cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Hemispheric specialization for pitch and "tone": Evidence from Thai.

Abstract: In past dichotic listening studies, linguistic stimuli have shown a right ear advantage, implying left hemisphere dominance for language processing, while other stimuli incorporating pitch distinctions have shown no ear preference or a left ear (right hemisphere) advantage. An experiment was devized to compare ear preferences in tone language speakers for three sets of stimuli: pitch differences within language stimuli (tone-words in the tone language, Thai); language stimuli without pitch differences (consonant-vowel words on midtone); and pitch differences alone (hums). Results from 22 native Thai speakers demonstrate that tone-words and consonant-words are better heard at the right ear, while the hums show no ear effect. Preliminary results on English-speaking subjects suggest that the consonant-words give the usual right ear effect, while the tone-words and the hums do not. This study leads to the conclusion that pitch discrimination is lateralized to the left hemisphere when the pitch differences are linguistically processed.
Geometric simplex growing algorithm for finding endmembers in hyperspectral imagery

Simplex growing algorithm (SGA) is an endmember finding algorithm which grows simplexes with maximal volumes one vertex at a time to find new endmembers where simplex volumes (SV) are calculated by determinants of endmember matrix. However, three issues arise in SV calculation by matrix determinants. One is excessive computation. Another is the matrix determinant-calculated SV does not generally yield true SV if the matrix is not a square matrix in which case dimensionality reduction is required. A third one is numerical instability. To resolve these issues this paper presents a new geometric approach to SGA, called geometric simplex growing algorithm (GSGA) which takes advantage of simplex geometric structures to calculate simplex volume (SV) by considering a simplex to be formed by its base and height so that SV can be calculated simply by multiplying its height with its base where the height is the magnitude of the newly generated endmember and the base is the volume of the simplex formed by previous endmembers. With such a simple geometric structure GSGA has been shown to be the best among all variants currently derived from SGA in the literature.
Cryptography's quantum barrier

Exchanging messages in absolute secrecy is an age-old problem. In classical physics, there is nothing, in principle, to prevent someone from eavesdropping on a message without being found Out. Fortunately, in quantum mechanics, the uncertainty principle dictates that every measurement disturbs an unknown state. So if a message is encoded using quantum signals – such as photons polarized at various angles – then any eavesdropping will almost surely be spotted. This is the principle that lies behind "quantum cryptography".
Maximizing direct current power delivery from bistable vibration energy harvesting beams subjected to realistic base excitations

Effective development of vibration energy harvesters is required to convert ambient kinetic energy into useful electrical energy as power supply for sensors, for example in structural health monitoring applications. Energy harvesting structures exhibiting bistable nonlinearities have previously been shown to generate large alternating current (AC) power when excited so as to undergo snap-through responses between stable equilibria. Yet, most microelectronics in sensors require rectified voltages and hence direct current (DC) power. While researchers have studied DC power generation from bistable energy harvesters subjected to harmonic excitations, there remain important questions as to the promise of such harvester platforms when the excitations are more realistic and include both harmonic and random components. To close this knowledge gap, this research computationally and experimentally studies the DC power delivery from bistable energy harvesters subjected to such realistic excitation combinations as those found in practice. Based on the results, it is found that the ability for bistable energy harvesters to generate peak DC power is significantly reduced by introducing sufficient amount of stochastic excitations into an otherwise harmonic input. On the other hand, the elimination of a low amplitude, coexistent response regime by way of the additive noise promotes power delivery if the device was not originally excited to snap-through. The outcomes of this research indicate the necessity for comprehensive studies about the sensitivities of DC power generation from bistable energy harvester to practical excitation scenarios prior to their optimal deployment in applications.
Enthalpy of Formation of N2H4 (Hydrazine) Revisited

In order to address the accuracy of the long-standing experimental enthalpy of formation of gas-phase hydrazine, fully confirmed in earlier versions of Active Thermochemical Tables (ATcT), the provenance of that value is re-examined in light of new high-end calculations of the Feller–Peterson–Dixon (FPD) variety. An overly optimistic determination of the vaporization enthalpy of hydrazine, which created an unrealistically strong connection between the gas phase thermochemistry and the calorimetric results defining the thermochemistry of liquid hydrazine, was identified as the probable culprit. The new enthalpy of formation of gas-phase hydrazine, based on balancing all available knowledge, was determined to be 111.57 ± 0.47 kJ/mol at 0 K (97.42 ± 0.47 kJ/mol at 298.15 K). Close agreement was found between the ATcT (even excluding the latest theoretical result) and the FPD enthalpy.
Influences of HLA DRB1, DQA1 and DQB1 on T-cell recognition of epitopes and of larger regions of the botulinum neurotoxin molecule

