cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Prostate cancer in transgender women.

Abstract Introduction As the transgender patient population continues to increase, urologists and other providers who treat genitourinary malignancies will increasingly encounter cases of prostate cancer in transgender women. Little exists in the current literature to help summarize the challenges and opportunities which face this unique patient population. Similarly, little exists to provide guidance on how we may best diagnose, manage, and follow transgender women diagnosed with prostate cancer. We sought to review the available literature in hopes of providing a resource for providers moving forward. Materials and Methods We collaboratively reviewed the currently available literature, guidelines, and statements of best practice to compile a comprehensive review of this emerging and important topic. Results Transgender persons face numerous systemic barriers to care with well documented increased risks of suicide and poor health outcomes. Though uncommon, the diagnosis of prostate cancer in transgender women is often associated with significant disease. While many options for management remain in line with standard guidelines, the unique aspects of care in this population—prior/current hormone usage, gender-affirming surgical procedures etc.—must be considered. Surgical, radiation, and hormonal treatments all play a potential role in appropriate treatment. Longitudinal studies are currently lacking and clinical trials are often structured with exclusive language which may lead to further marginalization of this patient population. Conclusion Transgender persons will almost certainly continue to grow as a population encountered and treated by healthcare professionals. Better training and understanding are needed to ensure all healthcare needs are met as best possible. Prostate cancer represents an area in which great strides may be made to improve both diagnosis and treatment. Urologists, and others who manage urologic cancers, must take the lead to improve the care of transgender persons with genitourinary malignancies.
Bariatric/Metabolic Surgery for Diabetes: Lessons From the Past and Present

One of the most important breakthroughs in diabetes was announced in 1921 by a surgeon-led team working on the gastrointestinal tract. Frederick Banting, a general surgeon in Canada, partnered with a physiologist, John Macleod, and others to purify insulin from pancreatic extracts and demonstrated that this gut hormone could treat diabetes. Eighty years later, more than 30 gut-derived hormones have been described (1), many of which have also been shown to influence glucose as well as lipid metabolism, appetite control, and energy expenditure. And these are just the ones we know about. Despite its gastrointestinal origins, research into the mechanisms of insulin’s action and its use for the treatment of diabetes became the domain of endocrinologists, who to this day, it may be argued, have otherwise ignored the largest endocrine organ in the body to focus on the five or six hypothalamic-pituitary axes. As a result of these efforts, diabetes is now understood to be a chronic disease that manifests when too little insulin is secreted by pancreatic islets in response to the body’s needs: an absolute deficiency in the case of type 1 diabetes and a relative insulin deficiency in type 2 diabetes. It is frustrating that, despite nearly 100 years of research since insulin’s discovery, the specific causes of insulin resistance and impaired insulin secretion that lead to diabetes remain largely elusive. Enter the surgeons again. Starting in the latter half of the last century, obesity became an increasingly prevalent medical problem in the U.S. and other developed nations. As obesity rates have risen, so has our understanding of the importance of excess fat storage in expression of …
“When your lesson is bombing”: The mediation of perplexity in the development of a reflective stance toward teaching

Abstract This year-long telling case study followed a pre-service teacher into the field as a novice kindergarten teacher. We sought theoretical explanation for the development of the participant's reflective stance in both settings. Four scenarios revealed that variation in the participant's depth of reflection can be explained by how foci, scaffolds, and stimuli for reflection mediated the participant's experience of perplexity. Analysis of each scenario revealed factors that impacted how mediational tools supported reflective growth. These factors can inform the choices of teacher educators, mentors, and pre-service and novice teachers about mediation in an apprenticeship.
Transthoracic Echocardiogram Can Accurately Assess Left Ventricular Thrombus in Patients Who Receive an LVAD: Comparison with Intraoperative Intraventricular Visualization

Purpose Severe left ventricular (LV) dysfunction often presents with left ventricular thrombi (LVT). Data on patients with LVT who receive a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) are scarce. We aimed to analyze the comparative diagnostic value of a pre-implant transthoracic echocardiogram (TTE) for LVT detection against the intraoperative findings at LVAD implantation. Methods We reviewed patient characteristics, TTE images, trans-esophageal echocardiographic images, intraoperative findings and pathology reports from the Center for Advanced Heart Failure Data Registry from May 2012 to August 2018. 299 patients received their first LVAD in this period, 238 of them had an LVAD implanted with the use of cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB), and 61 underwent operations without the use of CPB. In all patients who had CPB during their operation, the left ventricle was intraoperatively visually explored. We analyzed the results of 233 patients who had complete data sets. Results Preoperative TTE identified LVT in 23 of the 233 patients (9.9%); 15 patients (6.4 %) had LVT confirmed via intraventricular visualization. Most of the LVTs were located in the LV apex. Of the 15 patients with visual LVT confirmation, the preoperative TTEs identified an LVT on all but one case. Thus, preoperative TTEs of LVT had a high sensitivity (93%) and specificity (96%), as well as high positive (61%) and negative predictive values (99.5%). In patients with preoperatively identified LVT, all thrombi were removed during LVAD implantation. As compared to those without, patients with LVT were younger (44 ± 17 vs. 56 ± 13 y, p=0.007) and had a lower prevalence of arterial hypertension (50% vs 92%, p Conclusion This is the largest and most complete study to assess TTE accuracy compared with intraoperative findings in LVAD patients. TTE is a reliable method for the assessment of LVT before LVAD implantation.
On the half-life of thiocyanate in the plasma of the marine fish Amphiprion ocellaris: implications for cyanide detection

