cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Modeling Differences in Insect Developmental times between Constant and Fluctuating Temperatures

Developmental time data collected at constant temperatures poorly predicted developmental times of red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum (Herbst), and 16 other species at fluctuating temperatures over a broad range of mean temperatures or amplitudes of fluctuating temperatures. Developmental times at constant temperatures tended to be shorter above 25-30°C temperature range and longer below this range, than at fluctuating temperatures with the same means. Differences between developmental times at constant temperatures and those at fluctuating temperatures also tended to increase with the amplitude of fluctuating temperatures. Different methods were compared for predicting insect developmental times at fluctuating temperatures. One method made predictions by integrating constant temperature developmental time data over the 24-h fluctuating temperature cycle. This adjusts for the nonlinear relationship between temperature and developmental time. After making this adjustment, predictions were >40% closer on average to observed developmental times at fluctuating temperatures. With developmental time data collected at fluctuating temperatures, temperature-development equations can be fitted over a broader range of temperatures above and below those favorable for survival of insects at constant temperatures. When these equations were used to do integration, predictions of developmental times at fluctuating temperatures were even better, improving by ≈70%. Improvement may be a result partially of consideration of both the means and amplitudes of fluctuating temperatures in predicting developmental times. These methods provide an alternative to degree-day accumulation method for prediction of developmental times at fluctuating temperatures in the field.
A Biomechanical Comparative Analysis of Two Techniques for Tibiotalar Arthrodesis

Two commonly used techniques for tibiotalar fusion were quantitatively compared using instrumented testing of the strength of the construct. The tibiae and tali from 10 pairs of fresh-frozen cadaveric limbs were used. One joint of each pair was fused using two 6.5-mm crossed cancellous screws from proximal to distal while the contralateral joint was fused using two 6.5-mm parallel cancellous screws from distal to proximal. Each specimen was subjected to cantilever bending and torsional testing by servohydraulic actuators. The bending tests included plantarflexion, dorsiflexion, inversion, and eversion, and measured the load during deflection applied 10 cm distal to the fusion site. The rigidity was expressed as newtons per millimeter of deflection. The torsional tests measured construct stiffness in external and internal rotation, and were expressed as newton-meters per degree of rotation. For the bending tests, the crossed screw construct was more rigid in eversion (23.1 N/mm, P = .0004) and dorsiflexion (16.9 N/mm, P = .02), while the parallel screw construct was more rigid in inversion (22.8 N/mm, P = .02) and plantarflexion (22.3 N/mm, P = .0007). In torsional testing, the crossed screw construct was at least 1.5 times stiffer than the parallel screw construct in resisting internal (1.7 N-m/deg versus 0.9 N-m/deg, P = .0001) and external (1.4 N-m/deg versus 0.9 N-m/deg, P = .02) rotation. In laboratory testing, the crossed screw technique is more rigid than the parallel screws, especially in resisting torsional stresses.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Is directed blood transfusion a good idea

The appearance of transfusion-transmitted HIV infection has heightened awareness of dangers that have always been present. Directed donation, while no panacea, may provide one alternative.
d-Serine and the Pathophysiology of Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a chronic, disabling psychiatric disorder characterized by psychosis, cognitive impairments, and negative symptoms such as social withdrawal and anhedonia. Pathologic changes in the brain include cortical atrophy, loss of pyramidal cell dendritic complexity and spine density, ventricular enlargement, and reduction in intracellular mediators of neuronal plasticity. Acute blockade of N-methyl-d-aspartate receptors (NMDARs) with ketamine reproduces the full range of symptoms of schizophrenia in normal volunteers. A recent genome-wide association study revealed that many of the risk genes for schizophrenia interact directly with the NMDAR such as serine racemase (SR), which synthesizes its co-agonist, d-serine, or downstream mediators of NMDAR activity. Consistent with the genetic findings, alterations in the levels of SR, d-serine, and d-amino acid oxidase have been found in schizophrenia. Genetically silencing the SR gene (SR−/−) in mice causes an 85 % reduction of d-serine in the brain and reproduces the synaptic neuropathology of schizophrenia as well as the cognitive deficits and anhedonia. Treatment of adult SR−/− mice with d-serine to restore brain levels reverses most of the neuropathology and the cognitive deficits. Placebo-controlled clinical trials in schizophrenic patients on antipsychotic drugs with d-serine or agents that act at its site on the NMDAR have shown significant reductions in symptoms including psychosis. These findings support the hypothesis that drugs that enhance NMDAR function might be effective treatments for schizophrenia, especially the cognitive and negative symptoms, which are unaffected by current treatments.
Alice's adventures in wonderland 150th anniversary edition

Lewis Carroll is the pen name of Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, a Christ College, Oxford mathematician who made significant contributions to algebra and symbolic logic. Carroll is much more famous for a...
Why the stagnation in effective therapy for MDS

