cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
VARIATIONS IN THE COSMIC-RAY NUCLEONIC INTENSITY

The monthly mean intensity of the nucleonic component of cosmic radiation measured at Mt. Washington, geographic latitude 44.2\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}N and elevation 6262 ft, decreased 22% from July, 1954 to December, 1957. The decreased intensity now prevailing came about through a series of sudden decreases from which only partial recovery occurred. During this same period, the amplitude of the day-to-day intensity changes has increased. A study has been made of the largest Forbush-type decreases which have occurred in this interval. Many of these intensity drops have a decrease rate \ensuremath{\sim}1.5% ${\mathrm{hr}}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$, with a maximum rate of 2.5% ${\mathrm{hr}}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$. In some cases they are preceded by a slight increase of \ensuremath{\sim}1.5%. These decreases do not have a similar time dependence. There is no apparent 27-day recurrent tendency for these sudden drops. The energy dependency of these events is variable. The restrictions which these decreases impose upon the existing models of solar modulation mechanisms are discussed.
IMMUNIZATION OF FISHES IN WORLD MARICULTURE: A REVIEW

The capability to mount an immune response against pathogens has been recognized in fish since rainbow trout (Salmo gairdneri) were successfully vaccinated against the bacterial disease furunculosis in 1942. Most investigations into the development of fish vaccines since that time have focused on the bacterial pathogens of salmonids. The majority of research and development of practical vaccines for cultured fish has been realized in the past 10 years and presently the field of fish immunology is enjoying a rapid and productive growth. Interest in fish from a phylogenetic or comparative aspect led many competent individuals and institutions to explore the nature and mechanisms of the immune response in several species. Knowledge gained from these investigations has been the foundation for work on practical vaccine development. During the early 1970′ in the Pacific Northwest, commercial growers hand vaccinated marine cultured Pacific salmon against vibriosis. Hundreds of thousands of juvenile salmon were individually injected using automatic syringes and assembly line techniques. With the advent of large-scale aquaculture operations, the necessity for an efficacious delivery system for large numbers of fish became evident. Recently, new methods and novel techniques such as immersion and spray vaccination have been developed by private, academic, and governmental agencies. A review is given of the evolution of vaccines and vaccine delivery systems in cultured finfish.
MICON: a single-board computer synthesis tool

The MICON system, which synthesizes a single-board computer design from a high-level description of the board's functions and design constraints, is described. The synthesis process is based on designing subsystems (e.g. processor, memory, input/output) individually and then forming a full system design from the results. MICON has the added capability of design for reliability, automatically synthesizing boards that meet given reliability criteria. The quality of the design produced is strongly dependent on the knowledge in the system. In particular, MICON requires capturing and applying design and analysis knowledge in several areas: the selection of appropriate components, the interconnection of components to achieve a desired behavior, and the evaluation of the evolving system design in light of specified constraints. The techniques of representing and using this knowledge are discussed. Design examples are presented. >
Watershed studies conference held

Nearly 100 scientists from 11 nations gathered to discuss integrated research in forest watersheds at the Gordon Research Conference, “Hydrological-Geochemical-Biological Interactions in Forested Catchments,” held from July 1 to 5, 1991, in Plymouth, N.H. The conference was the first-ever on this topic, and it was held to address newly emerging research questions, to highlight recent advances in watershed science, and to bring biologists and ecologists into discussions discussions of catchment hydrogeochemical function. R. Church (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Corvallis, Oreg.) and G. Hornberger (University of Virginia) served as chair and vice-chair, respectively, of the conference.
Time Is Brain

Since its initial approval in 1996, intravenous tissue plasminogen activator (IV tPA) within 3 hours of onset remains the only FDA-approved treatment for acute ischemic stroke. Although a metanalysis suggests statistical benefit from IV tPA up to 4.5 hours after ischemic stroke onset, the major benefit occurs within 90 minutes of stroke onset.1 It is regrettable, therefore, that it often seems IV tPA is administered at 2 hours and 59 minutes if it is administered at all. In this issue of Stroke ,2 the 6 affiliated hospitals of the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), stroke system describe their “expedited code stroke protocol” under which almost 50% of patients who receive IV tPA are treated within 2 hours of stroke onset compared with the more typical 20% or less. The UCSD team suggests that IV tPA delays are often related to “clinical habits” rather than the need to meet required exclusion and inclusion criteria. Three key “habits” were …
Using School Mission Statements for Reflection and Research

Purpose: Efforts to compare schools nationally tend to focus on educational outcomes (e.g., test scores), yet such an approach assumes that schools are homogeneous with regard to their overall purp...
Personalized handwriting recognition via biased regularization

