cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Hearing loss and associated medical conditions among individuals 65 years and older

Abstract Background Hearing loss is prevalent, but few studies have investigated its associations with common medical conditions. Objective The objective was to assess the prevalence of medical conditions among individuals with hearing loss, compared to those without hearing loss, in people aged 65 years and older. Methods The National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) collects data on a variety of health-related topics, including disability. Three years of NHIS data (2011–2013; unweighted n = 53,111) were pooled to examine subpopulations of individuals with hearing loss. Comparisons were made between adults aged 65 and older with, and without, self-reported hearing loss. Statistical analysis included descriptive frequencies, Chi-square tests, and multiple logistic regressions. The outcomes of interest included self-reported diagnosis of arthritis, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, emphysema, stroke, cancer, asthma, multiple chronic conditions, health status, and obesity. Results Hearing loss prevalence was nearly 37%. After adjusting for sociodemographics, smoking status, and disability, hearing loss was independently associated with the following conditions: arthritis (OR 1.41; 1.27–1.57), cancer (OR 1.35; 1.21–1.5), cardiovascular disease (OR 1.48; 1.33–1.66), diabetes (OR 1.16; 1.03–1.31), emphysema (OR 1.41; 1.14–1.74), high blood pressure (OR 1.29; 1.17–1.43), and stroke (OR 1.39; 1.12–1.66). There was an association with worse health status over the past year (OR 1.5 (1.3–1.73). Conclusions Hearing loss among older individuals is independently associated with increased disease burden and poorer self-reported health. Future studies are needed to investigate the mechanistic nature of these associations, and whether improved access to hearing healthcare surveillance can reduce the overall health burden among these individuals.
Sex-specific morphological and physiological differences in the moss Ceratodon purpureus (Dicranales)

Background and Aims Dioecy and sexual dimorphism occur in many terrestrial plant species but are especially widespread among the bryophytes. Despite the prevalence of dioecy in non-vascular plants, surprisingly little is known about how fine-scale sex-specific cell and leaf morphological traits are correlated with sex-specific physiology and population sex ratios. Such data are critical to understanding the inter-relationship between sex-specific morphological and physiological characters and how their relationship influences population structure. In this study, these data types were assessed to determine how they vary across three populations within one moss species and whether fine-scale morphological traits scale up to physiological and sex ratio characteristics. Methods Twenty cell-, leaf- and canopy-level traits and two photochemical measurements were compared between sexes and populations of the dioecious moss Ceratodon purpureus . Field population-expressed sex ratios were obtained for the same populations. Key Results Male and female plants differed in cell, leaf and photochemical measures. These sexual dimorphisms were female biased, with females having larger and thicker leaves and greater values for chlorophyll fluorescence-based, leaf photochemistry measurements than males. Female traits were also more variable than male traits. Interestingly, field population sex ratios were significantly male biased in two study populations and female biased in the third study population. Conclusions The results demonstrate that the larger morphology and the greater physiological output of female C. purpureus gametophytes compared with males occurs across populations and is likely to have significant effects on resource allocation and biotic interactions. However, this high level of dimorphism does not explain population sex ratio variation in the three study populations tested. This research lays the groundwork for future studies on how differential sex-specific variation in cell and leaf traits influences bryophyte plant fitness.
A note on stress/strain conjugate pairs: Explicit and implicit theories of thermoelasticity for anisotropic materials

Abstract A set of six, independent, stress/strain, conjugate pairs are derived: One for dilation, two for squeeze, and three for shear. They follow from a Gram–Schmidt factorization of the deformation gradient. Theories for elastic solids are derived in terms of these conjugate pairs. Anisotropy is introduced through bijective maps between tensor components and constituents of the basis. The boundary value problems of simple tension and uniform pressure are used to illustrate the effects of anisotropy, as predicted by a Hooke-like material model.
Prospective Associations between Aggression/Bullying and Adjustment in Preschool: Is General Aggression Different from Bullying Behavior?

In the current paper, two short-term longitudinal studies were conducted to examine relational aggression and relational bullying as differential predictors of relational victimization and health-related outcomes (i.e., social maladjustment problems). In Study 1, teachers completed reports of preschoolers’ (N = 124; M age = 44.88 months; SD = 4.52; 41.1% girls) physical and relational aggression, bullying behavior, and peer victimization at two time points. Hierarchical models revealed that, consistent with study hypotheses, relational aggression but not relational bullying predicted increases in relational victimization. Study 2 (N = 105; M age = 46.78 months; SD = 7.47; 52.4% girls) improved upon several limitations of Study 1 by having multiple informants and addressing collinearity concerns. Specifically, two variables were created, relational severity and relational directionality, reflecting the commonalities and differences between relational aggression and relational bullying respectively. Results of Study 2 generally replicated the overall pattern of findings of Study 1 with a more conservative model. Results indicated that relational directionality tended to be negatively associated with increases in social maladjustment problems. These results suggest that, relative to relational bullying, relational aggression tended to be associated with increases in social maladjustment problems. These findings provide support for distinguishing between subtypes of both aggression and bullying behavior (i.e., physical and relational) in the developmental literature.
Animal versus plant protein and adult bone health: A systematic review and meta-analysis from the National Osteoporosis Foundation.

