cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Relationship between Socioeconomic Status and Metabolic Syndrome, Using Structural Equation Modelling

Background: This study aimed to investigate the complexity of the relationships between socioeconomic status, health behaviors, stress and risks of metabolic syndrome. By applying structural equational modelling, modified generalized conceptual model had described the associations and interactions among them. Methods: 24,210 participants (8,242 men, 15,968 women) registered with the Korean Health Examinee Cohort (KOEX) between 2004 to 2008. This study collected data on the socioeconomic status, health behaviors, and stress through individual interviews. Socioeconomic status (education, house income, occupation), health behaviors (diet, physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption) and stress level were defined as exogenous factors. Endogenous variables were risks of metabolic syndrome based on modified National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel-lll (NCEP ATP-lll, 2006). Results: According to model fitness test, these proposed model were acceptable in men, comparative fit index=0.877, incremental fit Index=0.877, Tucker-Lewis index=0.757, root-mean-squared error associated=0.055. These were compatible also in women as comparative fit index=0.924, incremental fit index=0.924, Tucker-Lewis index=0.851, root-mean-squared error associated=0.050. There were sex difference related to risks of metabolic syndrome: in men socioeconomic status (β=-0.08), health behaviors (β=-0.25) and stress (β =-0.25) were relevant, but in women only socioeconomic status (β=-0.25) was relevant (P<0.05). Conclusions: A conceptual model properly explains how Socioeconomic status may influence on health behaviors, stress, and risks of metabolic syndrome. Health behaviors in men and socioeconomic status in women had the strongest associations with risks of metabolic syndrome. In addition, socioeconomic status was strongly associated with health behaviors, stress and age. Korean J Health Promot 2016;16(2):92-100
A Developmental Comparison of the Expression of Sex Symbolism from Early Adolescence to Adulthood

The symbolic meaning test as described in the preceding chapter was immediately followed by a masculine or feminine symbolic meaning test, carried out with the same early adolescent high school group, the same adult summer school group and, as mentioned in the Introduction, by a group of college students. The same fifty nouns used in the symbolic meaning test were used as stimulus words, and the written instructions, immediately following the symbolic meaning test in the test booklet described before, were worded as follows: On the next two pages you will find the same number of objects, plants, and animals mentioned. Please fill in beside each word whether the object, plant, or animal has a masculine or feminine symbolic meaning for you. Mark an M, if masculine; mark an F if feminine. If you cannot feel or decide whether some of them have either a masculine or a feminine symbolic meaning, then please put a question mark (?) beside the word. Don’t think about it, just write down beside each word whether it has a feminine or masculine meaning. If you are in doubt, fill in with a question mark (?).
Fluorescence and absorption spectroscopy for warm dense matter studies and ICF plasma diagnostics

The burning core of an inertial confinement fusion (ICF) plasma produces bright x-rays at stagnation that can directly diagnose core conditions essential for comparison to simulations and understanding fusion yields. These x-rays also backlight the surrounding shell of warm, dense matter, whose properties are critical to understanding the efficacy of the inertial confinement and global morphology. We show that the absorption and fluorescence spectra of mid-Z impurities or dopants in the warm dense shell can reveal the optical depth, temperature, and density of the shell and help constrain models of warm, dense matter. This is illustrated by the example of a high-resolution spectrum collected from an ICF plasma with a beryllium shell containing native iron impurities. Analysis of the iron K-edge provides model-independent diagnostics of the shell density (2.3 × 1024 e/cm3) and temperature (10 eV), while a 12-eV red shift in Kβ and 5-eV blue shift in the K-edge discriminate among models of warm dense matter...
Non-invasive Testing and Its Role in Diagnosis and Management of Children With Voiding Dysfunction

The symptoms of non-neurogenic lower urinary tract dysfunction (LUTD) including urinary incontinence, frequency, and urgency are among the most common reasons for which children are referred to pediatric urologists. The workup for LUTD is often time consuming and a source of frustration for patients, parents, and clinicians alike. In this review, we describe the non-invasive tests that are available and discuss their utility in the evaluation and management of children with LUTD. The available non-invasive tests that can aid in the diagnosis and management of children with LUTD include urine studies, uroflowmetry ± simultaneous electromyography, assessment of post-void residual, renal/bladder ultrasound, and pelvic ultrasound. These tests can often help obviate the need for more invasive tests such as urodynamic studies and can be particularly helpful in complex or difficult cases that do not respond to standard urotherapy. Non-invasive tests can help us in our goal of improving diagnostic ability to better classify the child’s LUTD into an actual condition which allows targeted treatment in the hope of better outcomes and more satisfied patients and families.
Do birds of different feather flock together? Analyzing the political use of social media through a language-based approach in a multilingual context

