cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Path analysis of metabolic syndrome components in black versus white children, adolescents, and adults: the Bogalusa Heart Study.

Purpose Examine the complex relationships among metabolic syndrome components in black and white individuals by growth periods. Methods Path analyses of metabolic syndrome components were performed on 8203 black and white healthy subjects (64.3% white and 47.9% male) comprising children (4–11 years), adolescents (12–18 years), and adults (19–44 years). Results The direct effect of body mass index (BMI) on fasting insulin levels was greatest among all the paths for each age group in both races. In general, path coefficients were greater in whites than in blacks except for the age–mean arterial pressure (MAP) path and greater in children and adults than in adolescents. The direct age effect on MAP was greater in black versus white adults (p = 0.010 for race difference). Whites showed greater direct effects of BMI on MAP in children (p = 0.007), adolescents (p = 0.090), and adults (p = 0.022); BMI on insulin in adolescents (p Conclusions The black–white differences in the relationships of obesity and insulin resistance measures to other components may account for the lower prevalence of metabolic syndrome in the black population.
THE ADVERSE EFFECT OF TREATMENT PROLONGATION IN CERVICAL CARCINOMA

Abstract Purpose: Proliferation of surviving tumor clonogens during a course of protracted radiation therapy may be a cause of local failure in cervical carcinoma. The effect of total treatment time was analyzed retrospectively in relation to pelvic control and overall survival for squamous cell carcinomas of the uterine cervix. Methods and Materials: Two hundred and nine patients (Stage IB-IIIB) treated with a combination of external beam and low dose rate intracavitary irradiation were evaluable for study. Multivariate analysis and Kaplan-Meier statistical methods were used to determine the effect of treatment time on pelvic control and survival at 5 years. Results: The median treatment duration was 55 days. For all stages combined, the 5-year survival and pelvic control rates were significantly different with treatment times p = 0.03), 87 and 72% ( p = 0.006), respectively. By stage, a shorter treatment duration (i.e., Conclusion: These results that prolongation of treatment time is associated with decreased local control and survival in patients with cervical carcinoma. This is consistent with emerging data from other institutions. Therapeutic implications include avoidance of unnecessary treatment breaks, the design of fractionation schemes that decrease treatment duration, and possibly the use of tumor cytostatic drugs during conventional radiation.
SEROTONIN 5-HT2A RECEPTORS ARE EXPRESSED ON PYRAMIDAL CELLS AND INTERNEURONS IN THE RAT CORTEX

The distribution of 5-HT2A receptors in rat cortex was evaluated using newly developed antibodies. Each of three antibodies tested identified an identical pattern of 5-HT2A-like immunoreactivity (5-HT2A-li) in rat cortex with 5-HT2A-li showing a widespread distribution. The majority of 5-HT2A-li cells displayed a pyramidal morphology. While a minority, some cortical neurons with a bipolar morphology displayed 5-HT2A-li as well. Dual-label fluorescence confocal microscopic studies with a 5-HT2A antibody and a mouse monoclonal antibody to parvalbumin, a marker of a subset of gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA)ergic interneurons in the cortex, demonstrated that although some cells expressing 5-HT2A-li were interneurons, most were not.
Property Rights, Business Firms, and Innovation

Innovation means doing something that has not been done before. It could be the production of a new good, the opening up of a new market, the discovery of a new source of supply, the development of a new method of production, or changes in the rules of the game that reduce transaction costs. Whichever the case, by injecting a novelty into the flow of economic life, innovation offers the community a new choice. Thus innovation is the engine of economic progress.
Glycerolysis of linseed oil: A compositional study

Sodium hydroxide catalyzed glycerolysis of linseed oil is greatly enhanced by increase in temperature but only moderately by increase in catalyst concentration. That the active catalyst under these conditions is the glyceroxide ion and not the hydroxide ion was confirmed by performing the reaction with freshly prepared sodium glyceroxide. In all cases alcohol solubility is reached before the reaction attains equilibrium. Component glycerides analysis at these points shows that the monoglycerides content at alcohol solubility is about 35% and at equilibrium about 45%. Further, there are about twice as many 1,3-diglycerides as either 1,2-diglycerides or triglycerides. Component fatty acid analysis of these individual glycerides shows that all the fatty acids of the parent oil are present in every one of these glyceride types and in about the same proportions. Monoglycerides in the early stages of reaction are richer in saturated fatty acids indicating that the catalyst attacks the primary alcoholic ester portion of glycerides first. Similarities in the fatty acid compositions of 1-and 2-monoglycerides at these early stages indicate that the latter are formed by acyl migration from the former. Based on these observations a mechanism for glycerolysis has been proposed.
Orchestrating end-user perspectives in the software release process: an integrated release management framework

Software bugs discovered by end-users are inevitable consequences of a vendor's lack of testing. While they frequently result in costly system failures, one way to detect and prevent them is to engage the customer in acceptance testing during the release process. Yet, there is a considerable lack of empirical studies examining release management from end-users' perspective. To address this gap, we propose and empirically test a release framework that positions the customer release manager in the center of the release process. Using a participatory action research strategy, a twenty-seven-month study was conducted to evaluate and improve the effectiveness of the framework through seven major and 39 minor releases.
Action at a distance: A lumbar spine tumor presenting as trigeminal neuralgia