Abstract The question posed above assumes that we are going nowhere in therapies for myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) and asks, why? Yet, in recent years novel and effective therapies for MDS indeed have begun to emerge, particularly in patients with lower-risk disease. Beyond this, however, most of the progress has been limited to advances in allogeneic transplantation for higher-risk patients. This discussion will focus first on areas where we have moved beyond “stagnation,” including these advances in supportive care for lower-risk patients and in emerging transplant gains. Further, in areas that have not seen the same encouraging advances, suggestions are made on how to move the field forward. The promise for the future lies in finding more creative ways to partner molecular genetics, novel drugs, and novel clinical trial designs.
Design rules of ionic liquids tasked for highly efficient fuel desulfurization by mild oxidative extraction

Abstract The deep desulfurization of petroleum-based fuels using oxidative extraction processes has been hampered by the lack of suitable solvent systems and by the poor availability of inexpensive and efficient catalysts. As a strategy to address this limitation, the present study evaluates a number of hydrophilic and hydrophobic ionic liquids (ILs) for the oxidative extraction of dibenzothiophene (DBT) and other aromatic sulfur compounds (e.g., thiophene, TS, benzothiophene, BT, and 4,6-dimethyldibenzothiophene, DMDBT) from n -octane using H 2 O 2 as the oxidant and V 2 O 5 as the catalyst. Our findings are significant for petroleum desulfurization and suggest that ILs for effective sulfur removal will typically comprise low basicity/nucleophilicity anions paired to cations possessing some hydrophilic character. Among a number of suitable ILs identified for this application, [Choline][Tf 2 N] is particularly promising as a relatively low-cost solvent ideal for use in oxidative extraction to desulfurize fuel. The [Choline][Tf 2 N]–V 2 O 5 system afforded essentially quantitative removal of DBT, BT, and DMDBT at room temperature, even for initial sulfur levels as high as 3000 ppm. This advance enables a highly efficient and cost-effective desulfurization process that has a promising industrial application for producing ultra-low-sulfur fuel.
Chemical-Equilibrium Analysis with Adjoint Derivatives for Propulsion Cycle Analysis

The design optimization of aircraft engines considering their integration with the airframe has been limited by challenges with existing propulsion modeling tools. Gradient-based optimization with derivatives computed using adjoint methods has been successful in solving aerodynamic and structural shape optimization problems but has not yet been applied to coupled propulsion–airframe optimization, partly because existing tools lack analytic derivative computation. As a step toward obtaining a full cycle analysis with efficient analytic derivative computation, a new chemical-equilibrium thermodynamics solver is developed for propulsion applications. This solver provides a continuous formulation that enables analytic derivative computation using a coupled adjoint approach. The results from this solver are verified against a well-established chemical-equilibrium code. The analytic derivatives are also verified by comparing them with finite-difference approximations. The performance of the analytic derivative ...
Impact of the LIVESTRONG at the YMCA Program on physical activity, fitness, and quality of life in cancer survivors.

9508 Background: Physical activity (PA) has been linke d to cancer risk and outcomes, yet many survivors are inactive. We evaluated the impact of the LIVESTRONG at the YMCA program, an exercise pro...
Anatomical Description of Zygomatic Foramina in African American Skulls.

PURPOSE The zygomaticofacial/temporal/orbital nerve is a terminal branch of the zygomatic nerve and exits the orbit through zygomatic foramina. The nomenclature in the literature varies with some studies identifying all 3 foramina on the malar surface of the zygoma, while others describe each along different aspects of the zygoma. In this study, foramen on the malar surface of the zygoma is termed zygomatic foramen, and the authors describe anatomical variations in the position and number of these foramina in an African American population. METHODS Sixty-two African American skulls from the Hamann-Todd collection of the Cleveland Museum of Natural History were studied. The primary outcome was the number of zygomatic foramina on the malar surface of the zygomatic bone. Secondary outcomes included the location of foramina relative to the orbital rim and the frontozygomatic suture. Mean and standard deviation were used to describe measurements. Chi-squared and Wilcoxon signed rank tests were used to analyze measurements between left and right hemicrania. RESULTS The average number of foramina was 1.98 ± 0.93. More foramina were found on the right (2.13 ± 0.98) when compared with the left (1.68 ± 0.79; p = 0.001). The average distance between the lateral-most and medial-most foramina was 9.7 ± 5.0 mm. The distance from the orbital rim to the lateral foramen was 8.4 ± 4.2 mm, and distance from the orbital rim to the medial foramen was 7.7 ± 2.1 mm. The frontozygomatic suture was 22.9 ± 3.9 mm from the lateral foramen and 27.9 ± 3.6 mm from the medial foramen. CONCLUSION The locations of the foramina in relation to the frontozygomatic suture and orbital rim were consistent with other populations. However, in this African American population, more zygomatic foramina were noted compared with previously published results in Korean, Indian, Brazilian, and West Anatolian populations. Surgeons should be cognizant of zygomatic foramina in this population to reduce potential neurovascular complications.
Parenting children with down syndrome: An analysis of parenting styles, parenting dimensions, and parental stress.