The illegal practice of using cyanide (CN) as a stunning agent to collect fish for both the marine aquarium and live fish food trades has been used throughout the Indo-Pacific for over 50 years. CN fishing is destructive to all life forms within the coral reef ecosystems where it is used and is certainly one of many anthropogenic activities that have led to 95% of the reefs in the Indo-Pacific being labeled at risk for degradation and loss. A field-deployable test for detecting fish caught using CN would assist in combating the use of this destructive practice, however, no reliable and robust test exists. Further, there is little toxicokinetic data available on marine fish to support the development of such a test, yet such data is critical to establishing the concentration range and time scale over which such a test would be viable. This study presents the first direct measurement of the half-life of the metabolite thiocyanate (SCN) after pulsed exposure to CN in a marine fish. SCN was measured in the plasma of Amphiprion ocellaris after exposure to 50 ppm CN for three exposure times (20, 45, and 60 s) using HPLC-UV and a C30 column pre-treated with polyethylene glycol. Plasma SCN levels observed are dose-dependent, reflecting a longer time for conversion of CN to SCN as the dose of CN increases. SCN plasma levels reached a maximum concentration (1.2-2.3 ppm) 12-20 h after exposure to CN. The half-life for the elimination of SCN was 1.01 ± 0.26 days for 45 s exposure and 0.44 ± 0.15 days for 20 s exposure. Fish were also directly exposed to SCN (100 ppm for 11 days) and the observed half-life for SCN elimination was 0.35 ± 0.07 days. Plasma SCN levels did not return to control levels, even after 41 days when exposed to CN but did return to control levels after 48 days when exposed to SCN. The similar half-lives observed for CN and SCN exposure suggests that SCN exposure can be used as a proxy for measuring the rate of SCN elimination following CN exposure. In order for plasma SCN to be used as a marker for CN exposure, these results must be extended to other species and endogenous levels of SCN in wild caught fish must be established.
Full-Lock: Hard Distributions of SAT instances for Obfuscating Circuits using Fully Configurable Logic and Routing Blocks

In this paper, we propose a novel and SAT-resistant logic-locking technique, denoted as Full-Lock, to obfuscate and protect the hardware against threats including IP-piracy and reverse-engineering. The Full-Lock is constructed using a set of small-size fully Programmable Logic and Routing block (PLR) networks. The PLRs are SAT-hard instances with reasonable power, performance and area overheads which are used to obfuscate (1) the routing of a group of selected wires and (2) the logic of the gates leading and proceeding the selected wires. The Full-Lock resists removal attacks and breaks a SAT attack by significantly increasing the complexity of each SAT iteration.
Ethnic Differences in Patterns of Cigarette and E-Cigarette Use Over Time Among Adolescents.

Abstract Purpose Little is known about whether adolescent cigarette and e-cigarette use patterns over time differ by ethnicity. Methods Data were pooled from three prospective cohort studies of adolescents in California and Connecticut (baseline: 2013–2014; 12-month follow-up: 2014–2015; N = 6,258). Adjusted polytomous regression models evaluated the association of baseline exclusive ever e-cigarette use, exclusive ever cigarette use, ever use of both e-cigarettes and cigarettes (dual use) with past 30-day use at follow-up (exclusively e-cigarettes, exclusively cigarettes, dual use; no use at baseline/follow-up were the referent groups). Interaction analyses evaluated differences by race/ethnicity (Hispanic white [HW], non-Hispanic white [NHW], Other). Results A significant global interaction was observed for the association of baseline with follow-up tobacco use by ethnicity (p = .009). Among NHW participants, ever e-cigarette or cigarette users at baseline (vs. never users) had significantly higher odds of every past 30-day use tobacco use pattern at follow-up. Among HW participants, compared with never users, exclusive e-cigarette users at baseline had increased odds of continued e-cigarette use (ORexclusive e-cigarettes = 5.22; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 3.50, 7.79; ORdual use = 3.64; 95% CI: 1.62, 8.18) but not of transition to exclusive cigarette use at follow-up (ORexclusive cigarettes = 1.27; 95% CI: .47, 3.46), and HW exclusive cigarette users at baseline had greater odds of continued cigarette use (ORexclusive e-cigarettes = 12.3; 95% CI: 5.87, 25.8; ORdual use = 3.82; 95% CI: 1.06, 13.7) but not of transition to exclusive e-cigarette use at follow-up (ORexclusive cigarettes = 1.61; 95% CI: .62, 4.18). Conclusions Findings that NHW youth report more transitional use patterns and HW youth report more stable use patterns suggest a potential for differential impacts of e-cigarettes, by ethnicity, in increasing subsequent transition to or cessation from cigarette smoking.
Cancer survivors' challenges with ostomy appliances and self-management: a qualitative analysis.

