cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
On the "Insurmountable Difficulties, Obscurity, and Embarrassment" of Smith's Fifth Chapter

Parmi les differentes receptions de la pensee economique d'A. Smith, l'A. etudie les difficultes liees au principe de la valeur marchande defini au chapitre V de «La richesse des nations». Au-dela de l'objection des enonces incompatibles, l'A. defend l'idee d'une chaine connective entre la valeur des biens et les methodes de production du systeme mercantile critique dans l'ouvrage de Smith.
Students with Behavioral or Emotional Problems

The education of students with behavioral or emotional problems is an area of considerable controversy. The definition, characteristics, identification procedures, and teaching approaches for this category of exceptional student are all sources of disagreement. In fact, there is even controversy over the term that should be used to describe these students. Emotional disturbance, emotional handicap, and behavior disorders are but a few terms that are used in educational settings. When one considers other settings (e.g., psychiatric) and the severity of certain types of problems (e.g., autism), the number of terms even increases. For the most part, two terms, behavior disordered and seriously emotionally disturbed, or adaptations of those terms, are most often used in the area of special education. There has been a movement in the field to emphasize the term behavior disordered, al-though the definition used in PL 94-142 still uses the term seriously emotionally disturbed. Swartz, Mosley, and Koenig-Jerz (1987) noted in a survey of each state’s use of terminology that 33 used some variant of emotionally disturbed, 15 used a variant of behavior disordered, 4 used a combination, and 1 used no label at all. Interestingly, only 6 states used the term seriously emotionally disturbed that is indicated in PL 94–142. In this chapter, terms related to both emotional and behavioral problems will be used.
The accumulation of reproductive isolation in early stages of divergence supports a role for sexual selection

Models of speciation by sexual selection propose that male-female coevolution leads to the rapid evolution of behavioural reproductive isolation. Here, we compare the strength of behavioural isolation to ecological isolation, gametic incompatibility and hybrid inviability in a group of dichromatic stream fishes. In addition, we examine whether any of these individual barriers, or a combined measure of total isolation, is predicted by body shape differences, male colour differences, environmental differences or genetic distance. Behavioural isolation reaches the highest values of any barrier and is significantly greater than ecological isolation. No individual reproductive barrier is associated with any of the predictor variables. However, marginally significant relationships between male colour and body shape differences with ecological and behavioural isolation are discussed. Differences in male colour and body shape predict total reproductive isolation between species; hierarchical partitioning of these two variables' effects suggests a stronger role for male colour differences. Together, these results suggest an important role for divergent sexual selection in darter speciation but raise new questions about the mechanisms of sexual selection at play and the role of male nuptial ornaments.
Folic Acid Treatment of Anticonvulsant-Induced Hyperhomocysteinemia

The prevalence of hyperhomocysteinemia (HHcy) in 123 childhood epilepsy patients treated with antiepileptic drugs (AED) and the effect of folic acid supplements (1 mg/day) on plasma Hcy levels were determined in a study at three regional hospitals and pediatric centers in Austria.
Mechanical and physiological examination of barefoot and shod conditions in female runners

Barefoot running and running using minimalist footwear have become increasingly popular in recent years. Footwear choice may affect running mechanics and the metabolic cost of running. To investigate these factors, 8 well-trained, female distance runners (mean age=20.1±1.4 years) were recruited to participate in the study. Following orientation to testing procedures, subjects completed 3 running economy tests on separate days. Treatment order (barefoot, minimalist footwear and running shoe) was counter-balanced. Each testing session consisted of a 5-min warm-up at 2.24 m · s−1, followed by the 7-min RE test at 3.13 m · s−1. Biomechanical data were collected at the 3-min mark for 10 s, and expired gases were collected from minutes 5–7. One-way repeated measures ANOVA revealed a statistically significant difference for running economy (p=0.04), expressed as relative oxygen uptake per km in the barefoot condition (running shoe: 204.51±2.84; minimalist footwear: 198.21±3.04; barefoot: 193.26±3.62 ml · kg−1· km−1) vs. running shoe. The other physiological and biomechanical variables were not statistically significant (p>0.05). However, moderate to large effect sizes suggested there were biomechanical changes that ensured between conditions. It should be further evaluated whether these mechanical adjustments and the running economy trend would translate into improved distance race performance while running barefoot or with minimalist footwear.
Shunting to relieve the pressures of graduate school…literally

A 28-year-old woman with a history of hydrocephalus diagnosed as a part of amenorrhoea work-up at the age of 18, presented to her primary care doctor's office with acute onset of neck pain, nausea and vomiting of 1-week duration. She also reported light-headedness with position change but no fever, chills or photophobia. Her vitals were stable except for a mildly elevated …
Ribosome Biosynthesis in Cultured Lymphocytes: II. The Role of Ribosomal RNA Production in the Initiation and Maintenance of Lymphocyte Growth

