cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effects of request legitimacy on the compliance‐gaining tactics of male and female managers

This study sought to demonstrate that observed differences between the compliance‐gaining tactics of male and female managers are attributable to differences in the degree of request legitimacy possessed by those individuals rather than their sex, per se. Four hypotheses, derived from power resource theory and politeness theory, were tested through the use of hypothetical compliance‐gaining scenarios administered to 86 men and 83 women middle managers. The findings of the study indicate that request legitimacy exerts a main effect on both the directness and politeness aspects of tactics employed by male and female managers. As expected, no main effects for the sex of the manager, nor that of the target, were observed. However, sex of the manager interacted with request legitimacy such that the tactics of women in the low‐legitimacy condition produced more direct tactics than their male counterparts, while men in the high‐legitimacy condition produced more direct and less polite tactics than their female c...
Activation domains of gene-specific transcription factors: are histones among their targets?

Activation domains of promoter-specific transcription factors are critical entities involved in recruitment of multiple protein complexes to gene promoters. The activation domains often retain functionality when transferred between very diverse eukaryotic phyla, yet the amino acid sequences of activation domains do not bear any specific consensus or secondary structure. Activation domains function in the context of chromatin structure and are critical for chromatin remodeling, which is associated with transcription initiation. The mechanisms of direct and indirect recruitment of chromatin-remodeling and histone-modifying complexes, including mechanisms involving direct interactions between activation domains and histones, are discussed.Key words: activation domain, transcription, chromatin, nucleosome.
Bi-layer segmentation from stereo video sequences by fusing multiple cues

Bi-layer video segmentation (segmentation of videos into foreground layer and background layer) has attracted a lot of research interests recently. The algorithm can be applied into many vision and multimedia applications, such as human computer interaction, gesture recognition, object detection/tracking and personal video editing. Traditional approaches cluster pixels into homogenous regions based on color distributions or motion patterns. However, spatial or temporal clues alone are insufficient to distinguish objects because different objects may share similar colors or motions. Nowadays, the availability of stereo cameras provides the possibility to recover certain 3D depth information from videos. In this paper, we propose bi-layer segmentation from stereo video sequences by fusing multiple cues, including 3D depth information, color/texture distribution, and motion vectors. We also explore temporal-spatial coherence among a consecutive sequence of frames in order to reduce noises from a single frame.
Fatty acid composition of suspension cell cultures of Theobroma cacao are altered by culture conditions

The triglyceride content of cacao suspension cell cultures increased from 0.6% to 2.3% by addition of coconut water, and by reducing rate of agitation. The palmitic acid content of total lipids decreased from 28% to 17% by culturing cacao cells in media containing 0.50% casein hydrolysate. Oleic acid was increased from 10% to 45% following addition of coconut water. Linoleic acid was reduced by the addition of coconut water, or by omitting sucrose.
Arterial Vulnerable Plaque Characterization Using Ultrasound-Induced Thermal Strain Imaging (TSI)

Thermal strain imaging (TSI) is demonstrated in two model systems mimicking two potential clinical applications. First, a custom ultrasound (US) microscope produced high-resolution TSI images of an excised porcine coronary artery. Samples were placed in a temperature-controlled water chamber and scanned transversely and longitudinally. Phase-sensitive, correlation-based speckle tracking was applied to map the spatial distribution of temporal strain across the sample. TSI differentiated fatty tissue from water-based arterial wall and muscle with high contrast and a spatial resolution of 60 mum for a 50-MHz transducer. Both transverse and longitudinal TSI images compared well with B-scans of arterial wall structures, including intima, media, adventitia, and overlying fatty tissue. A second model system was used to test the hypothesis that US can produce the heating pattern required for TSI of internal structures. A 2-D phased array with independent drive electronics was combined with a conventional US scanner (iU22, Philips, Bothell, WA) for these studies. This 513-element array, originally designed for the US therapy, acted as the US heat source. To quantify the temporal strain induced by this system, TSI was performed on a homogeneous rubber phantom. TSI temperature estimates were within 3% error for a 3.2degC temperature rise produced within 2 s using a specially designed beamformer and pulse sequencer. The system was then used to produce TSI scanning of an excised kidney containing an intact piece of fat below the collecting system. These images were validated using an magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) pulse sequence designed for lipid quantification. TSI scans matched well MRI scans and histology both anatomically and quantitatively. Finally, to test the potential of US-induced TSI for a significant clinical problem, images were obtained on an excised canine aorta with fatty tissue inside the lumen. Both longitudinal and transversal TSI agreed well with anatomy. These in vitro results demonstrate the potential of high-resolution US-induced TSI with a small temperature change (<1degC) for plaque characterization.
Politics in the Convent: The Election of a Fifteenth-Century Abbess

