bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Knowing Psychical Body
Authors: Schull Stephanie Grace
Published: November 2019

By offering four epistemological structures as guidelines, I will review the relationships as described by Freud between internal and external perceptions, conversion, and over-determination. In doing so, I have speculated that a second preconscious dynamic should be recognized as functioning within this system, namely the psychical body. The activity of this preconscious psychical body promises to resolve the aporias that arise in Freud's work concerning the role of internal perceptions in the processes of conversion and over-determination. In the end, I show that the positing of an imaginary, psychical body is the means by which the arguably intuitive, internal perceptions which Freud at times refers to as sensations and feelings are expressed according to the logic of imagination.
Epistemology of Material Properties
Authors: Schummer Joachim
Published: November 2019

This paper presents an epistemological approach to the investigation of material properties that is opposed to both phenomenalistic epistemology and recent linguistical and ontological accounts of matter/mass terms. Emphasis is laid on the inherent context dependence of material properties. It is shown that, if this is taken seriously, some deep epistemological problems arise, like unavoidable uncertainty, incompleteness, inductivity, and nonderivableness. It is further argued that some widely held epistemological accounts, namely that of essentialism, constructivism, and pragmatism, all reveal some serious defects if related to the recognition of materials. In order to responsibly manage our material environment, a more realistic estimation of our epistemic abilities and prospects is suggested.
La Teoria del Conocimiento en Leonardo Polo
Authors: González Umeres Luz
Published: November 2019

This paper shows new perspectives derived from the theory of knowledge propounded by Leonardo Polo, a contemporary Spanish philosopher who rediscovered the Aristotelian notion of knowledge as energeia. It is impossible to understand this notion without giving up the "limite mental" — a Polian discovery — with which modern philosophy has conditioned us. Abandoning the limite mental opens new horizons, making it possible for us to revise some of the theses of contemporary philosophy of education, such as the idea of the "voluntarisma cognoscitivo" which confuses the operations of two human faculties, intelligence and will.
A Phenomenological Reply to Berkeley’s ‘Water Experiment’
Authors: Wait Eldon C.
Published: November 2019

Berkeley introduces his water experiment in order to demonstrate that in perception the perceiver does not reach the world itself but is confined to a realm of representations or sense data. We will attempt to demonstrate that Berkeley's description of our experience at the end of the water experiment is inauthentic, that it is not so much a description of an experience as a reconstruction of what we would experience if the receptor organs (the left and right hands) were objects existing in a space partes extra partes. Our argument is that there is nothing in our experience of the illusion to suggest that under normal conditions perception does not reach the world itself.
Schedule of Midwinter Meetings
Authors: Library Association American
Published: November 2019

Schedule of Midwinter Meetings
Conclusiones del I Seminario internacional Derecho administrativo e inteligencia artificial
Authors: Centro de Estudios Europeos Luis Ortega  , Instituto de Investigación TransJus
Published: November 2019

El documento recoge las principales conclusiones alcanzadas en el I Seminario Internacional Derecho Administrativo e Inteligencia Artificial celebrado el 1 de abril de 2019 en la Facultad de Ciencias Jurídicas y Sociales de la Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha (Toledo).
Risk factors for asthma among schoolchildren who participated in a case-control study in urban Uganda
Authors: Mpairwe Harriet , Namutebi Milly , Nkurunungi Gyaviira , Tumwesige Pius , Nambuya Irene , Mukasa Mike , Onen Caroline , Nnaluwooza Marble , Apule Barbara , Katongole Tonny , Oduru Gloria , Kahwa Joseph , Webb Emily L , Lubyayi Lawrence , Pearce Neil , Elliott Alison M
Published: November 2019

Data on asthma aetiology in Africa are scarce. We investigated the risk factors for asthma among schoolchildren (5–17 years) in urban Uganda. We conducted a case-control study, among 555 cases and 1115 controls. Asthma was diagnosed by study clinicians. The main risk factors for asthma were tertiary education for fathers (adjusted OR (95% CI); 2.32 (1.71–3.16)) and mothers (1.85 (1.38–2.48)); area of residence at birth, with children born in a small town or in the city having an increased asthma risk compared to schoolchildren born in rural areas (2.16 (1.60–2.92)) and (2.79 (1.79–4.35)), respectively; father’s and mother’s history of asthma; children’s own allergic conditions; atopy; and cooking on gas/electricity. In conclusion, asthma was associated with a strong rural-town-city risk gradient, higher parental socio-economic status and urbanicity. This work provides the basis for future studies to identify specific environmental/lifestyle factors responsible for increasing asthma risk among children in urban areas in LMICs.
Soluble PD-L1 generated by endogenous retroelement exaptation is a receptor antagonist
Authors: Ng Kevin W , Attig Jan , Young George R , Ottina Eleonora , Papamichos Spyros I , Kotsianidis Ioannis , Kassiotis George
Published: November 2019

