Agglomerative Clustering of Growing Squares

We study an agglomerative clustering problem motivated by interactive glyphs in geo-visualization. Consider a set of disjoint square glyphs on an interactive map. When the user zooms out, the glyphs grow in size relative to the map, possibly with different speeds. When two glyphs intersect, we wish to replace them by a new glyph that captures the information of the intersecting glyphs. We present a fully dynamic kinetic data structure that maintains a set of $n$ disjoint growing squares. Our data structure uses $O(n (\log n \log\log n)^2)$ space, supports queries in worst case $O(\log^3 n)$ time, and updates in $O(\log^7 n)$ amortized time. This leads to an $O(n\alpha(n)\log^7 n)$ time algorithm to solve the agglomerative clustering problem. This is a significant improvement over the current best $O(n^2)$ time algorithms.Comment: 14 pages, 7 figure

Circulating emm types of Streptococcus pyogenes in Scotland: 2011-2015

No abstract available

Implementation and Evaluation of an Intervention for Children in Afghanistan at Risk for Substance Use or Actively Using Psychoactive Substances

The present study examined the impact of a novel intervention for children at risk for substance use or actively using substances that was provided to 783 children between 4 and 18 years of age in Afghanistan. They received the Child Intervention for Living Drug-free (CHILD) protocol while in outpatient or residential treatment. CHILD included age-appropriate literacy and numeracy, drug education, basic living safety, and communication and trauma coping skills. A battery of measures examined multiple child health domains at treatment’s start and end and 12 weeks later. For younger children, there were no significant Gender or Gender X Time effects (all p’s > .16 and .35, resp.). The time main effect was significant for all outcomes (all p’s < .00192, the prespecified per-comparison error rate). Post hoc testing showed significant improvements from residential treatment entry to completion for all scales. For older children, a time main effect was significant for (all p’s < .00192, the prespecified per-comparison error rate) all but one outcome. Community follow-up means were significantly lower than residential treatment entry means. CHILD had a positive impact on children, and treatment impact endured from posttreatment to follow-up assessment

Process simulation and thermodynamic analysis of a micro turbine with post-combustion CO2 capture and exhaust gas recirculation

With the effects of the emissions from power plants causing global climate change, the trend towards lower emission systems such as natural gas power plant is increasing. In this paper a Turbec T100 micro gas turbine is studied. The system is assessed thermodynamically using a steady-state model; model results of its alteration with exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) are presented in this paper. The process simulation with EGR offers a useful assessment when integrated with post-combustion CO2 capture. The EGR model results in the enrichment of the CO2 which decrease the energy demand of the CO2 capture system

Factors infuencing variation in investigations after a negative CT brain scan in suspected subarachnoid haemorrhage: A qualitative study

Introduction Variation in the approach to the patient with a possible subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) has been previously documented. The purpose of this study was to identify factors that influence emergency physicians’ decisions about diagnostic testing after a normal CT brain scan for ED patients with a headache suspicious of a SAH. Methods We conducted an interview-based qualitative study informed by social constructionist theory. Fifteen emergency physicians from six EDs across Queensland, Australia, underwent individual face-to-face or telephone interviews. Content analysis was performed whereby transcripts were examined and coded independently by two co-investigators, who then jointly agreed on the influencing factors. Results Six categories of influencing factors were identified. Patient interaction was at the forefront of the identified factors. This shared decision-making process incorporated ‘what the patient wants’ but may be biased by how the clinician communicates the benefits and harms of the diagnostic options to the patient. Patient risk profile, practice evidence and guidelines were also important. Other influencing factors included experiential factors of the clinician, consultation with colleagues and external influences where practice location and work processes impose constraints on test ordering external to the preferences of the clinician or patient. The six categories were organised within a conceptual framework comprising four components: the context, the evidence, the experience and the decision. Conclusions When clinicians are faced with a diagnostic challenge, such as the workup of a patient with suspected SAH, there are a number of influencing factors that can result in a variation in approach. These need to be considered in approaches to improve the appropriateness and consistency of medical care.No Full Tex

A peculiar HI cloud near the distant globular cluster Pal 4

We present 21-cm observations of four Galactic globular clusters, as part of the on-going GALFA-HI Survey at Arecibo. We discovered a peculiar HI cloud in the vicinity of the distant (109 kpc) cluster Pal 4, and discuss its properties and likelihood of association with the cluster. We conclude that an association of the HI cloud and Pal 4 is possible, but that a chance coincidence between Pal 4 and a nearby compact high-velocity cloud cannot be ruled out altogether. New, more stringent upper limits were derived for the other three clusters: M 3, NGC 5466, and Pal 13. We briefly discuss the fate of globular cluster gas and the interaction of compact clouds with the Galactic Halo gas.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRA

Whole Genome Sequencing of a Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Pseudo-Outbreak in a Professional Football Team.

