bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Effects of fNIRS Processing Methods on Prefrontal Hemodynamics During Single and Dual Task Walking in Older Adults
Authors: Izzetoglu Meltem , Holtzer Roee
Published: December 2020

functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) has been increasingly used to assess changes in the hemodynamic response during active walking in aging and disease populations. Key findings revealed that HbO2 in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) increased from single-task-walk (STW) to dual-task-walk (DTW) due to the greater cognitive demands inherent in the latter condition. However, previous studies utilized a limited and inconsistent number of algorithms and filters to remove artifacts from fNIRS-derived brain activation data. Critically, there is no gold standard for artifact removal at the present time, which reduces replicability and generalizability. To address this critical limitation, we have reanalyzed a large dataset of older adults (n=83) who underwent our walking protocol by using different hemodynamic conversion parameters (molar extinction coefficients and age and wavelength dependent differential pathlength factors) and applying different filters having various cut-off frequencies for artifact removal. On the extracted hemodynamic responses, namely oxygenated-hemoglobin (HbO2) and deoxygenated-hemoglobin (Hb), linear mixed effect model results indicated that task effects showed similar significant increases in HbO2 from STW to DTW (range of effect sizes was 0.59 to 0.64) and as well as the expected decline in Hb from STW to DTW (range of effect sizes was 0.18 to 0.32) irrespective of the methods used. In addition, the intraclass correlations suggested excellent reliability across methods (HbO2 range = 0.982 to 0.996; Hb range = 0.883 to 0.984). In conclusion, these findings provide strong support to previously published articles but also highlight the need to establish a gold standard for fNIRS processing.
Mediators of the Relationship Between Functional Limitations and Loneliness Among Homebound African Americans
Authors: Dowling Maritza , Dodge Hiroko , Puente Antonio , Lunsford Beverly
Published: December 2020

Physical/functional limitations are known to lead to loneliness, but there is little research on protective factors that may mediate their adverse association, particularly in vulnerable populations. This study used cross-sectional survey data from 147 (aged 58-90 years; 75% females) predominantly low-income African American homebound community dwellers to investigate the role of resilience and social connectedness in mediating the effect of physical/functional limitations on loneliness. Items from validated instruments were used to measure four latent variables (physical/functional limitations, resilience, loneliness and social connectedness). Structural parallel mediator models estimated each path in the mediation analysis controlling for gender, education, and age. Confidence intervals for mediation effects were generated via bias-corrected bootstrapping with 10,000 replications. The total effect of physical/functional limitations on perceived loneliness was significant. Social connectedness and resilience fully and significantly mediated the relationship between physical/functional limitations and loneliness. The indirect effect (B =.143; 95% CI = .047, .280) for the physical/functional limitations-resilience-loneliness pathway indicated that the positive effect of physical/functional limitations on loneliness was approximately 0.143 points lower as mediated by higher resilience. The indirect path of physical/functional limitations on loneliness through the mediation of social connectedness (B =.077; 95% CI = .010, .168) yielded a reduction of .077 points. The total amount of variance in feelings of loneliness accounted for by the overall model, which included the proposed mediators and control variables, was 48.6%. Interventions to build resilience and social interactions may attenuate the effects of physical/functional disability and loneliness on health outcomes in individuals at risk.
Financial Decision Making and Survey Responses of Older Couples
Authors: Curl Angela , Molina Estevan Tobias
Published: December 2020

The Health and Retirement Study (HRS) asks mid-life and older couples to identify the person most knowledgeable about household finances to provide responses to financial questions (“financial respondent” [FR]). The purpose of this study is to analyze predictors of a female FR, with a focus on gendered financial decision making. This study analyzed HRS data from 2012 to 2018. Our sample consisted of 5,038 married/partnered couples over the age of 50 (at baseline), after eliminating cases with missing data on study variables. Using HLM 6.08 software, we computed the odds of couple households having a female FR. Our main predictor was the amount of female financial decision making power, as measured using eight Likert scale items (0=male always makes this decision, 4=female always makes this decision), for purchases (e.g., cars, major appliances) and financial activities (e.g., paying bills, buying groceries); summed into a scale (range: 0-32). Our models controlled for race, ethnicity, education, income, age, health, cognitive ability, and depressive symptoms. Results indicate that men were more likely to be the FR, but when the female makes more household financial decisions then she is more likely to be the FR (OR = 1.16, p<.01). Black race, lower income, and time also increased the odds of a female FR. This study highlights women’s historical and ongoing limited power in financial matters of married couples. Financial knowledge and decision making skills should be encouraged for both partners in couple households.
The development of seismic anisotropy below south-central Alaska: evidence from local earthquake shear wave splitting
Authors: Karlowska E , Bastow I D , Rondenay S , Martin-Short R , Allen R M
Published: December 2020

