base of the GH section, a biotite-muscovite-garnet mineral assemblage persists from 0.2 to 3 km above the MCT through TH rocks, and distinct lithologies interfinger at the GH-TH contact, which suggests that TH strata are in depositional contact above GH strata. The same strata exposed on both sides of the STD limits slip along this structure to ∼20 km. Thin-section scale top-to-the-south shear is focused in a 2-3 km-thick zone above the MCT while the overlying ∼11 km-thick section displays top-to-the-north shear, suggesting asymmetric channel behavior. Strained quartz grains allow us to quantify ∼23-34 km of top-to-the-north shear. Our data suggest that the GH-TH section in central Bhutan acted as a cool, viscous, low-displacement channel, and when compared to sections in eastern Bhutan highlights dramatic changes in temperature conditions, viscosity and possibly displacement along strike. However, we suggest that the erosion rates needed to remove low-viscosity material limit channel flow even in regions containing significant partial melt, and that the magnitude of channel flow is small compared to the total mass balance of the system.
Glacial-Marine Sedimentation Processes and Lithofacies of Temperate Tidewater Glaciers, Glacier Bay, Alaska

This study relates observed processes to sedimentary lithofacies produced by temperate tidewater glaciers in fjord basins. Observed processes that result from interaction between ice, sea, and meltwater control lithofacies production. These are: (1) rates of ice calving and glacier front retreat: these influence relative sedimentation rates, type of sediment accumulated, and environmental energy at a glacier front; (2) positions of debris in or on a glacier: these control where and how debris is released to the marine environment; (3) meltwater streams: these contribute glacial rock flour, of which most glacial-marine sediment is composed. Streams also contribute coarser-grained debris that build ice-contact, subaerial outwash-deltas and submarine fan complexes. Subglacial streams are unique in the fluvial system because they build submarine fans by introducing coarse-grained debris at the base rather than top of a sea water column. Streams produce overflows, interflows, and when sediment concentrations are sufficiently high, underflows in a fjord; and (4) oceanographic parameters: these control berg tracks, rate of ice melting, distribution and water column position of turbid plumes from meltwater streams, vertical mixing of the water column, and bottom current activity on the fjord floor.
Bringing Community and Academic Scholars Together to Facilitate and Conduct Authentic Community Based Participatory Research: Project UNITED

Cultural competency, trust, and research literacy can affect the planning and implementation of sustainable community-based participatory research (CBPR). The purpose of this manuscript is to highlight: (1) the development of a CBPR pilot grant request for application; and (2) a comprehensive program supporting CBPR obesity-related grant proposals facilitated by activities designed to promote scholarly collaborations between academic researchers and the community. After a competitive application process, academic researchers and non-academic community leaders were selected to participate in activities where the final culminating project was the submission of a collaborative obesity-related CBPR grant application. Teams were comprised of a mix of academic researchers and non-academic community leaders, and each team submitted an application addressing obesity-disparities among rural predominantly African American communities in the US Deep South. Among four collaborative teams, three (75%) successfully submitted a grant application to fund an intervention addressing rural and minority obesity disparities. Among the three submitted grant applications, one was successfully funded by an internal CBPR grant, and another was funded by an institutional seed funding grant. Preliminary findings suggest that the collaborative activities were successful in developing productive scholarly relationships between researchers and community leaders. Future research will seek to understand the full-context of our findings.
Polynomial solvability of variants of the trust-region subproblem

We consider an optimization problem of the form[EQUATION]where P ⊆ Rn is a polyhedron defined by m inequalities and Q is general and the μh e Rn and the rh quantities are given. In the case |S| = 1, |K| = 0 and m = 0 one obtains the classical trust-region subproblem; a strongly NP-hard problem which has been the focus of much interest because of applications to combinatorial optimization and nonlinear programming. We prove that for each fixed pair |S| and |K| our problem can be solved in polynomial time provided that either (1) |K| > 0 and the number of faces of P that intersect [EQUATION] is polynomially bounded, or (2) |K| = 0 and m is bounded.
Does Drinking in Moderation Lead to Higher Life Satisfaction