We present a new approach to personalized handwriting recognition. The problem, also known as writer adaptation, consists of converting a generic (user-independent) recognizer into a personalized (user-dependent) one, which has an improved recognition rate for a particular user. The adaptation step usually involves user-specific samples, which leads to the fundamental question of how to fuse this new information with that captured by the generic recognizer. We propose adapting the recognizer by minimizing a regularized risk functional (a modified SVM) where the prior knowledge from the generic recognizer enters through a modified regularization term. The result is a simple personalization framework with very good practical properties. Experiments on a 100 class real-world data set show that the number of errors can be reduced by over 40% with as few as five user samples per character.
Methods for the exact construction of mesoscale spatial structures in liquid crystal polymers

Abstract We examine orientational patterns of liquid crystalline polymers (LCPs) using a mesoscale Doi theory that couples short-range, excluded-volume molecular interactions, rotary molecular diffusion, and the Marrucci–Greco potential for finite-range distortional elasticity. The model is a full tensor, polymeric generalization of small-molecule liquid crystal (Ericksen–Leslie) theory. The symmetric, traceless, rank 2 orientation tensor corresponds to micron-scale, averaged 3D microstructure through an orthogonal frame of eigenvectors (the directors, or principal optical axes) and corresponding eigenvalues (the order parameters) which convey the degrees of orientation with respect to the optical axes. These model quantities are directly related to intensity data from light scattering experiments. We focus on a classical method, separation of variables, to provide an exact construction of spatial patterns, both steady and time-dependent. Our constructions arise from posited tensor representations in spectral variables, separating spatial structure arising from optical axes variations versus order parameter variations. The reduced equations are solved to generate a variety of mesoscale structures, presented both in terms of the geometric content of the orientation tensor and in terms of the light scattering intensity patterns which would result from these exact macromolecular structures.
A timestamp-based concurrency control algorithm for heterogeneous distributed databases

A heterogeneous distributed database system (HDDS) integrates existing database systems to support global transactions which access multiple databases, where local database systems may use different concurrency control mechanisms. This heterogeneity together with the requirement of preserving the autonomy of the local databases makes the problem of ensuring the serializability of global transactions more difficult compared to the distributed database systems. This paper proposes a concurrency control algorithm based on the timestamp ordering. The proposed algorithm guarantees the serializability of transactions without a deadlock, and preserves the autonomy of the local database systems. >
Organizational Commitment of Teachers in Urban Schools Examining the Effects of Team Structures

This study examines the effects of four team-based structures on the organizational commitment of elementary teachers in an urban school district. The study model focuses on organizational commitment and includes three intervening, endogenous variables: teacher empowerment, school communication, and work autonomy. Team teaching had both direct and indirect effects on commitment to the school. Curriculum teamwork, governance teamwork, and community-relations teamwork each contributed indirectly to higher levels of teacher commitment. Research results suggest the need for organizational designs and procedures that reinforce teacher identification with and involvement in the school organization.
BROMOPEROXIDASES AND HALOGENATED LIPIDS IN MARINE ALGAE1

Using the facilities of the RIV Alpha Helix, marine algae were collected and immediately sampled for the presence of peroxidase enzymes capable of performing electrophilic bromination via the oxidation of bromide ion. Algae were also sampled for halogenated neutral lipids. A spectrophotometric assay employing monochlorodimedone was used to measure the level of enzymatic bromination, and an automated halogen analyzer was used to determine the level of lipid halogen. Of 72 algae tested for bromoperoxidase, 55 were active; moreover 27 of 102 algae contained significant levels of lipid halogen. For 67 algae there was sufficient sample to complete both assays. A comparison of the reds, browns and greens showed the Rhodophyta to be the richest in both bromoperoxidase and lipid halogen levels while the Phaeophyta was the poorest. pH optima in the range pH 5 to 8 were determined for a few of the more active algal bromoperoxidases. Cyanide inhibited the bromination of monochlorodimedone but inhibition could not be distinguished from the possibility of competition by cyanide for electrophilic bromination.
A joint-space numerical model of metabolic energy expenditure for human multibody dynamic system.

Summary Metabolic energy expenditure (MEE) is a critical performance measure of human motion. In this study, a general joint-space numerical model of MEE is derived by integrating the laws of thermodynamics and principles of multibody system dynamics, which can evaluate MEE without the limitations inherent in experimental measurements (phase delays, steady state and task restrictions, and limited range of motion) or muscle-space models (complexities and indeterminacies from excessive DOFs, contacts and wrapping interactions, and reliance on in vitro parameters). Muscle energetic components are mapped to the joint space, in which the MEE model is formulated. A constrained multi-objective optimization algorithm is established to estimate the model parameters from experimental walking data also used for initial validation. The joint-space parameters estimated directly from active subjects provide reliable MEE estimates with a mean absolute error of 3.6 ± 3.6% relative to validation values, which can be used to evaluate MEE for complex non-periodic tasks that may not be experimentally verifiable. This model also enables real-time calculations of instantaneous MEE rate as a function of time for transient evaluations. Although experimental measurements may not be completely replaced by model evaluations, predicted quantities can be used as strong complements to increase reliability of the results and yield unique insights for various applications. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Analysis of Streptococcus mutans biofilm proteins recognized by salivary immunoglobulin A.

