bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Adaptation of diet in a changed environment: Increased consumption of lobster krill Munida gregaria (Fabricius, 1793) by Argentine hake
Authors: Belleggia Mauro , Giberto Diego , Bremec Claudia
Published: August 2017

A well‐replicated decadal‐term (2005–2014) stomach content data set was analysed in order to infer inter‐annual fluctuations in the diet of the Argentine hake, Merluccius hubbsi, an opportunistic predator in the San Jorge Gulf (SJG) ecosystem in the Southwest Atlantic. Ten research cruises were carried out each year during January from 2005 to 2014. A total of 18,461 specimens of Me. hubbsi was analysed, of which 6,777 (36.71%) contained food in their stomachs. The diet of Me. hubbsi changed markedly from 2011 onwards, with much greater consumption of the lobster krill Munida gregaria compared to the years before 2011. The frequency of occurrence (%F) of Mu. gregaria in the stomach contents of Argentine hake increased from the year 2009 onwards, most noticeably since 2011, and mostly over the southern region of the SJG. The main predators of Mu. gregaria in the SJG are two species of teleost fish (pink cusk eel, Genypterus blacodes, Argentine seabass, Acanthistius brasilianus) and three Rajidae skates (Zearaja chilensis, Psammobatis spp. and Sympterygia bonapartii), which exhibited decreased catches in the years analysed. The increased consumption of Mu. gregaria by Me. hubbsi, coupled with decreased trends in abundance of the main predators of the lobster krill during the last decade, indicate that top‐down trophic dynamic control occurs in the SJG ecosystem.
Evaluation of a smartphone nutrition and physical activity application to provide lifestyle advice to pregnant women: The SNAPP randomised trial
Authors: Dodd Jodie M. , Louise Jennie , Cramp Courtney , Grivell Rosalie M. , Moran Lisa J. , Deussen Andrea R.
Published: August 2017

Our objective was to evaluate the impact of a smartphone application as an adjunct to face‐to‐face consultations in facilitating dietary and physical activity change among pregnant women. This multicentre, nested randomised trial involved pregnant women with a body mass index ≥18.5 kg/m2, with a singleton pregnancy between 10 and 20 weeks' gestation, and participating in 2 pregnancy nutrition‐based randomised trials across metropolitan Adelaide, South Australia. All women participating in the SNAPP trial received a comprehensive dietary, physical activity, and behavioural intervention, as part of the GRoW or OPTIMISE randomised trials. Women were subsequently randomised to either the “Lifestyle Advice Only Group,” where women received the above intervention, or the “Lifestyle Advice plus Smartphone Application Group,” where women were additionally provided access to the smartphone application. The primary outcome was healthy eating index (HEI) assessed by maternal food frequency questionnaire completed at trial entry, and 28 and 36 weeks' gestation. Analyses were performed using intention‐to‐treat principles, with statistical significance at p = .05. One hundred sixty‐two women participated: 77 allocated to the Lifestyle Advice plus Smartphone Application Group and 85 to the Lifestyle Advice Only Group. Mean difference in HEI score at 28 weeks of pregnancy was 0.01 (CI [−2.29, 2.62]) and at 36 weeks of pregnancy −1.16 (CI [−4.60, 2.28]). There was no significant additional benefit from the provision of the smartphone application in improving HEI score (p = .452). Although all women improved dietary quality across pregnancy, use of the smartphone application was poor. Our findings do not support addition of the smartphone application.
Addressing barriers to maternal nutrition in low‐ and middle‐income countries: A review of the evidence and programme implications
Authors: Kavle Justine A. , Landry Megan
Published: August 2017

Adequate maternal nutrition during the “first 1,000 days” window is critical from conception through the first 6 months of life to improve nutritional status and reduce the risk of poor birth outcomes, such as low birthweight and preterm birth. Unfortunately, many programmes have targeted implementation and monitoring of nutrition interventions to infants and young children, rather than to women during pregnancy or post‐partum. A literature review was conducted to identify barriers to food choice and consumption during pregnancy and lactation and to examine how low‐ and middle‐income countries have addressed maternal nutrition in programmes. A literature review of peer‐reviewed and grey literature was conducted, and titles and abstracts reviewed by authors. Twenty‐three studies were included in this review. Barriers to adequate nutrition during pregnancy included cultural beliefs related to knowledge of quantity of food to eat during pregnancy, amount of weight to gain during pregnancy, and “eating down” during pregnancy for fear of delivering a large baby. Foods considered inappropriate for consumption during pregnancy or lactation contributed to food restriction. Drivers of food choice were influenced by food aversions, economic constraints, and household food availability. Counselling on maternal diet and weight gain during pregnancy was seldom carried out. Programming to support healthy maternal diet and gestational weight gain during pregnancy is scant. Tailored, culturally resonant nutrition education and counselling on diet during pregnancy and lactation and weight gain during pregnancy, as well as monitoring of progress in maternal nutrition, are areas of needed attention.
Understanding Food Insecurity Among College Students: Experience, motivation, and local solutions
Authors: HENRY LISA
Published: August 2017

