bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Winner-Take-All Markets: Easing the Case for Progressive Taxation
Authors: McMahon, Jr. Martin J. , Abreu Alice G.
Published: May 2022

Copyright © 1999 by Martin J. McMahon, Jr. and Alice G. Abreu.Everybody loves a winner, and the market often agrees, providing spectacular rewards for those who win. While the winners win big, everyone else is left behind, reaping rewards that bear little relationship to how close they were to winning or to the magnitude of the difference between their talents and those of the winners.The winner-take-all phenomenon, long the hallmark of the sports and entertainment markets, has spread throughout the U.S. economy over the last two decades. As more markets operate like the entertainment market, scholars have begun to analyze the ways in which such markets suggest a need to rethink established conclusions and policies. The recent work of two economists, Robert H. Frank and Phillip J. Cook, provides a good springboard for this analysis. In The Winner-Take-All Society, Frank and Cook describe how an increasing number of labor markets now operate in ways that depart significantly from the classical economically efficient model. In these markets, a large number of individuals compete for a relatively small number of positions that offer the possibility for financial rewards far exceeding those that await less successful competitors. As in the entertainment industry, where the difference between the compensation received by the star and that received by her understudy is almost always far more than proportional to the differences in their talent, these steadily growing markets display what is essentially a winner-take-all paradigm.
Tax Consequences of Assigning Life Insurance-Time For Another Look
Authors: Kahn Douglas A. , Waggoner Lawrence W.
Published: May 2022

Copyright © 1999 by Douglas A. Kahn and Lawrence W. Waggoner.The Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 furnishes the courts and the Internal Revenue Service an opportunity to close certain loopholes in the federal tax consequences of assigning life insurance. About twenty years ago, we published an article arguing that the tax consequences of assigning life insurance affords taxpayers unwarranted opportunities for tax avoidance. Since then, developments in the case law and Internal Revenue Service rulings have broadened the loopholes. In this update of our article, we show how the new tax law supports our original position.The most litigated estate tax issue concerning life insurance is whether the proceeds are includible in the insured's gross estate. This question is usually governed by section 2042 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (Code), the estate tax provision specifically dealing with life insurance. To be included under section 2042, the insured must "possess at his death any of the incidents of ownership [in the policy], exercisable either alone or in conjunction with any other person," or the proceeds must be "receivable by the [insured's] executor."
Blum and Kalven at 50: Progressive Taxation, “Globalization,” and the New Millennium
Authors: Livingston Michael A.
Published: May 2022

Almost 50 years ago, Walter Blum and Harry Kalven described the case for progressive taxation as "stubborn but uneasy." This article considers the extent to which that conclusion remains valid five decades later. I argue that the case for progressivity is today even more uneasy than in Blum and Kalven's time, as a result of three principal developments: a more conservative political environment, which is generally hostile to redistributive measures; the femininization and minoritization of poverty, which make it easier to rationalize inequality and tend to divide the constituencies in favor of progressive measures; and the globalization of economic life, which suggests that a progressive rate structure may cause the country to lose business to other nations. These developments challenge both the philosophical underpinnings of progressive taxation, which is based on liberal assumptions that are now severely contested, and its political support, which flowed from a Cold War consensus that now no longer exists. Globalization is particularly significant, for it suggests a practical as well as a theoretical limit on progressive taxation, and raises the specter that progressivity may be swimming against the historical tide.These same developments also present an opportunity. If supporters of progressivity can confront the changes described above and if they can adjust their arguments to the realities of the Twenty-First Century, then the case for progressivity may yet prove stronger than in Blum and Kalven's era. However, to accomplish this progressivity supporters must change both their rhetoric and research agenda.On a rhetorical level, scholars must make a more candid and forceful case for progressivity as a means of redistribution, emphasizing the unfairness of today's "winner-take-all" society and the role of irrelevant factors such as race, gender, and immigrant status in pretax income distributions. These arguments suggest that, far from being inconsistent with a dynamic, merit-based society, progressive taxation may be necessary in order to preserve it. Progressive taxation should be especially attractive to those who object to affirmative action and similar race-conscious programs but support redistribution based on economic or financial status.
The TurboTax Defense
Authors: Mock Rodney P. , Shurtz Nancy E.
Published: May 2022

This Article analyzes the “TurboTax defense” under section 6664(c) of the Internal Revenue Code. The Article addresses the issue of whether reliance on computer tax software may be permitted as reasonable cause in good faith exempting taxpayers from the accuracy-related penalty of section 6662(a). It suggests (1) the courts have missed an opportunity to clarify when a TurboTax defense is justifiable, (2) the software companies, in conjunction with the IRS, should work together to promote a more equitable, efficient, and effective use of computer tax software, (3) the Treasury should promulgate detailed guidelines or regulations establishing when a TurboTax defense can be used by an individual taxpayer, (4) the IRS should consider offering taxpayers the option of assessing their tax due or refund owing, and (5) the current informal partnership between the software companies and the IRS should be critically assessed to address advances in software technology and increasing taxpayer reliance on commercial tax preparation software.
Apportioning State Personal Income Taxes to Eliminate the Double Taxation of Dual Residents: Thoughts Provoked by the Proposed Minnesota Snowbird Tax
Authors: Zelinsky Edward A.
Published: May 2022