Ribosomal RNA production in cultured lymphocytes appeared to be regulated by the rate of 45S rRNA precursor transcription and also by the rate of 45S processing to the 28S and 18S components found in mature ribosomes. Cultures of resting lymphocytes restricted ribosome formation by maintaining both transcription and processing of 45S RNA at low levels. Still about 50 per cent of the RNA finally processed to 28S lacked corresponding 18S components as a result of selective degradation in resting lymphocytes. After PHA treatment, the rates of 45S rRNA precursor transcription and cleavage to 28S products, detectably increased within one hour, rose to a maximum at 48 hours. However, conservation of 18S components reached maximal efficiency between one to five hours after PHA treatment. By 48 hours, at the height of the growth response, PHA-stimulated cultures once again began to selectively degrade 18S RNA. At 168 hours, after the proliferative process had ceased, 45S processing slowed considerably despite a brisk rate of 45S RNA transcription —approximately 50-75 per cent of maximum. Thus, the initiation of lymphocyte growth and the maintenance of the growing condition may depend on the rate of ribosome biosynthesis which, in turn, may be regulated by the efficiency of 45S rRNA precursor utilization for ribosome assembly.
Welfare Reform: Attempts to Displace Charity

In constructing poor relief on private acts of charity, the confraternities subjected paupers to a religious code of ethics that was formulated only partially with regard to their material needs. The indigent and disabled were dependent for their livelihood upon rituals of religion fashioned across the centuries from biblical injunctions, soteriological concepts and saints’ cults. For those of us living in societies in which welfare systems are centrally organized and relief is allocated strictly according to income levels of recipients, the traditional foundation of poor relief upon religious prescriptions is apt to appear unreliable. To modern eyes, there is something capricious about confraternal welfare, in the way that it carefully emulated sacred images of charity with little regard for the peculiar circumstances of individual paupers. Could symbolic charity respond to changing economic conditions? Did religious ritual adequately provide for the physical needs of paupers?
A Resonant Current-Mode Wireless Power Receiver and Battery Charger With −32 dBm Sensitivity for Implantable Systems

Wireless power transfer for implantable systems must harvest very low power levels due to low incident power on human tissues and a small receiver coil size. This work proposes resonant current-mode charging to reduce minimum harvestable input power and increase power efficiency at low input power levels. Avoiding rectification and voltage regulation from conventional voltage-mode methods, this work resonates an LC tank for multiple cycles to build up energy, then directly charges a battery with inductor current. A prototype is fabricated in 0.18 $\mu \text{m}$ CMOS technology. Minimum harvestable input power is 600 nW and maximum power efficiency is 67.6% at 4.2 $\mu \text{W}$ input power. Power transmission through bovine tissue is measured to have negligible efficiency loss, making this technique amenable to implantable applications.
Increasing Family Medicine Faculty Diversity Still Lags Population Trends

Background: Faculty diversity has important implications for medical student diversity. The purpose of this analysis is to describe trends in racial, ethnic, and gender diversity in family medicine (FM) departments and compare these trends to the diversity of matriculating medical students, the diversity of all medical school faculty, and the population in general. Methods: We used the Association of American Medical Colleges Faculty Roster to describe trends in proportions of female and minorities under-represented in medicine (URM) in FM department full-time faculty in U.S. MD-granting medical schools. Results: Among FM faculty, the proportions of female and URM faculty have grown more than 2-fold between 1980 and 2015. Increasing faculty rank was associated with lower diversity across the study period. FM departments had higher female and URM proportions than the average of all other specialties, but URM representation still lagged population trends. Conclusion: Although FM faculty diversity is growing over time, continued attention to URM representation should remain a priority.
The Emerging Role of Human TRPV1 S1 S4 Sensing Domain in Channel Gating

Transient potential receptor ion channel vanilloid member 1, TRPV1, was initially identified as the capsaicin receptor, but is also modulated by various chemical and physical stimuli including elevated temperature, acidic pH, endogenous ligands and regulatory proteins. TRPV1 functions as a primary heat sensor in humans. Recently determined structures of rat TRPV1 have provided a better understanding of channel architecture and the ligand gating. However, the mechanism of how thermal stimulus is integrated and converted to channel gating remains poorly understood.
Advance to Graduate School in the US: How the Path is Different for Women in STEM

A national sample of U.S. college graduates is examined in order to gain a deeper understanding of gender-based differences in the pursuit of a STEM graduate degree. The findings revealed that a significantly higher percentage of women in STEM reported an aspiration for a doctoral degree, and their graduate enrollment rate was significantly higher than that of their male counterparts one year after college graduation. The results suggest that availability of financial aid contributes positively to STEM women’s graduate enrollment, but women’s likelihood of obtaining graduate assistantships, fellowships, and employer tuition assistance is substantially lower than for males. In the meantime, women in STEM are sensitive to cost-benefit calculation in their decision-making about graduate education. They are significantly less likely to pursue doctoral education if their earning at the labor market entry is in the bottom quartile. Marital status, academic performance, and other social and structural factors also influenced women’s decisions about graduate education in STEM. The findings support that individuals’ decision-making is conscious choice behavior based on their internalized social values and personal beliefs that go beyond the cost and benefit calculation.
Carnaval, representación y fracaso en El Buscón (1.4)