Background Protein may have both beneficial and detrimental effects on bone health depending on a variety of factors, including protein source. Objective The aim was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis evaluating the effects of animal versus plant protein intake on bone mineral density (BMD), bone mineral content (BMC) and select bone biomarkers in healthy adults. Methods Searches across five databases were conducted through 10/31/16 for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and prospective cohort studies in healthy adults that examined the effects of animal versus plant protein intake on 1) total body (TB), total hip (TH), lumbar spine (LS) or femoral neck (FN) BMD or TB BMC for at least one year, or 2) select bone formation and resorption biomarkers for at least six months. Strength of evidence (SOE) was assessed and random effect meta-analyses were performed. Results Seven RCTs examining animal vs. isoflavone-rich soy (Soy+) protein intake in 633 healthy peri-menopausal (n = 1) and post-menopausal (n = 6) women were included. Overall risk of bias was medium. Limited SOE suggests no significant difference between Soy+ vs. animal protein on LS, TH, FN and TB BMD, TB BMC, and bone turnover markers BSAP and NTX. Meta-analysis results showed on average, the differences between Soy+ and animal protein groups were close to zero and not significant for BMD outcomes (LS: n = 4, pooled net % change: 0.24%, 95% CI: -0.80%, 1.28%; TB: n = 3, -0.24%, 95% CI: -0.81%, 0.33%; FN: n = 3, 0.13%, 95% CI: -0.94%, 1.21%). All meta-analyses had no statistical heterogeneity. Conclusions These results do not support soy protein consumption as more advantageous than animal protein, or vice versa. Future studies are needed examining the effects of different protein sources in different populations on BMD, BMC, and fracture.
In Situ Rheological Method to Evaluate Feedstock Physical Properties Throughout Enzymatic Deconstruction

Feedstock physical properties determine not only downstream flow behavior, but also downstream process yields. Enzymatic treatment of pretreated feedstocks greatly dependent on upstream feedstock physical properties and choice of pre-processing technologies. Currently available enzyme assays have been developed to study biomass slurries at low concentrations of ≤ 1% w/w. At commercially relevant biomass concentrations of ≥ 15% w/w, pretreated feedstocks have sludge-like properties, where low free water restricts movement of unattached enzymes. This work is an account of the various steps taken to develop a method that helps identify the time needed for solid-like biomass slurries transition into liquid-like states during enzymatic hydrolysis. A pre-processing technology that enables feedstocks in achieving this transition sooner will greatly benefit enzyme kinetics and thereby overall process economics. Through this in situ rheological properties determining method, we compared a model feedstock, Avicel®PH101 cellulose, and acid pretreated corn stover. We determined that 25% (w/w) Avicel when treated with Novozymes Cellic®CTec2 (80 mg protein/g glucan) can reduce from solid-like to liquid-like state in 5.5 h, as the phase angles rise beyond 45° at this time. The same slurry needed 5.3 h to achieve liquid-like state with Megazyme endoglucanase (40 mg protein/g glucan). After 10.8 h, CTec2 slurry reached a phase angle of 89° or complete liquid-like state but Megazyme slurry peaked only to 64.7°, possibly due to inhibition by cello-oligomers. Acid pretreated corn stover at 30% (w/w) with a CTec2 protein loading of 80 mg/g glucan exhibited a solid-like to liquid-like transition at 37.8 h, which reflects the combined inhibition of low water activity and presence of lignin. The acid pretreated slurry also never achieved complete liquid-like state due to the presence of biomass residue. This method is applicable in several scenarios comparing varying combinations of pre-processing technologies, feedstock types, pretreatment chemistries, and enzymes. Using this method, we can generate a process chain with optimal flow behavior at commercially-relevant conditions.
The Use of Fluorescence Angiography During Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy.

Background and objectives A new technology involving indocyanine green (ICG) fluorescence angiography has been introduced to assess tissue perfusion and perform vascular mapping during laparoscopic surgery. The purpose of this study was to describe the use of this technology to identify the variable blood supply patterns to the stomach and gastroesophageal (GE) junction during laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG), which may help in preserving the blood supply and preventing ischemia-related leaks. Methods Eighty-six patients underwent LSG and were examined intraoperatively with fluorescence angiography at an academic bariatric center from January 2016 to September 2017. Before the construction of the SG, 1 mL ICG was injected intravenously, and near infrared fluorescence imaging technology was used to identify the blood supply of the stomach. Afterward, the LSG was created with attention to preserving the identified blood supply to the GE junction and gastric tube. Finally, 3 mL ICG was injected to ensure that all the pertinent blood vessels were preserved. Results Eighty-six patients successfully underwent the laparoscopic procedure with no complications. The following patterns of blood supply to the GE junction were found: (1) a right-side-dominant pattern (20%), arising from the left gastric artery; (2) a right-side-accessory pattern (36%), running in the gastrohepatic ligament and comprising either an accessory hepatic artery or an accessory gastric artery; and (3) a left-side accessory pattern arising from tributaries from the left inferior phrenic artery significantly contributing to the right-side blood supply. In addition, in 10% of the cases both right and left accessory patterns were present simultaneously. Conclusion ICG fluorescence angiography allows determination of the major blood supply to the proximal stomach before any dissection during sleeve gastrectomy, so that an effort can be made to avoid unnecessary injury to these vessels during the procedure.
Nanodevice, Nanosensors and Nanocantilevers Based on Semiconducting Oxide Nanobelts