Immune regulation is a finely balanced process of positive and negative signals. PD-L1 and its receptor PD-1 are critical regulators of autoimmune, antiviral and antitumoural T cell responses. Although the function of its predominant membrane-bound form is well established, the source and biological activity of soluble PD-L1 (sPD-L1) remain incompletely understood. Here, we show that sPD-L1 in human healthy tissues and tumours is produced by exaptation of an intronic LINE-2A (L2A) endogenous retroelement in the CD274 gene, encoding PD-L1, which causes omission of the transmembrane domain and the regulatory sequence in the canonical 3’ untranslated region. The alternatively spliced CD274-L2A transcript forms the major source of sPD-L1 and is highly conserved in hominids, but lost in mice and a few related species. Importantly, CD274-L2A-encoded sPD-L1 lacks measurable T cell inhibitory activity. Instead, it functions as a receptor antagonist, blocking the inhibitory activity of PD-L1 bound on cellular or exosomal membranes.
«Hurra for mæ!» Kvinner på jakt i Arktis, 1880-1940
Authors: Aarekol Lena
Published: November 2019

Wanny Woldstad var så stolt og glad etter at hun hadde skutt sin første isbjørn under overvintring på Svalbard. Hun hadde mest lyst til å si som en mann i Tromsø sa ved en viss anledning: ‘Hurra for mæ!’.

Gjennom forskning på troféjakt (Maskulinitet og troféjakt i Arktis, 2015 og Arctic throphy hunters, tourism and masculinites, 2016) har jeg konkludert med at troféjegerne som tok turen til Arktis var opptatt av mer enn jaktiver og eventyrlyst. Arktis var en arena for maskuline verdier som å erobre og mestre natur, men som også ga rom for å utforske og dyrke kjærligheten til den.

Gjennomgang av kildemateriale fra perioden 1880 – 1940 viser at kvinner var med på troféjakt, men i hovedsak som koner, døtre eller søstre. I dette foredraget vil jeg gi et innblikk i hvilket omfang kvinner har reist og jaktet i Arktis. Gjennom det empiriske materialet vil jeg undersøke hvilke perspektiver kvinner som har reist og oppholdt seg i Arktis har hatt på jakt, natur og opplevelser. Skiller de seg fra menns perspektiver og opplevelser i de samme områdene?
Comparative Study of Mineral Composition of Some Selected Nigerian Green Leafy Vegetables from Two Different Regions
Authors: Oladejo A. A. , Apalowo O. A. , Mustapha S. , Aliyu A. S. , Ilesanmi O. T. , Fatoyinbo A. A.
Published: November 2019

Vegetable often mean an edible part of a plant other than a sweet fruit or seed, which typically implies the leaf, stem or root of a plant. This study was carried out to evaluate the contributions of Nigerian leafy vegetables to nutrition and health. The mineral composition of four selected green leafy vegetables; water leaf(Talinum triangulare), fluted pumpkin (Telfaria occidentalis), bitter leaf (Vernonia amygdalina) and ukazi (Gnetum africanum) from two different locations (Awka in Anambra State and Ado-Ekiti in Ekiti State) were investigated. The result of the experiment showed that the mineral content of the investigated vegetables are not significantly different by (p<0.05). Generally, Gnetum africanum sourced from Awka has the highest content of all the explored minerals with magnesium content being highest (245.96±0.33).  The result indicated that the four investigated green leafy vegetables from these locations are good sources of minerals with Gnetum africanum having the highest content. Hence, the consumption of Gnetum africanum should be encouraged owing to its high content of minerals.
Diversity and Abundance of Wet Land Bird Species in Lake Hora-Arsedi, Bishoftu, Ethiopia
Authors: Girma Askale , Admassu Mesele
Published: November 2019

The investigation of species diversity and abundance of birds in Lake Hora Arsedi Bishoftu town was conducted from September 2018 to July 2019. The aim of the study was to assess the diversity and abundance of bird species in Lake Hora Arsedi at Bishoftu town. Point count method was used to investigate the abundance of birds. Observation was conducted periodically walking along the study area early in the morning and late in the afternoon. Different diversity indices and statistical methods (Chi-square test and correlation) were used to analyze data collected during the field survey. Abundance of birds, their richness and evenness as well as birds` diversity recording were made. A total of 14 bird species grouped under 7 orders and 11 families were recorded. The month February had the lowest species diversity (H’= 0.33), species evenness (E = 0.13) and species richness (12). The highest species diversity, evenness and richness were recorded in March and April (H’=0.35), (E = 0.35) and (S = 14), respectively. Variation in abundance of birds was statistically significant between months. Abundance score of frequency of bird species was high during rainy season and uncommon are high during small rainy seasons using encounter rate. Lake Hora Arsedi has a number of natural and human induced bird attractant features. The area possesses favorable places for birds to nest, rest, roost and a good access to food as well as water resources. The study recommends the maintenance of bird watching records to monitor the effectiveness of management and to ensure early detection of any impact on bird numbers or behavior; conservation of Lake Hora Arsedi, its surroundings and making it free from human interference will enable us to conserve these valuable bird species. Hence, conservation measures by wildlife conservation authority and other concerned agencies are important to safeguard these species in the area.
SOX6 suppresses the development of lung adenocarcinoma by regulating expression of p53, p21CIPI, cyclin D1 and β‐catenin
Authors: Lv Liyan , Zhou Min , Zhang Jian , Liu Fang , Qi Li , Zhang Shuai , Bi Yi , Yu Yan
Published: November 2019