As a matter of both tax policy and constitutional law, it is time to apportion state personal income taxes to eliminate the double taxation of dual residents. All individuals who, for income tax purposes, are residents of two or more states should be taxed along the lines proposed by Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton for “snowbirds:” A state should tax the income with respect to which it has source jurisdiction. As to income which two or more states tax only on the basis of residence, such states should apportion based on the dual resident’s relative presence in each state of residence. This apportioned approach would eliminate the double taxation of dual residents’ income and would comport better with modern patterns of residence and mobility.While Minnesota’s legislature did not adopt the Dayton proposal, that proposal should provoke reconsideration of the conventional understanding of personal residence for state income tax purposes. The traditional understanding can cause double taxation when an individual is deemed to be a resident of two or more states, each entitled to tax this dual resident’s entire income. As a matter of tax policy and constitutional law, the formula advanced by Governor Dayton for Minnesota snowbirds is the proper way to tax all dual residents. A state should tax  the income with respect to which it has source jurisdiction because the income arises within the state’s geographic boundaries, whether or not the taxpayer is a resident of such state. As to income with respect to which two or more states have only residence-based jurisdiction to tax, the states of residence should tax on a proportionate basis, based on the part of the year the dual resident spends in each state. The income apportioned between states of residence under this approach will typically be dual residents’ intangible investment income such as dividends and interest. To eliminate double residence-based taxation of such income, the Dayton formula should, both as a matter of tax policy and of constitutional law, apply to all individuals who are, for tax purposes, residents of two or more states.The Dayton proposal highlights the obsolescence of current tax policy and constitutional norms for states’ personal income taxation of residents, norms fashioned for an earlier era. It is time to shift from the traditional personal income tax regime, with its increasing possibilities of double residence-based taxation, to a system which recognizes multiple states of residence and apportions personal income tax authority among them as to items which are not geographically sourced to the taxing state.
Concentrated Enforcement
Authors: Osofsky Leigh
Published: May 2022

When enforcement resources are limited, how should the scarce enforcement resources be allocated to increase compliance with the law? The answer to this question can determine to what extent the law on the books translates to the law in practice. A dominant school of thought in the tax literature suggests that they should be allocated based on a “worst-first” method, whereby the individuals likely to be most noncompliant are targeted. However, while “worst-first” methods can encourage all individuals to increase compliance so as not to be deemed the “worst,” they can also provide cover to engage in noncompliance that is perceived moderate for the relevant population. This dynamic can become most problematic in highly noncompliant populations. In such populations, existing, high levels of noncompliance, and underlying, structural causes of the high noncompliance can serve as coordinating mechanisms, providing mutual assurance of low compliance. Moreover, “worst-first” theories do not provide a comprehensive explanation for the group and project-based enforcement practices that are found in a number of actual enforcement settings. In response to these deficits, this Article draws on work from across different disciplines to develop a new theory for the allocation of scarce tax enforcement resources. This Article suggests that, under certain conditions, deterrence can be enhanced by allocating scarce enforcement resources among a low-compliance population of taxpayers through a process called concentrated enforcement. After setting forth the theoretical case for concentrated enforcement, this Article examines how it might apply in the cash business tax sector, a highly noncompliant sector that presents particular challenges for “worst-first” methods. This Article concludes that concentrated enforcement may increase compliance, meriting its application and empirical evaluation.
Toward Income Tax Accounting Consistency: Eliminating Accrual, Depreciation, and the Existing Tax of Borrowment
Authors: Dodge Joseph M.
Published: May 2022

The thesis here is that inconsistent tax accounting rules undermine the individual income tax, and the best available move for improving it—given the unassailability of the realization principle—is to eliminate its accrual (and quasi-accrual) features. Specifically, the agenda is to eliminate tax accrual accounting in the conventional sense, revamp the tax treatment of borrowing to (inter alia) abolish the Crane doctrine, and eliminate depreciation deductions for indivisible productive assets. The end result would be a consistent cash realization system for (at least) individual taxpayers.The proposals made herein would upset long-standing features of the income tax and therefore are highly controversial. Nevertheless, these features create structural asymmetries that are systematically exploited to the advantage of taxpayers.
Many Unhappy Returns: The Need for Increased Tax Penalties for Identity Theft-Based Refund Fraud
Authors: Browde Pippa
Published: May 2022