En mai 1434, les soeurs de l'abbaye de Saint-Georges de Rennes se reunissent pour l'election d'une nouvelle superieure. L'historien est renseigne sur la procedure grâce a des archives notariales uniques parmi celles conservees au sujet de Saint-Georges. Les circonstances politiques qui entourent la designation sont particulieres: il s'agit de manoeuvres operees entre deux canditates et qui conduisent finalement a l'election de Perrine du Feu. Cet episode montre comment fonctionne une communaute feminine au Moyen Âge
Reflections on Proterozoic magmatism of the Rocky Mountains and environs: Past and present

The special issue of Rocky Mountain Geology on Proterozoic magmatism of the Rocky Mountains and environs is in two parts: the first was published in fall 1999, and this second part is the first issue of 2000. Whether or not these parts truly span a change in millennia, the turnover from 1999 to 2000 provides an opportunity for reflection on the changes in geological thinking that have taken place in the years since the first geologic descriptions of the Rocky Mountain region. Systematic geologic descriptions of the Rocky Mountains region began following the Civil War, when national geographical and geological surveys were conducted under the auspices of the War Department and Department of the Interior. Several of these included descriptions of Precambrian rocks, in particular the U.S. Geological Survey of the Territories under F. V. Hayden, the United States Geological Exploration of the Fortieth Parallel led by Clarence King, and the 1875 expedition to the Black Hills directed by W. P. Jenney and Henry Newton. The Hayden surveys took place between 1867 and 1879. Initially funded by federal monies granted to Nebraska Territory, then by the Sundry Civil Bill, they came under the authority of the Interior Department in 1869, when they became known as the U. S. Geological Survey of the Territories. The Hayden surveys are notable for their vast quantity of descriptive information that was published promptly following each field season. Hayden was quick to recognize the value of pictorial as well as written information in his reports, and from 1870 he included Henry Elliot, artist, and William H. Jackson, photographer, in his expeditions. Henry Elliot's sketch of the Sherman granite in the Laramie Mountains may be the first geological sketch of Precambrian rocks in the Rocky Mountains (Fig. 1). Figure 1. Anorogenic granite, Sherman batholith, Laramie Mountains, Wyoming. Elliot's …
Device stratified comparison among transfemoral, transapical and transubclavian access for Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement (TAVR): A meta-analysis

a Department of Internal Medicine/Cardiology, University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital, Miami, FL, United States b Department of Cardiology, Ochsner Medical Center, New Orleans, LA, United States c Department of Cardiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States d Department of Cardiology, Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons, St. Luke's Hospital, New York, NY, United States
Radiology research and medical students

Fostering radiology research among medical students can enhance a student's interest and understanding of radiology and research. It increases the academic productivity of the mentor and the department. Radiology faculty and departments should actively seek to recruit and engage students in research. Once involved, students benefit greatly from being given clear responsibility, close supervision, timely feedback, and a degree of autonomy. At the heart of the student research process is the crucial mentor-mentee relationship, and mentors should be cognizant of their vital role and methods of encouraging and enhancing this relationship. Ultimately, the advancement of the field of radiology depends on constant innovation and improvement. Radiology research by medical students fuels both innovation and the development of future academic radiologists and physician-scientists, helping to secure future growth for our field.
Creole Urbanism Searching for an Urban Future in the Flooded Streets of New Orleans

The destruction of New Orleans will be met with many acts of (re)creation that will help not only to mend the physical city but also the very soul of the people and the place. This essay introduces...
Graft polymerization of vinyl acetate onto silica

The free-radical graft polymerization of vinyl acetate onto nonporous silica particles was studied experimentally. The grafting procedure consisted of surface activation with vinyltrimethoxysilane, followed by free-radical graft polymerization of vinyl acetate in ethyl acetate with 2,2′-azobis(2,4-dimethylpentanenitrile) initiator. Initial monomer concentration was varied from 10 to 40% by volume and the reaction was spanned from 50 to 70°C. The resulting grafted polymer, which was stable over a wide range of pH levels, consisted of polymer chains that are terminally and covalently bonded to the silica substrate. The experimental polymerization rate order, with respect to monomer concentration, ranged from 1.61 to 2.00, consistent with the kinetic order for the high polymerization regime. The corresponding rate order for polymer grafting varied from 1.24 to 1.43. The polymer graft yield increased with both initial monomer concentration and reaction temperature, and the polymer-grafted surface became more hydrophobic with increasing polymer graft yield. The present study suggests that a denser grafted polymer phase of shorter chains was created upon increasing temperature. On the other hand, both polymer chain length and polymer graft density increased with initial monomer concentration. Atomic force microscopy–determined topology of the polymer-grafted surface revealed a distribution of surface clusters and surface elevations consistent with the expected broad molecular-weight distribution for free-radical polymerization. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 87: 300–310, 2003
Using switch directories to speed up cache-to-cache transfers in CC-NUMA multiprocessors