Purpose An ostomy poses significant health-related quality of life (HRQOL) issues for cancer survivors. Survivors must learn to manage pouching appliances and adjust to the psychosocial consequences of living with an ostomy. We explored, through qualitative analysis, the challenges with self-management and ostomy appliances reported by cancer survivors. Methods Pooled data from two studies with a question on the greatest challenge of living with an ostomy and intervention session notes were analyzed using content analysis approach. The themes were reviewed and agreed upon by the research team, and counts were tallied for each theme based on the number of times they were mentioned by participants. Results Of the 928 greatest challenge responses and session notes, a total of 106 mentions (11%) were focused on ostomy appliances, associated repercussions, and time taken for ostomy care. Eight themes emerged: bleeding, pain, leakage, skin problems/irritation/rash, wafer-related issues, materials getting under the wafer, time to care for ostomy, and solutions to clean the stoma. Challenges described included poor wafer adherence, allergic reactions to adhesives, and pain around the stoma site. These challenges resulted in anxiety related to leakage, odor, and/or skin irritation, which negatively impacted on participation in social activities and self-confidence with ostomy care. Conclusions Cancer survivors living with an ostomy experience multiple obstacles with ostomy appliances and caring for their ostomy. Continued innovation in ostomy appliance design and technology is needed to help cancer survivors with successfully managing ostomy care.
The ASKSP Revised (ASKSP-R) as a Measure of ASD Knowledge for Professional Populations.

It is important for all professionals who work with individuals who have ASD to have sufficient knowledge of the disorder. The development of ASD knowledge may occur during preservice training and/or through professional development. Currently, there is no “gold standard” measure of ASD knowledge. A study focusing on the development of a reliable and valid measure of ASD knowledge for practitioners and preservice professionals is warranted. To address this need, the current study provides preliminary information on the development and preliminary validation of the Autism Spectrum Knowledge Scale Professional Version-Revised (ASKSP-R) with a sample of school-based professionals (N = 427). Results suggest the ASKSP-R is a univariate measure with good reliability. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.
Consumer responses to savings message framing

Abstract Despite the prevalent use of savings messages (e.g., “get $x off” and “save $x”), no previous tourism and hospitality research has examined their effect on consumer responses. To fill that void, this study investigates the joint effect of savings message type (gain-framed vs. nonloss-framed) and weather conditions (sunny vs. rainy) on consumer attitude. The results show that individuals in rainy weather respond more favorably to a gain-framed (vs. nonloss-framed) message, and this effect is attenuated among people in sunny weather. Furthermore, this study reveals a boundary condition. When the amount of savings is presented in percentage terms (e.g., “get x% off” and “save x%”), the superiority of a gain frame disappears. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.
Use of a Hyperosmolar Saline Solution to Mitigate Proinflammatory and Degradative Responses of Articular Cartilage and Meniscus for Application to Arthroscopic Surgery.

Purpose This study was designed to evaluate differences in proinflammatory and degradative mediator production and extracellular matrix degradation from osteoarthritic knee articular cartilage and meniscus explants treated with either hyperosmolar saline or isotonic saline. Methods 6 mm-diameter full-thickness explants were created from articular cartilage and menisci recovered after patients underwent knee surgery. One explant half was treated for 3 hours with hyperosmolar saline (600 mOsm/L) and the corresponding half with isotonic saline (300 mOsm/L). Explants were subsequently cultured for 3 days in tissue culture media. On day 3, media were collected for biomarker analyses. Results were normalized to tissue wet weight and analyzed statistically. Results Articular cartilage was collected from 10 patients (5 male, 5 female; mean age = 66.9 years) and menisci were collected from 8 patients (2 male, 6 female; mean age = 66 years). Articular cartilage media concentrations of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (P = .001) and interleukin (IL)-6 (P = .049) were significantly lower in explants treated with hyperosmolar saline. Meniscus media concentrations of prostaglandin E2 (P = .008), monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (P = .011), IL-6 (P = .029), IL-8 (P = .012), matrix metalloproteinase-2 (P = .011), and glycosaminoglycan (P = .008) were significantly lower in explants treated with hyperosmolar saline. Conclusions Treatment of cartilage and meniscus explants with hyperosmolar saline effectively mitigated key proinflammatory mediator production, as well as degradative mediator production and glycosaminoglycan loss from meniscus, with no detrimental effects noted compared to isotonic saline. Clinical Relevance These results suggest that hyperosmolar saline irrigation fluid may provide a safe alternative to standard isotonic saline irrigation fluid, and could mitigate untoward effects associated with inflammatory responses after standard-of-care knee arthroscopy.
Magnetic resonance imaging accurately tracks kidney pathology and heterogeneity in the transition from acute kidney injury to chronic kidney disease.