Introduction: The purpose of this study was to examine the Streptococcus mutans biofilm cellular proteins recognized by immunoglobulin A (IgA) in saliva from various caries-defined populations. Methods: Biofilm and planktonic S. mutans UA159 cells were prepared. The proteins were extracted, separated by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis, transferred to blotting membranes, and probed for IgA using individual saliva samples from three groups of subjects; those who developed 0 caries (no active caries), 5–9 caries (medium), or more than 10 caries (severe) over a 12-month interval. Results: Several proteins were recognized by salivary IgA in all groups of saliva but spot distribution and intensity varied greatly between the groups, and some proteins were recognized more strongly in biofilm cells than in planktonic culture, and vice versa. Furthermore, 15 proteins were only recognized by saliva from the ‘no active caries’ group, and four proteins were recognized by saliva samples from subjects in all three groups. Specifically, antigen I/II was recognized less in biofilm cells by caries-free saliva compared with planktonic cells. However, salivary IgA antibody to antigen I/II was absent in blots using saliva from the ‘medium caries’ and ‘severe caries’ groups. Conclusion: The bacterial molecules recognized by caries-free saliva are significant factors for S. mutans caries formation, and their inhibition could be a therapeutic target. In addition, saliva of caries-free subjects includes significant IgA antibody against antigen I/II of S. mutans, indicating a protective mechanism. However, microorganisms may protect themselves from host immune attack by forming biofilms and decreasing expression of antigen I/II.
Distinct Luminal-Type Mammary Carcinomas Arise from Orthotopic Trp53-Null Mammary Transplantation of Juvenile versus Adult Mice

Age and physiological status, like menopause, are risk factors for breast cancer. Less clear is what factors influence the diversity of breast cancer. In this study, we investigated the effect of host age on the distribution of tumor subtypes in mouse mammary chimera consisting of wild-type hosts and Trp53 nullizygous epithelium, which undergoes a high rate of neoplastic transformation. Wild-type mammary glands cleared of endogenous epithelium at 3 weeks of age were subsequently implanted during puberty (5 weeks) or at maturation (10 weeks) with syngeneic Trp53 null mammary tissue fragments and monitored for 1 year. Tumors arose sooner from adult hosts (AH) compared to juvenile hosts (JH). However, compared to AH tumors, JH tumors grew several times faster, were more perfused, exhibited a 2-fold higher mitotic index and were more highly positive for insulin-like growth factor receptor phosphorylation. Most tumors in each setting were ER positive (80% JH vs 70% AH) but JH tumors were significantly more ER immunoreactive (p=0.0001) than AH tumors. A differential expression signature (JvA) of juvenile versus adult tumors revealed a luminal transcriptional program. Centroids of the human homologs of JvA genes showed that JH tumors were more like luminal A tumors and AH tumors were more like luminal B tumors. Hierarchical clustering with the JvA human ortholog gene list segregated luminal A and luminal B breast cancers across data sets. These data support the notion that age-associated host physiology greatly influences the intrinsic subtype of breast cancer.
Familial dysautonomia: Detection of the IKBKAP IVS20+6T C and R696P mutations and frequencies among Ashkenazi Jews

Familial dysautonomia (FD) is an autosomal recessive congenital neuropathy that occurs almost exclusively in the Ashkenazi Jewish (AJ) population. Mutations in the IkappaB kinase complex-associated protein (IKBKAP) gene cause FD. Two IKBKAP mutations, IVS20(+6T --> C) and R696P, have been identified in FD patients of AJ descent. The splice site mutation IVS20(+6T --> C) is responsible for > 99.5% of known AJ patients with FD, and haplotype analyses were consistent with a common founder. In contrast, the R696P mutation has been identified in only a few AJ patients. To facilitate carrier detection, a single PCR and allele-specific oligonucleotide (ASO) hybridization assay was developed to facilitate the detection of both the IVS20(+6T --> C) and R696P mutations. Screening of 2,518 anonymous AJ individuals from the New York metropolitan area revealed a carrier frequency for IVS20(+6T --> C) of 1 in 32 (3.2%; 95% CI, 2.5-3.9%), similar to the previously estimated carrier frequency (3.3%) based on disease incidence. No carrier was identified for the R696P lesion, indicating that the mutation was rare in this population (< 1 in 2,500). This sensitive and specific assay should facilitate carrier screening for FD mutations in the AJ community, as well as postnatal diagnostic testing.
Multiple losses of flight and recent speciation in steamer ducks