The growing problem of fraudulent tax returns being submitted based on stolen identities is a “tsunami of fraud,” and victims, lawmakers, and law enforcement are struggling with how to deal with the fallout. The issues surrounding identity theft-based tax fraud are complex. Current IRS efforts to stem the tide involve pouring resources into assisting victims, updating IRS processes to detect and prevent refund fraud, and increasing the number of criminal investigations and prosecutions it pursues. The IRS’s approach and pending proposed legislation are not enough to address the problems created by identity theft-based tax fraud. This Article argues the IRS and Congress must use a holistic approach to attack this species of tax fraud. To that end, this Article supports enhanced criminal penalties and proposes new civil tax penalties aimed specifically at identity theft tax fraud. This Article pursues two goals. First, it documents and explains the problem of identity theft-based refund fraud, highlighting particular issues with respect to tax compliance. In so doing, it analyzes existing civil and criminal tax penalties to punish and deter identity thieves, an analysis which reveals that existing criminal penalties are insufficient and that there is no directly applicable existing civil penalty. Second, to address the gaps in existing law, the Article proposes standards for Congress to use in crafting a comprehensive penalty scheme to apply to identity theft-based refund fraud.This Article proceeds in three parts. Part II addresses the nature and scope of identity theft tax fraud, explaining the consequences such fraud has on tax administration, fair enforcement, and public confidence in voluntary compliance, which is the bedrock of our tax system. Part III explores the inadequacy of existing criminal and civil penalties. Part IV then proposes legislative action, evaluates proposed and pending legislation, and makes specific recommendations for enhanced criminal penalties and the creation of a new civil penalty aimed specifically at identity theft-based tax fraud.
Tax Fairness by Convention: A Defense of Horizontal Equity
Authors: Lindsay Ira K.
Published: May 2022

Horizontal equity is the principle that people who earn equal income should owe equal tax. It has gotten a bad name. Although horizontal equity remains a textbook criterion of tax fairness, scholarly literature is largely hostile. Scholars ranging from the legal theorist Louis Kaplow to philosophers Thomas Nagel and Liam Murphy question its conceptual coherence and normative significance. The crux ofthe case against horizontal equity is that it seems irrational to worry about the relationship between pre-tax income and tax obligations rather than determining tax policy in light of what our best theory ofdistributive justice tells us is the best post-tax outcome. I argue that horizontal equity is best understood as a compromise principle for people who disagree about deeper principles of distributive justice. The debate over horizontal equity reflects two distinct ways of thinking about fairness. One approach starts with principles that specify a just distribution of income, resources or utility and uses these principles to derive appropriate tax laws. A second approach analyzes fairness norms as stable and mutually advantageous compromises between people who  have conflicting interests and differing moral commitments. Proponents and opponents of redistributive taxation can agree that at any given level of redistribution they will each be better off if taxes are horizontally equitable. Horizontally equitable taxation can thus prevent rent-seeking and ideological conflict over tax policy from generating a wasteful patchwork of narrow taxes and tax subsidies. Observing horizontal equity may be unimportant when people agree on ideal principles ofjustice and the relevant empirical facts. But under more usual conditions of deep moral and empirical disagreement over tax policy, treating pre-tax income as a normative baseline can prevent conflict over distributive questions from leading to wasteful and inequitable tax policy.
Conservation Easements and the Valuation Conundrum
Authors: McLaughlin Nancy A.
Published: May 2022

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) first officially sanctioned a charitable income tax deduction for the donation of a conservation easement in 1964. In 1980, Congress enacted § 170(h), which authorizes a deduction for the donation of a conservation easement or a façade easement that is “granted in perpetuity” to a government entity or charitable organization “exclusively for conservation purposes.” The deduction has encouraged thousands of property owners to donate easements that protect land and historic structures with important conservation and historic values. The deduction has also, however, been subject to abuse, including valuation abuse.
Provisions Denying A Deduction for Illegal Expenses and Expenses of an Illegal Business Should be Repealed
Authors: Kahn Douglas A. , Bromberg Howard
Published: May 2022

The federal income tax law denies a deduction for illegal expenses, for any expense (legal or otherwise) of an illegal business that is trafficking in controlled substances, for losses incurred in an unlawful activity, and for bribes, kickbacks, and rebates connected with the Medicare or Medicaid program. In this Article, the authors first describe the current treatment of those items by the tax law. The Article next explains that the current treatment constitutes a penalty for the taxpayer whose deduction is denied, and then explores why such a penalty is bad policy and conflicts with the traditional purposes and goals of punishing wrongful behavior. The principal objection to the penalty imposed by the tax law’s denial of deductions for business and profitoriented expenses is that the manner in which the size of the tax law’s penalty is determined is completely arbitrary and bears no relationship to the seriousness of the crime or the conditions under which it was committed. Another objection to the penalty is that it would be litigated in a civil tax suit in which the taxpayer would lack the protections and rights accorded to criminal defendants even though it constitutes a punishment for criminal behavior. The penalty is especially harsh as applied to the legal expenses of a marijuana business under a more stringent Code provision given the decriminalization of marijuana by many states. The Article also contends that the denial of a deduction for unlawful medical expenses conflicts with the principle allowing the patient a deduction for whatever treatment the patient chooses so long as it is based on a bona fide effort to deal with the illness. The authors recommend that Congress act to eliminate all of these tax penalties.
Tax Compliance as a Wicked System
Authors: Manhire J. T.
Published: May 2022