In this paper we propose a novel hardware caching technique, called switch directory, to reduce the communication latency in CC-NUMA multiprocessors. The main idea is to implement small fast directory caches in crossbar switches of the inter-connect medium to capture and store ownership information as the data flows from the memory module to the requesting processor. Using the stored information, the switch directory re-routes subsequent requests to dirty blocks directly to the owner cache, thus reducing the latency for home node processing such as slow DRAM directory access and coherence controller occupancies. The design and implementation details of a DiRectory Embedded Switch ARchitecture; DRESAR, are presented. We explore the performance benefits of switch directories by modeling DRESAR in a detailed execution driven simulator. Our results show that the switch directories can improve performance by up to 60% reduction in home node cache-to-cache transfers for several scientific applications and commercial workloads.
Properties of the products formed by the activity of serum opacity factor against human plasma high-density lipoproteins

Plasma high density lipoproteins (HDL) are the vehicles for reverse cholesterol transport (RCT), the mechanism by which peripheral tissue-cholesterol is transferred to the liver for recycling or disposal (Cuchel and Rader, 2006). Human HDL comprise free cholesterol (FC), cholesteryl esters (CE), phospholipids (PL), small amounts of triglyceride (TG), and apolipoproteins (apos)–mainly apos A-I, A-II, C, and E (Havel et al., 1980, Gotto and Pownall, 2003). Unlike other plasma lipoproteins, all HDL components are exchangeable by spontaneous (Massey et al., 1984) or protein-mediated mechanisms (Tall, 1995). HDL are further distinguished from other lipoproteins by their instability, which has been identified by chaotropic (Mehta et al., 2003, Pownall et al., 2007), detergent (Pownall, 2005) and thermal perturbations (Mehta et al., 2003, Sparks et al., 1992, Reijngoud and Phillips, 1984), which induces HDL fusion with the concomitant release of lipid-free (LF)-apo A-I. Serum opacity factor (SOF), a substance produced by Streptococcus pyogenes, spontaneously clouds serum (Ward and Rudd, 1938). Studies with a recombinant (r) SOF showed that HDL is a specific plasma target of opacification, which is associated with the liberation of apos (Courtney et al., 2006). rSOF is a heterodivalent fusogen that catalyzes the disproportionation of HDL into a very large cholesteryl ester (CE)-rich microemulsion (CERM) and an HDL-like particle, neo HDL, with the concomitant release of LF apo A-I (Gillard et al., 2007). During opacification the CE of >100,000 HDL particles transfer to a single CERM particle that contains apo E but no other detectable apo. rSOF is potent; at 37 EC; opacification of HDL (1-mg/mL) by rSOF (1 g/mL ~ 10 nM) is complete in ~1 hour. rSOF achieves its opacification by a physical process and without breaking covalent bonds; rSOF is neither a protease nor a lipase (Courtney et al., 2006). The products of rSOF opacification could have some therapeutic value in the management of impaired RCT (Gillard et al., 2007). However, the rational designs of cell- and animal-based studies of neo HDL and CERM in RCT require a knowledge of their compositions, structures and properties. Herein, we provide the first physicochemical characterization of neo HDL and CERM, the products of rSOF-mediated HDL opacification.
Varicella immunization requirements for US colleges: 2014–2015 academic year

ABSTRACTObjective: To obtain information on varicella prematriculation requirements in US colleges for undergraduate students during the 2014–2015 academic year. Participants: Health care professionals and member schools of the American College Health Association (ACHA). Methods: An electronic survey was sent to ACHA members regarding school characteristics and whether schools had policies in place requiring that students show proof of 2 doses of varicella vaccination for school attendance. Results: Only 27% (101/370) of schools had a varicella prematriculation requirement for undergraduate students. Only 68% of schools always enforced this requirement. Private schools, 4-year schools, northeastern schools, those with <5,000 students, and schools located in a state with a 2-dose varicella vaccine mandate were significantly more likely to have a varicella prematriculation requirement. Conclusions: A small proportion of US colleges have a varicella prematriculation requirement for varicella immunity. Colleg...
RV-PA CONDUIT INSUFFICIENCY IN REPAIRED TETRALOGY OF FALLOT CAUSING RV OVERLOAD AND FAILURE: SUCCESSFUL PERCUTANEOUS TREATMENT IN A CAREFULLY SELECTED PATIENT

Pulmonary insufficiency (PI) is a common cause of right ventricle volume overload and subsequent failure in patients with history of repaired Tetralogy of Fallot (ToF). 28-year-old male with history of DiGeorge Syndrome, repaired ToF with RV-to-PA conduit, presenting with RV failure. He underwent
Separation-compliant speed control in terminal airspace