La merecida difusion alcanzada en la ultimas decadas por el concepto de "carnaval", entendido a la manera de Bajtin, ha sido quizas la razon por la cual se le tienda a aplicar como panacea explicatoria a practicamente todo lo que caiga dentro de la esfera de lo comico, subsumiendo y simplificando en un solo modelo explicativo toda la rica gama de elementos que implica. Nada mas caracteristico que lo que ocurre con textos como el Buscon donde la critica suele reconocer claramente paradigmas carnavalescos. Por ello, nos hemos interesado en definir un poco mas como funciona el concepto de "carnaval" en esta novela. Observaremos que puede y debe ser visto bajo una perspectiva mas compleja y justa. Dada la postura mas bien conservadora del texto quevediano y su tendencia a la satira demoledora, la que se opone a la burla ambivalente que otorga Batjin al carnaval medieval y renacentista, proponemos matizar el pluralismo popular de Bajtin a la luz de otros criterios y postulados teoricos presentes en la vision nietzscheana del carnaval. Por su negatividad y antipopulismo, la nocion nietzscheana del carnaval es la que mas se acerca al aristocratismo antisemita de Quevedo. The well-deserved currency of the Bakhtinean concept of carnival may perhaps account for the tendency to apply it as explanatory panacea to all thar falls within the sphere of the comic, thus subsuming and simplifying into a single model the whole rich range of the various has happened to such texts as El Buscon where the critic tends to clearly distinguish carnivalesque paradigms. In view of that our interest is to define more precisely the way the "carnival" concept functions in that novel. We shall then observe that it can and must indeed be seen in a more complex and just perspective. Considering the fairly conservative stance of the Quevedian text, with its tendency towards demolishing satire, which runs counter to the ambivalent mockey attributed by Bakhtin to the medieval and renaissance carnival, we propose to qualify the popular pluralism of Bakhtin by appealing to other theoretical principies and criteria present in the Nietzschean view. Because of this negativily and anti-populism, the Nietzschean perspective would come much closer to the aristocratizing antisemitism of Quevedo.
A Pyrrole-Based Pincer Ligand Permits Access to Three Oxidation States of Iron in Organometallic Complexes

Treatment of FeCl2(thf)1.5 with the sodium salt of bis(dicyclohexylphosphinomethyl)pyrrole (NaCyPNP) in the presence of pyridine (py) affords the high-spin, five-coordinate iron(II) complex [FeCl(py)(CyPNP)]. The chloride complex serves as a starting point for a variety of organometallic iron(II) compounds including S = 1 square planar alkyls, [FeR(CyPNP)] (R = Me, Et, Bn, Ph). Treatment of [FeCl(py)(CyPNP)] with NaBEt3H does not generate an analogous square-planar hydride complex, but rather a bimetallic high-spin iron(II) species containing bridging hydride ligands. Analogous transmetalation reactions in the presence of carbon monoxide produced six-coordinate low-spin species [FeR(CO)2(CyPNP)] (R = Et, Ph, and H). Reduction of [FeCl(py)(CyPNP)] under CO afforded the low-spin iron(I) carbonyl complex [Fe(CO)2(CyPNP)]. This species could be further reduced with KC8 to afford the anionic iron(0) complex K[Fe(CO)2(CyPNP)]·thf. The breadth of coordination numbers, spin states, and valencies supported by this...
Why Aren't International Travelers Vaccinated for Measles?

The editorialists discuss Hyle and colleagues' findings on measles immunization in overseas travelers and note that efforts to increase rates are mainly focused on children and that the need to imm...
Triumphs and challenges of two recent South Slavic Beowulfs

This essay discusses two twenty-first-century poetic translations of Beowulf into South Slavic languages: Croatian by Mate Maras (2001) and Macedonian by Dragi Mihajlovski (2013). Neither Maras nor Mihajlovski evoke the recent Balkan wars and their aftermath, nor do they consistently invoke the local epic traditions often considered analogous to Beowulf. Both translators practice a kind of defamiliarization, but in different ways. Maras occasionally deploys archaisms reminiscent of older Croatian literature, early Germanic borrowings into Slavic, and even Indo-European cognates, suggesting the temporal layering of the Anglo-Saxon poem. Mihajlovski, in contrast, creates a thoroughly baroque Beowulf, mixing disparate stylistic registers, bringing together distant geographies, and featuring more compounds than his source text. The essay concludes by asserting the value of those engagements with Beowulf that show us what the original does and those that show us the opposite, what it does not do.
Optimization of the Medium of Thermal Treatment of GFE-1 Hafnium Alloy

We optimize the conditions of thermochemical treatment of the plates (~ 1 mm) made of GFE-1 hafnium alloy after plastic deformation from the viewpoint of the influence of interstitial elements (oxygen) on the solid-solution hardening of the subsurface layers and the fatigue durability of the hafnium specimens subjected to symmetric pure bending. It is shown that the thermochemical treatment (T = 850°C, τ = 2 h) performed in the oxygen-containing gaseous atmosphere at P = 1.33·10−2 Pa leads to the formation of a diffusion-hardened subsurface layer on the GFE-1 hafnium specimens, which increases their fatigue life (for the strain amplitude ± e a = 0.6%) as compared with the other levels of pressure of the same medium. The fracture of the specimens of GFE-1 hafnium alloy subjected to the thermochemical treatment in oxygen-containing rarefied gas atmospheres under various pressures is investigated.
Ambiguity Functions for Diffraction Tomography Using Back-and- Forth Propagation