Semiconducting transition and rare-earth metal oxides are attracting significant attention as candidates for chemical and environmental sensors [1, 2, 3, 4]. This is because their electrical conductivity depends sensitively on the nature and concentration of adsorbed species on their surfaces. The key characteristics of these oxides are: (a) cations with mixed valence and (b) oxygen vacancies. The latter are responsible for the observed high sensitivity of the electrical properties to the presence of adsorbed molecules and allow the tuning of the conductance of the oxide. The semiconducting oxide nanobelts grown in our group [5, 6] are structurally perfect and geometrically uniform. These nanostructures are ideal materials for building nano-size devices and sensors. In this chapter, we review the field-effect transistor (FET), gas sensors and nanocantilevers that have been fabricated using ZnO/SnO2 nanobelts.
Using snarpy to connect a KR system to Pyro

This work involves the development of a layered, heterogeneous architecture for cognitive robotics that can be used to connect a knowledge representation (KR) system to Pyro (Python robotics). We have focused on connecting a Semantic Network Processing System (SNePS) (Shapiro & Rapaport 1992) agent to a Pyro robot, however, the framework we have developed, snarpy (an architecture linking SNePS with Pyro), is extremely flexible and allows for the integration of any formal knowledge representation, reasoning, and acting system with Pyro. Cognitive Robotics is focused on higher-level actions and perceptions rather than lower-level details of robot interaction with a world. Pyro is a Python-based environment for robotics (Blank et al. 2006; Blank, Meeden, & Kumar 2003; http://www.pyrorobotics.org ), and indeed, for cognitive robotics, that provides underlying support for a variety of actual and simulated robots by making available a large set of high-level primitives for interacting with sensors and effectors. We have built additional layers on top of Pyro so that we can use a powerful KR system, capable of reasoning and communicating about its actions as it performs them, to enhance the capabilities of Pyro agents. While our interest and investigations have to date involve using the KR system to control the robot’s actions and plans, the KR component of the system could just as easily serve as an auxiliary, powerful reasoner for a Pyro agent to call upon.
REAL-TIME MONITORING OF DAMAGE DEVELOPMENT IN CROSSPLY COMPOSITE LAMINATES BY MEANS OF ULTRASONIC AND ACOUSTIC EMISSION METHODS

Studies on damage development in composite laminates have been conducted by many investigators [1–3]. In the case of crossply laminates under uniaxial tensile loading, whether monotonic or cyclic, the first stage of damage consists of transverse matrix cracking in the 90° plies. These cracks are nearly equidistant and increase in density up to a characteristic limiting value. In the later stages of loading, the damage evolves so that longitudinal cracks are generated in the 0° plies, followed by micro-delaminations at the intersections of the two sets of cracks, and finally fiber failures leading to global failure [1].
Ulceration of primary cutaneous melanoma and the development of brain metastases: A retrospective chart review.

e21036Background: Malignant melanoma is the third most common tumor to metastasize to the brain, with a reported incidence of 10-40%. Patients who develop brain metastases have a median survival of...
Estimating Prediction Qualities without Ground Truth: A Revisit of the Reverse Testing Framework

To evaluate prediction qualities of machine learning models, it is typically assumed testing samples are labeled. However, testing labels are not always available in practice. A traditional solution is to approximate prediction qualities on testing samples by the qualities on labeled training samples. But this may be limited in that it completely ignores testing samples. In this paper, we present a new approach to estimate prediction qualities on unlabeled testing sample, based on the reverse testing framework [1]. We evaluate the approach with various quality metrics in classification and anomaly detection tasks, and over numerous real-world data sets. Experimental results show the proposed approach gives a more accurate estimate of prediction qualities on testing sample than those on training samples.
The m -accretivity of covariant Schrödinger operators with unbounded drift