Trigeminal neuralgia (TN) is often secondary to an underlying structural cause, frequently compression of the fifth nerve root by an ectatic artery. Here we describe a case of a 36-year-old woman with symptoms of TN who was found to have severe communicating hydrocephalus. Further investigation revealed a lumbar myxopapillary ependymoma, which in turn was responsible for the communicating hydrocephalus. An argument connecting these seemingly disparate findings is made. This unusual set of circumstances is an example of "action at a distance" in the nervous system, and reminds clinicians to think broadly about the various pathophysiologic mechanisms that can potentially underlie common disorders.
Ontogeny of conditioned heart rate to an olfactory stimulus

When heart rate is used as the index of conditioning, rat pups younger than 15 days of age do not display an odor-shock association. This constitutes a marked delay relative to the development of a somatomotor conditioned response. The incapacity to display autonomic learning to an olfactory stimulus prior to day 15 is not due to the inability to perceive and to orient to the olfactory stimuli used, nor to the inability to make unconditioned phasic cardiac changes. Rather, the late development of the heart rate conditioned response may indicate that the central neural mechanisms mediating heart rate conditioning are distinct from, and mature later than those mediating (1) heart rate orienting and (2) somatomotor conditioning. Evidence from studies in adult species is used to support these speculations.
Structure of two retrons of Escherichia coli and their common chromosomal insertion site

It has been shown that certain strains of myxobacteria and of Escherichia coli have a genetic element encoding a reverse transcriptase (RT). This element, called a 'retron', produces a covalently linked RNA-DNA compound (msDNA-RNA). Here, I report the complete nucleotide sequence of retron EC-86, the retron in E. coli B, together with its flanking regions. Retron EC-86 contains genes for msDNA-RNA (msd, and msr), a gene for RT (ret) and a gene for an open reading frame whose function is unknown. The upstream junction is composed of the sequence GCGCGCGC, but there are no direct or inverted repeats at the retron-host junctions. It is also shown that another retron of E. coli, EC-67, which was isolated originally from the clinical strain CL1 and was later found to be present also in a clinical E. coli isolate from Brazil, is inserted at the same chromosomal site as retron EC-86. Retron EC-67 contains only msd, msr, and ret. I suggest that these two retrons were independently inserted into the same site of their host strains via a novel mechanism of integration.
Spatially resolved cellular responses to singlet oxygen

Singlet oxygen (1O2) is unique amongst reactive oxygen species formed in cells in that it is an excited state molecule with an inherent upper lifetime of 4 micros in water. Whether the lifetime of 1O2 in cells is shortened by reactions with cellular molecules or reaches the inherent maximum value is still unclear. However, even with the maximum lifetime, the diffusion radius is only approximately 220 nm during three lifetimes (approximately 5% 1O2 remaining), much shorter than cellular dimensions indicating that the primary reactions of 1O2 will be subcellularly localized near the site of 1O2 formation. This fact has raised the question of whether spatially resolved cellular responses to 1O2 occur, i.e. whether responses can be initiated by generation and reaction of 1O2 at a particular subcellular location that would not have been produced by 1O2 generation at other subcellular sites. In this paper, we discuss examples of spatially resolved responses initiated by 1O2 as a function of distance from the site of generation of 1O2. Three levels are recognized, namely, a molecular level where the primary oxidation product directly modifies the behavior of a cell, an organelle level where the initial photo-oxidation products initiate mechanisms that are unique to the organelle and the cellular level where mediators diffuse from their site of formation to the target molecules that initiate the response. These examples indicate that, indeed, spatially resolved responses to 'O2 occur in cells.
The new media ethics

Over the past three chapters we have examined basic principles: truth, objectivity, and minimizing harm. These concepts are the pillars of mainstream media ethics. Most of the principles and approaches were developed over the past century, originating in the construction of professional media ethics, as discussed in Chapter 2. Therefore, our discussion has revolved around a traditional approach to ethics developed originally for a news media of another era. To what extent is this approach to ethics suitable for today’s and tomorrow’s news media? In this chapter we address this question by examining the reasons for concern about the applicability of traditional approaches, and by describing a new, emerging media ethics. In Chapter 4 , we reaffirmed truth and objectivity after we reconceived these concepts. In this chapter we go further and think more radically. We consider to what extent the entire structure of media ethics needs to be rethought and reinvented for the media of today, not of yesteryear.
Optimal Digital Portfolios

Digital assets are investments with returns that are binary in nature, i.e. they either have a very large or very small payoff . We explore the features of the optimal portfolios of digital assets such as venture investments, credit assets and lotteries. These portfolios comprise correlated assets with joint Bernoulli distributions. Using a recursion technique to generate the return distribution of the portfolio, we derive guidelines on how investors in digital assets may think about constructing their portfolios.
EFFECTS OF IN VITRO VERSUS IN VIVO RED CELL LABELING ON IMAGE QUALITY IN GASTROINTESTINAL BLEEDING STUDIES

