bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Efficient simulation of clinical target response surfaces
Authors: Lill Daniel , Kümmel Anne , Mitov Venelin , Kaschek Daniel , Gobeau Nathalie , Schmidt Henning , Timmer Jens
Published: February 2022

Simulation of combination therapies is challenging due to computational complexity. Either a simple model is used to simulate the response for many combinations of concentration to generate a response surface but parameter variability and uncertainty are neglected and the concentrations are constant—the link to the doses to be administered is difficult to make—or a population pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic model is used to predict the response to combination therapy in a clinical trial taking into account the time‐varying concentration profile, interindividual variability (IIV), and parameter uncertainty but simulations are limited to only a few selected doses. We devised new algorithms to efficiently search for the combination doses that achieve a predefined efficacy target while taking into account the IIV and parameter uncertainty. The result of this method is a response surface of confidence levels, indicating for all dose combinations the likelihood of reaching the specified efficacy target. We highlight the importance to simulate across a population rather than focus on an individual. Finally, we provide examples of potential applications, such as informing experimental design.
Facile Synthesis of Template‐Free SnS2 with Different Morphologies and Excellent Gas‐Sensing Performance for NO2 Gas‐Sensor Applications
Authors: Shin Se-Hee , Park Jong-Hwan , Ahn Byung-Wook , Ro Jae Chul , Suh Su-Jeong
Published: February 2022

Herein, SnS2 particles with two different morphologies are synthesized using a template‐free one‐step hydrothermal method. Flower‐ and plate‐like SnS2 are obtained using different solvents, ethyl alcohol, and deionized water, respectively, under the same synthesis conditions. The flower‐like SnS2 had a larger surface area and higher concentration of sulfur vacancies than plate‐like SnS2. The effects of the specific surface area and the number of sulfur vacancies in the gas‐sensing materials are studied using the gas‐sensing characteristics of SnS2 in the two morphologies. The gas sensitivities at 25 °C under 1 ppm NO2 are 73.5 and 129.5 for flower‐ and plate‐like SnS2, respectively. Both the flower‐ and plate‐like SnS2 gas sensors exhibited good gas selectivity for NO2 against SO2, CO, and NH3 at 25 °C. The response and recovery times are 540 and 1407 s for the flower‐like SnS2 and 214 and 18 s for the plate‐like SnS2, respectively. It is confirmed that a large specific surface area and the number of sulfur vacancies adversely affected the response and recovery times. Therefore, the plate‐like gas sensor is expected to be a good candidate for NO2 gas‐sensing applications at 27 °C.
A second hit? Pulmonary arterial hypertension, BMPR2 mutation, and exposure to prescription amphetamines
Authors: Jaliawala Huzaifa A. , Parmar Miloni , Summers Katherine , Bernardo Roberto J.
Published: February 2022

The second hit hypothesis in pulmonary hypertension refers to the development of pulmonary vascular disease in individuals at risk, after an additional exposure or “hit” to factors with potential injury to the pulmonary circulation, such as drugs or toxins. We here present a case of severe pulmonary hypertension diagnosed during the third trimester of pregnancy, in a patient with familial history of pulmonary hypertension, found to have a heterozygous mutation in the BMPR2 gene, who also had chronic exposure to prescription amphetamines. We hypothesize that exposure to prescription amphetamines could act as a second hit of pulmonary vascular injury in individuals at risk of pulmonary vascular disease.
Pulmonary mucormycosis mimicking lung tumour in an uncontrolled diabetic patient
Authors: Banimostafavi Elham Sadat , Fakhar Mahdi , Zakariaei Zakaria , Sharifpour Ali , Soleymani Mostafa
Published: February 2022

Mucormycosis is a fungal infection that can affect a variety of organs, one of which being the respiratory system. The most common form of infection with mucormycetes is pulmonary mucormycosis, which has a poor prognosis if infected. The clinical signs and radiological findings of this infection are non‐specific and very similar to lung tumours. Here, we describe a 62‐year‐old obese man with uncontrolled diabetes mellitus who was referred for a tumour‐like mass in the left lung, which after bronchoscopy was diagnosed as mucormycosis.
Nanoscale Self‐Wetting Driven Monatomization of Ag Nanoparticle for Excellent Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution
Authors: Yan Bo , He Yan , Yang Guowei
Published: February 2022

Metal nanoparticles (NPs) with <10 nm have demonstrated many novel applications including surprisingly low melting point, astonishing liquid‐like pseudoelasticity, and outstanding hydrogen evolution performance. Here, a nanoscale self‐wetting driven monatomization of Ag NPs with <5 nm on carbon nitride (CN) to fabricate Ag single‐atom catalyst (Ag1/CN SAC) is demonstrated, and a thermodynamic approach to elucidate Ag NPs decomposing into single atoms is established. Dynamic dispersion process of Ag NPs into atoms on CN is recorded using in situ AC‐HADDF‐TEM techniques. Density functional theory calculations and molecular dynamics simulations suggest that the spontaneous dispersion origins from the nanoscale self‐wetting effect in thermodynamics. In atomic scale, the driving force of self‐wetting derived from the balance between cohesive energy of Ag NPs and excess energy of Ag atoms in CN vacations. The fabricated Ag1/CN SAC proved a higher efficiency for photocatalytic hydrogen evolution activity (3690 μmmol g−1 h−1) than Pt nanoparticles on CN (3192 μmmol g−1 h−1). This spontaneous monatomization resulting from the interaction between metal NPs and substrate provides a simple method to prepare SACs with a high active photocatalytic hydrogen evolution.
Laser‐Induced Graphene Superhydrophobic Surface Transition from Pinning to Rolling for Multiple Applications
Authors: Han Yingkuan , Han Yunrui , Huang Yuzhen , Wang Chao , Liu Hong , Han Lin , Zhang Yu
Published: February 2022