We work in the context of a geodesically complete Riemannian n-manifold M with a Hermitian vector bundle $$\mathcal {V}$$ over M, equipped with a metric covariant derivative $$\nabla $$ . We study the operator $$H:=\nabla ^{\dagger }\nabla +\nabla _{X}+V$$ , where $$\nabla ^{\dagger }$$ is the formal adjoint of $$\nabla $$ , the symbol $$\nabla _{X}$$ stands for the action of $$\nabla $$ along a smooth vector field X on M, and V is a locally bounded section of the endomorphism bundle $${\text {End}}\mathcal {V}$$ . We show that under certain conditions on X and V, the closure $$\overline{H|_{C_{c}^{\infty }(\mathcal {V})}}$$ of $$H|_{C_{c}^{\infty }(\mathcal {V})}$$ in $$L^p(\mathcal {V})$$ , where $$1<p<\infty $$ , is a maximal accretive operator. We also show that $$\overline{H|_{C_{c}^{\infty }(\mathcal {V})}}$$ coincides with the “maximal” realization of H in $$L^p(\mathcal {V})$$ .
Gender Differences in the Dating Experiences of African American Young Adults: The Challenge of Forming Romantic Relationships Within the Context of Power Imbalance

Past research has documented that structural factors produce a skewed dating market in African American communities that advantages men over women. Using data collected from a sample of 495 African...
Linking Mitochondrial Dysfunction to Organismal and Population Health in the Context of Environmental Pollutants: Progress and Considerations for Mitochondrial Adverse Outcome Pathways

Mitochondria are key targets of many environmental contaminants, because specific chemicals can interact directly with mitochondrial proteins, lipids, and ribonucleic acids. These direct interactions serve as molecular initiating events that impede adenosine triphosphate production and other critical functions that mitochondria serve within the cell (e.g., calcium and metal homeostasis, apoptosis, immune signaling, redox balance). A limited but growing number of adverse outcome pathways (AOPs) have been proposed to associate mitochondrial dysfunction with effects at organismal and population levels. These pathways involve key events such as altered membrane potential, mitochondrial fission/fusion, and mitochondrial DNA damage, among others. The present critical review and analysis reveals current progress on AOPs involving mitochondrial dysfunction, and, using a network-based computational approach, identifies the localization of mitochondrial molecular initiating events and key events within multiple existing AOPs. We also present 2 case studies, the first examining the interaction between mitochondria and immunotoxicity, and the second examining the role of early mitochondrial dysfunction in the context of behavior (i.e., locomotor activity). We discuss limitations in our current understanding of mitochondrial AOPs and highlight opportunities for clarifying their details. Advancing our knowledge of key event relationships within the AOP framework will require high-throughput datasets that permit the development and testing of chemical-agnostic AOPs, as well as high-resolution research that will enhance the mechanistic testing and validation of these key event relationships. Given the wide range of chemicals that affect mitochondria, and the centrality of energy production and signaling to ecologically important outcomes such as pathogen defense, homeostasis, growth, and reproduction, a better understanding of mitochondrial AOPs is expected to play a significant, if not central, role in environmental toxicology. Environ Toxicol Chem 2019;38:1625-1634. © 2019 SETAC.
Rights Eroded: A Briefing on the Effects of Closing Space on Women Human Rights Defenders

Human rights defenders around the world find themselves operating in an increasingly hostile climate. Governments are restricting the ability of activists to voice unpopular views and challenge repressive laws and policies. They create constraints through harassment, intimidation, and by imposing new legal restrictions on the ability of civil society actors to form associations and receive funding. This phenomenon is known as “closing space.” It erodes rights, threatens social justice movements, and undermines participatory democracy and human rights promotion. Adopting a human rights perspective, this briefing report highlights how women human rights defenders (WHRDs) are experiencing closing space. It is based on interviews with representatives of two women’s funds, and twenty-four representatives of women’s and LGBTQI civil society networks, coalitions, and organizations across five global regions. The interviews are complemented by a review of the domestic laws restricting civil society space in sixteen countries in which Urgent Action Sister Funds support activists—Bahrain, Bangladesh, China, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Mexico, Nicaragua, Russia, Turkey, and Zimbabwe. This briefing throws into stark relief the degree to which States are falling short of their obligations under international law to these activists. It offers recommendations to States, the United Nations, and funders on how to address the impacts of closing space on human rights defenders.
A 24-MB Embedded Flash System Based on 28-nm SG-MONOS Featuring 240-MHz Read Operations and Robust Over-the-Air Software Update for Automotive Applications

This letter presents an embedded flash (eFlash) system based on 28-nm split-gate MONOS (SG-MONOS) with high- ${k}$ metal gate CMOS process technology for automotive applications. It contains the world’s largest 24-MB memory capacity (4-MB code flash macro (CF) $\times6$ ) and achieves 240-MHz random read access at Tj from −40 °C to 170 °C, and read throughput reaches 46 GB/s by reading 6 CFs in parallel. The peak current consumption during over-the-air software update (OTA) is reduced by 55% in low-noise program mode. A high-speed program mode for factory program and test achieves 6.5-MB/s program throughput by programming 2 CFs in parallel. In OTA, the eFlash system realizes ~1 ms software switching and robustness against unintentional OTA termination.
Coexistence of Structural and Dynamical Heterogeneity in Liquids Under Nanoconfinement