This paper presents ambiguity functions for diffraction tomography using back-and-forth propagation. Both depth and lateral ambiguities are studied. The ambiguity functions corresponding to two different schemes for data acquisition are derived. We show that both the depth and lateral ambiguities are dependent on the wavelength of the insonification, and the range of values of the incident angles employed. Projections obtained by rotating the transducer give different ambiguities in two lateral directions. Projections obtained by rotating the object give less lateral ambiguity but greater depth ambiguity.
Nonradiographic axial spondyloarthritis: clinical and therapeutic relevance

Current classification criteria for axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) provide for the inclusion of patients with a wide range of presentations and manifestations. While not considered a formal subclassification, patients are often divided into radiographic or nonradiographic axSpA based on the presence or absence of radiographic sacroiliitis. This review will focus on nonradiographic axSpA and will discuss clinical manifestations of disease that distinguish, or in many cases do not distinguish, this entity from other individuals with axSpA. This review will also cover treatment paradigms for nonradiographic axSpA, particularly the use of biologic therapies, where current data suggest that nonradiographic disease should be managed largely the same as radiographic disease, or classical ankylosing spondylitis.
Pain and functional trajectories in symptomatic knee osteoarthritis over up to 12 weeks of exercise exposure

Summary Objective Exercise is the recommended treatment for knee osteoarthritis (OA). However, heterogeneous patterns in treatment response are poorly understood. Our purpose was to identify pain and functional trajectories from exercise interventions in knee OA, and to determine their association with baseline factors. Methods Prospective cohort of 171 participants (mean age 61 years; BMI 32 kg/m 2 , 71% female; 57% white) with symptomatic knee OA from a randomized trial comparing 12-week Tai Chi and Physical Therapy. We analyzed weekly Western Ontario and McMaster Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) pain (0–500) and function (0–1700) scores using group-based trajectory models. Associations between baseline factors and trajectories were examined using multinomial logistic regression. Results We identified four pain trajectories: Lower-Early Improvement (43%), Moderate-Early Improvement (32%), Higher-Delayed Improvement (15%), and Higher-No Improvement (10%). We found similar trajectories for function, except that the lower function trajectories diverged into gradual (12%) or delayed-improvement (15%). Compared with the Lower-Early Improvement pain trajectory, moderate and higher trajectories were associated with poorer physical and psychosocial health. A similar pattern of associations were found among the function trajectories. Conclusions We found four distinct trajectories for pain and function over up to 12-weeks of exercise interventions. While most participants experienced improvements over a short-term exposure, subgroups with greater baseline pain/physical disability had either gradual, delayed, or no improvements. These findings help disentangle the heterogeneity of treatment response and may advance patient-centered care in knee OA.
A Newborn with Hypothermia and Hyperammonemia

A full-term small gestational age female infant was transferred to the NICU for hypothermia and seizure-like activity. In the first 10 h of life, the infant had difficulty feeding and developed mild hypothermia, which resolved after placing her on a radiant warmer. At 47 h of life, she again developed hypothermia, with an axillary temperature of 34.4 °C. At that time, a physical and neurological examination was notable for an altered level of consciousness, irregular breathing, hypertonia, central rigidity, and exaggerated Moro reflex, as well as jaundiced skin. Her serum direct bilirubin (1.1 mg/dL, reference interval 0–0.3 mg/dL) and aspartate transaminase (58 U/L, reference interval 10–35 U/L) were increased, whereas her alanine transaminase and total bilirubin were within normal limits. Abdominal examination was unremarkable with no evidence of hepatosplenomegaly. At 55 h of life, she developed severe hyperammonemia (plasma ammonia 1906 μmol/L, reference interval 56–92 μmol/L) and respiratory alkalosis (pH 7.6, reference interval 7.35–7.45; pCO2 25 mmHg, reference interval 41–54 mmHg; and bicarbonate 24 mEq/L, reference interval 17–24 mEq/L). The increased ammonia raised suspicion for an inborn error of metabolism. A urine organic acid and serum amino acid analysis was performed. The results are shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 1. Organic acid and amino acid analysis. Urine organic acids were extracted into ethyl acetate/ether and converted to trimethylsilyl derivatives prior to analysis using a GC 7890B/MS 5977A system equipped with an agilent HP-5MS column (A). Amino acid analysis of the patient's serum by HPLC …
Abstract 12289: The Nuclear Receptor NR4A1 Regulates Transcriptional Programs Involved in Cardiac Fuel Metabolism and Hypertrophic Growth

The transcriptional coregulators, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator-1 (PGC-1) alpha and beta, are inducible master regulators of mitochondrial biogenesis and metabolism. ...
The Mechanism of T-DNA Integration: Some Major Unresolved Questions