Previously, we have examined the proliferative responses of T-cells from 25 patients and 8 controls to 32 light chain (L1-L32) and 60 heavy chain peptides (N1-N29, C1-C31) representing the entire clostridium botulinum neurotoxin type A (BoNT/A)[OM1-OM3]. In the current work, these T-cell responses were analyzed in the context of the patients HLA-DRB1, DQA1 and DQB1 variation. There were strong associations between the DQA1*01:02 and its derived haplotypes and cumulative T-cell proliferative responses. With or without HLA based differentiation the responses showed marked correlation. Inter-epitope correlation of responses demonstrably associated with particular regions (peptides N1-N29) peaking in the region covered by of N18-29. A second region of higher correlation was observed close to the carboxyl terminal of the heavy chain. Region N15 to N29 was found to have a significantly lower Stimulation Indices when DRB1*01:01-DQA1*01:01-DQB1*05:01 was present. This pattern was also evident in the HLA analysis where DQA1*01:02 associations were collectively most significant in the N1-N13 & C16-C31 region. Responses in these regions correlated well with one another. HLA-specific correlation analysis revealed that DQA1*01:01 bearing haplotype had the strongest inter-epitope correlations despite having a generally negative association with simulation indices. Structural and immunogenic implications of these findings are discussed.
Core decompression for the treatment of avascular necrosis of the femoral head

Abstract Core decompression for the treatment of avascular necrosis of the femoral head was introduced by Ficat and Arlet in 1962 with results first reported in 1968. Since 1973 the author has used the technique with good results in the precollapse stage and a low complication rate. The recent literature has reported varied results. Bone functions as a closed compartment (as a Starling resistor). Markedly elevated bone marrow pressures have been recorded in all stages of avascular necrosis of the femoral head, making core decompression a rational procedure. However, to avoid the pitfalls, the following precautions must be exercised: (a) biplane image intensification avoids articular perforation; (b) clearance of the coring device avoids femoral head blow-out; and (c) metaphyseal rather than diaphyseal entry site dramatically lowers the incidence of secondary fracture. Core decompression in the author's experience provides an effective procedure with low morbidity in the precollapse stages of the disease.
Ultrasonic Attenuation Measurements at 300 MHz

In the CANDU™ (CANada Deuterium Uranium) nuclear reactor, the primary heat transport containment is a matrix of cold-worked Zr-2.5Nb pressure tubes containing pressurized heavy water, which extracts heat from the fuel bundles in the tube. In the last few years, periodical tests on removed tubes have established a significant tube-to-tube variability in fracture toughness due to variability in the as-installed tubes [1].
Effects of feral horse herds on plant communities across a precipitation gradient

Feral horses are widespread in the western United States, with the majority of feral horse herds found in the Great Basin. There is a federal mandate to manage these herds in order to maintain “ecological balance”; however, understanding of the specific effects of feral horse grazing on rangeland plant communities in this region is incomplete. To address this research gap, we utilized long-term grazing exclosures and fenceline contrasts to evaluate the impacts of feral horses on several plant community variables (diversity, richness, dominance, and biomass) and species composition. Because the effects of grazing can vary with site precipitation and productivity, we selected 5 sites from 4 different rangeland types (Great Basin Desert, Colorado Plateau, Rocky Mountain grassland, and mixed grass prairie) that spanned a mean annual precipitation gradient of 229 to 413 mm. Our results did not reveal a significant effect of feral horse grazing on plant community composition, species richness, diversity, evenness, or dominance. In contrast, total aboveground herbaceous biomass and grass biomass were significantly reduced with feral horse grazing, but these effects did not vary with mean annual precipitation. Our results suggest that, at least at the sites we studied, feral horses have affected the plant community by reducing herbaceous biomass but have not caused plant community shifts. Additional multisite studies, preferably with standardized exclosures and larger sample sizes, would increase our understanding of feral horse grazing effects and inform management of feral horse herds in the western United States.
Boundary Layers for the Navier-Stokes Equations Linearized Around a Stationary Euler Flow

We study the viscous boundary layer that forms at small viscosity near a rigid wall for the solution to the Navier–Stokes equations linearized around a smooth and stationary Euler flow (LNSE for short) in a smooth bounded domain $$\Omega \subset \mathbb {R}^3$$ under no-slip boundary conditions. LNSE is supplemented with smooth initial data and smooth external forcing, assumed ill-prepared, that is, not compatible with the no-slip boundary condition. We construct an approximate solution to LNSE on the time interval [0, T], $$0<T<\infty $$ , obtained via an asymptotic expansion in the viscosity parameter, such that the difference between the linearized Navier–Stokes solution and the proposed expansion vanishes as the viscosity tends to zero in $$L^2(\Omega )$$ uniformly in time, and remains bounded independently of viscosity in the space $$L^2([0,T];H^1(\Omega ))$$ . We make this construction both for a 3D channel domain and a smooth domain with a curved boundary. The zero-viscosity limit for LNSE, that is, the convergence of the LNSE solution to the solution of the linearized Euler equations around the same profile when viscosity vanishes, then naturally follows from the validity of this asymptotic expansion. This article generalizes and improves earlier works, such as Temam and Wang (Indiana Univ Math J 45(3):863–916, 1996), Xin and Yanagisawa (Commun Pure Appl Math 52(4):479–541, 1999), and Gie (Commun Math Sci 12(2):383–400, 2014).
A fast online algorithm for large margin training of continuous density hidden Markov models.

