cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Monitoring of degradation in thermally aged nylon 6,6. I. UV-visible absorption spectrophotometry†

The absorbance of chromophores developed upon thermal aging of a typical nylon 6,6 yarn is investigated. The absorbance is found to correlate with the degree of tensile strength loss suffered by the yarn during the aging process. The measurement is shown to be quite sensitive, as the absorbance from samples with levels of strength loss as low as 5% has been monitored. It is predicted that similar samples with only 1–2% tensile strength loss should be distinguishable from control samples using this technique. Implications for the monitoring of aging at ambient temperatures are discussed.
Ethane hydrogenolysis over single crystals of nickel: Direct detection of structure sensitivity

Abstract Single crystal catalysts have been used to investigate ethane hydrogenolysis. The apparatus used in these studies allows for catalyst preparation and surface characterization in ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) with an in vacuo transfer to a second UHV chamber designed for high pressure kinetic studies. Kinetic measurements on single crystals of nickel show the hydrogenolysis of ethane to be “structure sensitive”. Absolute rate and activation energy differences are observed over different facets of nickel. The (100) surface is observed to be significantly more active for this reaction than the (111) surface.
H. M.’s Medial Temporal Lobe Lesion: Findings from Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Although neuropsychological studies of the amnesic patient H. M. provide compelling evidence that normal memory function depends on the medial temporal lobe, the full extent of his surgical resection has not been elucidated. We conducted magnetic resonance imaging studies to specify precisely the extent of his bilateral resection and to document any other brain abnormalities. The MRI studies indicated that the lesion was bilaterally symmetrical and included the medial temporal polar cortex, most of the amygdaloid complex, most or all of the entorhinal cortex, and approximately half of the rostrocaudal extent of the intraventricular portion of the hippocampal formation (dentate gyrus, hippocampus, and subicular complex). The collateral sulcus was visible throughout much of the temporal lobe, indicating that portions of the ventral perirhinal cortex, located on the banks of the sulcus, were spared; the parahippocampal cortex (areas TF and TH) was largely intact. The rostrocaudal extent of the ablation was ∼5.4 cm (left) and 5.1 cm (right). The caudal 2 cm, approximately, of the hippocampus body (normal length, ∼4 cm) was intact, although atrophic. The temporal stem was intact. Outside the temporal lobes, the cerebellum demonstrated marked atrophy, and the mammillary nuclei were shrunken. The lateral temporal, frontal, parietal, and occipital lobe cortices appeared normal for age 66 years. The mediodorsal thalamic nuclei showed no obvious radiological changes. These findings reinforce the view that lesions of the hippocampal formation and adjacent cortical structures can produce global and enduring amnesia and can exacerbate amnesia beyond that seen after more selective hippocampal lesions.
Do Maternal Warm and Encouraging Statements Reduce Shy Toddlers' Social Reticence?

Early and persistent shyness is associated with increased risk for social anxiety and other poor social outcomes. Although numerous intervention efforts have been directed at reducing this risk by modifying shy or inhibited children's social behaviours toward peers, few have utilized parents despite their particular influence on young children's social interactions, and none have targeted children younger than preschool age. We evaluated the influence of two maternal parenting behaviours, verbal expressions of warmth and verbal encouragement of play, on shy toddlers' social behaviours with unfamiliar peers. We found that the encouragement statements, but not the warm statements, reduced social reticence in shy children. These findings suggest that maternal behaviours that encourage peer social play have the potential to teach shy toddlers to approach instead of avoid social novelty and merit further study. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
D-Stampede: distributed programming system for ubiquitous computing

We focus on an important problem in ubiquitous computing, namely, programming support for the distributed heterogeneous computing elements that make up this environment. We address the interactive, dynamic, and stream-oriented nature of this application class and develop appropriate computational abstractions in the D-Stampede distributed programming system. The key features of D-Stampede include indexing data streams temporally, correlating different data streams temporally, performing automatic distributed garbage collection of unnecessary stream data, supporting high performance by exploiting hardware parallelism where available, supporting platform and language heterogeneity, and dealing with application level dynamism. We discuss the features of D-Stampede, the programming ease it affords, and its performance.
Sexually dimorphic gene expression in mouse brain precedes gonadal differentiation

The classic view of brain sexual differentiation and behavior is that gonadal steroid hormones act directly to promote sex differences in neural and behavioral development. In particular, the actions of testosterone and its metabolites induce a masculine pattern of brain development, while inhibiting feminine neural and behavioral patterns of differentiation. However, recent evidence indicates that gonadal hormones may not solely be responsible for sex differences in brain development and behavior between males and females. Here we examine an alternative hypothesis that genes, by directly inducing sexually dimorphic patterns of neural development, can influence the sexual differences between male and female brains. Using microarrays and RT-PCR, we have detected over 50 candidate genes for differential sex expression, and confirmed at least seven murine genes which show differential expression between the developing brains of male and female mice at stage 10.5 days post coitum (dpc), before any gonadal hormone influence. The identification of genes differentially expressed between male and female brains prior to gonadal formation suggests that genetic factors may have roles in influencing brain sexual differentiation.
Are Competencies Universal or Situational? A State-Level Investigation of Collaborative Competencies

