cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Antiviral activity of alpha interferon in Sindbis virus-infected cells is restored by anti-E2 monoclonal antibody treatment.

Pretreatment of AT3 rat prostatic carcinoma cells expressing the inhibitor of apoptosis bcl-2 (AT3-bcl-2 cells) with alpha interferon (IFN-alpha) affected replication of a virulent strain of Sindbis virus (SV) but did not protect against virus-induced cell death. Treatment of cells with IFN-alpha late during infection affected ongoing SV replication very little. Previous studies have shown that cross-linking of the viral glycoprotein E2 with antibody delays the inhibition of K+ influx by improving the function of Na+K+ATPase and the Na(+)-K(+)-2Cl-cotransport system in SV-infected cells (P. Despres, J. W. Griffin, and D. E. Griffin, J. Virol. 69:7006-7014, 1995). In these studies, we have shown that treatment of infected cells with anti-E2 monoclonal antibody also restored the ability of IFN-alpha to induce antiviral activity in infected cells late during infection. The very low rate of virus release in SV-infected cells treated simultaneously with anti-E2 monoclonal antibody and IFN-alpha was postulated to be linked to inhibition of virus maturation. Synergistic effects of antibody and IFN-alpha are likely to be important for control of SV replication in vivo.
Effects of sub-grid variability of precipitation and canopy water storage on climate model simulations of water cycle in Europe

Abstract. The impact of sub-grid variability of precipitation and canopy water storage is investigated over Central-South Europe by applying a new canopy interception scheme into the Community Atmosphere Model (CAM, Version 3) coupled with the Community Land Model (CLM, Version 3). The study shows that while sub-grid variability exerts great impact on the land surface water budget, the impact on the atmospheric hydrological processes is small and only exception being the Mediterranean region. In this region, incorporation of sub-grid variability is shown to reduce precipitation up to 1 mm/day (or ~8% relative to mean precipitation). The evapotranspiration ratio (ratio of evapotranspiration to total precipitation) exhibited insignificant deviations between the simulations with sub-grid variability and the ones without, which indicates that the local source of moisture is not the cause of the reduced precipitation. On the other hand, inducing sub-grid variability alters the large-scale circulation, which transports less water vapor form Atlantic Ocean to inland areas thus reducing precipitation in the Mediterranean region.
The American System: A Schumpeterian History of Standardization (Part I)

Standards can create intra-firm and inter-firm efficiencies. They facilitate economies of scale in manufacturing and promote interoperability between a variety of complementary products. In the final analysis, standards provide means for promoting stability over uncertainty, and for managing the complexities of industrial production. The creation and adoption of de facto standards - and the discarding of old standards for newer standards - illustrate perfectly the dynamic characteristics of the perennial gale of Schumpeterian creative destruction. This essay first traces the history of de facto standards within firms in the beginning decades of the American industrial revolution. It then looks at examples of de facto standards spreading beyond their points of origin through market mechanisms and ad hoc relationships. Finally, it discusses the status of de facto standards in the global networks of firms that are active in the Third Industrial Revolution that emerged in the latter decades of the twentieth century.
Non-equilibrium statistical mechanics for a vortex gas*

Kinetic equations governing the evolution of the reduced probability distribution functions associated with low-order vortex interactions making up an inviscid two-dimensional turbulent fluid on the surface of a sphere are derived. The vortex gas is viewed as a coupling, via the Liouville equation, between monopoles, dipoles, and tripoles, and as such, is based on ‘integrable’ ballistic elements whose complex interactions generate turbulent fluctuations. Assuming the dilute regime of a neutral vortex gas, pairwise interactions between monopoles and dipoles, dipoles and tripoles, monopoles and tripoles dominate over triple interactions such as monopole–dipole–tripole ones. Our general closure assumption used to arrive at a lower-order system is based on the idea of decomposing quadrupolar interactions into all possible lower-order interactions among monopoles, dipoles, and tripoles using a weighted average of these interactions with coefficients based on combinatorial likelihood. This is a far less restric...
Algorithms outperform metabolite tests in predicting response of patients with inflammatory bowel disease to thiopurines.

Background & Aims Levels of the thiopurine metabolites 6-thioguanine nucleotide (6-TGN) and 6-methylmercaptopurine commonly are monitored during thiopurine therapy for inflammatory bowel disease despite this test's high cost and poor prediction of clinical response (sensitivity, 62%; specificity, 72%). We investigated whether patterns in common laboratory parameters might be used to identify appropriate immunologic responses to thiopurine and whether they are more accurate than measurements of thiopurine metabolites in identifying patients who respond to therapy. Methods We identified 774 patients with inflammatory bowel disease on thiopurine therapy using metabolite and standard laboratory tests over a 24-hour time period. Machine learning algorithms were developed using laboratory values and age in a random training set of 70% of the cases; these algorithms were tested in the remaining 30% of the cases. Results A random forest algorithm was developed based on laboratory and age data; it differentiated clinical responders from nonresponders in the test set with an area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUROC) curve of 0.856. In contrast, 6-TGN levels differentiated clinical responders from nonresponders with an AUROC of 0.594 (P Conclusions Algorithms that use age and laboratory values can differentiate clinical response, nonadherence, and shunting of thiopurine metabolism among patients who take thiopurines. This approach was less costly and more accurate than 6-TGN metabolite measurements in predicting clinical response. If validated, this approach would provide a low-cost, rapid alternative to metabolite measurements for monitoring thiopurine use. View this article's video abstract atwww.cghjournal.org.
From Being to Givenness and Back: Some Remarks on the Meaning of Transcendental Idealism in Kant and Husserl