Food insecurity among college students is higher than the national average of 12.7 percent. Prevalence studies report a range of 14–59 percent of students being food insecure at some point during their college career. This article discusses the meaning and experience of food insecurity among students, its impact on motivation and academic success, and participant suggestions for local solutions. An ethnographic, exploratory study was conducted, including 27 semistructured interviews with food insecure students and five focus groups with food secure students. Food insecurity among students is considered faceless, has no standard image, and is often silent. Most food insecure students were faced with issues of stigma and shame daily, which prevented them from seeking assistance from parents and federal social services. Participants articulated a strong motivation to attend college. Obtaining a degree, securing a better job, and improving their living standards were priorities that outweighed hunger concerns. Alleviating student food insecurity requires multiple local solutions, which should be discreet, protective of student confidentiality, and work to alleviate stigma associated with food insecurity by raising awareness on campus.
Sequence identification, serological reactivity and family genetics of a novel HLA allele, HLA‐A*26:82
Authors: Zhu C. , Nie X. , Song Y. , Zhang Y. , Qiao W.
Published: August 2017

HLA‐A*26:82 was identified by sequence‐based typing and showed the serological specificity of A26.
B cells require Type 1 interferon to produce alloantibodies to transfused KEL‐expressing red blood cells in mice
Authors: Gibb David R. , Liu Jingchun , Santhanakrishnan Manjula , Natarajan Prabitha , Madrid David J. , Patel Seema , Eisenbarth Stephanie C. , Tormey Christopher A. , Stowell Sean R. , Iwasaki Akiko , Hendrickson Jeanne E.
Published: August 2017

BACKGROUND

Alloantibodies to red blood cell (RBC) antigens can cause significant hemolytic events. Prior studies have demonstrated that inflammatory stimuli in animal models and inflammatory states in humans, including autoimmunity and viremia, promote alloimmunization. However, molecular mechanisms underlying these findings are poorly understood. Given that Type 1 interferons (IFN‐α/β) regulate antiviral immunity and autoimmune pathology, the hypothesis that IFN‐α/β regulates RBC alloimmunization was tested in a murine model.

STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS

Leukoreduced murine RBCs expressing the human KEL glycoprotein were transfused into control mice (WT), mice lacking the unique IFN‐α/β receptor (IFNAR1–/–), or bone marrow chimeric mice lacking IFNAR1 on specific cell populations. Anti‐KEL IgG production, expressed as mean fluorescence intensity (MFI), and B‐cell differentiation were examined.

RESULTS

Transfused WT mice produced anti‐KEL IgG alloantibodies (peak response MFI, 50.4). However, the alloimmune response of IFNAR1–/– mice was almost completely abrogated (MFI, 4.2; p < 0.05). The response of bone marrow chimeric mice lacking IFNAR1 expression in all hematopoietic cells or specifically in B cells was also diminished (MFI, 3.8 and 5.4, respectively, compared to control chimeras, MFI, 65.6; p < 0.01). Accordingly, transfusion‐induced differentiation of IFNAR1–/– B cells into germinal center B cells and plasma cells was significantly reduced, compared to WT B cells.

CONCLUSIONS

This study demonstrates that B cells require signaling from IFN‐α/β to produce alloantibodies to the human KEL glycoprotein in mice. These findings provide a potential mechanistic basis for inflammation‐induced alloimmunization. If these findings extend to human studies, patients with IFN‐α/β–associated conditions may have an elevated risk of alloimmunization and benefit from personalized transfusion protocols.
Oriented assembly of anisotropic nanoparticles into frame-like superstructures
Authors: Nai Jianwei , Guan Bu Yuan , Yu Le , Lou Xiong Wen (David)
Published: August 2017

Cubic frame–like superstructures are constructed via the assembly of nanocuboids on the edges of preformed nanocubes.
Variable Sensitivity in Molecular Detection of Zika Virus in European Expert Laboratories: External Quality Assessment, November 2016
Authors: Charrel Remi , Mögling Ramona , Pas Suzan , Papa Anna , Baronti Cecile , Koopmans Marion , Zeller Hervé , Leparc-Goffart Isabelle , Reusken Chantal B.
Published: August 2017

Zika virus (ZIKV) infections are a significant public health concern. A strong capability for ZIKV detection is an absolute requirement for adequate preparedness and response strategies and individual patient care. The objective of this study was to assess and improve the capability of European expert laboratories for molecular testing for ZIKV through an external quality assessment (EQA) scheme. Laboratories were provided a panel of 12 samples which included negative samples, samples containing African- or Asian-lineage ZIKV at various concentrations (10
3
to 10
9
copies/ml), and samples containing dengue virus, yellow fever virus, or chikungunya virus. The results were analyzed on the basis of the outcomes of testing for the samples and the extraction and detection method used. Samples with a ZIKV RNA status scored correctly by >50% of the laboratories were designated the core sample. A total of 85 panel outcomes were submitted by 50 laboratories in 31 countries. The results designated all samples as core samples. Thirty-three percent (28/85) of the panel outcomes identified all samples. Analysis at the laboratory level showed that only 40% of the laboratories (20/50), representing 45% of the countries, scored sufficiently; i.e., they had at least one test operational that scored all core samples correctly. There is a need for improvement of the molecular detection of ZIKV in 60% of the participating laboratories. While the specificity of the tests was more robust, the results of the EQA showed large variation in test sensitivity. Improvements should focus on both nucleic acid extraction and ZIKV detection methods.
CD8
+
T Cell Immune Response in Immunocompetent Mice during Zika Virus Infection
Authors: Huang Huarong , Li Shihua , Zhang Yongli , Han Xiaojuan , Jia Baoqian , Liu Hongtao , Liu Dandan , Tan Shuguang , Wang Qihui , Bi Yuhai , Liu William J. , Hou Baidong , Gao George Fu , Zhang Fuping
Published: August 2017