The Transportable Array in south-central Alaska spans several subduction zone features: backarc, forearc and volcanic arc, making it an ideal tool to study subduction zone anisotropy. Shear wave splitting analysis of 157 local earthquakes of mb ≥ 3.0 that occurred between 2014 and 2019 yields 210 high-quality measurements at 23 stations. Splitting delay times (δt) are generally small (δt ≈ 0.3 s), increasing with distance from the trench. Arc-parallel fast directions, ϕ, are only seen in the forearc, but rotate to arc-perpendicular ϕ in the backarc. Observed ϕ values generally do not parallel teleseismic SKS splitting results, implying that the latter is sensitive primarily to subslab mantle flow, not mantle wedge dynamics. The forearc local-earthquake signal likely originates from anisotropic serpentinite in fractures atop the subducting Pacific Plate, with possible additional signal coming from fractures in the North American crust. Mantle wedge corner flow, potentially with additional arc-perpendicular anisotropy in the subducting slab, explains backarc anisotropy.
COVID-19 and the proliferation of urban networks for health security
Authors: Boyce Matthew R , Katz Rebecca
Published: December 2020

Recent years have witnessed cities establishing themselves as major players in addressing global issues, often taking collective action through international city networks and organizations. These networks are important, as they amplify the voices of municipal officials, who are often excluded from high-level decision-making, and can also provide a platform for officials from low- or middle-income nations to participate in higher-level political forums. The global response to the COVID-19 pandemic has included traditional public health stakeholders—including supranational organizations, international non-governmental organizations and national authorities—but has also featured mayors and city networks, in an unprecedented fashion. Existing networks without an explicit focus on health have shifted their focuses to prioritize pandemic response and several new networks have been created. These developments are significant, not only because they represent a shift in health governance and policy, but also because cities and urban networks more broadly have exhibited a nimbleness and pragmatism unmatched by higher levels of governance. These characteristics could prove beneficial for addressing the current pandemic, as well as future health issues and emergencies. Furthermore, given the relative lack of engagement with health security issues before the COVID-19 pandemic, the drastic health and economic impacts associated with it, and the demonstrable value added by strong city leadership, there are an open policy window and a compelling case for continued city engagement in health security.
SPEG binds with desmin and its deficiency causes defects in triad and focal adhesion proteins
Authors: Luo Shiyu , Li Qifei , Lin Jasmine , Murphy Quinn , Marty Isabelle , Zhang Yuanfan , Kazerounian Shideh , Agrawal Pankaj B
Published: December 2020

Striated preferentially expressed gene (SPEG), a member of the myosin light chain kinase family, is localized at the level of triad surrounding myofibrils in skeletal muscles. In humans, SPEG mutations are associated with centronuclear myopathy and cardiomyopathy. Using a striated muscle-specific Speg-knockout (KO) mouse model, we have previously shown that SPEG is critical for triad maintenance and calcium handling. Here, we further examined the molecular function of SPEG and characterized the effects of SPEG deficiency on triad and focal adhesion proteins. We used yeast two-hybrid assay, and identified desmin, an intermediate filament protein, to interact with SPEG and confirmed this interaction by co-immunoprecipitation. Using domain-mapping assay, we defined that Ig-like and fibronectin III domains of SPEG interact with rod domain of desmin. In skeletal muscles, SPEG depletion leads to desmin aggregates in vivo and a shift in desmin equilibrium from soluble to insoluble fraction. We also profiled the expression and localization of triadic proteins in Speg-KO mice using western blot and immunofluorescence. The amount of RyR1 and triadin were markedly reduced, whereas DHPRα1, SERCA1 and triadin were abnormally accumulated in discrete areas of Speg-KO myofibers. In addition, Speg-KO muscles exhibited internalized vinculin and β1 integrin, both of which are critical components of the focal adhesion complex. Further, β1 integrin was abnormally accumulated in early endosomes of Speg-KO myofibers. These results demonstrate that SPEG-deficient skeletal muscles exhibit several pathological features similar to those seen in MTM1 deficiency. Defects of shared cellular pathways may underlie these structural and functional abnormalities in both types of diseases.
Declining mortality in older people with type 2 diabetes masks rising excess risks at younger ages: a population-based study of all-cause and cause-specific mortality over 13 years
Authors: Sacre Julian W , Harding Jessica L , Shaw Jonathan E , Magliano Dianna J
Published: December 2020

Background

Excess mortality in people with vs without type 2 diabetes (T2DM) has fallen, but it is unclear whether men/women at all ages have benefited and which causes of death have driven these trends.

Methods

All-cause and cause-specific mortality rates and excess mortality [by mortality rate ratios (MRRs) relative to the non-diabetic general population] were examined in 1 268 018 Australians with T2DM registered on the National Diabetes Services Scheme (2002–2014).

Results

Age-standardized mortality decreased in men (−2.2%/year; Ptrend < 0.001) and women with T2DM (−1.3%/year; Ptrend < 0.001) throughout 2002–14, which translated to declines in the MRRs (from 1.51 to 1.45 in men; 1.59 to 1.46 in women; Ptrend < 0.05 for both). Declining mortality rates in T2DM were observed in men aged 40+ years and women aged 60+ years (Ptrends <0.001), but not at younger ages. However, the only age group in which excess mortality declined relative to those without diabetes was 80+ years (Ptrends < 0.05); driven by reductions in excess cancer-related deaths in men and cardiovascular disease (CVD) in women. Among age groups <80 years, CVD and cancer MRRs remained similar or increased over time, despite falls in both CVD and cancer mortality rates. MRRs for non-CVD/non-cancer-related deaths increased in 60–79 year-olds, but were otherwise unchanged.

