cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Is the Constitution Special

“[W]e must never forget, that it is a constitution we are expounding.” If there was such a danger when Chief Justice John Marshall wrote those words, there is none today. Americans regularly assume that the Constitution is special, and legal professionals treat it differently from other sources of law. But what if that is wrongheaded? In this Article, we identify and question the professional practice of constitutional exceptionalism. First, we show that standard arguments from text, structure, and history work differently in constitutional law. Second, we examine the possible justifications for such distinctive interpretation among lawyers, and we find them mostly unconvincing. Neither entrenchment, nor supremacy, nor democratic legitimacy sets the Constitution apart from other sources of law in a way that supports interpretive exceptionalism. In fact, the best argument for the practice is simply that the Constitution is regarded as unique — that it occupies a privileged place in American culture and political mythology. But even if that status can justify applying some specialized methods to the document, it cannot explain every markedly divergent practice that we see among contemporary legal professionals. In the conclusion, we reveal one normative motivation for the project. All too often, constitutional argument is deployed in ordinary politics as a kind of trump, with the purpose and effect of shutting down policy debate. Legal professionals contribute to this tactic when they craft rarified interpretive methods without justification. Demythologizing constitutional law undercuts its use as a political blunderbuss.
Effect of an Insecticide and a Herbicide Combination on Corn Rootworm (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) Damage

In 1980 and 1981, 1.62 ha (4 acres) of corn was arranged into a 4 × 4 Latin square consisting of the following treatments: (1) carbofuran, (2) carbofuran and an alachlorcyanazine mixture, (3) an alachlor-cyanazine mixture, and (4) no pesticides. Carbofuran and the alachlor-cyanazine mixture were each evaluated for their effectiveness in reducing larval corn rootworm, Diabrotica spp., injury by rating damage to roots on a scale from 1 to 9. Carbofuran reduced root damage each year, whether used in conjunction with the herbicide combination or not. The herbicide combination significantly reduced root damage in 1980, but not in 1981.
Simulation and Prediction of Jet Induced Geyser Formation in Microgravity Propellant Tanks

*† ‡ § Control of cryogenic propellant tank pressure during tank refueling and expulsion in low gravity is an important technical challenge to overcome for future long duration missions or an orbiting fuel depot. One method proposed to control tank pressurization involves the use of jet-induced geysers. A computational simulation was enhanced with a k-ω turbulence model and used to investigate jet-induced geyser formation in reduced gravity. The enhanced model is subsequently validated and compared to experiment data obtained by other investigators. The effects of spread rate and the influence of contact angle were evaluated with respect to dimensionless geyser height. The results affirm that the current version of the simulation using the k-e turbulence model provide the most accurate results for jet-induced geysers in reduced gravity when compared to available experiment data.
Microhabitat Associations of Hymenopterous Parasitoids that Attack House Fly Pupae at Dairy Farms in Central New York

Samples of laboratory-reared fly pupae were exposed weekly throughout the fly-breeding season for 2 yr at eight dairy farms. Microhabitats were classified by type of location, substrate, exposure (to sunlight and weather), and substrate moisture content. Total parasitism was fairly evenly distributed over all types of fly-breeding microhabitats; however, several parasitoid species exhibited strong associations with specific types of microhabitats. Muscidifurax raptor Girault and Sanders was most abundant in feed and straw, and occurred primarily at outdoor sites (regardless of moisture), and dry sheltered or indoor sites. Phygadeuon fumator Gravenhorst was most abundant in calf bedding, particularly at moist or wet indoor or sheltered sites, which was where M. raptor was not abundant, and outdoor feed. Spalangia cameroni Perkins occurred primarily indoors, regardless of moisture, but preferred loose substrates such as straw and calf bedding. Spalangia nigroaenea Curtis was most common in sheltered moist feed and indoor wet straw. Urolepis rufipes (Ashmead) was most common at wet outdoor sites, primarily at manure lagoons and manure piles. Trichomalopsis dubius (Ashmead) was collected exclusively outdoors, primarily at earth and grass substrates near manure lagoons and manure piles.
Latitudinal Gradients in Colors and Patterns of Passerine Birds

Alaska to quantitatively test this belief. Tropical birds can be stunningly colorful (Dunning 1970), some to an extent apparently unmatched by non-tropical species. That the most colorful landbirds are tropical could be due largely to the greater diversity of tropical landbirds because the species pool is much larger. In order to discover whether tropical landbirds are more colorful than non-tropical landbirds in general, one must quantify specific components of colorfulness and compare the entire pools of species (or of individuals!) from equivalent tropical and non-tropical regions. For example, one can count the number of bright spectral colors on the exterior of a typical breeding male of each passerine species of North and Middle America and com-
Cross-correlation function for accurate reconstruction of heterogeneous media

