cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
An optical centralized shared-bus architecture demonstrator for microprocessor-to-memory interconnects

An architecture demonstrator of an innovative interconnect scheme called the optical centralized shared-bus is presented. This architecture retains the advantages of shared-bus topology while at the same time specifying a uniform interface between the electrical and the optical backplane layers in contrast to other proposed architectures. For the first time, a fanout equalized optical backplane bus is demonstrated. In this architecture demonstrator, the data paths required for the microprocessor-to-memory interconnects are provided by the optical centralized shared-bus. The optoelectronic interface modules are optimized to support data rates up to 1.25 Gb/s. The objective of this microprocessor-to-memory interconnects demonstration is to ensure the feasibility of applying this innovative architecture in real systems.
Effects of Prescribed Fire on Vegetation and Passerine Birds in Northern Mixed-Grass Prairie

Abstract Prescribed fire is used widely to manage grasslands on National Wildlife Refuges and other public lands in the northern Great Plains, but its effects on habitat use or production of wildlife in the region are poorly understood. During 1998–2003, we used point counts to examine effects of prescribed fire on vegetation and passerines in a mixed-grass prairie complex in north-central North Dakota, USA (n = 7 units, each 40–70 ha). Vegetation structure and, to a lesser extent, plant community composition varied with year of study (likely related to changes in annual precipitation) and with number of growing seasons since fire. Fire altered plant structure, especially the amount of residual vegetation, which in turn influenced bird species richness and abundance. The number of indicated pairs for sedge wren (Cistothorus platensis), clay-colored sparrow (Spizella pallida), Le Conte's sparrow (Ammodramus leconteii), Savannah sparrow (Passerculus sandwichensis), and bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) wer...
Conditional Topic Random Fields

Generative topic models such as LDA are limited by their inability to utilize nontrivial input features to enhance their performance, and many topic models assume that topic assignments of different words are conditionally independent. Some work exists to address the second limitation but no work exists to address both. This paper presents a conditional topic random field (CTRF) model, which can use arbitrary nonlocal features about words and documents and incorporate the Markov dependency between topic assignments of neighboring words. We develop an efficient variational inference algorithm that scales linearly in terms of topic numbers, and a maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) procedure for parameter estimation. For the supervised version of CTRF, we also develop an arguably more discriminative max-margin learning method. We evaluate CTRF on real review rating data and demonstrate the advantages of CTRF over generative competitors, and we show the advantages of max-margin learning over MLE.
Novel Data Analysis for In Vitro Electrophysiological Assays in HTS

Recent development in automated patch-clamp platforms has transformed the preclinical drug development landscape by incorporating electrophysiological assays at early stages of drug screening. PatchXpress 7000A, an automated 16-channel parallel patch-clamp platform, has a higher throughput than the conventional whole cell patch clamp. We developed and optimized assay conditions for the human ether-a-go-go channel (hERG) on an automated patchclamp system such as PatchXpress 7000A. We applied nonlinear mixed models to quantify the consistency of the assay from cell to cell and to provide an accurate measure of drug potency over the population of the same cell type. The well-known hERG blocker quinidine was used in the experiments. The results of this novel statistical approach are the estimate of the average potency for the population of the cells with high degree of accuracy and the estimate of the potency variability from cell to cell. This method revealed no significant difference in the potency estimates for our assay and for conventional patch-clamp platform. We suggest that the novel data analysis can accurately predict compound potency when the assay protocols may have a small
Measuring the perpetrators and funders of typosquatting

We describe a method for identifying “typosquatting”, the intentional registration of misspellings of popular website addresses. We estimate that at least 938 000 typosquatting domains target the top 3 264 .com sites, and we crawl more than 285 000 of these domains to analyze their revenue sources. We find that 80% are supported by pay-per-click ads, often advertising the correctly spelled domain and its competitors. Another 20% include static redirection to other sites. We present an automated technique that uncovered 75 otherwise legitimate websites which benefited from direct links from thousands of misspellings of competing websites. Using regression analysis, we find that websites in categories with higher pay-per-click ad prices face more typosquatting registrations, indicating that ad platforms such as Google AdWords exacerbate typosquatting. However, our investigations also confirm the feasibility of significantly reducing typosquatting. We find that typosquatting is highly concentrated: Of typo domains showing Google ads, 63% use one of five advertising IDs, and some large name servers host typosquatting domains as much as four times as often as the web as a whole.
Cortisol, cytokines, and hippocampal volume interactions in the elderly