Abstract Background Effective parenting is vital for a child’s development. Although much work has been conducted on parenting typically developing children, little work has examined parenting children with Down syndrome. Aims The purpose of the current study was to compare the parenting styles and dimensions in mothers of children with DS and mothers of TD children. Methods and procedures Thirty-five mothers of children with DS and 47 mothers of TD children completed questionnaires about parenting, parental stress, child behavior problems, and child executive function. Outcomes and results We found that mothers of children with DS use an authoritative parenting style less and a permissive parenting style more than mothers of TD children. Additionally, we found that mothers of children with DS use reasoning/induction and verbal hostility less and ignoring misbehavior more than mothers of TD children. All of these differences, except for those of reasoning/induction, were at least partially accounted for by the higher levels of parental stress in the DS group. Conclusions and implications Parenting interventions should be focused on reducing parental stress and training mothers to parent under stress in an effort to improve parenting techniques, which would, in theory, improve long-term child outcomes for children with DS.
Bordetella bronchiseptica in non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis

Abstract Bordetella bronchiseptica is a rare pulmonary infection, often associated with zoonotic transmission. It has been described in immunocompromised patients and those with underlying pulmonary disease. However, there are no case series describing the spectrum of disease caused by Bordetella bronchiseptica in patients with non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis. Here, we report three cases of Bordetella bronchiseptica infection in patients with non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis and highlight the pathophysiology of the microbe. While the clinical presentation can be quite variable, it is important to note that Bordetella bronchiseptica can be a cause of pulmonary exacerbations and can be difficult to eradicate.
Dynamic Stall of a Finite-Aspect-Ratio Wing

An investigation of dynamic stall on a pitching NACA 0012 aspect ratio 4 wing is performed by means of high-fidelity wall-resolved large-eddy simulations. The flow parameters are freestream Mach nu...
Chemical Ecology of Marine Sponges: New Opportunities through "-Omics".

Abstract The chemical ecology and chemical defenses of sponges have been investigated for decades; consequently, sponges are among the best understood marine organisms in terms of their chemical ecology, from the level of molecules to ecosystems. Thousands of natural products have been isolated and characterized from sponges, and although relatively few of these compounds have been studied for their ecological functions, some are known to serve as chemical defenses against predators, microorganisms, fouling organisms, and other competitors. Sponges are hosts to an exceptional diversity of microorganisms, with almost 40 microbial phyla found in these associations to date. Microbial community composition and abundance are highly variable across host taxa, with a continuum from diverse assemblages of many microbial taxa to those that are dominated by a single microbial group. Microbial communities expand the nutritional repertoire of their hosts by providing access to inorganic and dissolved sources of nutrients. Not only does this continuum of microorganism–sponge associations lead to divergent nutritional characteristics in sponges, these associated microorganisms and symbionts have long been suspected, and are now known, to biosynthesize some of the natural products found in sponges. Modern “omics” tools provide ways to study these sponge–microbe associations that would have been difficult even a decade ago. Metabolomics facilitate comparisons of sponge compounds produced within and among taxa, and metagenomics and metatranscriptomics provide tools to understand the biology of host–microbe associations and the biosynthesis of ecologically relevant natural products. These combinations of ecological, microbiological, metabolomic and genomics tools, and techniques provide unprecedented opportunities to advance sponge biology and chemical ecology across many marine ecosystems.
Intensive Care Unit Admission Following Surgery for Pediatric Spinal Deformity: An Analysis of the ACS-NSQIP Pediatric Spinal Fusion Procedure Targeted Dataset

Study Design:Retrospective cohort.Objective:To understand which patient and surgical factors are predictive of an increased odds of undergoing an admission and a prolonged stay >2 days in an intens...
A Secure Collaborative Module on Distributed SDN

Stability and security are the most important two release requirements of a modern application development process. As the number of users of an application increases, the network traffic grows. This results in an increase in the server load as well as the threats. If this traffic is not nicely controlled the user would experience a mitigation in application’s performance. To provide a continuous and secure service, the load on the system must be optimally distributed among multiple servers. In the literature, there are various algorithms that are proposed to balance the load on a system. In this study, we introduce a load balancing module for a generic web application to distribute the load optimally using Software Defined Networking (SDN) controllers. The proposed system employs a round-robin scheme for server allocation and implements an open-source SDN controller that runs inside a docker container. To provide reliability, the web application is developed using the ReactJS and NodeJS. The privacy and data confidentiality is provided by using the NISTs new format preserving encryption standard. The proposed method is suitable for real world applications as shown in the performance profiling that we carried using Openload toolset.
Clinical Utility of B- and T-Cell Gene Rearrangement Studies in Blood and Bone Marrow Samples