Zika virus (ZIKV) infection causees neurologic complications, including Guillain-Barré syndrome in adults and central nervous system (CNS) abnormalities in fetuses. We investigated the immune response, especially the CD8
+
T cell response in C57BL/6 (B6) wild-type (WT) mice, during ZIKV infection. We found that a robust CD8
+
T cell response was elicited, major histocompatibility complex class I-restricted CD8
+
T cell epitopes were identified, a tetramer that recognizes ZIKV-specific CD8
+
T cells was developed, and virus-specific memory CD8
+
T cells were generated in these mice. The CD8
+
T cells from these infected mice were functional, as evidenced by the fact that the adoptive transfer of ZIKV-specific CD8
+
T cells could prevent ZIKV infection in the CNS and was cross protective against dengue virus infection. Our findings provide comprehensive insight into immune responses against ZIKV and further demonstrate that WT mice could be a natural and easy-access model for evaluating immune responses to ZIKV infection.

IMPORTANCE
ZIKV infection has severe clinical consequences, including Guillain-Barré syndrome in adults, microcephaly, and congenital malformations in fetuses and newborn infants. Therefore, study of the immune response, especially the adaptive immune response to ZIKV infection, is important for understanding diseases caused by ZIKV infection. Here, we characterized the CD8
+
T cell immune response to ZIKV in a comprehensive manner and identified ZIKV epitopes. Using the identified immunodominant epitopes, we developed a tetramer that recognizes ZIKV-specific CD8
+
T cells
in vivo
, which simplified the detection and evaluation of ZIKV-specific immune responses. In addition, the finding that tetramer-positive memory CD8
+
T cell responses were generated and that CD8
+
T cells can traffic to a ZIKV-infected brain greatly enhances our understanding of ZIKV infection and provides important insights for ZIKV vaccine design.
Uncoupling of Protease
trans
-Cleavage and Helicase Activities in Pestivirus NS3
Authors: Zheng Fengwei , Lu Guoliang , Li Ling , Gong Peng , Pan Zishu
Published: August 2017

The nonstructural protein NS3 from the
Flaviviridae
family is a multifunctional protein that contains an N-terminal protease and a C-terminal helicase, playing essential roles in viral polyprotein processing and genome replication. Here we report a full-length crystal structure of the classical swine fever virus (CSFV) NS3 in complex with its NS4A protease cofactor segment (PCS) at a 2.35-Å resolution. The structure reveals a previously unidentified ∼2,200-Å
2
intramolecular protease-helicase interface comprising three clusters of interactions, representing a “closed” global conformation related to the NS3-NS4A
cis
-cleavage event. Although this conformation is incompatible with protease
trans
-cleavage, it appears to be functionally important and beneficial to the helicase activity, as the mutations designed to perturb this conformation impaired both the helicase activities
in vitro
and virus production
in vivo
. Our work reveals important features of protease-helicase coordination in pestivirus NS3 and provides a key basis for how different conformational states may explicitly contribute to certain functions of this natural protease-helicase fusion protein.

IMPORTANCE
Many RNA viruses encode helicases to aid their RNA genome replication and transcription by unwinding structured RNA. Being naturally fused to a protease participating in viral polyprotein processing, the NS3 helicases encoded by the
Flaviviridae
family viruses are unique. Therefore, how these two enzyme modules coordinate in a single polypeptide is of particular interest. Here we report a previously unidentified conformation of pestivirus NS3 in complex with its NS4A protease cofactor segment (PCS). This conformational state is related to the protease
cis
-cleavage event and is optimal for the function of helicase. This work provides an important basis to understand how different enzymatic activities of NS3 may be achieved by the coordination between the protease and helicase through different conformational states.
Nipah and Hendra Virus Nucleoproteins Inhibit Nuclear Accumulation of Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 1 (STAT1) and STAT2 by Interfering with Their Complex Formation
Authors: Sugai Akihiro , Sato Hiroki , Takayama Ikuyo , Yoneda Misako , Kai Chieko
Published: August 2017

