cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Inter-and Intraspecific Comparisons of Antiherbivore Defenses in Three Species of Rainforest Understory Shrubs

Plants defend themselves against herbivores and pathogens with a suite of morphological, phenological, biochemical, and biotic defenses, each of which is presumably costly. The best studied are allocation costs that involve trade-offs in investment of resources to defense versus other plant functions. Decreases in growth or reproductive effort are the costs most often associated with antiherbivore defenses, but trade-offs among different defenses may also occur within a single plant species. We examined trade-offs among defenses in closely related tropical rain forest shrubs (Piper cenocladum, P. imperiale, and P. melanocladum) that possess different combinations of three types of defense: ant mutualists, secondary compounds, and leaf toughness. We also examined the effectiveness of different defenses and suites of defenses against the most abundant generalist and specialist Piper herbivores. For all species examined, leaf toughness was the most effective defense, with the toughest species, P. melanocladum, receiving the lowest incidence of total herbivory, and the least tough species, P. imperiale, receiving the highest incidence. Although variation in toughness within each species was substantial, there were no intraspecific relationships between toughness and herbivory. In other Piper studies, chemical and biotic defenses had strong intraspecific negative correlations with herbivory. A wide variety of defensive mechanisms was quantified in the three Piper species studied, ranging from low concentrations of chemical defenses in P. imperiale to a complex suite of defenses in P. cenocladum that includes ant mutualists, secondary metabolites, and moderate toughness. Ecological costs were evident for the array of defensive mechanisms within these Piper species, and the differences in defensive strategies among species may represent evolutionary trade-offs between costly defenses.
The CCA core specification in a distributed memory SPMD framework

We present an overview of the Common Component Architecture (CCA) core specification and CCAFFEINE, a Sandia National Laboratories framework implementation compliant with the draft specification. CCAFFEINE stands for CCA Fast Framework Example In Need of Everything; that is, CCAFFEINE is fast, lightweight, and it aims to provide every framework service by using external, portable components instead of integrating all services into a single, heavy framework core. By fast, we mean that the CCAFFEINE glue does not get between components in a way that slows down their interactions. We present the CCAFFEINE solutions to several fundamental problems in the application of component software approaches to the construction of single program multiple data (SPMD) applications. We demonstrate the integration of components from three organizations, two within Sandia and one at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. We outline some requirements for key enabling facilities needed for a successful component approach to SPMD application building. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Laser Processing of Ceramics

Results of experiments exploring the feasibility of using a laser heat source for sealing plasma sprayed coatings, toughening ceramic bars, and making ceramic alloy powders are reported. Chemical modification of the coated surfaces in conjunction with surface melting showed some promise of controlling craze type cracking. Precipitates which should be beneficial to the toughness of zirconia coatings were developed as a result of laser treatment. Fine, complex microstructures were developed in the surface of ceramic alloy bars and in spherical particles. Strengthening of some bars was indicated, but it was limited by the shape and character of the underlying material. Molten droplets of selected ceramic compositions typically solidified into spheres of the order of 40–200 μm for the range of rotational speeds used in the study. Spheres typically contained porosity which enhances their crushability to give powders for possible future body fabrications.
Unleashing the beast within

Economists like to assert that humans are cool calculators of maximal utility, considering all options, then deciding on a course of action that leads to the best outcome possible. In this light, it seems puzzling that the news is chock full of reports of people who seem to violate this presumption, sometimes violently. Why We Snap by R. Douglas Fields attempts to explain the seeming paradox from the perspective of neuroscience. In doing so, the book nicely illustrates an irony of evolution: Much of what evolved to keep us safe can get us into serious trouble in the modern world.
The impact of historic district designation on the prices of single-family homes in the oldest city in the United States, St. Augustine, Florida

AbstractThis empirical investigation applies a hedonic pricing model to estimate how much historic district designation has influenced the sales price of single-family houses in the oldest city in the United States, namely, St. Augustine, Florida. There were sufficient data in this context to study a total of 4017 single-family houses for a 6-year period from 2008 to 2013. The semi-log and piecewise regression estimations reveal that the natural log of the sales price of a single-family house in the city of St. Augustine was positively affected by designation as national historic district in six of the seven districts, with robust results obtained for five of the districts. Moreover, the estimated premiums for historic designation were larger than those found in other similar studies, most of which were conducted prior to the Great Recession. This study also derives several other conclusions about the effects of recession variables, as well as other exterior characteristics, interior characteristics and s...
Investigations on the growth and metabolism of cultured explants of Daucus carota