To accommodate the growing air traffic demand, flights will need to be planned and navigated with a much higher level of precision. The Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) stands to benefit significantly in safety and efficiency from such movement of aircraft along precisely defined paths. Air Traffic Operations (ATO) relying on such precision–the Precision Air Traffic Operations or PATO–are the foundation of high throughput capacity envisioned for the future airports. In PATO, the preferred method is to manage the air traffic by assigning a speed profile to each aircraft in a given fleet in a given airspace (in practice known as speed control). In this paper, we develop an algorithm, set in the context of a Hybrid Control System (HCS) model, that determines whether a speed control solution exists for a given fleet of aircraft in a given airspace and if so, computes this solution as a collective speed profile that assures separation if executed without deviation. In this paper, uncertainties such as weather are not considered but the algorithm can be modified to include uncertainties. The algorithm first computes all feasible sequences by looking at all pair combinations of aircraft. Then the most likely sequence is determined and the speed control solution is constructed by a backward algorithm starting with the aircraft last out and proceeds to the first out. This computation for all sequences can be done in parallel which helps to reduce the computation time.
Trail-following by the Army Ant, Neivamyrmex nigrescens: Responses by Workers to Volatile Odors

Many experiments have shown that workers of the army ant, Neivamyrmex nigrescens (Cresson), will respond with following to relatively non-volatile components of an odor trail deposited from the hindgut of conspecifics. By using a 2-story trail-following apparatus, this study shows that army ants can follow nestmates by also responding to volatile chemicals that are: (1) present in the deposited trail; and (2) emitted by the ants from sources other than the deposited trail.
The hygienic investigation and analysis on chlorination status of drinking water works in Zigong urban areas in 2010

[Objective]To find out chlorination status of drinking water works in Zigong urban areas and chlorination by-products content in drinking water,and provide a scientific basis for preventing and controlling possible health hazards to human caused by chlorination by-products.[Method] combination of census and sample survey.[Results] There were 52 out of 116 drinking water works using chlorination method.We sampled 195 water from 34 waterworks from which 76 samples were qualified(the rate was 38.97%).The excessive rate of Chloroform,Dichloroacetic acid and THMs were 13.85%,6.15% and 22.31% respectively.[Conclusion] The drinking water using chlorination in Zigong urban areas was of certain security risks.The measures to eliminate the harm caused by chlorination by-products in drinking water were such as improving the quality of water source and disinfection method,drinking water management strengthen,the formation of good personal habit of water drinking.
Keratinase: I. Properties of the enzyme conjugate elaborated by Streptomyces fradiae

Abstract A keratinolytic enzyme secreted by Streptomyces fradiae is shown to have the property of solubilizing more than one-third the weight of unaltered wool. As elaborated by the organism, the protease is conjugated to an acidic polymer; this form of the enzyme is termed keratinase conjugate. In this form the enzyme exhibits optimum activity at pH 9.0 and minimum solubility at pH 3.6. Adsorption of the soluble enzyme onto wool is indicated to be a factor determining the kinetics of wool digestion by keratinase conjugate.
The Integration of Positional Scanning Libraries with Bioinformatics and Proteomics

The efficacy of using positional scanning synthetic combinatorial libraries (PS-SCL) for the identification of T cell ligands has been demonstrated in a number of studies carried out by us and others [1]. The studies with PS-SCL for clones of known specificity when compared with the results from single substitution analogs [2] clearly demonstrated that each amino acid within a peptide contributes to recognition almost independently and in an additive fashion. Thus, the overall stimulatory value of a peptide results from the combination of positive or negative effects of each of the amino acids. This assumption has allowed the development of a new search algorithm, which provides a predicted stimulatory score for a given peptide. This score is the sum of position specific scores of the component amino acids in a given PS-SCL screening data set.
Intracavernous Sodium Nitroprusside: Inappropriate Impotence Treatment

AbstractOn the basis of reports describing nitric oxide as a form of endothelium-derived relaxing factor and on our own experience with intracavernous use of nitric oxide-releasing substances in animal models, we undertook an approved human study of intracavernous sodium nitroprusside as a treatment for impotence. We report our early experience in which severe hypotension and only mild tumescence in our first 3 patients caused us to discontinue the trial.
Epidemiologic Investigation for Public Health, Biodefense, and Forensic Microbiology

Publisher Summary Epidemiology is the study of the distribution and determinants of health-related states or events in specied populations and the application of this study to control health problems. It reflects that diseases are not randomly distributed in the population and that individuals have certain characteristics that predispose to, or protect against, a variety of different diseases. Disease is the result of an epidemiological triad, where disease results from the interaction of: the human host, an infectious agent or toxin, and the environment that promotes the exposure. This chapter focuses on the use of epidemiology to identify the source of diseases caused by microorganisms or toxins. Microorganisms are very efficient at infecting humans, using a number of different strategies and mechanisms. The deliberate dissemination of a biological agent by many of these mechanisms presents the latest challenge to public health. It requires a careful epidemiologic investigation to determine whether an outbreak of infectious disease is because of the intentional release of an agent, or is naturally occurring. A number of molecular techniques have been developed for sub typing bacteria, viruses, fungi, and protozoa, which will facilitate this investigation as well as identify clusters of related microorganisms.
Calcium/Calmodulin: A Synaptic Antidepressant?