Acute kidney injury (AKI) increases the risk for chronic kidney disease (CKD). However, there are few tools to detect microstructural changes after AKI. Here, cationic ferritin-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (CFE-MRI) was applied to examine the heterogeneity of kidney pathology in the transition from AKI to CKD. Adult male mice received folic acid followed by cationic ferritin and were euthanized at four days (AKI), four weeks (CKD-4) or 12 weeks (CKD-12). Kidneys were examined by histologic methods and CFE-MRI. In the CKD-4 and CKD-12 groups, glomerular number was reduced and atubular cortical lesions were observed. Apparent glomerular volume was larger in the AKI, CKD-4 and CKD-12 groups compared to controls. Glomerular hypertrophy occurred with ageing. Interglomerular distance and glomerular density were combined with other MRI metrics to distinguish the AKI and CKD groups from controls. Despite significant heterogeneity, the noninvasive (MRI-based) metrics were as accurate as invasive (histological) metrics at distinguishing AKI and CKD from controls. To assess the toxicity of cationic ferritin in a CKD model, CKD-4 mice received cationic ferritin and were examined one week later. The CKD-4 groups with and without cationic ferritin were similar, except the iron content of the kidney, liver, and spleen was greater in the CKD-4 plus cationic ferritin group. Thus, our study demonstrates the accuracy and safety of CFE-MRI to detect whole kidney pathology allowing for the development of novel biomarkers of kidney disease and providing a foundation for future in vivo longitudinal studies in mouse models of AKI and CKD to track nephron fate.
Is Ursodeoxycholic Acid Really a Posttransplant Panacea

Recurrent primary biliary cholangitis (rPBC) occurs in up to 53% of LT recipients transplanted for PBC and negatively impacts long term graft (Hazard ratio 2.01) and patient survival (hazard ratio 1.72)(1). In multiple cohort studies, use of ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) post transplantation has been associated with a reduced incidence of rPBC. Biliary complications are reported in 10-35% of all liver transplant (LT) recipients and are clearly associated with increased morbidity and mortality(2). The term "biliary complications" encompasses a wide range of problems, including sludge, stones, casts, bile leaks, bilomas, anastomotic and non-anastomotic strictures and hemobilia. Conflicting data exist with respect to the benefit of UDCA post-LT to prevent biliary complications in general.
Online Synthesis for Runtime Enforcement of Safety in Multiagent Systems

We study the problem of enforcing safety in multiagent systems at runtime by modifying the system behavior if a potential safety violation is detected. Traditional runtime enforcement methods that solve a reactive synthesis problem at design time have two significant drawbacks. First, these techniques do not scale as one has to take into account all possible behaviors from every agent, and this is computationally prohibitive. Second, these approaches require every agent to know the state of every other agent. We address these limitations through a new approach where online modifications to behavior are synthesized onboard every agent. There is an enforcer onboard every agent, which can modify the behavior of only the corresponding agent. In this approach, which is naturally decentralized, the enforcer on every agent has two components: 1) a pathfinder that corrects the behavior of the agent and 2) an ordering mechanism that dynamically modifies the priority of the agent. The current priority of an agent determines if the enforcer uses the pathfinder to modify the behavior of the agent. We derive an upper bound on the maximum deviation for any agent from its original behavior; that is, all agents make progress. We prove that the worst case synthesis time is quadratic in the number of agents at runtime as opposed to exponential at design time for the existing methods that rely on design-time computation merely. Additionally, we prove the completeness of the technique under some mild assumptions; that is, if the agents can progress safely, then enforcers will find this behavior. We test the technique in collision avoidance scenarios. For 50 agents in a 50 × 50 grid world modeling the common workspace for the agents, the online synthesis requires only a few seconds per agent whenever a potential collision is detected. In contrast, the centralized design-time synthesis of shields for a similar setting is intractable beyond four agents in a 5 × 5 grid world.
On wind-driven quasi-geostrophic water movements near fast-ice edges

Abstract A linear theory of quasi-geostrophic water motion near fast-ice edges is presented. Fast-ice (i.e. ice fixed to a land mass) overlies the ocean in the form of shelf-ice or sea-ice. Shelf-ice is generally thicker than the depth over which Ekman transport occurs, while sea-ice is usually much thinner. This difference is reflected in the dynamics of the current and upwelling fluctuations near the ice-edge. In the shelf-ice case, the quasi-geostrophic motions can be described by long wind-forced trapped waves, the ocean response at a given shelf-ice position depending not only on the local offshore Ekman transport, but also on the offshore Ekman transport the wave ‘sees’ on its way along the shelf-ice to the given shelf-ice position. On the other hand, the quasi-geostrophic motion near a sea-ice edge depends only on the local offshore Ekman transport, as it is generated by an infinite stress curl at the ice edge. For the same windstress, the magnitude of the sea-ice, shelf-ice and coastal currents and upwelling are of the same order. There is some discussion of the effects of small ice-edge curvature as well as a comparison of theory with observation.
Impact of Light–Dark Phase on Delay Discounting Behavior in Rats