The induction and maintenance of growth in small, standard explants of carrot root exposed to a trace-element-free basal nutrient medium (B **) have been investigated. The organic growth factors that induce the growth are complex as represented by a trace-element-limited coconut-milk preparation (CM**) or the component parts of distinct growth promoting systems mediated by inositol or by 3-indoleacetic acid (IAA). In System I inositol interacts with growth factors from Aesculus, of which a known example is an IAA-rhamnoseglucose compound; in System II IAA interacts with adenyl compounds, of which zeatin is a known example. But the organic growth-promoting substances also interact with trace elements; therefore, the effects of the component parts of the growth promoting systems, separately and in combination, have been investigated with respect to their interactions with Mo, with Fe and also with these trace elements in combination. The growth so induced has been measured in terms of the fresh weight of the explants, the number and average size of their cells, as well as their total content of protein and nucleic acids. The metabolic responses of the cultured explants to the combined effects of growth factors and of trace elements are also described in terms of the principal soluble nitrogenous compounds. Each basis is informative, and suitable graphical devices are adopted so that the interactions of the multivariate factors that affect the behavior of the cultured tissue may be seen with respect to the various parameters selected. The study shows the range of complexity to be understood before the exogenous factors that determine cell growth and metabolism are both known and controllable; it also shows the limitations when attention is directed, simplistically, to one parameter or to the controlling influence of any single factor, or class, of growth factors.
Yosemite Rock Fall of July 10, 1996

At 6:52 pm PDT Wednesday, July 10, 1996, a large block of granite, with an estimated volume of 35,000 to 80,000 cubic yards (27,000 to 62,000 m3), detached from the cliff between Washburn Point and Glacier Point, in Yosemite Valley. The rock mass subsequently slid down a 50-degree inclined shelf on the cliff for approximately 185 m and acquired a velocity of 61 m/s (135 mph), sufficient to launch itself from the cliff. The rock then free-fell ballistically and cleared the remaining 500 m (1,640 feet) of the cliff prior to impacting on the talus slope, about 60 m (200 feet) from its base, in the Happy Isles area of the valley floor in Yosemite National Park. The rock fall was well recorded by 3 UC Berkeley (BDSN) and Caltech (TERRAscope) broadband seismographic stations and 15 short-period seismographic stations (operated by the USGS in Menlo Park and the University of...
Inhibition of pro-HGF activation by SRI31215, a novel approach to block oncogenic HGF/MET signaling

The binding of hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) to its receptor MET activates a signaling cascade that promotes cell survival, proliferation, cell scattering, migration and invasion of malignant cells. HGF is secreted by cancer cells or by tumor-associated fibroblasts as pro-HGF, an inactive precursor. A key step in the regulation of HGF/MET signaling is proteolytic processing of pro-HGF to its active form by one of the three serine proteases, matriptase, hepsin or HGF activator (HGFA).We developed SRI 31215, a small molecule that acts as a triplex inhibitor of matriptase, hepsin and HGFA and mimics the activity of HAI-1/2, endogenous inhibitors of HGF activation. We demonstrated that SRI 31215 inhibits fibroblast-induced MET activation, epithelial-mesenchymal transition and migration of cancer cells. SRI 31215 overcomes primary resistance to cetuximab and gefitinib in HGF-producing colon cancer cells and prevents fibroblast-mediated resistance to EGFR inhibitors. Thus, SRI 31215 blocks signaling between cancer cells and fibroblasts and inhibits the tumor-promoting activity of cancer-associated fibroblasts.Aberrant HGF/MET signaling supports cell survival, proliferation, angiogenesis, invasion and metastatic spread of cancer cells, establishing HGF and MET as valid therapeutic targets. Our data demonstrate that inhibitors of HGF activation, such as SRI 31215, merit investigation as potential therapeutics in tumors that are addicted to HGF/MET signaling. The findings reported here also indicate that inhibitors of HGF activation overcome primary and acquired resistance to anti-EGFR therapy, providing a rationale for concurrent inhibition of EGFR and HGF to prevent therapeutic resistance and to improve the outcome of cancer patients.
Anisotropic charge carrier transport in free-standing hexagonal boron nitride thin films

The in-plane and out-of-plane mobility–lifetime products of electrons and holes in free-standing hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) films are extracted from current–voltage characteristics of metal–hBN–metal structures measured under external excitations. The in-plane mobility–lifetime products for electrons and holes are ~2.8 × 10−5 and ~4.85 × 10−6 cm2/V, measured from lateral carrier collection, whereas the out-of-plane mobility–lifetime products for electrons and holes are ~5.8 × 10−8 and ~6.1 × 10−9 cm2/V, measured from vertical carrier collection, respectively. The mobility–lifetime product is a few orders of magnitude higher along the plane than along the out of plane in hBN films.
Surveillance on Notifiable Disease In Lujiang Country During 2005～2007

Objective To get an insight into the epidemic dynamics of infectious disease in Lujiang Country,so as to provide a scientific basic for adopting appropriate measures to prevent and control the infectious disease.Method The date were collected,stored and analyzed through "Diseases Reporting Information System".Results The annual incidence of infections disease was 188.61/105,mortality rate was 0.1678/105,and fatality rate was 0.08897% during 2005~2007.The pulmonary tuberculosis,viral hepatitis,other infectious diarrhea,desentery,syphilis constituted The top 5 infections diseases in terms of incidence.Conclusion To prevent and control pulmonary tuberculosis,desentery,rabies,Japanese Encephalitis etc,To increase awareness of communicable disease prevention and control knowledge.among students,peasants should be strengthened for a long time to come.
General Research of Biotechnology on Chinese Yam