Abstract Synaptic depression contributes to short-term changes in synaptic efficacy during sustained activity. Sakaba and Neher (2001) have characterized two kinetically distinct pools of releasable vesicles whose depletion underlies depression at a CNS synapse. Calcium/calmodulin dramatically accelerates replenishment of one of these pools—and hence recovery from depression.
Pharmacological therapeutics targeting the secondary defects and downstream pathology of Duchenne muscular dystrophy

ABSTRACTIntroduction: Since the identification of the dystrophin gene in 1986, a cure for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) has yet to be discovered. Presently, there are a number of genetic-based therapies in development aimed at restoration and/or repair of the primary defect. However, growing understanding of the pathophysiological consequences of dystrophin absence has revealed several promising downstream targets for the development of therapeutics.Areas covered: In this review, we discuss various strategies for DMD therapy targeting downstream consequences of dystrophin absence including loss of muscle mass, inflammation, fibrosis, calcium overload, oxidative stress, and ischemia. The rationale of each approach and the efficacy of drugs in preclinical and clinical studies are discussed.Expert opinion: For the last 30 years, effective DMD drug therapy has been limited to corticosteroids, which are associated with a number of negative side effects. Our knowledge of the consequences of dystrophin absen...
A Solution for the Optimal Multiple Rectangle Search

The U. S. Coast Guard’s lifesaving mission often requires large-scale ocean searches using multiple aircraft. A recent addition to the methods of planning such searches provides a two-dimensional probability “map” of the target’s location. This simulation system (Computer-Assisted Search Planning System or CASP) provides a rational evaluation of complex scenario information but not a search plan. When search effort can be subdivided without limit, an optimal search plan can be calculated directly from a map. This analytical solution provides some valuable information but is not a practical plan, since real-life searches are composed of large rectangles of uniform effort densities. The multiple-rectangle search problem can be formulated and solved as an integer linear program, but the computational requirements prohibit its routine application. There is a subset of the problem which can be solved as a longest path problem in an acyclic network. The longest path version is the foundation of a complete operational program suitable for routine use by search planners to solve actual problems.
A VIEW OF VINČA FROM CAMBRIDGE: MINNS’ REVIEWS OF THE 1930s PUBLICATIONS BY VASIĆ

The article provides close readings of a series of book reviews of Vasic’s Vinca publications in the journal MAN of the Royal Anthropological Institute in Britain written in the 1930s by Russian and Eastern European studies expert and Cambridge-based archaeologist Sir Ellis Hovell Minns, including his unpublished notes and annotations of the volumes that are kept in the Cambridge University Library. In three installments, first in 1933 and then twice in 1937, Minns reviewed Miloje Vasic’s seminal four volumes of Preistoriska Vinca I-IV, which were published in 1932 and 1936. In these reviews Minns gives his own interp retation of the dating and significance of the site of Vinca -Belo Brdo near Belgrade, but also echoes the majority opinion of leading experts about the finds at the time. The reviews, which have not previously been discussed in literature, provide penetrating glimpses for the history of archaeological thought, especially in Serbia, and reveal important aspects of the international reception of Vasic’s works and his erroneous dating of the site. The purpose of this piece is to contribute to a critical evaluation of foundational figures in Serbian archaeology and can be seen as an extension of a conversation started by Palavestra and Babic in several previously published articles. The article ends by asking to what extent these early omissions in Serbian archaeology set the tone for structuring tropes and persistent traditions that have endured in this regional archaeological school ever since.
Iliac Artery Reconstruction with Femoral Vein After Bare Metal Stent Infection

Introduction Primary infection of a bare metal stent is a rare condition, associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Definitive treatment includes stent removal and arterial reconstruction. Report This study details a common iliac stent infection after re-intervention for iliac stent occlusion, complicated by pseudoaneurysm formation and septic embolisation. Potential risk factors for stent infection were identified. An open surgical resection of the affected artery along with all stent material was performed, followed by reconstruction with autologous interposition superficial femoral vein. There were no complications and no recurrent infection at 6 months follow-up. Conclusion Although rare, bare metal stent infection may occur, and a high index of suspicion is required. Stent surgical removal and arterial in situ reconstruction with autologous femoral vein proved to be a definitive procedure with no mid-term morbidity.
Topology optimization of magnetic source distributions for diamagnetic and superconducting levitation

Abstract Topology optimization is used to obtain a magnetic source distribution providing levitation of a diamagnetic body or type I superconductor with maximized thrust force. We show that this technique identifies non-trivial source distributions and may be useful to design devices based on non-contact magnetic suspension and other magnetic devices, such as micro-magneto-mechanical devices, high field magnets etc. Diamagnetic and superconducting suspensions are often used in physical experiments and thus we believe this approach will be interesting to physics community as it may generate non-trivial and often unexpected topologies and may be useful to create new experiments and devices.
Antifibrinolytic therapy for preventing VWD-related postpartum hemorrhage: indications and limitations

Publisher's Note: This article has a companion [Counterpoint by Ragni.][1] Publisher's Note: Join in the discussion of these articles at [ Blood Advances Community Conversations][2]. In women of reproductive age, the risk of postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) is obviously well established, but optimal
Success, Failure, and Transparency in Biomarker-Based Drug Development: A Case Study of Cholesteryl Ester Transfer Protein Inhibitors.