Objective: Both in vivo and in vitro red cell labeling methods are available for performing gastrointestinal bleeding studies. While in vitro labeling has been shown to result in higher binding efficiency, no comparison of clinical image quality has been reported between those techniques. This study compares in vivo and in vitro methods using both subjective and objective measurements of image quality. Methods: A consecutive series of gastrointestinal bleeding studies performed on 23 patients using in vivo labeling was compared to a series of 23 studies using in vitro labeling. Images at 30 min postinjection were randomized and analyzed by two observers. Subjective evaluation of image quality, as well as renal activity, was based on a comparison of femoral vein and inferior vena cava activity to adjacent background using numerical scores with a scale of 0–3. Image quality using the subjective scores was further classified as acceptable and poor. Target-to-background measurements of femoral vein to adjacent soft tissue in the thigh and inferior vena cava to adjacent abdominal background also were made. Results: In vitro label subjective image quality was acceptable in 87% and 91% of cases for vascular and renal activity, respectively, but only 35% and 52% for in vivo labeling. In vitro label target-to-background ratios were significantly better than in vivo label for the femoral vein and inferior vena cava, as well as for the subjective assessment of vascular image quality, but not for renal activity. Conclusion: In vitro red cell labeling improves clinical image quality as compared with in vivo labeling. Both subjective and objective measurements of image quality are useful for comparing the results of labeling methods.
Differentiation Between Gypsy Moth (Lepidoptera: Lymantriidae) Populations by Spectral Color Discrimination of Head Capsules

Head capsules of 579 individuals from 28 different populations of gypsy moth, Lymantria dispar (L.), were reliably classified with an analysis of their color spectrum. Based on 26 variables, derived from ≈17 million color combinations of red, green, and blue, a set of numeric characteristics permitted discrimination between gypsy moth populations from the former Soviet Union, the northeastern United States, and the laboratory. Discriminant analysis of color spectra also differentiated among laboratory families reared on the same diet as well as instars within the same family. The 26 variables, which were derived from a series of discriminant analyses and tested on head capsules from populations from Japan, China, Yugoslavia, and Maryland, provided separation as well as a high level of correct classification. This procedure may be useful when head capsule or other spectral data are used in studies of biocontrol, behavior, and population dynamics.
Philibert Joseph Roux (1780-1854)

Philibert Joseph Roux (1780-1854), a French surgeon, was a student and friend of Marie Xavier Francois Bichat, the father of modern pathology and histology. He was assigned as a surgeon to the Hopital Beaujon (1806), the Hopital de la Charite (1810) and to Hotel-Dieu de Paris (1835), where he succeeded to Guillaume Dupuyrten, a French anatomist, as a Chief Surgeon. Roux is best known for having performed the surgical repair of a cleft palate and for having been the first surgeon to stitch a ruptured female perineum. His contribution to surgery has also included the publication of Quarante annees de pratique chirurgicale. Roux was awarded the grade of Chevalier of the National Order of the legion of Honor and that of Officer. He also served as a President of the Academy of Sciences. He died of a stroke on 3 March 1854.
Notice of release of Columbia germplasm of bluebunch wheatgrass

Columbia Germplasm of bluebunch wheatgrass ( Pseudoroegneria spicata (Pursh) A. Love [Poaceae]) was released by USDA Agricultural Research Service in 2015. It was developed through 5 cycles of selection, primarily for increased numbers of spikes, from K68, a population collected in 1980 in Adams County in eastern Washington. The collection site of K68 averages approximately 250 mm of annual precipitation, about half of the average annual precipitation at the collection sites of ‘Whitmar,’ ‘Goldar,’ and Anatone Germplasm, also in eastern Washington. Columbia Germplasm was compared with other bluebunch wheatgrass plant materials at one Nevada, 2 Idaho, and 3 Utah sites in a total of 9 trials, 5 of which were out-planted and 4 of which were seeded. Columbia Germplasm is expected to be of use most widely on Intermountain rangelands that receive between 250 and 350 mm of average annual precipitation.
A task allocation method for collaborative diagnosis

In the multi-resources collaborative diagnosis,because of the complexity of equipment and the heterogeneous nature of diagnosis resources,diagnosis task allocation should have adaptability.This requirement can be realized by a dynamic-static integrated allocation method.In the static allocation method,diagnosis task relation model is established by means of the qualitative model of equipment and fuzzy relation matrix,diagnosis path planning is realized by improving D-algorithm,and multi-constraints integer planning is used for resource allocation;in the dynamic allocation method,an extended contract net method is introduced,which is based on utility and negotiation.The validity of this method is proven by means of a case of an engineering equipment diagnosis.
Three-dimensional measurement technology for additive manufacturing

We proposed the 3D sensing system which is composed of a structured light generating device and an image capturing device to measurement height variation of each layer during selective laser melting(SLM) process.
Regulation of the Rho GTPase, RhoA, Activity Is Critical for Erythropoiesis during Embryo Development.