In order to promote the rapid propagation of Chinese Yam,the research of biotechnology about Chinese Yam both here and abroad were reviewed.The research progress on biotechnology in Chinese Yam was summarized which focused on germplasm conservation,genetic diversity and identification,tissue culture and genetic engineering.Some suggestions about the prospect of biotechnology on Chinese Yam for the future were presented.
The measurement of DNA content and ploidy analysis in thyroid neoplasms.

The measurement of nuclear DNA content and ploidy analysis in thyroid neoplasms may be useful. There is compelling evidence that once the histologic criterion of malignancy has been met the determination of the ploidy status of the lesion may provide important prognostic information. Diploidy is associated with a benign course, whereas aneuploidy is associated with a variable clinical outcome.
A critique of the papers by Rossignol, Julien, Gauthier and Lund; Forssberg; Schomburg, Behrends and Steffens; and Andersson and Grillner

This critique focuses on the need for detailed kinesiological studies of locomotion in general, and phase-dependent reflexes in particular. It is further emphasised that agreement is needed on the definition of reflex reactions during stepping and that the selective activation issue should be taken into account when ascribing reflex effects to the input of a single afferent species.
Abstract 2345: The collagen-dense tumor microenvironment increases neutrophil recruitment in mouse mammary carcinoma

Proceedings: AACR 106th Annual Meeting 2015; April 18-22, 2015; Philadelphia, PA The breast tumor microenvironment (TME) is a diverse area where complex interactions between the extra-cellular matrix (ECM) and multiple cell types (tumor epithelial, endothelial, and inflammatory cells, fibroblasts, and adipocytes) occur resulting in tumor promotion, invasion and metastasis. Changes in breast tissue density have been correlated with a 4-6-fold increased risk for developing breast cancer, and are associated with increased stromal deposition of the ECM protein, collagen I. In a transgenic mouse model of increased collagen (Col1A1Tm1Jae), there is a 3-fold increase in MMTV-PyMT tumor formation and lung metastases compared to control mice. Of the non-malignant cells in the TME, tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) and tumor-associated neutrophils (TANs) have been shown by several investigators to alter the TME and ECM, enhance tumor cell migration and invasion, stimulate angiogenesis, and suppress antitumor immunity. The direct interaction of both increased collagen and immune (myeloid) cell recruitment leading to increased cancer progression and metastasis has not been characterized. We hypothesized that a collagen-dense tumor microenvironment recruits an abnormal population of myeloid cells, which promotes tumor progression and metastasis. Flow cytometry analysis of cells from collagen-dense mouse tumors showed an increase in Ly6G+ TAN recruitment compared to wild type tumors, while TAM recruitment did not seem to be affected. The increased Ly6G+ neutrophil recruitment is a global immune response also observed in the spleens and circulating blood. Using a cytokine/chemokine ELISA plate array, we found that the collagen-dense TME cytokine cross talk supports neutrophil and monocyte recruitment and maturation. In addition, many classic inflammatory signals that support lymphocyte recruitment and activation, B and T-cell proliferation, and natural killer cell and monocyte activation are downregulated in the collagen-dense TME. Further experiments will determine the time point where neutrophil recruitment is critical for tumor progression. Experiments are underway to study the possible suppression of natural killer cell activity in the collagen-dense TME. This work is being supported by NIH grants (NIH-CA-114462 and NIH-U54-CA163131) to P.J.K. and NSF Graduate Research Fellowship (2011129283) to M.G.G.M. Citation Format: Maria Gracia Garcia Mendoza, David Inman, Suzanne M. Ponik, Patricia J. Keely. The collagen-dense tumor microenvironment increases neutrophil recruitment in mouse mammary carcinoma. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 106th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2015 Apr 18-22; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(15 Suppl):Abstract nr 2345. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2015-2345
Constructing Structured Information Networks from Massive Text Corpora

In today's computerized and information-based society, text data is rich but messy. People are soaked with vast amounts of natural-language text data, ranging from news articles, social media post, advertisements, to a wide range of textual information from various domains (medical records, corporate reports). To turn such massive unstructured text data into actionable knowledge, one of the grand challenges is to gain an understanding of the factual information (e.g., entities, attributes, relations, events) in the text. In this tutorial, we introduce data-driven methods to construct structured information networks (where nodes are different types of entities attached with attributes, and edges are different relations between entities) for text corpora of different kinds (especially for massive, domain-specific text corpora) to rep- resent their factual information. We focus on methods that are minimally-supervised, domain-independent, and language-independent for fast network construction across various application domains (news, web, biomedical, reviews). We demonstrate on real datasets including news articles, scientific publications, tweets and reviews how these constructed networks aid in text analytics and knowledge discovery at a large scale.
Review: In chronic hepatitis C virus infection, oral direct-acting antivirals have high sustained virologic response.