Steamer ducks (Tachyeres) comprise four species, three of which are flightless. The flightless species are believed to have diverged from a flying common ancestor during the Late Pleistocene; however, their taxonomy remains contentious. Of particular interest is the previously unstudied population of flying steamer ducks in the Falkland Islands. We present the first genetic data from this insular population, and illustrate that the flying and flightless steamer ducks on the Falkland Islands are genetically indistinguishable, in contrast to their traditional classification as separate species. The three species that reside in continental South America form a genetically distinct lineage from the Falkland Island ducks. The Falkland steamer ducks diverged from their continental relatives 2.2–0.6 million years ago, coincident with a probable land bridge connecting the Falkland Islands to the mainland. The three continental species share a common ancestor approximately 15 000 years ago, possibly owing to isolation during a recent glacial advance. The continental steamer duck species are not reciprocally monophyletic, but show some amount of genetic differentiation between them. Each lineage of Tachyeres represents a different stage between flight and flightlessness. Their phylogenetic relationships suggest multiple losses of flight and/or long-term persistence of mixed-flight capability. As such, steamer ducks may provide a model system to study the evolution of flightlessness.
Ex vivo fluorescence molecular tomography of the spine

We investigated the potential of fluorescence molecular tomography to image ex vivo samples collected from a large animal model, in this case, a dog spine. Wide-field time-gated fluorescence tomography was employed to assess the impact of multiview acquisition, data type, and intrinsic optical properties on the localization and quantification accuracy in imaging a fluorescent inclusion in the intervertebral disk. As expected, the TG data sets, when combining early and late gates, provide significantly better performances than the CW data sets in terms of localization and quantification. Moreover, the use of multiview imaging protocols led to more accurate localization. Additionally, the incorporation of the heterogeneous nature of the tissue in the model to compute the Jacobians led to improved imaging performances. This preliminary imaging study provides a proof of concept of the feasibility of quantitatively imaging complex ex vivo samples nondestructively and with short acquisition times. This work is the first step towards employing optical molecular imaging of the spine to detect and characterize disc degeneration based on targeted fluorescent probes.
Scaling Challenges of Semiconductor Packaging in the Era of Big Data

In advent of multimedia, social media and Internet of Things, our world is exploding with enormous amount of data, so-called Big Data. The use of Big Data provides us with opportunities to bring solutions and innovations to variety of industries such as healthcare, energy, banking and automotive. On the other hand, the computing requirement to analyze this large volume of data is becoming higher than ever. The exascale computing is required in the Era of Big Data. In order to achieve this demand, further technology innovations for package scaling such as 3D-IC with TSV (through silicon via) are needed. The fine pitch die-to-die interconnection is a key element in increasing the total bandwidth in 3D integration. The important technologies in 3D integration include micro-bumping, thermally enhanced underfill materials and advanced interposers. Material selection for reliable fine-pitch interconnection has become a critical challenge in 3D chip stacking. Underfill material in die-to-die device is also a cri...
Trigger happy

Before our hero can be issued his superhero license he must go through a series of tests that measure his ability to tell right from wrong. All is well until the test brings out his trigger-happy tendencies along with his true nature.
AccuGlide 100 and Bleed-Air Actuator Airdrop Testing

The Natick Soldier Research, Development, and Engineering Center has been leading an effort to develop precision guided airdrop systems with a CEP under 25-meters. A three-motor airborne guidance unit (AGU) was used on a 100 ft 2 AccuGlide system (AG100) to activate a new longitudinal control mechanism using upper surface bleed air. System Identification methods were applied to populate a drop test database, and dynamic model parameters were determined. It is shown that upper surface canopy spoilers are an effective means of glide slope control for airdrop systems, and spoiler turn rate capability compares favorably with standard differential tail deflection.
David Oliver: End of life care in hospital is everyone's business.

Palliative care: do we need more specialist clinicians, or more generalist staff better trained in it? My answer is both. About 500 000 people die each year in England and Wales.1 Yet the United Kingdom has only an estimated 519 specialist palliative medicine consultants and fewer than 5000 crucial specialist palliative care nurses.2 1 A national audit of end of life care in hospital by the Royal College of Physicians found a median of one palliative medicine consultant and five nurse specialists for every 1000 adult hospital beds.3 Some of us will die …
The Neural Representation of Shape

Publisher Summary In primates, visual processing is accomplished by a system composed of several dozen distinct subcortical and cortical visual areas organized into both parallel and hierarchical pathways. This chapter reviews the cortical ventral form pathway that is concerned with shape processing and object recognition. The dorsal pathway is more concerned with motion and spatial position. The chapter focuses on four aspects of the ventral system, the anatomical organization of the constituent areas, and their interconnections. The physiological responses of the various areas and their influences upon one another, the effects of extra retinal factors such as attention, learning and memory, and motor control, and the computational principles underlying processing in each area to the extent that such principles are known. Future advances in all these areas should bring a much richer conceptualization of shape representation in vision. Because vision is an excellent model system for many brain functions, these findings should be applicable to many aspects of systems and cognitive neuroscience.
Amplification of purified prions in vitro.