In the evaluation of bone marrow (BM) and peripheral blood (PB) for hematologic malignancy, positive immunoglobulin heavy chain (IG) or T-cell receptor (TCR) gene rearrangement results may be detected despite unrevealing results from morphologic, flow cytometric, immunohistochemical (IHC), and/or cytogenetic studies. The significance of positive rearrangement studies in the context of otherwise normal ancillary findings is unknown, and as such, we hypothesized that gene rearrangement studies may be predictive of an emerging B- or T-cell clone in the absence of other abnormal laboratory tests. Data from all patients who underwent IG or TCR gene rearrangement testing at the authors' affiliated VA Hospital between January 1, 2013 and July 6, 2018 were extracted from the electronic medical record. Date of testing; specimen source; and morphologic, flow cytometric, IHC, and cytogenetic characterization of the tissue source were recorded from pathology reports. Gene rearrangement results were categorized as true positive, false positive, false negative, or true negative. Lastly, patient records were reviewed for subsequent diagnosis of hematologic malignancy in patients with positive gene rearrangement results with negative ancillary testing. A total of 136 patients, who had 203 gene rearrangement studies (50 PB and 153 BM), were analyzed. In TCR studies, there were 2 false positives and 1 false negative in 47 PB assays, as well as 7 false positives and 1 false negative in 54 BM assays. Regarding IG studies, 3 false positives and 12 false negatives in 99 BM studies were identified. Sensitivity and specificity, respectively, were calculated for PB TCR studies (94% and 93%), BM IG studies (71% and 95%), and BM TCR studies (92% and 83%). Analysis of PB IG gene rearrangement studies was not performed due to the small number of tests (3; all true negative). None of the 12 patients with false positive IG/TCR gene rearrangement studies later developed a lymphoproliferative disorder, although two patients were later diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia. Of the 14 false negatives, 10 (71%) were related to a diagnosis of plasma cell neoplasms. Results from the present study suggest that positive IG/TCR gene rearrangement studies are not predictive of lymphoproliferative disorders in the context of otherwise negative BM or PB findings. As such, when faced with equivocal pathology reports, clinicians can be practically advised that isolated positive IG/TCR gene rearrangement results may not indicate the need for closer surveillance. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
Advanced supercritical water-based process concepts for treatment and beneficial reuse of brine in oil/gas production

Abstract Produced water generated from oil/gas reservoirs is a cost burden for oil/gas producers, with over 21 billion barrels of the waste generated in 2019. Average disposal costs range from $4.00–$8.00·bbl−1, with up to $20·bbl−1 spent on transportation alone. Dissolved solids content is a contributing factor which limits economical treatment options for this waste stream. This work proposes a novel technique that can handle high salinity waste, employing favorable properties past the critical point of water. In this study, process simulation of two supercritical water desalination (SCWD) scenarios was completed. Zero liquid discharge (ZLD) and brine concentration operating scenarios were compared, weighing the associated economics and benefits for each case. The results were shown to be economically feasible for brines with a high dissolved solids content, ranging from $3.49 to $17.28·bbl−1 in an expanded sensitivity analysis.
E-057 Admission CT perfusion may underestimate initial infarct core in isolated deep middle cerebral artery strokes

Background and purpose Proper identification of infarct core is crucial in establishing stroke prognosis and determining whether a patient might be a candidate for endovascular therapy (ET). We sought to study those cases in which admission CTP misses a core lesion that is present on initial non-contrast CT. Methods Review of a prospectively collected database of endovascular patients with anterior circulation Large vessel occlusion strokes from January 2014-November 2018. Only patients with an e-ASPECT score Results 629 patients qualified for the study. Median age was 64 [54–75], median NIHSS was 16 [12.5–21] and median time from last-known normal to CT was 317 mins [193–578]. 161 (25.6%) presented with a TMC. On univariate analysis a TMC was associated with isolated deep MCA strokes (77.6% vs 56.6%, p Conclusions Our results show that CT perfusion might miss infarct core in 25% of the case, especially in isolated deep MCA strokes. In those cases, a CT Perfusion based paradigm to determine eligibility for ET might not be as accurate. Future studies looking into the optimal selection tools for this patient population as well as refinements of the post-processing algorithms addressing this pitfall are warranted. Disclosures M. Bouslama: None. K. Ravindran: None. G. Rodrigues: None. L. Pisani: None. D. Haussen: None. C. Barreira: None. M. Frankel: None. R. Nogueira: 2; C; Stryker Neurovascular (Trevo-2 Trial PI - modest, DAWN Trial PI – no payment, Trevo Registry Steering Committee – no payment, Physician Advisory Board/Consultant - significant), Covidien/Medtronic (SWIFT and SWIFT-PRIME Steering Committee - modest, STAR Trial Core Lab - significant), Neuravi/Cerenovus (ARISE-II Trial Steering Committee – no payment, Physician Advisory Board - modest), Phenox (Physician Advisory Board/Consultant – modest), Genentech (Physician Advisory Board/Consultant – modest). 6; C; Penumbra (3-D Separator Trial Executive Committee – no payment).
Evaluation of dietary electrolyte balance on nursery pig performance