This paper presents a study of the impact on a person’s life satisfaction of moderate alcohol consumption. Using a large dataset (N = 1.5 million) which covers the period 2005–2010, I find that moderate drinkers tend to be more satisfied with their life than abstainers. In order to check the robustness of the result found using the linear regression model, an instrumental variables (IV) approach is adopted. I exploit the fact that those who were interviewed after a holiday were more likely to report that they had consumed alcohol. The IV approach suggests that moderate alcohol consumption has little causal effect on life satisfaction. The positive correlation between moderate drinking and life satisfaction seems to be largely due to selection—that is, happy individuals tend to drink in moderation, rather than vice versa.
AB1041 Prevalence of Latent Tuberculosis Infection in Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients: Findings from A United Nations National Study

Background The risk of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) is increased in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) than in the general population. Additionally, RA patients may develop pulmonary complications and are more susceptible to respiratory infections. While tuberculosis (TB) was previously considered a problem only in developing countries, it is now a growing concern also in the industrialized world. Therefore, it is important to study the prevalence of LTBI in the RA population, especially with the current dominant role of the new biological therapies in RA therapeutics. Objectives To identify the prevalence of LTBI among RA patients and associated risk factors. Methods We interrogated the NIS database, the largest all-payer inpatient care database in the United States, with approximately 8 million hospitalizations each year. Our search included all adult RA patients with a discharge diagnosis of RA (ICD-9 code 714.0). LTBI prevalence was identified by ICD-9 code 795.5. We did a frequency analysis of epidemiological variables of RA patients with and without LTBI. Discharge weights were used to enable nationwide estimates. Results The total number of RA patients identified were 530,018. Amongst them, LTBI was prevalent in 511 patients (0.1%) whereas LTBI in the hospitalized population was diagnosed in 24,332 of 32,896,347 patients in the dataset (0.07%). We compared the data of patients with RA and LTBI with that of RA patients not having LTBI (Table 1). Females, African Americans and smokers had a 5% higher prevalence of LTBI. Additionally, LTBI was 2.5 times more prevalent in RA patients with lung cancer and 3.75 times more prevalent in Hispanic RA patients. Conclusions LTBI was 33% more prevalent in RA patients compared to other hospitalized patients in a nationwide inpatient registry. Risk factors associated with increased LTBI prevalence were history of smoking, lung cancer, Hispanic ethnicity, and African American race. Disclosure of Interest None declared DOI 10.1136/annrheumdis-2014-eular.4835
Evoked Potentials and Head Injury: 2. Clinical Applications

The method of rating abnormality of evoked brain potential patterns and assessing the extent and severity of cortical and subcortical brain dysfunction in head injury patients described in Part I is applied in a clinical context. Evoked potential abnormality (EPA) scores are found to be significantly correlated both with admission and outcome disability approximately one year after head injury. Correlations increase with the increase in the number of sensory modalities tested. Correlations between EPA scores and clinical disability (measured by the Disability Rating Scale) decrease with time after injury. Significant correlations, however, persist for about 60 days after onset of injury. It was found that EP pattern abnormalities can reflect specific sensory (and at times motor) deficits in noncommunicative patients and thereby contribute significantly to early treatment and rehabilitation planning.
Protection Allocation and Testing Techniques of Filters Used in Converter Station

The article introduced the types and characters of common filters used in converter stations and discussed filter protection allocation schemes and described the field testing techniques of filter in detail.
The Changing Nature of ICU Charge Nurses’ Decision Making: From Supervision of Care Delivery to Unit Resource Management

Article-at-a-Glance Background Recent findings that variations in nursing workload may affect inpatient outcomes now highlight nurse workload management and the need for an updated analysis of the role of the charge nurse (CN). Methods Observational data for eight CNs, each at one of eight ICUs in a not-for-profit Level 1 Trauma Center, coded to capture interprofessional interactions, decision making, team coordination phases, and support tools. A researcher shadowed each participant for 12hours. Each shift began and ended with a face-to-face handoff that included summaries of each patient's condition; the current bed census; anticipated admissions, discharges, and transfers; and the number of nurses available to work the current and coming two shifts. The researcher, using a notebook, recorded the substantive content of all work conversations initiated by or directed to the CN from physicians, staff nurses, allied health workers, other employees, and patients/families. The tools used to support conversations were collected as blank forms or computer screen prints and annotated to describe how they were used, when, and for what purpose. Findings Statistically significant three-way interactions suggest that CNs' conversations with colleagues depend on the team coordination phase and the decision-making level, and that the support tools that CNs use when talking to colleagues depend on the decision-making level and the team coordination phase. Conclusions The role of ICU CNs appears to be continuing to evolve, now encompassing unit resource management in addition to supervising care delivery. Effective support tools, together with education that would enhance communication and resource management skills, will be essential to CNs' ability to support unit resilience and adaptability in an increasingly complex environment.
A Flipped Classroom with and Without Computers