Separate bodies of literature report that elevated pro-inflammatory cytokines and cortisol negatively affect hippocampal structure and cognitive functioning, particularly in older adults. Although interactions between cytokines and cortisol occur through a variety of known mechanisms, few studies consider how their interactions affect brain structure. In this preliminary study, we assess the impact of interactions between circulating levels of IL-1Beta, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IL-12, TNF-alpha, and waking cortisol on hippocampal volume. Twenty-eight community-dwelling older adults underwent blood draws for quantification of circulating cytokines and saliva collections to quantify the cortisol awakening response. Hippocampal volume measurements were made using structural magnetic resonance imaging. Elevated levels of waking cortisol in conjunction with higher concentrations of IL-6 and TNF-alpha were associated with smaller hippocampal volumes. In addition, independent of cortisol, higher levels of IL-1beta and TNF-alpha were also associated with smaller hippocampal volumes. These data provide preliminary evidence that higher cortisol, in conjunction with higher IL-6 and TNF-alpha, are associated with smaller hippocampal volume in older adults. We suggest that the dynamic balance between the hypothalamic-pituitary adrenal axis and inflammation processes may explain hippocampal volume reductions in older adults better than either set of measures do in isolation.
Enterprise Streaming: Different Challenges from Internet Streaming

Media streaming over the best-effort public Internet has been a focus of research for over a decade. Enterprise or corporate streaming is another area of media streaming that is practically very important and has a different set of challenges and feasible solutions. For example, the quality and reliability requirements for enterprise streaming are much stricter than for typical Internet streaming. Furthermore, in typical enterprise streaming scenarios, a single entity has control over most elements of the system, including the end-points and the infrastructure. This entity has the powerful ability to monitor, adapt, and deploy new infrastructure as necessary. The goal of this paper is to describe enterprise streaming and identify the basic differences between typical Internet streaming and enterprise streaming, and how these differences alter the challenges that must be overcome for enterprise streaming to be successful. Specifically, we examine enterprise streaming media content delivery network design and operation, video conferencing, peer-to-peer networking (P2P), voice over IP (VoIP), and briefly touch upon wireless and security issues
Protein sorting in Saccharomyces cerevisiae: isolation of mutants defective in the delivery and processing of multiple vacuolar hydrolases

Using a selection for spontaneous mutants that mislocalize a vacuolar carboxypeptidase Y (CPY)-invertase fusion protein to the cell surface, we identified vacuolar protein targeting (vpt) mutants in 25 new vpt complementation groups. Additional alleles in each of the eight previously identified vpt complementation groups (vpt1 through vpt8) were also obtained. Representative alleles from each of the 33 vpt complementation groups (vpt1 through vpt33) were shown to exhibit defects in the sorting and processing of several native vacuolar proteins, including the soluble hydrolases CPY, proteinase A, and proteinase B. Of the 33 complementation groups, 19 were found to contain mutant alleles that led to extreme defects. In these mutants, CPY accumulated in its Golgi complex-modified precursor form which was secreted by the mutant cells. Normal protein secretion appeared to be unaffected in the vpt mutants. The lack of significant leakage of cytosolic markers from the vpt mutant cells indicated that the vacuolar protein-sorting defects associated with these mutants do not result from cell lysis. In addition, the observation that the precursor rather than the mature forms of CPY, proteinase A, proteinase B were secreted from the vpt mutants was consistent with the fact that mislocalization occurred at a stage after Golgi complex-specific modification, but before final vacuolar sorting of these enzymes. Vacuolar membrane protein sorting appeared to be unaffected in the majority of the vpt mutants. However, a subset of the vpt mutants (vpt11, vpt16, vpt18, and vpt33) was found to exhibit defects in the sorting of a vacuolar membrane marker enzyme, alpha-mannosidase. Up to 50% of the alpha-mannosidase enzyme activity was found to be mislocalized to the cell surface in these vpt mutants. Seven of the vpt complementation groups (vpt3, vpt11, vpt15, vpt16, vpt18, vpt29, and vpt33) contained alleles that led to a conditional lethal phenotype; the mutants were temperature sensitive for vegetative cell growth. This temperature-sensitive phenotype has been shown to be recessive and to cosegregate with the vacuolar protein-sorting defect in each case. Tetrad analysis showed that vpt3 mapped to the right arm of chromosome XV and that vpt15 mapped to the right arm of chromosome II. Intercrosses with other mutants that exhibited defects in vacuolar protein sorting or function (vpl, sec, pep, and end mutants) revealed several overlaps among these different sets of genes. Together, these data indicate that more than 50 gene products are involved, directly or indirectly, in the process of vacuolar protein sorting.
Tax Holidays and Firms' Subsidiary Location Decisions

This research addresses the importance of tax holidays in the subsidiary location decisions of U.S.‐based multinationals. The study uses the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) as a basis for the deve...
Complications Associated with FAST-FIX All-Inside Meniscal Repair: A Report of Two Cases.