Abstract This paper takes a fresh look at a classical theme in philosophical scholarship, the meaning of transcendental idealism, by contrasting Kant’s and Husserl’s versions of it. I present Kant’s transcendental idealism as a theory distinguishing between the world as in‐itself and as given to the experiencing human being. This reconstruction provides the backdrop for Husserl’s transcendental phenomenology as a brand of transcendental idealism expanding on Kant: through the phenomenological reduction Husserl universalizes Kant’s transcendental philosophy to an eidetic science of subjectivity. He thereby furnishes a new sense of transcendental philosophy, rephrases the quid iuris‐question, and provides a new conception of the thing‐in‐itself. What needs to be clarified is not exclusively the possibility of a priori cognition but, to start at a much lower level, the validity of objects that give themselves in experience. The thing‐in‐itself is not an unknowable object, but the idea of the object in all po...
3′ UTR-isoform choice has limited influence on the stability and translational efficiency of most mRNAs in mouse fibroblasts

Variation in protein output across the genome is controlled at several levels, but the relative contributions of different regulatory mechanisms remain poorly understood. Here, we obtained global measurements of decay and translation rates for mRNAs with alternative 39 untranslated regions (39 UTRs) in murine 3T3 cells. Distal tandem isoforms had slightly but significantly lower mRNA stability and greater tr anslational efficiency than proximal isoforms on average. The diversity of alternative 39 UTRs also enabled inference and evaluation of both positively and negatively acting cis- regulatory elements. The 39 UTR elements with the greatest implied influence were microRNA complementary sites, which were associated with repression of 32% and 4% at the stability and translational levels, respectively. Nonetheless, both the decay and translation rates were highly correlated for proximal and distal 39 UTR isoforms from the same genes, implying that in 3T3 cells, alternative 39 UTR sequences play a surprisingly small regulatory role compared to other mRNA regions. (Supplemental material is available for this article.)
Soft delay error effects in CMOS combinational circuits

Single event upsets (SEUs) are due to high energetic particle strike at sensitive nodes of CMOS combinational circuits. In this paper, we introduce a type of soft errors which manifests as soft delay. The soft delay is temporary delay in CMOS combinational circuits due to high energetic particle strike. We describe soft delay model which enables us to examine delay in CMOS combinational circuits due to particle strike. As technology scales down, the delay due to particle strike increases, and other factors such as V/sub dd/ scaling, fanout and transistor strength also contribute to increase the soft delay in CMOS combinational circuits.
1/ f versus 1/ f α Noise

A generic mechanism for generating the ubiquitous phenomenon of 1/f noise is reviewed. In this approach, 1/f noise is tied directly to a probability limit distribution for a product of random variables which can explain its widescale occurrence. A scaling hypothesis is invoked which provides the basis for a crossover from 1/f to 1/f α noise. Examples of these ideas are given in small particle statistics, the solar electron velocity distribution, income distributions, scientific productivity, bronchial structure, and cardiac activity.
Muscle damage is not a function of muscle force but active muscle strain

Contractile properties of rabbit tibialis anterior muscles were measured after eccentric contraction to investigate the mechanism of muscle injury. In the first experiment, two groups of muscles were strained 25% of the muscle fiber length at identical rates. However, because the timing of the imposed length change relative to muscle activation was different, the groups experienced dramatically different muscle forces. Because muscle maximum tetanic tension and other contractile parameters measured after 30 min of cyclic activity with either strain timing pattern were identical (P > 0.4), we concluded that muscle damage was equivalent despite very different imposed forces. This result was supported by a second experiment in which the same protocol was performed at one-half the strain (12.5% muscle fiber length). Again, there was no difference in maximum tetanic tension after cyclic 12.5% strain with either strain timing. Data from both experiments were analyzed by two-way analysis of variance, which revealed a highly significant effect of strain magnitude (P 0.7). We interpret these data to signify that it is not high force per se that causes muscle damage after eccentric contraction but the magnitude of the active strain (i.e., strain during active lengthening). This conclusion was supported by morphometric analysis showing equivalent area fractions of damaged muscle fibers that were observed throughout the muscle cross section. The active strain hypothesis is described in terms of the interaction between the myofibrillar cytoskeleton, the sarcomere, and the sarcolemma.
Measuring Meaningful Learning in the Undergraduate Chemistry Laboratory: A National, Cross-Sectional Study