Conclusions

Declining excess mortality attributable to T2DM from 2002–14 was driven entirely by reductions in those aged 80+ years. Declines in total mortality among those with T2DM were apparent in more age groups, but often to a lesser extent than in the general population, thereby serving to increase the excess risk associated with T2DM.
Reaction–subdiffusion systems and memory: spectra, Turing instability and decay estimates
Authors: Yang Jichen , Rademacher Jens D M
Published: December 2020

The modelling of linear and nonlinear reaction–subdiffusion processes is more subtle than normal diffusion and causes different phenomena. The resulting equations feature a spatial Laplacian with a temporal memory term through a time fractional derivative. It is known that the precise form depends on the interaction of dispersal and reaction, and leads to qualitative differences. We refine these results by defining generalized spectra through dispersion relations, which allows us to examine the onset of instability and in particular inspect Turing-type instabilities. These results are numerically illustrated. Moreover, we prove expansions that imply for one class of subdiffusion reaction equations algebraic decay for stable spectrum, whereas for another class this is exponential.
Teacher Turnover in Rwanda
Authors: Zeitlin Andrew
Published: December 2020

Despite widely documented shortfalls of teacher skills and effort, there is little systematic evidence of rates of teacher turnover in low-income countries. I investigated the incidence and consequences of teacher turnover in Rwandan public primary schools over the period from 2016 to 2019. I combined the universe of teacher placement records with student enrollment figures and school-average Primary Leaving Exam scores in a nationally representative sample of 259 schools. Results highlight five features of teacher turnover. First, rates of teacher turnover are high: annually, 20% of teachers separate from their jobs, of which 11% exit from the public-sector teaching workforce. Second, the burden of teacher churn is higher in schools with low learning levels and, perhaps surprisingly, in low pupil–teacher-ratio schools. Third, teacher turnover is concentrated among early-career teachers, male teachers and those assigned to teach Math. Fourth, replacing teachers quickly after they exit is a challenge; 23% of exiting teachers are not replaced the following year. And fifth, teacher turnover is associated with subsequent declines in learning outcomes. On average, the loss of a teacher is associated with a reduction in learning levels of 0.05 standard deviations. In addition to class-size increases, a possible mechanism for these learning outcomes is the prevalence of teachers teaching outside of their areas of subject expertise: in any given year, at least 21% of teachers teach in subjects in which they have not been trained. Taken together, these results suggest that the problem of teacher turnover is substantial in magnitude and consequential for learning outcomes in schools.
TRsandflies: A Web-Based Software for the Morphometric Identification of Sand Flies in Turkey
Authors: Kavur Hakan
Published: December 2020

Sand flies are vector of several diseases, mostly cutaneous and visceral leishmaniasis (CL and VL). Also, 29 sand fly species have been identified in previous fauna studies carried out in 40 provinces of Turkey. Totally, 24 sand flies species belonging to Phlebotomus (Ph.) (Diptera: Psychodidae) genus have been proven or reported as possible vector species. This study aimed to develop a new software which could contribute to researchers’ decision making about the identification of sand flies with obtained data from entomological surveys conducted before in Turkey. Developed software called TRsandflies included 35 textbox created with parameters obtained from caught sand flies specimens by the above-mentioned surveys. It also contained 130 photos and distribution maps related to 24 sand flies species. In addition, C# language and MYSQL database were used in the program. TRsandflies had three different forms (pages) allowing the user to compare the specimens and known species. In the species identification trials with three repetitions carried out in the program, except for the specimens belonging to the Transphlebotomus Artemiev & Neronov, 1984 subgenus, morphometric data of all previously collected sand fly species specimens were included. The process of running the morphometric measurement results of predetermined specimens in the program provided us with an accurate prediction rate of 86.66% in male specimens and 71.66% in female specimens. We concluded that the web-based software developed could play an important role in reducing the rate of possible errors that might be encountered by conventional identification methods.
Temporal variation and its drivers in the elemental traits of four boreal plant species
Authors: Richmond Isabella C , Leroux Shawn J , Heckford Travis R , Vander Wal Eric , Rizzuto Matteo , Balluffi-Fry Juliana , Kennah Joanie L , Wiersma Yolanda F
Published: December 2020

Aims

Intraspecific variation in plant traits has important consequences for individual fitness and herbivore foraging. For plants, trait variability across spatial dimensions is well documented. However, temporal dimensions of trait variability are less well known, and may be influenced by seasonal differences in growing degree days (GDD), temperature and precipitation. Here, we aim to quantify intraspecific temporal variation in traits and the underlying drivers for four commonly occurring boreal plant species.