Spatiotemporal heterogeneity is one of the hallmarks of the relaxation dynamics associated with the glass transition. A key question in this regard is whether the dynamical heterogeneity has a structural origin. We report differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) data that reveal the presence of extreme spatial heterogeneity in the freezing dynamics of water (D2O) and the glass transition dynamics in the supercooled molecular liquid ortho-terphenyl (OTP), when these liquids are confined in nano-architected mesoporous silica with interconnected pores of different geometry. The results demonstrate, for the first time, that despite connectivity between the pores, nanoconfined water and OTP display distinct freezing/melting points and glass transition temperatures characteristic of each pore type. Viewed as a whole, these experimental results point to the coexistence of strong spatial heterogeneities over length scales of a few nanometers in the structure and dynamics of these liquids, suggesting a close mechanistic connection between them.
Leaf traits and performance vary with plant age and water availability in Artemisia californica.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Leaf functional traits are strongly tied to growth strategies and ecological processes across species, but few efforts have linked intraspecific trait variation to performance across ontogenetic and environmental gradients. Plants are believed to shift towards more resource-conservative traits in stressful environments and as they age. However, uncertainty as to how intraspecific trait variation aligns with plant age and performance in the context of environmental variation may limit our ability to use traits to infer ecological processes at larger scales. METHODS We measured leaf physiological and morphological traits, canopy volume and flowering effort for Artemisia californica (California sagebrush), a dominant shrub species in the coastal sage scrub community, under conditions of 50, 100 and 150 % ambient precipitation for 3 years. KEY RESULTS Plant age was a stronger driver of variation in traits and performance than water availability. Older plants demonstrated trait values consistent with a more conservative resource-use strategy, and trait values were less sensitive to drought. Several trait correlations were consistent across years and treatments; for example, plants with high photosynthetic rates tended to have high stomatal conductance, leaf nitrogen concentration and light-use efficiency. However, the trade-off between leaf construction and leaf nitrogen evident in older plants was absent for first-year plants. While few traits correlated with plant growth and flowering effort, we observed a positive correlation between leaf mass per area and performance in some groups of older plants. CONCLUSIONS Overall, our results suggest that trait sensitivity to the environment is most visible during earlier stages of development, after which intraspecific trait variation and relationships may stabilize. While plant age plays a major role in intraspecific trait variation and sensitivity (and thus trait-based inferences), the direct influence of environment on growth and fecundity is just as critical to predicting plant performance in a changing environment.
Stochastic optimization of comfort-centered model of electrical water heater using mixed integer linear programming

Abstract This paper introduces a new strategy for controlling electric water heaters (EWH) using mixed-integer linear programming (MILP). It has two major contributions: 1) To balance between cost savings and the discomfort (cold water) that Demand Response (DR) could bring, the discomfort is modeled as undelivered energy in the objective of the problem rather than a thermal constraint. This improves both sides of the cost-saving Vs. User-comfort trade-ff. 2) in EWH control, many previous works only rely on electricity prices for scheduling. However, this work is among the very few works that also consider consumption for scheduling. Further, by treating the hot water withdrawal pattern as a random variable, the algorithm finds the best setpoints for EWH via stochastic optimization over a range of possible hot water withdrawal patterns, rather than requiring perfect foresight of withdrawal. The result of these changes is an algorithm that can let the temperature fall below minimum when probability of energy usage is low without affecting user comfort while other methods always keep the temperature above minimum. The effectiveness of this approach on improving both sides of the cost Vs. discomfort trade-off and the effectiveness of stochastic approach is confirmed by comparison with two other methods.
Becoming a “game changer”: Complete College America’s role in U.S. higher education policy fields

Established in 2009, Complete College America (CCA) has emerged as one of the leading single-issue intermediary organizations advocating policy solutions to improve college completion in the USA. Although other entities that influenced the policy conversation at that time have ceased operation, CCA has maintained and, in fact, expanded its role in US higher education policy. Through a collective case study developed from archival data and interviews with CCA officials and respondents from three member states (Georgia, Tennessee, and Texas), this study examines the evolution of CCA as an organization and investigates how it has been able to challenge other actors within the higher education field. Findings suggest that CCA created and strengthened its influence through strategic identification of members, pointed communication, and intentionally aligning themselves with power brokers in both the completion sphere and targeted states. This study highlights the growing role and influence of intermediary organizations in higher education policy conversations and offers insights into how these types of organizations influence decision-making in state and national strategic action fields.
The Mediating Role of Helicopter Parenting in the Relationship between Family Communication Patterns and Resilience in First-semester College Students

Resilience is important for students transitioning to college given vast attrition rates due to the stress of change and new challenges. This study applied family communication patterns theory (FCP...
Experimenting With the Past to Improve Environmental Monitoring