The fabrication and applications of superhydrophobic surfaces (contact angle >150°, sliding angle <10°) have attracted worldwide interest with respect to materials and devices. In this work, the laser‐induced graphene (LIG) superhydrophobic surface transition from pinning to rolling via an extremely simple solvent treatment of LIG in air is reported. By adding a certain solvent (e.g., ethanol) to the surface, the LIG superhydrophobic surface changes from pinning (sliding angle = 180°) to rolling (sliding angle <6°), which is attributed to the chemically changed surface properties and surface morphology of LIG. Three applications are demonstrated with the developed superhydrophobic LIG, including surface‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy, water–oil separation, and anti‐icing.
Two-point functions and bootstrap applications in quantum field theories
Authors: Karateev Denis
Published: February 2022

Abstract

We study two-point functions of local operators and their spectral representation in UV complete quantum field theories in generic dimensions focusing on conserved currents and the stress-tensor. We establish the connection with the central charges of the UV and IR fixed points. We re-derive “c-theorems” in 2d and show the absence of their direct analogs in higher dimensions. We conclude by focusing on quantum field theories with a mass gap. We study the stress tensor two-particle form factor, derive implications of unitarity and define concrete bootstrap problems in generic dimensions.
Equations for GL Invariant Families of Polynomials
Authors: Breiding Paul , Hodges Reuven , Ikenmeyer Christian , Michałek Mateusz
Published: February 2022

We provide an algorithm that takes as an input a given parametric family of homogeneous polynomials, which is invariant under the action of the general linear group, and an integer d. It outputs the ideal of that family intersected with the space of homogeneous polynomials of degree d. Our motivation comes from Question 7 in Ranestad and Sturmfels (Le Math. 75, 411–424, 2020) and Problem 13 in Sturmfels (2014), which ask to find equations for varieties of cubic and quartic symmetroids. The algorithm relies on a database of specific Young tableaux and highest weight polynomials. We provide the database and the implementation of the database construction algorithm. Moreover, we provide a Julia implementation to run the algorithm using the database, so that more varieties of homogeneous polynomials can easily be treated in the future.
Merely superficially contingent a priori knowledge and the McKinsey paradox
Authors: Thorpe Joshua Rowan
Published: February 2022

The conclusion of the McKinsey paradox is that certain contingent claims about the external world are knowable a priori. Almost all of the literature on the paradox assumes that this conclusion is unacceptable, and focuses on finding a way of avoiding it. However, there is no consensus that any of these responses work. In this paper I take a different approach, arguing that the conclusion is acceptable. First, I develop our understanding of what Evans callsmerely superficially contingenta prioriknowledge, and explain why there is no reason to deny that merely superficially contingent a priori knowledge of the external world is possible. I then argue that, properly understood, the conclusion of the McKinsey paradox is that merely superficially contingent knowledge of certain claims about the external world is possible, and so the conclusion is acceptable. Finally, I respond to the two main arguments that the conclusion of the paradox is unacceptable.
Midkine release during hemodialysis is predictive of hypervolemia and associates with excess (cardiovascular) mortality in patients with end-stage renal disease: a prospective study
Authors: Brandt Sabine , Fischer Anja , Kreutze Carla , Hempel Dorothea , Gorny Xenia , Scurt Florian G. , Şalaru Delia L. , Bartsch Peter , Bernhardt Anja , Bode-Böger Stefanie M. , Girndt Matthias , Fiedler Roman , Isermann Berend , Lindquist Jonathan A. , Mertens Peter R.
Published: February 2022

Background

In end-stage renal disease, a high cardiovascular risk profile and endothelial damage prevails. The heparin-binding growth factor midkine stimulates neo-angiogenesis in ischemic diseases, coordinates neutrophil influx, and raises blood pressure through stimulated angiotensin synthesis.

Methods

We determined changes of midkine serum levels during hemodialysis sessions under the assumption that endothelial cell-derived midkine is released. Periprocedural differences (∆midkine) were calculated and correlated with cardiovacular biomarkers and fluid status (clinical assessment, V. cava collapse, comet tail phenomenon), cardiovascular morbidities, mortality rates. Blood was collected before and after dialysis from hemodialysis patients (n = 171; diabetes: n = 70; hypervolemia: n = 83; both: n = 32).