This Article proposes a new typology and framework for tax compliance systems. Traditionally-competing approaches such as deterrence theory, behaviorist theory, and game theoretic models taken together suggest that tax compliance is perhaps a new type of system—a “wicked system”—that is only partially comprehensible by understanding the traditional theories alone. If correct, previously competing theories become simply different limiting cases of the same underlying “wicked system.” The Article concludes with a discussion of the framework’s limitations and presents initial solutions and challenges for future work.
Poor Support/Rich Support: (Re)viewing the American Social Welfare State
Authors: Bach Wendy A.
Published: May 2022

Since at least the 1970s a variety of scholars have redefined the U.S. social welfare state to include not only traditional benefit programs (for example, Food Stamps and Social Security) but also a variety of tax benefits that are “hidden” or “submerged” forms of “welfare for the wealthy.” Including these benefits in the overall picture of U.S. social welfare provision reveals a system that is both larger in size than popularly believed and that, in addition to providing some support for the poor, distributes significant benefits regressively to households with substantial wealth. Although a variety of scholars and policy analysts have described these outcomes, scholars have yet to focus on the ways in which structural inequality is written directly into the means of administration of U.S.social welfare programs. This Article is the first to turn to those questions and to systematically demonstrate that those who are economically (and disproportionately racially) disadvantaged are offered a social welfare state that is meager, punitive, and tremendously risky for those who receive its benefits. But for those with economic privilege, the story is quite different. Families and individuals with significant economic privilege benefit disproportionately from a whole host of cash and near-cash benefits that are neither meager nor punitive. In fact, in contrast to benefits for the poor, benefits for the rich function as nearly invisible entitlements. As one moves from benefits for the poor towards benefits for the rich, the administrative structures shift along this progression, becoming less and less punitive and risky and more and more like invisible entitlements. Although as a formal matter the rich, like the poor, have no right to economic support in the constitutional sense, American social welfare policy moves the rich remarkably close to a right to economic support, leaving the poor far behind. This Article reveals these vast structural inequalities and concludes by calling not only, as others have, for an increase in and more progressive distribution of social welfare dollars but also, for the first time, for reforms that would address the structural inequalities at the heart of the U.S. social welfare state and that would render it more successful at supporting the autonomy and resilience of all of its beneficiaries.
A Conceptual Framework for Capital Gain
Authors: Johnson Calvin H.
Published: May 2022

Qualification for preferential tax rates on capital gain is “fuzzy at best and incoherent at worst.” The primary governing statute provides that sale or exchange of “property” yields capital gain, with only narrow exceptions. Under traditional understanding, however, capital gain does not include income, including rent, interest, compensation, and periodic business income, even though such income is received on the sale of something reasonably considered to be “property” in nontax contexts. A conceptual framework is needed that brings both courts and congressional rules into consistency and produces principled results; this Article presents such a framework. The proposed framework assumes that the capital gain preference will remain. It draws its principles from the wisdom of current law but then criticizes some judicial and congressional results as anomalies inconsistent with those principles. The framework is organized into five strings, with each string representing a separate rationale. The Article then briefly explores three situations where there would no room for a capital gains preference: under a consumption tax, under a mark-to-market system, and under repeal of step up in basis at death.
ORIGEM DAS CIDADES DA NOVA ALTA PAULISTA - A CONTRIBUIÇÃO DA INFRAESTRUTURA FERROVIÁRIA
Authors: Souza Andrews
Published: May 2022

This research explores the relationship of railroad and the urban dynamics, the genesis of the implantation and the expansion process are investigated. The study uses empirical analysis of reading and interpretation of documentary, iconographic and cartographic sources through observation to explore the urbanization process of the region known as Nova Alta Paulista (extreme west of São Paulo), which emerged along the railway of the Companhia Paulista de Estradas de Ferro (CPEF), a branch of Tronco Oeste. The research reinforces the importance of historical rescue to highlight the impact of regional infrastructure on the urban development.
Sustainable Development Goals
Authors: Huck Winfried
Published: May 2022

The UN Resolution Transforming our world: “the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development” set in forth at 1 January 2016 enshrines 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) including 169 targets and seems a conceptual, normative answer to the global fluid pattern of economic transformation, shortly: the globalisation. Against this background, the SDGs are embarking to the multileveled legal order, following different horizontal and vertical ways. The significance of the SDGs for the application of the law in the context of regulations of the international level within the UN and autonomous International Organisations appears to be clearly visible. On the vertical level regional cooperation such as the EU, ASEAN, CARICOM, are integrating the SDGs in different legal agreements and similar currently happens on the national level and not to forget the transnational level as well. This new Commentary covers the whole field of SDG law.
Heath-Related Quality of Life in Iranian Children with Nephrotic Syndrome
Authors: Abbasi Arash , Valizadeh Mohammad , Fahimi Daryoosh , Moghtaderi Mastaneh , Bazargani Behnaz , Mojtahedi Sayed Yousef , Fazel Mojtaba , Hosseini-Asl Seyed Hosein , Raoofi Emadhosein
Published: May 2022