Rodent models are commonly used in behavioral research because they offer increased experimental control and findings often generalizable to humans. However, one possible dilemma is that rodents are primarily nocturnal and research tasks often disrupt their light, rest phase. The present study used a within-subjects design to investigate possible effects of light-dark phase on delay discounting, motor coordination, open field, and elevated-plus maze behavior in Wistar rats. Rats spent significantly more time in the closed arms of the elevated plus maze when tested during the light, rest phase compared to the dark, active phase. There were no differences in motor coordination or delay discounting during the two phases. These results suggest possible important differences in certain behavioral tasks when testing in the light, rest versus dark, active phase for rats—researchers should be aware of these possible differences when planning and conducting experiments and when comparing research findings across laboratories.
Ashes to Ashes: A Way Home for Climate Change Survivors

In 2020 the United States suffered a record number of named storms, a record number of storms causing $1 billion or more in damage, a derecho that destroyed much of Iowa’s corn crop, and previously unheard-of levels of wildfire frequency and damage in California, Oregon, and Washington. The effects of climate change are causing a crisis of affordable, available, homeowner insurance. As more and more United States homes are in high-risk areas for natural catastrophe, insurers increasingly are no longer offering insurance at all in some communities, excluding disaster risks from coverage in others, and dramatically raising price in still others. For ever-growing numbers of homeowners, the only option is an inadequate and unattractive public insurance product of last resort. As a result, growing numbers of climate change survivors are finding there is no way home. This paper describes a bold solution to this climate-change-created crisis. Building on three recent proposals from regulations and prominent academics to solve the problem of affordability and availability, this paper provides a novel solution: First, a requirement that an insurer who offers homeowner hazard insurance anywhere in a state must offer it everywhere, with no exception, full stop. Second, state rules providing that rate filings or form filings for homeowner hazard insurance will not be approved if the insurance would exclude any natural disaster peril. Third, state rules providing that rate filings for homeowner hazard insurance will not be approved if the insurance discriminates against homes based on the location of the home. This three-point proposal is clear and simple, while avoiding the shortcomings of previous suggestions. By building a set of market incentives to sell affordable, comprehensive insurance everywhere, and protecting insurers from price-cutting by competitors, the result will be insurance that will be affordable everywhere, will be available everywhere, insurers will want to sell, and homeowners will want to buy.
Model and Anti-Model: The United States Constitution and the Rise of World Constitutionalism

Alarm over the Americanization of the world, dubbed "McWorld," became a central theme for many critics of globalism in the late 1990s. At the same time, many American lawyers participated in and celebrated the new emphasis on the "rule of law," which assumed the global adoption of law and legal processes as a precondition for successful transitions from authoritarian regimes and command economies into the "new world order." The adoption of bills of rights and the empowerment of courts, which characterized many of these transitions, led many to assume that these developments indeed reflected the embrace of American values in the post-cold war era. Bruce Ackerman heralded the emergence of a "world constitutionalism," arguing that the "[e]nlightenment hope in written constitutions is sweeping the world," while another prominent United States constitutional scholar, Cass Sunstein, argued forcefully in relation to the transitions in Eastern Europe, that the "right kind of constitution could play an important role in fueling economic development and democratic reform; indeed, under current conditions, it may be indispensable to them." The form of constitution he had in mind, of course, bears a close resemblance to the American model providing "strong constitutional protection of private property and economic markets' through a combination of property rights and an independent judiciary.
A Cortical Extracellular Simulation Model to Create Synthetic Neural Recordings

Synthetic extracellular neural recordings allow precise knowledge of when and which neuron spikes in a recording, and therefore are important to assess and refine spike detection and sorting algorithms. Such algorithms are strongly dependent on the spike waveform shapes. Therefore, it is critical for a model that generates synthetic recordings to incorporate the factors changing the waveform shape in the neural environment. In this paper, we present a simulation tool that models frequency-filtering and layer-inhomogeneity of cortical layers, where most actual extracellular recordings are performed. The tool uses simulated transmembrane currents of neurons from NEURON, and implements line-source-approximation, method-of-images, and low-pass filtering to calculate the potentials on MATLAB.
Employer Sanctions in the United States, Canada and Mexico: Exploring the Criminalization of Immigration Law

This article is a comparative study of United States, Mexico and Canadian laws regulating the employment of persons who lack documents or authorization to work. The author contends that the United States criminalization of the employment relationship is inconsistent with human rights and the objectives of providing a thriving and healthy workspace free from abuse and exploitation.
Cell-free DNA liquid biopsy for early detection of gastrointestinal cancers: A systematic review