Flipping a classroom involves a more interactive class model where students and instructors spend the majority of the class time on various interactive activities in engagement with class materials. Often, this pedagogy style involves taking advantage of the new interactive technologies. In this work, we describe an experiment in an introduction to programming class (CS1) in which we compared the outcomes of offering the same interactive classroom with and without computers. The first approach required students to bring computers to class to engage with the class and materials individually and in groups using the computer-enabled tools. The other approach was to ban computers and require students to interact in person and engage with materials using pen and paper. In both approaches the students’ attempts are shared with the class and discussed, and in general we attempted to maintain the same class models. We found that the use of computers alone had no statistically significant effect on the students’ learning outcomes, enjoyment of the material, self-assessment of their understanding, use of teaching assistant resources, or self-estimate of how many hours they invested outside of the classroom. We did find that a statistically significant number of students preferred in-class engagements and interactions using computers. We also found that the instructor had much more useful and detailed information about individual student’s interaction in class when computers were used. We conclude that, although many instructors are wary of requiring computer use in large classes, there is evidence that students prefer it, it does not negatively affect learning outcomes, and with appropriate tools and pedagogy, it gives the instructor a much deeper and more nuanced view of student performance in the class.
Does Vessel Noise Affect Oyster Toadfish Calling Rates

The question we addressed in this study is whether oyster toadfish respond to vessel disturbances by calling less when vessels with lower frequency spectra are present in a sound recording and afterward. Long-term data recorders were deployed at the Neuse (high vessel-noise site) and Pamlico (low vessel-noise site) Rivers. There were many fewer toadfish detections at the high vessel-noise site than the low-noise station. Calling rates were lower in the high-boat traffic area, suggesting that toadfish cannot call over loud vessel noise, reducing the overall calling rate, and may have to call more often when vessels are not present.
Marketing home i.v. antibiotic therapy to physicians.

Home intravenous antibiotic therapy (HIVAT) is a safe, efficient, and cost-saving alternative to hospitalization--and the program of choice among patients and their families. Before the full spectrum of benefits can be realized, home infusion companies face the challenge of educating primary care physicians in HIVAT patient selection, antibiotic considerations, and the home care provider team approach.
Perceptual Pseudoneglect: Laterality and the Perception of Tactile Pressure (P4.056)

Background/Objective: Attended objects are perceived as having a greater magnitude than those which receive less attention. Rightward deviation on line bisection (allocentric neglect), is results from right hemisphere lesions. In contrast, healthy participants reveal a leftward deviation in visual and tactile line bisection (pseudoneglect), both allocentric tasks. These results suggest that the right hemisphere is dominant in allocating spatial attention. With an egocentric task, such as body bisections, there is a rightward deviation, suggesting left hemisphere dominance for mediating egocentric attention; however, it is possible that this rightward deviation is action-intentional rather than attentional. Thus, it is not known if in a non-motoric, non-spatial, purely perceptual domain there is an attentional bias and the direction of this bias. Design/Methods: The participants were 24 healthy adults (14F). To test these hypotheses we used a psychophysical technique where one compares the intensity of test stimuli to a standard stimulus. These test stimuli were applied to the palm of the left and right hands, in a counterbalanced order, using Semmes-Weinstein Monofilaments of 6 magnitudes, 3 greater and 3 less than a standard stimulus. In each trial, after being stimulated with the standard stimulus, a test monofilament was applied and the participant was asked to provide a numerical estimate of the magnitude of the second stimulus relative to the standard. Results and Conclusions: The right hand perceived stimuli that were lighter than the standard stimulus to be more intense than when these same stimuli were perceived by the left hand. Both this tactile task and the body bisection task, where there is a rightward deviation, require attention to be egocentrically oriented. These results suggest that whereas the right hemisphere is dominant for mediating allocentric or spatial attention the left hemisphere may be domain for mediating egocentric or self-directed attention Disclosure: Dr. Kesayan has nothing to disclose. Dr. Lamb has nothing to disclose. Dr. Williamson has nothing to disclose. Dr. Falchook has nothing to disclose. Dr. Heilman has received personal compensation from AAN, Harvard Dementia as a speaker. Dr. Heilman has received royalities on books that he has written or edited.
Analytical and biological variability in biomarker measurement in the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos

Abstract Background Biomarker variability, which includes within-individual variability (CV I ), between-individual variability (CV G ) and methodological variability (CV P + A ) is an important determinant of our ability to detect biomarker-disease associations. Estimates of CV I and CV G may be population specific and little data exists on biomarker variability in diverse Hispanic populations. Hence, we evaluated all 3 components of biomarker variability in the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL) using repeat blood collections (n = 58) and duplicate blood measurements (n = 761–929 depending on the biomarker). Methods We estimated the index of individuality (II) ((CV I + CV P + A ) / CV G ) for 41 analytes and evaluated differences in the II across sexes and age groups. Results Biomarkers such as fasting glucose, triglycerides and ferritin had substantially higher inter-individual variability and lower II in HCHS/SOL as compared to the published literature. We also found significant sex-specific differences in the II for neutrophil count, platelet count, hemoglobin, % eosinophils and fasting glucose. The II for fasting insulin, post oral glucose tolerance test glucose and cystatin C was significantly higher among the 18–44 y age group as compared to the 45 + y age group. Conclusions The implications of these findings for determining biomarker-disease associations in Hispanic populations need to be evaluated in future studies.
Development and Field Application of a Model Predicting Effects of Episodic Hypoxia on Short‐Term Growth of Spot

AbstractIn North Carolina and elsewhere, there is concern that excessive nutrient loading and resulting hypoxic conditions in coastal ecosystems are adversely affecting the native fauna, but quantifying the effects on fish can be difficult. Hypoxia may reduce fish growth via direct exposure or indirectly (e.g., cost of low-oxygen avoidance, reduced food availability, and density-dependent effects in oxygenated refuges). Given the fine spatial and temporal scale of oxygen dynamics in estuarine habitats, evaluating the impacts of hypoxia on fish growth requires short-term growth indicators that integrate the effects of rapidly changing environmental conditions. To address this need, we experimentally determined the sensitivity and response time of a suite of bioindicators of recent growth (RNA:DNA ratio and RNA concentration in muscle tissue; insulin-like growth factor-I messenger RNA expression in the liver; hepatosomatic index; and Fulton’s condition factor K) to changes in the specific growth rate of juv...
Tax Reform – Process Failures, Loopholes and Wealth Windfalls

This paper argues that the rushed legislative consideration of tax reform proposals without adequate time to review and analyze bill text has left open unintended loopholes. The paper identifies a loophole that would benefit multinationals in the proposals’ “repatriation holiday” provisions that if not fixed could result in large revenue losses. This loophole is illustrative of the pervasive failure in the proposals to incorporate guardrails around substantial rate reductions that would effectively police the many new boundaries between rate differences that the bill creates. Loopholes like that described in this paper are a sideshow compared to the proposals’ wealth windfall to the already wealthy from business tax rate reductions, but, incredibly, they would enhance it. Short-term political exigencies are not an excuse to adopt legislation that affords tax avoidance opportunities that will yield unintended revenue losses and undermine taxpayer faith in the tax system and their national government. Congress should slow down, hold hearings, collect comments and consider them, rather than plunging ahead with misguided legislation.
1720e Bias and target parameters in occupational epidemiology