Source Citation Falade-Nwulia O, Suarez-Cuervo C, Nelson DR, et al. Oral direct-acting agent therapy for hepatitis C virus infection: a systematic review. Ann Intern Med. 2017;166:637-48. 28319996
Abstract IA13: A novel KRAS specific vulnerability in the nutrient stress response

Oncogenic KRAS has multiple effects on cellular functions. A relatively poorly understood role of oncogenic KRAS is in regulation of nutrient stress. As a strategy to identify new KRAS-specific tumor vulnerabilities, we sought to explore the role of oncogenic KRAS in mediating the response to nutrient stress. A key observation is that the gene expression signature of oncogenic KRAS is markedly different in standard tissue culture conditions compared to more physiologic levels of glutamine. Glutamine is a key nutrient for tumor cells that supports nucleotide and amino acid biosynthesis, replenishes TCA cycle intermediates and contributes to redox metabolism. We identified oncogenic KRAS as an important regulator of the response to glutamine deprivation in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). A significant fraction of the gene expression signature mediated by KRAS in low glutamine is mediated by activation of ATF4. Activation of the ATF4 stress response pathway is dependent on PI3K and expression of NRF2 downstream of oncogenic KRAS in NSCLC. Through this mechanism, KRAS alters amino acid uptake and metabolism and sustains mTORC1 signaling during nutrient stress. We identified regulation of asparagine synthetase (ASNS) as a key effect of oncogenic KRAS signaling via ATF4 during glutamine deprivation. Preliminary data indicates that simultaneous blockade of PI3K and ASNS may be a useful therapeutic strategy in lung cancer. Our studies underscore an important role for KRAS in metabolism of NSCLC and identify a need for further studies that evaluate KRAS vulnerabilities under conditions of nutrient stress. Citation Format: Alejandro Sweet-Cordero. A novel KRAS specific vulnerability in the nutrient stress response [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Precision Medicine Series: Opportunities and Challenges of Exploiting Synthetic Lethality in Cancer; Jan 4-7, 2017; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Mol Cancer Ther 2017;16(10 Suppl):Abstract nr IA13.
MCL: A Cost-Efficient Nonblocking Multicast Interconnection Network

Interconnection networks lie in the heart of all types of parallel architectures, because how processors or memory modules are connected to each other has a significant impact on the scalability, reliability, cost and performance. For example, a nonblocking interconnection network delivers guaranteed path availability to any connection requests, without interference to existing connections. Also, an interconnection network with multicast capability can distribute data from a single source to all the destinations in a one-shot manner, eliminating unnecessary duplications and minimizing communication delays. However, implementing nonblocking multicast networks imposes great challenges to designers because both of them demand high hardware cost. To deal with this problem, in this paper we propose a novel interconnection network, named Multicast Capable Low-cost Network (MCL) , which is both nonblocking for multicast traffic and cost-efficient. We first design the topologies and routing algorithms for MCL, and then prove its nonblocking multicast properties. Most importantly, we show that MCL achieves the lowest hardware cost in terms of asymptotic number of crosspoints. Specifically, the theoretical upper bound on the crosspoints of an $N \times N$ MCL is $O(N \log ^{3.39} N)$ . The explicitly constructed instance of an $N \times N$ MCL has a cost of $O(N^\frac{5}{4})$ and constant delay from the input ports to the output ports. These theoretical and practical costs are both the lowest compared to previous designs which deliver the same performance.
Expert Systems for Engineering Design

The synthesis of design alternatives during the early stages of design is based largely on experience. The use of an expert system approach promises to capture some of this expertise and apply it in a systematic manner. The formalization of design knowledge in an expert system is facilitated by an expert system shell developed specifically for design applications. Example applications for structural design are presented.
Thermo-Tactile Interactions: Some Influences of Temperature on Touch

Although psychophysical interactions and confusions among the dermal sense-modalities and their adequate stimuli have cropped up from time to time over the last century, they have tended, in my opinion, to receive less attention and follow-up research than they deserve. Sometimes the various modalities appear to behave with remarkable independence from one another, as for example when the skin is mapped for punctiform sensibility by needles, horse-hairs, and tiny thermal contactors. These hardly mimic the stimuli of everyday life, however, nor has the physiological meaning of the dermal “spot” maps ever come under agreement by students of the senses. In any case, since the time of von Frey the study of a given dermal sense has tended to proceed as if the others never existed, and stimulation has often tended to be unrealistically microscopic and monodimensional.
Circles of Influence