Henipaviruses, such as Nipah (NiV) and Hendra (HeV) viruses, are highly pathogenic zoonotic agents within the
Paramyxoviridae
family. The phosphoprotein (P) gene products of the paramyxoviruses have been well characterized for their interferon (IFN) antagonist activity and their contribution to viral pathogenicity. In this study, we demonstrated that the nucleoprotein (N) of henipaviruses also prevents the host IFN signaling response. Reporter assays demonstrated that the NiV and HeV N proteins (NiV-N and HeV-N, respectively) dose-dependently suppressed both type I and type II IFN responses and that the inhibitory effect was mediated by their core domains. Additionally, NiV-N prevented the nuclear transport of signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 (STAT1) and STAT2. However, NiV-N did not associate with Impα5, Impβ1, or Ran, which are members of the nuclear transport system for STATs. Although P protein is known as a binding partner of N protein and actively retains N protein in the cytoplasm, the IFN antagonist activity of N protein was not abolished by the coexpression of P protein. This suggests that the IFN inhibition by N protein occurs in the cytoplasm. Furthermore, we demonstrated that the complex formation of STATs was hampered in the N protein-expressing cells. As a result, STAT nuclear accumulation was reduced, causing a subsequent downregulation of interferon-stimulated genes (ISGs) due to low promoter occupancy by STAT complexes. This novel route for preventing host IFN responses by henipavirus N proteins provides new insight into the pathogenesis of these viruses.

IMPORTANCE
Paramyxoviruses are well known for suppressing interferon (IFN)-mediated innate immunity with their phosphoprotein (P) gene products, and the henipaviruses also possess P, V, W, and C proteins for evading host antiviral responses. There are numerous studies providing evidence for the relationship between viral pathogenicity and antagonistic activities against IFN responses by P gene products. Meanwhile, little attention has been paid to the influence of nucleoprotein (N) on host innate immune responses. In this study, we demonstrated that both the NiV and HeV N proteins have antagonistic activity against the JAK/STAT signaling pathway by preventing the nucleocytoplasmic trafficking of STAT1 and STAT2. This inhibitory effect is due to an impairment of the ability of STATs to form complexes. These results provide new insight into the involvement of N protein in viral pathogenicity via its IFN antagonism.
An Aptamer-Based Biosensor for the Azole Class of Antifungal Drugs
Authors: Wiedman Gregory R. , Zhao Yanan , Mustaev Arkady , Ping Jinglei , Vishnubhotla Ramya , Johnson A. T. Charlie , Perlin David S.
Published: August 2017

We have developed the first aptamer directed toward the azole class of antifungal drugs and a functional biosensor for these drugs. This aptamer has a unique secondary structure that allows it to bind to highly hydrophobic drugs. The aptamer works as a capture component of a graphene field effect transistor device. These devices can provide a quick and easy assay for determining drug concentrations. These will be useful for therapeutic drug monitoring of azole antifungal drugs, which is necessary to deal with the complex drug dosage profiles.
Primary renal echinococcosis with gross hydatiduria
Authors: Gupta Archit , Gupta Jagdish , Devkaran Bhavesh , Gupta Arun
Published: August 2017

Renal echinococcosis is a rare disease. It is usually asymptomatic but may present with pain, lump or in rare cases hydatiduria. Diagnosis is mainly by imaging but serology is usually false negative. We present a patient of renal echinococcosis who presented with passing of grape skin like structures in urine and was diagnosed to be a case of renal echinococcosis on the basis of positive serology, ultrasonographic and CT findings. The patient underwent a nephroureterectomy and was given albendazole preoperatively and postoperatively.
Sugar addiction: is it real? A narrative review
Authors: DiNicolantonio James J , O’Keefe James H , Wilson William L
Published: August 2017

In animal studies, sugar has been found to produce more symptoms than is required to be considered an addictive substance. Animal data has shown significant overlap between the consumption of added sugars and drug-like effects, including bingeing, craving, tolerance, withdrawal, cross-sensitisation, cross-tolerance, cross-dependence, reward and opioid effects. Sugar addiction seems to be dependence to the natural endogenous opioids that get released upon sugar intake. In both animals and humans, the evidence in the literature shows substantial parallels and overlap between drugs of abuse and sugar, from the standpoint of brain neurochemistry as well as behaviour.
A statewide evaluation of seven strategies to reduce opioid overdose in North Carolina
Authors: Alexandridis Apostolos A , McCort Agnieszka , Ringwalt Christopher L , Sachdeva Nidhi , Sanford Catherine , Marshall Stephen W , Mack Karin , Dasgupta Nabarun
Published: August 2017

Background

In response to increasing opioid overdoses, US prevention efforts have focused on prescriber education and supply, demand and harm reduction strategies. Limited evidence informs which interventions are effective. We evaluated Project Lazarus, a centralised statewide intervention designed to prevent opioid overdose.

Methods

Observational intervention study of seven strategies. 74 of 100 North Carolina counties implemented the intervention. Dichotomous variables were constructed for each strategy by county-month. Exposure data were: process logs, surveys, addiction treatment interviews, prescription drug monitoring data. Outcomes were: unintentional and undetermined opioid overdose deaths, overdose-related emergency department (ED) visits. Interrupted time-series Poisson regression was used to estimate rates during preintervention (2009–2012) and intervention periods (2013–2014). Adjusted IRR controlled for prescriptions, county health status and time trends. Time-lagged regression models considered delayed impact (0–6 months).