Case: We describe the cases of two patients with a previously unreported complication associated with the all-inside FAST-FIX meniscal repair system. In both cases, anchors came loose postoperatively. Conclusion: Surgeons need to be aware of this potential complication in the event that a patient presents with pain and mechanical symptoms after meniscal repair.
KIN RECOGNITION IN GROUND SQUIRRELS AND OTHER RODENTS

Significant advances have been made in understanding kin recognition as it pertains to nepotism (preferential treatment of kin) and mate choice (optimization of inbreeding and outbreeding). Yet complementary knowledge about how animals discriminate conspecifics on the basis of genetic relatedness remains unclear for most species. Because of the diversity of their scent sources and highly developed olfactory systems, rodents present a unique opportunity for examining chemical communication and kin recognition as a function of sociality. I review general processes of kin recognition and summarize mechanisms of recognition used by rodents. As a case study, I also examine recognition systems of ground squirrels, relating odor production and perception to differences in patterns of nepotism. Belding’s ground squirrels ( Spermophilus beldingi) produce $2 odors (from oral and dorsal glands) that correlate with relatedness (kin labels), and they are able to use these odors to make precise discriminations among their unfamiliar relatives. Thus, S. beldingi can recognize their distant female kin and male kin, even though these kin are not treated nepotistically (e.g., through cooperative territory defense or alarm call production). Furthermore, S. beldingi use these kin labels and recognition abilities to interact differentially with conspecifics as a function of relatedness. In ground squirrels and in other rodents, components of the kin recognition process (production of recognition cues, discrimination of these cues, and differential treatment of conspecifics) have evolved differentially among even closely related species. Kin recognition abilities in the absence of nepotism might reflect selection for inbreeding avoidance mechanisms, in addition to sex-biased natal dispersal. Together, data and the review demonstrate that recognition abilities cannot be predicted on the basis of sociality alone and suggest that comparative analyses, by multiple assays of discrimination, might be necessary to understand variation in the function of kin recognition within and across species.
Load-Balanced Virtual Backbone Construction for Wireless Sensor Networks

Virtual Backbones (VBs) are expected to bring substantial benefits to routing in Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs). Connected Dominating Sets (CDSs) based VBs are competitive approaches among the existing methods used to establish VBs in WSNs. Most existing works focus on constructing Minimum-sized CDSs (MCDSs). However, few works consider the load-balance factor. In this work, the size and the load-balance factor are both taken into account when constructing VBs in WSNs. Specifically, three problems are investigated in the paper, namely, the MinMax Degree Maximal Independent Set (MDMIS) problem, the Load-Balanced Virtual Backbone (LBVB) problem, and the MinMax Valid-Degree non Backbone node Allocation (MVBA) problem. We claim that MDMIS and LBVB are NP-Complete and MVBA is NP-Hard. Moveover, approximation algorithms and comprehensive theoretical analysis of the approximation factors are presented in the paper.
A compact planar power combiner with complex impedance matching

This article presents a compact power combiner/divider for solid-state amplifier applications inspired by spatial combiner. The proposed “one-stage” combining structure is realized by a single port tapered to an oversized microstrip connecting to parallel multiport microstrip sections. By adjusting the geometries of the structure, uniform amplitude/phase, and complex impedance matching at the multiport outputs can be achieved. A prototype 1-to-4 divider/combiner is designed and characterized at 5 GHz. Measured and simulated results showed similar trend and decent agreement. The measured combining efficiency of the circuit is 82.44% at 5 GHz. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 58:1121–1125, 2016
Groin Pain Etiology: Spermatic Cord and Testicular Causes

Groin pain is a challenging clinical problem with a myriad of underlying causes spanning multiple medical specialties. Urological etiologies are often the focus of the diagnostic process; thus, a working knowledge of urological causes is helpful for all specialists who treat groin pain. Although there are multiple identifiable causes of chronic groin pain, often in practice no clear underlying cause is found, and the diagnosis of “chronic pelvic pain syndrome” is given. We still have much to learn about the pathophysiology of chronic groin pain. More robust animal model and clinical studies are needed to develop targeted therapies. In this chapter, we present a review of our current knowledge of how groin pain is classified, evaluated, and managed by urologists. Although complete resolution of chronic pain can be an elusive goal in some patients, effective medical and surgical strategies toward a cure are available for most.
Digital game–based learning (DGBL) in the L2 classroom: The impact of the UN’s off-the-shelf videogame, Food Force, on learner affect and vocabulary retention

This mixed-method study explored the impact of Food Force (FF) , a UN-sponsored off-the-shelf videogame, on learner affect and vocabulary learning and retention in a Japanese as a second/foreign language classroom. The videogame was integrated into an existing curriculum and two studies were performed. In Study 1 ( n = 9), new vocabulary was embedded in task sheets. Study 2 ( n = 11) introduced FF vocabulary explicitly and included a graded unit test. In both studies, participants took three FF vocabulary tests (pre-, post-, delayed) and an end-of-unit affect survey. Study 2 also included textbook vocabulary tests and interviews. Results indicated positive impact on learner affect and a preference for game-mediated activities over conventional exercises. Within-subject repeated-measure analysis revealed that participants in both groups recalled new FF vocabulary five weeks later at the same rate as immediately after the unit, while they significantly forgot words from the textbook. Study 2 resulted in better learning of FF words than Study 1. No gender difference was found in vocabulary test results. Positive FF effects may be evidence that digital game-based learning facilitates deep learning. Though there was significant positive effect on average, individual differences were found in students’ attitudes and vocabulary retention.
Principles and Controversies in CPT Coding in Surgical Pathology, LabMedicine 2011 42:242–249