Research on laboratory learning points to the need to better understand what and how students learn in the undergraduate chemistry laboratory. The Meaningful Learning in the Laboratory Instrument (MLLI) was administered to general and organic chemistry students from 15 colleges and universities across the United States in order to measure the students’ cognitive and affective expectations and experiences within the context of performing experiments in their chemistry laboratory courses. Data were analyzed using exploratory factor analysis and cluster analysis. The factor analysis revealed unique mental frameworks for how students think about their laboratory experiences. Exploration of the cluster analysis output indicated a four cluster solution for general chemistry students and a three cluster solution for organic chemistry students. The clusters were further analyzed by examining item pre versus post scatterplots to characterize their unique cognitive and affective expectations and experiences for lea...
ID: 65: HYDROGEL MICROSPHERES FOR SPATIOTEMPORALLY CONTROLLED DELIVERY OF RNAI TO STEM CELLS FOR CHONDROGENESIS

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a disease of the articular cartilage characterized by pain and functional limitations that can severely affect one9s quality of life. Current treatments, including analgesics, microfracture, and autologous chondrocyte implantation, do not typically restore complete function; tissue engineering is a viable technology to meet this need in patient care. Our lab has engineered a system of self-assembling human mesenchymal stem cell sheets incorporated with growth factor-releasing hydrogel microspheres. This system of self-assembled, microsphere-incorporated stem cell sheets is capable of forming cartilage in the presence of exogenous growth factor or with growth factor released from the incorporated microspheres. Incorporation of microspheres allows for scaffold-free formation of stem cell based cartilage constructs which allows for the benefits of a scaffold free system, such as early mechanical strength and high cell density which maintains the cell-cell interactions necessary for chondrogenesis. Current literature demonstrates directed differentiation of stem cells down the chondrogenic lineage via delivery of RNA interference (RNAi), to control differentiation at the genetic level versus a growth factor based differentiation that typically affects a single signaling pathway. This work aims to engineer novel polymer microspheres specifically designed for RNAi delivery for controlled 3D presentation to both spatially and temporally regulate differentiation, overcoming many limitations of current techniques such as repeat application and exogenous delivery. Sustained delivery past the initial dosing will be necessary to inhibit gene expression in tissue engineering strategies using RNAi where repeat application within the interior of the constructs is not feasible. Moreover, a tunable degradation profile of the polymer to release the payload allows for temporal control of delivery. Thus, the role of spatial and temporal presentation of prochondrogenic siRNAs and/or miRNAs to block the expression of genes that inhibit chondrogenesis will be examined within a biologically relevant 3D stem cell model that recapitulates native cartilage development. We hypothesize that these RNAi loaded polymer microsphere incorporated sheets can heal full thickness articular cartilage defects. Our tissue engineering approaches are designed to be highly translational in nature, accomplishing the goal of true tissue regeneration. Because the delivery and release system is tunable, the release profile can be adapted to deliver a wide spectrum of bioactive factors, making this system a potentially powerful tool in the process of cartilage regeneration.
Photo-Assisted Chemical Beam Epitaxy of II-VI Semiconductors

Photo-assisted epitaxy is a versatile growth technique which allows in situ modification of surface chemical reactions. Under appropriate growth conditions the surface stoichiometry can be tuned by selectively desorbing surface species, or by decomposing particular molecular species, or by affecting the reaction rate constant of a chemical process. A potential application of laser-assisted growth rate enhancement or growth rate retardation is in the area of maskless selective area epitaxy. We have investigated the effect of photons on the growth of ZnSe by solid and gaseous source molecular beam epitaxy using various combination of sources. Significant growth rate enhancement (up to 20x), as well as growth rate suppression (as much as 70%), have been observed depending on the sources employed. In all cases, the laser power density remained low (∼200 mW/cm2), and the creation of photo-generated carriers was found to be required. An electron beam incident to the surface has a similar effect and increased the growth rate.
Water tunnel construction for continuous mode flow visualization

Continuous laminar flow in a gravity fed water tunnel i s obtained using experimental procedures on an existing water tunnel at the Von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium. This water tunnel previously produced turbulent free flow only in a "blow-down" mode after an extended settling period. The procedure for each phase of the study is discussed, as well as the calibration results of the final configuration. Lastly, the operation of the water tunnel in a continuous mode is compared to results previously obtained using the "blow-down'' mode.
Meta-analysis of dropout from cognitive behavioral therapy: Magnitude, timing, and moderators.

In this era of insistence on evidence-based treatments, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) has emerged as a highly preferred choice for a spectrum of psychological disorders. Yet, it is by no means immune to some of the vagaries of client participation. Special concerns arise when clients drop out f
Microwave vs. Conventional. I. Reduced and Total Ascorbic Acid in Vegetables

More and more electronic ovens are coming into use, not only in institutional and large-quantity food service but in the home as well. A recent prediction by an industry spokesman indicated that within ten years, sales of electronic cooking units for the home could reach the 100,000 mark. What happens to the nutrients when cooking time is reduced to a fraction of what is customary with conventional cooking methods? This study of fresh cabbage, fresh and frozen broccoli, and frozen green peas indicates that ascorbic acid retention in vegetables is greater with microwave cooking than with other methods of heating.
A comparison of FDG PET and IQNB SPECT in normal subjects and in patients with dementia.