The chapter explores the outside actors who were involved with the school at different levels, but not directly connected to it, and their effects on its curriculum and daily practices. These actors included nonprofit organizations, churches, teachers, schools, and professors from Europe and the United States who visited Tanzania and sent donations. Each of these actors influenced some aspect of the school, but the teachers remained true to their mission and cultural values. In general, the curriculum and the pedagogy did not change, despite many professional development opportunities for teachers and the school administration.
Improving Java Performance in Embedded and General-Purpose Processors

Java is used to implement embedded and network computing applications such as Internet TV’s, set-top boxes, smart phones, etc as well as client and server applications. In this chapter, we propose microarchitectural techniques to improve the performance of Java applications executing on embedded Java processors and general-purpose processors. We propose the use of a fill unit that stores decoded bytecodes into a decoded bytecode cache to improve the performance of embedded Java processors. This mechanism improves the fetch and decode bandwidth of Java processors by 2 to 3 times. Out-of-order ILP exploitation is not investigated due to the prohibitive cost, but in-order dual-issue with a 64 entry decoded bytecode cache is seen to result in 10% to 14% improvement in execution cycles.
Optimizing Primary-Care Practices

ing pertinent patient information from the paper medical record and entering it into the EHR provides critical preparation for go-live. The availability of relevant patient information during the first patient visits will make users’ initial experience with the EHR more efficient and satisfactory.Abstracting also provides hands-on practice in entering information into the EHR, increasing users’ skills at reading EHR screens and entering information. (See Chapter 14 for details)
Inside an Environmental Data Archive WWW Site

The Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) Distributed Active Archive Center (DAAC), which is associated with NASA’s Earth Observing System Data and Information System (EOSDIS), provides access to tabular and imagery datasets used in ecological and environmental research. Because of its large and diverse data holdings, the ORNL DAAC must not only find an efficient way to manage the data but must also help users find data of interest from thousands of files available at the DAAC. To accomplish these goals, the ORNL DAAC has developed several World Wide Web (WWW) tools such as the Biogeochemical Information Ordering Management Environment (BIOME), a WWW search and order system, and WWW-based data management and configuration control tools. This paper describes these systems and the special features that allow for easy access to and management of the data.
The Psychology of Death Investigations: Behavioral Analysis for Psychological Autopsy and Criminal Profiling

The Psychology of Death Investigations outlines definitively how behavioral evidence can often provide the necessary components and "missing pieces" to complement physical evidence as an essential tool for incident reconstruction. In order to determine the direction of an investigation and to prioritize leads, if necessary, death investigators must establish the manner of a death: natural, accident, homicide or suicide. The most overlooked aspect of death investigation is the psychological dimension, which can provide unique leads, correct false assumptions, enhance investigative awareness, and solve cases in surprising ways. In an estimated 10–20% of cases, the manner of death cannot be determined, or worse, has been erroneously categorized. Since many jurisdictions can’t afford behavioral consultants, this book has been written to provide practical information for a basic psychological analysis. If the circumstances surrounding a death are equivocal, psychological consultants can compile information retrospectively about a deceased person’s mental state and possible motive to assist with unravelling ambiguity about the manner of death. This is the primary function of a psychological autopsy, and, as such, this is the first book of its kind dedicated solely to the topic. In the event that the manner of death is determined to be a homicide, behavioral profiling can help to focus the potential pool of suspects. Professionals and students alike will benefit from the exercise of cognitive awareness and the application of psychological logic presented. Psychologists, medical examiners, coroners, attorneys, fraud examiners, law enforcement personnel, death and homicide investigators, and students enrolled in criminal profiling, forensic psychology, and criminal justice programs will find this text to be a compelling and insightful reference to add to their professional toolkit.
Automated Quantification of White Blood Cells in Light Microscopy Muscle Images: Segmentation Augmented by CNN

White blood cells (WBCs) play an important role in the muscle recovery process. Detection and quantification of WBC expressions in light microscopy images captured at different time points after injury deliver valuable information about underlying processes. In this paper, an optimized CNN architecture is designed for classifying CD68 macrophages in 10x light microscopy images of injured muscle cross-sections. Based on the CNN classification results, hybrid masks are generated to post-process the segmentation results obtained by the LIOtsu thresholding method as a step towards extracting and quantifying CD68-positive macrophages. The segmentation is completed by the earlier designed LIOtsu thresholding method. The experimental results confirm that a high accuracy of classification is achieved by the proposed CNN architecture and high performance of quantification of CD68-positive macrophages is achieved by the LIOtsu thresholding method, augmented by CNN.
Peripheral blood biomarkers of early immune reconstitution in newly diagnosed multiple myeloma