To the Editor I have always enjoyed LabMedicine , and the information it provides. In the article “Principles and Controversies in CPT Coding in Surgical Pathology,” Dr. Dimenstein recommends billing for the colon donuts as 88305. In January 2008, College of American Pathologists, in CAP TODAY , answered a question about whether donuts were separately billable from primary colon specimens, and the determination was that the donuts are not, and are considered part of the primary specimen. Please see below: Q: How do you bill “donuts” as separate specimens from a colon cancer resection?A: A “donut” is a donut-shaped ring of colon that is a byproduct of … idimenstein{at}hotmail.com
Combat, classes, titles, and trade

Nineteenth-century Kanyok society was a composite of ideas and institutions drawn from the common ancient Bantu heritage and of practices and concepts developed, shared, or borrowed in more recent periods of interchange with savanna neighbors. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, wars and raids, migrations and intermarriages, expeditions for trade or political office, Luba imperial expansion, growing Lunda cultural prestige, and the rise of the Luso African commercial system, all played a role in facilitating the exchange and development of military, social, political, and commercial institutions upon which Kanyok society was built. Understandably, Kanyok society shared many traits with the cultures of neighboring peoples – both near and distant – who fought, governed, and traded across the southern savanna. Military structures and strategies The challenge of Luba invaders in the decades around 1800 encouraged a reorganization and strengthening of the Kanyok army under Ilung a Cibang. Although his military importance has been exaggerated by oral historians, although developments which took place under other leaders were attributed to him, and although offices and strategies borrowed from neighboring peoples were ascribed to his genius, the Kanyok military at the end of his life was more powerful and highly structured than when he took office as Mwen a But soon after 1800. Biin Luhit In the nineteenth century, the Kanyok fighting force was organized into three basic divisions known as the Biin Luhit, Biin Mazemb, and Biin Mund. The Biin Luhit (men of war) were a group of professional soldier-police led by the Mwen a Mwilomb and his adjunct, the Mwadi a Mvit .
Why Social Media

I fell in love with Twitter on Super Bowl Sunday of 2013. Recalling it is easy, because the Getty Museum account (@GettyMuseum), which I had happened to follow when Twitter suggested various accounts based on my interests, started using the #MuseumSuperBowl hashtag to show images of super bowls in their collection.
Variational optimization of the two-electron reduced-density matrix under pure-state N-representability conditions

The direct variational optimization of the ground-state two-electron reduced-density matrix (2-RDM) is typically performed under ensemble N-representability conditions. Accordingly, variationally obtained 2-RDMs for degenerate ground states may not represent a pure state. When considering only ground-state energetics, the ensemble nature of the 2-RDM is of little consequence. However, the use of ensemble densities within an extended random phase approximation (ERPA) yields astonishingly poor estimates of excitation energies, even for simple atomic systems [H. van Aggelen et al., Comput. Theor. Chem. 1003, 50–54 (2013)]. Here, we outline an approach for the direct variational optimization of ground-state 2-RDMs that satisfy pure-state N-representability known as generalized Pauli constraints. Within the ERPA, 2-RDMs that satisfy both ensemble conditions and the generalized Pauli constraints yield much more reliable estimates of excitation energies than those that satisfy only ensemble conditions.
Randomized trial of rATg/Daclizumab vs. ratg/alemtuzumab as dual induction therapy IN renal transplantation: Results at 8 years of follow-up.

Our goal in using dual induction therapy is to bring the kidney transplant recipient closer (through more effectively timed lymphodepletion) to an optimally immunosuppressed state. Here, we report long-term results of a prospective randomized trial comparing (Group I,N=100) rATG/Dac (3 rATG, 2 Dac doses) vs. (Group II,N=100) rATG/Alemtuzumab(C1H) (1 dose each), using reduced tacrolimus dosing, EC-MPS, and early corticosteroid withdrawal. Lower EC-MPS dosing was targeted in Group II to avoid severe leukopenia. Median follow-up was 96mo post-transplant. There were no differences in 1st BPAR (including borderline) rates: 10/100 vs. 9/100 in Groups I and II during the first 12mo(P=0.54), and 20/100 vs. 20/100 throughout the study(P=0.90). Equally favorable renal function was maintained in both treatment arms(N.S.). While not significant, more patients in Group II experienced graft loss, 25/100 vs. 18/100 in Group I(P=0.23). Actuarial patient/graft survival at 96mo was 92%/83% vs. 85%/73% in Groups I and II(N.S.). DWFG-due-to-infection(N.S.), EC-MPS withholding-due-to-leukopenia during the first 2mo(P=0.03), and incidence of viral infections(P=0.09) were higher in Group II, whereas EC-MPS withholding-due-to-GI symptoms was higher in Group I(P=0.009). No other adverse event differences were observed. While long-term anti-rejection and renal function efficacy were demonstrated in both treatment arms, slight over-immunosuppression of Group II patients occurred.
Effectiveness of a walnut-enriched diet on murine sperm: involvement of reduced peroxidative damage.