The Sry‐related high‐mobility group box6 (SOX6) has been implicated in the development of cancer, but its role in lung cancer is incompletely understood. Here, we report that SOX6 expression is frequently down‐regulated in lung adenocarcinoma tissues. Moreover, SOX6 can inhibit the proliferation and invasion of lung adenocarcinoma cells, which may occur through cell cycle arrest at G1/S due to up‐regulation of p53 and p21CIPI and down‐regulation of cyclin D1 and β‐catenin. Univariate and multivariate analyses revealed that the expression of SOX6 is significantly associated with patient disease‐related survival and is an independent prognostic factor for lung adenocarcinoma. These data suggest that SOX6 may act as a suppressor of lung adenocarcinoma.
Algorithms, Statistical
Authors: Chambers John M. , Ligges Uwe , Weihs Claus
Published: November 2019

Statistical algorithms are those algorithms having useful application to problems encountered in statistics. For the choice of such an algorithm, three aspects are most important: the role of the algorithm in the overall approach, the attempt to find or implement a suitable algorithm, and judgments about the quality of an algorithm. In this article, each of these questions is considered, both from a historical and a modern view.
Fan Plot
Authors: Atkinson Anthony C. , Riani Marco , Morelli Gianluca
Published: November 2019

This is a graphical procedure for determining the effect of one or more observations on the transformation parameter in the Box–Cox family of power transformations of the response variable in regression. It is based on a “Forward Search” through the data to fit subsets of increasing numbers of observations, with outliers being included toward the end of the search. The procedure also extends to the Yeo‐Johnson power transformation that allows responses to be positive as well as negative.
Representer Theorem
Authors: Wahba Grace , Wang Yuedong
Published: November 2019

The representer theorem plays an outsized role in a large class of learning problems. It provides a means to reduce infinite dimensional optimization problems to tractable finite dimensional ones. This article reviews the representer theorem for various learning problems under the reproducing kernel Hilbert spaces framework. We present solutions to the penalized least squares and penalized likelihood for nonparametric regression and support vector machines for classification as a solution to the penalized hinge loss. We discuss extensions of the representer theorem for regression with functional data.
Scale Mixture Distribution
Authors: Lee Sharon X. , McLachlan Geoffrey J.
Published: November 2019

Scale mixtures of normal (SMN) distributions, or normal variance mixture models, refer to a class of normal distributions where the covariance matrix is weighted by (a positive function of) a scale variable with a given prior distribution. Hence, the tails of these distributions can be regulated. They thus provide a robust alternative to the normal distribution when analyzing data that contain atypical observations. In the recent years, the family of SMN distributions has been applied to skew normal distributions to accommodate possible skewness in the data, namely, the so‐called scale mixtures of skew normal distributions (SMSNs). This paper reviews some recent developments on scale mixture distributions, in particular, the SMN and SMSN families and their distributional properties.
Technical Note: Investigation of the dosimetric impact of stray radiation on the Common Control Unit of the IBA Blue Phantom2
Authors: Cui Guoqiang , Duan Jun , Yang Yun , Yin Fang‐Fang
Published: November 2019

Purpose

This technical note aims to investigate the dosimetric impact of stray radiation on the Common Control Unit (CCU) of the IBA Blue Phantom2 and the measured beam data.

Methods

Three CCUs of the same model were used for the study. The primary test CCU was placed at five distances from the radiation beam central axis. At each distance, a set of depth dose and beam profiles for two open and two wedge fields were measured. The field sizes were 10 × 10 cm2 and 30 × 30 cm2 for the open fields, and 30 × 30 cm2 and 15 × 15 cm2 for the 30° and 60° wedges, respectively. The other two CCUs were used to cross check the data of the primary CCU. Assuming the effect of stray radiation on the data measured at the farthest reachable distance 4.5 m is negligible, the dosimetric impact of stray radiation on the CCU and consequently on the measured data can be extracted for analysis by comparing it with those measured at shorter distances.

Results

The results of three CCUs were consistent. The dosimetric impact of stray radiation was greater for lower energies at larger field sizes. For open fields, the data variation was up to 4.5% for depth dose curves and 7.1% for beam profiles. For wedge fields, the data variation was up to 9.3% for depth dose curves and 10.6% for beam profiles. Moreover, for wedge field profiles in the wedge direction, they became flatter as the CCU was placed closer to the primary radiation beam, manifesting smaller wedge angles.

Conclusion

The stray radiation added a uniform background noise on all measured data. The magnitude of the noise is inversely proportional to the square of the distance of the CCU to the primary radiation beam, approximately following the inverse square law.
Drug users who only need treatment should get it, not arrest and incarceration
Authors: Knopf Alison
Published: November 2019

Many changes at the local, state and federal levels have resulted in getting treatment to at least some people with opioid use disorder (OUD) in prisons and jails — treatment that just a few years ago would have been unthinkable in those very institutions. Lawsuits over inmate deaths have been followed by establishment of methadone and buprenorphine treatment in some locations, while others have been moving toward treatment as a matter of public policy, Paul Samuels, director and president of the Legal Action Center, told the attendees of the American Association for the Treatment of Opioid Dependence (AATOD) conference in Orlando, Florida, last month. He was joined by a jail accreditor, a sheriff and a judge at the plenary on corrections.
Nuggets from AATOD: New CSAT director comments
Authors: Knopf Alison
Published: November 2019