Methods

We sampled the elemental and stoichiometric traits (%C, %N, %P, C:N, C:P, N:P) of four common browse species’ foliage across 2 years. Using a two-step approach, we first fitted generalized linear models (GzLM, n = 24) to the species’ elemental and stoichiometric traits, and tested if they varied across years. When we observed evidence for temporal variability, we fitted a second set of GzLMs (n = 8) with temperature, productivity and moisture as explanatory variables.

Important Findings

We found no evidence of temporal variation for most of the elemental and stoichiometric traits of our four boreal plants, with two exceptions. Year was an important predictor for percent carbon across all four species (R2 = 0.47–0.67) and for multiple elemental and stoichiometric traits in balsam fir (5/8, R2 = 0.29–0.67). Thus, variation in percent carbon was related to interannual differences, more so than nitrogen and phosphorus, which are limiting nutrients in the boreal forest. These results also indicate that year may explain more variation in conifers’ stoichiometry than for deciduous plants due to life history differences. GDD was the most frequently occurring variable in the second round of models (8/8 times, R2 = 0.21–0.41), suggesting that temperature is an important driver of temporal variation in these traits.
Exploring Parenting Narratives in Asylum Seeking Populations in Sweden: Examining the Effect of Post-Migration Stress on Families through Grounded Theory
Authors: Hedstrom Ellen , Kovshoff H , Hadwin J A , Kreppner J
Published: December 2020

Empirical evidence shows that asylum seekers experience a range of stressors in a post-migration context that can contribute to poor mental health. Few studies have considered how post-migration stressors affect the family unit, specifically with a focus on parenting and child outcomes. In 2018 and 2019, interviews were conducted with asylum seeking parents (27 families) in a small community in Sweden. A grounded theory research design approach found an overarching category of lack of agency amongst parents which linked with three subcategories; a new normal, managing official processes and poor physical and mental health. Within each subcategory, the role of parenting was examined. Parents living through the asylum seeking process reported experiencing few rights, concerns about housing and money, as well as a constant fear of being repatriated, and these factors contributed to a deterioration in both their own as well as their children’s mental health. Implications and suggestions for future studies are included.
Nitric oxide signalling in plant interactions with pathogenic fungi and oomycetes
Authors: Jedelská Tereza , Luhová Lenka , Petřivalský Marek
Published: December 2020

Nitric oxide (NO) and reactive nitrogen species have emerged as crucial signalling and regulatory molecules across all organisms. In plants, fungi, and fungi-like oomycetes, NO is involved in the regulation of multiple processes during their growth, development, reproduction, responses to the external environment, and biotic interactions. It has become evident that NO is produced and used as a signalling and defence cue by both partners in multiple forms of plant interactions with their microbial counterparts, ranging from symbiotic to pathogenic modes. This review summarizes current knowledge on the role of NO in plant–pathogen interactions, focused on biotrophic, necrotrophic, and hemibiotrophic fungi and oomycetes. Actual advances and gaps in the identification of NO sources and fate in plant and pathogen cells are discussed. We review the decisive role of time- and site-specific NO production in germination, oriented growth, and active penetration by filamentous pathogens of the host tissues, as well in pathogen recognition, and defence activation in plants. Distinct functions of NO in diverse interactions of host plants with fungal and oomycete pathogens of different lifestyles are highlighted, where NO in interplay with reactive oxygen species governs successful plant colonization, cell death, and establishment of resistance.
Constructive truth and falsity in Peano arithmetic
Authors: Kushida Hirohiko
Published: December 2020

Artemov (2019, The provability of consistency) offered the notion of constructive truth and falsity of arithmetical sentences in the spirit of Brouwer–Heyting–Kolmogorov semantics and its formalization, the logic of proofs. In this paper, we provide a complete description of constructive truth and falsity for Friedman’s constant fragment of Peano arithmetic. For this purpose, we generalize the constructive falsity to $n$-constructive falsity in Peano arithmetic where $n$ is any positive natural number. Based on this generalization, we also analyse the logical status of well-known Gödelean sentences: consistency assertions for extensions of PA, the local reflection principles, the ‘constructive’ liar sentences and Rosser sentences. Finally, we discuss ‘extremely’ independent sentences in the sense that they are classically true but neither constructively true nor $n$-constructively false for any $n$.
A Study into the Operation of the Queensland Mental Health Review Tribunal
Authors: Boyle Sam , Walsh Tamara , Nelson Lucinda
Published: December 2020

The Queensland Mental Health Review Tribunal makes difficult decisions regarding involuntary treatment of people with mental illness, applying strict legislative criteria against a backdrop of fundamental human rights considerations. This article reports on focus group research with lawyers and advocates for people with mental illness who appear before the Queensland Mental Health Review Tribunal. Participants expressed concerns regarding the manner in which decisions are made. For example, participants said that their clients’ views on the side effects of treatment do not receive adequate consideration when involuntary treatment is authorised. We review these concerns in the light of applicable legal obligations, including those arising from human rights law. We conclude that if these concerns are accurate, some adjustments to the Queensland Mental Health Review Tribunal’s decision-making processes are required.
‘Mad Men’ as a Sonic Symptomatology of Consumer Capitalism
Authors: Brooks Marc
Published: December 2020

