Fluoride Dose-Response of Human and Bovine Enamel Artificial Caries Lesions under pH-Cycling Conditions

Objectives This laboratory study aimed to (a) compare the fluoride dose-response of different caries lesions created in human and bovine enamel (HE/BE) under pH-cycling conditions and (b) investigate the suitability of Knoop and Vickers surface microhardness (K-SMH/V-SMH) in comparison to transverse microradiography (TMR) to investigate lesion de- and remineralization. Materials and methods Caries lesions were formed using three different protocols (Carbopol, hydroxyethylcellulose-HEC, methylcellulose-MeC) and assigned to 24 groups using V-SMH, based on a 2 (enamel types) × 3 (lesion types) × 4 (fluoride concentrations used during pH-cycling-simulating 0/250/1100/2800 ppm F as sodium fluoride dentifrices) factorial design. Changes in mineral content and structural integrity of lesions were determined before and after pH-cycling. Data were analyzed using three-way ANOVA. Results BE was more prone to demineralization than HE. Both enamel types showed similar responses to fluoride with BE showing more remineralization (as change in integrated mineral loss and lesion depth reduction), although differences between tissues were already present at lesion baseline. Carbopol and MeC lesions responded well to fluoride, whereas HEC lesions were almost inert. K- and V-SMH correlated well with each other and with the integrated mineral loss data, although better correlations were found for HE than for BE and for MeC than for Carbopol lesions. Hardness data for HEC lesions correlated only with surface zone mineral density data. Conclusion BE is a suitable surrogate for HE under pH-cycling conditions. Clinical relevance The in vitro modeling of dental caries is complex and requires knowledge of lesion behavior, analytical techniques, and employed hard tissues

Truthful Online Scheduling with Commitments

We study online mechanisms for preemptive scheduling with deadlines, with the goal of maximizing the total value of completed jobs. This problem is fundamental to deadline-aware cloud scheduling, but there are strong lower bounds even for the algorithmic problem without incentive constraints. However, these lower bounds can be circumvented under the natural assumption of deadline slackness, i.e., that there is a guaranteed lower bound $s > 1$ on the ratio between a job's size and the time window in which it can be executed. In this paper, we construct a truthful scheduling mechanism with a constant competitive ratio, given slackness $s > 1$. Furthermore, we show that if $s$ is large enough then we can construct a mechanism that also satisfies a commitment property: it can be determined whether or not a job will finish, and the requisite payment if so, well in advance of each job's deadline. This is notable because, in practice, users with strict deadlines may find it unacceptable to discover only very close to their deadline that their job has been rejected

Does money really grow on trees? A case study of the economic and ecosystem outcomes of timber stand improvement in New Hampshire

Timber stand improvement (TSI) is one silviculture method that landowners can apply to their forest to enhance timber quality as well as ecosystem services, such as deadwood in the form of standing deadwood, snags, and coarse woody debris (CWD). There are few studies on the economic effectiveness of TSI as a forest management practice. This research uses data collected on land owned by the Blue Hills Foundation, in Strafford, New Hampshire, to present a case study examining economic and ecosystem outcomes of TSI. Because interest rates and market prices are constantly fluctuating, we evaluated outcomes at various interest rates. We have built a model that landowners can use by inputting their own treatment costs, interest rates, and timber values to determine the financial performance of TSI treatment. The results of our study suggest that TSI can be an effective and cost-efficient forest management practice at low interest rates. TSI may also enhance standing deadwood, snags, and CWD, which provide important ecosystem services such as wildlife habitat and carbon storage ability. For this study, TSI increased the volume and number of pieces per acre of these forms of deadwood. We combined information from the deadwood analysis with that of the financial analysis to determine an implicit value of deadwood necessary for net present value to breakeven in our groups where net present value was negative based solely on the timber evaluation

Letter to Mary Oliver regarding North Carolina Library Association, April 22, 1964

A letter from Margaret Kalp to Mary Oliver regarding Oliver\u27s membership on the Constitution and Codes Committee of the North Carolina Library Association

Self-leadership Strategies and Subjective Measures of Entrepreneur Success

Self-leadership refers to a self-influence process consisting of behavioral and cognitive strategies intended to improve personal effectiveness (Neck & Houghton, 2006). These strategies fall into three categories – behavior-focused strategies, constructive thought pattern strategies, and natural reward strategies. Research on self-leadership has shown evidence of positive outcomes such as job performance and job satisfaction (Frayne & Geringer, 2000; Harari et al., 2021; Prussia et al., 1998). Due to the variety of ways entrepreneurs measure success, and based on the numerous desirable outcomes of self-leadership strategies, it is important to explore these strategies as potential predictors of entrepreneur success. In a review of the literature, research to examine the three types of self-leadership strategies as potential predictors of entrepreneur success was not found. D’Intino et al. (2007) reviewed the literature on self-leadership to suggest that these strategies can help entrepreneurs achieve success; however, an empirical study to validate a predictive relationship was not identified from the literature review. The purpose of this quantitative survey study was to explore relationships between self-leadership strategies and subjective measures of success in entrepreneurs. Participants with at least three years of experience and in an entrepreneurial or business leadership role at the time of participation were recruited through the LinkedIn group, Survey Exchange, and SurveyCircle, and data were collected via online survey questionnaires. Implications include an understanding of specific strategies that are more likely to influence positive outcomes most important to those in entrepreneur and business leadership roles