Abstract This study analyzes the political use of Twitter in the run-up to the 2013 Malaysian General Election. It follows a content and social network analysis approach to investigate the interplay of language and political partisanship in social media use, among Twitter users in Malaysia. In the period leading up to the 2013 elections, Twitter posts collected under the hashtag #GE13 reveal that communities that post in English versus the Malay language, differ in how they use Twitter and with whom they interact. As compared to English users, Malay users are more likely to seek political information and express their political opinion. In online discussions, we observe language-based homophily within the English and Malay language communities, but there are some cross-cutting interactions between opposing political communities. We discuss the implications of our findings for the political use of new communication technologies in multi-ethnic and multilingual societies.
The dynamic properties of moving cracks

Abstract Molecular dynamic simulations of crack propagation were performed under constant strain conditions in a two-dimensional triangular Lennard-Jones solid. For the largest samples(about 10,000 atoms) the critical strain is in excellent agreement with the Griffith value. The energetics of the static and dynamic cracks are in agreement with each other and with values derived from continuum considerations. The functional dependence of the kinetic energy on crack velocity and crack length is in agreement with the Mott formulation. There are sample size effects and some geometric constraints which are analyzed and may be considered understood. The computer simulations are in overall agreement with continuum mechanics and the Mott model for crack propagation.
Optimal Methanol Production via Sorption-Enhanced Reaction Process

To counter the equilibrium limitations in traditional methanol production from synthesis gas, a periodic and sorption-enhanced methanol synthesis process (SE-MeOH) with in situ removal of water byproduct is designed and optimized. A generalized reaction–adsorption modeling and simulation framework is coupled with a simulation-based constrained gray-box optimizer to obtain the optimal cycle configuration, design parameters, process specifications, and operating conditions. The best-case results indicate that SE-MeOH processes can break the barrier of the current limit of industrial methanol yield and improve it by 55–87% with a slight compromise (9–46%) on CH3OH production capacity. This trade-off is a result of periodic operation which is required for sorption enhancement. The techno-economic optimization of a base industrial reactor also leads to more than 7% improvement in methanol yield with only 2% decrease in production capacity while keeping the cost of syngas-to-methanol production competitive. The...
Measuring Firm Performance in a Way that Is Consistent with Strategic Management Theory

Much empirical work in strategic management adopts measures of firm performance originally developed in accounting and finance. Not surprisingly, these measures are based on theories of how firms c...
Periodic catastrophes over human evolutionary history are necessary to explain the forager population paradox

The rapid growth of contemporary human foragers and steady decline of chimpanzees represent puzzling population paradoxes, as any species must exhibit near-stationary growth over much of their evolutionary history. We evaluate the conditions favoring zero population growth (ZPG) among 10 small-scale subsistence human populations and five wild chimpanzee groups according to four demographic scenarios: altered mean vital rates (i.e., fertility and mortality), vital rate stochasticity, vital rate covariance, and periodic catastrophes. Among most human populations, changing mean fertility or survivorship alone requires unprecedented alterations. Stochastic variance and covariance would similarly require major adjustment to achieve ZPG in most populations. Crashes could maintain ZPG in slow-growing populations but must be frequent and severe in fast-growing populations—more extreme than observed in the ethnographic record. A combination of vital rate alteration with catastrophes is the most realistic solution to the forager population paradox. ZPG in declining chimpanzees is more readily obtainable through reducing mortality and altering covariance. While some human populations may have hovered near ZPG under harsher conditions (e.g., violence or food shortage), modern Homo sapiens were equipped with the potential to rapidly colonize new habitats and likely experienced population fluctuations and local extinctions over evolutionary history.
More Than One Mask: The Context of NAGPRA for Museums and Tribes

The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) has fundamentally changed the relationship between museums and tribal peoples. Since 1990, thousands of human remains and funerary objects and hundreds of sacred objects and objects of cultural patrimony have been repatriated to tribes. Human remains and funerary objects have been reburied, and sacred objects and objects of cultural patrimony have been returned to tribal centers and/or reincorporated into traditional ceremonies. Tribes and museums have also made significant organizational and cultural adjustments in order to incorporate the repatriation law into their activities, including integrating extensive consultation efforts and comprehensive reviews of documentation into their operations. After seventeen years of NAGPRA, many in the museum and tribal worlds have become proficient in the “nuts and bolts” of the law and embraced the positive changes it has brought about. Many museum and tribal staff have learned to live with the law’s ambiguities, inadequacies, or as yet undeveloped sections; although others, mainly in the tribal world, are more critical of NAGPRA’s ambiguities and frustrated with the length of the repatriation process. In many ways, the tribal and museum experience of implementing NAGPRA has also highlighted an often unrecognized commonality between these two communities: tribes and museums are constantly changing in terms of leadership, membership, funding, and institutional and programmatic
Understanding how people detect social class from speech requires taking a cultural psychological perspective.