One criticism of the television series Mad Men (Matthew Weiner, AMC 2007–15) is that it assumes the form of its subject matter; it offers the same meretricious pleasure as the modern affective advert—atmosphere, emotion, sensuality; getting the joke or reference; solving the puzzle—and nothing of dramatic or critical substance. My main claim here is that three musical moments do initially lead the viewer to believe that the sensuously enjoyable songs—Mozart’s ‘Voi che sapete’, George Jones’s ‘Cup of Loneliness’, and the Beatles’ ‘Tomorrow Never Knows’—will tie the intricate inter- and intra-textual threads spun in the episode together in the manner of an especially complex affective advert. Through each song, however, the viewer hears how Don’s body is distorted, warped, contorted by the consumerist forces that appropriate him, exploit him, and express themselves through him—i.e. it isolates and gathers together a set of symptoms. Rather than offering the momentary, superficial enjoyment of the advert, this sonic symptomatology sends the viewer into interpretative overdrive, seeking both to explain how the ailments arise and to discover therapies that might mitigate them.
Classification of multiwavelength transients with machine learning
Authors: Sooknunan K , Lochner M , Bassett Bruce A , Peiris H V , Fender R , Stewart A J , Pietka M , Woudt P A , McEwen J D , Lahav O
Published: December 2020

With the advent of powerful telescopes such as the Square Kilometer Array and the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, we are entering an era of multiwavelength transient astronomy that will lead to a dramatic increase in data volume. Machine learning techniques are well suited to address this data challenge and rapidly classify newly detected transients. We present a multiwavelength classification algorithm consisting of three steps: (1) interpolation and augmentation of the data using Gaussian processes; (2) feature extraction using wavelets; and (3) classification with random forests. Augmentation provides improved performance at test time by balancing the classes and adding diversity into the training set. In the first application of machine learning to the classification of real radio transient data, we apply our technique to the Green Bank Interferometer and other radio light curves. We find we are able to accurately classify most of the 11 classes of radio variables and transients after just eight hours of observations, achieving an overall test accuracy of 78 per cent. We fully investigate the impact of the small sample size of 82 publicly available light curves and use data augmentation techniques to mitigate the effect. We also show that on a significantly larger simulated representative training set that the algorithm achieves an overall accuracy of 97 per cent, illustrating that the method is likely to provide excellent performance on future surveys. Finally, we demonstrate the effectiveness of simultaneous multiwavelength observations by showing how incorporating just one optical data point into the analysis improves the accuracy of the worst performing class by 19 per cent.
DO-CRIME: dynamic on-sky covariance random interaction matrix evaluation, a novel method for calibrating adaptive optics systems
Authors: Lai Olivier , Chun Mark , Dungee Ryan , Lu Jessica , Carbillet Marcel
Published: December 2020

Adaptive optics (AO) systems require a calibration procedure to operate, whether in closed loop or even more importantly in forward control. This calibration usually takes the form of an interaction matrix and is a measure of the response on the wavefront sensor (WFS) to wavefront corrector stimulus. If this matrix is sufficiently well conditioned, it can be inverted to produce a control matrix, which allows to compute the optimal commands to apply to the wavefront corrector for a given WFS measurement vector. Interaction matrices are usually measured by means of an artificial source at the entrance focus of the AO system; however, adaptive secondary mirrors (ASMs) on Cassegrain telescopes offer no such focus and the measurement of their interaction matrices becomes more challenging and needs to be done on-sky using a natural star. The most common method is to generate a theoretical or simulated interaction matrix and adjust it parametrically (e.g. magnification, rotation) using on-sky measurements. We propose a novel method of measuring on-sky interaction matrices ab initio from the telemetry stream of the AO system using random patterns on the deformable mirror with diagonal commands covariance matrices. The approach, being developed for the ASM upgrade for the imaka wide-field AO system on the UH2.2m telescope project, is shown to work on-sky using the current imaka testbed.
Short-term variability and mass loss in Be stars – VI. Frequency groups in γ Cas detected by TESS
Authors: Labadie-Bartz Jonathan , Baade Dietrich , Carciofi Alex C , Rubio Amanda , Rivinius Thomas , Borre Camilla C , Martayan Christophe , Siverd Robert J
Published: December 2020

In photometry of γ Cas (B0.5 IVe) from the Solar Mass Ejection Imager (SMEI) and the BRIght Target Explorer (BRITE)-Constellation satellites, indications of low-order non-radial pulsation have recently been found, which would establish an important commonality with the class of classical Be stars at large. New photometry with the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) has detected three frequency groups near 1.0 (g1), 2.4 (g2), and 5.1 (g3) d−1, respectively. Some individual frequencies are nearly harmonics or combination frequencies but not exactly so. Frequency groups are known from roughly three quarters of all classical Be stars and also from pulsations of β Cep, slowly pulsating B (SPB), and γ Dor stars and, therefore, firmly establish γ Cas as a non-radial pulsator. The total power in each frequency group is variable. An isolated feature exists at 7.57 d−1 and, together with the strongest peaks in the second and third groups ordered by increasing frequency (g2 and g3), is the only one detected in all three TESS sectors. The former long-term 0.82 d−1 variability would fall into g1 and has not returned at a significant level, questioning its attribution to rotational modulation. Low-frequency stochastic variability is a dominant feature of the TESS light curve, possibly caused by internal gravity waves excited at the core–envelope interface. These are known to be efficient at transporting angular momentum outward, and may also drive the oscillations that constitute g1 and g2. The hard X-ray flux of γ Cas is the only remaining major property that distinguishes this star from the class of classical Be stars.
A novel SHAPE reagent enables the analysis of RNA structure in living cells with unprecedented accuracy
Authors: Marinus Tycho , Fessler Adam B , Ogle Craig A , Incarnato Danny
Published: December 2020