Long-term monitoring programs are a fundamental part of both understanding ecological systems and informing management decisions. However, there are many constraints which might prevent monitoring programs from being designed to consider statistical power, site selection, or the full costs and benefits of monitoring. Key considerations can be incorporated into the optimal design of a management program with simulations and experiments. Here, we advocate for the expanded use of a third approach: non-random resampling of previously-collected data. This approach conducts experiments with available data to understand the consequences of different monitoring approaches. We first illustrate non-random resampling in determining the optimal length and frequency of monitoring programs to assess species trends. We then apply the approach to a pair of additional case studies, from fisheries and agriculture. Non-random resampling of previously-collected data is underutilized, but has the potential to improve monitoring programs.
Virtual Reality for Remote Controlled Robotics in Engineering Education

There is a high demand for high-end lab equipment in engineering education, especially for courses that require practical hands-on lab exercises. However, this equipment is quite expensive which forces some institutions to seek other alternatives or forego them altogether. In addition, online courses tend to be light on hardware because of the practical and technical challenges associated with running remote hardware-based laboratories. Therefore, a system is needed that allows students who are enrolled in remote courses to experience hardware-intensive classes just as they would an in-person course (especially in light of the COVID-19 pandemic). In this work, use virtual and augmented reality to build and test a remote UR-10 robotics lab that allows students to work together on a hands-on robotics-based lab. In the future, we plan to demonstrate its technical and pedagogical suitability by running a user study in a real-world class whereby remote students enrolled in a course will participate in a series of experiments to control a UR-10 robot arm. It opens up avenues to explore the advantages and shortcomings of running coordinated group lab exercises between students from different institutions, time-zones, and continents by time-decoupling the schedules. The use of a Virtual Reality interface coupled with a digital twin of the UR10 robot will allow us to investigate the suitability of different user interfaces, and what VR tools would best facilitate remote group work and faculty instruction.
Permanency in Child Welfare Practice

This chapter outlines policies and procedures related to permanency options for children and families. The chapter outlines the types of permanency outcomes and ways to identify permanency goals alongside family members and professionals to ensure timely permanence. This chapter discusses service planning to meet permanency goals as well as establishing concurrent permanency plans and the importance of family reunification. The chapter discusses meeting service goals, rates of permanency, and foster care re-entry.
CRISPR-Cas9 Mediated Exonic Disruption for HIV-1 Elimination.

Abstract Background A barrier to HIV-1 cure rests in the persistence of proviral DNA in infected CD4+ leukocytes. The high HIV-1 mutation rate leads to viral diversity, immune evasion, and consequent antiretroviral drug resistance. While CRISPR-spCas9 can eliminate latent proviral DNA, its efficacy is limited by HIV strain diversity and precision target cell delivery. Methods A library of guide RNAs (gRNAs) designed to disrupt five HIV-1 exons (tat1-2/rev1-2/gp41) was constructed. The gRNAs were derived from a conseensus sequence of the transcriptional regulator tat from 4004 HIV-1 strains. Efficacy was affirmed by gRNA cell entry through transfection, electroporation, or by lentivirus or lipid nanoparticle (LNP) delivery. Treated cells were evaluated for viral excision by monitoring HIV-1 DNA, RNA, protein, and progeny virus levels. Findings Virus was reduced in all transmitted founder strains by 82 and 94% after CRISPR TatDE transfection or lentivirus treatments, respectively. No recorded off-target cleavages were detected. Electroporation of TatDE ribonucleoprotein and delivery of LNP TatDE gRNA and spCas9 mRNA to latently infected cells resulted in up to 100% viral excision. Protection against HIV-1-challenge or induction of virus during latent infection, in primary or transformed CD4+ T cells or monocytes was achieved. We propose that multi-exon gRNA TatDE disruption delivered by LNPs enables translation for animal and human testing. Interpretation These results provide “proof of concept’ for CRISPR gRNA treatments for HIV-1 elimination. The absence of full-length viral DNA by LNP delivery paired with undetectable off-target affirms the importance of payload delivery for effective viral gene editing. Funding The work was supported by the University of Nebraska Foundation, including donations from the Carol Swarts, M.D. Emerging Neuroscience Research Laboratory, the Margaret R. Larson Professorship, and individual donor support from the Frances and Louie Blumkin Foundation and from Harriet Singer. The research received support from National Institutes of Health grants T32 NS105594, 5R01MH121402, 1R01Al158160, R01 DA054535, PO1 DA028555, R01 NS126089, R01 NS36126, PO1 MH64570, P30 MH062261, and 2R01 NS034239.
The Clash of Economic Ideas: The Great Policy Debates and Experiments of the Last Hundred Years

Introduction 1. The turn away from laissez faire 2. The Bolshevik revolution and the socialist calculation debate 3. The Roaring Twenties and Austrian business cycle theory 4. The New Deal and institutionalist economics 5. The Great Depression and Keynes's General Theory 6. The Second World War and Hayek's Road to Serfdom 7. Postwar British Socialism and the Fabian Society 8. The Mont Pelerin Society and the rebirth of Smithian economics 9. The postwar German 'wonder economy' and ordoliberalism 10. Indian planning and development economics 11. Bretton Woods and international monetary thought 12. The great inflation and monetarism 13. The growth of government: public goods and public choice 14. Free trade, protectionism, and trade deficits 15. From pleasant deficit spending to unpleasant sovereign debt crisis.
Determination of the complex shear modulus of a filled elastomer from a vibrating sandwich beam

