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IMPORTANCE: Effective and well-tolerated, interferon-free regimens are needed for treatment of patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and cirrhosis. OBJECTIVE: All-oral therapy with daclatasvir (nonstructural protein 5A [NS5A] inhibitor), asunaprevir (NS3 protease inhibitor), and beclabuvir (nonnucleoside NS5B inhibitor), with or without ribavirin, was evaluated in patients with HCV genotype 1 infection and compensated cirrhosis. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: The UNITY-2 study was conducted between December 2013 and October 2014 at 49 outpatient sites in the United States, Canada, France, and Australia. Patients were treated for 12 weeks, with 24 weeks of follow-up after completion of treatment. Adult patients with cirrhosis were enrolled in 2 cohorts: HCV treatment-naive or HCV treatment-experienced. Statistical analyses were based on historical controls; there were no internal controls. INTERVENTIONS: All patients received twice-daily treatment with the fixed-dose combination of daclatasvir (30 mg), asunaprevir (200 mg), and beclabuvir (75 mg). In addition, patients within each cohort were stratified according to HCV genotype 1 subtype (1a or 1b) and randomly assigned (1:1) to receive double-blinded weight-based ribavirin (1000-1200 mg/d) or matching placebo. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Sustained virologic response at posttreatment week 12 (SVR12). RESULTS: One hundred twelve patients in the treatment-naive group and 90 patients in the treatment-experienced group were treated and included in the analysis. Enrolled patients were 88% white with a median age of 58 years (treatment-naive group) or 60 years (treatment-experienced group); 74% had genotype 1a infection. SVR12 rates were 98% (97.5%CI, 88.9%-100%) for patients in the treatment-naive group and 93% (97.5% CI, 85.0%-100.0%) for those in the treatment-experienced group when ribavirin was included in the regimen. With the fixed-dose combination alone, response rates were 93% (97.5% CI, 85.

Black American men continue to suffer disproportionately from epidemically higher rates of prostate cancer. We hypothesize that complex reasons for persistently higher death rates of prostate cancer in this group are steeped in social factors associated with health access.We utilized data from the It's All About U prostate cancer prevention study among black men to investigate: 1) what social ecological factors were predictive of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing and digital rectal examinations (DRE); 2) if black men were aware of prostate cancer screening and, if screening was available, would they take the PSA and DRE? Quantitative cross-sectional data from a cohort of 276 black men with no diagnosis of prostate cancer were analyzed to identify characteristics, beliefs, practices and attitudes of this group toward prostate cancer screening. We created a social ecological model to examine which social factors (i.e., environmental, personal, person/environment interplay, black culture and institutional policy) were predictive of PSA and DRE, PSA only and DRE only. To reduce data and identify data patterns, factor analyses (tested for reliability by calculating Cronbach alpha scores) were performed. Variables were standardized with Z scores and analyzed with predictive analytic software technology (SPSS, version 12). A multivariate binary logistic regression was conducted to identify predictors of PSA and DRE.A significant predictor of both PSA and DRE was the physician's direct prostate cancer communication message (P<0.010). Significant correlations exist in PSA and DRE outcomes with a physician's engaging communication style (P<0.012), encouragement to screen (P<0.001) and sharing prostate cancer information (P<0.001); as was men understanding the serious risk of prostate cancer (P<0.001), culture (P<0.004), positive interaction with healthcare staff, significant other(s) and providers (P<0.001), and environmental dimensions (P<0.006)

Black American men continue to suffer disproportionately from epidemically higher rates of prostate cancer. We hypothesize that complex reasons for persistently higher death rates of prostate cancer in this group are steeped in social factors associated with health access.We utilized data from the It's All About U prostate cancer prevention study among black men to investigate: 1) what social ecological factors were predictive of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing and digital rectal examinations (DRE); 2) if black men were aware of prostate cancer screening and, if screening was available, would they take the PSA and DRE? Quantitative cross-sectional data from a cohort of 276 black men with no diagnosis of prostate cancer were analyzed to identify characteristics, beliefs, practices and attitudes of this group toward prostate cancer screening. We created a social ecological model to examine which social factors (i.e., environmental, personal, person/environment interplay, black culture and institutional policy) were predictive of PSA and DRE, PSA only and DRE only. To reduce data and identify data patterns, factor analyses (tested for reliability by calculating Cronbach alpha scores) were performed. Variables were standardized with Z scores and analyzed with predictive analytic software technology (SPSS, version 12). A multivariate binary logistic regression was conducted to identify predictors of PSA and DRE.A significant predictor of both PSA and DRE was the physician's direct prostate cancer communication message (P<0.010). Significant correlations exist in PSA and DRE outcomes with a physician's engaging communication style (P<0.012), encouragement to screen (P<0.001) and sharing prostate cancer information (P<0.001); as was men understanding the serious risk of prostate cancer (P<0.001), culture (P<0.004), positive interaction with healthcare staff, significant other(s) and providers (P<0.001), and environmental dimensions (P<0.006)