Prior studies of patients with dementia have found similar qualitative patterns of cerebral glucose utilization with [18F]2-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose (FDG) PET and of putative muscarinic receptor activity with [123I]3-quinuclidinyl-4-iodobenzilate (IQNB). This raised doubts about whether receptor binding determines IQNB distribution and whether clinical information in IQNB scans is unique. To compare the methods directly, 4 normal volunteers and 7 patients with dementia underwent FDG PET and high-resolution IQNB SPECT scans. In normal subjects, relative regional activity from the paired scans was only weakly correlated (r = 0.29). Some regions (e.g., thalamus, frontal cortex) showed a clear disassociation of activity. In demented patients, IQNB scans tended to show larger defects than FDG scans, although one focal defect appeared only with PET. Results suggest that IQNB SPECT data are not primarily related to general physiological activity or regional cerebral blood flow and are not explained by attenuation or volume-averaging artifacts. Further studies should investigate whether IQNB scanning is a more sensitive in vivo measure of the extent of Alzheimer's disease than is FDG PET.
Eps15 membrane binding and bending activity acts redundantly with Fcho1 during clathrin-mediated endocytosis

Clathrin coat assembly on membranes requires cytosolic adaptors and accessory proteins, which bridge triskeleons with the lipid bilayer and stabilize lattice architecture throughout the process of vesicle formation. In Caenorhabditis elegans, the prototypical AP-2 adaptor complex, which is activated by the accessory factor Fcho1 at the plasma membrane, is dispensable during embryogenesis, enabling us to define alternative mechanisms that facilitate clathrin-mediated endocytosis. Here we uncover a synthetic genetic interaction between C. elegans Fcho1 (FCHO-1) and Eps15 (EHS-1), suggesting that they function in a parallel and potentially redundant manner. Consistent with this idea, we find that the FCHO-1 EFC/F-BAR domain and the EHS-1 EH domains exhibit highly similar membrane-binding and -bending characteristics in vitro. Furthermore, we demonstrate a critical role for EHS-1 when FCHO-1 membrane-binding and -bending activity is specifically eliminated in vivo. Taken together, our data highlight Eps15 as an important membrane-remodeling factor, which acts in a partially redundant manner with Fcho proteins during the earliest stages of clathrin-mediated endocytosis.
Network Stackelberg Games and Mathematical Programs with Equilibrium Constraints

In this chapter we are concerned with the problem known as a mathematical program with equilibrium constraints (MPEC) and with its game theoretic counterpart – the Stackelberg game . MPECs and Stackelberg games arise in many branches of engineering, science, and economics. MPEC network applications include certain network design , plant location , congestion pricing, and tolling problems formulated so that a fixed-point, nonlinear complementarity, variational inequality, or other mathematical representation of an equilibrium acts as a set of constraints on the optimizing intentions of a central authority. In particular, an MPEC is based on a partition of decision variables into two sets: those variables that are directly determined by a “leader” or omniscient agent, and those variables that are determined by a noncooperative Nash game among so-called “followers” who take the leader’s strategy as given. That is, the leader’s actions are beyond the followers’ influence.
Intraclade Heterogeneity in Nitrogen Utilization by Marine Prokaryotes Revealed Using Stable Isotope Probing Coupled with Tag Sequencing (Tag-SIP).

Nitrogen can greatly influence the structure and productivity of microbial communities through its relative availability and form. However, roles of specific organisms in the uptake of different nitrogen species remain poorly characterized. Most studies seeking to identify agents of assimilation have been correlative, indirectly linking activity measurements (e.g., nitrate uptake) with the presence or absence of biological markers, particularly functional genes and their transcripts. Evidence is accumulating of previously underappreciated functional diversity in major microbial subpopulations, which may confer physiological advantages under certain environmental conditions leading to ecotype divergence. This microdiversity further complicates our view of genetic variation in environmental samples requiring the development of more targeted approaches. Here, next-generation tag sequencing was successfully coupled with stable isotope probing (Tag-SIP) to assess the ability of individual phylotypes to assimilate a particular N source. Our results provide the first direct evidence of nitrate utilization by organisms thought to lack the genes required for this process including the heterotrophic clades SAR11 and the Archaeal Marine Group II (MG-II). We also provide new direct evidence of in situ nitrate utilization by the cyanobacterium Prochlorococcus in support of recent findings. Furthermore, these results revealed widespread functional heterogeneity, i.e. different levels of N assimilation within clades, likely reflecting niche partitioning by ecotypes. The addition of nitrate utilization to ecosystem and ecosystem models by these globally dominant clades will likely improve the mechanistic accuracy of these models.
Evaluation of Language Feedback Methods for Student Videos of American Sign Language