Abstract : A technique for determining the complex shear modulus of a linear viscoelastic material from damped free vibrations of sandwich beams is presented. The sandwich beams consist of thin steel facings and cores of a filled elastomer. In such construction the facing experiences only extensional vibrations and the core only shear when the difference in stiffness between core and facing is large. The mathematical analysis of such a system involves, in general, two complex moduli of the core. However, the relative rigidity of the facings allows the elimination of the complex Young's modulus from the equations, thereby leading to a direct evaluation of the complex shear modulus. Experimental results for a wide range of temperatures and frequencies are presented for a potassium chloride filled polyurethane solid propellant. With the aid of an Arhenius type temperature-time shift function the shear modulus and damping constant are evaluated over eight decades of frequency. (Author)
EndothelinA-endothelinB receptor cross-talk and endothelin receptor binding

Background and objective The magnitude of inhibition of an endothelin (ET)-1 response by selective blockade of the ETA or ETB receptors can be limited by apparent compensation mediated by the unblocked receptor. While the mechanism underlying this functionally defined interaction, or ‘cross-talk’, is not clear, binding studies suggest an interaction between the ET receptor subtypes. Key findings These binding studies are reviewed and suggest that, in general, they support the hypothesis that ETA and ETB receptor activation of intracellular signalling pathways influence ET-1 binding to these receptor subtypes. Summary However, the relationship of these binding studies to functional effects and, thus, functional ETA-ETB receptor cross-talk, remains largely untested.
Training of fuzzy logic systems using nearest neighborhood clustering

The author first constructs an optimal fuzzy logic system which is capable of matching all the input-output pairs in the training set to arbitrary accuracy. Then an adaptive version of the optimal fuzzy logic system is presented, using the nearest neighborhood clustering algorithm. To do this, clusters of the sample data using the nearest neighborhood clustering algorithm are viewed as sample data and the optimal fuzzy logic system is used as an adaptive controller for nonlinear dynamic systems. The simulation results showed that the adaptive fuzzy controller could produce very good tracking control. >
Effects of Stimulus Complexity and Cognitive Style on Spontaneous Interpretations of Line Graphs

Thirty adult subjects studied each of eighteen single-function line graphs for self-determined periods. The structural complexity of the stimulus graphs was varied in three ways: through addition of data points, reversal of trends, and elimination of symmetry. Subjects provided written interpretations immediately following examination of each graph. Indirect indices of comprehensibility (i.e., increased graph study times and increased content in the written interpretations) suggested that trend reversals were the primary determinant of complexity. While the number of data points and the presence or absence of symmetry were not associated with longer study times or greater overall content production, varying these structural features did lead to strategic shifts in the interpretive emphasis on global versus local features of the graphically-displayed data. Specifically, the presence of symmetry or the addition of data points led to increases in global content and decreases in local content. Lastly, cogniti...
New termination and shallow reflecting cavity for ultra wide-band slot spirals

Slot spiral antennas utilizing very shallow reflecting cavities have been demonstrated by the authors for extremely broadband conformal applications. We have previously demonstrated the importance of an integrated planar balun and feed for realizing the spiral's bandwidth potential. Of equal importance is the development of a termination that is applicable to the slot radiator. In this paper we demonstrate a new slot spiral arm termination which (in conjunction with the planar infinite balun) allows for very thin yet extremely broadband spirals. The included measurements show that a slot spiral with a diameter of 5.75" and a thickness of merely 0.5" delivers a typical gain of 5 dB/sub ic/ from 750 MHz to 4 GHz with good axial ratio performance. Additional loading (both inductive and dielectric) applied to the same spiral can extend its operational bandwidth down to 200 MHz for the same 6" diameter aperture.
Alcohol use disorders.

Alcohol use disorders have a 30% lifetime prevalence rate and are associated with numerous problems, including disease, injury, social impairment, occupational dysfunction, domestic violence, and economic burden. Despite the availability and demonstrated efficacy of several treatments, many providers fail to use evidence-based practices. Moreover, most treatments deemed efficacious yield only modest improvements in outcomes, and no single modality is considered universally superior. A review of randomized clinical trials, meta-analyses, literature reviews, and consensus panel recommendations identified nine treatments with evidence for efficacy in the treatment of alcohol use disorders: cognitive behavior therapy, contingency management, cue exposure therapy, community reinforcement approach, behavioral couples and family treatment, brief interventions, motivational interviewing and motivational enhancement therapy, 12-step-based therapies, and case management. Therapist factors shown to influence treatment outcomes were also reviewed. Treatments were found to vary considerably in the quantity and rigor of studies testing their efficacy. Although large-scale treatment studies have identified few client-treatment matching effects, some client characteristics may determine which treatments are a better fit. For example, behavioral couples and family treatment or the community reinforcement approach may be optimal when a significant other is available to participate in treatment, motivational interviewing and specific therapist techniques may be helpful with resistant or angry clients, and brief interventions may be optimal when time and resources are limited. More research is needed to examine treatment efficacy for clients with co-occurring psychiatric disorders or drug use, and to determine the effectiveness of these treatments in real-world settings. Keywords: alcohol treatment; adult; evidence-based practice; randomized controlled trial; meta-analysis; consensus panel; review
Silicon Demonstration of Statistical Post-Production Tuning