Pioneering work on competencies provided evidence that traits, motives, and self-concepts predict success in a particular job context. Research furthered this line of investigation by identifying c...
JetBlue Airways IPO Valuation

This case examines the April 2002 decision of JetBlue management to price the initial public offering of JetBlue stock during one of the worst periods in airline history. The case outlines JetBlue's innovative strategy and the associated strong financial performance over its initial two years. Students are invited to value the stock and take a position on whether the current filing range of $22 to $24 a share is appropriate. The case is designed to showcase corporate valuation using discounted cash flow and peer-company market multiples. The epilogue details the 67% first-day rise in JetBlue stock from the $27 offer price. With such a backdrop, students are exposed to one of the well-known finance anomalies--IPO underpricing--and are invited to discuss various proposed explanations. The case provides opportunities for the instructor to develop any of the following teaching objectives: (1) review the instructional aspects of the equity-issuance transaction, (2) explore the costs and benefits associated with public share offerings, (3) develop an appreciation for the challenges of valuing unseasoned firms, (4) hone corporate-valuation skills, particularly using market multiples, and (5) evaluate the received explanations for various finance anomalies such as IPO underpricing.
Peptide Ligation via the Suzuki–Miyaura Cross-Coupling Reaction

Chemoselective ligation of two 28-mer peptides has been accomplished using the Suzuki–Miyaura cross-coupling reaction at or near physiological temperature in an aqueous solution containing sodium dodecyl sulfate in 83% yield. The effects of Pd source, solvent, base, and temperature were investigated, and the optimized reaction conditions were studied for compatibility with naturally present and artificially introduced functional groups in peptides including S-protected thiol and azide. The peptide conjugations were carried out in high yield (90%) with their functional groups intact. This method also allowed for facile introduction of an affinity tag or fluorescent probe into 20-mer peptides in >80% yield. These results suggest that the Suzuki–Miyaura cross-coupling is useful for multiple conjugations of peptides in conjunction with conventional conjugation reactions performed in sequence.
Multidisciplinary analysis and synthesis - Needs and opportunities

A comprehensive evaluation is conducted of structural analysis and synthesis opportunities which emerge through a multidisciplinary design program approach that simultaneously and interactively encompasses, in its determination of a given aircraft design, aerodynamics, structure, structural dynamics, materials, controls, and propulsion. In this way, it becomes possible to rapidly exploit technological advances in order to yield synergistic effects among configurational subsystems. The aircraft type presently considered as recipients of this treatment are commercial transports, high performance military aircraft, rotorcraft, and large space antennas, giving attention to common features among the multidisciplinary design tasks represented.
Clinical guidelines: Clearing murky water — a guideline-based approach to haematuria

The various clinical guidelines on the workup and initial management of a patient presenting with haematuria are based on limited scientific evidence. Survey data suggest that these guidelines are inconsistently applied, perhaps owing to variations between guidelines and the lack of higher level evidence. Nonetheless, based on existing evidence and appropriate risk stratification, Nielsen and Qaseem describe a haematuria workup that is safe, appropriately aggressive, and cost-effective.
Cross-sectional investigation on mother-infant block of HIV in Xinjiang,2011━2012

Objective To investigate current situation of mother-infant block of HIV,to provide scientific basis for mother-infant block in Xinjiang.Methods Medication compliance and infection rates of 135 mothers and infants with confirmed positive antibody to HIV in maternity and child care centers of Yining City,Kashi City and Yining County were investigated.Results Infection rates of the infants were at low levels.Effect of blocking drugs together with artificial feeding was remarkable to the positive pregnant and postnatal women,but medication program and time were complicated.The program was as many as 14 kinds for pregnant and postnatal women,and withdrawal time varied in different lengths.Neonatal program was consistent,but taking time was too long to 46 days,and too short to 7 days.Infection rate of infants with HIV was 3.70% by laboratory DBS testing.Conclusions Effect of mother-infant block of HIV is obvious.Training of theory and knowledge should be carried out in medical personnel.Knowledge culture in medical personnel and medication idea of pregnant and postnatal women needs improving.
Lobular carcinoma in situ. Pathology and treatment.