Abstract A walnut supplement for a Western-style diet in men was shown to improve sperm motility, vitality, and morphology. To gain further insights into factors underlying this improvement, we administered a parallel walnut-enriched diet to mice [including those with a defect in sperm motility due to deletion of Plasma Membrane Ca2+-ATPase 4 (Pmca4−/−)] to determine if there is a similar improvement that is accompanied by reduced sperm membrane peroxidative damage. Although sperm vitality and acrosome reaction rate were unaffected, the diet led to a significant improvement in motility (P
Flaxseed- and Buckwheat-Supplemented Diets Altered Enterobacteriaceae Diversity and Prevalence in the Cecum and Feces of Obese Mice

Dietary intake may cause variable bacterial prevalence in the gastrointestinal tract. The objective of this research was to determine the prevalence of Enterobacteriaceae in the cecum and feces and its relationship to weight changes following flaxseed-, health-promoting compounds of flaxseed-, or buckwheat-supplemented diets. Seventy-two C57BL/6J male mice were randomly assigned to a diet group and fed for 8 weeks: high fat (45% kcal fat); 10% whole flaxseed (45% kcal fat); 6% defatted flaxseed (45% kcal fat); 4% flaxseed oil (45% kcal fat); 10% buckwheat (45% kcal fat); and low fat (16% kcal fat) diet groups. Significant differences in the prevalence of Enterobacteriaceae in the cecum (p < .0348) and feces at posttreatment (p < .0033) were observed. The prevalence of Enterobacteriaceae affected posttreatment weight (p < .0001). Our results indicate that there may be a relationship between an increase in Enterobacteriaceae prevalence and weight gain.
2 GHz Bandwidth Acousto-Optic Spectrometer for Radio Astronomy Spectroscopy Applications

Radiometer spectrometers, located in the "back-end" of a radio telescope receiver (as shown in Fig. 1) are used in millimeter-wave radio astronomy for the spectral measurement of molecular rotational transitions.
Temperature and Diel Catches of Trialeurodes vaporariorum and Bemisia tabaci (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae) Adults on Sticky Traps in the Greenhouse

Patterns of diel flight activity of the greenhouse whitefly, Trialeurodes vaporariorum (Westwood), and sweetpotato whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius), were investigated on poinsettia, Euphorbia pulcherrima Willd., and gerbera daisy, Gerbera jamesonii H. Bolus, under greenhouse and environmentally controlled conditions. Adult flight activity was monitored at 2-h intervals (from 0700 to 2100 h EST) at various heights using yellow sticky traps. Traps placed 5 cm above the top of the plant canopy caught more adults of both species than traps placed higher. The daily patterns of catches of T. vaporariorum and B. tabaci adults in the greenhouse were similar and were unimodal with peak catches occurring between 0900–1300 h. Numbers of adults caught on the sticky traps in the greenhouse were correlated with temperature and relative humidity for T. vaporariorum, but not for B. tabaci. Few adults were caught during the dark hours (from 2100 to 0700 h). Under constant temperatures of 20°, 25°, and 30°C, the flight...
How the built environment affects change in older people's physical activity: A mixed- methods approach using longitudinal health survey data in urban China

Abstract Although the general population in China is physically active, only 45% of older adults meet the World Health Organization's recommendation for weekly moderate-to-vigorous exercise, to achieve health benefits. This percentage is even lower (9.8%) in urban China. It is, therefore, important to understand the pathways by which physical activity behaviors are impacted by the built environment. This study utilized a mixed methods approach—interviews (n = 42) and longitudinal (2010–2015) health survey data (n = 3094) for older people residing in three neighborhoods in Huainan, a mid-sized city in Anhui Province, central eastern China. First, a content analysis of interview data was used to identify individual and built environment factors (motivators and barriers) that impacted physical activity within older people's activity spaces. Second, a multilevel path analysis was conducted using the health survey data to demonstrate the pathways by which these motivators and barriers contributed to the initiation, regulation, and maintenance of physical activity. This study found (a) that the liveliness of an apartment building and its proximity to functional spaces (fast-food stores, farmer's markets, supermarkets, pharmacies, schools, hospitals, PA facilities and natural and man-made water bodies) were important factors in attracting sedentary older people to initiate physical activity; (b) the social networks of apartment neighbors helped to initiate, regulate, and maintain physical activity; and housing closeness to functional spaces was important in maintaining physical activity, particularly for those older people with chronic diseases. To increase older people's overall physical activity, future interventions should focus on residential form and access to functional spaces, prior to investing in large-scale urban design interventions.
The interplay of nanointerface curvature and calcium binding in weak polyelectrolyte-coated nanoparticles

