United States Department of the Army

About: United States Department of the Army is a government organization based out in Arlington, Virginia, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Poison control & Population. The organization has 32668 authors who have published 42453 publications receiving 947075 citations. The organization is also known as: DA & U.S. Department of the Army.

Combating the Small Sample Class Imbalance Problem Using Feature Selection

Abstract: The class imbalance problem is encountered in real-world applications of machine learning and results in a classifier's suboptimal performance. Researchers have rigorously studied the resampling, algorithms, and feature selection approaches to this problem. No systematic studies have been conducted to understand how well these methods combat the class imbalance problem and which of these methods best manage the different challenges posed by imbalanced data sets. In particular, feature selection has rarely been studied outside of text classification problems. Additionally, no studies have looked at the additional problem of learning from small samples. This paper presents a first systematic comparison of the three types of methods developed for imbalanced data classification problems and of seven feature selection metrics evaluated on small sample data sets from different applications. We evaluated the performance of these metrics using area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUC) and area under the precision-recall curve (PRC). We compared each metric on the average performance across all problems and on the likelihood of a metric yielding the best performance on a specific problem. We examined the performance of these metrics inside each problem domain. Finally, we evaluated the efficacy of these metrics to see which perform best across algorithms. Our results showed that signal-to-noise correlation coefficient (S2N) and Feature Assessment by Sliding Thresholds (FAST) are great candidates for feature selection in most applications, especially when selecting very small numbers of features.

Human water needs

Abstract: Healthy humans regulate daily water balance remarkably well across their lifespan despite changes in biological development and exposure to stressors on hydration status. Acute or chronic body water deficits result when intakes are reduced or losses increase, but day-to-day hydration is generally well maintained so long as food and fluid are readily available. Total water intake includes drinking water, water in beverages, and water in food. Daily water needs determined from fluid balance, water turnover, or consumption studies provide similar values for a given set of conditions. A daily water intake of 3.7 L for adult men and 2.7 L for adult women meets the needs of the vast majority of persons. However, strenuous physical exercise and heat stress can greatly increase daily water needs, and the individual variability between athletes can be substantial.

FDA-Approved Selective Estrogen Receptor Modulators Inhibit Ebola Virus Infection

Abstract: Ebola viruses remain a substantial threat to both civilian and military populations as bioweapons, during sporadic outbreaks, and from the possibility of accidental importation from endemic regions by infected individuals. Currently, no approved therapeutics exist to treat or prevent infection by Ebola viruses. Therefore, we performed an in vitro screen of Food and Drug Administration (FDA)– and ex–US-approved drugs and selected molecular probes to identify drugs with antiviral activity against the type species Zaire ebolavirus (EBOV). From this screen, we identified a set of selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs), including clomiphene and toremifene, which act as potent inhibitors of EBOV infection. Anti-EBOV activity was confirmed for both of these SERMs in an in vivo mouse infection model. This anti-EBOV activity occurred even in the absence of detectable estrogen receptor expression, and both SERMs inhibited virus entry after internalization, suggesting that clomiphene and toremifene are not working through classical pathways associated with the estrogen receptor. Instead, the response appeared to be an off-target effect where the compounds interfere with a step late in viral entry and likely affect the triggering of fusion. These data support the screening of readily available approved drugs to identify therapeutics for the Ebola viruses and other infectious diseases. The SERM compounds described in this report are an immediately actionable class of approved drugs that can be repurposed for treatment of filovirus infections.

Effects of disconfirmed consumer expectations on food acceptability

Abstract: Three studies were conducted to assess the effects of disconfirmed consumer expectations on food acceptability In the first, disconfirmed expectations for the sensory attributes of an edible film had a negative effect on acceptability of the film Greater disconfirmation resulted in lower acceptance and purchase intent In the second study, written product information was used to establish three levels of expected acceptability and expected bitterness for a novel fruit beverage Comparison of preexposure (expected) and postexposure (perceived) ratings of acceptability and bitterness supported an assimilation model of disconfirmation effects for conditions in which expectations of acceptability were high and expectations of bitterness were low A contrast effect was observed for bitterness judgments when expectations of bitterness were high Associative effects resulting from the expectation manipulation were observed on other sensory attributes In the third study, expectations were manipulated to influence both direction (positive versus negative) and degree of disconfirmation for the acceptance of cola beverages Results provided further support for an assimilation model of these effects

The Effect of a Golden Hour Policy on the Morbidity and Mortality of Combat Casualties

Abstract: Importance The term golden hour was coined to encourage urgency of trauma care. In 2009, Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates mandated prehospital helicopter transport of critically injured combat casualties in 60 minutes or less. Objectives To compare morbidity and mortality outcomes for casualties before vs after the mandate and for those who underwent prehospital helicopter transport in 60 minutes or less vs more than 60 minutes. Design, Setting, and Participants A retrospective descriptive analysis of battlefield data examined 21 089 US military casualties that occurred during the Afghanistan conflict from September 11, 2001, to March 31, 2014. Analysis was conducted from September 1, 2014, to January 21, 2015. Main Outcomes and Measures Data for all casualties were analyzed according to whether they occurred before or after the mandate. Detailed data for those who underwent prehospital helicopter transport were analyzed according to whether they occurred before or after the mandate and whether they occurred in 60 minutes or less vs more than 60 minutes. Casualties with minor wounds were excluded. Mortality and morbidity outcomes and treatment capability–related variables were compared. Results For the total casualty population, the percentage killed in action (16.0% [386 of 2411] vs 9.9% [964 of 9755]; P P P = .71) remained unchanged. Decline in CFR after the mandate was associated with an increasing percentage of casualties transported in 60 minutes or less (regression coefficient, –0.141; P P P P P P P P P P Conclusions and Relevance A mandate made in 2009 by Secretary of Defense Gates reduced the time between combat injury and receiving definitive care. Prehospital transport time and treatment capability are important factors for casualty survival on the battlefield.