Is lobular carcinoma in situ really cancer? Current evidence suggests that it is a marker of increased cancer risk, not a stage in an inevitable progression to invasive disease. Approximately 20 to 30 per cent of patients will develop invasive cancer of various histologic types, with the frequencies in the biopsied and contralateral breast being the same. Controversy remains about the proper management, with a slim majority of US physicians favoring observation now that mammography is available. The patient’s wishes will properly continue to be part of the final decision.
Liberation Ethics and Transcendental Phenomenology

Enrique Dussel’s Etica de la Liberacion en la Edad de la Globalizacion y de la Exclusion seeks to correct the Eurocentric understanding of the history of philosophy, particularly modernity, and to develop an ethics that can play a role in transforming the present economic and political structures that oppress the majority of humanity. In his Etica, Dussel dismisses Husserlian transcendental phenomenology as an inadequate approach to understanding the subject in favor of Heidegger’s concrete Being-in-the-World. Despite the seeming disconnection between Dussel and transcendental phenomenology, I will make use of aspects of Husserlian transcendental phenomenology to criticize Dussel’s theory of modernity, his objection to formalistic ethics, and his approach to economics. I will show that Dussel’s work could profit from explicitly relying upon transcendental phenomenological underpinnings and that without such phenomenological bases, his own work would be imperiled.
Excess thermodynamic properties of glassforming liquids: The rational scaling of heat capacities, and the thermodynamic fragility dilemma resolved

Abstract With the overall objective of clarifying some perennial issues with the concept of liquid fragility, and with thermodynamic fragility in particular focus, we review the determination of excess thermodynamic properties of liquids as the temperature rises above T g . We treat the compressibility first, as it is the one most commonly encountered in theory where it may be derived from the radial distribution function (specifically, from its Fourier transform (the structure factor) at zero wave vector), and is known to be proportional to the mean square density fluctuation. We show that the compressibility of glassforming liquids, and also the difference in compressibility between liquid and glass, always decreases as T g is approached with the exception of a few water-like (anomalous) liquids. Secondly we examine the heat capacity which is favored in the analysis of glassforming liquid behavior. Contrasting with the compressibility, the excess heat capacity (determined by entropy fluctuations), mostly increases as temperature approaches T g (with the same exceptions). But here we encounter the problem of the appropriate scaling of the measured molar quantity, which plagues comparisons of ∆ C p between different substances. We solve this problem by defining C p as an entropy derivative and scaling by the absolute excess entropy at T g - which avoids the need for “beads” or other artificial scaling methods. Finally, we revisit the subject of thermodynamic fragility, which has been discussed before using a related scaling strategy.
Knockout of Lysosomal Enzyme-Targeting Gene Causes Abnormalities in Mouse Pup Isolation Calls

Humans lacking a working copy of the GNPTAB gene suffer from the metabolic disease Mucolipidosis type II (MLII). MLII symptoms include mental retardation, skeletal deformities and cartilage defects as well as a speech delay with most subjects unable to utter single words (Otomo et al., 2009; Cathey et al., 2010; Leroy et al., 2012). Here we asked whether mice lacking a copy of Gnptab gene exhibited vocal abnormities. We recorded ultrasonic vocalizations from 5 to 8 day old mice separated from their mother and littermates. Although Gnptab-/- pups emitted a similar number of calls, several features of the calls were different from their wild type littermates. Gnptab-/- mice showed a decrease in the length of calls, an increase in the intra-bout pause duration, significantly fewer pitch jumps with smaller mean size, and an increase in the number of isolated calls. In addition, Gnptab-/- mice vocalizations had less power, particularly in the higher frequencies. Gnptab+/- mouse vocalizations did not appear to be affected. We then attempted to classify these recordings using these features to determine the genotype of the animal. We were able to correctly identify 87% of the recordings as either Gnptab-/- or Gnptab+/+ pup, significantly better than chance, demonstrating that genotype is a strong predictor of vocalization phenotype. These data show that deletion of genes in the lysosomal enzyme targeting pathway affect mouse pup isolation calls.
Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor (G-CSF) Stimulates Sympathetic Nervous System Activity in the Bone Marrow

Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) is the agent most commonly used clinically to elicit hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) mobilization from the bone marrow (BM) to the peripheral blood. Our previous studies indicate the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) controls G-CSF-induced HSPCs egress from the BM and that G-CSF decreases catecholamine levels in bone/BM tissues (Cell 2006; 124:407). However the molecular basis for this depletion is unknown. Here we show that G-CSF stimulates selectively the activity of the SNS in bone/BM microenvironment in mice. Norepinephrine (NE), a catecholamine and the principal neurotransmitter of the SNS, is synthesized by the rate-limiting enzyme tyrosine hydroxylase (TH). Since TH is a catecholaminergic marker which reflects the extent of sympathetic innervation, we evaluated its expression in bone/BM tissues after G-CSF treatment. TH immunofluorescence staining analysis in longitudinal frozen sections of femurs exhibited a strong punctuate staining of the catecholamine-producing enzyme that was increased 10-fold in G-CSF-treated mice compared to control animals. This result was also confirmed by Western blot analysis of equal amount of protein obtained from BM lysates of G-CSF-treated and control animals. Because NE release and removal from the extracellular space determine tissue NE turnover and regulate the sympathetic activation, we evaluated NE release and uptake in sympathetic cervical ganglia (SCG) in organ cultures treated with G-CSF. Although the release of [3H]NE from cultured ganglia was not affected by G-CSF, we found a significant reduction in the reuptake rate. NE clearance from the synaptic cleft is mediated by the Na+-dependent NE transporter (NET). NET is selectively expressed and localized in lipid rafts of the plasma membrane of the noradrenergic nerve terminals and it is internalized as a result of its down-regulation. We thus isolated lipid rafts from BM homogenized in lysis buffer containing 1% Triton X-100 and subjected to sucrose gradient centrifugation. We found that G-CSF induced the redistribution of NET from the plasma membrane as revealed by a strong reduction of NET levels in BM lipid raft-enriched gradient fractions and by an increase of NET levels in BM non-raft fractions following G-CSF treatment. Moreover Q-PCR analysis of catecholamine-inactivating enzymes revealed reduced mRNA levels of the monoamine oxidase (MAO) and the catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) enzymes derived from BM of mice injected with G-CSF compared to untreated animals. Altogether, these results demonstrate that G-CSF treatment affects NE turnover impairing the removal of NE from the synaptic cleft and therefore leading to an increase of the concentration of the extracellular NE. A likely consequence is a prolongation of the postsynaptic action of NE on its receptors and ultimately an augmented sympathetic activity in the bone marrow microenvironment.
Modeling Tsunami Induced Debris Impacts on Bridge Structures using the Material Point Method

Abstract Bridges represent a key part of infrastructure, playing a critical role in emergency response and post-event reconstruction. In this context, it is important for bridges to be able to survive both ground shaking and the effects of tsunamis. This paper focuses on numerically modeling bridge loading due to tsunamis. Although several studies have addressed the effect tsunami loads on bridges, few have examined the influence of debris carried by the tsunami. These problems involve complex contact interactions between solids and fluids that are not easily accommodated using typical fluid-oriented or solids-oriented numerical frameworks. In this paper the material point method (MPM) is used to address fluid and solid (moving and stationary) interactions with emphasis in evaluating demands on bridge superstructures by tsunami-driven debris. Two parametric studies have been conducted in this study. The first is aimed at understanding the influence of the contact area and the eccentricity of impact on the impact forces. The results show that the effect of these two factors are reduced with an increase in longitudinal length of the solid object. The second part of the study tries to evaluate the difference between tsunami driven debris impact loads and in-air debris impact loads. The results indicate that tsunami driven debris impacts tend to be larger by upto 35% compared to only in-air impact forces calculated using empirical equations.
Weight-related abuse: impact of perpetrator-victim relationship on binge eating and internalizing symptoms

Disordered eating and weight problems are associated with experiencing childhood abuse. While weight-related abuse (WRA; teasing and verbal abuse specific to one’s weight) uniquely predicts disorde...
Efficient data structures for density estimation for large high-dimensional data

Density estimation is a fundamental part of statistical analysis and data mining. In high-dimensional domains, parametric methods and the commonly used non-parametric methods like histograms or Kernel estimators fail to perform properly. In this paper, we present computationally efficient data structures for efficient implementation of the Bayesian sequential partitioning (BSP), as a framework for density estimation in high-dimensional domain. Simulation results are presented to analyze the performance for large high-dimensional datasets.
The Holy See and the Catholic Community in the 2016 Presidential Election

Gerald P. Fogarty provides a broad history of the role of the Holy See in the US, from the period of independence through the 2016 presidential election, as well as the changing status of US Catholics over time. His analysis addresses, in particular, the changing attitudes over time of Catholics toward Church authority. Fogarty concludes his analysis with how the Catholic community engaged in the 2016 election and the issues of concern to Catholics being addressed in the early days of the Trump Administration.
Gauge Invariance and Mass. II

The possibility that a vector gauge field can imply a nonzero mass particle is illustrated by the exact solution of a one-dimensional model.
[102] Life on the Slippery Lane—Between Mathematics and Physics

Last week when many of us were listening to Andy’s official “last” lecture, I could not help recalling the first time I heard him. Unbelievably it was thirty-five years ago—in 1958 at Michigan. I remembered his energy, his beautiful writing, and above all that certain something that always alerts us to the fact that we are in the presence of a master.
A Service logic for Service Science

There are two distinct logics that could provide the foundation for the development of service(s) science. One, goods-dominant logic, is based on the idea that services are special forms of intangible goods and therefore points toward a model concerned with the production of intangible units of output. The other is based on a concept of service as a process of the cocreation of reciprocal value. We propose that a service science built on the latter, servicedominant logic, is more likely to result in a science that makes significant strides in the knowledge base than is a services science based on a goods logic. We then point toward additional foundational shifts that are indicated by the adoption of this service logic.
Idiopathic, Infectious and Reactive Lesions of the Ear and Temporal Bone

A number of infectious, inflammatory and idiopathic lesions develop within otologic tissues that may share similar clinical and/or microscopic features. This review first provides a working classification for otitis externa, and then otitis media and includes two recently described entities, eosinophilic otitis media and otitis media with ANCA-associated vasculitis. Next, the microscopic findings of a spectrum of otopathologic conditions are described, including post-inflammatory conditions such as tympanosclerosis and aural polyps, an overview of animate aural foreign body as well as iatrogenic aural foreign body reactions. Finally, a review of fungal disease affecting the ear with a brief synopsis of Candida auris, a recently described and virulent organism, is presented.
5-Methoxyquinoline Photobasicity Is Mediated by Water Oxidation.