Here are more reports from last month's American Association for the Treatment of Opioid Dependence (AATOD) conference in Orlando — in particular, insights from Louis Trevisan, M.D., the new director of the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT) of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
High‐Performance N‐type Mg3Sb2 towards Thermoelectric Application near Room Temperature
Authors: Zhang Fan , Chen Chen , Yao Honghao , Bai Fengxian , Yin Li , Li Xiaofang , Li Shan , Xue Wenhua , Wang Yumei , Cao Feng , Liu Xingjun , Sui Jiehe , Zhang Qian
Published: November 2019

Se‐doped Mg3.2Sb1.5Bi0.5‐based thermoelectric materials are revisited in this study. An increased ZT value ≈1.4 at about 723 K is obtained in Mg3.2Sb1.5Bi0.49Se0.01 with optimized carrier concentration ≈1.9 × 1019 cm−3. Based on this composition, Co and Mn are incorporated for the manipulation of the carrier scattering mechanism, which are beneficial to the dramatically enhanced electrical conductivity and power factor around room temperature range. Combined with the lowered lattice thermal conductivity due to the introduction of effective phonon scattering centers in Se&Mn‐codoped sample, a highest room temperature ZT value ≈0.63 and a peak ZT value ≈1.70 at 623 K are achieved for Mg3.15Mn0.05Sb1.5Bi0.49Se0.01, leading to a high average ZT ≈1.33 from 323 to 673 K. In particular, a remarkable average ZT ≈1.18 between the temperature of 323 and 523 K is achieved, suggesting the competitive substitution for the commercialized n‐type Bi2Te3‐based thermoelectric materials.
Shaping Liquid Crystals with Gold Nanoparticles: Helical Assemblies with Tunable and Hierarchical Structures Via Thin‐Film Cooperative Interactions
Authors: Bagiński Maciej , Tupikowska Martyna , González‐Rubio Guillermo , Wójcik Michał , Lewandowski Wiktor
Published: November 2019

The availability of helical assemblies of plasmonic nanoparticles with precisely controlled and tunable structures can play a key role in the future development of chiral plasmonics and metamaterials. Here, a strategy to efficiently yield helical structures based on the cooperative interactions of liquid crystals and gold nanoparticles in thin films is developed. These nanocomposites exhibit exceptional long‐range hierarchical order across length scales, which results from the growth mechanism of nanoparticle‐coated twisted nanoribbons and their ability to form organized bundles. The helical assembly formation is governed by the presence of rationally functionalized nanoparticles. Importantly, the thickness of the achieved nanocomposites can be reversibly reconfigured owing to the polymorphic nature of the liquid crystal. The versatility of the proposed approach is demonstrated by preparing helices assembled from nanoparticles of different geometries and dimensions (spherical and rod‐like). The described strategy may become an enabling technology for structuring nanoparticle assemblies with high precision and fabricating optically active materials.
New Perspectives in the Indole Ring Functionalization using 2‐Indolylmethanols
Authors: Petrini Marino
Published: November 2019

2‐Indolylmethanols have been recently involved in several processes dealing with indole functionalization. These compounds, upon activation by Brønsted or Lewis acids, generate a bidentate electrophilic system amenable to react at the 3‐position or at the benzylic site with a wide range of nucleophilic reagents. The functionalization pattern is affected by the nature of the substituents at the carbinol unit and also depends on the nature of the nucleophile used. Nucleophilic reactants bearing a remote electrophilic site in their structure can be involved in a further ring closure ultimately leading to polycyclic derivatives. This review article summarizes some fundamental aspects of the chemistry of 2‐indolylmethanols with particular attention to those related to asymmetric synthesis.

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Ruthenium(II)‐Catalyzed C−H Bond [3+2] Annulation of N‐Nitrosoanilines with Alkynes in Water
Authors: Chen Xun , Cui Xue , Bai Lili , Wang Ying , Xie Ying , Wang Shuojin , Zhai Ruirui , Zhao Ke , Kong Dulin , Li Youbin
Published: November 2019

An efficient RuII‐catalyzed C−H bond redox‐neutral annulation of N‐nitrosoanilines with alkynes by employing water as the solvent has been developed. This transformation provides an easy and robust protocol for the synthesis of indoles with a broad range of functional group tolerance and excellent regioselectivity.
Academic collaboration rates and citation associations vary substantially between countries and fields
Authors: Thelwall Mike , Maflahi Nabeil
Published: November 2019

Research collaboration is promoted by governments and research funders, but if the relative prevalence and merits of collaboration vary internationally then different national and disciplinary strategies may be needed to promote it. This study compares the team size and field normalized citation impact of research across all 27 Scopus broad fields in the 10 countries with the most journal articles indexed in Scopus 2008–2012. The results show that team size varies substantially by discipline and country, with Japan (4.2) having two‐thirds more authors per article than the United Kingdom (2.5). Solo authorship is rare in China (4%) but common in the United Kingdom (27%). While increasing team size associates with higher citation impact in almost all countries and fields, this association is much weaker in China than elsewhere. There are also field differences in the association between citation impact and collaboration. For example, larger team sizes in the Business, Management & Accounting category do not seem to associate with greater research impact, and for China and India, solo authorship associates with higher citation impact in this field. Overall, there are substantial international and field differences in the extent to which researchers collaborate and the extent to which collaboration associates with higher citation impact.
Nickel‐Catalyzed Tandem Reaction of Functionalized Arylacetonitriles with Arylboronic Acids in 2‐MeTHF: Eco‐Friendly Synthesis of Aminoisoquinolines and Isoquinolones
Authors: Zhen Qianqian , Chen Lepeng , Qi Linjun , Hu Kun , Shao Yinlin , Li Renhao , Chen Jiuxi
Published: November 2019