This research investigates how to best present video-based feedback information to students learning American Sign Language (ASL); these results are relevant not only for the design of a software tool for providing automatic feedback to students but also in the context of how ASL instructors could convey feedback on students’ submitted work. It is known that deaf children benefit from early exposure to language, and higher levels of written language literacy have been measured in deaf adults who were raised in homes using ASL. In addition, prior work has established that new parents of deaf children benefit from technologies to support learning ASL. As part of a long-term project to design a tool to automatically analyze a video of a students’ signing and provide immediate feedback about fluent and non-fluent aspects of their movements, we conducted a study to compare multiple methods of conveying feedback to ASL students, using videos of their signing. Through two user studies, with a Wizard-of-Oz design, we compared multiple types of feedback in regard to users’ subjective judgments of system quality and the degree students’ signing improved (as judged by an ASL instructor who analyzed recordings of students’ signing before and after they viewed each type of feedback). The initial study revealed that displaying videos to students of their signing, augmented with feedback messages about their errors or correct ASL usage, yielded higher subjective scores and greater signing improvement. Students gave higher subjective scores to a version in which time-synchronized pop-up messages appeared overlaid on the student's video to indicate errors or correct ASL usage. In a subsequent study, we found that providing images of correct ASL face and hand movements when providing feedback yielded even higher subjective evaluation scores from ASL students using the system.
Introduction to Daniel

Daniel, a 30-year old man with Proteus syndrome (elephant man disease), is introduced. After 110 surgeries, Daniel’s family elects to care for him at home in the final stages of life. Problems ensue when poor communication from hospital staff and the lack of a cohesive discharge plan give neither Daniel nor his family any idea of what to expect upon leaving the care of the hospital. In this chapter, Daniel, the author’s brother, is used to demonstrate the complexities of end-of-life issues, even for families who are familiar with the medical system.
Nonliteral Modern Dance—Its Nature, Forms, and Means of Communication

Abstract This study of nonliteral dance was of an exploratory and analytical nature. It was concerned with observing and identifying (a) the product of nonliteral modern dance, (b) the processes by which it was created, and (c) its component factors or elements. The study was limited to one form of nonliteral modern dance, that of Alwin Nikolais of the Henry Street Playhouse School of Dance, New York City. Data were collected by direct observation of professional training classes and observation of live and filmed dances. These data were then analyzed and classified in order to define product, processes, and factors of choreography. Principles of choreography were then developed from the data. Nonliteral modern dance was shown to differ considerably from traditional forms of modern dance in conception, development, and basic philosophy. The nature of the products and processes of abstract modern dance as well as the factors essential to this form of dance were identified and described through observation ...
Tout Fait Maison : A Law Code Crafted by the Eighteenth Century Jewry of Metz

This inquiry examines Le Recueil des Loix, Coutumes, et Usages Observes par les Juifs de Metz . Evocative of the medieval German Sachsenspiegel, the volume’s detailed regulations supply a rich portrait of a Jewish community in Alsace-Lorraine during the turbulent final decades of the ancien regime . While France evolved during these decades from feudalism to democracy, the Jews transitioned from serfs main-mortables or royal chattels to citizenship. Ideals of the emerging French democracy were imprinted upon the Code Napoleon (1805), a distinctively anti-feudal, secular expression of French citizens’ newfound autonomy. In contrast, the Recueil originated in an act of will on the part of the Jews’ overlords. In accordance with royal orders, it was deposited in the records of the royal court at Metz in about 1742; royal judges and members of the bar consulted the Recueil in all manner of disputes involving Jewish litigants and Jewish law. The Recueil, as the handiwork of eighteenth century Alsatian Jews, was unique in engrafting Jewish law and ethics upon French law of the ancien regime .
Current Status of Malaria Vaccines: The Need for Safe and Effective Adjuvants

ABSTRACT Two P . falciparum sporozoite vaccines, adjuvanted with alum, have recently been shown to be safe in humans, but have had limited immunogenicity and protective success. Defined merozoite proteins and epitopes have been shown to be partially or completely protective in monkeys, when given in Freund's complete adjuvant (FCA). However, a synthetic polymer of three peptides had only limited success in humans, when given in alum. Sporozoite and merozoite epitopes which have been shown to be protective in animals when given in FCA have had only limited success in humans when given in alum. The experience of malariologists is that clinically effective vaccines will not be available until safe and effective adjuvants are developed, despite the successful identification and characterization of protective epitopes.
Lectures on the Planetary Boundary Layer

There have been a few such workshops and short courses on aspects of boundary-layer meteorology over the past decade, so that a lecturer today must consider carefully where to start. I have decided to try to bring a contemporary view to my lectures, which means I will not be able to cover some older and now well-understood topics.
Retrofitting to improve the blast response of masonry walls