Background— Although biomarkers are used as surrogate measures for drug targeting and approval and are generally based on plausible biological hypotheses, some are found to not correlate well with clinical outcomes. Over-reliance on inadequately validated biomarkers in drug development can lead to harm to trial subjects and patients and to research waste. To shed greater light on the process and ethics of biomarker-based drug development, we conducted a systematic portfolio analysis of cholesterol ester transfer protein inhibitors, a drug class designed to improve lipid profiles and prevent cardiovascular events. Despite years of development, no cholesterol ester transfer protein inhibitor has yet been approved for clinical use. Methods and Results— We searched PubMed and Clinicaltrials.gov for clinical studies of 5 known cholesterol ester transfer protein inhibitors: anacetrapib, dalcetrapib, evacetrapib, TA-8995, and torcetrapib. Published reports and registration records were extracted for patient demographic characteristics and study authors’ recommendations of clinical usage or further testing. We used Accumulating Evidence and Research Organization graphing to depict the portfolio of research activities and a Poisson model to examine trends. We identified 100 studies for analysis that involved 96 944 human subjects. The data from only 41 201 (42%) of the human subjects had been presented in a published report. For the 3 discontinued cholesterol ester transfer protein inhibitors, we found a pattern of consistently positive results on lipid-modification end points followed by negative results using clinical end points. Conclusions— Inefficiencies and harms can arise if a biomarker hypothesis continues to drive trials despite successive failures. Regulators, research funding bodies, and public policy makers may need to play a greater role in evaluating and coordinating biomarker-driven research programs.
Semiconductor manufacturing simulation design and analysis with limited data

This paper discusses simulation design and analysis for Silicon Carbide (SiC) manufacturing operations management at New York Power Electronics Manufacturing Consortium (PEMC) facility. Prior work has addressed the development of manufacturing system simulation as the decision support to solve the strategic equipment portfolio selection problem for the SiC fab design [1]. As we move into the phase of collecting data from the equipment purchased for the PEMC facility, we discuss how to redesign our manufacturing simulations and analyze their outputs to overcome the challenges that naturally arise in the presence of limited fab data. We conclude with insights on how an approach aimed to reflect learning from data can enable our discrete-event stochastic simulation to accurately estimate the performance measures for SiC manufacturing at the PEMC facility.
Secure Cloud Computing for Pairwise Sequence Alignment

Today's massive amount of biological sequence data has the potential to rapidly advance our understanding of life's processes. However, since analyzing biological sequences is a very expensive computing task, users face a formidable challenge in trying to analyze these data on their own. Cloud computing offers access to a large amount of computing resources in an on-demand and pay-per-use fashion, which is a practical way for people to analyze these huge data sets. However, many people are still reluctant to outsource biological sequences to the cloud because they contain sensitive information that should be kept secret for ethical, security, and legal reasons. One of the most fundamental and frequently used computational tools for biological sequence analysis is pairwise sequence alignment (PSA). Previous works for securely solving PSAs at the cloud suffer from poor scalability, i.e., they are unable to exploit the cloud's infrastructure to solve PSAs in parallel because resource-limited users need to be constantly involved in the computations. In this paper, we develop a secure outsourcing algorithm that allows users to solve an arbitrary number of PSAs in parallel at the cloud. Compared with previous works, our algorithm can reduce computing time of a large number of PSAs by more than 50% with as few as 5 computing nodes at the cloud.
On the Disparate Treatment of Business and Personal SALT Payments

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, H.R. 1, would eliminate the federal income tax deduction for nonbusiness state and local taxes while maintaining the deduction for business state and local taxes. That disparate treatment has generated a storm of negative commentary. In this short essay, I consider whether the federal tax law should allow a deduction for business state and local taxes assuming that there is no deduction for nonbusiness state and local taxes. I argue that investors and businesses, including pass-through businesses, should be allowed to deduct state and local property and sales taxes, but not general income taxes.
Prevalence and characteristics of hair plucking in captive bonobos (Pan paniscus) in North American zoos.