Results

In adjusted immediate-impact models, provider education was associated with lower overdose mortality (IRR 0.91; 95% CI 0.81 to 1.02) but little change in overdose-related ED visits. Policies to limit ED opioid dispensing were associated with lower mortality (IRR 0.97; 95% CI 0.87 to 1.07), but higher ED visits (IRR 1.06; 95% CI 1.01 to 1.12). Expansions of medication-assisted treatment (MAT) were associated with increased mortality (IRR 1.22; 95% CI 1.08 to 1.37) but lower ED visits in time-lagged models.

Conclusions

Provider education related to pain management and addiction treatment, and ED policies limiting opioid dispensing showed modest immediate reductions in mortality. MAT expansions showed beneficial effects in reducing ED-related overdose visits in time-lagged models, despite an unexpected adverse association with mortality.
A systematic review of performance-enhancing pharmacologicals and biotechnologies in the Army
Authors: Ko Henry , Hunter KE , Scott AM , Ayson M , Willson ML
Published: August 2017

Introduction

In 2015, the Australian Army commissioned a systematic review to assess the evidence on effectiveness and safety of pharmacological and biotechnological products for cognitive enhancement specifically in Army personnel.

Methods

Searches for studies examining biotechnological and pharmacological products in Army populations were conducted in December 2015. Cochrane CENTRAL, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and PsycINFO were searched without date or language restrictions. WHO’s International Clinical Trials Registry Platform and ClinicalTrials.gov were searched to identify ongoing trials. Studies meeting inclusion criteria were evaluated for risk of bias using Cochrane’s Risk of Bias tool. Due to heterogeneity of findings, meta-analysis could not be conducted. Findings were synthesised narratively and by vote-counting method.

Results

Sixteen pharmacological enhancement products were evaluated in 22 randomised controlled trials (RCTs), involving 1284 personnel. Only three of the studies were published since 2010. The interventions evaluated were varied, including supplements (eg, carbohydrate), stimulants (eg, caffeine) and hormones (eg, melatonin). Generally, caffeine provided an improvement in performance compared with placebo on 5/7 reported cognitive outcomes, followed by levothyroxine (four cognitive outcomes) and prazosin (three cognitive outcomes). Performance results were mixed (finding an improvement and no effect in comparison to placebo) for caffeine and melatonin on two outcomes. No evidence was found pertaining to biotechnological products. Studies rarely reported safety outcomes (eg, adverse events and addiction).

Conclusion

Findings from this review need to be interpreted with considerable caution. Future studies should include outcomes such as acute and long-term adverse events, and should evaluate cognitive performance using cognitive tests that are specific to the Army population.
Retrospective analysis of four-year injury data from the Infantry Training Centre, Catterick
Authors: Heagerty Robert , Sharma J , Cayton J , Goodwin N
Published: August 2017

Introduction

Musculoskeletal injury (MSKI) represents a considerable threat to the effectiveness and productivity of military organisations globally. The impact on the medical chain, occupational disposal with associated loss of working days and associated financial burden have far-reaching consequence. The moral and legal responsibility to reduce avoidable injuries through risk assessment and prevention strategies is fundamental to governance and a key component of best practice.

Methods

A retrospective observational analysis was performed of 4101 MSKIs presenting from a total inflow of 10 498 British Army Infantry recruits recorded over four consecutive training years between 2012 and 2016. Injury incidence, site, type and week of training were recorded and analysed.

Results

The total incidence of all MSKI was observed as 39.1%. Overuse injuries were the most common subclassification of injury type (24.5%), followed by trauma (8.8%) and then stress fractures (5.7%). Causes of medical discharge over a four-year cumulative incidence were from overuse injuries (59.3%), stress fractures (21.5%) and trauma (19.2%). 45.5% of all MSKIs presented within the first eight weeks of training.

Conclusions

MSKI data highlighted the requirement for a comprehensive service evaluation of the Combat Infantryman’s Course and subsequent justification for the introduction of an injury prevention intervention — Project OMEGA.
Analysis and construction of four-party deterministic operation sharing with a generalized seven-qubit Brown state
Authors: Zhou Siqi , Bai Mingqiang , Zhang Changyue
Published: August 2017

In this paper, a four-party scheme is presented for remotely sharing a single-qubit operation with the help of LOCC and the generalized seven-qubit Brown state [Formula: see text]. Besides, we consider a theoretical scheme for four-party QOS by using the generalized [Formula: see text]-qubit Brown state [Formula: see text] proposed by Muralidharan and Panigrahi (Phys. Rev. A 77 (2008) 032321). Furthermore, some concrete discussions are made to study its important features, including the scheme determinacy, the sharer symmetry, the scheme security, the nowaday’s experimental feasibility as well as the intrinsic efficiency.
Single particle energies and nuclear g factors
Authors: Robinson Shadow , Zamick Larry
Published: August 2017

Adding one neutron to doubly magic [Formula: see text]Sn, we can associate the low lying states in[Formula: see text]Sn with single particle states. Thus, the [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] states are identified as the [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] single particle states, respectively. In [Formula: see text]Sn, these two low lying states are separated by an energy of 0.172[Formula: see text]MeV. Currently, there is a dispute as to the ordering of these states.