Abstract: Incidents and threats of terrorist bombings of buildings and installations have led to significant interest for blast mitigation techniques for exterior walls. Building material fragmentation is a major cause of human injury during such events. One of the most common methods of construction in buildings is the use of masonry walls. Masonry provides a fast inexpensive way to construct buildings of various heights; however, these walls are extremely vulnerable to blast pressure resulting in collapse, fragmentation, and severe injury to occupants. Membrane retrofit materials are used to strengthen the wall’s resistance to lateral pressure. In actual tests, membrane retrofit unreinforced masonry walls have experienced severe cracking and large displacements without collapse. This chapter presents resistance functions for three different scenarios of membrane retrofit unreinforced masonry walls to lateral pressure. These functions are further coupled with single degree of freedom systems to predict the wall response to blast loads. This chapter gives the structural engineer a practical tool for the design of membrane retrofit masonry walls to resist lateral pressures such as wind, and various blast charges and distances.
Attachment of two electrons to C60F48: Coulomb barriers in doubly charged anions.

The highly fluorinated chiral [ital C][sub 3[ital h]] molecule C[sub 60]F[sub 48] was observed to sequentially attach two electrons in the gas phase to produce C[sub 60]F[sub 48][sup 2[minus]] and C[sub 60]F[sub 46][sup 2[minus]]+F[sub 2]. The first electron affinity (EA) of C[sub 60]F[sub 48] was measured to be 4.06[plus minus]0.3 eV. The first and second EA were calculated to be EA[sub 1]=5.07 eV and EA[sub 2]=2.27 eV for the more symmetric [ital D][sub 3[ital d]] isomer. The dianion was found to be [ital more] [ital stable] with respect to electron detachment than the singly-charged anion. This remarkable stability of the dianion is attributed to a potential barrier resulting from the long range Coulomb repulsion and short range electron-molecule binding.
Purification of Porcine and Human ACTH

Homogeneous ACTH from porcine and human sources can now be prepared in moderate quantities because suitable starting material is available, and fractionation on large Sephadex and carboxymethyl cellulose columns is readily reproducible. The purified peptides are necessary for immunologic, metabolic and chemical studies. To prepare porcine adrenocorticotropic hormone, the starting material is the fraction made for clinical use by carrying the extraction of whole pituitaries through an oxycellulose adsorption step. For human adrenocorticotropic hormone, by-products from preparations of human growth hormone are used. Detailed procedures for purifying adrenocorticotropic hormone isolated from human and porcine sources are described below.
Multiple Intelligences in Change Leadership: Exploring the Diversity

This paper explores the role of emotional intelligence, executive intelligence, and cultural intelligence necessary for effective change leadership. With dramatic advancements in technology and global interconnectivity, and growing demands for more culturally aware and emotionally resilient change leaders, the use and development of multiple intelligences is shown to be vital for successful change. The key distinctions and connections between these intelligences and their relationship to change leadership are examined, and implications for future research and practice are extended.
Engineering Identities of Chemical and Industrial Majors After Students' First Year

This work-in-progress research paper explores the differences of engineering identity in second year chemical engineering and industrial engineering students. The study aims to seek similarities and differences in engineering identity after the College of Engineering’s First Year program. The research questions investigated in this paper include: 1) What factors are related to chemical engineering self-identification? and 2) What factors are related to industrial engineering self-identification? To answer these questions, researchers collected data, using a modified version of the SaGE survey. The data was collected within a required sophomore level course for chemical engineers in summer 2017 and a required sophomore level course for industrial engineers in fall 2017. The results showed that there are differences in Industrial and Chemical Engineering students’ identities by the sophomore level. Chemical engineering students seem to have established a chemical engineering identity by the beginning of their sophomore year at the university, whereas Industrial Engineering students are just beginning to form an engineering identity.
Community Partnerships Help Undergraduate Students to Meet the ‘Grand Challenges’ of Today

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has defined several priority need areas or “Grand Challenges” that face our world-wide community. These challenges are complex and will require collaborative approaches to yield creative solutions. The Fishback Honors College at South Dakota State University is committed to preparing undergraduate honors students with the experiences and training to tackle these “Grand Challenges.” Six undergraduate student interns were recruited and trained to deliver non-formal educational programs that addressed the USDA priority need areas. The community outreach internships were conducted in partnership with Boys and Girls Clubs local to Eastern South Dakota as well as SDSU Extension. These outreach efforts engaged more than 1,000 youth ranging from preschool to high school aged students. The role of the interns was to create, execute, and assess a series of experiential learning activities for youth that translated “Grand Challenge” lessons learned through the college students’ coursework and research to this broader audience of youth, and to further the Honors College goal of deepening its engagement in the community.
The RNA Binding Protein FMRP Promotes Myelin Sheath Growth