Porous media, heterogeneous materials, and biological tissues are examples of ubiquitous disordered systems, the understanding of which and any physical phenomenon in them entails having an accurate model. We show that a new reconstruction method based on a cross-correlation function and a one-dimensional raster path provides an accurate description of a wide variety of such materials and media. The reconstruction uses a single 2D slice of data to reconstruct an entire 3D medium. Seventeen examples are reconstructed accurately, as indicated by two connectivity functions that we compute for them. The reconstruction method may be used for both unconditioned and conditioned problems, and is highly efficient computationally.
Control of lung ventilation following overwintering conditions in bullfrogs, Lithobates catesbeianus

Ranid frogs in northern latitudes survive winter at cold temperatures in aquatic habitats often completely covered by ice. Cold-submerged frogs survive aerobically for several months relying exclusively on cutaneous gas exchange while maintaining temperature-specific acid-base balance. Depending on the overwintering hibernaculum, frogs in northern latitudes could spend several months without access to air, the need to breathe or the chemosensory drive to use neuromuscular processes that regulate and enable pulmonary ventilation. Therefore, we performed experiments to determine whether aspects of the respiratory control system of bullfrogs, Lithobates catesbeianus, are maintained or suppressed following minimal use of air breathing in overwintering environments. Based on the necessity for control of lung ventilation in early spring, we hypothesized that critical components of the respiratory control system of bullfrogs would be functional following simulated overwintering. We found that bullfrogs recently removed from simulated overwintering environments exhibited similar resting ventilation when assessed at 24°C compared with warm-acclimated control bullfrogs. Additionally, ventilation met resting metabolic and, presumably, acid-base regulation requirements, indicating preservation of basal respiratory function despite prolonged disuse in the cold. Recently emerged bullfrogs underwent similar increases in ventilation during acute oxygen lack (aerial hypoxia) compared with warm-acclimated frogs; however, CO2-related hyperventilation was significantly blunted following overwintering. Overcoming challenges to gas exchange during overwintering have garnered attention in ectothermic vertebrates, but this study uncovers robust and labile aspects of the respiratory control system at a time point correlating with early spring following minimal to no use of lung breathing in cold-aquatic overwintering habitats.
Watermarking Method Based on Frequency Modulation Differential Chaos Shift Keying

This paper researches on the watermark encryption method based on the FM-DCSK.A carrier signal of constant power is used.A chaos signal is converted into the wave of constant power with a chaotic phase.The error rate is reduced when extracting.Without the need to establish mechanisms for self-synchronization of chaotic conditions,chaotic digital communications is implemented by the differential related technology,which is used to improve the coding of confidentiality,as well as to strengthen the anti-jamming ability of encode information.The experiment shows that the embedding watermark with this technology,the better confidentiality and immunity is implemented for the content of information.
The Flint Animal Cancer Center (FACC) Canine Tumour Cell Line Panel: a resource for veterinary drug discovery, comparative oncology and translational medicine

Mammalian cell tissue culture has been a critical tool leading to our current understanding of cancer including many aspects of cellular transformation, growth and response to therapies. The current use of large panels of cell lines with associated phenotypic and genotypic information now allows for informatics approaches and in silico screens to rapidly test hypotheses based on simple as well as complex relationships. Current cell line panels with large amounts of associated drug sensitivity and genomics data are comprised of human cancer cell lines (i.e. NCI60 and GDSC). There is increased recognition of the contribution of canine cancer to comparative cancer research as a spontaneous large animal model with application in basic and translational studies. We have assembled a panel of canine cancer cell lines to facilitate studies in canine cancer and report here phenotypic and genotypic data associated with these cells.
Can citizens care too much? Investment in election outcomes and perceptions of electoral legitimacy

Might there be a downside to citizen engagement with elections? The tendency for citizens who supported a winning candidate or party to be more supportive of the democratic system and more trusting of government than supporters of the losers has been well documented. I test the extent to which individual-level investment in a presidential election campaign amplifies effects of winning or losing using the online component of the 2008 NAES to track the same individuals' from pre-election to post-election. The analysis provides strong evidence of amplifying effects of investment on the relationship between winning or losing and perceptions of electoral legitimacy. Certain types of investment—policy agreement and participation—appear to hold significant implications only for losers and not winners.
Alternative bridging architectures in organic nonlinear optical materials: comparison of π- and χ-type structures

Organic nonlinear optical (ONLO) chromophores are used to make electro-optic devices. Traditional ONLO chromophores use a π-conjugated bridge to couple the electron acceptor and donor moieties. We have explored whether other types of conjugation can be used to make high-performance ONLO chromophores. We have found that cross-conjugated bridge structures, when other parameters are kept the same, can exhibit comparable hyperpolarizabilities. Experimental hyperpolarizabilities of prototypical cross-conjugated chromophores, measured by hyper-Raleigh scattering, are comparable with their π-conjugated analogues, in contrast with the prediction of several electronic structure calculation methods. This opens new synthetic routes to other types of chromophores, which may provide enhanced performance.
Rehabilitation for Patients with Bone and Soft Tissue Sarcoma