We examine how the two scenarios, selecting [Formula: see text] as the ground state or [Formula: see text] as the ground state, affect spectra and nuclear [Formula: see text] factors of higher mass Sn isotopes in a variety of shell model situations. Significantly, this includes examining the complex interplay of the choice of single particle state splitting, effective interactions, and effective [Formula: see text]-factors in nuclear shell model calculations. Of particular importance is how the trends in the calculated results for [Formula: see text] factors diverge from recent experimental measurements for the higher mass isotopes of Sn.
MECHANICAL PERFORMANCE OF POROUS IMPLANT WITH DIFFERENT UNIT CELLS
Authors: LI JIAN , CHEN DIANSHENG , LUAN HUIQIN , YAN WEI , FAN YUBO
Published: August 2017

This study investigates the effect of different unit cells on the mechanical performance of porous implant. Three shapes of unit cells (Diamond 30(DO30), Octet truss 30(OT30), and Rhombic dodecahedron 30(RD30)) were selected, which have the same relative density. Corresponding models of single pore (SP), repeating pores (RP) and porous implant (PI) were created. Using finite element methodology, mechanical performances of three classes of models under the conditions of pressure and torsion were simulated based on the same static load (SP: 50[Formula: see text]N, 0.125[Formula: see text]N[Formula: see text]m; RP: 200[Formula: see text]N, 0.5[Formula: see text]N[Formula: see text]m; PI: 200[Formula: see text]N, 0.5[Formula: see text]N[Formula: see text]m), respectively. Results demonstrated that RP showed consistent mechanical performances with SP: OT30 displayed the lowest stresses, displacements, and strains under the conditions of pressure and torsion, and conversely DO30 always resulted in the highest magnitudes. For the case of PI, mechanical performances were different from SP and RP: implant with shape of RD30 resulted in the lowest stress (275.2[Formula: see text]MPa) under the condition of pressure, but displacement (2.236e[Formula: see text]002[Formula: see text]mm) and strain (3.050e[Formula: see text]003) of OT30 were the largest; under the condition of torsion, stress sequence was same as SP and RP, but DO30 provided the highest strain (2.437e[Formula: see text]003), RD30 displayed the largest displacement (1.508e[Formula: see text]002[Formula: see text]mm). Unit cell influences mechanical performance of porous implant directly, and the implant outline and incomplete structure may also affect it. It could not select pore simply by the right type of unit cell, and surface area is an important parameter as well as pore size.
Application of Elastic-Damage-Heal Model for Self-Healing Concrete Thick-Walled Cylinders Through Thermodynamics of Irreversible Processes
Authors: Kazemi A. , Baghani M. , Shahsavari H. , Abrinia K. , Baniassadi M.
Published: August 2017

Elastic-damage-heal models are used for a phenomenological study of self-healing materials. Self-healing materials are a class of smart materials that have a structural capability to recover damage caused by environmental stimuli over time. In this paper, a semi-analytic modeling for self-healing concrete thick-walled cylinders is presented. For this purpose, an elastic-damage-heal model through thermodynamics of irreversible processes, in the framework of continuum damage-healing mechanic is used. This model uses stress spectral decomposition method to model the different behavior of concrete in tensile and compressive loadings. Gibbs potential energy is divided into three parts: elastic energy, damage energy and healing energy. In this regard, the model introduces damage and healing surfaces to detect damage and healing behaviors from the elastic one. We derive an analytical closed-form solution for a self-healing concrete thick-walled cylinder. The verification of the model is shown by solving an example. Finally, a parametric study on the healing parameters of the self-healing concrete thick-walled cylinder is performed to demonstrate the capability of the model. It is noted that for a case with the specified values of healing parameters, the tangential stress level in an internal radius of thick-walled self-healing cylinder is more than tripled off a thick-walled nonself-healing cylinder.
THE ECONOMICS OF CROP ADAPTATION TO CLIMATE CHANGE IN SOUTH-EAST ASIA
Authors: REED BRIAN , MENDELSOHN ROBERT , ABIDOYE BABATUNDE O.
Published: August 2017

We examine the potential for farmers in South-East Asia to adapt to climate change using a survey of farmers from Bangladesh, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam. We model farmers’ current choices using cross-sectional analysis. We test the climate sensitivity of when to plant, which crop to plant, whether to irrigate, and how much inputs to use. We find that all these choices are sensitive to climate in this region. Farmers are likely to adapt to future climate change by growing more rice and oilseed crops, planting more often from November through March, and relying more heavily on ground water irrigation for water short seasons.
Tectonic implications of the lithospheric structure across the Barents and Kara shelves
Authors: Faleide Jan Inge , Pease Victoria , Curtis Mike , Klitzke Peter , Minakov Alexander , Scheck-Wenderoth Magdalena , Kostyuchenko Sergei , Zayonchek Andrei
Published: August 2017