The performance of tungsten single crystals in ballistic impact varies strongly as a function of crystallographic orientation. The deformation structure of recovered single crystal rods fired in ballistic environments has been characterized by optical microscopy, SEM and TEM, and x-ray diffraction. The observed microstructures are varied and provide substantial insights into the factors governing the penetration and flow behavior under ballistic conditions. Crystallographic orientation influences the potential for developing shear which enhances mat flow, and this enhancement ultimately maximizes the energy available for target penetration. Microstructural analysis elucidates the various mechanisms occuring during the flow process for single crystals of high- symmetry orientations, and suggests possible analogies between the penetration behavior of the tungsten single crystals and other materials.... Crystallography, Strain rate, Dislocations, Mass transfer, Shear stresses.

The performance of tungsten single crystals in ballistic impact varies strongly as a function of crystallographic orientation. The deformation structure of recovered single crystal rods fired in ballistic environments has been characterized by optical microscopy, SEM and TEM, and x-ray diffraction. The observed microstructures are varied and provide substantial insights into the factors governing the penetration and flow behavior under ballistic conditions. Crystallographic orientation influences the potential for developing shear which enhances material flow, and this enhancement ultimately maximizes the energy available for target penetration. Microstructural analysis elucidates the various mechanisms occurring during the flow process for single crystals of high-symmetry orientations, and suggests possible analogies between the penetration behavior of the tungsten single crystals and other materials.

The theory and derivation of the maximum-entropy method of spectral analysis and the Burg algorithm, and the potential applicability of these techniques to radar signal processing, are reviewed. This material is presented in a readily comprehensible form for assessment by the practicing radar engineer. Topics such as computational complexity, statistical properties, adaptive clutter suppression and angular spectrum estimation are discussed. It is concluded that, at least at present, maximum-entropy spectral analysis is not a panacea for radar signal processing, due to its substantial computational requirements, and the relatively unknown and potentially unfavorable statistical properties of data analyzed using the Burg algorithm. A promising area of applicability appears to be that of adaptive Doppler filtering.

A technique for designing finite-impulse-response (FIR) equiripple high-pass digital filters with nonlinear phase, suitable for use in radar moving-target-indication (MTI) systems, is described. The optimization of such filters in both the time and frequency domains is discussed, and comparisons are made between the spectral performance of nonlinear-phase filters and that of linear-phase filters designed to meet the same stopband bandwidth and attenuation specifications. In 92 out of the 94 cases examined, the transition bandwidth between the stopband is narrower for the nonlinear-phase filter. In the MTI application, this characteristic makes it possible to detect targets of lower radial velocity. Listings of Fortran programs for designing these nonlinear-phase filters are included.

Burg's algorithm for Maximum Entropy autoregressive spectral estimation is analyzed for the cases of one and two complex sinusoidal signals in additive white noise. For the latter case are found two biases which can account for the line splitting and line shifting that occur in simulation studies when the SNR is very high. These biases vanish completely if the two complex sinusoids are in phase quadrature at the middle of the data record; if there is an integral number of half-cycles of difference frequency contained in the data record, then the power level of the spectral estimate will be biased although the effects believed to cause splitting and shifting will be eliminated. Results of simulation studies to support these conjectures are presented. (Author)

The maximum-entropy method (MEM) of spectral analysis is a technique for estimating the power spectra of time-series data. The purpose of this note is to survey the literature of the MEM and to provide some insight into its derivation and usage. Fortran subroutines for computing the MEM power spectra of complex-valued data are included. (Author)

A problem area in the operation of the NRL HF radar has been that of satisfactory duplexing at 120 kw average and 5 Mw peak power level. The use of silicon diodes as switching elements in a balanced duplexer has been investigated, with such a system having been in use for over one year. Techniques have been devised for supplying appropriate bias for both transmit and receive periods. The results of the investigation show that the silicon diodes provide an adequate solution to the duplexing problems. Pulse to pulse recovery time and switch impedance jitter are negligible; the recovery time is 300 microseconds and could be further improved.

An investigation was made of elastomeric polymers, with particular emphasis on their usefulness as seals at cryogenic temperatures. O-ring seals utilizing various flange configurations were extensively evaluated at temperatures between 76 and 300 deg K. A supporting program of property measurements includes thermal expansivities, shear and compression modulus, differential thermal analysis, and the force-temperature effects of prestressed elastomers., Rept. on Nonmetallic and Composite Materials.