Patients with bone and soft tissue sarcoma are susceptible to a wide range of functional, neurological, and musculoskeletal impairments throughout the course of the disease process. Due to these impairments that arise from both the disease and the treatment, rehabilitation serves an integral role in the multidisciplinary management of these patients from the time of diagnosis, through treatment, and into survivorship. Even in terminal stages of the disease, or in the case of metastatic disease, rehabilitation continues to play an active role and help preserve quality of life. While general cancer and musculoskeletal rehabilitation principles can be applied to patients with sarcomas, there are unique impairments that require specific interventions and attention during the rehabilitation process. The focus of this section is to review how rehabilitation fits into the treatment model for patients with sarcoma.
Coming Home: Through the Doors of Ephraim and Egypt

In this chapter, Lee returns to the rites of the Passover (Exod 11–13) by way of the tale of rape and murder in Judges 19: the former forms the literary horizon for the latter, construing the violence of the story as a sordid perversion of the Passover. The view to the texts passes through Asian American hermeneutics. Across the doors of the biblical texts and the US cultural scape, Lee foregrounds the marginalization and ambivalence—in Homi Bhabha’s sense of the term—inherent to an Asian American experience that can turn victims to victimizers. Predator and prey become interchangeable positions. From biblical texts to the desperate negotiations of ghettoized communities, then, readers must confront the ‘hybridized’ state of the colonized heart, an ambivalent heart both marginalized and marginalizing.
Increasing dietary EPA and DHA influence estimated fatty acid desaturase activity in systemic organs which is reflected in the red blood cell in mice

AbstractDelta-5 (D5D) and delta-6 (D6D) desaturase are key enzymes in fatty acid (FA) metabolism. Dietary eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) may alter tissue FA composition via D5D and D6D. The purpose was to determine the relationship between dietary EPA + DHA, estimated desaturase activities of various tissues and the reflection of desaturase activity in the red blood cell (RBC). Mice were fed diets with increasing percent of energy from EPA + DHA. Phospholipid FA composition of heart, muscle, spleen, lung, adipose tissues and RBC were analysed. D5D and D6D enzyme activity estimates (EAE) were calculated as the ratio of 20:4/20:3 and 20:3/18:2, respectively. D5D EAE decreased in all tissues, except muscle, with increasing dietary EPA + DHA. RBC D5D EAE positively correlated with D5D EAE in all tissues. RBC D6D EAE positively correlated with muscle and inversely correlated with adipose D6D EAE. Our findings suggest differential influence of dietary EPA + DHA upon tissue desaturase...
High Tensile Strength of Engineered β-Solenoid Fibrils via Sonication and Pulling.

Abstract We present estimates of ultimate tensile strength (UTS) for two engineered β -solenoid protein mutant fibril structures (spruce budworm and Rhagium inquisitor antifreeze proteins) derived from sonication-based measurements and from force pulling molecular dynamics simulations, both in water. Sonication experiments generate limiting scissioned fibrils with a well-defined length-to-width correlation for the mutant spruce budworm protein and the resultant UTS estimate is 0.66 ± 0.08 GPa. For fibrils formed from engineered R. inquisitor antifreeze protein, depending upon geometry, we estimate UTSs of 3.5 ± 3.2–5.5 ± 5.1 GPa for proteins with interfacial disulfide bonds, and 1.6 ± 1.5–2.5 ± 2.3 GPa for the reduced form. The large error bars for the R. inquisitor structures are intrinsic to the broad distribution of limiting scission lengths. Simulations provide pulling velocity-dependent UTSs increasing from 0.2 to 1 GPa in the available speed range, and 1.5 GPa extrapolated to the speeds expected in the sonication experiments. Simulations yield low-velocity values for the Young's modulus of 6.0 GPa. Without protein optimization, these mechanical parameters are similar to those of spider silk and Kevlar, but in contrast to spider silk, these proteins have a precisely known sequence-structure relationship.
A review of novel physical and chemical decontamination technologies for aflatoxin in food

Abstract Background Conventional strategies for mycotoxin reduction includes both prevention and decontamination strategies. Decontamination of aflatoxin has been a continuing challenge for the food industry. Novel processing methods are continuously explored to achieve complete aflatoxin degradation in food products. Scope and approach The present review provides an update on recent research for aflatoxin decontamination by conventional methods including thermal processing and chemical treatments. Novel aflatoxin decontamination technologies like microwave heating, gamma and electron beam irradiation, ultraviolet and pulsed light, electrolyzed water and cold plasma are reviewed in detail. This review provides a brief introduction, decontamination mechanism, degradation efficiency, advantages and limitations of these novel technologies. Key findings and conclusion Although conventional thermal technologies are known to cause aflatoxin degradation, they are not adequate for complete aflatoxin degradation in food products. Novel technologies like pulsed light, electrolyzed water and cold plasma have shown complete degradation of aflatoxin on different substrates. However, application on food products need further studies along with the degradant toxicology and its interaction with food components. Novel processing technologies shows significant potential for future applications in decontaminating aflatoxin in the food industry.
Biological Distance Analysis and the Fate of the Gallina in the American Southwest

The Gallina heartland was abandoned around AD 1275. The fate of the Gallina people after this abandonment is not well understood. This study uses biological distance analysis to evaluate possible m...
Millennial-Scale Instability in the Geomagnetic Field Prior to the Matuyama-Brunhes Reversal