The mechanism of T-DNA integration into plant genomes during Agrobacterium-mediated genetic transformation is still not understood. As genetic transformation of plants via Agrobacterium has become a routine practice among plant biologists, understanding T-DNA integration remains important for several reasons. First, T-DNA is the final step in one of the unique cases of inter-kingdom horizontal gene transfer in nature. Second, understanding T-DNA integration is important for biotechnological applications. For example, better knowledge of this process may help develop methods to transform species that are currently not susceptible to Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. In addition, regulatory agencies usually require “clean” and “precise” transgenic insertion events, whereas transgenic insertions are commonly complex unpredictable structures. Furthermore, whereas T-DNA integration under natural conditions occurs randomly, technology to direct T-DNA to specific sites in the genome is highly desired. A better understanding of T-DNA integration may help develop methods to achieve more desirable results. Finally, gene targeting methods that require a foreign DNA template for precise DNA modifications in plants often utilize Agrobacterium to deliver the DNA template. Better understanding of the fate of T-DNA in the plant nucleus may help utilize T-DNA for more efficient gene targeting. For introducing gene targeting reagents, efficient delivery of T-DNA without ectopic integration would be useful. The following review summarizes current knowledge related to T-DNA integration. Five major open questions related to T-DNA integration are being presented. Finally, different models for T-DNA integration are being discussed, and a revised model is proposed.
Effect of Tannins on Insect Feeding Behavior

The feeding behavior of herbivorous insects is guided by plant chemistry. There are specialists and generalists with regard to the range of plant species they attack. Nutrients such as sugars and proteins, and secondary plant compounds such as phenolics, terpenoids, or alkaloids, determine whether or not an insect will feed on a plant and to what extent.
Sociocultural Contexts of Reading Development in Young English Language Learners

This study explored reading development in young English language learners (ELL) during the kindergarten year. Data used in this study came from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 2010-2011 (ECLS-K: 2011). A total sample of 15,042 students who attended kindergarten the first time was included. The independent variables were the indicators of the home language, family income level, and gender. The two dependent variables were students’ reading item response theory (IRT) scale scores in the fall and spring semester of the kindergarten year. Two full three-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) models were used for the statistical analyses. The results found there is a gender difference in children’s reading performance, with female students doing slightly better than male. The family income levels also show differences in children’s reading performance. The higher the family income was, the better students showed in their mean reading scores. English Only Learners (EOL) had the highest mean scores, followed by the group of multilingual learners (ML), English language learners (ELL) group had the lowest scores for both semesters. Among the 18 subgroups, the highest group was ELL-high-income-family-females in the fall semester and ML-middle-income-family-males in the spring semester. The lowest group was ELL-low-income-males for both semesters.
Immune checkpoint inhibitor-induced colitis as a predictor of survival in metastatic melanoma

Gastrointestinal (GI) immune-related adverse events (irAEs) commonly limit immune checkpoint inhibitors’ (ICIs) treatment, which is very effective for metastatic melanoma. The independent impact of GI-irAEs on patients’ survival is not well studied. We aimed to assess the impact of GI-irAEs on survival rates of patients with metastatic melanoma using multivariate model. This is a retrospective study of patients with metastatic melanoma who developed GI-irAEs from 1/2010 through 4/2018. A number of randomized patients who did not have GI-irAEs were included as controls. Kaplan–Meier curves and log-rank test were used to estimate unadjusted survival durations. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to evaluate survival predictors; irAEs were included as time-dependent variables. A total of 346 patients were included, 173 patients had GI-irAEs; 124 (72%) received immunosuppression. In multivariate Cox regression, ECOG 2–3 (HR 2.57, 95%CI 1.44–4.57; P < 0.01), LDH ≥ 618 IU/L (HR 2.20, 95% CI 1.47–3.29; P < 0.01), stage M1c (HR 2.21, 95% CI 1.35–3.60; P < 0.01) were associated with worse OS rates. Any grade GI-irAEs (HR 0.53, 95% CI 0.36–0.78; P < 0.01) was associated with improved OS rates. Immunosuppressive treatment did not affect OS (P = 0.15). High-grade diarrhea was associated with improved OS (P = 0.04). Patients who developed GI-irAEs had longer PFS durations on Cox model (HR 0.56, 95% CI 0.41–0.76; P < 0.01). GI-irAEs are associated with improved OS and PFS in patients with metastatic melanoma. Furthermore, higher grades of diarrhea are associated with even better patients’ OS rates.
Combining Motor Primitives for Perception Driven Target Reaching With Spiking Neurons

Target reaching is one of the most important areas in robotics, object interaction, manipulation and grasping tasks require reaching specific targets. The authors avoid the complexity of calculating the inverse kinematics and doing motion planning, and instead use a combination of motor primitives. A bio-inspired architecture performs target reaching with a robot arm without planning. A spiking neural network represents motions in a hierarchy of motor primitives, and different correction primitives are combined using an error signal. In this article two experiments using a simulation of a robot arm are presented, one to extensively cover the working space by going to different points and returning to the start point, the other to test extreme targets and random points in sequence. Robotics applications—like target reaching—can provide benchmarking tasks and realistic scenarios for validation of neuroscience models, and also take advantage of the capabilities of spiking neural networks and the properties of neuromorphic hardware to run the models.
Specifying the Pancreatic Islet through Biomechanical Forces

Pancreatic Differentiation and the Beta Cell Identifying the determinants of differentiation of the cell types — in particular, the insulin-producing beta cells — of the islets of Langerhans is an ...
Prevalence of Indoor Tanning Among U.S. High School Students from 2009 to 2017.