We propose an online learning algorithm for large margin training of continuous density hidden Markov models. The online algorithm updates the model parameters incrementally after the decoding of each training utterance. For large margin training, the algorithm attempts to separate the log-likelihoods of correct and incorrect transcriptions by an amount proportional to their Hamming distance. We evaluate this approach to hidden Markov modeling on the TIMIT speech database. We find that the algorithm yields significantly lower phone error rates than other approaches—both online and batch—that do not attempt to enforce a large margin. We also find that the algorithm converges much more quickly than analogous batch optimizations for large margin training.
Pharmaceuticals and National Health Systems

A well-functioning pharmaceutical subsystem is a critical component of the overall health system and is key to the health system's access, equity, and efficiency. However, consistent access to pharmaceuticals remains a challenge in many national health systems. This article reviews the key characteristics of the pharmaceutical subsystem within the health systems of low- and middle-income countries. It examines different models of pharmaceutical financing, procurement, distribution and provision, and how they impact the technical and allocative efficiency of the overall health system.
Circulating malignant cells in non-Hodgkin's lymphoma: correlation with binding by peanut agglutinin.

A significant number of patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma have peripheral blood involvement during the course of their disease. Because the expression of receptor for the lectin peanut agglutinin PNA by normal lymphocytes is associated with noncirculating (stationary phase) cells, we studied the relationship between PNA binding by lymphoma cells and the presence of clonal B cells in the blood of 38 patients with B-cell lymphoma. The binding of PNA by cells in tissues was determined by the immunoperoxidase method and by two-color flow cytometry. Circulating lymphoma cells (clonal B cells) were identified by a sensitive flow-cytometric technique (kappa-lambda analysis) and were also studied for PNA binding in some cases. In all, 16 of 38 (42%) of lymphomas were PNA+, including a spectrum of histologic types. Circulating lymphoma cells were demonstrated in 17 of 22 PNA-lymphomas, whereas only 3 of 16 of PNA+ lymphomas had such circulating cells. Thus, there is a significant association between PNA binding and peripheral blood involvement by lymphoma (P less than .005 by chi-square analysis). In 12 cases, the circulating and tissue lymphoma cells had similar expression of PNA receptor (2 PNA+ and 10 PNA- cases), indicating that modulation of the PNA binding sites did not occur. In three patients who presented with lymphosarcoma cell leukemia, the circulating malignant cells were PNA-. These findings suggest that for both normal and malignant lymphocytes the absence of binding sites for PNA is associated with the capacity of these cells to circulate freely.
Hand and Upper Extremities

A motorcyclist is brought to the trauma bay after crashing into a parked pick-up truck. He is alert, oriented, and hemodynamically stable. The patient has no intrathoracic or abdominal injuries. He does have extensive abrasions and bruises of his upper extremities, although radiologic evaluation demonstrates no skeletal fractures or dislocation. However, over of the course of 3 hours, the patient complains of increasing numbness and paresthesia of the left forearm. On physical examination, the involved extremity is swollen and very tense, with tenderness over the forearm musculature and paresthesia confirmed over the distribution of the median and ulnar nerves. The patient has a very strongly palpable radial pulse. Which of the following should be the management at this time? (A) Application of a sequential compression garment (B) Elevation of the involved extremity and artenography (C) Three-compartment fasciotomy (D) Venous Doppler studies (E) Repeated extremity x-rays
Birth Location of Infants with Critical Congenital Heart Disease in California

The American Academy of Pediatrics classifies neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) from level I to IV based on the acuity of care each unit can provide. Birth in a higher level center is associated with lower morbidity and mortality in high-risk populations. Congenital heart disease accounts for 25-50% of infant mortality related to birth defects in the U.S., but recent data are lacking on where infants with critical congenital heart disease (CCHD) are born. We used a linked dataset from the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development to access ICD-9 diagnosis codes for all infants born in California from 2008 to 2012. We compared infants with CCHD to the general population, identified where infants with CCHD were born based on NICU level of care, and predicted level IV birth among infants with CCHD using logistic regression techniques. From 2008 to 2012, 6325 infants with CCHD were born in California, with 23.7% of infants with CCHD born at a level IV NICU compared to 8.4% of the general population. Level IV birth for infants with CCHD was associated with lower gestational age, higher maternal age and education, the presence of other congenital anomalies, and the diagnosis of a single ventricle lesion. More infants with CCHD are born in a level IV NICU compared to the general population. Future studies are needed to determine if birth in a lower level of care center impacts outcomes for infants with CCHD.
Progress Toward a Semi-Synthetic Organism with an Unrestricted Expanded Genetic Alphabet