Peripheral blood biomarkers of tumor microenvironment and immune surveillance are independent prognostic factors in multiple myeloma. The timing and prognostic impact of immune reconstitution has been studied after autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, less is known about its significance in newly diagnosed multiple myeloma. We studied absolute lymphocyte (ALC) and absolute monocyte (AMC) counts at the time of treatment initiation and 1 month thereafter in 771 newly diagnosed patients. Two hundred and thirty-four patients (31%) had evidence of immune dysregulation at baseline (abnormal biomarkers). Eighty-seven of these patients (37%) recovered normal biomarkers at 1 month (early immune reconstitution). The absence of immune dysregulation at baseline (compared to the presence thereof) was associated with better overall survival (HR 0.77, 95% CI 0.61-0.97, P = 0.025, n = 771). The absence of immune dysregulation at 1 month (compared to the persistence or development thereof) was associated with better overall survival (HR 0.63, 95% CI 0.50-0.80, P < 0.001, n = 771). Early immune reconstitution (compared to the persistence or development of immune dysregulation) was associated with better overall survival (HR 0.62, 95% CI 0.43-0.92, P = 0.016, n = 771). Cytogenetic high-risk disease was negatively, and treatment with immunomodulators positively, associated with early immune reconstitution. The presence or development of immune dysregulation in newly diagnosed multiple myeloma is an independent risk factor. The favorable impact of early immune reconstitution suggests immune dysregulation to be a potentially modifiable risk factor that may be exploited for therapeutic benefit.
Damselfish Stegastes nigricans increase algal growth within their territories on shallow coral reefs via enhanced nutrient supplies

Abstract Coral reefs are highly productive ecosystems that typically exist in nutrient-poor waters, stimulating considerable research on the sources of nutrients that may support this productivity, including nutrient recycling. We examined the potential for resident herbivorous damselfish ( Stegastes nigricans ) to recycle nutrients within their territories by conducting an exclusion experiment on S. nigricans territories and measuring algal turf growth on shallow fringing reefs in Mo'orea, French Polynesia. A nutrient bioassay was used to evaluate whether the enhanced growth was due to increased nutrients. We chose 15 isolated damselfish territories for a caging experiment, with a large cage obstructing all fish access on one half of the territory (−Damselfish, −Herbivory) and a small low-profile cage allowing access but not herbivory to a portion on the other half (+Damselfish −Herbivory). Additionally, we measured turf in a randomly-chosen uncaged area within each territory where both damselfish and herbivory were present (+Damselfish +Herbivory). Behavioral observations confirmed damselfish rarely swam over the large-caged half of the territory, effectively eliminating their physical presence, but continued to interact with the other half. Over the 16-day experiment, time and treatment had a significant effect on turf growth. By day 16, the turf receiving the +Damselfish −Herbivory treatment experienced average net turf growth of 5.34 mm, which was significantly greater than turf growth within the territories receiving the −Damselfish −Herbivory (2.13 mm) and the +Damselfish +Herbivory (1.50 mm) treatments. The macroalgae in the nutrient bioassay grew 21% more on the side of the territory where damselfish were present compared to the side where they were excluded, supporting our conclusion that the mechanism that supported faster turf growth was increased nutrients. Thus, our study was the first to establish experimentally that the presence of damselfish increased algal growth by enhancing nutrient supplies via recycled waste products, a mechanism that has been advanced but never tested. Surveys established that damselfish territories covered 28–64% of the fringing reef flat along the north shore of Mo'orea, suggesting this increased productivity within territories could be a significant contribution to total reef productivity. These findings highlight the importance of continuing research into the long-term and spatial-scale effects of damselfish as nutrient recyclers on coral reefs.
Higher order generalized perturbation theory for boiling water reactor in-core fuel management optimization

Boiling water reactor (BWR) loading pattern assessment requires solving the two-group, nodal form of the neutron diffusion equation and drift-flux form of the fluid equations simultaneously because these equation sets are strongly coupled via nonlinear feedback. To reduce the computational burden associated with the calculation of the core attributes (that is, core eigenvalue and thermal margins) of a perturbed BWR loading pattern, the analytical and numerical aspects of a higher order generalized perturbation theory (GPT) method, which correctly addresses the strong nonlinear feedbacks of two-phase flow, have been established. Inclusion of Jacobian information in the definition of the generalized flux adjoints provides for a rapidly convergent iterative method for solution of the power distribution and eigenvalue of a loading pattern perturbed from a reference state. Results show that the computational speedup of GPT compared with conventional forward solution methods demanding consistent accuracy is highly dependent on the number of spatial nodes utilized by the core simulator, varying from superior to inferior performance as the number of nodes increases.
Enhancing light-matter interaction in all-dielectric photonic crystal metasurfaces