The first example of the nickel‐catalyzed tandem addition/cyclization of 2‐(cyanomethyl)benzonitriles with arylboronic acids in 2‐MeTHF has been developed, which provides the facile synthesis of aminoisoquinolines with good functional group tolerance under mild conditions. This chemistry has also been successfully applied to the synthesis of isoquinolones by the tandem reaction of methyl 2‐(cyanomethyl)benzoates with arylboronic acids. The use of the bio‐based and green solvent 2‐MeTHF as the reaction medium makes the synthesis process environmentally benign. The synthetic utility of this chemistry is also indicated by the synthesis of biologically active molecules.
Molecular Aggregation of Naphthalene Diimide(NDI) Derivatives in Electron Transport Layers of Inverted Perovskite Solar Cells and Their Influence on the Device Performance
Authors: Liu Wenbo , Shaikh Dada B. , Rao Pedada Srinivasa , Bhosale Rajesh S. , Said Ahmed Ali , Mak Adrian M. , Wang Zongrui , Zhao Mu , Gao Weibo , Chen Bingbing , Lam Yeng Ming , Fan Weijun , Bhosale Sidhanath V. , Bhosale Sheshanath V. , Zhang Qichun
Published: November 2019

One of key factors to design applicable electron transport layers (ETLs) for perovskite solar cells is the morphology of ETLs since a good morphology would help to facilitate the carrier transport at two interfaces (perovskite\ETL and ETL\cathode). However, one drawback of most organic ETL small molecules is the internal undesired accumulation, which would cause the formation of inappropriate morphology and rough ETL surface. Here, by elaborately designing the side chains of NDI derivatives, the molecular interaction could be modified to achieve the aggregation in different degrees, which would eventually affect the accumulation of molecules and surface qualities of ETLs. By speculating from the comparison between the absorption spectra of solutions and films, the sequence of extent of molecule interaction and aggregation was built among three NDI derivatives, which is further confirmed by direct evidence of atomic force microscopy (AFM) images. Then, carrier exaction abilities are simply studied by steady‐state photoluminescence spectroscopy. The carrier transport process is also discussed based on cyclic voltammetry, time‐resolved photoluminescence spectroscopy and mobility. NDIF1 are proven to have the appropriate internal aggregation to smooth the contact with cathode and low series resistance, and a device performance of 15.6 % is achieved. With the ability of preventing the thermal diffusion of Ag towards the perovskite surface due to the strong interaction between molecules, NDIF2 at high concentration shows the highest fill factor (80 %).
Alectinib, an anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) inhibitor, as a bridge to allogeneic stem cell transplantation in a patient with ALK‐positive anaplastic large‐cell lymphoma refractory to chemotherapy and brentuximab vedotin
Authors: Nakai Ritsuko , Fukuhara Suguru , Maeshima Akiko Miyagi , Kim Sung‐Won , Ito Yuta , Hatta Shunsuke , Suzuki Tomotaka , Yuda Sayako , Makita Shinichi , Munakata Wataru , Suzuki Tatsuya , Maruyama Dai , Izutsu Koji
Published: November 2019

This is the first case report of alectinib as a bridge to allo‐SCT in a patient with ALK‐positive ALCL refractory to both conventional chemotherapies and BV. This report offers a ray of hope for a condition with poor prognosis.
High Stable Sulfur Cathode with Self‐Healable and Physical Confining Polydimethylsiloxane Interlayer
Authors: Cui Ximing , Pan Qinmin
Published: November 2019

Li‐sulfur (Li−S) batteries are promising high‐performance power sources, but their practical application is significantly impeded by the large volume change and diffusion of polysulfides (i. e., shuttle effect). Here we report that such issues can be effectively addressed by rationally designing a self‐healable and confining interfacial nanolayer. The goal is achieved by encapsulating individual sulfur microparticles with a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) nanoshell cross‐linked by dynamic imine bonding. The nanoshell well adapts the volume change, timely remediates itself after breaking, but also in situ confines the generated polysulfides, which ensures a “robust micro‐interface” between each sulfur particle and the electrolyte in the cycling process. Consequently, the resulting sulfur cathodes exhibit excellent energy‐storage performances even at a high sulfur loading. We believed that this design of a multifunctional micro‐interfacial layer provides an alternative insight into the intrinsic problems of sulfur cathodes.
Discovery of Biased Mu‐Opioid Receptor Agonists for the Treatment of Pain
Authors: Ma Mengjun , Li Xiang , Tong Kun , Cheng Jingchao , Yu Zixing , Ren Fengxia , Zhong Bohua , Shi Weiguo
Published: November 2019