We have developed a family of unnatural base pairs (UBPs), exemplified by the pair formed between dNaM and dTPT3, for which pairing is mediated not by complementary hydrogen bonding but by hydrophobic and packing forces. These UBPs enabled the creation of the first semisynthetic organisms (SSOs) that store increased genetic information and use it to produce proteins containing noncanonical amino acids. However, retention of the UBPs was poor in some sequence contexts. Here, to optimize the SSO, we synthesize two novel benzothiophene-based dNaM analogs, dPTMO and dMTMO, and characterize the corresponding UBPs, dPTMO-dTPT3 and dMTMO-dTPT3. We demonstrate that these UBPs perform similarly to, or slightly worse than, dNaM-dTPT3 in vitro. However, in the in vivo environment of an SSO, retention of dMTMO-dTPT3, and especially dPTMO-dTPT3, is significantly higher than that of dNaM-dTPT3. This more optimal in vivo retention results from better replication, as opposed to more efficient import of the requisite unna...
multiHiCcompare: joint normalization and comparative analysis of complex Hi-C experiments.

Motivation With the development of chromatin conformation capture technology and its high-throughput derivative Hi-C sequencing, studies of the three-dimensional interactome of the genome that involve multiple Hi-C datasets are becoming available. To account for the technology-driven biases unique to each dataset, there is a distinct need for methods to jointly normalize multiple Hi-C datasets. Previous attempts at removing biases from Hi-C data have made use of techniques which normalize individual Hi-C datasets, or, at best, jointly normalize two datasets. Results Here, we present multiHiCcompare, a cyclic loess regression-based joint normalization technique for removing biases across multiple Hi-C datasets. In contrast to other normalization techniques, it properly handles the Hi-C-specific decay of chromatin interaction frequencies with the increasing distance between interacting regions. multiHiCcompare uses the general linear model framework for comparative analysis of multiple Hi-C datasets, adapted for the Hi-C-specific decay of chromatin interaction frequencies. multiHiCcompare outperforms other methods when detecting a priori known chromatin interaction differences from jointly normalized datasets. Applied to the analysis of auxin-treated versus untreated experiments, and CTCF depletion experiments, multiHiCcompare was able to recover the expected epigenetic and gene expression signatures of loss of chromatin interactions and reveal novel insights. Availability and implementation multiHiCcompare is freely available on GitHub and as a Bioconductor R package https://bioconductor.org/packages/multiHiCcompare. Supplementary information Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Racial differences in 20-year cardiovascular outcomes among childhood and young adult cancer survivors.

6548 Background: Individuals diagnosed with childhood (0-14 years) or young adulthood (15-34 years) cancers are at higher risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) death compared to those without a hist...
Reducing computation time of a wireless resource scheduler by exploiting temporal channel characteristics

The long term evolution downlink scheduler must attain a low computation time as it performs scheduling decisions every 1 ms. 5G New Radio introduced mini-slots for the purpose of ultra-reliable and low-latency communications further shrinking the time to make scheduling decisions to 0.125 ms. Many optimal scheduling schemes have such high computation times that they are not suitable for implementation. Previous works generally attack this problem from a computational complexity theory perspective and devise alternative non-optimal problem formulations. Here, we tackle the problem from a practical point of view and propose to reduce the quantity of users and resources in the scheduling problem over a given time. We achieve this by scheduling relatively slow varying signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) users not as frequently but for relatively longer time durations. To evaluate the performance of our idea, we derive a novel correlated bivariate received SNR distribution. The derived distribution can also be applied to a signal-to-interference ratio limited system. We show that the number of operations it takes to make scheduling decisions can be reduced by 33% with confidence probability of 0.7 and by 58% with confidence probability of 0.4. We also evaluate the potential drawbacks of the proposed scheme in terms of efficiency and error rate.
Targeted Source Detection for Environmental Data.

In the face of growing needs for water and energy, a fundamental understanding of the environmental impacts of human activities becomes critical for managing water and energy resources, remedying water pollution, and making regulatory policy wisely. Among activities that impact the environment, oil and gas production, wastewater transport, and urbanization are included. In addition to the occurrence of anthropogenic contamination, the presence of some contaminants (e.g., methane, salt, and sulfate) of natural origin is not uncommon. Therefore, scientists sometimes find it difficult to identify the sources of contaminants in the coupled natural and human systems. In this paper, we propose a technique to simultaneously conduct source detection and prediction, which outperforms other approaches in the interdisciplinary case study of the identification of potential groundwater contamination within a region of high-density shale gas development.
Anti-Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Therapy for Choroidal Rupture-Associated Choroidal Neovascularization

ABSTRACT In a retrospective, consecutive case series, 7.9% of eyes with choroidal ruptures were diagnosed with choroidal neovascularization (mean interval: 2.0 months after trauma). Visual acuity remained stable following a median of 2.0 anti-VEGF injections.
Childhood Disability-Related Abuse: A Retrospective Proof-of-Concept Study.