Two American football players on the same team were diagnosed with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) skin and soft tissue infections on the same day. Our investigation, including whole genome sequencing, confirmed that players did not transmit MRSA to one another nor did they acquire the MRSA from a single source within the training facility

The Alliance of Genome Resources: Building a Modern Data Ecosystem for Model Organism Databases.

Model organisms are essential experimental platforms for discovering gene functions, defining protein and genetic networks, uncovering functional consequences of human genome variation, and for modeling human disease. For decades, researchers who use model organisms have relied on Model Organism Databases (MODs) and the Gene Ontology Consortium (GOC) for expertly curated annotations, and for access to integrated genomic and biological information obtained from the scientific literature and public data archives. Through the development and enforcement of data and semantic standards, these genome resources provide rapid access to the collected knowledge of model organisms in human readable and computation-ready formats that would otherwise require countless hours for individual researchers to assemble on their own. Since their inception, the MODs for the predominant biomedical model organisms [Mus sp (laboratory mouse), Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Drosophila melanogaster, Caenorhabditis elegans, Danio rerio, and Rattus norvegicus] along with the GOC have operated as a network of independent, highly collaborative genome resources. In 2016, these six MODs and the GOC joined forces as the Alliance of Genome Resources (the Alliance). By implementing shared programmatic access methods and data-specific web pages with a unified look and feel, the Alliance is tackling barriers that have limited the ability of researchers to easily compare common data types and annotations across model organisms. To adapt to the rapidly changing landscape for evaluating and funding core data resources, the Alliance is building a modern, extensible, and operationally efficient knowledge commons for model organisms using shared, modular infrastructure

From Maize to Haze: Agricultural Shocks and the Growth of the Mexican Drug Sector *

Abstract Understanding how economic incentives affect illegal drug production is essential for crafting policies in response to the international drug trade. Policymakers typically face a choice between two strategies: targeting criminal groups via law enforcement, and offering producers incentives to engage in alternate activities. Yet, little is known about how the returns to alternate legal activities affect drug supply. We contribute to this literature by examining how shocks to legal commodity prices affect the drug trade in Mexico. Our analysis exploits exogenous movements in the Mexican maize price stemming from weather conditions in U.S. maize-growing regions, as well as exports of other major maize producers. Using data on over 2200 municipios spanning 1990-2010, we show that lower prices differentially increased the cultivation of both marijuana and opium poppies in municipios more climatically suited to growing maize. We also find impacts on downstream drug-trade outcomes, including drug cartel operations and killings perpetrated by these groups. Our findings demonstrate that maize price changes contributed to the burgeoning drug trade in Mexico, and point to the violent consequences of an expanding drug sector. JEL Codes: K420, O13, Q17 * We are grateful t

Multiwavelength Observations of A0620-00 in Quiescence

[Abridged.] We present multiwavelength observations of the black hole binary system, A0620-00. Using the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph on the Hubble Space Telescope, we have obtained the first FUV spectrum of A0620-00. The observed spectrum is flat in the FUV and very faint (with continuum fluxes \simeq 1e - 17 ergs/cm^2/s/A). We compiled the dereddened, broadband spectral energy distribution of A0620-00 and compared it to previous SEDs as well as theoretical models. The SEDs show that the source varies at all wavelengths for which we have multiple samples. Contrary to previous observations, the optical-UV spectrum does not continue to drop to shorter wavelengths, but instead shows a recovery and an increasingly blue spectrum in the FUV. We created an optical-UV spectrum of A0620-00 with the donor star contribution removed. The non-stellar spectrum peaks at \simeq3000 {\deg}A. The peak can be fit with a T=10,000 K blackbody with a small emitting area, probably originating in the hot spot where the accretion stream impacts the outer disk. However, one or more components in addition to the blackbody are needed to fit the FUV upturn and the red optical fluxes in the optical-UV spectrum. By comparing the mass accretion rate determined from the hot spot luminosity to the mean accretion rate inferred from the outburst history, we find that the latter is an order of magnitude smaller than the former, indicating that \sim90% of the accreted mass must be lost from the system if the predictions of the disk instability model and the estimated interoutburst interval are correct. The mass accretion rate at the hot spot is 10^5 the accretion rate at the black hole inferred from the X-ray luminosity. To reconcile these requires that outflows carry away virtually all of the accreted mass, a very low rate of mass transfer from the outer cold disk into the inner hot region, and/or radiatively inefficient accretion.Comment: ApJ, accepte