A mechanism explaining the photobasicity of 5-methoxyquinoline (5-MeOQ) is proposed on the basis of nonadiabatic molecular dynamics simulations using time-dependent hybrid density functional theory (TDDFT) and fewest switches surface hopping (SH) and analysis of existing ultrafast spectroscopy experiments. According to the TDDFT- SH simulations, the rate-determining step is hole transfer from photoexcited 5-MeOQ to adjacent water molecules within ∼ 5 ps, followed by rapid electron-coupled pro- ton transfer and deactivation to the ground state. This fast redox-catalyzed proton transfer mechanism is consistent with simple thermodynamic arguments, correlated wavefunction calculations, and recent isotope substitution time-resolved fluorescence experiments. Although energetically feasible, direct protonation of 5-MeOQ in the S1 state appears to be too slow to contribute significantly to 5-MeOQ photobasicity in aqueous solution.
Insulin Resistance and Cardiovascular Disease

The worldwide prevalence of obesity doubled from 1980 to 2008. It is well recognized that hypertension, dyslipidemia, insulin resistance (IR), and obesity increase the risk for cardiovascular (CV) events in adults. There are numerous proposed mechanisms to explain the association between IR and early CV disease. These include actions at the level of the vascular endothelium, including alterations in the normal vasodilatory nitric oxide response, increased proinflammatory chemokines, and decreased levels of adiponectin (an anti-inflammatory adipocyte). Hyperglycemia, which is associated with insulin resistance, has also been implicated in endothelial dysfunction through several mechanisms that result in decreased nitric oxide bioavailability or nitric oxide production. Compensatory increases in insulin secretion have also been implicated in the development of hypertension through actions at the level of the kidney, as well as stimulation of the sympathetic nervous system. Despite the lack of hard cardiovascular events in children with insulin resistance, a growing body of evidence suggests that insulin resistance in youth results in target organ damage (TOD). In obese youth, insulin resistance is associated with increased left ventricular mass and abnormal vascular structure and function. In order to reduce cardiovascular disease (CVD) in adults, CV risk must be addressed in youth. The 2011 National Institutes of Health (NIH) guidelines on CV risk reduction in youth provide an evidence base for identifying and managing major CV risk factors (CVRF) from infancy to young adulthood. Many of the interventions focusing on CVRF reduction have been shown to improve insulin sensitivity and target organ damage. Lifestyle modifications that include improved diet and exercise patterns and/or weight loss and use of insulin-sensitizing medications are associated with reduction in insulin resistance. This improvement in metabolic control is, in turn, associated with reduction in levels of CV target organ damage. Diagnosis and treatment of IR in youth is imperative to prevent target organ damage that can lead to premature cardiovascular disease.
Customizable high-throughput platform for profiling cofactor recruitment to DNA to characterize cis-regulatory elements and screen non-coding single-nucleotide polymorphisms

Determining how DNA variants affect the binding of regulatory complexes to cis-regulatory elements (CREs) and non-coding single-nucleotide polymorphisms (ncSNPs) is a challenge in genomics. To address this challenge, we have developed CASCADE (Comprehensive ASsessment of Complex Assembly at DNA Elements), which is a protein-binding microarray (PBM)-based approach that allows for the high-throughput profiling of cofactor (COF) recruitment to DNA sequence variants. The method also enables one to infer the identity of the transcription factor-cofactor (TF-COF) complexes involved in COF recruitment. We use CASCADE to characterize regulatory complexes binding to CREs and SNP quantitative trait loci (SNP-QTLs) in resting and stimulated human macrophages. By profiling the recruitment of the acetyltransferase p300 and MLL methyltransferase component RBBP5, we identify key regulators of the chemokine CXCL10, and by profiling a set of five functionally diverse COFs we identify a prevalence of ETS sites mediating COF recruitment at SNP-QTLs in macrophages. Our results demonstrate that CASCADE is a customizable, high-throughput platform to link DNA variants with the biophysical complexes that mediate functions such as chromatin modification or remodeling in a cell state-specific manner.
Facilitated self-assembly of a prevascularized dermal/epidermal collagen scaffold.