The infectious agents of prion diseases are unorthodox, and appear to be composed primarily of a misfolded glycoprotein called the prion protein (PrP). Replication of prion infectivity is associated with the conversion of PrP from its normal, cellular form (PrPC) into a pathogenic form (PrPSc), which is characterized biochemically by relative detergent-insolubility and protease resistance. Several techniques have been developed, in which PrPC molecules can be converted into the PrPSc conformation in vitro (1–8)]. These biochemical techniques recapitulate several specific aspects of in vivo prion propagation (1–3), and one method, the protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA) technique, has also been shown to amplify infectivity (5). In this chapter, we describe a method for amplifying PrPSc molecules from hamster prions in vitro using purified substrates. Specific protocols for substrate preparation, reaction mixture, and product detection are explained. Purified PrPSc amplification assays are currently being used to study the biochemical mechanism of prion formation.
Comparative characteristics of primary hyperparathyroidism in pediatric and young adult patients.

Background Primary hyperparathyroidism is rare in pediatric patients. Our study aim was to compare primary hyperparathyroidism in pediatric ( Methods A prospectively collected database from a single, high-volume institution was queried for all patients age Results Sporadic primary hyperparathyroidism was present in 81.7% and occurred less often in pediatric patients than young adult patients (74.4% vs 86.2%, P = .12). Among patients with hereditary primary hyperparathyroidism, multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 was the most common type. Multiglandular disease was common in both pediatric (30.7%) and young adult (21.8%) patients. Following parathyroidectomy, 3 (2.3%) patients had permanent hypoparathyroidism and none had permanent recurrent laryngeal nerve paralysis. Biochemical cure at 6 months was equally likely in pediatric and young adult patients (97.1% vs 93.6%, P = .44) with comparable follow-up (78.4 months vs 69.1 months, P = .66) and rates of recurrent disease (5.9% vs 10.3%, P = .46). Recurrence was due to multiple endocrine neoplasia 1-related primary hyperparathyroidism in all cases. Conclusion Although primary hyperparathyroidism is sporadic in most patients
Bimodal poly(ethylene-cb-propylene) comb block copolymers from serial reactors: Synthesis and applications as processability additives and blend compatibilizers

Abstract Two solution reactors in series are utilized to synthesize poly(ethylene-cb-propylene) comb block copolymers, P(E-cb-P), where the first reactor prepares vinyl terminated atactic polypropylene (aPP) macromers from propylene using an organometallic catalyst favoring beta methyl elimination and the second reactor copolymerizes aPP macromers with ethylene using a different organometallic catalyst capable of incorporating macromers. The products are P(E-cb-P) comb block polymers with bimodalities in molecular weight, composition, and long chain branching. Low molecular weight (MW) components are linear and of mixed compositions consisting of random copolymers of ethylene and propylene and residual vinyl terminated aPP macromers. High MW components are comb branched with constant composition, and block copolymers. Even though the PE backbone is immiscible with the aPP comb arms, the presence of linear low MW ethylene-propylene random copolymer prevents the high MW comb block components from self-association into segregated domains or micelles when it is blended into high density polyethylene (HDPE) or isotactic polypropylene (iPP). By hindering micelle formation, this bimodal P(E-cb-P) can be intimately entangled with HDPE and with iPP delivering extensional flow hardening when it was added at 5%. Extensional strain hardening is observed at 5% addition of the bimodal P(E-cb-P) comb block copolymer in 50/50 HDPE/iPP blends with exceptionally high strain hardening ratio. It was found that this bimodal P(E-cb-P) comb block copolymer can compatibilize immiscible blends of HDPE and iPP resulting in domain size reductions and diffused interfaces. The enhanced strain hardening observed in blends with the bimodal P(E-cb-P) comb block addition may arise from the increases in the blend interfacial area and the entanglement of the blocks within the homopolymer phases.
Pleiotrophin Improves Survival Following Radiation-Induced Myelosuppression and Mediates HSC Expansion Via Induction Of Ras Signaling