Background: Nephrotic syndrome (NS), like any other chronic illness, may affect the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of children, so do the complications related to the disease, and its treatment. A better understanding of the (HRQoL) of people with nephrotic syndrome may help to better guide their treatment. Methods: Sixty children with nephrotic syndrome were assigned as the first case group, besides 81 healthy children as the first control group and 98 children with other chronic illnesses as the second control cohort. The participant and his or her caregiver were asked to fill in the standard HRQoL questionnaire. The patient's demographic data were also collected and analyzed using SPSS version 26 software. Results: 60 patients with nephrotic syndrome (mean age 9.8 ± 3.7) scored lower grades in physical, social, educational fields as well as total scores than the healthy controls (mean age 9.5 ± 2.7) and higher than the controls with other chronic diseases (mean age 9.7 ± 3.9) (P < 0.05). The emotional QOL score was close to that of the non-healthy control group. No correlation was found between the clinical phenotype of disease regarding the response to steroids and HRQOL (P > 0.05). Conclusions: The study shows that nephrotic syndrome can affect all aspects of the quality of life of patients. We suggest that comprehensive care of patients with NS be routinely managed in a multidisciplinary clinic with filling HRQOL questionnaires integrated as a common practice.
Underestimation of Breast Cancer Based on Ultrasound Breast Imaging-Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS) Assessment of Ductal Carcinoma In Situ: A Retrospective Study of 296 Lesions
Authors: Yao Jing , Chen Li , Liu Danru , Fu Lina , Wang Yong , Chen Limin
Published: May 2022

Background: Ultrasound Breast Imaging-Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS) classification may underestimate ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS). Currently, there is a lack of research on ultrasound BI-RADS underestimating DCIS. Objectives: To improve the diagnosis of DCIS, this study aimed to investigate factors associated with the underestimation of DCIS, based on ultrasound BI-RADS assessments. Patients and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, consecutive patients with breast ultrasound BI-RADS classification and biopsy results were retrospectively examined. DCIS was found in the pathology reports of all patients. DCIS cases classified as BI-RADS 4A or lower were considered as underestimations of DCIS, while DCIS cases classified as BI-RADS 4B or higher were considered as non-underestimation of DCIS. The demographics, clinical manifestations, features of breast images, BI-RADS classification, and pathological results of the two groups were compared to explore possible associated factors. A stepwise logistic regression analysis was also carried out based on the significance of factors associated with the underestimation of DCIS according to the BI-RADS assessment. Results: Between January 2015 and May 2017, a total of 296 breast DCIS lesions were diagnosed in 294 female patients. Overall, 65 lesions (22.0%) were underestimated DCIS, and 231 lesions (78.0%) were non-underestimated DCIS; no significant differences were found between their clinical presentations. The univariate analysis showed that the age of the patients, presence of microinvasions, maximum lesion diameter, shape, margin, orientation, echo pattern, posterior acoustic features, ultrasound pattern, and vascularity of lesions were possibly associated factors, which could lead to the underestimation of DCIS. The logistic regression analysis showed that age above 50 years, maximum lesion diameter < 10 mm, lack of microinvasion, and circumscribed margins were associated with the underestimation of DCIS. Conclusion: In this study, 22% of DCIS lesions was underestimated by the BI-RADS assessment. The patient’s age, maximum lesion diameter, microinvasion, and lesion margin were associated with the underestimation of DCIS.
Serological Biomarkers and Their Detection in Autoimmune Bullous Skin Diseases
Authors: Heckler Ilana , Hong Michael , Sinha Animesh , Venkataraman Iswariya
Published: May 2022

Autoimmune bullous diseases (AIBDs) are a group of skin-related disorders that involve damage to structures maintaining cell-cell adhesion, such as desmosomes and hemidesmosomes. Key autoimmune bullous diseases include pemphigus related diseases, pemphigoid related conditions, acquired epidermolysis bullosa (EBA), and dermatitis herpetiformis (DH). Each group of conditions exhibits characteristic clinical lesion patterns and is associated with specific autoantibodies targeting epidermal and dermal structures involved in cell-cell adhesion and skin integrity. Pemphigus diseases primarily target desmoglein (Dsg) 3 and Dsg1 proteins but several non-desmoglein autoantibodies have also been linked to pemphigus.