G protein‐biased mu‐opioid receptor (MOR) agonists have been developed as promising new potent analgesic drugs with fewer adverse side effects than standard MOR agonists. PZM21 represents a unique chemotype unrelated to known opioids, which makes it a desirable lead for modification to find analgesics with new chemical entities. In the present study, we synthesized and tested novel PZM21 derivatives as potent biased MOR agonists by introducing a benzodioxolane group to replace the hydroxybenzene of PZM21. The new compounds displayed more potent analgesic activities in vivo and greater bias toward G protein signaling in vitro than did PZM21. These results suggest that the benzodioxolane group is essential for the maintenance of bias. Compounds 7 i ((S)‐1‐(3‐(benzo[d][1,3]dioxol‐4‐yl)‐2‐(dimethylamino)propyl)‐3‐phenethylurea) and 7 j ((S)‐1‐(3‐(benzo[d][1,3]dioxol‐4‐yl)‐2‐(dimethylamino)propyl)‐3‐benzylurea) could serve as new leads for further modifications to find novel biased MOR agonists with greater G protein signaling potency and less β‐arrestin‐2 recruitment.
Improving MapReduce scheduler for heterogeneous workloads in a heterogeneous environment
Authors: Jeyaraj Rathinaraja , V S Ananthanarayana , Paul Anand
Published: November 2019

Big data is largely influencing business entities and research sectors to be more data‐driven. Hadoop MapReduce is one of the cost‐effective ways to process large scale datasets and offered as a service over the Internet. Even though cloud service providers promise an infinite amount of resources available on‐demand, it is inevitable that some of the hired virtual resources for MapReduce are left unutilized and makespan is limited due to various heterogeneities that exist while offering MapReduce as a service. As MapReduce v2 allows users to define the size of containers for the map and reduce tasks, jobs in a batch become heterogeneous and behave differently. Also, the different capacity of virtual machines in the MapReduce virtual cluster accommodate a varying number of map/reduce tasks. These factors highly affect resource utilization in the virtual cluster and the makespan for a batch of MapReduce jobs. Default MapReduce job schedulers do not consider these heterogeneities that exist in a cloud environment. Moreover, virtual machines in MapReduce virtual cluster process an equal number of blocks regardless of their capacity, which affects the makespan. Therefore, we devised a heuristic‐based MapReduce job scheduler that exploits virtual machine and MapReduce workload level heterogeneities to improve resource utilization and makespan. We proposed two methods to achieve this: (i) roulette wheel scheme based data block placement in heterogeneous virtual machines, and (ii) a constrained 2‐dimensional bin packing to place heterogeneous map/reduce tasks. We compared heuristic‐based MapReduce job scheduler against the classical fair scheduler in MapReduce v2. Experimental results showed that our proposed scheduler improved makespan and resource utilization by 45.6% and 47.9% over classical fair scheduler.
The generalized sense of power is a psychological resource: Evidence from a disaster response field training exercise
Authors: Sherman Gary D. , Türkay Selen , Moulton Samuel T. , Friedman Michael C. , Darani Negeen , Daly Brian , Kayden Stephanie
Published: November 2019

We examined whether the generalized sense of power—the belief that one is able to influence others in one's various social relationships—serves as a psychological resource that enables leadership in high‐stakes, unfamiliar group challenges, such as emergencies or crises. We studied current and prospective humanitarian aid professionals (N = 180) during a major field training exercise: a three‐day, immersive simulated humanitarian crisis. Individuals who entered the simulated crisis with a greater sense of power in their social relationships experienced lower stress (anxiety), behaved more assertively, and left the simulation with a relatively heightened desire to lead, despite not being deemed better leaders by their teammates. Lacking an initial sense of power was associated with experiences (e.g., feeling timid) that undermined the desire to lead. These results suggest that the psychological sense of power is a key leadership resource, without which one may be at risk of self‐selecting out of leadership.
Goodness‐of‐fit tests forβARMA hydrological time series modeling
Authors: Scher Vinícius T. , Cribari‐Neto Francisco , Pumi Guilherme , Bayer Fábio M.
Published: November 2019

We address the issue of performing portmanteau testing inference using time series data that assume values in the standard unit interval. The motivation involves modeling the time series dynamics of the proportion of stocked hydroelectric energy in the South of Brazil. Our focus lies in the class of beta autoregressive moving average (βARMA) models. In particular, we wish to test the goodness‐of‐fit of such models. We consider several testing criteria that have been proposed for Gaussian time series models and introduce two new tests. We derive the asymptotic null distribution of the two proposed test statistics in two different scenarios, namely, when the tests are applied to an observed time series and when they are applied to the residuals from a fittedβARMA model. It is worth noticing that our results imply the asymptotic validity of standard portmanteau tests in the class ofβARMA models that are, under the null hypothesis, asymptotically equivalent to our test statistics. We use Monte Carlo simulation to assess the relative merits of the different portmanteau tests when used with fittedβARMA models. The simulation results we present show that the new tests are typically more powerful than a well‐known test whose test statistic is also based on residual partial autocorrelations. Overall, the tests we propose perform quite well. Finally, we model the dynamics of the proportion of stocked hydroelectric energy in Brazil. The results show that theβARMA model outperforms three alternative models and an exponential smoothing algorithm.
Prudence: Under Strain in California
Authors: Makholm Jeff D.
Published: November 2019

My International Energycolumns often enough highlight the difficulty in agreeing on a common regulatory language for energy utilities, especially in an international context. In October 2017, I contrasted how different regulators, even within the English‐speaking world, use vastly different techniques for gauging efficiency in the utilities they regulate. In June 2018, I reviewed the various international methods developed for incentive regulation. In the previous column in October 2019, I charted how a revamped regulatory formula, appearing more than three decades after modern US utility regulation began in the early twentieth century, finalized what has become the standard US regulatory model.
Eye clinic liaison officers service in the United Kingdom
Authors: Papastefanou Vasilios P. , Kang Swan , Simkiss Philippa , Zambarakji Hadi
Published: November 2019

Background

To investigate the role of eye clinic liaison officers (ECLOs) in the United Kingdom and analyse patients' demographics and services provided.