Due to the mounting evidence that RNA structure plays a critical role in regulating almost any physiological as well as pathological process, being able to accurately define the folding of RNA molecules within living cells has become a crucial need. We introduce here 2-aminopyridine-3-carboxylic acid imidazolide (2A3), as a general probe for the interrogation of RNA structures in vivo. 2A3 shows moderate improvements with respect to the state-of-the-art selective 2′-hydroxyl acylation analyzed by primer extension (SHAPE) reagent NAI on naked RNA under in vitro conditions, but it significantly outperforms NAI when probing RNA structure in vivo, particularly in bacteria, underlining its increased ability to permeate biological membranes. When used as a restraint to drive RNA structure prediction, data derived by SHAPE-MaP with 2A3 yields more accurate predictions than NAI-derived data. Due to its extreme efficiency and accuracy, we can anticipate that 2A3 will rapidly take over conventional SHAPE reagents for probing RNA structures both in vitro and in vivo.
IncC helper dependent plasmid-like replication of Salmonella Genomic Island 1
Authors: Szabó Mónika , Murányi Gábor , Kiss János
Published: December 2020

The Salmonella genomic island 1 (SGI1) and its variants are mobilized by IncA and IncC conjugative plasmids. SGI1-family elements and their helper plasmids are effective transporters of multidrug resistance determinants. SGI1 exploits the transfer apparatus of the helper plasmid and hijacks its activator complex, AcaCD, to trigger the expression of several SGI1 genes. In this way, SGI1 times its excision from the chromosome to the helper entry and expresses mating pore components that enhance SGI1 transfer. The SGI1-encoded T4SS components and the FlhDC-family activator proved to be interchangeable with their IncC-encoded homologs, indicating multiple interactions between SGI1 and its helpers. As a new aspect of this crosstalk, we report here the helper-induced replication of SGI1, which requires both activators, AcaCD and FlhDCSGI1, and significantly increases the stability of SGI1 when coexists with the helper plasmid. We have identified the oriVSGI1 and shown that S004-repA operon encodes for a translationally coupled leader protein and an IncN2/N3-related RepA that are expressed under the control of the AcaCD-responsive promoter PS004. This replicon transiently maintains SGI1 as a 4–8-copy plasmid, not only stabilizing the island but also contributing to the fast displacement of the helper plasmid.
Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated formation of protein binding polynucleotides
Authors: Ashley Jon , Schaap-Johansen Anna-Lisa , Mohammadniaei Mohsen , Naseri Maryam , Marcatili Paolo , Prado Marta , Sun Yi
Published: December 2020

Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase (TdT) enzyme plays an integral part in the V(D)J recombination, allowing for the huge diversity in expression of immunoglobulins and T-cell receptors within lymphocytes, through their unique ability to incorporate single nucleotides into oligonucleotides without the need of a template. The role played by TdT in lymphocytes precursors found in early vertebrates is not known. In this paper, we demonstrated a new screening method that utilises TdT to form libraries of variable sized (vsDNA) libraries of polynucleotides that displayed binding towards protein targets. The extent of binding and size distribution of each vsDNA library towards their respective protein target can be controlled through the alteration of different reaction conditions such as time of reaction, nucleotide ratio and initiator concentration raising the possibility for the rational design of aptamers prior to screening. The new approach, allows for the screening of aptamers based on size as well as sequence in a single round, which minimises PCR bias. We converted the protein bound sequences to dsDNA using rapid amplification of variable ends assays (RAVE) and sequenced them using next generation sequencing. The resultant aptamers demonstrated low nanomolar binding and high selectivity towards their respective targets.
Might changes in diagnostic practice explain increasing incidence of brain and central nervous system tumors? A population-based study in Wales (United Kingdom) and the United States
Authors: Poon Michael Tin Chung , Brennan Paul M , Jin Kai , Sudlow Cathie L M , Figueroa Jonine D
Published: December 2020

Background

Increasing incidence of central nervous system (CNS) tumors has been noted in some populations. However, the influence of changing surgical and imaging practices has not been consistently accounted for.

Methods

We evaluated average annual percentage change (AAPC) in age- and gender-stratified incidence of CNS tumors by tumor subtypes and histological confirmation in Wales, United Kingdom (1997-2015) and the United States (2004-2015) using joinpoint regression.