Discovery of the mechanisms through which the bone marrow microenvironment stimulates hematopoietic regeneration following myelosuppression could lead to therapies to accelerate hematopoietic reconstitution in patients receiving chemotherapy, total body irradiation and stem cell transplantation. We have previously shown that treatment with pleiotrophin (PTN), a heparin-binding growth factor which is secreted by BM endothelial cells (ECs), causes a 10-fold expansion of murine long term-HSCs in culture (Himburg et al. Nat Med 2010). More recently, we demonstrated that PTN-deficient mice have a >10-fold deficit in LT-HSCs and hematopoietic regenerative capacity compared to PTN+/+ mice, suggesting an important role for PTN in maintaining the HSC pool in vivo (Himburg et al. Cell Reports 2012). In keeping with this, 100% of PTN-deficient mice died prior to day +30 following 700 cGy total body irradiation (TBI) compared to 30% mortality in irradiated, PTN+/+ mice (P<0.0001). In order to determine the therapeutic potential of PTN as a systemically deliverable agent to accelerate hematopoietic recovery following myelosuppression, we irradiated C57Bl6 mice with 700 cGy TBI followed by every other day dosing with PTN or saline through day +14. At day +30, 80% of the PTN-treated mice were alive compared to 30% survival in the irradiated, saline-treated group (P=0.03). Interestingly, systemic administration of PTN was equally effective at promoting the survival of irradiated mice when administered as late as 96 hrs post-TBI, suggesting that PTN promotes HSC regeneration after injury. Mechanistically, PTN treatment significantly decreased HSC apoptosis following ionizing radiation exposure (P=0.007), which may explain, at least in part, the mitigative effects of PTN treatment on survival from radiation injury. Furthermore, we have discovered that PTN treatment strongly induces elements of the Ras/MEK/ERK signaling cascade in HSCs, including phosphorylation of Grb2 and ERK1/2, while also increasing levels of the ERK1/2 target genes, phospho-Erf1 and Fra-1. Consistent with this finding, PTN-deficient mice have significantly decreased levels of phospho-ERK1/2 in BM HSCs, suggesting that deficient Ras/MEK/ERK signaling may explain, at least in part, the HSC deficit observed in PTN-deficient mice. Importantly, pharmacologic inhibition of Ras or MEK1/2 proteins or genetic inhibition of KRas in BM KSL cells significantly abrogated PTN-mediated expansion of BM KSL cells and CFU-GEMMs in culture (P<0.01 for total KSL cells and CFU-GEMMs). Taken together, these results suggest that PTN-mediated expansion of HSCs may be dependent upon activation of the Ras/MEK/ERK pathway and provide the basis for further studies to delineate the role of this pathway in mediating PTN effects on the HSC pool in vitro and in vivo . Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
Band selection and its impact on target detection and classification in hyperspectral image analysis

This paper addresses unsupervised band selection for hyperspectral image analysis. The proposed approach is based on high-order moments. Such moments indicate the deviation of probability distribution function of an image from the Gaussian distribution, so the selected bands have higher chances to contain important target information. Since the bands with close moment values can be very similar, a band similarity measurement is incorporated into the band selection technique to further select most distinct bands using the criterion of divergence. The number of bands to be selected is pre-estimated using a Neyman-Pearson detection theory-based eigen-thresholding approach. The performance of such a band selection technique is evaluated by the detection and classification performance using the selected bands, i.e., the capability of preserving the target information in the original image data.
Health Equity and Aging of Bisexual Older Adults: Pathways of Risk and Resilience

Objectives Bisexual older adults are a growing yet largely invisible, underserved, and understudied population. Utilizing the Health Equity Promotion Model, we examined hypothesized mechanisms accounting for health disparities between bisexual older adults and lesbian and gay older adults. Method Based on data from Caring and Aging with Pride, the largest national survey of LGBT older adults, this study (N = 2,463) utilized structural equation modeling to investigate direct and indirect associations between sexual identity (bisexual vs. lesbian and gay) and health via sexual identity factors (identity disclosure and internalized stigma), social resources, and socioeconomic status (SES). Results Bisexual older adults reported significantly poorer health compared with lesbian and gay older adults. Indirect effects involving sexual identity factors, social resources, and SES explained the association between bisexual identity and poorer health. A potentially protective pathway was also identified wherein bisexuals had larger social networks after adjusting for other factors. Discussion Bisexual older adults face distinct challenges and health risks relative to other older adults, likely because of the accumulation of socioeconomic and psychosocial disadvantages across the life course. Interventions taking into account older bisexuals' unique risk and protective factors may be helpful in reducing health inequities.
Finding Mentorship Among Your Peers: Sharing the Wealth

“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go with others.”—African Proverb Several fellows and early career professionals have discussed the importance of devoted and passionate mentorship in these fellows-in-training/early career pages. Dr. Agarwal recommended ways to choose
Predicting Affectionate and Aggressive Teasing Motivation on the Basis of Self-Esteem and Imagined Interactions With the Teasing Victim

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this study was an examination of the association between self-esteem, imagined interactions, and teasing motivation. Teasing motivation serves functions of being playful and aggressive. Self-esteem is associated with teasing outcomes. Research is needed to examine the strategic planning of teasing. A mechanism for doing this is the examination of imagined interactions (IIs) in which people think about conversations. We wanted to see if IIs accounted for additional variance beyond self-esteem in predicting teasing motivation. Two hierarchical regression models were used to test hypotheses and research questions. Aggressive teasing was predicted by using IIs to ruminate about conflict, catharsis, and rehearsal. The implications of the findings for teasing and II theory as well as future research are discussed.
A compact electronic medical record system for regional clinics and health centers in China: Design and its application

Electronic medical record (EMR) system is more beneficial than a paper record in managing and maintaining the medical history of the patient. In China, EMR has been mainly utilized in urban general hospitals, while being considerably underdeveloped among the primary care medical providers such as local clinics and community hospitals, which accounts for over 93% of all medical institutions in China. Small-scale clinics are incapable of distinguishing the complicated disease classification because of the limited medical facilities and usually there is no in-house patient. Therefore, the existing EMR systems are not suitable for small-scale health centers due to the complexity of system operations Here, we propose a compact EMR system targeting at primary care centers to fulfill the needs of small-scale clinics and facilitate clinical research. The proposed light-weighted EMR system features a simpler database structure, clear web page display, and bilingual language support in both English and Chinese. Preliminary data mining performed with the sample dataset indicates that the compact EMR system has the potential to be applied in the clinical research and medical service management.
Aspartate Glycosylation Triggers Isomerization to Isoaspartate.