Changes in the Earth's magnetic field have global significance that reach from the outer core extending out to the uppermost atmosphere. Paleomagnetic records derived from sedimentary and volcanic sequences provide important insights into the geodynamo processes that govern the largest geomagnetic changes (polarity reversals), but dating uncertainties have hindered progress in this understanding. Here we report a paleomagnetic record from multiple lava flows on Tahiti that bracket the Matuyama-Brunhes (M-B) polarity reversal ∼771 thousand years ago. Our high-precision ^(40)Ar/^(39)Ar ages constrain several rapid and short-lived changes in field orientation up to 33,000 years prior to the M-B reversal. These changes are similar to ones identified in other less well-dated lava flows in Maui, Chile and La Palma that occurred during an extended period of reduced field strength recorded in sediments. We use a simple stochastic model to show that these rapid polarity changes are highly attenuated in sediment records with low sedimentation rates. This prolonged 33,000-year period of reduced field strength and increased geomagnetic instability supports models that show frequent centennial-to-millennial scale polarity changes in the presence of a strongly weakened dipole field.
An epidemiological model of virus transmission in salmonid fishes of the Columbia River Basin

Abstract We have developed a dynamic epidemiological model informed by records of viral presence and genotypes to evaluate potential transmission routes maintaining a viral pathogen in economically and culturally important anadromous fish populations. In the Columbia River Basin, infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHNV) causes severe disease, predominantly in juvenile steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) and less frequently in Chinook salmon (O. tshawytscha). Mortality events following IHNV infection can be devastating for individual hatchery programs. Despite reports of high local mortality and extensive surveillance efforts, there are questions about how viral transmission is maintained. Modeling this system offers important insights into disease transmission in natural aquatic systems, as well as about the data requirements for generating accurate estimates about transmission routes and infection probabilities. We simulated six scenarios in which testing rates and the relative importance of different transmission routes varied. The simulations demonstrated that the model accurately identified routes of transmission and inferred infection probabilities accurately when there was testing of all cohort-sites. When testing records were incomplete, the model accurately inferred which transmission routes exposed particular cohort-sites but generated biased infection probabilities given exposure. After validating the model and generating guidelines for result interpretation, we applied the model to data from 14 annual cohorts (2000–2013) at 24 focal sites in a sub-region of the Columbia River Basin, the lower Columbia River (LCR), to quantify the relative importance of potential transmission routes in this focal sub-region. We demonstrate that exposure to IHNV via the return migration of adult fish is an important route for maintaining IHNV in the LCR sub-region, and the probability of infection following this exposure was relatively high at 0.16. Although only 1% of cohort-sites experienced self-exposure by infected juvenile fish, this transmission route had the greatest probability of infection (0.22). Increased testing and/or determining whether transmission can occur from cohort-sites without testing records (e.g., determining there was no testing record because there were no fish at the cohort-site) are expected to improve inference about infection probabilities. Increased use of secure water supplies and continued use of biosecurity protocols may reduce IHNV transmission from adult fish and juvenile fish within the site, respectively, to juvenile salmonids at hatcheries. Models and conclusions from this study are potentially relevant to understanding the relative importance of transmission routes for other important aquatic pathogens in salmonids, including the agents of bacterial kidney disease and coldwater disease, and the basic approach may be useful for other pathogens and hosts in other geographic regions.
Reactions of (η7-C7H7)M(η5-C5H5), M = Ti or Zr, with Carboxylic and Dithiocarboxylic Acids

New reactions involving titanium and zirconium sandwich compounds will be presented. Thus, sandwich π-complexes of the type η 7-C7H7)M(η 5-C5H5) where M = Ti or Zr, readily react with carboxylic or ditfiiocarboxylic acids to give compounds of the general formula: (η 5-C5H5)M(Y2CR)3, M = Ti, Y = S, R = CH3 or M = Zr, Y = O, R = C5H6. X-ray crystallography of these compounds will be displayed together with other spectroscopic data such as 1H and 13C NMR, IR, etc.
TWO-DIMENSIONAL DIGITAL FILTERING USING TRANSFORMS OVER EXTENSIONS OF FINITE RINGS

We show that 2-D digital filters can be implemented using quasi-cyclic convolution algorithms which use transforms defined over direct sums of algebraic extensions of finite rings. We give examples of algorithms for large 2-D convolutions which require less than 2 multiplications per point.
IRC Français - A French Learning Community

This paper presents IRC Francais, a project designed to help students learn a foreign language in an online, conversation-oriented environment. After briefly presenting the framework, rationale, and design for IRC Francais, I will offer some initial findings from a pilot study. This study, conducted using four sophomore-level French conversation classes at two universities, examines how the medium of IRC Francais affects language learning.
Heimia salicifolia : In Vitro Culture and the Production of Phenyl- and Biphenylquinolizidines

Heimia salicifolia, a small shrub of the Lythraceae (Fig. 1) is the source of biphenylquinolizidine lactones and related alkaloids (Blomster et al. 1964; Douglas et al. 1964; Golebiewski and Wrobel 1981). Heimia is distributed throughout the tropical and subtropical climates of the American Continent and has been described as reaching 0.5–3 m in height (Martinez 1959). It has sessile, linear lanceolate leaves that are generally opposite. The yellow flowers are solitary and axillary. The fruit is a capsule filled with small (ca. 0.5 mm diameter) ovoid seeds.
Regional differences in vision health: findings from Mwanza, Tanzania.