USA's Egypt policy during the process of arab spring

Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü, Uluslararası İlişkiler Ana Bilim DalıABD'nin Ortadoğu dış politikasında esas aldığı iki temel ilkesi vardır. Bunlar enerji kaynaklarının hâkimiyeti ve İsrail'in güvenliğidir. ABD tüm Ortadoğu politikasını bu iki ilkeye göre belirlemiştir. Ortadoğu'da hâkimiyet kurmak isteyen ABD bölgede kendisine müttefikler bulmaya çalışmıştır. İlişki kurduğu yönetimleri askeri ve mali yardımlarla desteklemiş ve kendi politikalarına kalkan yapmıştır. İyi ilişkiler kuramadığı ülkeleri ise askeri müdahalelerle yola getirmeye çalışmıştır. Bu anlamda binlerce yıllık kadim tarihi ile dünyanın anası olarak nitelendirilen Mısır, ABD için her zaman stratejik bir ülke olmuştur. Arap Baharı sürecinin başlamasıyla ABD'nin bölgedeki yaklaşık yarım asırlık yatırımları tehlikeye girmiştir. Bu duruma seyirci kalmayan ABD, bölgedeki rejimlerin garantörü olan orduları kullanarak çıkarlarını devam ettirmeye çalışmıştır. Bu çalışma ABD'nin Ortadoğu politikalarında Mısır'ın önemini kavramayı ve Arap Baharı sürecinin ABD'nin Mısır politikalarında ne gibi değişikliklere sebep olduğunu anlamayı hedeflemektedir. Bunun için ABD'nin geleneksel Ortadoğu politikaları ele alınmış ve Arap Baharı sürecinden itibaren Hüsnü Mübarek, Muhammed Mursi ve Abdülfettah El-Sisi dönemleri ayrı ayrı incelenmiştir. Diğer taraftan Arap Baharı bölge halkları tarafından büyük umutlarla başlamış fakat beklenen sonucu vermemiştir. Her ne kadar Arap coğrafyasındaki gelişmeler bekleneni karşılamasa da bölgede artık hiçbir şeyin eskisi gibi olmayacağı aşikârdır. Bölge halkı bir kez uyanışa geçmiştir ve bölgede demokrasiyi yeniden tesis edene kadar mücadeleden vazgeçmeyeceklerdir. Anahtar Kelimeler: ABD, Mısır, Ortadoğu, İsrail, Arap BaharıPolicies pursued by the US in the Middle East are desingned around two basic principles which are domination of energy resources and keeping Israel secured. Strategies for Middle East are based on theese cornerstones. USA tried to build alliances in Middle East where they aim to be dominant power. Allied governments which have been given martial and economic supports, become guards of American policies. Non-allied countries confronted with military interventions of America. Concordantly Egypt -called the mother of the world because of its 1000 of years of ancient history- have been strategically importance country for the US. American investments which have been done for half a century have became imperiled during the period called the Arab Spring. US who would not bear the mentioned situation, try to continue their capitals on the area by using the armies stand as regime guarantor. The aim of this study is to make sense of Egypt's significance trough American Middle East policies and How Arab Spring cause alterations in American Foreign Policies for Egypt. Common American Policies for Middle East are stated and the Hüsnü Mübarek, Muhammed Mursi ve Abdülfettah El-Sisi 's terms during the period which begins with Arab Spring. On the other hand, Arab Spring have been initiated by the Arabic People with greate hopes, but it failed. Although the events in Arab World fail to satisfy, it is clear that most of things are changed. Arab people have awaken and they would not give up struggling for rebuild Democracy. KeyWords: USA, Egypt, The Middle East, Israel, Arab Sprin

Crystallization and Structure of Beta-lactamases SHV-2 and SHV-5

Antibiotic resistance often originates from a bacteria\u27s ability to produce enzymes known as Beta-lactamases are known to exist and they are divided into four different classes (class A, B, C, D) depending on their structure. The SHV family of enzymes presented here belong to class A of serine Beta-lactamase

Predictors of Influenza Vaccination Compliance Among Union and Nonunion Workers in a Pennsylvania Health Care System

To improve U.S. residents\u27 health, advocates are focusing their efforts on workplace health. Researchers have found that unionization is a positive influence on workers\u27 participation in health promotion programs relating to smoking and obesity prevention. However, the effect of union membership on other health promotion initiatives, such as influenza vaccination compliance among health care workers, has not been examined. The purpose of this quantitative study was to address this knowledge gap between a union and a nonunion health care facility in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The health belief model was used to determine if different domains of influenza vaccination perception predicted vaccination behaviors among union and nonunion health care workers. A secondary analysis was performed on the 2013-2014 Influenza Vaccination Survey, which was completed by 2,480 health care workers. While a chi-square analysis showed that vaccination compliance was not statistically different between facilities, a binary logistic regression revealed a significant difference in predicted vaccination behaviors for each domain of influenza vaccination perceptions. Among union health care workers, perceived barriers yielded the highest positive predictability of vaccination compliance, whereas perceived benefits were positively associated with vaccination compliance among nonunion workers. These study findings affect social change by identifying vaccine compliance predictors among union and nonunion health care workers. By focusing on these predictors, health care facilities may be able to improve levels of vaccination compliance and achieve the Joint Commissions\u27 vaccination goal of 90% compliance amongst all healthcare workers

PostDoc: Generating Poster from a Long Multimodal Document Using Deep Submodular Optimization

A poster from a long input document can be considered as a one-page easy-to-read multimodal (text and images) summary presented on a nice template with good design elements. Automatic transformation of a long document into a poster is a very less studied but challenging task. It involves content summarization of the input document followed by template generation and harmonization. In this work, we propose a novel deep submodular function which can be trained on ground truth summaries to extract multimodal content from the document and explicitly ensures good coverage, diversity and alignment of text and images. Then, we use an LLM based paraphraser and propose to generate a template with various design aspects conditioned on the input content. We show the merits of our approach through extensive automated and human evaluations