This paper considers the lithospheric structure and evolution of the wider Barents–Kara Sea region based on the compilation and integration of geophysical and geological data. Regional transects are constructed at both crustal and lithospheric scales based on the available data and a regional three-dimensional model. The transects, which extend onshore and into the deep oceanic basins, are used to link deep and shallow structures and processes, as well as to link offshore and onshore areas. The study area has been affected by numerous orogenic events in the Precambrian–Cambrian (Timanian), Silurian–Devonian (Caledonian), latest Devonian–earliest Carboniferous (Ellesmerian–Svalbardian), Carboniferous–Permian (Uralian), Late Triassic (Taimyr, Pai Khoi and Novaya Zemlya) and Palaeogene (Spitsbergen–Eurekan). It has also been affected by at least three episodes of regional-scale magmatism, the so-called large igneous provinces: the Siberian Traps (Permian–Triassic transition), the High Arctic Large Igneous Province (Early Cretaceous) and the North Atlantic (Paleocene–Eocene transition). Additional magmatic events occurred in parts of the study area in Devonian and Late Cretaceous times. Within this geological framework, we integrate basin development with regional tectonic events and summarize the stages in basin evolution. We further discuss the timing, causes and implications of basin evolution. Fault activity is related to regional stress regimes and the reactivation of pre-existing basement structures. Regional uplift/subsidence events are discussed in a source-to-sink context and are related to their regional tectonic and palaeogeographical settings.
Ocean forced variability of Totten Glacier mass loss
Authors: Roberts Jason , Galton-Fenzi Benjamin K. , Paolo Fernando S. , Donnelly Claire , Gwyther David E. , Padman Laurie , Young Duncan , Warner Roland , Greenbaum Jamin , Fricker Helen A. , Payne Antony J. , Cornford Stephen , Le Brocq Anne , van Ommen Tas , Blankenship Don , Siegert Martin J.
Published: August 2017

A large volume of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet drains through the Totten Glacier (TG) and is thought to be a potential source of substantial global sea-level rise over the coming centuries. We show that the surface velocity and height of the floating part of the TG, which buttresses the grounded component, have varied substantially over two decades (1989–2011), with variations in surface height strongly anti-correlated with simulated basal melt rates (
r
= 0.70,
p
< 0.05). Coupled glacier–ice shelf simulations confirm that ice flow and thickness respond to both basal melting of the ice shelf and grounding on bed obstacles. We conclude the observed variability of the TG is primarily ocean-driven. Ocean warming in this region will lead to enhanced ice-sheet dynamism and loss of upstream grounded ice.
Collaborative Intent Prediction with Real-Time Contextual Data
Authors: Sun Yu , Yuan Nicholas Jing , Xie Xing , McDonald Kieran , Zhang Rui
Published: August 2017

Intelligent personal assistants on mobile devices such as Apple’s Siri and Microsoft Cortana are increasingly important. Instead of passively reacting to queries, they provide users with brand new proactive experiences that aim to offer the right information at the right time. It is, therefore, crucial for personal assistants to understand users’ intent, that is, what information users need now. Intent is closely related to context. Various contextual signals, including spatio-temporal information and users’ activities, can signify users’ intent. It is, however, challenging to model the correlation between intent and context. Intent and context are highly dynamic and often sequentially correlated. Contextual signals are usually sparse, heterogeneous, and not simultaneously available. We propose an innovative
collaborative nowcasting
model to jointly address all these issues. The model effectively addresses the complex sequential and concurring correlation between context and intent and recognizes users’ real-time intent with continuously arrived contextual signals. We extensively evaluate the proposed model with real-world data sets from a commercial personal assistant. The results validate the effectiveness the proposed model, and demonstrate its capability of handling the real-time flow of contextual signals. The studied problem and model also provide inspiring implications for new paradigms of recommendation on mobile intelligent devices.
Writing In-Code Comments to Self-Explain in Computational Science and Engineering Education
Authors: Vieira Camilo , Magana Alejandra J. , Falk Michael L. , Garcia R. Edwin
Published: August 2017

This article presents two case studies aimed at exploring the use of self-explanations in the context of computational science and engineering (CSE) education. The self-explanations were elicited as students’ in-code comments of a set of worked-examples, and the cases involved two different approaches to CSE education: glass box and black box. The glass-box approach corresponds to a programming course for materials science and engineering students that focuses on introducing programming concepts while solving disciplinary problems. The black-box approach involves the introduction of Python-based computational tools within a thermodynamics course to represent disciplinary phenomena. Two semesters of data collection for each case study allowed us to identify the effect of using in-code comments as a self-explanation strategy on students’ engagement with the worked-examples and students’ perceptions of these activities within each context. The results suggest that the use of in-code comments as a self-explanation strategy increased students’ awareness of the worked-examples while engaging with them. The students’ perceived uses of the in-code commenting activities include: understanding the example, making a connection between the programming code and the disciplinary problem, and becoming familiar with the programming language syntax, among others.
Source Sets
Authors: Abdulla Parosh Aziz , Aronis Stavros , Jonsson Bengt , Sagonas Konstantinos
Published: August 2017