When engineering nanomaterials for application in biological systems, it is important to understand how multivalent ions, such as calcium, affect the structural and chemical properties of polymer-modified nanoconstructs. In this work, a recently developed molecular theory was employed to study the effect of surface curvature on the calcium-induced collapse of end-tethered weak polyelectrolytes. In particular, we focused on cylindrical and spherical nanoparticles coated with poly(acrylic acid) in the presence of different amounts of Ca2+ ions. We describe the structural changes that grafted polyelectrolytes undergo as a function of calcium concentration, surface curvature, and morphology. The polymer layers collapse in aqueous solutions that contain sufficient amounts of Ca2+ ions. This collapse, due to the formation of calcium bridges, is not only controlled by the calcium ion concentration but also strongly influenced by the curvature of the tethering surface. The transition from a swollen to a collapsed layer as a function of calcium concentration broadens and shifts to lower amounts of calcium ions as a function of the radius of cylindrical and spherical nanoparticles. The results show how the interplay between calcium binding and surface curvature governs the structural and functional properties of the polymer molecules. This would directly impact the fate of weak polyelectrolyte-coated nanoparticles in biological environments, in which calcium levels are tightly regulated. Understanding such interplay would also contribute to the rational design and optimization of smart interfaces with applications in, e.g., salt-sensitive and ion-responsive materials and devices.
Effect of Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation on Treatment-Resistant Major Depression in US Veterans: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance Treatment-resistant major depression (TRMD) in veterans is a major clinical challenge given the high risk for suicidality in these patients. Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) offers the potential for a novel treatment modality for these veterans. Objective To determine the efficacy of rTMS in the treatment of TRMD in veterans. Design, Setting, and Participants A double-blind, sham-controlled randomized clinical trial was conducted from September 1, 2012, to December 31, 2016, in 9 Veterans Affairs medical centers. A total of 164 veterans with TRD participated. Interventions Participants were randomized to either left prefrontal rTMS treatment (10 Hz, 120% motor threshold, 4000 pulses/session) or to sham (control) rTMS treatment for up to 30 treatment sessions. Main Outcomes and Measures The primary dependent measure of the intention-to-treat analysis was remission rate (Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression score ≤10, indicating that depression is in remission and not a clinically significant burden), and secondary analyses were conducted on other indices of posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, hopelessness, suicidality, and quality of life. Results The 164 participants had a mean (SD) age of 55.2 (12.4) years, 132 (80.5%) were men, and 126 (76.8%) were of white race. Of these, 81 were randomized to receive active rTMS and 83 to receive sham. For the primary analysis of remission, there was no significant effect of treatment (odds ratio, 1.16; 95% CI, 0.59-2.26; P = .67). At the end of the acute treatment phase, 33 of 81 (40.7%) of those in the active treatment group achieved remission of depressive symptoms compared with 31 of 83 (37.4%) of those in the sham treatment group. Overall, 64 of 164 (39.0%) of the participants achieved remission. Conclusions and Relevance A total of 39.0% of the veterans who participated in this trial experienced clinically significant improvement resulting in remission of depressive symptoms; however, there was no evidence of difference in remission rates between the active and sham treatments. These findings may reflect the importance of close clinical surveillance, rigorous monitoring of concomitant medication, and regular interaction with clinic staff in bringing about significant improvement in this treatment-resistant population. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier:NCT01191333
Constructing a Cartesian Dynamics with “Fixed” Reference Frames: The “Kinematics of Mechanisms” Theory

Continuing our analysis of the Cartesian response to the De gravitatione argument, this chapter will investigate the possibility of avoiding the consequences of Newton’s allegations by undermining one of the key premises in its construction: that a matter-filled universe cannot allow unchanging spatial positions. In short, if some sort of fixed reference point can be located in the Cartesian plenum, then a method of tracking a moving body’s velocity over time can be established (thus dispelling Newton’s anti-relationalist worries). Unlike the procedure adopted in chapters 6 and 8, where we employed the dynamics-based “rest” force or Huygens’ notion of a center-of-mass frame to reconstruct a Cartesian dynamics founded upon the collision rules, that is, by using these methods to pick out the privileged frames needed to conserve quantity of motion, this chapter will not appeal to Descartes’ specific predictions on the outcomes of bodily collision in order to thwart Newton’s argument. Our exclusive concern will be to develop a theory of space and time that will allow a Cartesian to meaningfully conserve quantity of motion, and which does not attempt to utilize any of the collision rules as the basis of this reconstruction. Without the need to maintain the precise predictions of the collision rules (as Huygens’ had attempted), it will no longer be necessary to adopt methods that only temporarily preserve quantity of motion from the perspective of a local collision frame. On the formulation of Cartesian dynamics presented in this chapter, we will attempt to posit reference frames that conserve Descartes’ quantity of motion for extended regions of the plenum and for extended temporal periods.
Critical role of miR-10b in BRafV600E dependent anchorage independent growth and invasion of melanoma cells