Background Visual impairment in developing countries has both social and economic impact on individuals and communities. Understanding the subjective visual functioning of populations will allow for local policymakers to identify the need for optometric or ophthalmic services in their communities. Methods The authors surveyed 644 adult patients in Mwanza, Tanzania at three clinics (Buzuruga, Mwananchi and Kisesa) using a modified Visual Functioning Questionnaire 25. Responses were categorized into General health, General vision, Ocular pain, Near activities, Distance activities, Social function, Mental health, Role difficulties, Color vision, Peripheral vision and Dependency. Results Patients at Buzuruga reported the lowest scores on most subscales. Of 100 employed patients, 37% claimed to have at least some difficulty in performing job duties due to their eyesight. At Kisesa, 146 (246/221) patients (66.1%) had never had an eye exam, compared with 134/227 (59.0%) at Buzuruga and 69/173 (39.9%) at Mwananchi (p<0.01). Common reasons for not seeing an eye doctor were the perceived expense and lack of vision problems. Conclusions Due to regional differences in visual functioning in Mwanza, a national effort for vision health cannot be entirely successful without addressing the individualized needs of local communities. Reducing the cost of vision care appointments may expand vision health care utilization in Mwanza.
A Social Justice Approach to School Counseling

Based on the 2010 Multicultural-Social Justice Leadership Development academy presentation, this article focuses on how school counselors can collaborate with critical stakeholders to help mitigate barriers to academic success for low-income students and students of color. The overarching goal of the presentation was to define social justice, collaboration, and present a multicultural-social justice approach to school-family-community collaboration. The presenters were two school counselor educators, a mental health counselor educator, and a college/university counselor educator who all believed in the necessity of working together in order to help promote academic achievement for all students. In this article, barriers to social justice advocacy, strategies for implementing a social justice framework, and implications for school counselor practice and research are discussed.
Preliminary Evaluation of the Couple LINKS Program

Relationship education (RE) is becoming more common, and new curricula are being offered in many venues, which vary in strength and effectiveness. To date, there have been no evaluations of Couple ...
Deep video-to-video transformations for accessibility with an application to photosensitivity

Abstract We demonstrate how to construct a new class of visual assistive technologies that, rather than extract symbolic information, learn to transform the visual environment to make it more accessible. We do so without engineering which transformations are useful allowing for arbitrary modifications of the visual input. As an instantiation of this idea we tackle a problem that affects and hurts millions worldwide: photosensitivity. Any time an affected person opens a website, video, or some other medium that contains an adverse visual stimulus, either intended or unintended, they might experience a seizure with potentially significant consequences. We show how a deep network can learn a video-to-video transformation rendering such stimuli harmless while otherwise preserving the video. This approach uses a specification of the adverse phenomena, the forward transformation, to learn the inverse transformation. We show how such a network generalizes to real-world videos that have triggered numerous seizures, both by mistake and in politically-motivated attacks. A number of complimentary approaches are demonstrated including using a hand-crafted generator and a GAN using a differentiable perceptual metric. Such technology can be deployed offline to protect videos before they are shown or online with assistive glasses or real-time post processing. Other applications of this general technique include helping those with limited vision, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and autism.
Immunity to Influenza is dependent on MHC II polymorphism: study with 2 HLA transgenic strains

Major histocompatibility complex II (MHC II) molecules are involved in antigen presentation and the development of a functional adaptive immune response. Evolutionary selection for MHC molecules that effectively clear infectious agents provides an advantage to humans. However, certain class II molecules are associated with autoimmune diseases. In this study we infected autoimmune-susceptible DRB1*0401.AEo and non-susceptible *0402.AEo mice with H1N1 influenza and determined clearance and protective immunity to H3N2 virus. *0401 mice generated a robust TLR-triggered immune response and cleared H1N1 influenza virus infection. After vaccination and challenge with H1N1, *0401 mice, when challenged with H3N2, generated cross-protective immunity to heterosubtypic H3N2 influenza strain whereas *0402 mice cleared the H1N1 infection but did not generate cross-protective immunity against the H3N2 influenza strain. The intracellular trafficking route of MHCII revealed that *0401 molecules traffic through the late endosome/lysosomes while *0402 molecules traffic into early endosomes. This suggested that trafficking of MHCII could affect the functional output of the innate immune response and clearance of viral infections. Also, DRB1*0401 mice live longer than HLA-DRB1*0402 mice. The study provides a potential hypothesis for evolutionary selection of *0401 molecule, even though it is associated with autoreactivity, which may be dependent on the availability of peptide repertoire of self-antigens.
Macrophage mediated PCI enhanced gene-directed enzyme prodrug therapy