Cell-free DNA liquid biopsy for early detection of gastrointestinal cancers: A systematic review
Beyond Welfare: Measuring and Monitoring the State of Children: New Trends and Domains

Cet article examine quelques besoins et quelques voies possibles en ce qui concerne la mesure et la surveillance de l'etat de bien-etre de l'enfance. Une nuance entre le bien-etre et le devenir de l'enfant est apportee. Puis quelques domaines nouveaux auxquels pourrait s'etendre l'etude du bien-etre de l'enfant sont envisages. Enfin, les avantages sociaux de la recherche sur le bien-etre de l'enfant sont rappeles, suivis de pistes pour la recherche future
Causes of Gender Differences in Competition: Theory and Evidence

We use a game theoretic model of contests to assess different explanations for the male performance advantage in competition. Comparing the testable predictions of the model with the empirical evidence, we reject explanations involving male overcon- fidence, misperceptions about relative ability, and some preference differences. Ex- planations involving female underconfidence, stereotype threat, and adverse female reaction to competition are consistent with only some of the evidence, and an expla- nation involving lower male risk aversion is consistent with most of the evidence. Two explanations are consistent with all of the evidence: (i) male ability to perform may in- crease in the face of competition, possibly due to changes in testosterone or adrenaline; or (ii) males may care more about winning or get greater enjoyment from competition than females.
Work in progress - from 'live' to 'online': a feasibility study

The Web based training program developed by the national education group (NETg) was adapted to substitute for lectures in an introductory computer course. This change from a traditional lecture format to an online format was initiated in order to lessen graduate assistants' teaching workload in the heavily enrolled general education computer skills courses as well as to enhance students' hands-on experience in using computer software programs. This paper reports on our study of the feasibility of incorporating this adapted online program as a content delivery component. Students in an introductory computer course were given the option to complete the course requirements online without any attendance requirement. Analysis of outcomes showed no significant differences between the students who attended class only and the students who studied online only in their ability to complete the assignments. Analysis of student surveys revealed a dislike for the online format and a desire that face-to-face education not be abandoned.
Control Freaks: How Online and Mobile Communication is Reshaping Social Contact

The year was 1956. At the time, the word “computer” referred to a roomful of hardware. “Telephones” were bulky black devices, tethered to walls (and, at least in the US, exclusively owned by the phone company). But a new gadget appeared on the scene that was destined to revolutionize our perceptions of technology – and our ability to manipulate it. The new contraption was a television remote control.
A consuming faith : the social gospel and modern American culture

In A Consuming Faith, Susan Curtis analyzes the startling convergence of two events previously treated independently: the emergence of a modern consumer-oriented culture and the rise of the social gospel movement. By examining lives and works of individuals who identified themselves as social gospelers, rather than just groups or individuals who fit a particular definition, Curtis is able to capture the very fluidity of the term social gospel as it was used. In addition to exploring the time in which the movement took shape, Curtis provides biographical sketches of traditional figures involved in various aspects of the social gospel movement such as Walter Rauschenbusch, Washington Gladden, and Josiah Strong alongside those of less-prominent figures like Charles Jefferson, Elizabeth Stuart Phelps, and Charles Mcfarland. Going beyond their roles in the movement, Curtis shows them to be sons and daughters, husbands and wives, and workers and citizens who experienced the vast changes in their world wrought by industrialization and class conflict even as they sought to define a meaningful religious life. This groundbreaking study, now with a new preface by Curtis, provides an illuminating look at culture and religion as dependent influences, and treats religious life as an integral part of American culture - not a sacred world apart from the secular.
Monthly stable isotope records in an Australian coral and their correspondence with environmental variables

Monthly skeletal stable isotope measurements of a Porites australiensis coral from Abraham Reef, Australia, spanning the period from 1981 to 1991, are compared with monthly averaged SST (sea surface temperature) from satellite collected AVHRR (Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer) and monthly downward surface short-wave insolation (SSI) measurements. We found that the δ18O values varied as a function of the change in seawater temperature. There were anomalously high δ18O values in coral that grew during the summer season of the three El Nino events 1982–83, 1987, and 1991. Advection of seawater with higher salinity (and higher δ18O values) to our site or discrepancies between ocean skin temperature and mixed layer SST are likely reasons for the reduced resolution of δ18O-based SST. Increased coral δ13C values occurred simultaneously with increases in SSI. During most El Nino events the maximum and minimum δ13C values were lower than during normal years.
METHODOLOGY FOR IDENTIFYING HIGHWAY SAFETY PROBLEM AREAS