Along with the issues and limitations inherent in all observational studies, occupational epidemiologic studies have to address biases arising from the healthy worker effect. This mechanism can be described as one of a time varying confounder affected by prior exposure, which cannot be addressed in standard regression approaches. Recent applications of a series of methods collectively known as ‘g-methods’, have sought to address this issue in occupational epidemiologic studies. Furthermore, some studies seek to provide direct estimates of risk (cumulative incidence) in relation to exposures of interest, under hypothetical exposure scenarios and interventions. These measures are advantageous compared to traditional measures of contrast relying on the hazard or the odds, and are of direct significance to risk and policy assessment. This talk will portray issues that may give rise to bias in occupational studies, such as time-varying confounding affected by prior exposure, right censoring, competing events, and left truncation in relation to methods used to address them. We also lay out steps in identifying target quantities of interest, given the existing knowledge and questions at hand, assessing whether that quantity is identifiable with available estimation methods, and the interpretation of these quantities after estimation.
Model-based capacitated clustering with posterior regularization

Abstract We propose a heuristic approach to address the general class of optimization problems involving the capacitated clustering of observations consisting of variable values that are realizations from respective probability distributions. Based on the expectation-maximization algorithm, our approach unifies Gaussian mixture modeling for clustering analysis and cluster capacity constraints using a posterior regularization framework. To test our algorithm, we consider the capacitated p-median problem in which the observations consist of geographic locations of customers and the corresponding demand of these customers. Our heuristic has superior performance compared to classic geometrical clustering heuristics, with robust performance over a collection of instance types.
Feedbackkultur und Kultur

Um die Frage gleich vorweg zu beantworten: Ja. Jetzt, da Sie die Antwort kennen, lesen Sie hoff entlich auch noch zumindest bis zur Frage weiter. Denn die Frage sollte jeden beschaft igen, der plant, Feedback als Masnahme im Unternehmen einzusetzen. Die Frage lautet: „Ist eine Feedbackkultur notwendig, wenn Feedbackprozesse erfolgreich im Unternehmen etabliert werden sollen?“ Die Antwort kennen Sie bereits. Schwierig wird es, wenn man genau hinsieht und sich die berechtigte nachste Frage stellt, namlich wann Feedbackprozesse erfolgreich etabliert sind. Das nachfolgende Kapitel widmet sich weiteren Fragen: • Wann ist Feedback erfolgreich? • Was ist eine Feedbackkultur? Wozu dient sie? • Welche Einfl ussfaktoren auf Feedback gibt es? • Welche Rolle spielt der kulturelle Kontext bei Feedback? • Welche Handlungsoptionen existieren fur Unternehmen, um in interkulturellem Kontext eine Feedbackkultur zu etablieren?
Enders, John Franklin

John Franklin Enders (1897–1985) received the 1954 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with his colleagues Thomas Huckle Weller (1915–2008), and Frederick Chapman Robbins (1916–2003) “for their discoveries of the ability of poliomyelitis viruses to grow in cultures of various types of tissue.” Until their work, attempts to grow polioviruses in vitro had failed. Their first papers demonstrating growth of poliovirus in tissue culture, including culture in nonnervous tissue, appeared in 1949. The discoveries of Enders and his colleagues allowed the subsequent development of effective polio vaccines, and the consequent dramatic worldwide decrease in mortality and morbidity from the disease.
Protein Structure Refinement using Residual Dipolar Couplings

Residual dipolar couplings arise from small degrees of alignment of molecules in a magnetic field. Media employed for imparting alignment onto biomolecules lacking sufficient magnetic susceptibility anisotropies themselves comprise dilute aqueous phospholipid bicelles, colloidal suspensions of rod-shaped viruses and lamellar phases of quasiternary surfactant systems. The magnitude of the residual dipolar couplings depends upon the degree of ordering and allows the determination of the corresponding internuclear vectors with respect to the molecule’s alignment frame. Inclusion of dipolar constraints into NMR structure calculations leads to improved accuracy of the resulting structures, especially in cases where the information content provided by traditional NOE constraints is limited. This chapter describes the different media used for alignment and the application of dipolar coupling information for protein structure refinement and fold determination.
Design and Development of Web Services for Accessing Free Hydrological Data from the Czech Republic

The target of the open source hydrodata.cz web application and web services is to bridge the gap between modelers and field hydrologists by providing free, publicly accessible precipitation, snow, temperature, and discharge data series from multiple organizations in the Czech Republic using the standardized the CUAHSI WaterML data format and search services. Data providers contributing to this effort include the CUAHSI, NOAA, Charles University experimental watershed network, Czech watershed authorities, and networks of volunteer observers. Time period covered includes the floods of 2006, 2009, 2010 and 2011 as well as the 2007 drought. Adopting the WaterML standard also allows the use of other free third party client side web based and desktop data discovery software tools – which has the added benefit of making the Czech Republic hydrological data more readily accessible to the international community.
Compensate for My Abuse: A Daily Investigation of Emotional and Cognitive Mechanisms