Pemphigoid diseases typically target BP (bullous pemphigoid)180 and BP230; EBA is associated with antibodies directed against anti-type VII collagen; and DH by IgA autoantibodies against tissue transglutaminase and deaminated gliadin. Investigation into the serological biomarkers found in autoimmune bullous diseases have allowed the development of diagnostic assessments (ie. tissue antibody detection and serological testing) based on the unique autoantibody profiles of a particular disease group.  The methods for the detection and quantification of disease-associated autoantibodies continue to evolve and improve.
Features of Skin Cancer in Black Individuals: A Single-Institution Retrospective Cohort Study
Authors: Manci Rachel , Dauscher Megan , Marchetti Michael A. , Usatine Richard , Rotemberg Veronica , Dusza Stephen , Marghoob Ashfaq
Published: May 2022

Background: Minimal knowledge exists regarding skin cancers in Black individuals, which may adversely affect patient care.

Objectives: To describe clinical features and risk factors of skin cancers in Black individuals.  

Methods: Retrospective study of Black individuals diagnosed with skin cancer between January 2000 and January 2020 at our institution.

Results: 38,589 patients were diagnosed with skin cancer, of which 165 were Black.  One-hundred-thirteen of these Black individuals were diagnosed with melanoma, 35 with squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), and 17 with basal cell carcinoma (BCC). Most melanomas (80.0%, n=90) were of the acral subtype; 75% (6 of 8 cases with dermoscopic images) displayed a parallel ridge pattern (PRP). The surrounding uninvolved background skin was visible in 7 cases, all demonstrating a PRP. This disappeared adjacent to most of the melanoma lesions (n=4, 57.1%) – creating a peripheral hypopigmented “halo”. The nonmelanoma skin cancers were pigmented and had similar dermoscopic features as reported in predominantly white populations. Most SCCs (n=5, 71.4%) had a hypopigmented “halo” and most BCCs (n=10, 55.6%) had an accentuated reticular network adjacent to the lesions. Most (80.0%, n=28) SCC patients had a chronic inflammatory condition. Two BCC patients (16.7%) had Gorlin syndrome.

Conclusions: Skin cancers are pigmented in Black individuals. In both ALMs and SCCs, we noted a peripheral rim of hypopigmentation between the lesions and the surrounding uninvolved background skin, while BCCs had accentuation of the background pigmentation adjacent to the lesions. Most acral melanomas displayed a PRP, which was also seen in surrounding uninvolved background skin.
Should Mammography Be a Prerequisite Prior to Initiation of Biological Agents in Patients With Psoriasis?
Authors: Tamer Funda , Gulekon Ayla
Published: May 2022

Objectives: Psoriasis patients may be susceptible to malignancy due to chronic inflammation. Moreover, biological agents which are used in the treatment of psoriasis might increase the risk of malignancy due to their immunosuppressive effect. Within this study, we evaluated the mammography results of female patients with psoriasis aged over 40 before the initiation of biological agent treatment. We aimed to determine whether breast cancer screening with mammography should be a prerequisite before the initiation of biological agent treatment for psoriasis.

Methods: Between April 2019 and March 2021, medical records of female psoriasis patients aged over 40 were reviewed retrospectively.

Results: This study included 42 female psoriasis patients (mean age: 53.52±7.09). BI-RADS score was 2 in 18 (42.9%) patients, 1 in 13 (31%) patients, 3 in 9 (21.4%) patients and 4A in 1(2.4%) patient. Isodense masses were detected in 10 (23.8%) patients, while 6 (14.3%) patients had intramammary lymph nodes. Mammography revealed microcalcifications in 6 (14.3%) patients, macrocalcifications in 1 (2.4%) patient and a hamartoma in 1 (2.4%) patient. Isodense masses, calcifications and intramammary lymph nodes were associated with long disease duration (>10 years). Intramammary lymph nodes were more common in patients treated with biological agents previously compared to biologic-naive patients.  

Conclusions: We suggest that female patients over 40, especially who had a long disease duration, family history of breast cancer and previous history of treatment with biological agents should undergo mammography before the initiation of biological agents for the treatment of psoriasis.
Polynomial and Multinomial Coefficients in Terms of Number of Shortest Paths
Authors: Khassawneh Bashar , Nagy Benedek
Published: May 2022

The binomial coefficients show, in fact, the number of shortest paths in the square grid if only grid paths, i.e., paths on the grid lines, are allowed, and they also give the number of shortest paths in the hexagonal grid. When diagonal steps are also allowed in the square grid, the number of shortest paths can be described by trinomial coefficients. They form a triangle where three neighbour elements in the previous row are summed. We consider also further generalisations of such triangles and their elements, quadrinomial and n-nomial coefficients. In this context, n-nomial coefficients of n-nomial expansions represent the numbers of paths between the top and the actual position when n different types of steps are allowed to use, e.g., at trinomial coefficients three types of steps. Formulae to calculate trinomial, quadrominal and n-nomial coefficients are shown based on trinomial, quadrominal and n-nomial expansions, where the power of the sum of more than two items is computed, respectively. Multinomial expansions are also related. We give also a comparison of those values known as various ways of generalizations of the binomial coefficients.
Contribution to the Knowledge of Bromus Diandrus–Rigidus (Poaceae) Polyploid Complex in the Bulgarian and Romanian Floras
Authors: Stoyanov Stoyan , Negrean Gavril , Vladimirov Vladimir
Published: May 2022