Hematopoiesis is critical during fetal development for the survival and growth of the embryo and is regulated by growth factors, chemokines and adhesion interactions necessary for stem cell trafficking, proliferation, differentiation and survival. The fetal liver (FL) is the major hematopoietic organ at midgestation where erythroid cells in particular undergo dramatic expansion before birth. However, the molecular regulation of hematopoiesis during embryogenesis is still poorly defined. Rho GTPases, Rac1, Rac2, CDC42 and Rho, are best known for their role in cell migration via actin rearrangement. Rho GTPases have also been implicated in cell proliferation and differentiation in non-hematopoietic cells. Using genetic approaches, we have implicated Rac1 and Rac2 in adult HSC regulating migration and proliferation and demonstrated crosstalk between Rac and other members of the Rho GTPase family (Yang, PNAS 2001; Gu, Science 2003), suggesting a role for other RhoGTPase in hematopoietic cell functions. P190Rho GTPase Activating Protein (GAP) which regulates RhoA activity has previously been implicated in IGF-1 signaling regulating cell size during fetal development (Sordella, Dev Cell, 2002) and adipogenesis-myogenesis cell fate decision (Sordella, Cell, 2003). However, there have been no reports on its role on hematopoiesis. Here, we show that p190RhoGAP is also a regulator of hematopoiesis during fetal development. FL p190RhoGAP −/− showed 2-fold increase in RhoA activity, indicating that p190RhoGAP regulates RhoA activity in hematopoietic cells. At 14.5 day post coitum (dpc) and most prominently at 15.5 dpc, p190RhoGAP −/− embryos appear paler than WT embryos. FL of 14.5 dpc p190RhoGAP −/− embryos appear to be smaller than WT embryos. Hemoglobin concentration of blood from 14.5 dpc p190RhoGAP −/− animals was 45% lower than WT (p −/− FL was also reduced compared to WT (5.5±2.7x10 6 vs 13.3±4.2x10 6 , p −/− mice was similar to WT mice, suggesting a hematopoietic specific phenotype at this stage of development. P190RhoGAP −/− mice showed deficiency in erythroid colony forming-unit (CFU) erythroid (CFU-E, 285±84 vs 469±42 per 5x10 4 FL cells, p 4 FL cells). Overall, total myeloid colonies and CFU-E per p190RhoGAP −/− FL were lower than WT (10±3x10 3 vs 24±3x10 3 , p 3 vs 130±3x10 3 , p −/− mice, 14.5 dpc FL cells were cultured in the presence of EPO, SCF, IGF-1 and on fibronectin-coated plate, predominant regulators of erythropoiesis. Erythroid differentiation was assessed by expression of erythroid markers, CD71 and Ter119, at 5 days of culture. P190RhoGAP −/− cells showed reduction in percentage of mature erythroid cells compared to WT cells (CD71 + Ter119 + : 15±6 vs 25±6.8; CD71 − Ter119 + : 6±1.2 vs 13±1.6, p + Ter119 − : 71.5±5 vs 53±5). Overall, this study reveals a previously unrecognized function for the family of GTPases in hematopoiesis and suggests that RhoA signaling may be critical for erythropoiesis during embryo development by regulating terminal erythroid differentiation.
Bank opacity and the efficiency of stock prices

Abstract Prior research argues that the process of intermediation is opaque and produces uncertainty about the riskiness of banks, which may adversely affect the efficiency of bank stock prices. Using the Hou and Moskowitz (2005) measure of price delay, which captures the inefficiency of stock prices, we test for, and find evidence supporting the idea that opacity is positively associated with price delay. Bank stocks have markedly higher delay than similar non-bank stocks. This higher level of delay is driven, in part, by market-based measures of informational opacity as well as the asset composition of the bank's balance sheet. Combined, our findings suggest that bank opacity reduces the efficiency of financial markets.
The Role of Parents in Introducing Children to Financial Services: Evidence from Ghana-YouthSave

Financial capability—financial knowledge, skills, and access to financial services—may help smooth transitions to adulthood for youth and is affected by socialization experiences with parents and other family members. Among a sample of youth and their parents enrolled in the YouthSave experiment in Ghana (n = 4,065), this study examined whether physical access to financial services and/or visiting banks with parents or other family members was associated with youth’s perceptions and understanding of financial institutions. We found a statistically significant association between visiting the bank with a parent or other family member and youth’s attitudes (β = 1.45, p < 0.001) and understanding of financial services (β = 2.96, p < 0.001), controlling for other factors like household income and assets. Conversely, physical access (distance, travel time) was not associated with financial services attitudes or understanding. Parents may play an important role in introducing their children to financial services. Practitioners and policy makers should consider ways to include parents in efforts to promote financial capability among youth.
An anomalous form of Northwest semitic apposition and its ancient near Eastern context

Due to the inherent ambiguity of Northwest Semitic syntax with certain morphological collocations, it is often difficult to discern between apposition and a genitive construction. One such construction, marked by the intermittent usage of the generic word for "man" ( שא ) before both occupational and gentilic terms is especially difficult to categorize syntactically. The Northwest Semitic evidence does not correlate with traditional appositional categories and engenders awkward readings that defy superficial explication. Since no comprehensive study of these pleonastic syntactical constructions has yet appeared, this essay surveys the Northwest Semitic evidence, highlighting their conceptual and grammatical affinities, before positing an overarching explanation for their idiosyncrasy grounded in a phenomenon of linguistic convergence known from Canaanite Akkadian.
Subsurface Imaging of the Cores of Polymer-Encapsulated Cobalt Nanoparticles Using Force Modulation Microscopy