In “Evidence for the reproduction of social class in brief speech,” Kraus et al. (1) present a series of 5 compelling studies showing that perceivers can detect the social class of speakers at above-chance rates. They further demonstrate that perceivers infer the social class of speakers by comparing their speech to “ideal speech standards.” Although perceivers were able to detect targets’ social class in either spoken or written text, this detection was most likely to occur for spoken text. This suggests that, over and above content, some cues specific to verbal transmission (e.g., pronunciation or accent) signal social class. In addition, perceivers not only infer social class from little information, but they also use this categorization to make judgments about a potential job candidate’s fit and competence. Going beyond prior work suggesting that perceivers can detect social class (2, 3), the current studies make 3 important theoretical contributions. First, the authors provide evidence that one informational mechanism for detecting social class from speech is comparing that speech to ideal speech standards conveyed by educational and societal norms (1). Second, the current studies document that social class detection does not require an actual social interaction, or even a conversation between 2 people, and can be detected in as few as 7 words. Third, this research links social class detection to its consequences for social class stereotypes about fit and competence, and to downstream outcomes such as hiring (4). Kraus et al.’s (1) work is practically important because it suggests that directly communicating specific social class cues in social interactions or interviews (e.g., sailing or a first-generation student group; ref. 3) is not necessary to detect social class. Their findings further suggest that organizational attempts to blind resumes (e.g., by removing informational cues of social class) are unlikely to conceal … [↵][1]1To whom correspondence may be addressed. Email: n-stephens{at}kellogg.northwestern.edu. [1]: #xref-corresp-1-1
Impacts of Dietary Protein and Prebiotic Inclusion on Liver and Spleen Gene Expression in Hy-Line Brown Caged Layers

The ingredients of poultry feeds are chosen based on the least-cost formulation to meet nutritional requirements. However, this approach can lead to the introduction of anti-nutritional ingredients in the feed. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impacts of two diets (with or without prebiotic) on homeostatic genes in the liver and spleen of laying hens. Hy-Line Brown layers were raised either on a soybean meal or cottonseed meal-based diets with and without an added prebiotic (yeast cell wall), totaling four experimental diets. A total of 120, 63-week old layers were housed individually in a wire cage system. We investigated differences in the expression of select homeostatic marker genes in the liver and spleen of hens from each treatment. We then used the ΔΔCT and generalized linear models to assess significance. Results show that the inclusion of prebiotic yeast cell-wall (YCW) increased the expression of the BAK gene in the liver tissue for both the soybean meal (SBM) and cottonseed meal (CSM) diets. For splenic tissue, the combination of YCW with the CSM diet increased the POR gene over six log2 fold. Altogether, our results suggest altered homeostasis, which can have consequences for health and performance.
Gender differences in marriage, romantic involvement, and desire for romantic involvement among older African Americans.

Background Despite research on the dramatic changes in marriage, there is a dearth of research on the correlates of marriage and romantic involvement among older African Americans. This is an important omission because although the marriage decline is universal, African Americans show the steepest decline in marriage rates. Methods Based on data from the National Survey of American Life, multinomial logistic regression analysis is used to identify demographic and health correlates of: 1) being married or cohabiting, 2) having a romantic involvement, 3) not having a romantic involvement but desiring one, and lastly, 4) not having and not desiring a romantic involvement. Results Four in 10 older African Americans are either married or cohabiting, 11% are unmarried but romantically involved, 9.5% are unmarried and not romantically involved but open to the possibility of a relationship, and 38% neither have nor desire a romantic involvement. More men than women are married or cohabiting, a gap that increases with advanced age. Across all age groups, African American women are more likely than their male counterparts to report that they neither have nor desire a romantic relationship. Conclusion Almost as many older African Americans do not want a romantic relationship as those who are married/cohabiting. Findings support social exchange theories and the importance of an unbalanced sex ratio. Furthermore, the results suggest that singlehood among older African Americans (especially women) is not necessarily an involuntary status. Nonetheless, this group is at higher risk of economic and health problems as they age.
The Role of the Board on Children, Youth, and Families in the Youth Development Field

This special issue of the Journal of Youth Development highlights a range of important contributions that the work of the Board on Children, Youth, and Families (BCYF) at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, makes to the field of youth development. This issue traces how BCYF peer-reviewed, published consensus reports use transdisciplinary expertise to assemble relevant research, develop evidence-based findings that then undergird policy recommendations, and then communicate them to a wide audience of policy makers, academics, and practitioners. These consensus reports inform and support practice which improves constructive youth development.
Adverse Childhood Experiences and Teen Sexual Behaviors: The Role of Self-Regulation and School-Related Factors.

Background There is limited evidence addressing the impact of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) on adolescent sexual risk behaviors and pregnancy. In this study, we examined whether individual and cumulative ACEs increased the risk of unhealthy sexual behaviors and adolescent pregnancy. To inform intervention efforts, potential mediating mechanisms focusing on youth developmental assets were examined to explain the association. Methods Analyses included 88,815 (9th and 11th grade) students who completed the Minnesota Student Survey in the spring of 2016. Results Adolescents who reported each category of ACEs were more likely to initiate sex, have multiple sex partners, engage in unprotected sex, and be involved in pregnancy. Different youth assets, included self-regulation skills, connectedness to school, not skipping school, and academic performance, were associated with lower likelihood of sexual initiation and sexual risk-taking. They served as important mediators to reduce, though not completely diminish, the adverse effects of ACEs on sexual initiation and adolescent pregnancy. Conclusions The results suggest that the relationship between ACEs and adolescent sexual risk behaviors and pregnancy is strong and graded. Effective school initiatives and intervention efforts should encourage the development of self-regulation and connectedness to school among teens who had been exposed to ACEs.
Automatic Assessment of Cognitive Tests for Differentiating Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Proof of Concept Study of the Digit Span Task.