O-Linked β-N-acetylglucosamine transferase (OGT) is an essential human enzyme that glycosylates numerous nuclear and cytoplasmic proteins on serine and threonine. It also cleaves Host cell factor 1 (HCF-1) by a mechanism in which the first step involves glycosylation on glutamate. Replacing glutamate with aspartate in an HCF-1 proteolytic repeat was shown to prevent peptide backbone cleavage, but whether aspartate glycosylation occurred was not examined. We report here that OGT glycosylates aspartate much faster than it glycosylates glutamate in an otherwise identical model peptide substrate; moreover, once formed, the glycosyl aspartate reacts further to form a succinimide intermediate that hydrolyzes to produce the corresponding isoaspartyl peptide. Aspartate-to-isoaspartate isomerization in proteins occurs in cells but was previously thought to be exclusively non-enzymatic. Our findings suggest it may also be enzyme-catalyzed. In addition to OGT, enzymes that may catalyze aspartate to isoaspartate isom...
Photographs Elevate Truth Judgments About Less Well-Known People (But Not Yourself)

When people judge the veracity of statements, nonprobative photos increase “true” responses relative to when statements appear alone–“truthiness.” Two experiments tested whether photos influence truth judgments about people's personality traits as a function of the amount of knowledge possessed about the target person. In Experiment 1, participants indicated whether traits described an unknown person presented with varying amounts of descriptive information. Photos inflated truth judgments only with minimal information provided. In Experiment 2, photos inflated truth judgments for an unknown person but not for a best friend or one's self. When judging veracity, photos help prime related thoughts and images, increasing processing fluency, a metacognitive cue to truth. Consistent with findings that fluency effects result from the discrepancy between expected and actual fluency, it appears that it is the amount of information primed by the photo relative to that primed by other sources that affects how photos influence truthiness.
3D single-molecule tracking enables direct hybridization kinetics measurement in solution

Single-molecule measurements of DNA hybridization kinetics are mostly performed on a surface or inside a trap. Here we demonstrate a time-resolved, 3D single-molecule tracking (3D-SMT) method that allows us to follow a freely diffusing ssDNA molecule in solution for hundreds of milliseconds or even seconds and observe multiple annealing and melting events taking place on the same molecule. This is achieved by combining confocal-feedback 3D-SMT with time-domain fluorescence lifetime measurement, where fluorescence lifetime serves as the indicator of hybridization. With sub-diffraction-limit spatial resolution in molecular tracking and 15 ms temporal resolution in monitoring the change of reporter's lifetime, we have demonstrated a full characterization of annealing rate (kon = 5.13 × 106 M-1 s-1), melting rate (koff = 9.55 s-1), and association constant (Ka = 0.54 μM-1) of an 8 bp duplex model system diffusing at 4.8 μm2 s-1. As our method completely eliminates the photobleaching artifacts and diffusion interference, our kon and koff results well represent the real kinetics in solution. Our binding kinetics measurement can be carried out in a low signal-to-noise ratio condition (SNR ≈ 1.4) where ∼130 recorded photons are sufficient for a lifetime estimation. Using a population-level analysis, we can characterize hybridization kinetics over a wide range (0.5-125 s-1), even beyond the reciprocals of the lifetime monitoring temporal resolution and the average track duration.
Calorimetric Experiments Supporting the Transmission Resonance Model for Cold Fusion

The experimental details of calorimetric experiments that provide support for the transmission resonance model (TRM) to explain cold fusion are presented. For the first time, a theoretical model pr...
Abstract 310: Are Patients with Ischemic Heart Disease Living Long Enough to Die of Other Causes? Results from the Heart and Soul Study

Background: Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the world and has always been considered the leading cause of death in patients with chronic ischemic heart disease (IHD). However, cardiovascular mortality has fallen markedly due to recent therapeutic advances. Whether patients with IHD may be living long enough to die of other causes has not been evaluated. Methods: We determined causes of death in a contemporary cohort of 927 patients with chronic IHD. Participants with stable IHD enrolled in the Heart and Soul Study in 2000-02 and were followed for an average of 7.12 (SD ± 2.67) years, with Results: During 6587 ± 81 person years of follow-up, a total of 297 participants (32%) died. Of the 297 deaths, 124 (42%) were due to cardiovascular causes, and 173 (58%) were attributable to non-cardiovascular causes (Table). Myocardial infarction, stroke, and sudden death accounted for 73% of the cardiovascular deaths. Cancer, pneumonia, and sepsis accounted for 71% of the non-cardiovascular deaths. Conclusions: In a contemporary cohort of 927 patients with chronic IHD, the majority died from non-cardiovascular causes. These findings suggest that IHD therapies have improved to the point where patients with IHD may be living long enough to die of other causes.
Novel spatiotemporal analysis of gait changes in body weight supported treadmill trained rats following cervical spinal cord injury