Results

Baseline midkine levels were ~ fourfold elevated compared to healthy controls (n = 100). Further, on average a tenfold rise was detected during dialysis, the extent of which was partially related to non-fractionated heparin application (r2 = 0.17). Inter-individual differences were highly reproducible. Hypervolemic patients responded with a less than average rise in midkine levels during dialysis (p < 0.02), this difference became more obvious with co-existing diabetes (p < 0.001 for long dialysis-free interval) and was confirmed in an independently enrolled dialysis cohort (n = 88). In Kaplan Meier survival curves, low delta midkine levels correlated with cardiovascular/overall mortality rates, similar to elevated uPAR levels, whereas other markers (NTproANP, galectin, tenascin-C) were less predictive. Following intervention with successful fluid removal in hypervolemic dialysis patients to optimize fluid homeostasis, midkine values increased (p < 0.002), which was not observed in patients that failed to decrease weight.

Conclusion

Thus, for dialysis patients inadequate periprocedural midkine upregulation is linked with hypervolemia and associates with cardiovascular events.
Characterization of the high-temperature behavior of PBF-EB/M manufactured γ titanium aluminides
Authors: Teschke M. , Moritz J. , Telgheder L. , Marquardt A. , Leyens C. , Walther F.
Published: February 2022

Due to their high specific strength and temperature resistance, γ-titanium aluminides (γ-TiAl) have a growing importance for automotive and aerospace applications. However, conventional processing is very challenging due to the inherent brittleness of the material. Therefore, new manufacturing techniques and methods have to be established. Additive manufacturing techniques such as electron powder bed fusion (PBF-EB/M) are favored, since they enable near net shape manufacturing of highly complex geometries. The high preheating temperatures, which typically occur during PBF-EB/M, can significantly improve the processability of TiAl and facilitate the fabrication of complex parts. In this study, a previously optimized material condition of the β-solidifying TNM alloy TNM-B1 (Ti-43.5Al-4Nb-1Mo-0.1B) was manufactured by PBF-EB/M. The resulting microstructure, defect distribution and morphology, and mechanical properties were characterized by means of characterization methods, e.g., CT, SEM, light microscopy, hardness measurements, and tensile tests. A special focus was on the mechanical high-temperature behavior. The pronounced sensitivity of the material to defects and internal notches, e.g., due to lack of fusion defects (misconnections) which were found in the as-built condition, was identified as a main cause for premature failure below the yield point due to the low ductility. This failure was analyzed and potential improvements were identified.
A comprehensive review of polysaccharide-based bionanocomposites for food packaging applications
Authors: Altaf Aayeena , Usmani Zakiya , Dar Aamir Hussain , Dash Kshirod K.
Published: February 2022

The newly engineered functional systems of nanotechnology implemented in food packaging minimize food product loss by extending shelf life. The incorporation of nanostructured materials into packaging formulations enhanced the existing characteristics of food packaging materials by increasing the specific surface area of these biopolymers. Natural biopolymers were regarded as greener, more sustainable, and environmentally friendly materials. Starch nanocrystals have been employed effectively as fillers in polymer matrices to enhance mechanical and moisture barrier characteristics. Both chitin and chitosan nanoparticles were biocompatible, biodegradable, inexpensive in cost, and mucoadhesive in nature. Alginate nanoparticles demonstrated high thermal and chemical stability. Because of these features, polysaccharide-based nanoparticles were excellent candidates for nano reinforcements in bio-nanocomposites. The nano sized forms of starch, chitin, chitosan, and alginate are non-toxic and antimicrobial. This study focused on current advances in the development of food packaging films based on starch, chitin, chitosan, and alginate nanoparticles, as well as trends and challenges in the formulation of bio-based polymers. This review detailed the synthesis of starch, chitin, chitosan, and alginate nanoparticles using various techniques such as hydrolysis, ionic gelation, reverse micellization, emulsification, and crosslinking. This type of polysaccharide-based bio-nanocomposite is expected to revolutionize the entire food packaging industry.
An Introduction to the Philosophy of Spinoza
Authors: Allison Henry E.
Published: February 2022

Aimed at those new to studying Spinoza, this book provides a comprehensive introduction to his thought, placing it in its historical and philosophical contexts, and assessing its critical reception. In addition to providing an analysis of Spinoza's metaphysical, epistemological, psychological, and ethical views in the Ethics, Henry Allison also explores his political theory and revolutionary views on the Bible, as well as his account of Judaism, which led to the excommunication of the young Spinoza from the Jewish community in Amsterdam. Although the book's main focus is on the analysis of Spinoza's views, including a close reading of the central arguments of the Ethics, it also considers many of the standard objections to these arguments as well as possible responses to them. This completely revised and updated new edition of Allison's classic book, with two new chapters, will help a new generation of students to understand and value Spinoza's work.
Patents, Human Rights, and Access to Medicines
Authors: Oke Emmanuel Kolawole
Published: February 2022