Findings

In Wales, the incidence of histologically confirmed CNS tumors increased more than all CNS tumors (AAPC 3.62% vs 1.63%), indicating an increasing proportion undergoing surgery. Grade II and III glioma incidence declined significantly (AAPC −3.09% and −1.85%, respectively) but remained stable for those with histological confirmation. Grade IV glioma incidence increased overall (AAPC 3.99%), more markedly for those with histological confirmation (AAPC 5.36%), suggesting reduced glioma subtype misclassification due to increased surgery. In the United States, the incidence of CNS tumors increased overall but was stable for histologically confirmed tumors (AAPC 1.86% vs 0.09%) indicating an increase in patients diagnosed without surgery. An increase in grade IV gliomas (AAPC 0.28%) and a decline in grade II gliomas (AAPC −3.41%) were accompanied by similar changes in those with histological confirmation, indicating the overall trends in glioma subtypes were unlikely to be caused by changing diagnostic and clinical management.

Conclusions

Changes in clinical practice have influenced the incidence of CNS tumors in the United Kingdom and the United States. These should be considered when evaluating trends and in epidemiological studies of putative risk factors for CNS tumors.
Transcription factor networks of oligodendrogliomas treated with adjuvant radiotherapy or observation inform prognosis
Authors: So Jonathan , Mamatjan Yasin , Zadeh Gelareh , Aldape Kenneth , Moraes Fabio Y
Published: December 2020

Background

Recent international sequencing efforts have allowed for the molecular taxonomy of lower-grade gliomas (LGG). We sought to analyze The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA, 2015) gene expression datasets on molecularly defined oligodendrogliomas (IDH-mutated and 1p/19q-codeleted) patients treated with adjuvant radiation or those observed to discover prognostic markers and pathways.

Methods

mRNA expression and clinical information of patients with oligodendroglioma were taken from the TCGA “Brain Lower Grade Glioma” provisional dataset. Transcription factor network reconstruction and analysis were performed using the R packages “RTN” and “RTNsurvival.” Elastic net regularization and survival modeling were performed using the “biospear,” “plsRCox,” “survival” packages.

Results

From our cohort of 137 patients, 65 received adjuvant radiation and 72 were observed. In the cohort that received adjuvant radiotherapy, a transcription factor activity signature, that correlated with hypoxia, was associated with shorter disease-free survival (DFS) (median = 45 months vs 108 months, P < .001). This increased risk was not seen in patients who were observed (P = .2). Within the observation cohort, a transcription factor activity signature was generated that was associated with poor DFS (median = 72 months. vs 143 months., P < .01).

Conclusions

We identified a transcription factor activity signature associated with poor prognosis in patients with molecular oligodendroglioma treated with adjuvant radiotherapy. These patients would be potential candidates for treatment intensification. A second signature was generated for patients who were more likely to progress on observation. This potentially identifies a cohort who would benefit from upfront adjuvant radiotherapy.
The Utility of Rapid Nucleic Acid Amplification Testing to Triage Symptomatic Patients and to Screen Asymptomatic Preprocedure Patients for SARS-CoV-2
Authors: Tworek Joseph A , Khan Faisal , Sekedat Matthew D , Scheidel Caleb , Malani Anurag N
Published: December 2020

We investigate the utility of the ID Now when compared to RT-PCR to triage patients suspected of having COVID-19 presenting to emergency rooms (ERs) and to screen asymptomatic patients presenting for pre-procedural testing. We find it useful when prevalence of COVID-19 is high in symptomatic patents and potentially useful in asymptomatic patients who are likely to be retested if symptoms emerge.
Prospects for Justice before the International Criminal Court
Authors: Van Schaack Beth
Published: December 2020

Chapter 5 begins the book’s journey through the accountability matrix with the International Criminal Court (ICC). Although Russia and China vetoed the ICC referral resolution, thus preventing the Court from exercising its plenary jurisdiction over events in Syria, the transnational elements of the conflict mean that there are still some options for invoking the Court’s nationality and territorial jurisdiction. Given the proliferation of foreign fighters hailing from around the globe, including from ICC member states, the Syrian conflict offers the potential to activate the Court’s nationality jurisdiction. In addition, the spillover effects of the war implicate the territories of ICC states parties, in the region and beyond, as well as states where the ICC is already active, such as Libya. Finally, there are theoretical arguments that the Security Council could refer “the situation involving ISIL” to the Court, which could encompass either the organization itself, untethered from any territorial space, or the transboundary statelet that once encompassed ISIL’s self-proclaimed caliphate. Although many advocates and diplomats assumed that the ICC should be in the lead adjudicating the many international crimes committed in Syria, this chapter closes with some notes of caution as to why the ICC may not be the ideal forum, even assuming a Council referral were forthcoming.
Conclusion
Authors: Van Schaack Beth
Published: December 2020