Safety programs can provide benefits only if they apply effective countermeasures to the locations and areas that really need safety treatment. A methodology of areawide safety analyses is presented to detect these areas (states, counties, townships, etc.) that should be considered for safety treatment. The method is implemented for Indiana at the county level. The method uses regression models to estimate the normal number of crashes in individual counties. The above-norm numbers of crashes calculated for several past years are used to predict the above-norm value for the future year when the safety treatment is to be applied. The counties are priority ranked using the combined criterion including both the above-norm number of crashes and the confidence level. Above-norm crashes represent the magnitude of the problem—specifically, how many crashes could be avoided if the safety level was normal. A confidence level represents the chance that the observed excessive number of crashes is not just a random ef...
Thermal Effects in Cryogenic Liquid Annular Seals—Part I: Theory and Approximate Solution

A thermohydrodynamic (THD) analysis is introduced for calculation of the performance characteristics of cryogenic liquid annular seals in the turbulent flow regime. A full-inertial bulk-flow model is advanced for momentum conservation and energy transport. The liquid material properties depend on the local absolute pressure and temperature. Heat flow to the rotor and stator is modeled by bulk-flow heat transfer coefficients. An approximate analytical solution is obtained to the governing equations when the seal operates at a steady-state and concentric condition
Off-resonance binomial preparatory pulse technique for high sensitivity MRI of H2O17

H2O17 is a freely diffusible tracer and naturally occurring isotope of O16 detectable by MRI and has been shown to be useful for assessing cerebral perfusion in animal studies using direct and indirect MR detection techniques. However, earlier MR techniques are either not sensitive to changes in small concentrations of tissue H2O17 or are not practical for use on clinical scanners. In this work, a novel method for detecting H2O17 with high sensitivity has been proposed that uses a short, intense, binomial preparatory spin lock pulse with resonance offsets for high sensitive rapid, multislice imaging of tissue H2O17. Two sets of phantom experiments were performed on the 1.5 T and repeated on 3.0 T to assess the feasibility of the proposed technique. The phantom was constructed using ovalbumin and doped with 0.4 atom% and 1.0 atom% H2O17. After obtaining initial parameters, the proposed technique was validated in an anesthetized primate model that was injected with 1.8 cc of 40 atom% H2O17. Phantom experiments showed that the proposed technique was able to detect H2O17 with relatively high sensitivity and high B1 amplitude (and small offsets) preparatory pulses produced similar results as low B1 amplitude (and larger offsets). Primate brain study showed a 42.97% difference in mean signal intensity between pre- and post-H2O17 injection. The proposed technique was successfully implemented on a clinical scanner and was able to detect H2O17 with relatively high sensitivity. Primate study has shown that such a technique can be successfully used for human imaging applications to investigate and assess cerebral perfusion.
Optical development of the kitten cornea.

Abstract The kitten eye undergoes considerable growth during a period when there is a high neural susceptibility to the effects of visual experience. We have monitored growth of the cornea in cats of different ages using photokeratoscopy. Qualitatively, the corneal surface of the youngest kittens studied (20 days old) is sometimes irregular and photokeratographs are correspondingly partially distorted. In older kittens the general surface quality appears to be improved. Quantitatively, corneal curvature is very steep centrally in the youngest kittens and it flattens with age at a higher rate than in the pericentral region. In the adult cats, radii of curvature of central and pericentral areas are approximately equal so that a relatively large region of the cornea is spherical.
Effect of different atmospheres on the microstructure of super alpha-2 titanium aluminide foils

The influence of alloying elements on the oxidation behavior of titanium aluminides has been studied in numerous investigations. However, the influence of special atmospheres, like hydrogen or inert gases on the properties of the Super Alpha-2 alloy is still unclear. The aim of this work, therefore, was to study the effect of different atmospheres on the microstructure and the corrosion behavior of Ti-14Al-20Nb-3V-2Mo (wt%) foils in order to contribute to a data base for the design of structural elements.
Stabilization of poliovirus by capsid-binding antiviral drugs is due to entropic effects.

When poliovirus attaches to its receptor or is heated in hypotonic buffers, the virion undergoes an irreversible conformational transition from the native 160 S (or N) particle to the 135 S (or A) particle, which is believed to mediate cell entry. The first-order rate constants for the thermally induced transition have been measured as a function of temperature for virus alone and for complexes of the virus with capsid-binding drugs that inhibit the receptor and thermally mediated conversion. Although the drugs have minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) that differ by almost three orders of magnitude, the activation energies for the N to A transition for the drug complexes (145 kcal/mol) were indistinguishable from each other or from that of the virus alone. We conclude that the antiviral activity of these drugs derives from a novel mechanism in which drug-binding stabilizes the virions through entropic effects.
Modules with few types