Although the phenomenon of disability-related abuse has been well-documented in adults with disabilities, the occurrence of disability-related abuse in childhood has not been studied. Therefore, th...
Minimally Invasive Management of Complicated Sigmoid Diverticulitis in the Emergency Setting: Patient Selection, Prerequisite Skills, and Operative Strategies

Management of complicated sigmoid diverticulitis with purulent peritonitis (Hinchey III) disease is complex and mandates an individualized multidisciplinary approach, with a high level of surgical expertise and sound clinical judgment. When feasible, percutaneous drainage of drainable abscesses is recommended and may allow deferring surgical intervention. Several surgical approaches have been advocated including Hartmann’s procedure and sigmoid resection and primary colorectal anastomosis with or without fecal diversion. Most recently, the role of laparoscopic peritoneal lavage has been intensely investigated as an organ-preserving alternative. Current published data and clinical guidelines suggest the superiority of sigmoid resection with colorectal anastomosis and diverting loop ileostomy in patients otherwise stable for an operation. Hartmann’s procedure remains a viable and safe alternative in patients hemodynamically unstable or unfit for primary anastomosis. When possible, a minimally invasive approach should be considered given demonstrable benefits in these patients.
Enhancer RNAs in cancer: regulation, mechanisms and therapeutic potential

Enhancers are distal genomic elements critical for gene regulation and cell identify control during development and diseases. Many human cancers were found to associate with enhancer malfunction, d...
Thermally Stable Poly(vinylidene fluoride) for High-Performance Printable Piezoelectric Devices

Piezoelectric polymers, such as poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) and its copolymers, can achieve large strains and high work density under external electrical fields. These materials are highly desirable in the development of electronic devices and intelligent structures. Here, we demonstrate that dehydrofluorination (DHF) can provide a versatile chemical modification of the PVDF homopolymer that yields thermally stable ferroelectricity. The DHF process significantly increases the fraction of planar chain conformation in the PVDF and results in higher piezoelectric coupling with a wider processing temperature range, compared to traditionally processed PVDF. The efficacy of DHF in promoting planar chain conformation is demonstrated through molecular simulation and further proven by experimental characterization. The induced piezoelectric phases by DHF were able to be preserved through high temperature treatments up to 200 °C. The dehydrofluorinated PVDF exhibits improved electromechanical coupling with a high piezoelectric strain coefficient of d31 = 25.12 ± 1.13 pC/N, which can be further improved to 35.12 ± 0.69 pC/N by common mechanical drawing. This high piezoelectric voltage coefficient leads to an excellent actuation and energy harvesting behavior with a power density of 21.96 mW/cm3 in a flexible undrawn PVDF energy harvester, which is 3.13 times higher than conventionally drawn PVDF. The versatile and scalable method for preparing PVDF polymers with high piezoelectric coupling will enable new manufacturing processes not currently compatible with PVDF homopolymers.
Large climate mitigation potential from adding trees to agricultural lands.

While improved management of agricultural landscapes is promoted as a promising natural climate solution, available estimates of the mitigation potential are based on coarse assessments of both agricultural extent and aboveground carbon density. Here we combine 30 meter resolution global maps of aboveground woody carbon, tree cover, and cropland extent, as well as a 1 km resolution map of global pasture land, to estimate the current and potential carbon storage of trees in nonforested portions of agricultural lands. We find that global croplands currently store 3.07 Pg of carbon (C) in aboveground woody biomass (i.e., trees) and pasture lands account for an additional 3.86 Pg C across a combined 3.76 billion ha. We then estimate the climate mitigation potential of multiple scenarios of integration and avoided loss of trees in crop and pasture lands based on region-specific biomass distributions. We evaluate our findings in the context of nationally determined contributions and find that the majority of potential carbon storage from integration and avoided loss of trees in crop and pasture lands is in countries that do not identify agroforestry as a climate mitigation technique.
A Data-Driven Multiscale Framework to Estimate Effective Properties of Lithium-Ion Batteries from Microstructure Images

The Bruggeman model is routinely employed to determine transport parameters in macroscale electrochemical models. Yet, it relies on both a simplified representation of the pore-scale structure and specific hypotheses on the transport dynamics at the pore scale. Furthermore, its inherent scalar nature prevents it from capturing the impact that pore-structure anisotropy has on transport. As a result, the complex topology of electrochemical storage devices, combined with the broad range of conditions in which batteries operate, renders the Bruggeman relationship approximate, at best. We propose a self-consistent multiscale framework, based on homogenization theory, which a priori allows one to calculate effective parameters of battery electrodes for a range of transport regimes while accounting for full topological information at the pore scale. The method is based on the solution of a closure problem on a translationally periodic unit cell and generalized to handle locally non-periodic structures. We compare the Bruggeman and the closure-problem predictions of the effective diffusivity for a set of 18,000 synthetically generated images and propose a data-driven polynomial function correlating porosity and effective diffusivity, as calculated from a solution of the closure problem. We test its predictive capability against measured diffusivity values in a LiCoO $$_2$$ cathode and a Ni-YSZ anode.
Wands up! Internet-mediated social advocacy organizations and youth-oriented connective action:

Internet-mediated social advocacy organizations (IMSAOs) have advanced over the past two decades. These organizations differ significantly from traditional “brick-and-mortar” non-governmental organ...
A Pandemic-Inspired Transformation of Primary Care

Lessons learned from the current COVID-19 pandemic can be harnessed to reengineer and restructure the current primary care paradigm with an eye toward advancing population health for years to come During this pandemic, primary care in particular has again demonstrated its value to the healthcare system in the US and elsewhere through its agility to adapt to a broad range of healthcare settings Guaranteeing the preservation, stabilization and growth of primary care practices and disciplines is paramount to ensure that this foundation of the healthcare system survives Holding on to pre-pandemic paradigms will also significantly increase the risk of being unprepared for the next challenges to the healthcare system and to the health of the population On January 31, 2020, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex M Azar II declared a Public Health Emergency for the entire US to aid the response of the healthcare community to the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic The first death attributable to SARS-CoV-2 infection was reported on February 6, 2020 and, at the time of this writing, the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic continues to foment morbidity and mortality on a scale previously unseen since the 1918 H1N1 influenza pandemic Concurrently, the pandemic appears to have launched a radical transformation of the US healthcare system, including its primary care enterprise How primary care is reimagined and reinvigorated by the pandemic is bound to reshape the US healthcare for generations to come It is the objective of this commentary to advocate that the lessons learned from the pandemic be harnessed to reengineer and restructure the current paradigm with an eye toward advancing population health for years to come [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Rhode Island Medical Journal is the property of Rhode Island Medical Society and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use This abstract may be abridged No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract (Copyright applies to all Abstracts )
Effects of Welfare Reform on Household Food Insecurity Across Generations

This study estimated the effects of welfare reform in the 1990s, which permanently restructured and contracted the cash assistance system in the U.S., on food insecurity—a fundamental form of hardship—of the next generation of households. An implicit goal underlying welfare reform was the disruption of an assumed intergenerational transmission of disadvantage; however, little is known about the effects of welfare reform on the well-being of the next generation. Using intergenerational data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics and a variation on a difference-in-differences framework, this study exploits 3 sources of variation in childhood exposure to welfare reform: (1) risk of exposure across birth cohorts; (2) variation of exposure within cohorts because different states implemented welfare reform in different years; and (3) variation between individuals with the same exposure who were more likely and less likely to rely on welfare. We found that exposure to welfare reform led to decreases in food insecurity of the next generation of households, by about 10% for a 5-year increase in exposure, with stronger effects for women, individuals exposed for longer durations during childhood, individuals exposed in early childhood (0-5 years), and individuals whose mothers had a high school education (versus less). Institutional subscribers to the NBER working paper series, and residents of developing countries may download this paper without additional charge at www.nber.org.
Design of a Linear Optimal Quadratic Regulator for Frequency Control in a Two-Area Deregulated Power Market

Meeting the load demand on an electric power system, safety and reliability have been of the utmost importance for transmission system operators worldwide. Even with the deregulation of the electricity market, this priority is still in place. The Transmission System Operator (TSO) needs to keep the frequency in the permissible interval to avoid load shedding. Since loads in a power system is a random variable, a power system is never in steady-state condition. Its frequency is fluctuating constantly. At each instance, the load balance equation should be met to keep the frequency in safe ranges. On each generator is installed an Automatic Generation Control (AGC) control system to regulate the frequency. The control of the AGC is tuned to follow the change in load demand to keep the frequency in the prescribed ranges. The design of the controller is crucial to meet these requirements. In this paper, the popular design method called Linear Quadratic Regulator (LQR) will be implemented to regulate the frequency of a two-area electricity market when the load is fluctuating in one of the areas. The results will be compared with the case when the LQR is not used to portray its role in the frequency regulation of the power system.
High performance computational biology-past progress and future promise

Biology is awash in data. The amount, complexity and increased need for the rigorous post-processing of these data speak to an increased role for high performance computing (HPC) in biology. Here HPC implies everything from global grid architectures to optimization of specific codes to take advantage of commodity clusters, to Web services needed to optimize and make useful the computer human interface. Currently there is a dearth of literature addressing the role of HPC as applied to problems in computational biology. With HPC becoming more available and the need increasing, this situation is expected to change. This presentation will describe, from a user's perspective, what is possible with HPC today and what is possible going forward using some representative applications from our own work. Specifically, grid optimization and work flow development for a high throughput genomic annotation pipeline, federation of several cell signaling databases, and new intuitive interfaces to the PDB and other resources.
Antitrust and the New State Action Doctrine: A Return to Deferential Economic Federalism