Patent rights on pharmaceutical products are one of the factors responsible for the lack of access to affordable medicines in developing countries. In this work, Emmanuel Kolawole Oke provides a systematic analysis of the tension between patent rights and human rights law, contending that, in order to preserve their patent policy space and secure access to affordable medicines for their citizens, developing countries should incorporate a model of human rights into the design, implementation, interpretation, and enforcement of their national patent laws. Through a comprehensive analysis of court decisions from three key developing countries (India, Kenya, and South Africa), Oke assesses the effectiveness of national courts in resolving conflicts between patent rights and the right to health, and demonstrates how a model of human rights can be incorporated into the adjudication of patent rights.
Towards the Rule of Law in China
Authors: Ji Weidong
Published: February 2022

Growing up in China while educated in Japan and the US, the author has in the past few decades both witnessed and actively participated in the historical process of legal transformations in contemporary China. Through a series of academic contributions, as well as meetings, activities and memberships with policymakers and practitioners, the author has spared no effort in applying his theoretical scholarship to real, concrete practices. He has made significant contributions to the building of a rule-of-law system in China, with great social influences. The publishing of this book is to share with English-speaking readers his insights, experiences, and practices related to the institutional undertaking of building the rule of law in China. It offers a legal perspective on some of the cutting-edge issues in our society at large (e.g. risk and uncertainty, AI network, the COVID-19 pandemic, and big data).
“Why Aren't They Talking?”
Authors: Bádue Alex
Published: February 2022

In the American musical theater, the most typical form of structuring musicals has been the book musical, in which songs interrupt spoken dialogue and add means to depict characters and dramatic situations. After 1980, a form of structuring musicals that expands upon the aesthetic conventions of the book musical came to prominence. Sung-through musicals challenged the balance between talking and singing in musical theater in scripts that are entirely or nearly entirely sung. Although often associated with British musicals, this Element focuses on American sung-through musicals composed and premiered between 1980 and 2019. Their creative teams have employed specific procedures and compositional techniques through which music establishes characterization and expression when either very little or nothing is spoken and thus define how the musical reinvented itself toward and in the twenty-first century.
Atmospheric Lidar Fundamentals
Authors: She Chiao-Yao , Friedman Jonathan S.
Published: February 2022

Lidar is a remote sensing technique that employs laser beams to produce a high-resolution, four-dimensional probe, with important applications in atmospheric science. Suitable as a detailed reference or an advanced textbook for interdisciplinary courses, this book discusses the underlying principles of light-scattering theory and describes widely used lidar systems in current research, exploring how they can be employed effectively for atmospheric profiling. This self-contained text provides a solid grounding in the essential physics of light-matter interactions and the fundamentals of atmospheric lidars through a discussion of the principles that govern light-matter interactions and an exploration of both historical and recent scientific developments in lidar technology. This is an essential resource for physicists, optical engineers and other researchers in atmospheric science and remote sensing.
Before the West
Authors: Zarakol Ayşe
Published: February 2022

How would the history of international relations in 'the East' be written if we did not always read the ending – the Rise of the West and the decline of the East – into the past? What if we did not assume that Asia was just a residual category, a variant of 'not-Europe', but saw it as a space of with its own particular history and sociopolitical dynamics, not defined only by encounters with European colonialism? How would our understanding of sovereignty, as well as our theories about the causes of the decline of Great Powers and international orders, change as a result? For the first time, Before the West offers a grand narrative of (Eur)Asia as a space connected by normatively and institutionally overlapping successive world orders originating from the Mongol Empire. It also uses that history to rethink the foundational concepts and debates of international relations, such as order and decline.
Collaborating with Farmers to Recover Indigenous Archaic Period History from Private Lithic Collections in Virginia's Rappahannock River Valley
Authors: Wertz Gail Williams
Published: February 2022

Recovering Archaic period history of Native Americans such as the Rappahannock Tribe of Virginia is problematic because most of their rich, riverfront lands were taken by European colonists. Remaining archaeological material culture is now the property of current landowners. I collaborated with farmers along the Rappahannock River to evaluate their previously unstudied lithic collections as archaeological data sources. I tested landowner collections made by decades of repeated surveys for reliability by comparing independently made collections from the same site. The collections were significantly similar in abundance and composition through time, indicating they were representative samples of the underlying population. Comparison of collections including ground-stone tools from two different sites gave evidence of demographic changes and shifting settlement patterns through the Archaic periods and informed narratives of long-term Indigenous cultural change. I consulted with present-day Rappahannock Tribe members, who consider these collections important for tribal history, to develop research questions and evaluate shared results. Although private collections often lack documentation, proactive collaboration with responsive collectors as described allowed essential information to be recovered, documented, and preserved for the archaeological record. Building bridges of trust and information transfer among collectors, archaeologists, and tribe members is key to maximizing the information value of private collections.
Random stable-type minimal factorizations of the n-cycle
Authors: Thévenin Paul
Published: February 2022