Introduction: Resurfacing complex full thickness wounds requires free tissue transfer which creates donor site morbidity. We describe a method to fabricate a skin flap equivalent with a hierarchical microvascular network. Materials & methods: We fabricated a flap of skin-like tissue containing a hierarchical vascular network by sacrificing Pluronic® F127 macrofibers and interwoven microfibers within collagen encapsulating human pericytes and fibroblasts. Channels were seeded with smooth muscle and endothelial cells. Constructs were topically seeded with keratinocytes. Results: After 28 days in culture, multiphoton microscopy revealed a hierarchical interconnected network of macro- and micro-vessels; larger vessels (>100 μm) were lined with a monolayer endothelial neointima and a subendothelial smooth muscle neomedia. Neoangiogenic sprouts formed in the collagen protodermis and pericytes self-assembled around both fabricated vessels and neoangiogenic sprouts. Conclusion: We fabricated a prevascularized scaffold containing a hierarchical 3D network of interconnected macro- and microchannels within a collagen protodermis subjacent to an overlying protoepidermis with the potential for recipient microvascular anastomosis.
Vaccine Literacy-helping Everyone Decide to Accept Vaccination.

Vaccines are one of our most visible successes in medical science. Originally developed in the 18th century, vaccination initiatives since the first one targeting smallpox have decreased sickness a...
Lower Levels of Classroom Aggression Predict Stronger Relations Between Peer Victimization and Reactive Versus Proactive Aggression.

We examined the concurrent relations of children’s reactive and proactive aggression with their experience of peer victimization. Extending previous research, we assessed these relations at both th...
Assessing the Accuracy of Smart Stents for Monitoring Coronary Artery Restenosis

Coronary heart disease, one of the leading causes of death globally, is characterized by the buildup of plaque in the coronary arteries. A common treatment for this is stent placement, however the plaque can return, or form restenosis, on the stent. Thus, researchers developed smart stents, or stents that can measure the pressure inside the coronary artery and inform patients as well as doctors of restenosis. However, measurement and accuracy of in-stent pressure were documented in previous literature as a major challenge. Therefore, this study was set to develop a test for the accuracy of smart stents, investigate the effects of sensor redundancy, and develop a novel method for measuring in-stent restenosis. Based upon Clarke's error grid analysis, a method for testing smart stent accuracy was developed. After simulating coronary artery in-stent restenosis and testing the smart stent models, the accuracy of in-stent restenosis measurement was found to decrease with plaque buildup as well as heart rate and increase with the number of sensors. Thus, a novel method for measuring in-stent restenosis for coronary heart disease patients was developed and validated successfully.
Effective Viral Vector SARS-CoV-2 Booster Vaccination in a Patient with Rheumatoid Arthritis after Initial Ineffective mRNA Vaccine Response.

Managing patients with rheumatic disease during the COVID-19 pandemic has posed a unique challenge. Immunosuppressed patients are at an increased risk for developing severe COVID-19 and may not derive full protection from the vaccine (1-5). Thus, it is paramount we develop strategies whereby rheumatic disease patients can be protected from the pandemic virus and its variants.
Age-Related Differences in T-Cell Subsets in a Nationally Representative Sample of People Older Than Age 55: Findings From the Health and Retirement Study

Though T cell immunosenescence is a major risk factor for age-related diseases, susceptibility to infections, and responses to vaccines, differences in T cells subset counts and representation by age and sex have not been determined for a large sample representative of the national population of the US. We evaluated the counts of T cell subsets including total, CD4+ and CD8+ T cells, and their naive (Tn), effector memory (Tem) and effector subsets, in the context of age, sex and exposure to cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection among 8,848 Health and Retirement Study (HRS) participants, a nationally representative study of adults over 55 years. Total T cells (CD3+) and CD4+ cells declined markedly with age; CD8+ T cells declined somewhat less. While CD4+ T cell declines with age occurred for both CMV seropositive and CMV seronegative groups, total T cells and CD8+ cells were both substantially higher among the CMV seropositive group. Numbers of Tn CD4+ and CD8+ cells were strongly and inversely related to age, were better conserved among women, and were independent of CMV seropositivity. By contrast, accumulation of the CD8+ and CD4+ Tem and effector subsets was CMV-associated. This is the first study to provide counts of T cell subsets by age and sex in a national sample of older US adults over the age of 55 years. Understanding T cell changes with age and sex is an important first step in determining strategies to reduce its impact on age-related diseases and susceptibility to infection.
Prospects for Implantable Circulatory Support