Comparative morphological and ploidy level survey of the polyploid complex B. diandrus-rigidus in the Bulgarian and Romanian floras was performed. Critical examination of the morphology of the collected specimens revealed B. diandrus is represented in both floras. The species has already been reported for Romania under the name B. rigidus. For Bulgaria, the species has been very recently reported on a conference poster with a single gathering from 2020. Here, we provide more records of the species along the whole Bulgarian Black Sea coast floristic region, with the oldest gathering dating back to 2003. Ploidy level estimation of the Bulgarian accessions by flow cytometry revealed all studied populations are octoploid which is congruent with data from elsewhere, and confirms B. diandrus is present in the  Bulgarian flora. For both the Bulgarian and Romanian floras alien status of the species has been inferred.
Compact 2-step Septulum Polarization Converters for Radars and Satellite Systems
Authors: Piltyay S. , Bulashenko A. , Fesyuk I. , Bulashenko O.
Published: May 2022

This article presents the results of analysis, numerical simulations and optimization of new narrowband guide septulum polarization converters. Orthomode duplexers and polarization converter designs based on septulums are widely used in modern microwave systems with orthogonal circularly polarized signals. Septulum guide polarizer is an effective compact device, which transforms right-hand circularly polarized (RHCP) and left-hand circularly polarized (LHCP) electromagnetic modes into linearly polarized ones. At the same time it divides RHCP and LHCP modes and directs them to two different rectangular guides with high signal discrimination to each other. Thus, a septulum-based guide device integrates performance of a polarization transformer and of an orthomode duplexer. The main electromagnetic characteristics of the polarization converter were simulated in software based on the finite elements method in the frequency domain. The proposed design of a compact narrowband guide polarization converter has a septulum with two steps. Several designs of septulum polarization converters were developed and compared for different relative bandwidths of 5%, 10%, and 15%. The comparative investigation of the obtained designs was carried out. Main electromagnetic characteristics of optimal septulum polarization converters were compared. These include return losses, cross-polarization discrimination, ellipticity parameter, and ports discrimination. It was demonstrated that in 5% fractional bandwidth a compact 2-stepped septulum polarization converter has return losses greater than 22 dB. Its cross-polarization discrimination and ports discrimination are greater than 25 and 27 dB. Developed compact septulum polarization converters can be applied in modern antenna systems for radars and satellite communication systems.
Building a Korean morphological analyzer using two Korean BERT models
Authors: Choi Yong-Seok , Park Yo-Han , Lee Kong Joo
Published: May 2022

A morphological analyzer plays an essential role in identifying functional suffixes of Korean words. The analyzer input and output differ from each other in their length and strings, which can be dealt with by an encoder-decoder architecture. We adopt a Transformer architecture, which is an encoder-decoder architecture with self-attention rather than a recurrent connection, to implement a Korean morphological analyzer. Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers (BERT) is one of the most popular pretrained representation models; it can present an encoded sequence of input words, considering contextual information. We initialize both the Transformer encoder and decoder with two types of Korean BERT, one of which is pretrained with a raw corpus, and the other is pretrained with a morphologically analyzed dataset. Therefore, implementing a Korean morphological analyzer based on Transformer is a fine-tuning process with a relatively small corpus. A series of experiments proved that parameter initialization using pretrained models can alleviate the chronic problem of a lack of training data and reduce the time required for training. In addition, we can determine the number of layers required for the encoder and decoder to optimize the performance of a Korean morphological analyzer.
Alleviation of cadmium stress in rice by inoculation of Bacillus cereus
Authors: Jabeen Zahra , Irshad Faiza , Habib Ayesha , Hussain Nazim , Sajjad Muhammad , Mumtaz Saqib , Rehman Sidra , Haider Waseem , Hassan Muhammad Nadeem
Published: May 2022

Heavy metal resistant bacteria are of great importance because they play a crucial role in bioremediation. In the present study, 11 bacterial strains isolated from industrial waste were screened under different concentrations of cadmium (Cd) (100 µM and 200 µM). Among 11 strains, the Cd tolerant Bacillus cereus (S6D1–105) strain was selected for in vitro and in vivo studies. B. cereus was able to solubilize potassium, and phosphate as well as produce protease and siderophores during plate essays. Moreover, we observed the response of hydroponically grown rice plants, inoculated with B. cereus which was able to promote plant growth, by increasing plant biomass, chlorophyll contents, relative water content, different antioxidant enzymatic activity such as catalase, superoxide dismutase, ascorbate peroxidase, polyphenol oxidase and phenylalanine ammonia-lyase and reducing malondialdehyde content in both roots and leaves of rice plants under Cd stress. Our results showed that the B. cereus can be used as a biofertilizer which might be beneficial for rice cultivation in Cd contaminated soils.
Fungal communities represent the majority of root-specific transcripts in the transcriptomes of Agave plants grown in semiarid regions
Authors: Marone Marina Püpke , Campanari Maria Fernanda Zaneli , Raya Fabio Trigo , Pereira Gonçalo Amarante Guimarães , Carazzolle Marcelo Falsarella
Published: May 2022