Increasing dietary electrolyte balance (dEB) has been reported to linearly improve pig growth performance up to approximately 200 to 250 mEq/kg. However, recent data indicate that increasing dietary dEB reduced growth performance of nursery pigs. To attempt to solve this discrepancy, a total of 2,880 weanling pigs (327 × 1,050; PIC, Hendersonville, TN; 5.2 kg initial BW) were used to determine the effects of increasing dEB on nursery pig performance. Pens of pigs were blocked by BW and gender on arrival. Within block, pens were randomly assigned to one of four dietary treatments. There were 30 pigs per pen (60 pigs per double-sided feeder) and 12 replications (feeder) per treatment. Dietary treatments were fed in two phases. The phase 1 diet was based on corn-soybean meal, contained dried distillers grains with soblubles (DDGS), spray-dried whey, and specialty protein sources, and was fed from days 0 to 8. The phase 2 (days 8 to 21) diets contained corn, soybean meal, and DDGS with reduced amounts of specialty protein sources. Dietary electrolyte balance was determined using the following equation: dEB = [(Na × 434.98) + (K × 255.74) - (Cl × 282.06)] mEq/kg. The dEB of the four phase 1 diets were 84, 137, 190, and 243 mEq/kg, and dEB of the four phase 2 diets were 29, 86, 143, and 199 mEq/kg. After feeding experimental diets for 21 day, a common, commercial corn-soybean meal diet was fed to all pigs from days 21 to 35 and contained a dEB of 257 mEq/kg. During days 0 to 8, increasing dEB increased (quadratic, P < 0.05) ADG, ADFI, and G:F. From days 8 to 21, increasing dEB improved ADG (quadratic, P = 0.022) and ADFI (linear, P = 0.001), resulting in an improvement (quadratic, P = 0.001) in G:F. Overall (days 0 to 21), increasing dEB increased (linear, P < 0.05) ADG, ADFI, and improved (quadratic, P < 0.001) G:F. When a common diet was fed to all pigs from days 21 to 35, there was a linear reduction in ADG and G:F with increasing dietary dEB, but no effect of ADFI. For the overall nursery period (days 0 to 35), increasing dEB from days 0 to 21 increased (linear, P < 0.001) ADG and final BW, which was the result of increased (quadratic, P < 0.05) G:F and marginally greater (linear, P = 0.077) ADFI. In conclusion, increasing dietary dEB up to 243 and 199 mEq/kg (in phases 1 and 2, respectively) in nursery diets improved growth performance of weanling pigs.
A phase 0 analysis of ixazomib in patients with glioblastoma

Improving overall survival in recurrent glioblastoma remains a challenge, and drugs acting by unique mechanisms are urgently required. Ixazomib is an orally-administered proteasome inhibitor used in combination with lenalidomide and dexamethasone to treat patients with multiple myeloma who have received at least one prior therapy. However, ixazomib's ability to reach brain tumors has not been studied during its development. The aim of the present study (ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02630030) was to establish and quantify ixazomib's presence in glioblastoma. The present study investigated 3 patients with recurrent glioblastoma after administration of oral ixazomib citrate (MLN 9708) at a fixed 4.0 mg dose within a 3-hpreoperative window. A total of 2 blood samples were taken from each patient at the time of incision, tumor sampling and closure. Brain tumor samples were collected during tumor resection. These samples were then used to measure the plasma and brain tumor tissue concentration of the biologically-active form of ixazomib (MLN 2238). Patient 1 had plasma concentrations of ixazomib averaging 26.2, 21.8 and 15.3 ng/ml at incision, tumor sampling and closure, respectively. The brain tumor tissue concentration was 7.88 ng/g. Patient 2 had the same interval and brain tumor tissue measurements of 19.0, 18.0 and 8.93 ng/ml, and 2.03 ng/g. Patient 3 had plasma concentration interval measurements of 25.6, 36.2 and 28.7 ng/ml. Multiple brain tumor tissue samples were taken in patient 3, with an average tissue ixazomib concentration of 3.37 ng/g. Ixazomib was found at plasma concentrations commensurate with its previously established pharmacokinetic profile without clinically relevant drug-related adverse events. Ixazomib reaches glioblastoma tissues at measurable concentrations at the time of tumor resection, confirming target tissue delivery. This justifies the phase I study of ixazomib in recurrent glioblastoma currently in development.
Training of photonic neural networks through in situ backpropagation and gradient measurement

Recently, integrated optics has gained interest as a hardware platform for implementing machine learning algorithms. Of particular interest are artificial neural networks, since matrix-vector multiplications, which are used heavily in artificial neural networks, can be done efficiently in photonic circuits. The training of an artificial neural network is a crucial step in its application. However, currently on the integrated photonics platform there is no efficient protocol for the training of these networks. In this work, we introduce a method that enables highly efficient, in situ training of a photonic neural network. We use adjoint variable methods to derive the photonic analogue of the backpropagation algorithm, which is the standard method for computing gradients of conventional neural networks. We further show how these gradients may be obtained exactly by performing intensity measurements within the device. As an application, we demonstrate the training of a numerically simulated photonic artificial neural network. Beyond the training of photonic machine learning implementations, our method may also be of broad interest to experimental sensitivity analysis of photonic systems and the optimization of reconfigurable optics platforms.
Rapid Transition to Virtual Care during the COVID-19 Epidemic: Experience of a Supportive Care Clinic at a Tertiary Care Cancer Center.