Force modulation microscopy (FMM) is a mode of scanning probe microscopy that can be used to visualize changes of tip–sample interactions for hard and soft areas of samples such as polymers and organic thin films. In designed experiments, polystyrene-encapsulated cobalt nanoparticles were imaged with FMM using a home-built sample stage for sample actuation. Regions of the outer polymer coating and the inner cobalt nanoparticle were resolved with high resolution. Using FMM, differences in the elastic and viscoelastic properties of the nanoparticles were visualized with nanoscale resolution by monitoring the return amplitude and phase signals as the AFM tip is scanned over areas of a sample. Regions of the sample with greater elasticity and viscoelasticity generate a weaker signal relative to harder areas because more of the energy associated with the cantilever oscillation is dissipated by the material. Areas with greater elasticity will tend to absorb more of the energy of the cantilever causing the ampli...
Development of an Immune-Pathology Informed Radiomics Model for Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

With increasing use of immunotherapy agents, pretreatment strategies for identifying responders and non-responders is useful for appropriate treatment assignment. We hypothesize that the local immune micro-environment of NSCLC is associated with patient outcomes and that these local immune features exhibit distinct radiologic characteristics discernible by quantitative imaging metrics. We assembled two cohorts of NSCLC patients treated with definitive surgical resection and extracted quantitative parameters from pretreatment CT imaging. The excised primary tumors were then quantified for percent tumor PDL1 expression and density of tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (via CD3 count) utilizing immunohistochemistry and automated cell counting. Associating these pretreatment radiomics parameters with tumor immune parameters, we developed an immune pathology-informed model (IPIM) that separated patients into 4 clusters (designated A-D) utilizing 4 radiomics features. The IPIM designation was significantly associated with overall survival in both training (5 year OS: 61%, 41%, 50%, and 91%, for clusters A-D, respectively, P = 0.04) and validation (5 year OS: 55%, 72%, 75%, and 86%, for clusters A-D, respectively, P = 0.002) cohorts and immune pathology (all P < 0.05). Specifically, we identified a favorable outcome group characterized by low CT intensity and high heterogeneity that exhibited low PDL1 and high CD3 infiltration, suggestive of a favorable immune activated state. We have developed a NSCLC radiomics signature based on the immune micro-environment and patient outcomes. This manuscript demonstrates model creation and validation in independent cohorts.
Photoreceptor specialization and the visuomotor repertoire of the primitive chordate Ciona

The swimming tadpole larva of Ciona has one of the simplest central nervous systems (CNSs) known, with only 177 neurons. Despite its simplicity, the Ciona CNS has a common structure with the CNS of its close chordate relatives, the vertebrates. The recent completion of a larval Ciona CNS connectome creates enormous potential for detailed understanding of chordate CNS function, yet our understanding of Ciona larval behavior is incomplete. We show here that Ciona larvae have a surprisingly rich and dynamic set of visual responses, including a looming-object escape behavior characterized by erratic circular swims, as well as negative phototaxis characterized by sustained directional swims. Making use of mutant lines, we show that these two behaviors are mediated by distinct groups of photoreceptors. The Ciona connectome predicts that these two behavioral responses should act through distinct, but overlapping, visuomotor pathways, and that the escape behavior is likely to be integrated into a broader startle behavior.
Optimal Weights for a Class of Rank Tests for Censored Bivariate Data

The problem of testing equality of survival distributions on the basis of paired censored survival data has received considerable attention in literature. Some of the important statistics used for such purposes can be expressed as linear combinations of two statistics, one based on uncensored pairs and the other based on the censored pairs. Raychaudhuri and Rao (Nonparametric Statistics, 1996, 6, 1–11) investigated properties of two classes of such statistics and derived expressions for the optimal coefficients (weights) for the linear combination that will maximize efficacy within each class. As the optimal weights depend upon the form of the underlying survival and censoring distributions, statistics with optimal weights can only be used with estimated weights. This article presents a method of estimating optimal weights on the basis of an assumed model that specifies the distribution of the difference between the observed survival times conditional on the censoring pattern. The model, in addition to dispensing with the usual assumption that the survival and censoring variables are independent, also permits a graphical check of its lack of fit on the basis of observed data. The performance of statistics with the estimated weights is evaluated by using two simulation studies – one with data generated under the assumed model and the other assuming independence of the survival and censoring times. Simulation results show that the optimal statistics with estimated weights have good power properties in all cases considered, and that they compare well with other commonly used tests for paired censored survival data. An advantage of the tests with optimal weights is that, unlike their competitors, these tests have demonstrated performance characteristics in some cases where the assumption of independent censoring may not be justified.
Actin Depolymerizing Factor