We investigate random minimal factorizations of the n-cycle, that is, factorizations of the permutation
$(1 \, 2 \cdots n)$
into a product of cycles
$\tau_1, \ldots, \tau_k$
whose lengths
$\ell(\tau_1), \ldots, \ell(\tau_k)$
satisfy the minimality condition
$\sum_{i=1}^k(\ell(\tau_i)-1)=n-1$
. By associating to a cycle of the factorization a black polygon inscribed in the unit disk, and reading the cycles one after another, we code a minimal factorization by a process of colored laminations of the disk. These new objects are compact subsets made of red noncrossing chords delimiting faces that are either black or white. Our main result is the convergence of this process as
$n \rightarrow \infty$
, when the factorization is randomly chosen according to Boltzmann weights in the domain of attraction of an
$\alpha$
-stable law, for some
$\alpha \in (1,2]$
. The limiting process interpolates between the unit circle and a colored version of Kortchemski’s
$\alpha$
-stable lamination. Our principal tool in the study of this process is a new bijection between minimal factorizations and a model of size-conditioned labeled random trees whose vertices are colored black or white, as well as the investigation of the asymptotic properties of these trees.
Golden right triangles and the golden quadrilateral
Authors: Scimone Aldo
Published: February 2022

A golden right triangle of first type is a right triangle such that the shortest side is the golden section of the hypotenuse as defined in [1], [2]. If we consider a golden rectangle and one of its diagonals, we obtain a right triangle with the shortest side being the golden section of the other side; this right triangle will be named golden right triangle of second type.
REMINISCING ON THE USE AND ABUSE OF 14C AND 13C IN ATMOSPHERIC CO2
Authors: Tans Pieter
Published: February 2022

We are observing a dramatic increase of CO2 in the atmosphere, unprecedented in the last several million years. Carbon isotopic ratios have been very useful in helping to untangle the respective roles of anthropogenic emissions and sources/sinks of CO2 in the oceans or terrestrial biosphere. However, this untangling has not been as simple as was often hoped. The isotope ratio signatures produced by emissions and removals that are present in atmospheric CO2 are always vigorously being erased by isotopic exchange with the oceans and terrestrial ecosystems, without there necessarily being any effect on total CO2. Especially in the last decades this pure isotopic exchange effect has led to gross errors that have clouded the public debate on climate change, obscuring mankind’s role. This paper traces my own struggle with the scientific and public sides of this issue, which I ran into from the start of my career in Groningen and throughout my years at NOAA. It is still relevant today.
Sedition and Freedom of Expression for Journalists in Botswana: A Comment on Mokone v Attorney General and Others
Authors: Balule Badala Tachilisa
Published: February 2022

Journalists play an important role in promoting and facilitating the right to freedom of expression. To promote and facilitate freedom of expression effectively, they should be free to perform their duties without fear of reprisals, intimidation or harassment. Journalists should carry out their duties in a legally safe environment. It has, however, been observed that journalists across the world are subjected to various human rights violations and abuses aimed at hindering them in performing their work. Journalists in Botswana also endure harassment and intimidation. One form in which this harassment manifests itself is through the use of sedition laws. In many countries these laws have been found to limit the right to freedom of expression unjustifiably. The legality of sedition laws has been considered by the courts of Botswana, where the High Court upheld their constitutionality. This note critically analyses the High Court's decision.
Mental health across the early years in the military
Authors: Dell Lisa , Casetta Carolina , Benassi Helen , Cowlishaw Sean , Agathos James , O'Donnell Meaghan , Crane Monique , Lewis Virginia , Pacella Belinda , Terhaag Sonia , Morton David , McFarlane Alexander , Bryant Richard , Forbes David
Published: February 2022

Background

The mental health impact of the initial years of military service is an under-researched area. This study is the first to explore mental health trajectories and associated predictors in military members across the first 3–4 years of their career to provide evidence to inform early interventions.

Methods

This prospective cohort study surveyed Australian Defence personnel (n = 5329) at four time-points across their early military career. Core outcomes were psychological distress (K10+) and posttraumatic stress symptoms [four-item PTSD Checklist (PCL-4)] with intra-individual, organizational and event-related trajectory predictors. Latent class growth analyses (LCGAs) identified subgroups within the sample that followed similar longitudinal trajectories for these outcomes, while conditional LCGAs examined the variables that influenced patterns of mental health.

Results

Three clear trajectories emerged for psychological distress: resilient (84.0%), worsening (9.6%) and recovery (6.5%). Four trajectories emerged for post-traumatic stress, including resilient (82.5%), recovery (9.6%), worsening (5.8%) and chronic subthreshold (2.3%) trajectories. Across both outcomes, prior trauma exposure alongside modifiable factors, such as maladaptive coping styles, and increased anger and sleep difficulties were associated with the worsening and chronic subthreshold trajectories, whilst members in the resilient trajectories were more likely to be male, report increased social support from family/friends and Australian Defence Force (ADF) sources, and use adaptive coping styles.