Background: COVID-19 pandemic necessitated rapid adoption of telemedicine at our supportive care center (SCC) to ensure continuity of care while maintaining social distancing. Objective: To document the process of transition from in-person to virtual care. Design: The charts of 1744 consecutive patients in our SCC located in the United States were retrospectively reviewed during the four weeks before transition (February 14-March 12), four weeks after transition (March 20-April 16), and transition week (March 13-March 19). Patient demographics, vital aspects of a supportive care visit such as assessments (Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale-Financial and Spiritual [ESAS-FS], Cut-down, Annoyed, Guilty, Eye-opener Screen-Adapted to Include Drugs [CAGE-AID], and Memorial Delirium Assessment Scale [MDAS]), interdisciplinary team involvement, and visit type were recorded. Results: In total 763 patients were seen before transition, 168 during the transition week, and 813 after transitioning to virtual care. Patient characteristics, ESAS-FS, CAGE-AID, and nurse assessment did not significantly differ among the three groups. The after-transition group had a small reduction in counseling intervention compared with before (20.2% vs. 26.2%; p = 0.0068). MDAS completion was higher after transition (99.6% vs. 98%; p = 0.007). In-person visits decreased from 100% before to 12.7% after transition (p < 0.0001) and virtual visits increased to 49.3% (video) and 38% (telephone). In-person visits decreased to 49% in the week one, 3% in week two, and <2% in week four after transition (p < 0.0001). Conclusions: Our supportive care team transitioned from in-person care to virtual visits within weeks while maintaining a high patient volume, continuity of care, and adherence to social distancing. Our transition can serve as a model for other centers.
Lecturas de "Hum Dekhenge" de Faiẓ Aḥmed Faiẓ. ¿Imágenes islámicas, revolución o sentimientos antihindúes?

This article examines the controversy caused by the Faiẓ Aḥmed Faiẓ’s poem “Hum Dekhenge” during the protests triggered by the approval of the Citizenship Amendment Act and the National Registry of Citizens at the end of 2019 in India. In addition to a Spanish translation of the actual text, it also offers a background of the debate, a biographical sketch of the poem’s author, and diverse interpretations. The production of meaning is a complex articulation between text, readers, and the sociopolitical context. “Hum Dekhenge” is a poem of various linguistic, literary, and political registers. Without question its reading is open to multiple possibilities.
Sustainable Buildings’ Projects – A Perspective from Consultants and Contractors based in Macau SAR, China

China growing awareness of sustainability has brought out relevant aspects to move towards a green environment. Since its subscription in 2016, China has been committed to implementing the Paris Agreement, and the Greater Bay Area (GBA) development plan prioritizes ecology and pursuing green development. The primary purpose of this research is to perceive the companies' insights concerning the implementation of sustainable buildings’ projects in Macau. For this multi-case study analysis, primary data was gathered from interviews with two groups involved in the construction projects’ lifecycle: Consultants and Contractors, to analyze different perceptions and concerns. The interviews considered two different themes about the main topic: (1) Perception on Companies’ Experience in Sustainable Projects; (2) Key Drivers towards Sustainable Buildings’ Projects’ Implementation. In conclusion, according to the analyzed data, it is essential to notice that companies’ background and the market particularities affect their corporate performance specially connected to the green construction frameworks. The data also indicate that it is necessary to move towards regulations and policies to change corporate and people's mindset.
Metabolic Targeting of Lactate Efflux by Malignant Glioma Inhibits Invasiveness and Induces Necrosis: An In Vivo Study

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) are the most malignant among brain tumors. They are frequently refractory to chemotherapy and radiotherapy with mean patient survival of approximately 6 months, despite surgical intervention. The highly glycolytic nature of glioblastomas describes their propensity to metabolize glucose to lactic acid at an elevated rate. To survive, GBMs efflux lactic acid to the tumor microenvironment through transmembrane transporters denoted monocarboxylate transporters (MCTs). We hypothesized that inhibition of MCT function would impair the glycolytic metabolism and affect both glioma invasiveness and survival. We examined the effect on invasiveness with α-cyano-4-hydroxy-cinnamic acid (ACCA, 4CIN, CHCA), a small-molecule inhibitor of lactate transport, through Matrigel-based and organotypic (brain) slice culture invasive assays using U87-MG and U251-MG glioma cells. We then conducted studies in immunodeficient rats by stereotaxic intracranial implantation of the glioma cells followed by programmed orthotopic application of ACCA through osmotic pumps. Effect on the implanted tumor was monitored by small-animal magnetic resonance imaging. Our assays indicated that glioma invasion was markedly impaired when lactate efflux was inhibited. Convection-enhanced delivery of inhibitor to the tumor bed caused tumor necrosis, with 50% of the animals surviving beyond the experimental end points (3 months after inhibitor exhaustion). Most importantly, control animals did not display any adverse neurologic effects during orthotopic administration of ACCA to brain through programmed delivery. These results indicate the clinical potential of targeting lactate efflux in glioma through delivery of small-molecule inhibitors of MCTs either to the tumor bed or to the postsurgical resection cavity.
Time-scale Separation and State Aggregation in Singularly Perturbed Switching Diffusions