Some amount of conflict is inevitable between federal antitrust laws and state economic regulation. Written in broad strokes, federal antitrust prohibits combinations in restraint of trade or monopolization of markets, and thus confirms competition in free markets as the fundamental principle governing the national economy.' In the eloquent words of the Supreme Court, [federal antitrust law] rests on the premise that the unrestrained interaction of competitive forces will yield the best allocation of our economic resources, the lowest prices, the highest quality and the greatest material progress, while at the same time providing an environment conducive to the preservation of our democratic political and social institutions.2 State economic regulation, on the other hand, usually supplants competition and free markets. For example, states commonly regulate utilities, license professions, zone property, limit taxicab permits, or place other price or entry controls upon selected businesses. Although state regulation is often designed to correct perceived market failures,3 much of it is economically inefficient and thus in conflict with federal antitrust policy.4 If strict preemption standards were applied to this conflict betweeen federal antitrust laws and state economic regulation, the supremacy clause of the Constitution would require the wholesale invalidation of
A Game Theoretic Approach to Regulatory Negotiation: A Framework for Empirical Analysis

While regulatory agencies have been engaging in negotiation with regulated parties and other stakeholders for decades now, careful study of the implications of such negotiations have lagged. In particular, while several commentators have now staked out intellectual ground on the theoretical ramifications of regulatory negotiation, empirical analyses of regulatory negotiations have been lacking. This article analyzes the implications of regulatory "reinvention" as the latest in a series of administrative initiatives aimed at achieving better rulemaking and adjudication through negotiations. Reinvention is commonly understood to mean those programs that utilize negotiated agreements to implement regulatory requirements imposed by various environmental statutes. Controversy has visited reinvention, as several specific reinvention projects have raised questions regarding the legality of this administrative practice. Using an economic game-theoretic model, this article argues for a continuation of this practice, but under new statutory authorizations. Reinvention accomplishes much-needed flexibility in environmental statutes that have suffered from partisan Congressional gridlock, and by and large effectuate minor common sense amendments. Several instances of administrative failures, however, have jeopardized the legitimacy of this practice. Statutory authorizations, coupled with funding for enforcement and specific guidelines limiting agency discretion can bring legitimacy to regulatory negotiation. In addition, objective means of monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of agencies in conducting negotiations are necessary. Towards this end, this article argues for empowerment of citizen groups and presents an empirical means of evaluating the fairness of regulatory negotiations.
Flooding and flow path selection on alluvial fans and deltas

[1] The surfaces of alluvial fans and river deltas (collectively fans) are often dissected by a small number of channels radiating from the fan apex. On long timescales, channels migrate via avulsion, the process of channel bed deposition and abandonment that often results in catastrophic flooding and loss of life on densely populated fans. We present results of an experimental fan that creates realistic channel patterns by avulsion. The avulsion cycle occurs with a period that is predictable from conservation of mass. Selection of a new flow path is inherently stochastic; however, once a network of 4–5 channels is established, flow oscillates among these channels indefinitely. We demonstrate that a directed random walk model with memory quantitatively reproduces these dynamics and limiting behavior, and is consistent with natural fans.
Anatomically ordered tapping interferes more with one-digit addition than two-digit addition: a dual-task fMRI study

Fingers are used as canonical representations for numbers across cultures. In previous imaging studies, it was shown that arithmetic processing activates neural resources that are known to participate in finger movements. Additionally, in one dual-task study, it was shown that anatomically ordered finger tapping disrupts addition and subtraction more than multiplication, possibly due to a long-lasting effect of early finger counting experiences on the neural correlates and organization of addition and subtraction processes. How arithmetic task difficulty and tapping complexity affect the concurrent performance is still unclear. If early finger counting experiences have bearing on the neural correlates of arithmetic in adults, then one would expect anatomically and non-anatomically ordered tapping to have different interference effects, given that finger counting is usually anatomically ordered. To unravel these issues, we studied how (1) arithmetic task difficulty and (2) the complexity of the finger tapping sequence (anatomical vs. non-anatomical ordering) affect concurrent performance and use of key neural circuits using a mixed block/event-related dual-task fMRI design with adult participants. The results suggest that complexity of the tapping sequence modulates interference on addition, and that one-digit addition (fact retrieval), compared to two-digit addition (calculation), is more affected from anatomically ordered tapping. The region-of-interest analysis showed higher left angular gyrus BOLD response for one-digit compared to two-digit addition, and in no-tapping conditions than dual tapping conditions. The results support a specific association between addition fact retrieval and anatomically ordered finger movements in adults, possibly due to finger counting strategies that deploy anatomically ordered finger movements early in the development.
Alterations of angiopoietin-related growth factor (Angptl6) during pregnancy and in pre-eclampsia