During development, oligodendrocytes in the central nervous system extend a multitude of processes that wrap axons with myelin. The highly polarized oligodendrocytes generate myelin sheaths on many different axons, which are far removed from the cell body. Neurons use RNA binding proteins to transport, stabilize, and locally translate mRNA in distal domains of neurons. Local synthesis of synaptic proteins during neurodevelopment facilitates the rapid structural and functional changes underlying neural plasticity and avoids extensive protein transport. We hypothesize that RNA binding proteins also regulate local mRNA regulation in oligodendrocytes to promote myelin sheath growth. Fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP), an RNA binding protein that plays essential roles in the growth and maturation of neurons, is also expressed in oligodendrocytes. To determine whether oligodendrocytes require FMRP for myelin sheath development, we examined fmr1-/- mutant zebrafish and drove FMR1 expression specifically in oligodendrocytes. We found oligodendrocytes in fmr1-/- mutants developed myelin sheaths of diminished length, a phenotype that can be autonomously rescued in oligodendrocytes with FMR1 expression. Myelin basic protein (Mbp), an essential myelin protein, was reduced in myelin tracts of fmr1-/- mutants, but loss of FMRP function did not impact the localization of mbpa transcript in myelin. Finally, expression of FMR1-I304N, a missense allele that abrogates FMRP association with ribosomes, failed to rescue fmr1-/- mutant sheath growth and induced short myelin sheaths in oligodendrocytes of wild-type larvae. Taken together, these data suggest that FMRP promotes sheath growth through local regulation of translation.
Efficient classification and grading of MANGOES with GANFIS for improved performance

The application of image processing has been extended to agricultural industries in recent times. As the concept of image processing has vast application in agricultural industries, fruit grading has been focused in this research. There are number of approaches available for the classification and grading of mangoes, they suffer to achieve higher performance in classification. The most approaches uses color features and shape features only. To improve the performance of classification and fruit grading, an efficient GANFIS (Genetic Adaptive Neuro Fuzzy Inference System) is presented in this paper. The GANFIS approach reads the 2D mango images and extract various features like color, shape and texture features from the input image. Over the features extracted, the genetic algorithm has been applied to perform feature selection. With the extracted features, the method applies adaptive neuro fuzzy inference technique to perform classification and grading. The classification algorithm estimates multi feature class similarity MFCS measure towards each class of mangoes to perform classification where the grading is performed based on the same being estimated within the class. The proposed GANFIS approach has achieved sensitivity (98.05%), specificity (97.39%) and Accuracy (99.18%).
Modified frailty index predicts high-risk patients for readmission after colorectal surgery for cancer.

Abstract Background Modified frailty index (mFI) has been proposed as a reliable tool in predicting postoperative outcomes after surgery. This study aims to evaluate whether mFI could be utilized to predict readmissions after colorectal resection for patients with cancer by using nationwide cohort. Methods Patients undergoing elective abdominal colorectal resection for colorectal cancer were reviewed from the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) procedure-targeted database (2010–2012). A previously described mFI was calculated. Demographics, comorbidities, and 30-day postoperative complications were compared between patients who were readmitted or not after colorectal surgery. Results A total of 7337 patients were identified with a mean age of 65.8(±13.6) years. Eight hundred seventy-one (11.8%) patients were readmitted at least once within 30 days. Age, gender, BMI, and other comorbidities were comparable between the groups. O approach, current smoking, mFI(>3/11), disseminating cancer, bleeding disorder and longer operative time were found to independently associated with readmission. Conclusions An 11-point modified frailty index as measured in NSQIP correlates with readmissions after colorectal resection in patients with colon and rectal cancer.
Alzheimer's Disease Research Insights: Impacts, Trends, Opportunities

An estimated 45 million people are living with Alzheimer’s disease worldwide. While the peptide amyloid-β has been a major focus in research related to the disease, recently emerging research on behaviors for prevention and treatment offer new strategies for controlling the disease.
Uncovering Disparities in Scholarly Productivity among Junior Surgical Society Grant Recipients.

Abstract Background Despite increasing the number of women and ethnic minority groups in surgery, the academic advancement of such individuals within surgical fields lags behind Caucasian men. We sought to identify gender and ethnic inequalities in the receipt of surgical society research grants for young faculty investigators and compare the scholarly productivity of these groups. Materials and methods In this cross-sectional and retrospective study, the gender and race of surgical society grant recipients were determined from surgical society Web sites. Surgical society grants aimed at providing research grants for junior faculty investigators were analyzed. Using the Scopus database, each recipient's scholarly productivity was determined by means of h-index, a standardized measure of the quantity and impact of an individual's published articles. We generated descriptive statistics to compare the gender, race, and h-index of grant recipients in the years 2006-2008 and 2016-2018. Results Between 2006 and 2008, there were 68 research grant recipients. Of these recipients, 79% were men and 21% were women. The racial breakdown was 54% Caucasian men, 22% Asian men, 1.4% African American men, 1.4% Hispanic men, 12% Caucasian women, 7% Asian Women, and 1.4% African American women. The average h-index of the male and female recipients is 25 (±14) and 24 (±14), respectively (P = 0.81). Between 2016 and 2018, there were 113 research grant recipients. Of these recipients, 66% were men and 34% were women. The racial breakdown was 47% Caucasian men, 16% Asian men, 3.5% African American men, 1% Hispanic men, 26% Caucasian women, 3.5% Asian women, and 3.5% African American women. The average h-index of the male and female recipients is 12 (±8) and 9 (±6), respectively (P = 0.046). Caucasian women had the only statistically significant change in the proportion of grant recipients from 2006-2008 to 2016-2018, with an increase from 12% to 26% (P = 0.02). Conclusions Most surgical society research grants for young investigators continue to be awarded to Caucasian men, with Caucasian women earning a distant second in the 2016-2018 cohort. Ethnic minorities continue to be awarded less research grants than Caucasian recipients. Overall, the average h-index of women was less than men. This study highlights the persistent need for surgical societies to consider gender and ethnic disparities when awarding junior investigator grants, including barriers minority groups may face in achieving the same h-index as Caucasian men.
When (Almost) Everyone is Above Average: A Critical Analysis of American Orthopaedic Association Committee of Residency Directors Standardized Letters of Recommendation.