Background Current conventional cognitive assessments are limited in their efficiency and sensitivity, often relying on a single score such as the total correct items. Typically, multiple features of response go uncaptured. Objectives We aim to explore a new set of automatically derived features from the Digit Span (DS) task that address some of the drawbacks in the conventional scoring and are also useful for distinguishing subjects with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) from those with intact cognition. Methods Audio-recordings of the DS tests administered to 85 subjects (22 MCI and 63 healthy controls, mean age 90.2 years) were transcribed using an Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) system. Next, five correctness measures were generated from Levenshtein distance analysis of responses: number correct, incorrect, deleted, inserted, and substituted words compared to the test item. These per-item features were aggregated across all test items for both Forward Digit Span (FDS) and Backward Digit Span (BDS) tasks using summary statistical functions, constructing a global feature vector representing the detailed assessment of each subject's response. A support vector machine classifier distinguished MCI from cognitively intact participants. Results Conventional DS scores did not differentiate MCI participants from controls. The automated multi-feature DS-derived metric achieved 73% on AUC-ROC of the SVM classifier, independent of additional clinical features (77% when combined with demographic features of subjects); well above chance, 50%. Conclusion Our analysis verifies the effectiveness of introduced measures, solely derived from the DS task, in the context of differentiating subjects with MCI from those with intact cognition.
Acute perturbation strategies in interrogating RNA polymerase II elongation factor function in gene expression

The regulation of gene expression catalyzed by RNA polymerase II (Pol II) requires a host of accessory factors to ensure cell growth, differentiation, and survival under environmental stress. Here, using the auxin-inducible degradation (AID) system to study transcriptional activities of the bromodomain and extraterminal domain (BET) and super elongation complex (SEC) families, we found that the CDK9-containing BRD4 complex is required for the release of Pol II from promoter-proximal pausing for most genes, while the CDK9-containing SEC is required for activated transcription in the heat shock response. By using both the proteolysis targeting chimera (PROTAC) dBET6 and the AID system, we found that dBET6 treatment results in two major effects: increased pausing due to BRD4 loss, and reduced enhancer activity attributable to BRD2 loss. In the heat shock response, while auxin-mediated depletion of the AFF4 subunit of the SEC has a more severe defect than AFF1 depletion, simultaneous depletion of AFF1 and AFF4 leads to a stronger attenuation of the heat shock response, similar to treatment with the SEC inhibitor KL-1, suggesting a possible redundancy among SEC family members. This study highlights the usefulness of orthogonal acute depletion/inhibition strategies to identify distinct and redundant biological functions among Pol II elongation factor paralogs.
Sample and Communication-Efficient Decentralized Actor-Critic Algorithms with Finite-Time Analysis.

Actor-critic (AC) algorithms have been widely adopted in decentralized multi-agent systems to learn the optimal joint control policy. However, existing decentralized AC algorithms either do not preserve the privacy of agents or are not sample and communication-efficient. In this work, we develop two decentralized AC and natural AC (NAC) algorithms that are private, and sample and communication-efficient. In both algorithms, agents share noisy information to preserve privacy and adopt mini-batch updates to improve sample and communication efficiency. Particularly for decentralized NAC, we develop a decentralized Markovian SGD algorithm with an adaptive mini-batch size to efficiently compute the natural policy gradient. Under Markovian sampling and linear function approximation, we prove the proposed decentralized AC and NAC algorithms achieve the state-of-the-art sample complexities $\mathcal{O}\big(\epsilon^{-2}\ln(\epsilon^{-1})\big)$ and $\mathcal{O}\big(\epsilon^{-3}\ln(\epsilon^{-1})\big)$, respectively, and the same small communication complexity $\mathcal{O}\big(\epsilon^{-1}\ln(\epsilon^{-1})\big)$. Numerical experiments demonstrate that the proposed algorithms achieve lower sample and communication complexities than the existing decentralized AC algorithm.
Evaluating Tutorial-Based Instructions for Controllers in Virtual Reality Games

Virtual reality (VR) has disrupted the gaming market and is rapidly becoming ubiquitous. Yet differences between VR and traditional mediums, such as controllers that are visible in the virtual world, enable entirely new approaches to instruction. In this paper, we present four studies, each using a different VR game. Within each study, we compared three different modalities of tutorials: Text (text-only), Text+Diagram (text with controller diagrams), and Text+Spatial (text with controller tooltips appearing on top of the player's virtual controllers). Data from our studies show that the importance of tutorial modality depends greatly on game type. In a third-person shooter, Text+Spatial led to significantly higher controls learnability than Text and Text+Diagram, and also led to significantly higher performance, player experience, and intrinsic motivation than Text. In a puzzle game, Text+Spatial led to significantly higher controls learnability and performance than Text. Additionally, Text+Diagram led to significantly higher controls learnability than Text. However, in a wave shooter and a rhythm game, differences between conditions were negligible on all measures. Our studies show that game type is an important factor to consider when designing tutorial modality.
Stereochemistry of the Active Site of α-Chymotrypsin THE INFLUENCE OF POLAR GROUPS IN LOCKED SUBSTRATES