Indoor tanning exposes users to high levels of ultraviolet radiation, increasing skin cancer risk. The risk is greatest for those who begin indoor tanning at a young age. The objective of this study was to assess changes in indoor tanning prevalence over time among U.S. high school students, by sex, age, and race/ethnicity. We used cross-sectional data from the 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015, and 2017 national Youth Risk Behavior Survey to examine changes in indoor tanning prevalence from 2009 to 2017 and from 2015 to 2017. From 2009 to 2017 indoor tanning declined overall (15.6 to 5.6%; p < 0.001), across all age groups, and among white (37.4 to 10.1%; p < 0.001) and Hispanic (10.5 to 3.0%; p < 0.001) female students, and white (7.0 to 2.8%; p < 0.001) and Hispanic (5.8 to 3.4%; p < 0.001) male students. From 2015 to 2017, indoor tanning declined overall (7.3 to 5.6%; p = 0.04) and among white (15.2 to 10.1%; p = 0.03) and Hispanic (5.8 to 3.0%; p = 0.02) female students, and 16-year-old students (7.2 to 4.7%; p = 0.03). Indoor tanning has continued to decrease, particularly among white and Hispanic female students, dropping well below the Healthy People 2020 target for adolescents. However, continued efforts are needed to further reduce and sustain reductions in adolescent indoor tanning and address remaining research gaps.
Spectrally filtered passive Si photodiode array for on-chip fluorescence imaging of intracellular calcium dynamics

On-chip fluorescence imaging devices are recognized for their miniaturized and implantable nature that can benefit the study of intracellular dynamics at a variety of settings. However, it is challenging to integrate a spectral filter onto such devices (to block the excitation light) that has similar performance to the state-of-the-art emission filters used in fluorescence microscopes. In this work, we report a 100%-yield, spectrally filtered passive Si photodiode array designed for on-chip fluorescence imaging of intracellular Ca2+ dynamics. Coated with a spectral filter layer that has a high extinction ratio (>103), our array features high wavelength selectivity (>102), high linearity (R2 > 0.98), and low detection limit (45.1 μW 640/30 nm light). Employing fluorescence microscopy as the reference, we demonstrate that our array can conduct on-chip Ca2+ imaging in C2C12 cells that were chemically triggered to increase their intracellular Ca2+ levels. Importantly, our array-level data qualitatively captured the static fluorescence image of the cells and the intracellular Ca2+ dynamics, both of which are correlated with the microscope-collected data. Our results suggest the possible use of the spectrally filtered array towards a miniaturized on-chip fluorescence imaging device, which may open up new opportunities in tissue-level pharmaceutical screening and fundamental studies on cell networks.
An Organic Visual Metaphor for Public Understanding of Conditional Co-occurrences

Decisions made by domain experts, such as in healthcare and market research, are influenced by the conditional co-occurrence of different events. Learning about conditional co-occurrence is also beneficial for non-experts–the general public. By understanding the co-occurrences of diseases, it is easier to understand which diseases individuals are susceptible to. However, co-occurrence data is often complex. In order for a public understanding of conditional co-occurrence, there needs to be a simpler form to convey such complex information. We introduce an organic visual metaphor, which can provide a summary of the conditional co-occurrences within a large set of items and is accessible to the public with its organic shape. We develop a prototype application offering not only an overview for users to gain insights on how co-occurrence patterns evolve based on user-defined criteria (e.g., how do sex and age affect likelihood), but also functionality to explore the hierarchical data in-depth. We conducted two case studies with this prototype to demonstrate the effectiveness of our design.
One-Pot Two-Step Synthesis of 2-Aryl benzimidazole N-oxides Using Microwave Heating as a Tool

A methodology is reported for the preparation of 2-aryl-benzimidazole-3-oxide derivatives. By means of a one-pot two-step protocol, a library of 42 new compounds has been prepared. Reactions were performed in a total time of 40 min using microwave heating as a tool. A streamlined work-up process was also developed, allowing for facile isolation of the products. The methodology offers a more sustainable approach than previous routes, with only water and ethanol being used as solvents, and the products being isolated by means of a simple filtration without the need for any further purification.
Teaching Wildlife Disease Outbreak Response Through a Collaborative One Health Workshop

Issues in the fields of wildlife disease and One Health are often difficult to address by single research groups because of the many disciplines and areas of expertise required to effectively solve complex problems. Although collaborations are becoming increasingly prevalent in the professional realm, many undergraduate, graduate, and professional students are merely introduced to the idea of collaboration without fully understanding how team-based approaches function. In this report, we describe the framework for a one-day workshop hosted by the Colorado State University student chapter of the Wildlife Disease Association (CSU WDA), where we gathered students and professionals to collectively investigate a simulated wildlife disease outbreak. CSU WDA student members designed the workshop and recruited professionals who are experts in their respective fields to run an outbreak simulation during the event. Based on pre- and post-event evaluation responses, this workshop was effective in increasing participants' knowledge of disease ecology, pathology, genetics, and microbiology, as well as the importance of collaboration among disciplines as it pertains to wildlife disease outbreaks.
The Persian Whitman: Beyond a Literary Reception: Behnam M. Fomeshi, Leiden: Leiden University Press, 2019, ISBN 978-9-0872-8335-3 (pbk), 240 pp.