Agave plants present drought resistance mechanisms, commercial applications, and potential for bioenergy production. Currently, Agave species are used to produce alcoholic beverages and sisal fibers in semi-arid regions, mainly in Mexico and Brazil. Because of their high productivities, low lignin content, and high shoot-to-root ratio, agaves show potential as biomass feedstock to bioenergy production in marginal areas. Plants host many microorganisms and understanding their metabolism can inform biotechnological purposes. Here, we identify and characterize fungal transcripts found in three fiber-producing agave cultivars (Agave fourcroydes, A. sisalana, and hybrid 11648). We used leaf, stem, and root samples collected from the agave germplasm bank located in the state of Paraiba, in the Brazilian semiarid region, which has faced irregular precipitation periods. We used data from a de novo assembled transcriptome assembly (all tissues together). Regardless of the cultivar, around 10% of the transcripts mapped to fungi. Surprisingly, most root-specific transcripts were fungal (58%); of these around 64% were identified as Ascomycota and 28% as Basidiomycota in the three communities. Transcripts that code for heat shock proteins (HSPs) and enzymes involved in transport across the membrane in Ascomycota and Basidiomycota, abounded in libraries generated from the three cultivars. Indeed, among the most expressed transcripts, many were annotated as HSPs, which appear involved in abiotic stress resistance. Most HSPs expressed by Ascomycota are small HSPs, highly related to dealing with temperature stresses. Also, some KEGG pathways suggest interaction with the roots, related to transport to outside the cell, such as exosome (present in the three Ascomycota communities) and membrane trafficking, which were further investigated. We also found chitinases among secreted CAZymes, that can be related to pathogen control. We anticipate that our results can provide a starting point to the study of the potential uses of agaves’ fungi as biotechnological tools.
Scavengingvshunting affects behavioral traits of an opportunistic carnivore
Authors: Parsons Mitchell A. , Garcia Andrew , Young Julie K.
Published: May 2022

Background

Human-induced changes to ecosystems transform the availability of resources to predators, including altering prey populations and increasing access to anthropogenic foods. Opportunistic predators are likely to respond to altered food resources by changing the proportion of food they hunt versus scavenge. These shifts in foraging behavior will affect species interactions through multiple pathways, including by changing other aspects of predator behavior such as boldness, innovation, and social structure.

Methods

To understand how foraging behavior impacts predator behavior, we conducted a controlled experiment to simulate hunting by introducing a prey model to captive coyotes (Canis latrans) and compared their behavior to coyotes that continued to scavenge over one year. We used focal observations to construct behavioral budgets, and conducted novel object, puzzle box, and conspecific tests to evaluate boldness, innovation, and response to conspecifics.

Results

We documented increased time spent resting by hunting coyotes paired with decreased time spent active. Hunting coyotes increased boldness and persistence but there were no changes in innovation. Our results illustrate how foraging behavior can impact other aspects of behavior, with potential ecological consequences to predator ecology, predator-prey dynamics, and human-wildlife conflict; however, the captive nature of our study limits specific conclusions related to wild predators. We conclude that human-induced behavioral changes could have cascading ecological implications that are not fully understood.
FORESTACIÓN URBANA PARA LA ADAPTACIÓN AL CAMBIO CLIMÁTICO
Authors: Reyes Sonia
Published: May 2022

El aumento de la superficie global de bosques es una de las estrategias más eficientes para mitigar las emisiones de gases efecto invernadero que están acelerando el cambio climático en todo el planeta. Las ciudades se pueden sumar a esta iniciativa mediante la forestación urbana, una estrategia de adaptación al cambio climático que tiene la capacidad de regular las temperaturas extremas, retener la humedad del suelo y facilitar la infiltración de las aguas lluvias evitando inundaciones.
POST-CRISIS SOCIOSANITARIA Y BIENESTAR EN TERRITORIOS VULNERABLES: EFECTOS Y RECOMENDACIONES
Authors: Rasse Alejandra , Vives Alejandra , Luneke Alejandra , Rivera Magdalena , Simon Francois
Published: May 2022

En el momento en que nos encontramos, todos los ojos están dirigidos -y con razón- a la crisis social y sanitaria que estamos viviendo, y a las estrategias para enfrentarla. Sin embargo, hay muchos trabajos previos y experiencia investigativa acumulada en territorios socialmente vulnerables que nos permiten, en paralelo, pensar escenarios probables post crisis en estos sectores, y así, trabajar en líneas de acción que puedan hacerse cargo de los efectos perdurables del COVID-19 en dicha población. A continuación, se describe la situación psicosocial y habitacional en que posiblemente se encontrarán los territorios vulnerables con posterioridad a la crisis sanitaria y el confinamiento, y se presentan los principios que se deberían tomar en consideración al planificar la acción pública.