Abstract The binding site of α-chymotrypsin (EC 3.4.4.5) has been "mapped" to identify areas displaying steric hindrance to binding and areas of polar environment. Of the five isomeric methyl benzindancarboxylates tested as substrates, only methyl-4,5-benzindan-2-carboxylate (Compound X) underwent chymotryptic hydrolysis with moderate stereospecificity. This finding confirms Niemann's hypothesis that the aromatic binding site in chymotrypsin is planar, elongated, and curved. Comparison of the reactivities of X and methyl indan-2-carboxylate with their oxygen analogues, methyl 1,2-dihydronaphtho[2,1-b]furancarboxylate and methyl hydrocoumarilate, reveals that the polar atoms or groups adjacent to the α-carbon in locked substrates do not contribute significantly to the over-all reactivity or binding of these substrates when they are oriented productively but that they are detrimental when located incorrectly. This concept is supported by the extremely slow rate of hydrolysis of methyl 2-acetamidoindan-2-carboxylate (Compound VIII), a new rigid analogue of methyl N-acetylphenylalaninate (Compound VI). This observation indicates that the site that accommodates the acetamido group of l-VI is not left unoccupied when reactive enantiomers of cyclized substrates undergo chymotryptic hydrolysis, but the interaction there is imperfect.
Development and testing of an Eddy accumulator

Environmental contaminants are in general of such low concentration that pre-concentration and extraction techniques are required to measure them. In order to estimate their fluxes over the air/water interface an eddy accumulator is required b integrate samples over a period of time and produce a sufficiently concentrated sample to measure the flux in the environment. A proportional sampling eddy accumulator was designed, developed and tested using the Gas Transfer Flume facility in the Hydraulics Laboratory of the National Water Research Institute. Verification of the accumulator was accomplished through comparison to simultaneous eddy correlation measurements conducted with carbon dioxide gas and an infrared absorption CO 2 analyzer. The correlation and accumulation methods agree within 5% of the total concentration of CO 2 for all test runs, and the absolute mean error was 11 ppm compared to correlation at concentration differences between 24 to 117 ppm CO2. These results have verified the design. The prototype could be further refined for accumulation measurements in the field to determine the flux of toxic contaminants.
G-Protein-Coupled, Extracellular Ca2+-Sensing Receptor: A Versatile Regulator of Diverse Cellular Functions

Publisher Summary This chapter examines the importance of G-protein-coupled, extracellular Ca 2+ -sensing receptor as a versatile regulator of diverse cellular functions. In the extracellular space, calcium is a cofactor for clotting factors, adhesion molecules, and other proteins. It also regulates neuronal excitability and is an essential component of the mineral phase of the skeleton. Bone provides both a structural framework protecting crucial bodily structures and enabling locomotion and a large reservoir of mineral ions that can be mobilized in times of need. The maintenance of near constancy of Ca 2+ in tetrapods necessitates that specific cells of the mineral ion homeostatic system detect and respond in a homeostatically appropriate manner to the changes in plasma calcium concentration of the same order as its normal variability. Elevated levels of Ca 2+ also stimulate several aspects of osteoblast function in vitro that could promote increased bone formation in vivo and, therefore, reductions in Ca 2+ . The evidence for the presence of a G-protein-coupled CaR came from studies in bovine parathyroid cells examining the actions of Ca 2+ , the physiological agonist for the putative CaR, on intracellular second messengers. A variety of polyvalent cations mimic the actions of Ca 2+ on the osteoclast, but their pharmacological profile in this cell type differs distinctly from that in parathyroid and other CaR-expressing cells.
New York Life and Immediate Annuities (TN)

By positioning Immediate Annuities as "guaranteed lifetime income," New York Life has built itself a $1.4 billion per year business by 2009. However, to make Immediate Annuities a mainstream financial product for retirees, New York Life must understand why many retirees are reluctant to buy them and many agents are reluctant to sell them.
SCALE OF PRODUCTION AT PREHISTORIC QUARRIES: A PILOT STUDY IN EXTENDING THE “ANALYTICAL CORE UNIT” CONCEPT

Prehistoric toolstone quarries often contain dense deposits of flake debris. Flakes can be sampled efficiently using standard probabilistic techniques in order to estimate their quantity. But the number of cobbles reduced to produce that debris is an equally valid measure of production scale. It cannot be estimated directly, partly because many cobbles are reduced to blanks and preforms that were exported from the quarries. Carr and Bradbury's (2001) “Analytical Core Concept” (ACU) relates count of particular kinds of flakes to weight loss experienced by the cobbles reduced to generate them. We use their and other experimental data that relate number of all flakes to cobble weight loss to generate two independent ACU estimates drawn from the Modena obsidian quarry in Nevada, USA. The estimates produce similar results, which suggest a robust relationship between cobble weight loss and flake quantity that can be applied elsewhere to measure production scale at quarries.
Compression of Normal Meshes