Stateless model checking is a powerful method for program verification that, however, suffers from an exponential growth in the number of explored executions. A successful technique for reducing this number, while still maintaining complete coverage, is Dynamic Partial Order Reduction (DPOR), an algorithm originally introduced by Flanagan and Godefroid in 2005 and since then not only used as a point of reference but also extended by various researchers. In this article, we present a new DPOR algorithm, which is the first to be provably optimal in that it always explores the minimal number of executions. It is based on a novel class of sets, called
source sets
, that replace the role of persistent sets in previous algorithms. We begin by showing how to modify the original DPOR algorithm to work with source sets, resulting in an efficient and simple-to-implement algorithm, called
source-DPOR
. Subsequently, we enhance this algorithm with a novel mechanism, called
wakeup trees
, that allows the resulting algorithm, called
optimal-DPOR
, to achieve optimality. Both algorithms are then extended to computational models where processes may disable each other, for example, via locks. Finally, we discuss tradeoffs of the source- and optimal-DPOR algorithm and present programs that illustrate significant time and space performance differences between them. We have implemented both algorithms in a publicly available stateless model checking tool for Erlang programs, while the source-DPOR algorithm is at the core of a publicly available stateless model checking tool for C/pthread programs running on machines with relaxed memory models. Experiments show that source sets significantly increase the performance of stateless model checking compared to using the original DPOR algorithm and that wakeup trees incur only a small overhead in both time and space in practice.
Data sketching
Authors: Cormode Graham
Published: August 2017

The approximate approach is often faster and more efficient.
Reconciliation With Nonbinary Gene Trees Revisited
Authors: Zheng Yu , Zhang Louxin
Published: August 2017

By reconciling the phylogenetic tree of a gene family with the corresponding species tree, it is possible to infer lineage-specific duplications and losses with high confidence and hence to annotate orthologs and paralogs. The currently available reconciliation methods for nonbinary gene trees are computationally expensive for genome-scale applications. We present four
O
(|
G
|+|
S
|) algorithms to reconcile an arbitrary gene tree
G
with a binary species tree
S
in the duplication, loss, duploss (also known as mutation), and deep coalescence cost models, where |· | denotes the number of nodes in a tree. The improvement is achieved through two innovations: a linear-time computation of compressed child-image subtrees and efficient reconstruction of irreducible duplication histories. Our technique for child-image subtree compression also results in an order of magnitude speedup in runtime for the dynamic programming and Wagner parsimony--based methods for tree reconciliation in the affine cost model.
Algorithm 983
Authors: Fahmy Thierry , Bellétoile Arnaud
Published: August 2017

The detection of heterogeneity among objects (products, treatments, medical studies) assessed on a series of blocks (consumers, patients, methods, pathologists) is critical in numerous areas such as clinical research, cosmetic studies, or survey analysis. The Cochran’s
Q
test is the most widely used test for identifying heterogeneity on binary data (success vs. failure, cure vs. not cure, 1 vs. 0, etc.). For a large number of blocks, the
Q
distribution can be approximated by a χ
2
distribution. Unfortunately, this does not hold for limited sample sizes or sparse tables. In such situations, one has to either run
Monte Carlo
simulations or compute the exact
Q
distribution to obtain an accurate and reliable result. However, the latter method is often disregarded in favor of the former due to computational expense considerations. The purpose of this article is to propose an extremely fast implementation of the exact Cochran’s
Q
test so one can benefit from its accuracy at virtually no cost regarding computation time. It is implemented as a part of the XLSTAT statistical software (Addinsoft 2015). After a short presentation of the Cochran’s
Q
test and the motivation for its exact version, we detail our approach and present its actual implementation. We then demonstrate the gain of this algorithm with performance evaluations and measurements. Comparisons against a well-established implementation have shown an increase of the computational velocity by a factor ranging from 100 up to 1× 10
6
in the most favorable cases.
Improving Loop Dependence Analysis
Authors: Jensen Nicklas Bo , Karlsson Sven
Published: August 2017

Programmers can no longer depend on new processors to have significantly improved single-thread performance. Instead, gains have to come from other sources such as the compiler and its optimization passes. Advanced passes make use of information on the dependencies related to loops. We improve the quality of that information by reusing the information given by the programmer for parallelization. We have implemented a prototype based on GCC into which we also add a new optimization pass. Our approach improves the amount of correctly classified dependencies resulting in 46% average improvement in single-thread performance for kernel benchmarks compared to GCC 6.1.
Programming Heterogeneous Systems from an Image Processing DSL
Authors: Pu Jing , Bell Steven , Yang Xuan , Setter Jeff , Richardson Stephen , Ragan-Kelley Jonathan , Horowitz Mark
Published: August 2017

Specialized image processing accelerators are necessary to deliver the performance and energy efficiency required by important applications in computer vision, computational photography, and augmented reality. But creating, “programming,” and integrating this hardware into a hardware/software system is difficult. We address this problem by extending the image processing language
Halide
so users can specify which portions of their applications should become hardware accelerators, and then we provide a compiler that uses this code to automatically create the accelerator along with the “glue” code needed for the user’s application to access this hardware. Starting with Halide not only provides a very high-level functional description of the hardware but also allows our compiler to generate a complete software application, which accesses the hardware for acceleration when appropriate. Our system also provides high-level semantics to explore different mappings of applications to a heterogeneous system, including the flexibility of being able to change the throughput rate of the generated hardware.

We demonstrate our approach by mapping applications to a commercial Xilinx Zynq system. Using its FPGA with two low-power ARM cores, our design achieves up to 6× higher performance and 38× lower energy compared to the quad-core ARM CPU on an NVIDIA Tegra K1, and 3.5× higher performance with 12× lower energy compared to the K1’s 192-core GPU.