Research on abusive supervision has predominantly focused on the consequences for victims while overlooking how leaders respond to their own abusive behavior. Drawing from the literature on moral c...
P-031 Outcomes and restenosis rates following carotid artery revascularization in a predominantly symptomatic patient population

Background Stroke is the second leading cause of death worldwide and the leading cause of disability in the U.S. Carotid endarterectomy (CEA) and carotid angioplasty and stenting (CAS) are well established treatments modalities that have been shown to decrease stroke recurrence in patients with underlying carotid artery disease. Methods Retrospective chart review was conducted on patients who underwent CEA or CAS at our tertiary care institution between 2009 and 2016. Patient demographics, risk factors, symptoms, modified Rankin Score (mRS) and NIHSS pre- and postoperatively, complications and restenosis occurrence were collected. Significant restenosis was defined as a carotid peak systolic velocity (PSV) of ≥250 cm/s, or ≥70% stenosis by CTA/MRA or catheter angiogram. Results In total, 317 cases (204 CEA and 113 CAS) were analyzed. Patients were predominantly non-Hispanic Caucasian (84.5%), males (61.2%) with hypertension (87.1%), and hyperlipidemia (82.0%). The mean (±SD) age was 68 (±11) years. Most patients (84.7%) had symptomatic carotid disease at the time of the procedure. Differences in median post-operative NIHSS and mRS were not significant based on pre-treatment symptomatic/asymptomatic status and treatment modality (CEA/CAS). The perioperative complication rate was low (2.2%); of these, permanent neurologic deficit was seen in only 0.6%, and mortality in 0.3% of patients. Restenosis was found in 7.3% of patients, without significant difference between CEA and CAS at time of last follow-up. Restenosis was asymptomatic in the majority of patients (91.3%). Conclusion Despite less stringent inclusion/exclusion criteria used in prior large randomized control trials, findings from our ‘real-world’, single-center, predominantly symptomatic cohort demonstrate excellent patient outcomes, and low restenosis and complication rates with both CEA and CAS. Disclosures B. Howie: None. A. Witek: None. M. Bain: None. S. Hussain: None. G. Toth: None.
Phase transition of spiropyrans: impact of isomerization dynamics at high temperatures.

Isomerization behaviors of spiropyran derivatives in neat condensed phase were studied to understand their unusual phase transitions including cold-crystallization after extreme supercooling down to −50 °C. Compounds with different functional groups were compared, and the equilibrium between isomers at high temperatures was found to determine phase transitions.
Eden no more.

Thomas E. Lovejoy The first official report of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), released on May 6th in Paris, provides the first modern authoritative assessment of planetary biodiversity and related contributions of nature to people (CNP)–dubbed ecosystem services. Ecosystem services are those charities of nature, both nebulous and tangible, that serve as the backbone of human well-being: food, fresh water, clean air, wood, fiber, genetic resources, and medicine. The IPBES is being called the IPCC of Biodiversity, with the IPCC referring to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the recognized assembly of the United Nations created in 1988 to provide global leaders with regular scientific assessment of the implications and risks of climate change. The IPBES, founded in 2012, came slow on the heels of the IPCC for a variety of reasons but in large part because grappling with, gathering data for, and analyzing the myriad features of global biodiversity and ecosystem services are astoundingly complex endeavors. A scientific assessment of the state of biodiversity and ecosystems services in the context of climate reveals that all are inextricably intertwined, united yet dispersed, invaluable yet monetizable, reflecting nature in its holistic role as the bedrock of human civilization. The 2005 Millennium Ecosystem Assessment served as an early appraisal of the state of life on Earth. The IPBES synthesis is today’s report card, and it tells a short story: Eden is gone. While the planetary garden still exists, it is in deep disrepair, frayed and fragmented almost beyond recognition. Not unexpectedly, the specific findings are depressing. More species …