Conclusions

The emergence of symptoms of mental health problems occurs early in the military lifecycle for a significant proportion of individuals. Modifiable factors associated with wellbeing identified in this study are ideal targets for intervention, and should be embedded and consolidated throughout the military career.
Political Compromise and Dirty Hands
Authors: Hall Edward
Published: February 2022

In this article, I offer a novel account of why compromising in politics is likely to involve the kind of politically admirable but morally wrongful behavior at stake in the dirty hands thesis. On the view I defend, politicians do not dirty their hands just because they compromise on matters of principle. Rather, when forging a political compromise, negotiators can either comply with the requirements of ethical compromise-making or abide by the special obligations they have to their representees, but will struggle to satisfy both demands. As a result, subsequent to such compromises, residual moral claims about how the compromise was negotiated will almost inevitably emerge and compromise-makers will not be able to explain their conduct in a way that can cancel these grievances. It is in this sense that forging political compromises can be “dirty” even if choosing to compromise is the politically responsible thing to do.
STATUE FEVER IN THEHEROICUS
Authors: Porter James I.
Published: February 2022

Philostratus’Heroicusbetrays an obsession with statues that demands explanation. Just as cult statues of epic heroes litter the contemporary second-century CE landscape, so do they litter Philostratus’ text. No story of a hero is distinct from an ecphrasis of that hero's statue, and in practice a request for the one is a request for the other. Lifeless heroes (Protesilaus first and foremost) become vividly ‘alive’ in the imagination of their devotees and, occasionally, their Zoilean adversaries. As the lines between reality and fantasy blur, Philostratus’ critique of material cultural practices accompanies and fortifies his better knownHomerkritik.
Assessing the Meteorological Impacts of Time‐Varying Land Cover in the Intertidal Zone
Authors: An Hye Yeon , Jeong Ju‐Hee , Kang Yoon‐Hee , Lee Ho‐Jae , Kim Yoo‐Keun
Published: February 2022

The meteorological impacts of intertidal land cover variation during summer and winter were simulated using the weather research and forecasting (WRF) meteorological model through two experiments: a TIDE experiment with time‐varying land cover by tidal effects in the intertidal zone using a new modeling method used hourly surface boundary conditions obtained using ocean model and satellite data, and a CNTL experiment with fixed land cover in the intertidal zone using a typical WRF modeling method used to fix the surface boundary conditions. The results of the TIDE experiment were more consistent with the recorded observations, especially during high tides. During summer daytime, the sensible heat flux (SHF) became negative (downward exchanging process) in the intertidal zone due to a low sea surface temperature, which decreased the temperature and increased the water vapor mixing ratio in the intertidal zone and inland areas. The wind speeds in intertidal zones and inland areas increased due to strong sea winds at altitudes from 80 m to 1.5 km, thereby increasing the sea breeze intensity and resulting in meteorological changes in inland areas. During winter, land cover changes in the intertidal zone impacted fog formation. During nighttime high tides, the SHF became positive in the intertidal zone and the latent heat flux increased prior to fog formation. During flood tide, the relative humidity increased and wind speed decreased in the intertidal zone and coastal areas coincident with fog occurrence. Overall, meteorological changes due to tidal effects were more pronounced in the summer.
A New Mechanism for Earthquake‐Enhanced Permeability
Authors: Wang Chi‐Yuen
Published: February 2022

Earthquakes may enhance the permeability of Earth's crust, but the mechanisms for such changes are not entirely clear. Recent studies have revealed a distinct coseismic response at large epicentral distances to great earthquakes and at close distances to major earthquakes , where both the horizontal and vertical permeabilities increased by orders of magnitude and the increases stayed at the co‐seismic level for many years, which cannot be explained by the existing models. To explain such prolong increases of the vertical permeability I propose a new mechanism, supported by laboratory and field observations of earthquake‐triggered hydrogeologic processes, that great earthquakes may pressurize and liquefy groundwater systems and inject the liquefied sands into fractures to keep them open. The proposed mechanism is testable and implies prolonged upward migration of hot fluids from deep basins, which may be an important process for subsurface transport of heat and solutes and may also be useful to understand the safety of groundwater and the security of underground repositories.
Long-Term Planning For Deep-time Labs
Authors: Sima Richard
Published: February 2022

When directors depart argon labs, what happens to their expensive equipment, skilled staff, and institutional knowledge?
Adaptive 3D descattering with a dynamic synthesis network
Authors: Tahir Waleed , Wang Hao , Tian Lei
Published: February 2022

Deep learning has been broadly applied to imaging in scattering applications. A common framework is to train a descattering network for image recovery by removing scattering artifacts. To achieve the best results on a broad spectrum of scattering conditions, individual “expert” networks need to be trained for each condition. However, the expert’s performance sharply degrades when the testing condition differs from the training. An alternative brute-force approach is to train a “generalist” network using data from diverse scattering conditions. It generally requires a larger network to encapsulate the diversity in the data and a sufficiently large training set to avoid overfitting. Here, we propose an adaptive learning framework, termed dynamic synthesis network (DSN), which dynamically adjusts the model weights and adapts to different scattering conditions. The adaptability is achieved by a novel “mixture of experts” architecture that enables dynamically synthesizing a network by blending multiple experts using a gating network. We demonstrate the DSN in holographic 3D particle imaging for a variety of scattering conditions. We show in simulation that our DSN provides generalization across a continuum of scattering conditions. In addition, we show that by training the DSN entirely on simulated data, the network can generalize to experiments and achieve robust 3D descattering. We expect the same concept can find many other applications, such as denoising and imaging in scattering media. Broadly, our dynamic synthesis framework opens up a new paradigm for designing highly adaptive deep learning and computational imaging techniques.
The mechanosensitive lncRNA Neat1 promotes osteoblast function through paraspeckle-dependent Smurf1 mRNA retention
Authors: Liu Caizhi , Gao Xingcheng , Li Yuheng , Sun Weijia , Xu Youjia , Tan Yingjun , Du Ruikai , Zhong Guohui , Zhao Dingsheng , Liu Zizhong , Jin Xiaoyan , Zhao Yinlong , Wang Yinbo , Yuan Xinxin , Pan Junjie , Yuan Guodong , Li Youyou , Xing Wenjuan , Kan Guanghan , Wang Yanqing , Li Qi , Han Xuan , Li Jianwei , Ling Shukuan , Li Yingxian
Published: February 2022