Methods

This is a retrospective observational study. Data were collected from the Royal National Institute of Blind People for ECLOs in Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and England for the first quarter of 2015. Statistical analysis was performed using chi‐square and t test as appropriate.

Results

Trusts with ECLOs support vary greatly in the UK regions. Only one‐third of NHS trusts in England have an ECLO service. Over 4000 patients were assessed. The majority of patients were of White ethnic background (94%), lived alone (37%), had no carers (58%) and were in their 80s (29.5%). The principal ocular conditions causing sight loss and certification were age‐related macular degeneration (41.6%) and glaucoma (18.1%). Approximately 70% of patients are first seen at 13 to 18 months from diagnosis.

Conclusions

ECLO services vary in the UK regions. England has the lowest ECLO availability per trust and the majority of those assessed were of White British origin with AMD. There are significant delays from diagnosis to the first visit indicating the need for improved services. Further studies are necessary to develop the evidence base for the expansion and funding of ECLO services.
NMR Perspectives of the KcsA Potassium Channel in the Membrane Environment
Authors: Chill Jordan H. , Qasim Arwa , Sher Inbal , Gross Renana
Published: November 2019

Membrane‐embedded proteins (MPs) are central to a wide range of cellular processes. Despite their importance, structural studies of MPs are hindered by expression difficulties and the need for stabilization in a membrane‐mimicking environment. High‐resolution NMR methods can investigate structure and function of MPs due to methodological advances and new membrane‐like assemblies for stabilization of MPs. In this perspective of the field, we introduce the challenges and opportunities of NMR studies of membrane proteins, briefly surveying membrane‐mimicking systems and their application in structure determination. A case study then focuses on the C‐terminal domain of the bacterial potassium channel KcsA, describing how improvements in membrane‐mimicking conditions eventually enabled us to present a structural view of the pH‐dependent behavior of this cytoplasmic channel domain. The results highlight prerequisites for a successful study of MPs and the potential for future investigations.
Palynological investigation of some selected species of family Fabaceae from Pakistan, using light and scanning electron microscopy techniques
Authors: Khan Irum , Akhtar Naveed , Khan Shafqat Ali
Published: November 2019

Pollen morphology of 11 species of family Fabaceae that is, Trifolium alexandrinum, Trifolium resupinatum, Arachis hypogaea, Lathyrus aphaca, Medicago lupulina, Vicia sativa, Lathyrus odoratus, Pongamia pinnata, Melilotus indicus, Medicago polymorpha, Medicago sativa from Pakistan has been investigated by light and scanning electron microscopy. Pollen were generally tricolporate, radially symmetrical, isopolar, elliptic in equatorial view and triangular in polar view under LM. Results showed that pollens were per‐prolate (T. alexandrinum), prolate (T. resupinatum, V. sativa, L. odoratus, Melilotus indicus, M. polymorpha, M. sativa) and sub‐prolate (A. hypogaea, L. aphaca, M. lupulina, P. pinnata). The larger polar/equatorial (P/E) ratio was found in T. alexandrinum (2.26 μm) and the smallest was found in M. lupulina (1.21 μm). The exine of T. resupinatum was 3.00 μm in thickness while others posses smaller exine thickness. The larger pore diameter was found in P. pinnata (16.01 μm) while others have smaller. The length of colpi was larger in Arachis hypogaea (32.24) while others posses smaller. Eight types of surface ornamentation (Psilate, faintly rugulate). Perforate and rugulate to verrucate have been observed under SEM. The pollens were europalynous type. Pollen morphology proved to be useful for the specific delimitation and serve as a tool for the identification and classification of taxa at specific and generic levels and can also be used as a key for the taxonomic features. Diversity in exine sculpture is helpful indicative characters for the isolation of closely related species. Hence, it is clear that both qualitative and quantitative characters of pollen can be useful for differentiating between taxa at specific level.
Microscopy as a tool to investigate the influence of ammonium polyphosphate particle size on the flame retardant properties of polymer composites
Authors: P. S. Ribeiro Simone , C. Martins Raíssa , R. M. Estevão Luciana , A. C. Nascimento Marco , S. V. Nascimento Regina
Published: November 2019

The influence of ammonium polyphosphate (APP) particle size on the performance of an intumescent formulation and on the synergistic action of a series of montmorillonite samples with different d‐spacings for the production of flame retardant composites was investigated. The polymer matrix employed was poly(ethylene‐co‐butyl acrylate), EBA 30, and the intumescent formulation consisted of APP and pentaerythritol (PER). After being processed, the composites were submitted to scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermogravimetric analysis, heating microscopy, and limiting oxygen index tests. The results indicate that the greater interaction between the APP and PER molecules, caused by the increase of the contact area promoted by the reduction of the APP particle size, could favor the esterification reaction between APP423 and PER, allowing the formation of a greater amount of char precursors in shorter period of time. In addition, the montmorillonite d‐spacings had a more pronounced influence on the clays synergistic action with the intumescent formulation containing the APP with smaller particle size. Microscopy has shown to be an important tool to investigate APP particle size effect on the fire retardancy. AFM results enabled the detection of nanometric particles in the sample containing the smallest particle size of APP. SEM micrographs showed that those nanometric particles were better dispersed in the matrix, interacting more effectively with the other components, a factor probably responsible for the superior fire retardancy results. Heating microscopy revealed that the material with smaller APP particle size did show some remaining structure at the temperature of 850°C.
Malnutrition and quality of life among adult inflammatory bowel disease patients
Authors: Pulley Jessica , Todd Alwyn , Flatley Christopher , Begun Jakob
Published: November 2019

Background and Aim

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) are chronic inflammatory conditions of the gut resulting in a significant risk for malnutrition. The reported prevalence of malnutrition in inflammatory disease patients varies from 5.7 to 82.8%. The aim of this study was to measure the prevalence of malnutrition and its association with quality of life (QOL) in a cohort of Australian IBD outpatients.