Were he still alive, perhaps no reader would more greatly praise this academic study on the reception in Iran of America’s most seminal nineteenth century poet than Walt Whitman himself. Proclaimin...
Structural MRI Analysis of Chronic Pain Patients Following Interdisciplinary Treatment Shows Changes in Brain Volume and Opiate-Dependent Reorganization of the Amygdala and Hippocampus.

Objective The present study examined pre- to post-treatment changes in volumes for brain structures known to be associated with pain processing (thalamus, caudate, putamen, pallidum, hippocampus, amygdala, and accumbens) following an interdisciplinary pain management program. Design Twenty-one patients participating in a four-week interdisciplinary pain management program completed the study. The program consisted of individual and group therapies with the following disciplines: physical therapy, occupational therapy, pain psychology, biofeedback/relaxation training, nursing lectures, and medical management. All patients underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging of the brain before the start and at completion of the program. They also completed standard outcome measures assessing pain, symptoms of central sensitization, disability, mood, coping, pain acceptance, and impressions of change. Results Our results showed a significant increase in total brain volume, as well as increased volumes in the thalamus, hippocampus, and amygdala. As expected, we also found significant improvements in our standard outcome measures. The majority of patients rated themselves as much or very much improved. The increase in volume in the hippocampus was significantly associated with patient perceptions of change. However, the correlations were in the unexpected direction, such that greater increases in hippocampal volume were associated with perceptions of less improvement. Further exploratory analyses comparing patients by their opioid use status (use vs no use) showed differential program effects on volume increases in the hippocampus and amygdala. Conclusions These findings show that a four-week interdisciplinary pain management program resulted in changes in the brain, which adds objective findings further demonstrating program efficacy.
Monitoring of Dams Suffering from ASR at the Bureau of Reclamation

Field monitoring of concrete dams affected by alkali-silica reaction is an essential component of the Safety of Dams evaluation process. Visual observations, instrumentation data recorded in the field, and laboratory concrete testing results combined with structural analyses results are key factors in understanding the past behavior of a dam, as well as assessing the structural integrity of a dam given the current conditions.
Recurrent Rib Pain in a 13-year-old Girl.

1. Chickajajur S. Vijay, MD* 2. Charles B. Chen, MD* 1. *Department of Pediatrics, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV A 13-year-old girl with a history of Chiari I malformation is admitted to the hospital with a 3-week history of sharp, constant, left anterior rib pain. She states that she first noticed the pain when she was dancing at home, but she denies any recent history of trauma, falls, or heavy lifting. The pain is aggravated by coughing, laughing, and any strenuous activity. She has been using ice and taking naproxen with only minimal relief in her symptoms. She has not had any fevers, chills, or weight loss, and her review of systems is otherwise negative. On admission to our facility, her vital signs are within normal limits. Physical examination reveals a healthy-appearing girl in no acute distress. She has tenderness to palpation along the left costal margin over the 8th to 11th ribs, along with a positive hook maneuver. An electrocardiogram shows normal sinus rhythm. Both chest and abdominal radiographs are unremarkable. A left rib radiograph shows an irregular linear lucency at the end of the ninth rib. However, computed tomography (CT) scan of the chest shows no soft tissue or osseous abnormalities in the region of the patient’s reported pain along the left chest wall. The cardiothoracic surgery department recommended conservative treatment with scheduled analgesics. She is started on a 6-week course of scheduled ibuprofen, and her pain improves during her hospital stay. She is encouraged to avoid contact sports and other strenuous activities. At her clinic follow-up visit 6 weeks later, her symptoms have improved, although she still has occasional pain …
Correction to “The Need for the Establishment of Biomedical Engineering as an Academic and Professional Discipline in the Philippines—A Quantitative Argument”