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) recognizes that heart failure death and morbidity are a significant burden to society. During the period 1977–1992 the Institute supported the development of implantable ventricular assist devices designed for a 2-year lifetime. These devices have proven to be safe and clinically useful in over 1200 patients, the longest implantation exceeding 2 years. Patient quality of life seems relatively normal, requiring special attention to the implanted device but allowing complete freedom for most activities, including moderate exercise. The prospect of using implantable mechanical circulatory support (MCS) to treat heart failure is quite promising. The results with vented, implanted ventricular assist devices suggest that for some patients they may prove a long-term treatment for end-stage disease. For other patients, extended use of MCS may lead to reversal of the maladaptive remodeling processes and the restoration of normal function. Interestingly, clinical reports indicate that MCS systems may also be useful in conducting heart failure research. Towards its vision, the NHLBI is supporting programs for the implantable total artificial heart and for second-generation, innovative ventricular assist systems (IVAS) designed for a 5-year lifetime. The total artificial heart (TAH) program is beginning its final phase and the innovative ventricular assist systems (IVAS) program is nearing the end of its first year of design efforts. These results and the prospects for implantable circulatory support bespeak the talent, persistence, and continuing dedication of the worldwide pool of researchers, clinicians, and industrialists working in this field.
Oscillatory Behavior of Magnetic Susceptibility and Electronic Conductivity

Publisher Summary This chapter describes oscillatory behavior of magnetic susceptibility and electronic conductivity. The chapter discusses high-field quantization effects, placing emphasis on transport effects. It concerns the free electron gas. The chapter presents information derived from magnetic and conductivity data, major attention being given to the properties of bismuth. An understanding of the susceptibility requires knowledge of the density of states of the electron gas when the magnetic field is present, treatment of conductivity requires, and scattering mechanisms and their dependence upon the field. The observation that there are oscillations in the magnetoresistance of bismuth crystals led to the discovery of the oscillatory behavior of the diamagnetic susceptibility known as the “de Haas-van Alphen effect.” The susceptibility oscillations were particularly perplexing at that time because they violated the principle that free electrons should not exhibit diamagnetism, predicted by classical theory.
Parameter estimation for mixture models via convex optimization

Many applications encounter signals that are a linear combination of multiple components, where each component represents a low-resolution observation of a point source model captured through a low-pass point spread function. This paper proposes a convex optimization algorithm to simultaneously separate and identify the point source models of each component from a noisy observation corrupted by possibly adversarial noise, by leveraging the recently proposed atomic norm framework. The proposed algorithm can be solved efficiently via semidefinite programming, where locations of the point sources can be identified via the constructed dual polynomials without estimating the model orders a priori. Stability of the proposed algorithm is established under certain conditions of the point source models and the point spread functions in the presence of bounded noise. Furthermore, numerical examples are provided to corroborate the theoretical analysis, with comparisons against the Cramer-Rao bound for parameter estimation.
Why should not they benefit from rare books?: Special collections and shaping the learning experience in higher education

Purpose – Special collections departments are predominately portrayed or perceived as a place for researchers rather than as a means for enhancing the learning experience for the undergraduate student. The very nature of rare books and manuscripts means that arguments to discourage their heavy use prevail. The purpose of this paper is to address this issue.Design/methodology/approach – This paper reviews these perceptions, considers why such perceptions continue to thrive, and provides examples in which the image of special collections departments can be refashioned into a more inclusive environment for the undergraduate student.Findings – There are extraordinary barriers that face the average undergraduate experience with rare books at most academic institutions. Librarians of special collections departments and other primary resource collections can play a fundamental role in making these collections accessible to the undergraduate student.Originality/value – This paper reexamines the notion that specia...
Actin and actin-associated proteins in Xenopus eggs and early embryos: contribution to cytoarchitecture and gastrulation.

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the contribution of actin to the events of oogenesis and early embryogenesis in eggs and embryos of the frog X. laevis. This contribution includes the organization of the mitochondrial cloud and the maintenance of the vegetal shell of cytoskeletal components that limits the diffusion of Veg-1 mRNA during oogenesis, the cortical contractions that occur following fertilization, the localization of as yet undefined developmental cues in appropriate places within the cytoplasm and their appropriate apportionment to the daughter cells during cytokinesis, and the cell shape changes and motility that produce gastrulation. In addition, preliminary results have been described in the chapter showing that a group of proteins antigenically related to an actin-associated antigen, the MAb 2E4 antigen, is localized in regions of the egg and early embryo, where actin filaments play an incisive role in these events. Finally, it has been shown that at least one of these proteins, the 48-kDa doublet, recognized by antiserum 3, is preferentially expressed prior to midblastula transition in the subpopulation of the cells that begin the movements of gastrulation— that is, the deep cells of the dorsal lip of the blastopore.
The Anti-Aging Sweepstakes: Catalase Runs for the ROSes

In a Perspective, Miller discusses new data on transgenic mice showing that better antioxidative defenses can boost life span in a mammal. Other long-lived mutants, in contrast, resist multiple forms of cell injury, and mutants with low oxidation resistance can nonetheless retain normal longevity. Comparisons among long- and short-lived species could reveal new links between stress resistance and aging.
The second-best theory of taxation in one-consumer economies with linear production technology