Mechanical stimulation plays an important role in bone remodeling. Exercise-induced mechanical loading enhances bone strength, whereas mechanical unloading leads to bone loss. Increasing evidence has demonstrated that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) play key roles in diverse biological, physiological and pathological contexts. However, the roles of lncRNAs in mechanotransduction and their relationships with bone formation remain unknown. In this study, we screened mechanosensing lncRNAs in osteoblasts and identified Neat1, the most clearly decreased lncRNA under simulated microgravity. Of note, not only Neat1 expression but also the specific paraspeckle structure formed by Neat1 was sensitive to different mechanical stimulations, which were closely associated with osteoblast function. Paraspeckles exhibited small punctate aggregates under simulated microgravity and elongated prolate or larger irregular structures under mechanical loading. Neat1 knockout mice displayed disrupted bone formation, impaired bone structure and strength, and reduced bone mass. Neat1 deficiency in osteoblasts reduced the response of osteoblasts to mechanical stimulation. In vivo, Neat1 knockout in mice weakened the bone phenotypes in response to mechanical loading and hindlimb unloading stimulation. Mechanistically, paraspeckles promoted nuclear retention of E3 ubiquitin ligase Smurf1 mRNA and downregulation of their translation, thus inhibiting ubiquitination-mediated degradation of the osteoblast master transcription factor Runx2, a Smurf1 target. Our study revealed that Neat1 plays an essential role in osteoblast function under mechanical stimulation, which provides a paradigm for the function of the lncRNA-assembled structure in response to mechanical stimulation and offers a therapeutic strategy for long-term spaceflight- or bedrest-induced bone loss and age-related osteoporosis.
RFC2: a prognosis biomarker correlated with the immune signature in diffuse lower-grade gliomas
Authors: Zhao Xu , Wang Yuzhu , Li Jing , Qu Fengyi , Fu Xing , Liu Siqi , Wang Xuan , Xie Yuchen , Zhang Xiaozhi
Published: February 2022

Diffuse lower-grade gliomas (LGG) represent the highly heterogeneous and infiltrative neoplasms in the central nervous system (CNS). Replication factor C 2 (RFC2) is a subunit of the RFC complex that modulates DNA replication and repair. However, the prognosis value of RFC2 and its association with the immune signature of tumor microenvironment (TME) in LGG remains unknown. Based on Oncomine, TCGA, GTEx, TIMER, GEPIA, and HPA databases, we evaluated RFC2 expression levels and its clinical prognostic value in LGG and other cancers. Then we analyzed the correlations between RFC2 expression and tumor mutation burden (TMB), tumor microsatellite instability (MSI), and mismatch repair (MMR) genes across cancers. And CIBERSORT and ESTIMATE algorithms were conducted to estimate the association of RFC2 with immune cell infiltration of LGG. Additionally, we performed the functional enrichment analyses of RFC2 in LGG. Then functional experiments were employed to further validate the oncogenic role of RFC2 in LGG. Our results showed that RFC2 was widely highly expressed in most types of cancer. And its expression was closely related to the clinicopathological features and prognosis in LGG and other cancer types. RFC2 levels were also correlated with TMB and MSI across various cancers. Furthermore, RFC2 was positively associated with the infiltration levels of immune cells and immune checkpoint genes in LGG. Additionally, in vitro experiments revealed that RFC2 played an oncogenic role in LGG progression. In conclusion, our findings revealed that RFC2 could serve as a reliable biomarker to predict the prognosis and immune signature for LGG.
The impact of tethered recording techniques on activity and sleep patterns in rats
Authors: Aulehner Katharina , Bray Jack , Koska Ines , Pace Claudia , Palme Rupert , Kreuzer Matthias , Platt Bettina , Fenzl Thomas , Potschka Heidrun
Published: February 2022