It is widely believed that a structure theory ought to be developed for the countable models of a countable theory with few countable models. It is often the case, however, that many of the consequences of having few countable models already follow from the weaker hypothesis of having few types. It is under this condition that we undertake here a study of theories of modules. Virtually all of the information that we are able to attain about modules with few types stems from the observation (Thm. 1.2) that if T is a small theory of modules and p(x) is a T-consistent pp-type, then H(p), the pure- injective hull of p, can be decomposed into a finite direct sum of indecom- posable modules. This amounts to saying that all pure types in finitely many variables are, in some sense, of finite weight. It is also useful in proving (Cor. 2.10) that if the ring is commutative, then the annihilator of any subset of the module has a primary decomposition. Garavaglia [G] has developed an elegant structure theory for w-stable modules which is strong enough to settle Vaught’s conjecture for that class of modules. In Section 3, we show (Thm. 3.3) that if T is a small U-rank 1 theory of modules over a right noetherian ring, then T is w-stable. Section 4, in turn, is devoted to a proof of a result with Pillay (Thm. 4.2) that a module with few types and a regular generic type is of U-rank 1 if it is not connected-by-finite. I am indebted to Edgar Enochs, Mike Prest, and Philipp Rothmaler for their helpful suggestions and their interest.
The impact of tether hydrophobicity on stoichiometry of immobilized indicator-analyte complexes

The effect of adding side chains of increasing hydrophobicity to a molecular tether that binds an analytical indicator to a silica gel substrate is described. The hydrophobicity of the side chain is shown to have an impact on the analytical characteristics of the indicator. For the model system studied, increasing the hydrophobicity of the side chain increased the sensitivity of the indicator. The impact of the side chain is interpreted as that of an anchor that inhibits short range movement increasing the proportion of the indicator-analyte complex that is the spectroscopically active mono form as opposed to the bis form of the complex. The hydrophobic side chain inhibits the short range movement normally allowed by a covalent immobilization tether further restricting the area that is readily accessed by the indicator. This attribute appears, in the short term, to inhibit the simultaneous interaction of several indicator molecules with the same analyte species.
How can we improve global infectious disease surveillance and prevent the next outbreak

Despite a significant amount of progress in the past decade, global infectious disease surveillance still often falters, as in the case of the emerging novel coronavirus that has killed at least 17 people in Saudi Arabia. This article argues that we must continuously re-evaluate global infectious disease surveillance systems. It takes stock of problems in various countries' infectious disease surveillance systems and offers recommendations for how to improve surveillance and ensure more rapid reporting. Chief among the recommendations are strategies for reducing fragmentation in global surveillance systems and methods for making these systems less disease-specific. Suggestions are also offered for ways to improve infectious disease surveillance strategies in resource-limited settings.
An evaluation of the kinematics of gait by minimum energy

It seems reasonable to expect that in certain well-learned body motions such as walking and running the movement of the body components would be made in such a way as to minimize the amount of mechanical work that is done.
Physiological responses to resistance breathing during short and prolonged exercise

Respirators which impose a resistance to breathing may cause a limitation im maximum exercise intensity. This limitation is of particular concern when respirators are used in emergency situations requiring high levels of exercise intensity. Many studies have defined the limitations of exercise intensity imposed by breathing resistance as the point where the subject fells “uncomfortable.” Perhaps of greater importance is the true physiological limit. Using motivated subjects, the physiological limits of exercise intensity and related respiratory responses were measured for short and prolonged exercise using five breathing resistances. For symmetrical breathing resistances of 11, 16, 25, 40, and 57 cm H2O pressure at a flow rate of 120 L·min−1 exercise limits were 72, 72, 79, 60, and 54 percent of maximum aerobic capacity (% [Vdot]o2 max) for the short term and 58, 60, 49, 43, and 35% [Vdot]o2 max for the prolonged exercise (1 hour). The presence of significant external resistance to breathing was found to ...
Centroid precision as a function of total counts in a windowed CMOS image of a point source

We obtained 960,200 22-by-22-pixel windowed images of a pinhole spot using the Teledyne H2RG CMOS detector with un-cooled SIDECAR readout. We performed an analysis to determine the precision we might expect in the position error signals to a telescope's guider system. We find that, under non-optimized operating conditions, the error in the computed centroid is strongly dependent on the total counts in the point image only below a certain threshold, approximately 50,000 photo-electrons. The LSST guider camera specification currently requires a 0.04 arcsecond error at 10 Hertz. Given the performance measured here, this specification can be delivered with a single star at 14 th to 18 th magnitude, depending on the passband.
Rett Syndrome: A Prototypical Neurodevelopmental Disorder

Rett syndrome, one of the leading causes of mental retardation and developmental regression in girls, is the first pervasive developmental disorder with a known genetic cause. The majority of cases of sporadic Rett syndrome are caused by mutations in the gene encoding methyl-CpG-binding protein 2 (MeCP2). MeCP2 binds methylated DNA and likely regulates gene expression and chromatin structure. Genotype/phenotype analysis revealed that the phenotypic spectrum of MECP2 mutations in humans is broader than initially suspected: Mutations have been discovered in Rett syndrome variants, mentally retarded males, and autistic children. A variety of in vivo and in vitro models has been developed that allow analysis of MeCP2 function and pathogenic studies of Rett syndrome. Because the neuropathology of Rett syndrome shares certain features with other neurodevelopmental disorders, a common pathogenic process may underlie these disorders. Thus, Rett syndrome is a prototype for the genetic, molecular, and neurobiologic...