The book’s conclusion offers a number of overarching observations about the prospects of justice for Syria and highlights a few bright spots on an otherwise rather bleak landscape. These grounds for cautious optimism include the fact that we now have a robust and comprehensive international jus puniendi of international crimes, even if we lack sufficient institutions in which to apply it. Although the repeat failures of the U.N. Security Council have eroded our faith in the post–World War II system of collective security, other multilateral, regional, and domestic institutions have—to a certain extent—stepped in to fill the breach. This multilateral paralysis has thus spurred creative thinking about new jurisdictional theories, generated multiple and varied institutional proposals, and re-enlivened the principle of universal jurisdiction after a period of decline. The enhanced sophistication of international crimes documentation ensures that future transitional justice efforts will have the evidence needed to hold those most responsible for abuses to account. While the many accountability proposals have yet to bear fruit, it is now clear that they suffer from no legal impediments; all that is needed is the political will and resources to bring them to fruition. All of these developments are the work of an epistemic community of justice entrepreneurs—representing multilateral institutions, sovereign nations, and global civil society—who refuse to take “no” for an answer.
Moral Sphere Collapses
Authors: Rochat Philippe
Published: December 2020

We live in well-separated moral spheres, typically well compartmentalized, but they can collapse. These spheres are delimited by context and people, each calling for different moral biases and codes. We develop a remarkable ability to switch moral codes depending on people and circumstances, as exemplified by Hitler and his pet dog or Ariel Castro with his child and neighbors. However, collapse between these spheres may happen causing great anxieties and, in some instances, can be lethal. Moral code implosions due to such collapse are the main cause of guilt, a major conundrum of human psychology.
Fundamental Attribution Error
Authors: Rochat Philippe
Published: December 2020

We live in a world that is greatly imagined and made of quick and dirty inferences, especially in the social domain that is mined with moral heuristics and other quick moral judgments. A major moral drift is the so-called fundamental attribution error or correspondence bias. This error consists in the propensity to erroneously explain and attribute strongly biased causes to the behaviors of self and others. At least in our individualistic Western cultures, we tend to make attribution and explain our as well as others’ behavior mainly in terms of dispositional features of the individual and much less in terms of the situation in which the person is embedded (e.g., her social class, economic resources, place in society, etc.).
Group Essentialism
Authors: Rochat Philippe
Published: December 2020

Group affiliation is typically objectified in physical things like uniforms, a flag, or family totems. These things stand for and are placeholders of our alliances. Essentialism applies to groups and intergroup relations. This is particularly evident in the kind of blind-spot inferences we tend to make regarding in-group as opposed to out-group intrinsic elusive characteristics, presumably inherent to race and national identity. Both are ready-made constructs, but with no objective biological or even sociohistorical essential features. Indeed, what defines a Black person or a Russian, except for skin color, geographic birth, or a passport? Anything but the intrinsic characteristics we infer and amplify from such surface features, guiding us blindly toward categorical attitudes and short-cut moral decisions. The spectacular drama of team competition, gang wars, and other intergroup conflicts represents an opportunity for players, fans, gang members, and other protagonists to express and assert essential characters of their in-group and reveal essential characters of the out-group. It is an opportunity to probe alliances and for protagonists to emulate the extent to which they belong and merit membership to the group.
The Frigidity Epidemic
Authors: Margolin Leslie
Published: December 2020

“The Frigidity Epidemic” examines how the next generation of Freudian therapists used the concept of frigidity to cast women who did not live up to men’s sexual expectations as psychological deviants. Like Dora, “frigid” women were given no credit as tellers of their own stories. This chapter seeks to specify not only how physicians persuaded themselves and others that sexual frigidity represents a public health threat of the first magnitude—an epidemic—but also how they represented men and their sexuality as the norm and women and their sexuality as suspicious, in need of the most rigorous surveillance and control.
Conclusion
Authors: Margolin Leslie
Published: December 2020

The book’s main conclusion is that sex therapists have long believed that heterosexual women should want sex as much as men want it, and in way men want it, with intercourse leading to orgasm. They have long treated departures from men’s sexuality as abnormal and suboptimal. The book closes by placing these biases within the context of other patriarchal biases and institutions, and by suggesting a series of techniques and approaches that might offer sex therapy a way forward.
Squiggly Economics
Authors: Chambers Robert G.
Published: December 2020

Three generic economic optimization problems (expenditure (cost) minimization, revenue maximization, and profit maximization) are studied using the mathematical tools developed in Chapters 2 and 3. Conjugate duality results are developed for each. The resulting dual representations (E(q;y), R(p,x), and π(p,q)) are shown to characterize all of the economically relevant information in, respectively, V(y), Y(x), and Gr(≽(y)). The implications of different restrictions on ≽(y) for the dual representations are examined.
Partition
Authors: Frankel Francine R.
Published: December 2020

The partition of India into the two independent states of India and Pakistan created strategic anomalies. India lost the advantage of its own geographic position, which had placed it across the Arabian Sea close to the sea lanes leading to the Persian Gulf in the west and astride the Bay of Bengal adjacent to Southeast Asia on the east. Pakistan, divided by one thousand miles of Indian territory, was considered virtually indefensible without a powerful ally—most obviously, the United States. As the Cold War took hold, India’s potential as a great power counted for less than Pakistan’s strategic location close to the oil fields of the Middle East. Nehru believed India’s decision to join the British Commonwealth protected India from sloping too much toward the United States.