Open image in new window Fig. 1. Partial reconstructions from a progressive encoding of the molecule model. File sizes are given in bytes, errors in multiples of 10−4 and PSNR in dB (model courtesy of The Scripps Research Institute).
A Rational Approach to Personalized Anticancer Therapy: Chemoinformatic Analysis Reveals Mechanistic Gene-Drug Associations

Purpose. To predict the response of cells to chemotherapeutic agents based on gene expression profiles, we performed a chemoinformatic study of a set of standard anticancer agents assayed for activity against a panel of 60 human tumor-derived cell lines from the Developmental Therapeutics Program (DTP) at the National Cancer Institute (NCI). Methods. Mechanistically-relevant gene:drug activity associations were identified in the scientific literature. The correlations between expression levels of drug target genes and the activity of the drugs against the NCI's 60 cell line panel were calculated across and within each tumor tissue type, using published drug activity and gene expression data. Results. Compared to other mechanistically-relevant gene-drug associations, that of triciribine phosphate (TCN-P) and adenosine kinase (ADK) was exceptionally strong—overall and within tumor tissue types—across the 60 cell lines profiled for chemosensitivity (1) and gene expression (2). Conclusion. The results suggest ADK expression may be useful for stratifying TCN-P-responsive vs. non-responsive tumors. Based on TCN-P's mechanism of action and the observed TCN-P:ADK association, we contend that catalytic drug activation provides a rational, mechanistic basis for personalizing cancer treatment based on tumor-specific differences in the expression of drug-activating enzymes.
Unification in the control of spikes, seizures, and spreading depression

The pathological phenomena of spikes, seizures and spreading depression have long been considered separate physiological events in the brain. By incorporating conservation of particles and charge, and accounting for the energy required to restore ionic gradients, we have recently extended the classic Hodgkin-Huxley formalism to uncover a unification of neuronal membrane dynamics (J Neuroscience 34:11733–11743, 2014). We now account for a wide range of neuronal activities, from spikes to seizures, spreading depression, mixed seizure and spreading depression states, and the terminal anoxic “wave of death”. Such a unified framework demonstrates that all of these dynamics lie along a continuum of the repertoire of the neuron membrane. Our results demonstrate that unified frameworks for neuronal dynamics are feasible, can be achieved using existing biological structures and universal physical conservation principles, and can be utilized within a model based control framework in neural systems. Such a framework may be of substantial importance in enabling our further understanding of brain activity and in the control of pathological states.
Blind Equalization Techniques

A tutorial review of various approaches to single-user blind channel equalization and estimation is presented. Multipath propagation and limited bandwidth are the two main causes of signal distortion in digital communications leading to intersymbol interference at the receiver which, in turn, may lead to high error rates in symbol detection. Traditionally, a training sequence is transmitted during the acquisition mode to enable the receiver to design an equalizer or estimate the channel. In blind channel equalization and estimation no training sequences are available or used. In this article emphasis is on linear time-invariant channels. The relevant channel models and equalizer structures are reviewed first followed by a discussion of joint channel and symbol estimation methods, direct equalization and symbol estimation approaches without channel estimation, and channel estimation using second-order and higher-order statistical methods as well as non-statistical approaches. Commercial applications of blind equalization are also briefly discussed. Keywords: blind equalization; blind channel estimation; joint channel and symbol estimation; maximum likelihood; higher-order statistics; linear prediction; fractional sampling; intersymbol interference
Host Responses to Plasmodium yoelii Hepatic Stages: A Paradigm in Host-Parasite Interaction

The liver stage of malaria, caused by the genus Plasmodium , is clinically silent, but immunologically significant. Ample evidence exists for an effective CD8 + T cell response to this stage as well as the involvement of γδT cells and NK1.1 int cells in immunized animal models. In contrast, there is little information concerning responses in a naive host. Here we report that several host gene expressions in the liver, spleen, and kidney of BALB/c mice are altered during the liver stage of Plasmodium yoelii infection. Really interesting new gene 3 (Ring3), semaphorin subclass 4 member G, glutamylcysteine synthetase, and p45 NF erythroid 2 were all up-regulated 24 h after infection with P. yoelii. Semaphorin subclass 4 member G expression was elevated in the kidney, whereas Ring3 was elevated in both spleen and kidney. The expression of TNF-α (TNF-α and IFN-γ) were down-regulated in all three tissues tested except in infected spleen where IFN-γ was elevated. P. yoelii- related host gene changes were compared with those in Toxoplasma gondii- infected livers. Ring3 expression increased 5-fold over control values, whereas expression of the other transcripts remained unchanged. TNF-α and IFN-γ expressions were increased in the Toxoplasma- infected livers. The uniform increase of Ring3 expression in both Plasmodium- and Toxoplasma- infected livers suggests an innate immune response against parasitic infections, whereas the other gene expression changes are consistent with Plasmodium parasite-specific responses. Taken together, these changes suggest the immune responses to P. yoelii infection are both parasite and organ specific.
REGULATION OF STEAROYL-COA DESATURASE BY POLYUNSATURATED FATTY ACIDS AND CHOLESTEROL