This work presents asymptotic results for singularly perturbed switching diffusions consisting of diffusion components and a pure jump component. The states of the pure jump component are divisible into a number of groups having recurrent states. An aggregated process is obtained by collecting all the states in each recurrent group as one state. We show the aggregated process converges weakly to a switching diffusion with generator being an average with respect to the quasi-stationary distribution of the jump process.
A Market Process Analysis of Competition Policy in Latin America

This paper examines the institutional context where competition policy in Latin America is enforced. In particular, it places attention on the historical context of economic institutions in the region, and how these institutions have influenced competition policy enforcement. It also delineates three conditions necessary for competition policy enforcement in Latin American countries to achieve both efficiency and innovation development goals. First, the promotion of a pro-market policy agenda; second, the attention to the institutional incentives placed on competition agencies, and finally, the challenge of adverse anti-market social values where the policy is to be implemented. To develop this analysis, the paper develops an alternative analysis different from the mainstream efficiency-equity economic analysis, and focuses on neo-institutional development concepts of economic process.
Movement and Mob: The Democratic Revolution and its Discontents

In contemporary debates over how democracies should respond to mobility, the historical associations of democracy with movement and motion are typically overlooked. This paper explores three competing ways of figuring democratic motion in modernity: the mob, the movement, and the crowd. The idea of the mob grows out of depictions of the people as the mobile vulgus, the fickle and unruly populace, but also points to the instability and indeterminacy of the subject and action of democracy. The early nineteenth-century idea of the movement, by contrast, figures democracy’s motion as temporal: as a historical process that is irreversible and possibly beyond human control, but also incomplete and still open to transformation. Finally, in late nineteenth-century crowd psychology, as exemplified by the writings of Gustave Le Bon, the idea of the crowd seems at first glance to be a revival of the mobile vulgus, but involves a different and fundamentally depoliticized idea of democracy and democratic motion. I argue that although Le Bon’s idea of the crowd diminishes what is politically significant in the association of democracy with motion, the ideas of motion in the movement and especially the mob draw attention to important elements of democratic politics: not only its unruliness and changeability but also its indeterminacies and the risks that attend its openness. Those indeterminacies and risks warn against apathy and complacency, however, instead enjoining us to political action.
A novel inhibitor of cyclin-Cdk activity detected in transforming growth factor beta-arrested epithelial cells.

Abstract Transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) is a potent inhibitor of epithelial cell growth. Cyclins E and A in association with Cdk2 have been shown to play a role in the G1-to-S phase transition in mammalian cells. We have studied the effects of TGF-beta-mediated growth arrest on G1/S cyclins E and A. Inhibition of cyclin A-associated kinase by TGF-beta is primarily due to a decrease in cyclin A mRNA and protein. By contrast, while TGF-beta inhibits accumulation of cyclin E mRNA, the reduction in cyclin E protein is minimal. Instead, we find that the activation of cyclin E-associated kinase that normally accompanies the G1-to-S phase transition is inhibited. A novel inhibitor of cyclin-Cdk complexes was detected in TGF-beta-treated cell lysates. Inhibition is mediated by a heat-stable protein that targets both Cdk2 and Cdc2 kinases. In G0-arrested cells, a similar inhibitor of Cdk2 kinase was detected. These data suggest the existence of an inhibitor of cyclin-dependent kinases induced under different conditions to mediate antiproliferative responses.
Rac1 Is Required for Matrix Metalloproteinase 13 Production by Chondrocytes in Response to Fibronectin Fragments

Objective Matrix fragments, including fibronectin (FN) fragments, accumulate during the development of osteoarthritis (OA), stimulating the production of chondrocyte matrix metalloproteinase (MMP). The objective of this study was to determine the role of the small GTPase Rac1 in chondrocyte signaling stimulated by FN fragments, which results in MMP-13 production. Methods Normal human cartilage was obtained from tissue donors and OA cartilage from knee arthroplasty specimens. Rac1 activity was modulated with a chemical inhibitor, by knockdown with small interfering RNA (siRNA), or with constitutively active Rac or dominant-negative Rac adenovirus. Cells were treated with FN fragments, with or without epidermal growth factor (EGF) or transforming growth factor α (TGFα), which are known activators of Rac. Rac1 activity was measured with a colorimetric activity enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, a pulldown assay, and immunostaining with a monoclonal antibody against active Rac. Results Chemical inhibition of Rac1, as well as knockdown by siRNA and expression of dominant-negative Rac, blocked FN fragment–stimulated MMP-13 production, while expression of constitutively active Rac increased MMP-13 production. Inhibition of Rho-associated kinase had no effect. EGF and TGFα, but not FN fragments, increased Rac1 activity and promoted the increase in MMP-13 above that achieved by stimulation with FN fragments alone. Active Rac was detected in OA cartilage by immunostaining. Conclusion Rac1 is required for FN fragment–induced signaling that results in increased MMP-13 production. EGF receptor ligands, which activate Rac, can promote this effect. The presence of active Rac in OA cartilage and the ability of Rac to stimulate MMP-13 production suggest that it could play a role in the cartilage matrix destruction seen in OA.
Germination Requirements of Bacillus macerans Spores