Unlike other actin-binding proteins, actin depolymerizing factor (ADF) binds to both filamentous and globular actin, and causes the rapid depolymerization of actin filaments. ADF localizes to sites of active actin dynamics, including growing maize root hairs. ADF activity is regulated by a variety of stimuli implicated in affecting actin organization, such as pH changes, phosphorylation and polyphosphoinositides. Our current understanding of ADF’s role in regulating actin dynamics has been greatly enhanced through examination of the biochemical properties of plant ADFs. ADF depolymerizes actin filaments by a combination of severing activity and enhancing the rate of actin monomer dissociation from the pointed end. As a result, ADF-induced depolymerization creates a large pool of actin subunits. When the ends of actin filaments are uncapped, this pool is able to rapidly repolymerize. However, when filament ends are capped, repolymerization can not occur. Therefore, depending upon the presence of actin-filament capping factors, ADF either drives filament turnover or induces total depolymerization.
Choice of Entity for Real Estate After Check-the-Box and the Entity Explosion

This article examines various types of ownership of real estate projects. It considers the forms of entities and the methods of holding and operating real estate projects that may be used for the various types of ownership. It examines the factors that should be considered when choosing appropriate forms of entities for the types of ownership.
The Thirteenth Amendment's Revolutionary Aims

The origins of the Thirteenth Amendment are found as much in the period of American reconstruction, when states ratified it into the Constitution, as they are in the American Revolution. During both eras Americans emphasized the human value of liberty. This chapter explores the notions of liberty that informed congressional debates on the proposed Amendment. It first reflects on revolutionary notions of liberty and then demonstrates how abolitionists relied on them. The chapter next turns to how abolitionist principles animated House and Senate debates about the proposed Thirteenth Amendment. It concludes with an explanation of why the Amendment proved to be inadequate to achieve radical Reconstruction.
Renal transplantation in urology.

It is my pleasure to introduce the current issue of Translational Andrology and Urology with a special focus on Renal Transplantation in Urology. The role of the Urologist in transplantation is variable. In some centers such as ours, Urologists perform the surgery, manage the immunosuppression and care for post-operative complications. In other centers, Urologists have only a peripheral role, consulting for the medical and surgical complications that can follow the procedure and immunosuppression. The articles in this issue address a variety of preoperative, perioperative and postoperative issues for Urologists at every level of involvement.
The Renaissance City-States of Italy

The Italian Renaissance revived the classical Greek and Roman literature: philosophy, science, art, music – all were “reborn,” including Greek democracy. But, the Italian city-states were purely craft and trade cities – the citizens were not well-trained soldiers. The wealthy trade and banking oligarchs paid professional soldiers (Italians and Swiss) to defend their cities, and to repress the attempts at citizen democracy. Oligarchy typified these city-states. However, along with the incredible improvements in art, music, and science, the ideas, arguments, and institutions of Greek democracy were revived in the culture of the Renaissance.
Toward ultralight high strength structural materials via collapsed carbon nanotube bonding

Abstract The growing commercial availability of carbon nanotube (CNT) macro-assemblages such as sheet and yarn is making their use in structural composite components increasingly feasible. However, the mechanical properties of these materials continue to trail those of state-of-the-art carbon fiber composites due to relatively weak inter-tube load transfer. Forming covalent links between adjacent CNTs promises to mitigate this problem, but it has proven difficult in practice to introduce them chemically within densified and aligned CNT materials due to their low permeability. To avoid this limitation, this work explores the combination of pulsed electrical current, temperature, and pressure to introduce inter-CNT bonds. Reactive molecular dynamics simulations identify the most probable locations, configurations, and conditions for inter-nanotube bonds to form. This process is shown to introduce covalent linkages within the CNT material that manifest as improved macroscale mechanical properties. The magnitude of this effect increases with increasing levels of pre-alignment of the CNT material, promising a new synthesis pathway to ultralight structural materials with specific strengths and stiffnesses exceeding 1 and 100 GPa cm3 g−1, respectively, comparable to current carbon fiber reinforced polymer composites.
CENTRALITY EVOLUTION OF pt AND yt SPECTRA FROM Au–Au COLLISIONS AT $\sqrt{s_{NN}} = 200\, {\rm GeV}$

A two-component analysis of spectra to pt = 12 GeV/c for identified pions and protons from 200 GeV Au–Au collisions is presented. The method is similar to an analysis of the nch dependence of pt spectra from p–p collisions at 200 GeV, but applied to Au–Au centrality dependence. The soft-component reference is a Levy distribution on transverse mass mt. The hard-component reference is a Gaussian on transverse rapidity yt with exponential (pt power-law) tail. Deviations of data from the reference are described by hard-component ratio rAA, which generalizes nuclear modification factor RAA. The analysis suggests that centrality evolution of pion and proton spectra is dominated by changes in parton fragmentation. The structure of rAA suggests that parton energy loss produces a negative boost Δyt of a large fraction (but not all) of the minimum-bias fragment distribution, and that lower-energy partons suffer relatively less energy loss, possibly due to color screening. The analysis also suggests that the anomalous p/π ratio may be due to differences in the parton energy-loss process experienced by the two hadron species. This analysis provides no evidence for radial flow.
Resident and elicited macrophages differ in expression of their glycomes and lectins