The localization of the electromagnetic field at the nanoscale can play a key role in many applications, such as sensing, spectroscopy and energy conversion. In the last years, great efforts have been performed to study and realize all-dielectric loss-free nanostructures to confine the radiation without the limits imposed by plasmonic systems. It has been demonstrated that an all-dielectric photonic crystal (PhC) metasurface can support bound states in the continuum (BICs) - resonant states of infinite lifetime - due to the interaction between trapped electromagnetic modes. Experimentally, this involves very narrow coupled resonances, with a high Q-factor and a possible extremely large field intensity enhancement, up to 6 orders of magnitude. Here, we demonstrate that the field enhancement in proximity of the surface can be explored to boost lightmatter interaction in spectroscopic sensing. We design and realize an innovative sensing scheme for bulk and surface measurement with ultra-high figure of merit for the recognition of protein-protein interaction and the detection of low molecular weight molecules. In addition, we design a dielectric dual scheme based on metasurfaces supporting BICs to amplify fluorescence emission and Raman scattering of probe molecules dispersed on the surface of the PhC. Our results provide new solutions for light manipulation at the nanoscale, especially for sensing and nonlinear optics applications.
Multiscale Entropy and Its Implications to Critical Phenomena, Emergent Behaviors, and Information

Thermodynamics of critical phenomena in a system is well understood in terms of the divergence of molar quantities with respect to potentials. However, the prediction and the microscopic mechanisms of critical points and the associated property anomaly remain elusive. It is shown that while the critical point is typically considered to represent the limit of stability of a system when the system is approached from a homogenous state to the critical point, it can also be considered to represent the convergence of several homogeneous subsystems to become a macro-homogeneous system when the critical point is approached from a macro-heterogeneous system. Through the understanding of statistic characteristics of entropy in different scales, it is demonstrated that the statistic competition of key representative configurations results in the divergence of molar quantities when metastable configurations have higher entropy than the stable configuration. Furthermore, the connection between change of configurations and the change of information is discussed, which provides a quantitative framework to study complex, dissipative systems.
Fostering Feedback Seeking Behavior in Novice Designers

Feedback is a staple of the design process, but little is known about why designers delay or refuse feedback collection. To fill this knowledge gap, my dissertation identifies triggers and deterrents to feedback seeking behaviors. Based on our findings, I propose and test two interventions to promote feedback seeking behavior: 1) helping designers plan when they seek feedback to increase commitment and 2) generating feedback templates based on design stage to reduce the effort of feedback seeking. We envision a future where creativity support and educational tools use our interventions to encourage designers to seek feedback earlier, more frequently, learn faster, and eventually create better designs.
The effect of high vs. low dose lurasidone on eye movement biomarkers of prefrontal abilities in treatment-resistant schizophrenia.

Abstract Objective Eye movement (EM) measures can serve as biomarkers to evaluate pharmacological effects on brain systems involved in cognition. In recent onset schizophrenia, antipsychotic treatment can improve attentional control on the antisaccade task and exacerbate working memory impairment on the memory guided saccade task; effects in treatment-resistant schizophrenia (TRS) are less clear. This study evaluated the effects of high versus low dose lurasidone on EM performance in TRS. Methods TRS patients completed EM testing: 1) at baseline, on existing medication regimen (n = 42), 2) after 6 weeks of low dose (80 mg) lurasidone (n = 38), 3) after 12 weeks following randomization to low (80 mg) or high dose (240 mg) lurasidone (n = 27), and 4) after 24 weeks of treatment (n = 23). EM testing included prosaccade, antisaccade, and memory guided saccade tasks. Results Six weeks of lurasidone resulted in increased prosaccade saccade latency and reduced antisaccade errors, with no change in memory guided saccade accuracy. After randomization, prosaccade and antisaccade latencies increased in only the high dose group, with no change in antisaccade errors in both groups. Memory guided saccade error increased in the high dose group and remained stable in the low dose group. Conclusion Among TRS, stabilization on low dose lurasidone was associated with improved executive control of attention reflected by reduced antisaccade errors. High dose lurasidone resulted in prolonged speed of reflexive and executive shifts of attention and reduced spatial working memory relative to low dose. These findings indicate that EM measures are helpful biomarkers of dose-dependent antipsychotic treatment effects on executive cognitive abilities in TRS.
Dexmedetomidine versus propofol for prolonged sedation in critically ill trauma and surgical patients.

Abstract Background and Purpose: Currently, dexmedetomidine versus propofol has primarily been studied in medical and cardiac surgery patients with outcomes indicating safe and effective sedation. The purpose of this study was to assess the efficacy of dexmedetomidine versus propofol for prolonged sedation in trauma and surgical patients. Methods This was a single-center prospective study conducted in the Trauma/Surgical Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at a Level I academic trauma center. It included patients 18 years of age or older requiring mechanical ventilation who were randomly assigned based on unit bed location to receive either dexmedetomidine or propofol. The primary outcome was duration of mechanical ventilation. Secondary outcomes included mortality; proportion of time in target sedation; incidence of delirium, hypotension, and bradycardia; and ICU and hospital length of stay (LOS). Results A total of 57 patients were included. Baseline characteristics were similar between groups. There was no significant difference in duration of mechanical ventilation (median [IQR]) between the dexmedetomidine (78.5[125] hours) and propofol (105[130] hours; p = 0.15) groups. There was no difference between groups in ICU mortality, ICU and hospital LOS, or incidence of delirium. Safety outcomes were also similar. Patients in the dexmedetomidine group spent a significantly greater percentage of time in target sedation (98[8] %) compared to propofol group (92[10] %; p = 0.02). Conclusions Our results suggest that, similar to medical and cardiac surgery patients, dexmedetomidine and propofol are safe and effective sedation agents in critically ill trauma and surgical patients; however, dexmedetomidine achieves target sedation better than propofol for this specific population.
12 – Design Considerations