Photochemical internalization (PCI) is a photodynamic therapy-based approach for improving the delivery of macromolecules and genes into the cell cytosol. Prodrug activating gene therapy (suicide gene therapy) employing the transduction of the E. coli cytosine deaminase (CD ) gene into tumor cells, is a promising method. Expression of this gene within the target cell produces an enzyme that converts the nontoxic prodrug, 5-FC, to the toxic metabolite, 5-fluorouracil (5-FU). 5-FC may be particularly suitable for brain tumors, because it can readily cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB). In addition the bystander effect, where activated drug is exported from the transfected cancer cells into the tumor microenvironment, plays an important role by inhibiting growth of adjacent tumor cells. Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) are frequently found in and around glioblastomas. Monocytes or macrophages (Ma) loaded with drugs, nanoparticles or photosensitizers could therefore be used to target tumors by local synthesis of chemo attractive factors. The basic concept is to combine PCI, to enhance the ex vivo transfection of a suicide gene into Ma, employing specially designed core/shell NP as gene carrier.
Oral Vancomycin Prophylaxis Against Recurrent Clostridioides difficile Infection: Efficacy and Side Effects in Two Hospitals

Objective The data regarding the effectiveness of chemical prophylaxis against recurrent C. difficile infection (CDI) remain conflicting. Design Retrospective cohort study on the effectiveness of oral vancomycin for prevention of recurrent CDI. Setting Two academic centers in New York. Methods Two participating hospitals implemented an automated alert recommending oral vancomycin 125 mg twice daily in patients with CDI history scheduled to receive systemic antimicrobials. Measured outcomes included breakthrough and recurrent CDI rates, defined as CDI during and 1 month after initiation of prophylaxis, respectively. A self-controlled, before-and-after study design was employed to examine the effect of vancomycin prophylaxis on the prevalence of vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus spp (VRE) colonization and infection. Results We included 264 patients in the analysis. Breakthrough CDI was identified in 17 patients (6.4%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 3.8%-10.1%) and recurrent in 22 patients (8.3%; 95% CI, 5.3%-12.3%). Among the 102 patients with a history of CDI within the 3 months preceding prophylaxis, 4 patients (3.9%; 95% CIs, 1.1%-9.7%) had breakthrough CDI and 9 had recurrent disease (8.8%; 95% CIs, 4.1%-16.1%). In the 3-month period following vancomycin prophylaxis, we detected a statistically significant increase in both the absolute number of VRE (χ2, 0.003) and the ratio of VRE to VSE isolates (χ2, 0.003) compared to the combined period of 1.5 months preceding and the 3-4.5 months following prophylaxis. This effect persisted 6 months following prophylaxis. Conclusions Prophylactic vancomycin is an effective strategy to prevent CDI recurrence, but it increases the risk of VRE colonization. Thus, a careful selection of patients with high benefit-to-risk ratio is needed for the implementation of this preventive policy.
Prevention of cisplatin-induced kidney epithelial cell apoptosis with a Cu superoxide dismutase-mimetic [copper2II(3,5-ditertiarybutylsalicylate)4(ethanol)4].

Abstract Copper 2 II ( 3 , 5 -ditertiarybutylsalicylate ) 4 ( ethanol ) 4 , Cu 2 II ( 3 , 5 -DTBS ) 4 ( Eth ) 4 , was synthesized and characterized for evaluation as an anti-apoptotic superoxide dismutase (SOD)-mimetic in an in vitro 50 μM cis-diamminedichloroplatinum(II), [PtII(NH3)2(Cl)2]-treated kidney proximal tubule epithelial cell (LLC-PK) preparation. Synthesized Cu 2 II ( 3 , 5 -DTBS ) 4 ( Eth ) 4 was characterized by elemental analysis, FTIR spectrophotometry, and X-ray crystallography. The IC50 for SOD-mimetic reactivity of Cu 2 II ( 3 , 5 -DTBS ) 4 ( Eth ) 4 , determined with the xanthine/xanthine oxidase/nitroblue tetrazolium (NBT) system, was found to be 2.69 μM for the binuclear chelate. Pretreatment of LLC-PK cells with 20 μM Cu 2 II ( 3 , 5 -DTBS ) 4 ( Eth ) 4 prevented 50 μM PtII(NH3)2(Cl)2-induced and superoxide-mediated apoptosis. This SOD-mimetic significantly suppressed PtII(NH3)2(Cl)2-induced translocation of pro-apoptotic Bax from the cytosol to the inner mitochondrial membrane, prevented PtII(NH3)2(Cl)2-induced release of cytochrome c from the inner mitochondrial membrane and the appearance of cytochrome c in the cytosol, and prevented conversion of procaspase-3 to active caspase-3. Cu 2 II ( 3 , 5 -DTBS ) 4 ( Eth ) 4 treatment inhibited PtII(NH3)2(Cl)2-mediated tubular cell injury by preventing activation of cellular mechanisms that lead to proximal tubule kidney cell death. Based on these observations, PtII(NH3)2(Cl)2- induced O 2 - -mediated apoptosis can be mechanistically overcome with a small molecular mass SOD-mimetic, Cu 2 II ( 3 , 5 -DTBS ) 4 ( Eth ) 4 . Prior treatment of patients who are to undergo treatment with PtII(NH3)2(Cl)2 for their neoplastic disease with Cu 2 II ( 3 , 5 -DTBS ) 4 ( Eth ) 4 may be beneficial to these patients.
Political Regulation of the Formerly “Free Market” and the Greater Efficiency and Social Utility of Technological Development Under Socialism