Towards meeting the continued demand for higher performance in analog/RF ICs, the semiconductor industry has resorted to aggressive design styles. In conjunction with the increased variation of modern processes, aggressive design jeopardizes yield and, by extension, profitability of the design. In an effort to facilitate aggressive high-performance design without compromising production yield, modern designs incorporate tuning knobs which are used after manufacturing to individually calibrate the performances of each chip, as well as some type of non-volatile memory to store the selected knob settings. In this work, we discuss a statistical post-production tuning method, which rapidly selects the appropriate knob positions using low-cost measurements, and we demonstrate it on a tunable Low Noise Amplifier which we designed and fabricated in IBM's 130nm RF CMOS process.
Immediate nailing of open fractures of the femoral shaft.

Debridement of the wound and immediate reamed nailing were performed on sixty-seven patients who had an open fracture of the femoral diaphysis. Forty-two of these patients were followed for a minimum of twelve months (average, twenty-three months). Using the classification system of Gustilo and Anderson, there were fifteen (36 per cent) Grade-I, nineteen (45 per cent) Grade-II, and eight (19 per cent) Grade-III soft-tissue injuries. All of the fractures healed within four months after injury. The average flexion of the knee was 127 degrees and that of the hip, 129 degrees. At least 90 degrees of flexion was achieved in both joints of all patients. Perioperative complications included loss of fixation in four patients (10 per cent), infection of the wound in two patients (5 per cent), a wound seroma in two patients (5 per cent), and thrombophlebitis in one patient (2 per cent). Late complications were angular malunion in three patients (7 per cent), limb-length discrepancy in three patients (7 per cent), external rotation malunion in one patient (2 per cent), and sciatic-nerve palsy in one patient (2 per cent). We concluded that immediate intramedullary nailing of an open femoral fracture can be accomplished safely, with an acceptable rate of complications, given thorough debridement of the wound, proper equipment, and an experienced surgical team.
Complete Mitochondrial Genome of the Soft-shell clam Mya arenaria

We have sequenced and characterized the complete mitochondrial genome of the soft-shell clam, Mya arenaria, an important organism for environmental toxicology and aquaculture. Mya arenaria is located in the taxonomic order Myoida, which lacks any member with a completely annotated mitogenome. The M. arenaria mitochondrial genome is 17 947 bp in length. Like most marine bivalves, the circular mitogenome codes entirely on the heavy strand, with no introns. As with other bivalves, the gene order of the mitochondrion is highly rearranged. The mitogenome contains 12 protein-coding genes but ATP8 is missing, consistent with about half of all bivalve genera. Twenty-three tRNAs were identified. Phylogenetic analysis shows that M. arenaria is related most closely with the bivalves Sinonovacula constricta, and Moerella iridescens, of the infraclass Euheterodonta (unassigned). This, along with the close grouping of the phylogenetic trees, confirms a close tie between Myoida and Euheterodonta (unassigned).
Measuring proxy performance with the Wisconsin Proxy benchmark

Abstract As Web proxies become increasingly widespread, there is a critical need to establish a benchmark that can compare the performance of different proxy servers and predict their performance in practice. In this paper, we describe the Wisconsin Proxy Benchmark (WPB) and the performance comparison of four proxy software using the benchmark. Using the benchmark, we also study the effect of more disk arms on proxy performance, and the effect of low-bandwidth modem client connections. We find that proxy implementations differ in their performance characteristics significantly. In addition, though disk arms appear to be the bottleneck limiting proxy throughput, adding extra disks does not result in performance improvement for every proxy implementation. Finally, we find that the latency advantage of caching proxies vanishes in the presence of modem connections.
Effect of irradiation on phosphorus segregation

Abstract Phosphorus strongly segregated to the surface during irradiation of austenitic-type alloys in the temperature range 775–925 K. Much weaker but measurable radiation induced segregation of phosphorus occurred in a Ni + 0.03% P alloy. Irradiation under similar conditions produced no measurable phosphorus segregation in the ferritic HT-9 or Fe + 0.03% P alloy. The lack of segregation in the ferritic alloys was suggested to result from a weak point defect — impurity interaction in the bcc iron structure while a strong interaction was suggested for the fcc iron structure. The slow accumulation of radiation damage in bcc iron alloys is also consistent with a lack of observable segregation. The evidence strongly suggests a radiation induced mechanism but a radiation enhanced, thermally activated equilibrium segregation cannot be ruled out.