Recent high-throughput-sequencing of cancer genomes has identified oncogenic mutations in the BRaf genetic locus as one of the critical events in melanomagenesis. BRaf encodes a serine/threonine kinase that regulates the MAPK/ERK kinase (MEK) and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) protein kinase cascade. In normal cells, the activity of BRaf is tightly regulated and is required for cell growth and survival. BRaf gain-of-function mutations in melanoma frequently lead to unrestrained growth, enhanced cell invasion and increased viability of cancer cells. Although it is clear that the invasive phenotypes of BRaf mutated melanoma cells are stringently dependent on BRaf-MEK-ERK activation, the downstream effector targets that are required for oncogenic BRaf-mediated melanomagenesis are not well defined. miRNAs have regulatory functions towards the expression of genes that are important in carcinogenesis. We observed that miR-10b expression correlates with the presence of the oncogenic BRaf (BRafV600E) mutation in melanoma cells. While expression of miR-10b enhances anchorage-independent growth of BRaf wild-type melanoma cells, miR-10b silencing decreases BRafV600E cancer cell invasion in vitro. Importantly, the expression of miR-10b is required for BRafV600E-mediated anchorage independent growth and invasion of melanoma cells in vitro. Taken together our results suggest that miR-10b is an important mediator of oncogenic BRafV600E activity in melanoma.
Adaptive Sampling and Reduced-Order Modeling of Dynamic Processes by Robot Teams

This letter presents a strategy to enable a team of mobile robots to adaptively sample and track a dynamic process. We propose a distributed strategy, where robots collect sparse sensor measurements, create a reduced-order model of a spatio-temporal process, and use this model to estimate field values for areas without sensor measurements of the dynamic process. The robots then use these estimates of the field, or inferences about the process, to adapt the model and reconfigure their sensing locations. The key contributions of this process are twofold: first, leveraging the dynamics of the process of interest to determine where to sample and how to estimate the process; and second, maintaining fully distributed models, sensor measurements, and estimates of the time-varying process. We illustrate the application of the proposed solution in simulation and compare it to centralized and global approaches. We also test our approach with physical marine robots sampling a process in a water tank.
Autonomous Acquisition of Behavior Trees for Robot Control

Behavior trees (BT) are a popular control architecture in the computer game industry, and have been more recently applied in robotics. One open question is how can intelligent agents/robots autonomously acquire their behavior trees for task level control? In contrast with existing approaches that either refine an initially given BT, or directly build the BT based on human feedback/demonstration, we leverage reinforcement learning (RL) that allows robots to autonomously learn control policies by repeated task interaction, but often expressed in a language more difficult to interpret than BTs. The learned control policy is then converted to a behavior tree via our proposed decanonicalization algorithm. The feasibility of this idea is based on a proposed notion of canonical behavior trees (CBT). In particular, we show (1) CBTs are sufficiently expressive to capture RL control policies, and (2) that RL can be independent of an optimal behavior permutation, despite the BT convention of left-to-right priority, thus obviating the need for a combinatorial search. Two evaluation domains help illustrate our approach.
Finite-element modeling of early-age concrete behavior under high level of tensile stress

Thermal cracking in concrete at early ages may influence the long-term durability of a structure. A finite-element method to predict early-age stress development is developed to consider temperature effects, modulus of elasticity, creep or stress relaxation, shrinkage, and coefficient of thermal expansion. Most models consider elastic and time-dependent behavior at normal stress levels in which the effect of cracking or the level of tensile stress is not considered. However, high-stress nonlinearity coupled with creep is of paramount importance when determining the cracking risk of concrete. Nonlinear behavior at high tensile stresses is present in concrete subjected to early-age thermal loading and should be considered to obtain an accurate thermal stress analysis. Therefore, the high-stress nonlinearity was considered in this study by correcting the model with a reduced effective modulus when the tensile stress is above 70% of its tensile strength. The experimental results of 22 concrete mixtures subjected to restraint to volume change tests were used to verify the accuracy of the proposed finite-element model from initial setting to the age of cracking. Statistical analysis results show that the coefficient of determination for all stress data points above a concrete tensile strength of 70% increased from 0.39 to 0.81 when using the predictions from the proposed model compared to the original linear-elastic model. The proposed model that accounts for creep and high-stress nonlinearity has a coefficient of determination of 0.97 for all the data points from 22 concretes, and provides a feasible prediction of early-age concrete stresses from initial setting to cracking.
Is Bigger Better?: The Effect of Hospital Consolidation on Index Hospitalization Costs and Outcomes Among Privately Insured Recipients of Immediate Breast Reconstruction

Objectives:To examine the relationship between hospital market competition and inpatient costs, procedural markup, inpatient complications, and length of stay among privately insured patients undergoing immediate reconstruction after mastectomy.Methods:A retrospective cross-sectional analysis of pri
Protein phosphatase 2A controls ongoing DNA replication by binding to and regulating cell division cycle 45 (CDC45)

Genomic replication is a highly regulated process and represents both a potential benefit and liability to rapidly dividing cells; however, the precise post-translational mechanisms regulating genomic replication are incompletely understood. Protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) is a serine/threonine phosphatase that regulates a diverse array of cellular processes. Here, utilizing both a gain-of-function chemical biology approach and loss-of-function genetic approaches to modulate PP2A activity, we found that PP2A regulates DNA replication. We demonstrate that increased PP2A activity can interrupt ongoing DNA replication, resulting in a prolonged S phase. The impaired replication resulted in a collapse of replication forks, inducing dsDNA breaks, homologous recombination, and a PP2A-dependent replication stress response. Additionally, we show that during replication, PP2A exists in complex with cell division cycle 45 (CDC45) and that increased PP2A activity caused dissociation of CDC45 and polymerase α from the replisome. Furthermore, we found that individuals harboring mutations in the PP2A Aα gene have a higher fraction of genomic alterations, suggesting that PP2A regulates ongoing replication as a mechanism for maintaining genomic integrity. These results reveal a new function for PP2A in regulating ongoing DNA replication and a potential role for PP2A in the intra-S-phase checkpoint.
Genetic and epigenetic editing in nervous system