Competing with socialist economies that derive benefits from internal cooperation, capitalism’s ostensibly anti-government intervention elites turn to government for economic rescue and political protection. And this because government—allegedly incapable of running anything efficiently—ownership and/or control of Chinese industries supposedly gives them an unfair advantage! Furthermore, tariffs, patent and copyright, technological transfer restrictions, and so on, aimed at protecting profits, as per drug patents, inhibit the free flow of technology and ideas potentially beneficial to all humanity. And when all else fails, ostensibly “strategic interest,” “national security” or, unbelievably, “ecological” interests, are also invoked! Incredibly hypocritical in light of the externalization of the costs of toxic pollution, greenhouse gases, climate change, hurricanes, sea level rise, and environmental refugees, by domestic oil, coal, and gas industries; notwithstanding the astronomical cost in blood and treasure subsidizing the militaristic acquisition of oil assets.
Understanding User Acceptance of Clinical Decision Support Systems to Promote Increased Cancer Screening Rates in a Primary Care Practice.

Objective:Clinical decision support systems (CDDSs) in the electronic medical record (EMR) have been implemented in primary care settings to identify patients due for cancer screening tests, while ...
Soundtrack design: The impact of music on visual attention and affective responses.

Abstract Through music, film composers attempt to affect the audience's emotions and visual attention; however, little empirical evidence exists characterizing the mechanisms whereby music affects viewers. We conducted a mixed-design experiment with 60 participants to explore the effect of music on viewers' visual attention and affective responses to a film. Music led to quicker first fixations on film objects and supplied emotional content, increasing positive sentiment for the film's story. However, music did not influence viewers' attitudes to filmed events. Within this context, music has limited impact on attitudes toward filmed events but can accentuate the saliency of film objects and supply emotional information altering viewers' sentiment towards the film. Understanding the mechanisms of music's physiological and behavioral effects can inform content delivery strategies. This study offers insights for composition and production of musical soundtracks for feature-length films, advertising videos, educational videos, and video games.
Education and gastroenterology fellow knowledge about endoscopic mucosal resection of colon adenomas: a survey-based study

Background and study aims Endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) is an effective way to remove large (> 2 cm) colon adenomas. Training about it has not been standardized in fellowship programs. This study was aimed at evaluating the education and knowledge of gastroenterology fellows about EMR of colorectal adenomas. Methods Participation in this survey was offered to 1730 gastroenterology fellows in the United States during the academic year 2019 to 2020. The survey assessed endoscopic mucosal resection training and knowledge and was approved and administered by the American College of Gastroenterology. Results A total of 163 fellows (9.4 %) completed the survey. Only 85 fellows (52.1 %) reported receiving formal education in endoscopic mucosal resection. Fellow confidence was lowest regarding knowing electrosurgery unit settings. Fewer fellows correctly identified Paris 0-IIb (79, 48.5 %; P Conclusions Nearly half of all fellows reported no formal education in EMR and incorrectly ordered its steps. Adenoma assessment by Paris and NICE classifications and electrosurgery unit settings were the most prominent knowledge deficiencies. Incorporation of standardized training about EMR with inclusion of advanced endoscopy rotations appears to be an important educational opportunity during gastroenterology fellowship.
The Impact of Twentieth-Century Physics on the Periodic Table and Some Remaining Questions in the Twenty-First Century

The historical development of the theoretical account of the periodic table provided by theoretical physics is reviewed, beginning with discoveries made at the start of the twentieth century. The article highlights the attempts to theoretically explain several features of the periodic table including the well-known period doubling or Madelung rule of orbital occupation. The account includes more recent group theoretical approaches which go beyond quantum mechanics and seek an explanation based in the underlying symmetry of the periodic table and how this symmetry is broken to produce the diversity of atoms that we are familiar with. The approach taken is one of seeking a global solution to such questions rather than merely solving the equations of quantum mechanics for each individual case.
Gain from genomic selection for a selection index in two-row spring barley