Common gait measures such as stride length, cycle time, and step height are not independent variables, but different aspects of the same multidimensional step. This complicates comparisons between experimental groups. Here we present a novel multidimensional gait analysis method and use this method to assess the ability of body weight supported treadmill training (BWSTT) to improve rodent stepping after spinal cord injury (SCI). In lieu of reducing a step to a collection of gait measures and comparing the means of several of these, we developed a multidimensional analysis technique that compares the step as a whole. While in a passive robotic gait training device, the pre-injury hindlimb stepping of 108 rats was recorded while they walked in a quadrupedal posture at 8 cm/s. Following a C4/5 over-hemisection spinal cord injury the weekly changes in stepping were tracked for 17 untrained and 10 BWSTT animals for 7 weeks. The performance of trained rats was recorded during training with BWS, as well as at the end of the training week without BWS. An additional six uninjured rats were trained for 5 weeks. Our novel multidimensional analysis shows that stepping is asymmetrically altered 1 week after SCI. The differences in stepping change over the following weeks, with the less impaired left hindlimb deviating further away from pre-injury than the more impaired right hindlimb. Uninjured rats do not significantly alter their stepping over 5 weeks. BWSTT improves the stepping of the right hindlimb, but only when the BWS is active. If the BWS is not present, the performance of trained animals is worse than untrained rats. The left hindlimb performance of BWSTT rats is worse than untrained rats, during both training sessions and weekly assessments. We feel that our novel multidimensional analysis is a more appropriate method to address the inter-dependencies of gait measures. Untrained rats exhibit both initial impairments as well as the development of compensatory techniques. BWSTT does not improve this spontaneous recovery, but exacerbates it, particularly in the less impaired left hindlimb.
Imipramine for refractory daytime incontinence in the pediatric population.

Summary Introduction and objective Lower urinary tract (LUT) and voiding dysfunction constitute a large percentage of pediatric urology referrals. Children with urinary incontinence unresponsive to behavioral modifications and traditional pharmacotherapy including anticholinergics and alpha blockers remain a challenge. We evaluated the impact of imipramine on treatment outcomes in children with refractory incontinence. Study design Children ≤18 years of age with refractory non-neurogenic daytime incontinence prescribed imipramine were identified. Patient demographics and baseline testing were assessed, as well as medication dosing and side effects of all patients. The Vancouver Symptom Score (VSS) was completed at the initial consultation and each subsequent clinic visit. The questionnaire was self-administered and completed by patients and/or parents. Treatment success was defined as per the International Children's Continence Society (ICCS). Results One hundred and three patients (55 males and 48 females) met the inclusion criteria. The intention-to-treat response rate was 65% (complete 44, partial response 23). Sixteen (15.6%) patients were non-responders and 20 (19.4%) were lost to follow-up. There was no statistical difference between all groups with regards to age, baseline VSS, and dose. Of those children with complete follow-up ( n = 83), 44 (53%) experienced complete treatment response. Pre- and post-VSS were statistically different in both complete and partial response groups (complete 19.5–9.5; p p = 0.0002) (Table). Side effects were reported by 11 out of 83 (13.3%) patients; partial responders experienced a higher likelihood of side effects (26.1%; p = 0.03). Discussion The mainstay of LUT dysfunction management in children is implementation of a bowel program and timed voiding regimen, with additional treatment modalities and pharmacotherapy added depending upon prevailing symptomatology. Daytime incontinence refractory urotherapy, anticholinergics, and/or non-selective alpha blockers can be difficult to treat, and can be unresponsive to parasacral transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) and percutaneous tibial nerve stimulation (PTNS). We observed that over half of children with refractory daytime incontinence reported complete resolution of daytime accidents with imipramine. Limitations of the study include the retrospective nature, relatively small sample size and lack of control group. Conclusions Two-thirds of children with refractory daytime incontinence experienced treatment response to imipramine, adding a valuable tool to the pediatric urologist's armamentarium in managing select, challenging patients. Table Pre- and post–Vancouver Symptom Scores (VSS) were statistically different in both complete and partial response groups. Pre-VSS Post-VSS p Complete response (n = 44) 19.5 ± 3.6 9.5 ± 3.1 Partial response (n = 23) 19.7 ± 4.3 13.5 ± 4.1 0.0002 Non-responders (n = 16) 19.4 ± 3.9 17.4 ± 3.9 0.92