2-Phenylacetamide is an effective germinant for spores of five strains of Bacillus macerans, particularly in the presence of fructose. Benzyl penicillin, the phenyl acetamide derivative of penicillin, and phenylacetic acid are also good germinants. l-Asparagine is an excellent germinant for four strains. alpha-Amino-butyric acid is moderately effective. Pyridoxine, pyridoxal, adenine, and 2,6-diaminopurine are potent germinants for NCA strain 7X1 only. d-Glucose is a powerful germinant for strain B-70 only. d-Fructose and d-ribose strongly potentiate germination induced by other germinants (except l-asparagine) but have only weak activity by themselves. Niacinamide and nicotinamide-adenine dinucleotide, inactive by themselves, are active in the presence of fructose or ribose. Effects of pH, ion concentration, and temperature are described.
Dispersive superfluid-like shock waves in nonlinear optics

In most classical fluids, shock waves are strongly dissipative, their energy being quickly lost through viscous damping. But in systems such as cold plasmas, superfluids and Bose–Einstein condensates, where viscosity is negligible or non-existent, a fundamentally different type of shock wave can emerge whose behaviour is dominated by dispersion rather than dissipation. Dispersive shock waves are difficult to study experimentally, and analytical solutions to the equations that govern them have only been found in one dimension (1D). By exploiting a well-known, but little appreciated, correspondence between the behaviour of superfluids and nonlinear optical materials, we demonstrate an all-optical experimental platform for studying the dynamics of dispersive shock waves. This enables us to observe the propagation and nonlinear response of dispersive shock waves, including the interaction of colliding shock waves, in 1D and 2D. Our system offers a versatile and more accessible means for exploring superfluid-like and related dispersive phenomena.
Superionic Conductors As Fast, Repetitive Opening Switches

ABSTRACTWhen subjected to modest levels of illumination (1W /cm2) of green light, the fast -ion conductor Ag13IgW208exhibits an order of magnitude decrPace in conductivity. This effect is fast and repetitive, but experimentsreveal problems with the material in the form of serious aging (shelf -life) effects that are accelerated inthe presence of strong illumination.1. INIRODUCTJONThere is a perceived need for a fast repetitive opening switch for a variety of applications. Many fastclosing switches exist, including optical devices driven by laser triggers and photoelectric effects.However, most fast opening switches are essentially fuses and are therefore not repetitive.In 1978, in this laboratory, an unexpected effect was found- in a fast -ion conductor ( "superionic"conductor) Ag13I9W208: The electrical conductivity decreased by approximately an order of magnitude when thematerial was illuminated with relatively modest power ('1W /cm2) of green 514...mam light from an argon ionlaser, as shown in fig. 1. In most materials there is either no change in conductivity in the presence ofsuch illumination, or else there is small increase in conductivity due to the photoproduction of electron -hole pairs (the usual photoelectric effect):
Academic Medicine's Changing Covenant with Society.

The traditional and mutually accepted covenant between academic medicine and society had its origin in trust and was based on the premise that academic medicine's programs and commitments were in society's best interests, thus justifying generous support and the privilege of self-regulation. In cont
Fabrication of photonic crystals with sub-100 nm features using multiphoton lithography with pre-swollen resins

Pre-swelling of resins has allowed the fabrication of photonic crystals with linewidths below 100 nm using multiphoton lithography at 730 nm. The resulting polymer photonic crystals show stop-band reflectivities over 70% at ∼1.8 µm.
The composition of the stone meteorites and the origin of the meteorites

Abstract A study has been made of some 350 chemical analyses of stone meteorites available in the literature, and criteria have been applied in an attempt to select those which are more reliable. It is found that the chondrites fall into two distinct groups with regard to both the total iron content and the oxidation state of the iron. These groups cannot be related by any simple mixing process and thus indicate that the meteorites have been derived from two rather different parent objects rather than from a single body. It appears that preferential volatilization of silicates and retention of nickel-iron operating to a different extent during a high temperature stage in the evolution of the asteroids may explain the different compositions of the two groups of chondrites. The implications of these data with respect to the cosmic abundances of the elements are discussed, and it is concluded that Goldschmidt 's abundances for iron and nickel are too high. It is postulated that the parent asteroids went through a low temperature accumulation process, a high temperature stage of partial melting and evaporation, a stage of collisions with smaller objects which produced brecciated and tuffitic agglomerations of material and chondrules; and finally a collision of two such objects compacted the material into the meteorites, preserving however the essential differences in composition between the two groups.