The pleiotropic functions of macrophages in immune defense, tissue repair, and maintenance of tissue homeostasis are supported by the heterogeneity in macrophage sub-populations that differ both in ontogeny and polarization. Although glycans and lectins are integral to macrophage function, little is known about the factors governing their expression. Here we show that the cellular glycome of murine peritoneal macrophages primarily reflects developmental origin and to a lesser degree, cellular polarization. Resident macrophages were characterized by a simple glycome, predominantly consisting of core 1 O-glycans, while elicited macrophages also expressed core 2 O-glycans, along with highly branched and extended complex-type N-glycans, that exhibited a higher N-acetylneuraminic acid:N-glycolylneuraminic acid ratio. Strikingly, our analysis revealed that resident and elicited macrophages express 139 lectin genes, with differential expression of 49 lectin genes, including galectins, Siglecs, and C-type lectins. These results suggest that regulation of self-glycan-protein complexes may be central to macrophage residence and recruitment.
The Peshiṭta of Isaiah in Past and Present Scholarship

In this study I outline the scholarship pertaining to the Peshiṭta of Isaiah (S-Isa) and expound on specific topics in need of further research. I begin by recounting the process of S-Isa’s manuscr...
In These Troubled Times: When Silence Speaks

In this fragmented autoethnographic narrative, I focus on several incidents where silence functions as a political weapon and as a means for coping in these trouble times. Deploying silence is a rh...
Dual activating FGFR1 mutations in pediatric pilomyxoid astrocytoma.

Background Pilomyxoid astrocytomas are an aggressive subtype of astrocytoma, not graded by WHO, frequently located in hypothalamic/chiasmatic region, affecting diencephalic structures, and characterized by shorter survival and high recurrence rates. Pilomyxoid astrocytoma management remains controversial, with pathologic tissue diagnosis and relief of mass effect being the main goals of surgery while avoiding treatment-related morbidity, including vision loss, panhypopituitarism, and hypothalamic dysfunction. Chemotherapy (typically vincristine and carboplatin) in all pediatric patients and radiation therapy in pediatric patients over 5 years of age are used for treatment. Methods We report clinical presentation, surgical management, and whole exome sequencing results in a pediatric patient with the subtotally resected pilomyxoid astrocytoma. Results We identified two somatic activating missense mutations affecting FGFR1, including FGFR1 p.K656E and FGFR1 p.V561M. While the former is a known hotspot mutation that is both activating and transforming, the latter has been described as a gatekeeper mutation imparting resistance to FGFR inhibitors. Interestingly, both mutations were present with similar variant allele frequency within the tumor. Conclusion Similar variant allele frequencies of FGFR1 p.K656E and FGFR1 p.V561M mutations in our patient's tumor suggest that these mutations may have occurred at similar time points. Use of FGFR inhibitors in addition to STAT3 or PI3K/mTOR inhibition may prove a useful strategy in targeting our patient's pilomyxoid astrocytoma.
A Nonlinear Solver with Phase Boundary Detection for Compositional Reservoir Simulation

Compositional simulation is typically used to study subsurface displacement processes that involve complex physics. Such processes are highly nonlinear and they occur at the interplay of phase thermodynamics (phase stability and split) and rock/fluid interaction (relative permeability). To better characterize the convergence failures of compositional nonlinear solvers, we study the analytical and discrete forms of the component flux functions for the transport problem. We focus on isothermal, two-hydrocarbon phase models in the presence of viscous forces. Our analysis shows that the component flux function exhibits both kinks and inflection points, as described in the literature. We study the kinks due to the crossing of phase boundaries and we show their impact on residual terms. We, then, investigate the location, direction, and evolution of the inflection loci inside the two-phase region. Our findings suggest that these inflection loci may exhibit complex features, as a result of which an a priori determination of such loci is computationally prohibitive. We propose a nonlinear solver that detects phase boundaries and guides the Newton update to avoid crossing these boundaries. Our numerical results show that this phase change detection solver has superior performance in comparison with standard Newton solvers for a wide range of cases.
Informal Entrepreneurial Network Education as a Catalyst for Women’s Enterprises Sustainability: Evidence From Nigeria

Extant studies in the literature have found that informal entrepreneurship education has concentrated largely on technical skills and has continually ignored the current needs of informal entrepreneurs at the stage of entry and development performance of most informal enterprises. In spite of Africa informal sector that accounted for 85.5% informal enterprises in size than other continents, yet, it is worrisome that the sub-Saharan Africa contribution of informal sector to gross domestic product (GDP) between 2000 and 2010 has dropped from 63.6% to 55%, resulting to rising poverty rate, alarming youth unemployment rate, higher enterprises closure rate, and indeed, declining unstable enterprises. As such, this study empirically examines the impact of informal entrepreneurial network education on women’s enterprises sustainability in Nigeria, using NECA Women entrepreneurs association. To achieve this specific objective, the study decomposed informal entrepreneurial network into three networks, the NECA Women entrepreneurs association, the Government agencies association, and the social media platform and the average value represent the informal entrepreneurial network education to regress on the dependent variable, the women enterprises sustainability. A total of 100 questionnaires were distributed and administered via the google survey from the six-geopolitical regions in Nigeria. The study employed statistical packages for social sciences (SPSS) to estimate the research questions and the impact of informal entrepreneurial network education on women enterprises sustainability, using descriptive statistics and OLS regression respectively. The descriptive results found that of the three informal entrepreneurial networks, NECA women association exhibited a strong interactive (3.28 of 5.00 Likert scale) entrepreneurial network education than use of government agencies and social media platform that exhibited weak interactive (1.8 and 1.94 of 5.00 Likert scale) enterperneurial network education among informal entrepreneurs in Nigeria. In addition, OLS regression result found that all three informal entrepreneurial networks education has a 38.9% impact on women’s enterprises sustainability within the study periods of October and December, 2020 in Nigeria at 1% level of significance. Based on the results, the study concluded that NECA women entrepreneurial interactive network outperformed both government agencies and social media interactive networks and thus, the study recommends that the NECA women entrepreneurs should consolidate more than the economic perspective by extending to the remaining triple bottom line factors such as environmental and social factors as to meet both current needs and future generation needs of the enterprises stakeholders in this study.
Inequality Over the Life-cycle: U.S. vs Europe