The lipid composition of cellular membranes is regulated to maintain membrane fluidity. A key enzyme involved in this process is the membrane-bound stearoyl-CoA desaturase (SCD) which is the rate-limiting enzyme in the cellular synthesis of monounsaturated fatty acids from saturated fatty acids. A proper ratio of saturated to monounsaturated fatty acids contributes to membrane fluidity. Alterations in this ratio have been implicated in various disease states including cardiovascular disease, obesity, non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus, hypertension, neurological diseases, immune disorders, and cancer. The regulation of stearoyl-CoA desaturase is therefore of considerable physiological importance and its activity is sensitive to dietary changes, hormonal imbalance, developmental processes, temperature changes, metals, alcohol, peroxisomal proliferators, and phenolic compounds. Two mouse and rat SCD genes (SCD1 and SCD2) and a single human SCD gene have been cloned and characterized. In the past several years we have studied the dietary influences on the genetic expression of the mouse stearoyl-CoA desaturase. The expression of the mouse SCD genes is regulated by polyunsaturated fatty acids and cholesterol at the levels of transcription and mRNA stability. Promoter elements that are responsible for the polyunsaturated fatty acid repression colocalize with the promoter elements for SREBP-mediated regulation of the SCD genes. It is the goal of this review to provide an overview of the genetic regulation of the stearoyl-CoA desaturase in response to dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids and cholesterol.
Genetic Analysis of Murine Hepatitis Virus nsp4 in Virus Replication

Coronavirus replicase polyproteins are translated from the genomic positive-strand RNA and are proteolytically processed by three viral proteases to yield 16 mature nonstructural proteins (nsp1 to nsp16). nsp4 contains four predicted transmembrane-spanning regions (TM1, -2, -3, and -4), demonstrates characteristics of an integral membrane protein, and is thought to be essential for the formation and function of viral replication complexes on cellular membranes. To determine the requirement of nsp4 for murine hepatitis virus (MHV) infection in culture, engineered deletions and mutations in TMs and intervening soluble regions were analyzed for effects on virus recovery, growth, RNA synthesis, protein expression, and intracellular membrane modifications. In-frame partial or complete deletions of nsp4; deletions of TM1, -2, and -3; and alanine substitutions of multiple conserved, clustered, charged residues in nsp4 resulted in viruses that were nonrecoverable, viruses highly impaired in growth and RNA synthesis, and viruses that were nearly wild type in replication. The results indicate that nsp4 is required for MHV replication and that while putative TM1, -2, and -3 and specific charged residues may be essential for productive virus infection, putative TM4 and the carboxy-terminal amino acids K(398) through T(492) of nsp4 are dispensable. Together, the experiments identify important residues and regions for studies of nsp4 topology, function, and interactions.
Effects of co-occurring alcohol abuse on the course of bipolar disorder following a first hospitalization for mania.

Context Alcohol-use disorders are common co-occurring conditions affecting bipolar patients, and this co-occurrence is negatively associated with outcome. Objective The primary goal of this study was to identify how the relative onsets of alcohol-use and bipolar disorders affect the subsequent courses of illness in patients with both conditions. Design and Setting Inception cohort at an academic medical center. Patients Patients meeting criteria for type I bipolar disorder, manic or mixed, with ages of 12 to 45 years, no prior hospitalizations, and minimal prior treatment. We enrolled 144 subjects who were followed up for up to 5 years, including 27 subjects in whom the onset of an alcohol-use disorder preceded the onset of bipolar disorder (Alcohol First), 33 subjects in whom bipolar disorder onset preceded or was concurrent with the onset of alcohol abuse (Bipolar First), and 83 subjects with bipolar disorder only (No Alcohol). Main Outcome Measures Symptomatic recovery and recurrence of both conditions and percentage of follow-up with affective episodes and affective and alcohol-use disorder symptoms. Results The Alcohol First group was older and more likely to recover and recover more quickly than the other groups. Affective symptomatic recurrence curves were similar among groups. The Bipolar First group spent more time with affective episodes and symptoms of an alcohol-use disorder during follow-up than the Alcohol First group. Hospitalization was associated with a period of decreased alcohol abuse, although recurrence of the alcohol-use disorder was common. Conclusions The relative age at onset of alcohol-use and bipolar disorders is associated with differences in the course of both conditions. A first hospitalization for mania is associated with a period of recovery from comorbid alcohol abuse, suggesting this posthospital time may provide an opportunity to treat this co-occurring condition.
A measurement of the (C-12)O/(C-13)O) ratio in the mesosphere of Venus