When primates exhibit hair loss and are observed to engage in self or social hair plucking (a rapid jerking away of the hair shaft and follicle by the hand or mouth, often accompanied by inspection, and consumption) the altered appearance, and behavior patterns are thought to reflect individual physiological, and psychological well-being. Hair loss and hair plucking occur in many captive primate species, including all of the great apes. We present the first survey of this behavior among captive bonobos (N = 88; 50 females and 38 males) in seven zoos in the United States. We found that 43% of the population engaged in this behavior pattern and discounting youngsters (who are not observed to hair pluck until the age of five), 58% of individuals hair plucked. Of the individuals who hair plucked, 97% engaged in social plucking, whereas 46% engaged in self-directed plucking. We regressed the occurrence of hair plucking with multiple predictor variables using binary logistic regression and multimodel inference to determine which predictors best explained the prevalence of self-directed and social plucking. We also analyzed publicly available data on hair plucking in captive chimpanzees. We found that the occurrence of another abnormal behavior, age, origin, and pelage condition best explained self-directed plucking in bonobos. Social plucking was explained by age, origin, pelage, and sex. Our analysis of chimpanzee hair plucking revealed that plucking is strongly influenced by rearing and sex. This study demonstrates that hair plucking is more prevalent in captive bonobos compared to captive chimpanzees and gorillas, however, the covariates associated with hair plucking for each species are different. Our data suggest a potential link between self-directed plucking and well-being. However, the higher prevalence and etiology of social hair plucking is more difficult to explain.
Subdiaphragmatic Vagotomy With Pyloroplasty Ameliorates the Obesity Caused by Genetic Deletion of the Melanocortin 4 Receptor in the Mouse

Background/Objectives: We tested the hypothesis that abolishing vagal nerve activity will reverse the obesity phenotype of melanocortin 4 receptor knockout mice (Mc4r-/-). Subjects/Methods: In two separate studies, we examined the efficacy of bilateral subdiaphragmatic vagotomy (SDV) with pyloroplasty in the prevention and treatment of obesity in Mc4r-/- mice. Results: In the first study, SDV prevented >20% increase in body weight (BW) associated with this genotype. This was correlated with a transient reduction in overall food intake (FI) in the preventative arm of the study. Initially, SDV mice had reduced weekly FI; however, FI normalized to that of controls and baseline FI within the 8-week study period. In the second study, the severe obesity that is characteristic of the adult Mc4r-/- genotype was significantly improved by SDV with a magnitude of 30% loss in excess BW over a 4-week period. Consistent with the first preventative study, within the treatment arm, SDV mice also demonstrated a transient reduction in FI relative to control and baseline levels that normalized over subsequent weeks. In addition to the accompanying loss in weight, mice subjected to SDV showed a decrease in respiratory exchange ratio (RER), and an increase in locomotor activity (LA). Analysis of the white fat-pad deposits of these mice showed that they were significantly less than the control groups. Conclusions: Altogether, our data demonstrates that SDV both prevents gain in BW and causes weight loss in severely obese Mc4r-/- mice. Moreover, it suggests that an important aspect of weight reduction for this type of monogenic obesity involves loss of signaling in vagal motor neurons.
Barcodes Reveal 48 New Species of Tetrahymena, Dexiostoma, and Glaucoma: Phylogeny, Ecology, and Biogeography of New and Established Species

Tetrahymena mitochondrial cox1 barcodes and nuclear SSUrRNA sequences are particularly effective at distinguishing among its many cryptic species. In a project to learn more about Tetrahymena natural history, the majority of >1,000 Tetrahymena-like fresh water isolates were assigned to established Tetrahymena species with the remaining assigned to 37 new species of Tetrahymena, nine new species of Dexiostoma and 12 new species of Glaucoma. Phylogenetically, all but three Tetrahymena species belong to the well-established "australis" or "borealis" clades; the minority forms a divergent "paravorax" clade. Most Tetrahymena species are micronucleate, but others are exclusively amicronucleate. The self-splicing intron of the LSUrRNA precursor is absent in Dexiostoma and Glaucoma and was likely acquired subsequent to the "australis/borealis" split; in some instances, its sequence is diagnostic of species. Tetrahymena americanis, T. elliotti, T. gruchyi n. sp., and T. borealis, together accounted for >50% of isolates, consistent with previous findings for established species. The biogeographic range of species found previously in Austria, China, and Pakistan was extended to the Nearctic; some species show evidence of population structure consistent with endemism. Most species were most frequently collected from ponds or lakes, while others, particularly Dexiostoma species, were collected most often from streams or rivers. The results suggest that perhaps hundreds of species remain to be discovered, particularly if collecting is global and includes hosts of parasitic forms.
Old and New Problems and Results in Ramsey Theory

In this note, I will describe a variety of problems from Ramsey theory on which I would like to see progress made. I will also discuss several recent results which do indeed make progress on some of these problems.
Computer-aided design of developable Surfaces

Forming curved surfaces from plane materials is a common manufacturing problem. In automobile production such surfaces include body panels, upholstery, and window glass. If the surface is formed by pure bending (no stretching or compression), it is called developable.
Quantification of Uncertainty in Peptide-MHC Binding Prediction Improves High-Affinity Peptide Selection for Therapeutic Design.