Numerous neuronal functions depend on the precise spatiotemporal regulation of gene expression, and the cellular machinery that contributes to this regulation is frequently disrupted in neurodevelopmental, neuropsychiatric, and neurological disease states. Recent advances in gene editing technology have enabled increasingly rapid understanding of gene sequence variation and gene regulatory function in the central nervous system. Moreover, these tools have provided new insights into the locus-specific functions of epigenetic modifications and enabled epigenetic editing at specific gene loci in disease contexts. Continued development of clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-based tools has provided not only cell-specific modulation, but also rapid induction profiles that permit sophisticated interrogation of the temporal dynamics that contribute to brain health and disease. This review summarizes recent advances in genetic editing, transcriptional modulation, and epigenetic reorganization, with a focus on applications to neuronal systems and potential uses in brain disorders characterized by genetic sequence variation or transcriptional dysregulation. .
Primary Care Providers Underutilize Breast Screening MRI for High-Risk Women

Objective Supplemental MRI screening for women at high risk for breast cancer is underutilized. Our study assessed how primary care providers in our healthcare network identify high-risk women and recommend high-risk screening breast MRI. Methods An electronic survey was distributed to providers in OB/GYN, family, and internal medicine departments between 1/14/19 and 3/22/19. The survey inquired about methods used to assess breast cancer risk, familiarity with the American Cancer Society's definition of high-risk, and whether screening breast MRI is recommended for high-risk women. Results Response rate was 17% (89/524). After excluding providers who ordered ≤10 mammograms per year, the study included 75 respondents, who mostly ordered 10-1000 mammograms per year and supported annual/biennial screening mammogram starting at age 40-50 years. More providers reported estimating breast cancer risk qualitatively (with family, clinical history, and/or breast density) than quantitatively with risk calculators (73/75, 97% vs 22/75, 29%). A minority of providers (23/75, 31%) correctly defined high lifetime risk. Only 9/75 (12%) providers recommended screening MRI for high-risk women. Use of quantitative risk calculators or ability to correctly define high-risk were not associated with likelihood of recommending MRI screening. More providers had recommended MRI for screening in the setting of dense breasts than for high-risk screening (23/75, 31% vs 9/75, 12%). Conclusion Primary care providers at our institution did not routinely recommend screening MRI for high-risk women. Risk assessment and reporting at the time of mammography may improve MRI utilization and is an opportunity for radiologists to add value and directly participate in patient-centered care.
Infectious Lung Disease

Infectious diseases are one of the main causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. With new pathogens continuously emerging, known infectious diseases reemerging, increasing microbial resistance to antimicrobial agents, global environmental change, ease of world travel, and an increasing immunosuppressed population, recognition of infectious diseases plays an ever-important role in surgical pathology. This becomes particularly significant in cases where infectious disease is not suspected clinically and the initial diagnostic workup fails to include samples for culture. As such, it is not uncommon that a lung biopsy becomes the only material available in the diagnostic process of an infectious disease. Once the infectious nature of the pathological process is established, careful search for the causative agent is advised. This can often be achieved by examination of the hematoxylin and eosin-stained sections alone as many organisms or their cytopathic effects are visible on routine staining. However, ancillary studies such as histochemical stains, immunohistochemistry, in situ hybridization, or molecular techniques may be needed to identify the organism in tissue sections or for further characterization, such as speciation.
Cliodynamics and Dramatic Performances

This chapter examines four Hollywood films from the 1950s through the early 1970s in the light of Peter Turchin’s and Harvey Whitehouse’s coevolutionary understanding of causal links between ritual performances and social cohesion. I identify continuities between these movies and dysphoric rituals performed by our hunter–gatherer ancestors. According to Turchin and Whitehouse, dysphoric rituals become less frequent as societies become more complex. This chapter suggests that dysphoric dramatic genres, nonetheless, tend to become more dysphoric and gain in authority in complex societies when key indicators of their social cohesion fall. Dysphoric markers increase significantly from the earlier to the later horror film (Them! and Night of the Living Dead) and from the earlier to the later crime drama (an episode from The Untouchables and the movie The Godfather). That increase is linked to indicators of significant decline in social cohesion in the US over 20 years, as tracked by Turchin in his Ages of Discord (2016).
A Blueprint for Characterizing Senescence

Given the heterogeneity of senescent cells, our knowledge of both the drivers and consequences of cellular senescence in tissues and organs remains limited, as is our understanding of how this process could be harnessed for human health. Here we identified five broad areas that would help propel the field forward.