The preceding chapters have largely been concerned with methods for analyzing and interpreting panel data that have already been collected. Here we turn our attention to considerations that arise in the data collection phase of research. We will discuss such questions as: Should one perform a panel study, or will some simpler research design suffice? How much time should separate the waves of a panel study? How can one minimize sample attrition, and adjust for attrition that has occurred? Only to a limited degree are these statistical questions. To a great extent they concern pragmatic questions, such as how to locate the subjects of a panel study in follow-ups. Our emphasis will be on strategies researchers have developed for dealing with such questions in their own work.
Recent advances in the technology of anesthesia

The practice of anesthesiology is inextricably dependent upon technology. Anesthetics were first made possible, then increasingly safe, and now more scalable and efficient in part due to advances in monitoring and delivery technology. Herein, we discuss salient advances of the last three years in the technology of anesthesiology. Consumer technology and telemedicine have exploded onto the scene of outpatient medicine, and perioperative management is no exception. Preoperative evaluations have been done via teleconference, and copious consumer-generated health data is available. Regulators have acknowledged the vast potential found in the transfer of consumer technology to medical practice, but issues of privacy, data ownership/security, and validity remain. Inside the operating suite, monitoring has become less invasive, and clinical decision support systems are common. These technologies are susceptible to the "garbage in, garbage out" conundrum plaguing artificial intelligence, but they will improve as network latency decreases. Automation looms large in the future of anesthesiology as closed-loop anesthesia delivery systems are being tested in combination (moving toward a comprehensive system). Moving forward, consumer health companies will search for applications of their technology, and loosely regulated health markets will see earlier adoption of next-generation technology. Innovations coming to anesthesia will need to account for human factors as the anesthesia provider is increasingly considered a component of the patient care apparatus.
The SARS-CoV-2 receptor, Angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is required for human endometrial stromal cell decidualization

STUDY QUESTION: Is SARS-CoV-2 receptor, angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE 2) expressed in the human endometrium during the menstrual cycle, and does it participate in endometrial decidualization? SUMMARY ANSWER: ACE2 protein is highly expressed in human endometrial stromal cells during the secretory phase and is essential for human endometrial stromal cell decidualization. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY: ACE2 is expressed in numerous human tissues including the lungs, heart, intestine, kidneys and placenta. ACE2 is also the receptor by which SARS-CoV-2 enters human cells. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION: Proliferative (n = 9) and secretory (n = 6) phase endometrium biopsies from healthy reproductive-age women and primary human endometrial stromal cells from proliferative phase endometrium were used in the study. PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS: ACE2 expression and localization were examined by qRT-PCR, Western blot, and immunofluorescence in both human endometrial samples and mouse uterine tissue. The effect of ACE2 knockdown on morphological and molecular changes of human endometrial stromal cell decidualization were assessed. Ovariectomized mice were treated with estrogen or progesterone to determine the effects of these hormones on ACE2 expression. MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE: In human tissue, ACE2 protein is expressed in both endometrial epithelial and stromal cells in the proliferative phase of the menstrual cycle, and expression increases in stromal cells in the secretory phase. The ACE2 mRNA (P ˂ 0.0001) and protein abundance increased during primary human endometrial stromal cell (HESC) decidualization. HESCs transfected with ACE2-targeting siRNA were less able to decidualize than controls, as evidenced by a lack of morphology change and lower expression of the decidualization markers PRL and IGFBP1 (P ˂ 0.05). In mice during pregnancy, ACE2 protein was expressed in uterine epithelial and stromal cells increased through day six of pregnancy. Finally, progesterone induced expression of Ace2 mRNA in mouse uteri more than vehicle or estrogen (P ˂ 0.05). LARGE SCALE DATA: N/A. LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION: Experiments assessing the function of ACE2 in human endometrial stromal cell decidualization were in vitro. Whether SARS-CoV-2 can enter human endometrial stromal cells and affect decidualization have not been assessed. WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS: Expression of ACE2 in the endometrium allow SARS-CoV-2 to enter endometrial epithelial and stromal cells, which could impair in vivo decidualization, embryo implantation, and placentation. If so, women with COVID-19 may be at increased risk of early pregnancy loss. STUDY FUNDINGS/COMPETING INTEREST(S): This study was supported by National Institutes of Health / National Institute of Child Health and Human Development grants R01HD065435 and R00HD080742 to RK and Washington University School of Medicine start-up funds to RK. The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.