Summary The computational identification of peptides that can bind the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) with high affinity is an essential step in developing personal immunotherapies and vaccines. We introduce PUFFIN, a deep residual network-based computational approach that quantifies uncertainty in peptide-MHC affinity prediction that arises from observational noise and the lack of relevant training examples. With PUFFIN's uncertainty metrics, we define binding likelihood, the probability a peptide binds to a given MHC allele at a specified affinity threshold. Compared to affinity point estimates, we find that binding likelihood correlates better with the observed affinity and reduces false positives in high-affinity peptide design. When applied to examine an existing peptide vaccine, PUFFIN identifies an alternative vaccine formulation with higher binding likelihood. PUFFIN is freely available for download at http://github.com/gifford-lab/PUFFIN .
Preschool teachers’ self-efficacy, burnout, and stress in online professional development: a mixed methods approach to understand change

This mixed methods study examines the impact of online professional development on preschool teachers’ self-efficacy, burnout, and stress. Participating teachers (n = 89) were randomly assigned int...
Pharmacokinetic profile analyses for inhaled drugs in humans using the lung delivery and disposition model

The kinetic clarification of lung disposition for inhaled drugs in humans via pharmacokinetic (PK) modeling aids in their development and regulation for systemic and local delivery, but remains challenging due to its multiplex nature. This study exercised our lung delivery and disposition kinetic model to derive the kinetic descriptors for the lung disposition of four drugs [calcitonin, tobramycin, ciprofloxacin and fluticasone propionate (FP)] inhaled via different inhalers from the published PK profile data. With the drug dose delivered to the lung (DTL) estimated from the corresponding γ-scintigraphy or in vivo predictive cascade impactor data, the model-based curve-fitting and statistical moment analyses derived the rate constants of lung absorption (ka ) and non-absorptive disposition (knad ). The ka values differed substantially between the drugs (0.05-1.00 h-1 ), but conformed to the lung partition-based membrane diffusion except for FP, and were inhaler/delivery/deposition-independent. The knad values also varied widely (0.03-2.32 h-1 ), yet appeared to be explained by the presence or absence of non-absorptive disposition in the lung via mucociliary clearance, local tissue degradation, binding/sequestration and/or phagocytosis, and to be sensitive to differences in lung deposition. For FP, its ka value of 0.2 h-1 was unusually low, suggesting solubility/dissolution-limited slow lung absorption, but was comparable between two inhaler products. Thus, the difference in the PK profile was attributed to differences in the DTL and the knad value, the latter likely originating from different aerosol sizes and regional deposition in the lung. Overall, this empirical, rather simpler model-based analysis provided a quantitative kinetic understanding of lung absorption and non-absorptive disposition for four inhaled drugs from PK profiles in humans.
Correcting Misinformation About Neuroscience via Social Media

The rapid spread of misinformation online is of growing concern to communication researchers. Scientific misinformation can lead to ill-founded educational practices, health trends, and public poli...
Antioxidant property and characterization data of 1-o-galloylglycerol synthesized via enzymatic glycerolysis.

Abstract This article provides comprehensive experimental data characterizing antioxidant activity, as well as chemical and physical properties of 1-o-galloylglycerol (GG), synthesized by enzymatic glycerolysis of propyl gallate (PG) using a food-grade lipase (Lipozyme® 435) [1]. GG was characterized by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), 1H, 13C, 1H–1H gradient correlation spectroscopy (gCOSY), 1H–13C gradient heteronuclear single quantum coherence (gHSQC), 1H–13C gradient heteronuclear multiple quantum coherence (gHMQC), and 1H–13C gradient heteronuclear multiple bond correlation (gHMBC) nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopies (NMR), and ultraviolet–visible spectrophotometry (UV–Vis). The antioxidant property of GG, which was evaluated through 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH•), 2,2′-azinobis (3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS•+), ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) scavenging assays, is also presented.
Increased amygdala volume and functional connectivity with cognitive control networks in chronic migraine

ABSTRACT Objective To characterize the role of the amygdala in episodic (EM) and chronic (CM) migraine, we evaluated amygdala volumes, functional connectivity (FC), and associations with clinical and affective measures. Methods Eighty-eight patients (44 with EM and 44 age- and sex-matched patients with CM) completed anatomical and resting-state functional MRI scans. Amygdala volumes and resting-state FC to three core large-scale cognitive control networks (default mode (DMN), salience (SN), central executive (CEN)) were compared between groups. Associations between amygdala volume and FC, measures of headache severity (frequency and intensity), and cognitive-affective measures (depression, anxiety, pain catastrophizing) were evaluated. Results Compared to EM, patients with CM had larger amygdala volume bilaterally. Headache frequency and intensity were associated with increased left and right amygdala volume, and depression was associated with increased right amygdala volume. Patients with CM also demonstrated increased left amygdala FC with the DMN, which across patients was related to headache frequency. Left amygdala FC to the SN was correlated with headache intensity while right amygdala FC to the CEN was correlated with pain catastrophizing. Conclusion Our findings reveal increased amygdala volume and FC with large-scale neurocognitive networks in patients with CM compared to EM. Aberrant amygdala volume and FC measures were associated with increased migraine severity, depression, and pain catastrophizing, pointing to a link between emotion and pain in migraine. Our findings provide novel insights into amygdala involvement in chronic migraine and may inform future interventions aimed at preventing the progression of both headache and its negative cognitive-affective symptoms.