Measurements of the absorptions in the Venus atmosphere by (C-12)O and (C-13)O in the J = 1-2 microwave, rotational transitions are reported. Radiative transfer models were fitted to the spectra in order to estimate the isotopic ratio (C-12)O/(C-13)O = 185. Based on an extensive error analysis it is suggested that the standard deviation of this value is + or - 69. This result applies to the mesosphere of Venus, i.e., from about 80 to 110 km. Values of the (C-12)O/(C-13)O ratio measured deeper in the Venus atmosphere are closer to the terrestrial value of 89. Several possible, qualitative mechanisms to explain the higher value of (C-12)O/(C-13)O found for the nightside mesosphere of Venus are offered.
Synthesis and performance of plasma-sprayed polymer/steel coating system

Low friction thermally sprayed polymer-steel coatings for high contact pressure rolling/sliding systems were developed using high-energy plasma spraying. Polymers were applied as a thermally sprayed thin film (75–100 µm) over a thicker (250–750 µm) thermally sprayed steel coating. Twin roller rolling/sliding tests were performed at 5 and 35% creep and contact loads of 1700 N on a 5 mm contact face. A lower coefficient of friction (0.10–0.15) with increased durability, compared with that of an AISI 1080 steel thermally sprayed coating (coefficient of friction of 0.46), was observed under these rolling-sliding contact conditions. The polymer’s ability to control friction and wear stems from the mechanical anchoring of the polymer film to the rough surface of the steel coating. The polymer film was characterized by scanning electron microscopy and Fourier transform infrared analysis.
THERMAL X-RAY SPECTRAL TOOLS. I. PARAMETERIZING IMPULSIVE X-RAY HEATING WITH A CUMULATIVE INITIAL TEMPERATURE (CIT) DISTRIBUTION

In collisional ionization equilibrium, the X-ray spectrum from a plasma depends on the differential emission measure (DEM), distributed over temperature. Due to the well-known ill conditioning problem, no precisely resolved DEM can be inverted directly from the spectrum, so often only a gross parameterization of the DEM is used to approximate the data, in hopes that the parameterization can provide useful model-independent constraints on the heating process. However, ill conditioning also introduces ambiguity into the various different parameterizations that could approximate the data, which may spoil the perceived advantages of model independence. Thus, this paper instead suggests a single parameterization for both the heating mechanism and the X-ray sources, based on a model of impulsive heating followed by radiative cooling. This approach is similar to a "cooling flow" approach but allows injection at multiple initial temperatures and applies even when the steady state is a distribution of different shock strengths, as for a standing shock with a range of obliquities, or for embedded stochastic shocks that are only steady in a statistical sense. This produces an alternative parameterization for X-ray spectra that is especially streamlined for higher density plasmas with efficient radiative cooling and minimal thermal conduction and mixing. The method also provides some internal consistency checks on the validity of its assumptions. A heuristic general version is then applied over a wide range of astrophysical applications to schematically explore potential alternative models for these phenomena.
Antenatal Diagnosis and Treatment of Fetal Bronchopulmonary Sequestration

Bronchopulmonary sequestration with associated nonimmune hydrops has been previously reported with generally poor prognosis for the neonate. We report a case of bronchopulmonary sequestration and associated pleural effusion successfully managed with a transthoracic catheter placement. The embryology and clinical pathophysiology of bronchopulmonary sequestration are discussed.
MEASUREMENT OF FORMAL POTENTIALS FOR HYPERICIN IN DIMETHYLSULFOXIDE

The formal potentials for hypericin are measured in dimethylsulfoxide using cyclic voltammetry. Two reversible one-electron reductions and a more poorly defined multielectron oxidation are observed. The formal potentials for these processes are consistent with the visible spectrum of hypericin and they indicated that hypericin is both a good oxidizing agent and a good reducing agent in the excited state.
Stimulation of matrix formation in rabbit chondrocyte cultures by ascorbate. 2. Characterization of proteoglycans

The effect of ascorbate on the proteoglycans synthesized by rabbit articular chondrocytes was studied in first- and third-passage cultures for 12 and 26 days total duration, respectively. L-Ascorbate (0.2 mM) was added daily to half of the flasks after attachment of the cells. The cultures were labeled with Na2[35S]O4 or [14C]-glucosamine and [3H]-proline. Proteoglycans were isolated from the media and pericellular matrices by dissociative extraction and associative density gradient centrifugation. There was a large decline in the amount of proteoglycan synthesized between early and late cultures. Ascorbate increased the DNA content, amount of radiosulfate incorporated into glycosaminoglycans per microgram of DNA, and the proportion of labeled proteoglycan in the pericellular fraction of both short- and long-term cultures. The proteoglycans of the media and matrices of all cultures, with and without ascorbate, eluted as aggregates under associative column chromatographic conditions. The proteoglycans of 26-day cultures exhibited a higher degree of polydispersity in size than those of the short-term culture and contained small amounts of keratan (2-5%) and dermatan sulfate (4-8%) as assessed by keratanase and chondroitinase digestions, respectively. The effect of ascorbate, therefore, was to increase the amount of proteoglycan formed and to direct it into matrix deposition rather than to alter its quality.