Aim The aim of this study was to clarify the alterations of angiopoietin-related growth factor (AGF, also known as Angptl6/ARP5) in the serum of normally pregnant women and pre-eclamptic women and to explore the role of AGF in pre-eclampsia. Material and Methods Thirty healthy non-pregnant women, 118 normally pregnant women (30 at 6–12 gestational weeks, 30 at 13–28 weeks and 58 at 29–40 weeks, respectively) and 46 pre-eclamptic women were recruited. Fasting blood samples were obtained from all subjects. Fifteen women of healthy pregnant women provided their blood samples at 24 and 48 h after cesarean section, respectively. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to determine the serum level of AGF. Results Serum levels of AGF were significantly higher in normally pregnant women than non-pregnant women (P < 0.001 of all). Although serum AGF of the first trimester was significantly higher than that of the second trimester (P = 0.033), there were no significant differences of serum AGF in the comparison between the first and third trimester (P = 0.064) and between the second and third trimester (P = 0.546). Serum AGF significantly decreased after delivery (P < 0.05). There were no significant differences in AGF of maternal serum between pre-eclamptic women and normally pregnant control women (P = 0.285). There were no significant differences in circulating AGF concentration between non-pregnant women and postpartum groups (P = 0.052 for 24 h after delivery and P = 0.083 for 48 h after delivery). Conclusion The serum level of AGF was elevated in normal pregnancy compared with non-pregnant women, suggesting that placenta is an important source of circulating AGF during pregnancy.
Time sense following psychic trauma: A clinical study of ten adults and twenty children.

Time sense following psychic trauma was evaluated in a study of 30 children and adults. Misperceptions of duration and sequencing of time and of events were found to be common, and many subjects retrospectively found significance in prior episodes or thoughts, forming omens; several minimized their futures, demonstrating problems with time perspective. Explanations for these phenomena are offered, and examples from literature and folklore are cited.
Developing tools as plug‐ins: TOPI 2011 special issue editorial

SUMMARY Our knowledge of how to solve software engineering problems is increasingly being encapsulated in tools. These tools are at their strongest when they operate in a pre-existing integrated development environment (IDE). This approach allows integration with existing elements such as compilers, debuggers, profilers, visualizers, and numerous other development and, often, runtime tools. Tools and environments to increase software quality and productivity have always been an important aspect of software engineering. A plug-in is a modern way for incrementally adding new tools into existing environments. However, building tools as plug-ins can be challenging. How do they interact with the core environment? How do they interact with one another - especially since each developer may choose a different set of plug-ins? How can we share tools across different, and future, core development environments?
Identification of Synthetic Peptides Derived from Laminin α1 and α2 Chains with Cell Type Specificity for Neurite Outgrowth

Abstract Laminin-1 is a potent promoter of neurite outgrowth. Here we find that the laminin-1 α chain contains peptide sequences that stimulate attachment and neurite outgrowth in some but not all neuronal cells. Testing of a series of overlapping peptides for biological activity with three laminin-1-responsive, neuronally derived cell lines resulted in the identification of peptide sequences, RKRLQVQLSIRT and KNRLTIELEVRT, from corresponding regions of the α1 and α2 (merosin) chain globular regions, respectively, that were active for attachment for all three cell lines and for neurite outgrowth with two of the cell lines. These data represent the identification of novel peptide sequences active with certain neuronal cells from the α1 and α2 chains of laminin. The peptides showed different attachment and neurite outgrowth activities depending on the cell type, suggesting cell type specificity in the response of the cells.
Synthesis of higher alcohols in a slurry reactor with cesium-promoted zinc chromite catalyst in decahydronaphthalene

Abstract The synthesis of higher alcohols from H 2 /CO mixtures was studied in a continuous slurry reactor using unpromoted “zinc chromite” catalyst and the same catalyst promoted with 6 wt.% cesium (Cs). Decahydronaphthalene (DHN) was used as the slurry liquid. Two temperatures 375 and 400 °C, and three H 2 /CO feed ratios 0.5, 1.0, and 2.0 (mol/mol), were explored. The pressure, 13.6 MPa (2000 psig), and the gas hourly space velocity (GHSV), 5000 standard l/(kg (cat) h), were constant. Compared with unpromoted zinc chromite, the Cs-promoted catalyst shifted the product distribution away from methanol towards higher alcohols, although methanol was still the major product. The higher alcohols were primarily ethanol, 1-propanol and isobutanol. Higher temperature favored higher alcohol synthesis (HAS), and a higher H 2 /CO ratio led to lower oxygenate selectivity and higher hydrocarbon selectivity. These trends were more pronounced with the Cs-promoted catalyst than with the unpromoted catalyst. The performance of both catalysts was comparable to that of similar catalysts in fixed-bed reactors operating at approximately the same conditions.