I document that (i) the mean and dispersion of pre-tax labor earnings grow faster over the life-cycle in the U.S. than in some European countries; (ii) these facts are largely driven by individuals with at least a college degree. I study these differences in labor earnings inequality using a life-cycle model of human capital accumulation and elastic labor supply which features non-linear taxation, in conjunction with a college choice and complementary investments during college. The model economy accounts for the differential mean earnings growth patterns of individuals with and without a college degree in the United States, as well as the observed within-group inequality over the life cycle. I find that non-linear taxation significantly suppresses pre-tax earnings, reduces college attendance, and investments during college. More generous subsidies and transfers for college exacerbate labor earning inequality. I find that differences in taxation and college subsidies alone account for 94% of the differences in mean earnings, and 80% of the differences in variance of log earnings over the life-cycle across the U.S. and European countries. To fully reconcile the model with data, the role of differences in initial conditions appear key.
Remote Oral Doctoral Dissertation Defenses in Management, Leadership, and Business: Benefits, Pedagogy, and Practices:

Remote oral doctoral dissertation defenses are an alternative to face-to-face meetings when the latter are not feasible, but remote defenses also have their own advantages. This article explores th...
Synthesis and Biological Activity of 2-(2-Amino-2-Phenylethyl)-5-Oxotetrahydrofuran-2-carboxylic acid: A Microwave-assisted 1,3-Dipolar Cycloaddition Approach.

The microwave-assisted 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of furanyl and benzyl oximes and several methyl acrylates effectively provided several isoxazoline when mediated by diacetoxyiodobenzene. The selected isoxazoline, methyl-5-(3-methoxy-3-oxopropyl)-3-phenyl-4,5-dihydro isoxazole-5-carboxylate, was rapidly transformed to the γ-lactone carboxylic acid, 2-(2-amino-2-phenylethyl)-5-oxotetrahydrofuran-2-carboxylic acid, in reasonable yield. The biological activity of this γ-lactone carboxylic acid increased the growth of E. coli organisms by about 44% and has a potential significance in stem cell research.
Narrative and the Politics of Identity: The Cultural Psychology of Israeli and Palestinian Youth

CONTENTS Preface PART 1. Orientations A Note on Geographic Terminology Prologue Chapter 1. Culture, Identity, and Story: A Framework for the Study of Lives I. Preliminary Provocations II. Capturing Culture III. Interrogating Identity IV. The Cultural Psychology of Identity V. Experimenting with Identity VI. The Cosmopolitan Ideal VII. Identity as Burden or Benefit? VIII. Politicizing Psychology, Psychologizing Politics IX. An Orientation Chapter 2. A "Stranger" in the Holy Land I. A Position II. A Personal Narrative III. Approaching the Study of Lives IV. The Politics of the Field V. Field Sites in Israel and Palestine Jerusalem Ramallah Qadas Beit Jala and Bethlehem Tulkarm and Nablus Tel Aviv Taybeh Haifa The Gilboa VI. Field Sites in the United States Seeds of Peace Hands of Peace VII. The Interviewees VIII. The Interview Procedure IX. Analytic Strategy PART 2. Stories Chapter 3. "Jewish in My Blood": Stories of Jewish Israeli Youth I. The Master Narrative of Jewish Israeli Identity An Introduction Contestations Theme 1: Persecution and Victimization Theme 2: Existential Insecurity Theme 3: Exceptionalism Theme 4: Delegitimization of Palestinian Identity Summary II. The Stories of Youth Yossi: The Ambivalent Pragmatist Noa: The Kibbutznik Roai: The Settler Ayelet: The Cosmopolitan III. Summary: The Cultural Psychology of Jewish Israeli Youth Chapter 4. "It's Not a Normal Life We Lead": Stories of Palestinian Youth I. The Master Narrative of Palestinian Identity An Introduction Contestations Theme 1: Loss and Dispossession Theme 2: Resistance Theme 3: Existential Insecurity Theme 4: Delegitimization of Israeli Identity Summary II. The Stories of Youth Ali: The Unlikely Islamist Adara: The Pious Villager Luca: The Christian Fighter Lubna: The Survivor III. Summary: The Cultural Psychology of Palestinian Youth Chapter 5. "I Had a War with Myself": Palestinian-Israeli Youth and the Narration of Hyphenated Identities I. The Master Narrative of Palestinian-Israeli Identity Theme 1: Discrimination and Subordination Theme 2: Hyphenation and