New breeding programs are faced with many challenges including evaluation of unknown germplasm, initiation of breeding populations that will satisfy short- and long-term breeding goals, and implementation of efficient phenotyping strategies for multiple traits. Genomic selection (GS) is a potentially valuable tool for recently established breeding programs to quickly accelerate genetic gain. Genomic selection on selection index (SI) values may increase gain over phenotypic selection but empirical studies remain limited. We compared gain in overall SI value for height, heading date, preharvest sprouting (PHS) resistance, and spot blotch resistance and component traits in two cycles of GS with one round of phenotypic selection (PS) in two-row spring malting barley (Hordeum vulgare L.). Higher realized gain for SI value, height, and PHS was observed with GS compared with PS but GS did not result in significant gain for heading date and spot blotch. Genetic variances for height and heading date, which had small index weights, were not reduced with GS but variances were substantially reduced for heavily weighted PHS and correlated seed germination traits. Inbreeding was increased by GS compared with PS but restricted mating of high breeding value individuals limited potential inbreeding. Our results indicate GS is a useful method to improve selection on index values with different weights.
With God All is Permitted

In this final chapter, I shall discuss the view that morality must be or may be based on divine command or divine approval, the view, i. e., that what one ought (not) to do depends solely on what God wills. I shall discuss this view in part because of its historical practical importance, but principally because it represents a kind of position in terms of which there is but a single right-making consideration. I have already made clear my skepticism about the tenability of any such single-principle views. Part of my argument is designed to show the unacceptability of any view which holds that ‘oughtness’ is defined in terms of or otherwise constituted by the subjective reaction (e. g., approval) of any observer, divine or human, actual or ideal.
Tempered Fractional Sturm--Liouville EigenProblems

Continuum-time random walk is a general model for particle kinetics, which allows for incorporating waiting times and/or non-Gaussian jump distributions with divergent second moments to account for Levy flights. Exponentially tempering the probability distribution of the waiting times and the anomalously large displacements results in tempered-stable Levy processes with finite moments, where the fluid (continuous) limit leads to the tempered fractional diffusion equation. The development of fast and accurate numerical schemes for such nonlocal problems requires a new spectral theory and suitable choice of basis functions. In this study, we introduce two classes of regular and singular tempered fractional Sturm--Liouville problems of two kinds (TFSLP-I and TFSLP-II) of order $\nu \in (0,2)$. In the regular case, the corresponding tempered differential operators are associated with tempering functions $p_I(x) = \exp(2\tau) $ and $p_{II}(x) = \exp(-2\tau)$, $\tau \geq 0$, respectively, in the regular TFSLP-I...
The Enzymology of Control by Feedback Inhibition

One way in which an organism controls its biosynthetic path- ways is by feedback inhibition. This control adjusts the rate of production of the end products of pathways, such as amino acids and nucleotides, to the rate of synthesis of macromolecules, such as proteins and nucleic acids. Control is imposed by the end product itself in a simple and rapid manner: the end product stops production of more of itself by inhibiting the activity of the first enzyme unique to its pathway. Consequently, if an end product is not continually removed into macromolecules, additional end product is not made. The organism benefits from feedback inhibition, because it avoids wasting resources of carbon, nitrogen, and energy on end products which are not used. Certainly it is a widespread and effective metabolic con- trol. Many biosynthetic pathways in bacteria have feedback inhibition, and a few instances are also known for higher or- ganisms (1). In this article, a feedback inhibition is investigated to learn more about its enzymological mechanism. Until now, feedback inhibition has been studied at a metabolic level where one us- ually asks which end product inhibits which enzyme. The question now asked is, how does the end product of a pathway inhibit the first enzyme? This question is justified because many known feedback inhibitions appear competitive, as if in- hibition results from a competition of the inhibitor and substrate for the same groups of the active site on the first enzyme. To the enzymologist, competition is wholly unexpected because the end product and substrate often differ greatly in size, shape, and charge, in contrast with classical competitors (2). How can there be competition when a site specific for the substrate seems unsuited for also binding the end product? The problem of the mechanism of inhibition was approached by using the first enzyme unique to pyrimidine biosynthesis in Escherichiu coli. This enzyme is aspartate transcarbamylase, which catalyzes the reaction shown in Fig. 1. It is known that in the bacterium the activity of aspartate transcarbamylase is closely controlled by an end product, probably a cytosine de- rivative, and that inhibition of this enzyme is important for controlling the whole pathway (3). Aspartate transcarbamylase is especially suited for enzymological study because it can be obtained easily in a highly purified state (4). It is inhibited by a nucleotide end product which competes with a structurally lunrelated substrate, an amino acid. J Experiments to be described have two purposes: first, to find * This work was aided bv support from United States Public
MACROECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF CORRUPTION AMONG DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

Based on empirical data, a two-equation game-type corruption reaction function model was developed. A ‘data to model’ approach was used rather than the usual a priori approach. The general hypothesis tested was the ‘monkey see, monkey do’ principle. The latest data on corruption among developing countries was obtained from the Enterprise Surveys done by the World Bank Group in 2010. The key variables were the percent of domestic firms expecting to make informal payment to public officials to ‘get things done,’ and the percent of foreign firms doing like wise. The time span is from 2002-2010. A variety of econometric methods were used. The statistical results were quite good and supported the hypothesis. Both reaction equations were positively sloped. Time had a reducing effect on the frequency of domestic corruption, yet it had an increasing effect on foreign corruption. Variations in the frequency of corruption across regions of countries were generally not significant.