The American Orthopaedic Association introduced standardized letters of recommendations (SLORs) to improve on traditional letters of recommendations by "providing a global prospective on an applicant." However, no study has defined the utilization of SLORs, the distribution of applicant ratings in SLORs, or the impact of sex, race, or degree of involvement between the letter writer and applicant on SLOR domain ratings. Methods One-hundred seventy-nine applications were randomly selected from all applicants submitted to a single, academic orthopaedic residency program. A single reviewer extracted both applicant characteristics and SLOR characteristics from applications. Descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, and nonparametric one-way analysis of variance analysis were conducted. Results Six hundred twenty-eight letters of recommendation from 179 applicants were analyzed. Four hundred ninety-seven of 628 (79.1%) letters contained a SLOR. Mean percentile ratings were calculated for all the following domains: patient care (mean ± SD = 86.7 ± 8.7), medical knowledge (87.2 ± 8.6), interpersonal and communication (87.7 ± 9.3), procedural (86.6 ± 8.9), research (88.9 ± 9.0), ability to work within a team (89.6 ± 8.4), professionalism (90.8 ± 7.3), initiative and drive (90.6 ± 7.6), and commitment to orthopaedic surgery (91.1 ± 6.7). Forty-eight percent of applicants were indicated as "ranked to guarantee match." When compared with male applicants, female applicants demonstrated higher percentile ratings in patient care (88.6 ± 8.2 vs. 86.3 ± 8.7, p = 0.010), interpersonal and communication skills (90.6 ± 7.3 vs. 86.9 ± 9.6, p < 0.001), and ability to work within a team (91.3 ± 6.3 vs. 89.2 ± 8.8, p = 0.045). Higher United States Medical Licensing Examination step 1 (r = 0.08, p = 0.05) and step 2 scores (r = 0.10, p = 0.02) correlated with higher medical knowledge ratings. The number of publications (r = 0.3, p < 0.001) and presentations (r = 0.25, p < 0.001) correlated with research ratings. Conclusion SLORs demonstrated a profound ceiling effect, potentially limiting the utility of the instrument for the comparison of applicants. Future modifications to this instrument may include measures to better delineate between applicants.
A review of GLP-1 receptor agonists in type 2 diabetes: A focus on the mechanism of action of once-weekly agents.

What is known and objective Glucagon‐like peptide‐1 receptor agonists (GLP‐1 RAs) are one of the preferred approved treatment options for people with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and inadequate glycaemic control. The objective of this review is to provide a general clinical overview of the similarities and differences in the mechanisms of action (MoA) of the once‐weekly GLP‐1 RA class of medications, highlighting the role of pharmacists in providing optimal medication management, education and care for people with diabetes.
Investigation of an innovative preservative treatment of green timber using compression

Impregnation of an appropriate chemical compound in wood is a common technique to improve durability, fire retardant properties, strength and dimensional stability, increase hardness and UV resista...
A cross-species comparison of antiretroviral penetration into lymph nodes using novel physiologically based pharmacokinetic models.

BACKGROUND Investigating antiretroviral (ARV) penetration and pharmacology in lymph nodes is crucial to understanding mechanisms of HIV persistence in tissue, but sampling these tissues in humans is invasive and costly. Physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) modelling is a non-invasive solution for understanding lymph node penetration of ARVs across multiple species. OBJECTIVES To develop customized PBPK models with a novel lymph node compartment, and use these models to describe the distribution of three ARVs-tenofovir, emtricitabine and efavirenz-into the plasma and lymph nodes of non-human primates (NHPs) and humans. MATERIALS AND METHODS In this analysis, we utilized standard monkey and human PBPK models in PK-Sim, and added a novel lymph node compartment using MoBi. We used these models to describe the distribution of tenofovir, emtricitabine and efavirenz into NHP and human plasma and lymph nodes, and compared model-predicted versus observed AUC and Cmax. RESULTS For all three ARVs, population simulations using the base and final models reasonably characterized observed plasma and tissue data in NHPs and humans, with predicted/observed AUC and Cmax ratios within 0.7-2.0. CONCLUSIONS Overall, our novel PBPK model provides a framework for understanding lymph node penetration of ARVs or future HIV cure therapies.