This chapter presents a discussion on the second-best theory of taxation in one-consumer economies with linear production technology. The second-best theory of taxation explores the effects of distorting taxes on social welfare. A distorting tax is one that prevents at least one of the first-best pareto-optimal conditions from holding—that is, it forces society inside its first-best utility-possibilities frontier. The first-best pareto-optimal conditions are equalities between marginal rates of substitutions and marginal rates of transformation. Distorting taxes prevent the equalities from holding because they force at least two economic agents in the same market to face different prices in an otherwise perfectly competitive economy. Virtually all taxes actually employed by governments introduce some distortion into the economy, whether they are sales, excise, income, or wealth taxes. Because tax distortion is defined relative to pareto optimality, much of the literature on second-best tax theory has treated it strictly as an allocation issue concerned only with questions of economic efficiency. Furthermore, the theory of distorting taxation addresses three main questions, one associated with welfare loss, another with optimality, and a third with tax reform. The chapter concludes with a discussion on the philosophical and methodological underpinnings of the second-best theory of taxation.
A model of perceptual image fidelity

The goal of numerous digital image processing algorithms is to reproduce an image as accurately as possible given some specific restrictions. For example, in digital image halftoning, a gray scale version of an image needs to be approximated by a high spatial resolution binary image. Likewise, lossy image compression seeks to reconstruct an image from a minimally coded description of the original. In these and many other applications, image fidelity is determined by the human observer; hence, the effectiveness of the algorithm is measured by the extent to which reproduction errors are visible. As a result, a model that predicts human perceptual sensitivity to image distortion is beneficial to both the design and evaluation of many such image processing algorithms. This summary briefly describes an extension of our work on perceptual image distortion. Our extended perceptual model accounts for: (1) contrast sensitivity as a function of spatial frequency, mean luminance and spatial extent, (2) luminance masking, and (3) contrast masking.
Promotion or inhibition of hydrogen–air ignition by iron-containing compounds

Abstract The ignition of stoichiometric and fuel-lean hydrogen–air mixtures near 1000 K was studied, for varying amounts of iron additives. Depending on the initial conditions, the addition of iron pentacarbonyl promotes or inhibits the ignition of hydrogen/air mixtures. The simulations show that iron compounds at 1 μL/L 1 reduce the ignition delay by about 30%, and that 50 μL/L can reduce the ignition delay by a factor or two or three for lean and stoichiometric conditions; at slightly higher volume fraction (>150 μL/L), the ignition is retarded. The effectiveness of the iron compounds is influenced by the form of the added iron, stoichiometry, and initial temperature of the mixture. At low additive volume fraction, the promotion is the result of relatively fast decomposition of iron pentacarbonyl, which provides a source of radicals at the initial reaction stage during radical pool build-up; the ignition promotion is proportional to the amount of iron-containing additive, and mostly does not involve cycling reactions. In contrast, at higher additive volume fraction, the ignition is retarded by the iron compounds, through catalytic radical recombination cycles similar to those acting in flame inhibition. The reduction in chain-carrying radical concentrations occurs at later times in the ignition process when the radicals have reached high concentrations.
Synchrotron radiation needs for molecular environmental science

Synchrotron facilities provide exceptionally high brightness, tunable X-ray sources that make possible a range of novel techniques allowing molecular-scale and sometimes time-resolved characterization of diverse types of materials. Focusing the X-ray beam to nanometer to micrometer sizes enables spectroscopic and scattering measurements at high spatial resolution, thereby allowing study of complex, heterogeneous environmental samples in which elements of interest are commonly dilute. Such molecular-scale characterization provides the basis for understanding fundamental reaction mechanisms, chemical speciation of trace and major elements, contaminant mobility/bioavailability, and element cycling in the hydrosphere. It is no surprise therefore that synchrotron radiation techniques, such as X-ray absorption spectroscopy and scattering, have become core techniques in the fields of molecular environmental science (MES) and low-temperature geochemistry (LTG). The synchrotron user group EnviroSync organized a workshop in Rockville, Md., to assess current capabilities at U.S. synchrotron facilities and future needs for these communities. Sponsorship was provided by the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Basic Energy Sciences and Office of Biological and Environmental Remediation and by the U.S. National Science Foundation's Earth Sciences Directorate. The 50+ participants included academic and national laboratory researchers, beam line scientists, instrument designers, and facility directors and representatives. Program managers from funding agencies provided perspectives from Washington.
Synthesis and structural stability of helichrome as an artificial hemeproteins

A detailed procedure is described for the synthesis of helichrome, which is the first successful example of polypeptide-based artificial hemeprotein. The segment synthesis-condensation approach used for the assembly of small proteins has proven to be extremely useful for protein mimetics as well. The final deprotection was performed using the TMSOTf-thioanisole method instead of the less-convenient hydrogen fluoride method. The unfolding transition of the alpha-helical conformation of helichrome induced by guanidine hydrochloride was studied to understand the stability and dynamics of the folded structure. The resulting parameters (C0.5 = 5.2 M and delta GH2O = -4.4 kcal mol-1) characterizing helichrome denaturation were comparable to that of native globular proteins.