This article quantitatively presents the relationship between volume of BME publications produced from 1990 to 2019 in the member states of the ASEAN and 12 indicators of overall and physical health. The objective was to show that ASEAN states that recognize BME as an academic and professional discipline have been successful in producing research in the field, and thus, have advanced the provision of high-quality healthcare for their people. Acceptable relationships [Pearson correlation coefficients (PCC) > 0.6000] were found between BME publication volume and all indicators. Stronger relationships (PCC > 0.7000) were found between BME publication volume and the natural logarithm of the indicators. Brunei data behaved anomalously and was removed to check for any improvements in PCC. Indeed, PCCs for all indicators improved significantly upon exclusion of Brunei data [PCC > 0.8000 for six indicators (linear scale), PCC > 0.9000 for five indicators (log scale)]. These PCCs signify especially strong relationships between BME research yield and healthcare quality in a country. To visualize the relationships, BME publication volume was plotted against GDP per capita, while the remaining 11 indicators were each plotted against BME publication volume. Linear, logarithmic, and exponential regression curves were overlaid on the datapoints. Coefficients of determination (R2) were calculated to measure the aptness of the fits. $\text{R}^{2} >0.9000$ for two indicators, $\text{R}^{2} >0.8000$ for five indicators, $\text{R}^{2} >0.7000$ for four indicators, and $\text{R}^{2} for only one indicator were calculated from the curve fits overlaid on the datapoints excluding Brunei data. We believe that it is time for the Philippines to adopt BME as an academic and professional discipline, so that it may one day enjoy the benefits brought about by advancements in the provision of healthcare, which are experienced by its neighbors that have gone ahead with movements to cultivate the highly essential discipline.
Ontogeny and heterogeneity of innate lymphoid cells and the noncoding genome

Since their discovery a decade ago, it has become evident that innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) play critical roles in protective immune responses against intracellular and extracellular pathogens but are also central regulators of epithelial barrier integrity and tissue homeostasis. ILCs populate almost every tissue in mammalian organisms; therefore, not surprisingly, dysregulation of their functions contributes to the development and progression of multiple inflammatory and metabolic diseases. Our knowledge of the transcriptional programs governing the development, differentiation, and functions of the different groups of ILCs has increased dramatically in the last ten years. However, with the advent of new technologies, an unprecedented level of heterogeneity, plasticity, and developmental complexity has started to be revealed. In this review, we highlight recent advances in our understanding of ILC development and their biological functions. In particular, we aim to emphasize how our increasing knowledge of the chromatin landscape and the noncoding genome of these innate lymphocytes is allowing us to better understand their development and functions in different contexts during homeostasis and inflammation. Moreover, we propose that the design of more refined genetic tools to study tissue-specific ILCs and their functions can be accomplished by leveraging our understanding of how specific noncoding elements of the genome regulate gene expression in ILCs.
Benchmarking the performance of neuromorphic and spiking neural network simulators

Abstract Software simulators play a critical role in the development of new algorithms and system architectures in any field of engineering. Neuromorphic computing, which has shown potential in building brain-inspired energy-efficient hardware, suffers a slow-down in the development cycle due to a lack of flexible and easy-to-use simulators of either neuromorphic hardware itself or of spiking neural networks (SNNs), the type of neural network computation executed on most neuromorphic systems. While there are several openly available neuromorphic or SNN simulation packages developed by a variety of research groups, they have mostly targeted computational neuroscience simulations, and only a few have targeted small-scale machine learning tasks with SNNs. Evaluations or comparisons of these simulators have often targeted computational neuroscience-style workloads. In this work, we seek to evaluate the performance of several publicly available SNN simulators with respect to non-computational neuroscience workloads, in terms of speed, flexibility, and scalability. We evaluate the performance of the NEST, Brian2, Brian2GeNN, BindsNET and Nengo packages under a common front-end neuromorphic framework. Our evaluation tasks include a variety of different network architectures and workload types to mimic the computation common in different algorithms, including feed-forward network inference, genetic algorithms, and reservoir computing. We also study the scalability of each of these simulators when running on different computing hardware, from single core CPU workstations to multi-node supercomputers. Our results show that the BindsNET simulator has the best speed and scalability for most of the SNN workloads (sparse, dense, and layered SNN architectures) on a single core CPU. However, when comparing the simulators leveraging the GPU capabilities, Brian2GeNN outperforms the others for these workloads in terms of scalability. NEST performs the best for small sparse networks and is also the most flexible simulator in terms of reconfiguration capability NEST shows a speedup of at least 2 × compared to the other packages when running evolutionary algorithms for SNNs. The multi-node and multi-thread capabilities of NEST show at least 2 × speedup compared to the rest of the simulators (single core CPU or GPU based simulators) for large and sparse networks. We conclude our work by providing a set of recommendations on the suitability of employing these simulators for different tasks and scales of operations. We also present the characteristics for a future generic ideal SNN simulator for different neuromorphic computing workloads.
LoRa Wake-up Radio Relay with Beaglebone Black

This paper investigates the use of BeagleBone Black Wireless single-board Linux computers with Long Range (LoRa) transceivers to send and receive information while using a relay in the system. Three experiments are conducted. The first is conducted by maintaining the size of the payload and the distance between LoRa transceivers. The LoRa parameters such as spread factor, bandwidth, coding rate, and output power are all varied. The second experiment has the LoRa relay system listening to the transmissions between two LoRa transceivers and only transmitting if the received signal is less than a certain strength level. The third experiment combines the LoRa relay system with a wake-up radio, optimizing power utilization. The LoRa relay learns the transmission interval and goes to sleep in between transmissions. The optimum combination of LoRa parameters is investigated and additional experiments along with possible applications are suggested. Finally, a conceptual design of a LoRa transceiver combined with a Gaussian Frequency Shift Keying (GFSK) transceiver is explored.