Methods

A total of 107 consecutive patients (68 Crohn's disease, 35 ulcerative colitis, 4 indeterminate colitis) were enrolled in this cross‐sectional study. Demographic data were collected, and patients underwent a malnutrition assessment using the patient‐generated subjective global assessment. The RAND 36‐item health survey was used to measure QOL.

Results

Mild to moderate malnutrition was detected in 17 patients (16%). Malnourished patients were more likely to be underweight (P ≤ 0.01), have active disease (P ≤ 0.01), and have been admitted to hospital in the preceding 12 months (P ≤ 0.05). Malnourished patients had a significantly lower QOL in physical (P ≤ 0.01) and mental (P ≤ 0.01) health components. Patients with active or recently active disease had reduced QOL compared to patients in remission. Malnutrition factors predictive of poor physical health‐related QOL were pain (odds ratio [OR] = 12.8, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.0–80.4) and unintentional weight loss (OR = 3.1 per kg lost, 95% CI 1.2–7.9). The predictor of poor mental health‐related QOL was early satiety (OR = 7.7, 95% CI 1.7–33.9).

Conclusions

The malnutrition prevalence for this population was 16%. Malnutrition was associated with being underweight, active disease, and increased number of hospital admissions. Disease activity and malnutrition were associated with poorer QOL.
Concomitant deletion of SLAM-family receptors, NKG2D and DNAM-1 reveals gene redundancy of NK cell activating receptors in NK cell development and education
Authors: Chen Shasha , Dong Zhongjun
Published: November 2019

NK cells recognize “unwanted” cells using a variety of germline-encoded activating receptors, such as the seven members of signaling lymphocyte activating molecule (SLAM)-family receptors (SFRs), natural killer cell group 2D (NKG2D), and DNAX accessory molecule-1(DNAM-1). Whether these receptors redundantly or synergistically regulate NK cell development and effector function remains poorly understood. By generating mice lacking SFRs, NKG2D, and DNAM-1, separately or in combination, we found that SLAMF6, one of the SFR members, was associated with NK cell differentiation, but its absence had no severe effect on NK cell differentiation and function, likely due to SFR redundancy. Moreover, we revealed that SFRs might work with other NK cell activating receptors in regulating NK cell development and function. We found that SFR deficiency caused an increase in immature NK cell subsets (CD27+CD11b−), and this effect was further augmented by the additional deficiency of NKG2D but not DNAM-1. However, SFR-deficient NK cells exhibited elevated responsiveness against “missing-self” hematopoietic targets, whereas the deletion of either NKG2D or DNAM-1 could partially abrogate the elevated effect of SFR deficiency on NK cell activation. Therefore, our results reveal the complexity of activating receptors in regulating NK cell differentiation and activation, extending our insights into the gene redundancy and compensatory effect of NK cell activating receptors.
Intraseasonal variability of Tibetan Plateau snow cover
Authors: Li Wenkai , Qiu Bo , Guo Weidong , Zhu Zhiwei , Hsu Pang‐Chi
Published: November 2019

Using the daily snow cover data at 24‐km resolution from the Interactive Multi‐sensor Snow and Ice Mapping System snow cover analysis, this study describes the variability in Tibetan Plateau (TP) snow cover (TPSC) at multiple time scales with a focus on the intraseasonal time scale (10–90 days). TPSC demonstrates variability over a wide range of temporal scales, but the annual cycle is generally dominant. Synoptic‐scale variability, seasonal variability and interannual and long‐term changes make small contributions to the total daily variability in TPSC. Intraseasonal variability (ISV) is dominant over most of the central and eastern TP and explains 22–40% of the total variability and leads to obvious variations in TPSC over periods shorter than a season. The ISV of TPSC is more active in the cold season than in the warm season. Specifically, the ISV over the Changtang Plateau explains approximately 50% of the total variability of snow cover in the cold season and is even more dominant than the annual cycle. Possible influences of regional atmospheric circulations on TPSC are also examined. TPSC variability is highly correlated with regional surface air temperature (SAT) and precipitation at an intraseasonal time scale. TPSC and SAT tend to have a simultaneous relationship, while anomalous precipitation leads to subsequent TPSC variations with a lag of approximately 5 days and a positive relationship. Such relationships are the result of intraseasonal variations in regional atmospheric circulation. The anomalous adiabatic heating induced by vertical ascending motion leads to tropospheric temperature variations. Furthermore, the horizontal advection of moisture and apparent moisture sink, which are induced by anomalous moisture supply and snow evaporation anomalies, respectively, lead to anomalous moisture associated with changes in the TPSC.