Electrophysiological recordings in animals constitute frequently applied techniques to study neuronal function. In this context, several authors described tethered recordings as a semi-restraint situation with negative implications for animal welfare and suggested radiotelemetric setups as a refinement measure. Thus, we here investigated the hypothesis that tethered recordings exert measurable effects on behavioral and sleep patterns in Sprague–Dawley rats. Animals were kept in monitoring glass cages either with or without a head connection to a recording cable. Saccharin preference, nest building, serum corticosterone and fecal corticosterone metabolite levels were in a comparable range in both groups. The proportion of vigilance states was not affected by the cable connection. Minor group differences were detected in bout lengths distributions, with a trend for longer NREM and WAKE stages in animals with a cable connection. However, a relevant effect was not further confirmed by an analysis of the number of sleep/wake and wake/sleep transitions. The analysis of activity levels did not reveal group differences. However, prolonged exposure to the tethered condition resulted in an intra-group increase of activity. In conclusion, the comparison between freely moving vs tethered rats did not reveal major group differences. Our findings indicate that telemetric recordings only offer small advantages vs cabled set ups, though this may differ in other experimental studies where for example anxiety- or drug-induced effects are analyzed.
Ganoderma lucidum aqueous extract inducing PHGPx to inhibite membrane lipid hydroperoxides and regulate oxidative stress based on single-cell animal transcriptome
Authors: Ding Wenqiao , Zhang Xueying , Yin Xiaoyu , Zhang Qing , Wang Ying , Guo Changhong , Chen Ying
Published: February 2022

In this study, the single-cell eukaryotic model organism Tetrahymena thermophila was used as an experimental material to reveal the anti-aging mechanism of Ganoderma lucidum aqueous extract. After treatment with the G. lucidum aqueous extract, the logarithmic phase was extended, and the maximum density of T. thermophila increased to 5.5 × 104 cells/mL. The aqueous extract was more effective than the main active monomers of G. lucidum. The membrane integrity in the cell including mitochondria and nucleus appeared improvement after treatment with the G. lucidum aqueous extract, which observed by ammonia silver staining and transmission electron microscopy. Gene Ontology (GO) functional enrichment of the differentially expressed genes in transcriptome showed that the G. lucidum aqueous extract promoted the biological metabolic process of membrane components. According to Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG), the glutathione metabolism process was enhanced in both growth phases. Protein–protein interaction (PPI) network analysis illustrated that phospholipid hydroperoxide glutathione peroxidase (PHGPx) played a key role in the anti-aging mechanism. The results suggested that G. lucidum aqueous extract improved the GPX activity as well as reduced the malondialdehyde content and cell damage. More importantly, the expression of PHGPx was promoted to reduce the oxidation degree of the membrane lipids and enhance the integrity of the membrane to achieve anti-aging effects.
Terahertz imaging demonstrates its diagnostic potential and reveals a relationship between cutaneous dehydration and neuropathy for diabetic foot syndrome patients
Authors: Hernandez-Cardoso Goretti G. , Amador-Medina Lauro F. , Gutierrez-Torres Gerardo , Reyes-Reyes Edgar S. , Benavides Martínez César Augusto , Cardona Espinoza Cuitlahuac , Arce Cruz José , Salas-Gutierrez Irving , Murillo-Ortíz Blanca O. , Castro-Camus Enrique
Published: February 2022

Diabetic foot syndrome, a long term consequence of Diabetes Mellitus, is the most common cause of non-traumatic amputations. Around 8% of the world population suffers from diabetes, 15% of diabetic patients present a diabetic foot ulcer which leads to amputation in 2.5% of the cases. There is no objective method for the early diagnosis and prevention of the syndrome and its consequences. We test terahertz imaging, which is capable of mapping the cutaneous hydration, for the evaluation of the diabetic foot deterioration as an early diagnostic test as well as ulcers prevention and tracking tool. Furthermore, the analysis of our terahertz measurements combined with neurological and vascular assessment of the patients indicates that the dehydration is mainly related to the peripheral neuropathy without a significant vascular cause.
New transgenic mouse models enabling pan-hematopoietic or selective hematopoietic stem cell depletion in vivo
Authors: Rodriguez y Baena Alessandra , Rajendiran Smrithi , Manso Bryce A. , Krietsch Jana , Boyer Scott W. , Kirschmann Jessica , Forsberg E. Camilla
Published: February 2022

Hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) multipotency and self-renewal are typically defined through serial transplantation experiments. Host conditioning is necessary for robust HSC engraftment, likely by reducing immune-mediated rejection and by clearing limited HSC niche space. Because irradiation of the recipient mouse is non-specific and broadly damaging, there is a need to develop alternative models to study HSC performance at steady-state and in the absence of radiation-induced stress. We have generated and characterized two new mouse models where either all hematopoietic cells or only HSCs can be specifically induced to die in vivo or in vitro. Hematopoietic-specific Vav1-mediated expression of a loxP-flanked diphtheria-toxin receptor (DTR) renders all hematopoietic cells sensitive to diphtheria toxin (DT) in “Vav-DTR” mice. Crossing these mice to Flk2-Cre mice results in “HSC-DTR” mice which exhibit HSC-selective DT sensitivity. We demonstrate robust, rapid, and highly selective cell ablation in these models. These new mouse models provide a platform to test whether HSCs are required for long-term hematopoiesis in vivo, for understanding the mechanisms regulating HSC engraftment, and interrogating in vivo hematopoietic differentiation pathways and mechanisms regulating hematopoietic homeostasis.