cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Sperm DNA damage output parameters measured by the alkaline Comet assay and their importance.

Summary The alkaline Comet assay has shown high diagnostic value to determine male reproductive health and prognostic ability to predict ART success. Here, spermatozoon was analysed in 47 fertile donors and 238 patients, including 132 couples undergoing ART [semen was collected: Group I – within 3 months of their treatment (n = 79); and Group II – 3 months prior to their treatment (n = 53)]. We introduce four Comet distribution plots (A, B1, B2 and C) by plotting the level of DNA damage (x-axis) and percentage of comets (y-axis). Fertile donors had low mean DNA damage, olive tail moment and per cent of spermatozoa with damage and increased type A plots. Comet parameters were associated with clinical pregnancies in Group I. About 66% of couples with type A distribution plot were successful after ART, whereas couples with type B1, B2 and C distribution plots achieved 56%, 44% and 33% pregnancies respectively. The efficiency of the Comet assay was due to complete decondensation process, where the compact sperm nuclear DNA (28.2 ± 0.2 μm3) is decondensed to ~63 μm3 (before lysis) and ~1018 μm3 (after lysis). A combinational analysis of all the Comet output parameters may provide a comprehensive evaluation of patient's reproductive health as these parameters measure different aspects of DNA damage within the spermatozoa.
Detection and characterization of singly deuterated silylene, SiHD, via optical spectroscopy

Singly deuterated silylene has been detected and characterized in the gas-phase using high-resolution, two-dimensional, optical spectroscopy. Rotationally resolved lines in the 000X1A′→A1A″ band are assigned to both c-type perpendicular transition and additional parallel, axis-switching induced bands. The extracted rotational constants were combined with those for SiH2 and SiD2 to determine an improved equilibrium bond length, rSiH, and bond angle, θ, of 1.5137 ± 0.0003 A and 92.04° ± 0.05°, and 1.4853 ± 0.0005 A and 122.48° ± 0.08° for the X1A′0,0,0 and A1A″(0,0,0) state respectively. The dispersed fluorescence consists of a long progression in the A1A″(0,0,0)→X1A′(0,ν2,0) emission which was analyzed to produce vibrational parameters. A strong quantum level dependence of the rotationally resolved radiative decay curves is analyzed.
Turkey husbandry and use in Oaxaca, Mexico: A contextual study of turkey remains and SEM analysis of eggshell from the Mitla Fortress

Abstract Recent excavations of two domestic residences at the Mitla Fortress, dating to the Classic to Early Postclassic period (ca. CE 300–1200), have uncovered the remains of juvenile and adult turkeys (both hens and toms), several whole eggs, and numerous eggshell fragments in domestic refuse and ritual offering contexts. Holistically, this is the clearest and most comprehensive evidence to date for turkey domestication in the Central Valleys of Oaxaca, Mexico. Juvenile turkeys range in age, from recently hatched poults to young juvenile birds. Medullary bone, which only forms in female birds before and during the egg-laying cycle, indicates the presence of at least one egg-laying hen. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images of the eggshell reveals both unhatched and hatched eggs from a range of incubation stages, from unfertilized or newly fertilized eggs to eggs nearing the termination of embryogenesis to hatched poults. We present these new data and explore turkey husbandry, consumption, and use by two residential households at the Mitla Fortress.
Nanotherapeutic Approach to Targeting HIV-1 in the CNS: Role of Tight Junction Permeability and Blood–Brain Barrier Integrity

Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has proven effective in reducing systemic viral loads in HIV patients but has been unable to completely eliminate the HIV from quiescent viral sequestered sites such as the brain, thus contributing to a spectrum of HIV-associated neurological disorders (HAND) defined as neuro-AIDS. Technological advances in nanoparticle design have increased their applicability in biomedical applications and show great promise for HIV therapeutics. The blood–brain barrier (BBB) is a limiting factor for the delivery of therapeutic agents into the central nervous system (CNS). BBB breakdown plays an important role in the pathogenesis of HAND. The tight junctions play a key role in the regulation of the structural and functional integrity of the BBB. No information is available on TJ modulation by nanoparticles commonly used in HIV-1 nanotherapeutics. This chapter highlights the effect of nanoparticles on BBB modulation and its implication for CNS nanotherapeutics.
Female Sexual Health

Publisher Summary Female sexual dysfunction (FSD) is a widespread public health problem affecting women of all ages, particularly those with medical and psychiatric problems. The major categories of female sexual dysfunction are disorders of desire, arousal, orgasm, and pain. The physiology of the female sexual response is very similar to that of the male; however, many questions still remain unanswered with regard to the female. In addition, although there are a multitude of prescription products available to treat male sexual problems, there is only one FDA-approved prescription treatment for women with FSD. Numerous compounds are under development, which may prove beneficial in the future for women who suffer from sexual disorders.
Multiplexed color imaging using demosaiced pixel super-resolution

We demonstrate a holographic color imaging technique that alleviates Bayer demosaicing related color artifacts in digital holography under multiplexed color illumination, improving the imaging speed by 3-fold compared to sequential color illumination.
Mechanism of action of methotrexate. IV. Free intracellular methotrexate required to suppress dihydrofolate reduction to tetrahydrofolate by Ehrlich ascites tumor cells in vitro.

Incubation of Ehrlich ascites tumor cells in vitro with [3H]dihydrofolate results in its rapid conversion to [3H]tetrahydrofolate and other radiolabeled compounds, so that dihydrofolate cannot be detected in the cell. When cells are exposed to 10µM methotrexate for 30 min, a condition sufficient to generate intracellular methotrexate in excess of the tightly bound fraction within the cell (exchangeable methotrexate), following which exchangeable intracellular methotrexate is eliminated, conversion of dihydrofolate to tetrahydrofolate is negligibly affected. Even when cells are maintained in a medium containing 0.05 µM methotrexate, following exposure to 10 µM methotrexate, there is virtually no inhibition of dihydrofolate metabolism. However, as the extracellular methotrexate level is increased to 0.1, 1.0, and 10 µM in the second incubation, there is progressive inhibition of tetrahydrofolate synthesis along with a progressive increase in the level of dihydrofolate within the cells, complete at the highest methotrexate concentration employed. Fifty percent inhibition of the cell tetrahydrofolate level requires an extracellular methotrexate concentration of approximately 0.2 µM, comparable to an exchangeable intracellular level of about 0.15 µM. In contrast to the results with dihydrofolate, after treatment of cells with 10 µM methotrexate for 30 min followed by removal of exchangeable drug, there is marked (approximately 85%) inhibition of folic acid reduction to tetrahydrofolate. Residual reduction of folic acid is completely eliminated when the cells are continuously exposed to 10 µM methotrexate. The requirement for free intracellular methotrexate to abolish tetrahydrofolate synthesis appears to be the basis for the observations from this laboratory that free intracellular methotrexate is necessary to suppress [3H]deoxyuridine incorporation into DNA and [14C]formate incorporation into RNA, DNA, and protein. The demonstration in other studies that mammalian cells have a limited capacity to accumulate free intracellular methotrexate supports the concept that this intracellular component of the drug may be an important determinant of cytotoxicity.
Social Determinants of Health: Caveats and Nuances.

Belief in the importance of the social determinants of health is gaining wide acceptance; this useful development will undoubtedly contribute to better public policy and clinical practice. Although the general concept is not contested, several caveats and nuances should be considered…
Control Analysis and Design for Statistical Models of Spiking Networks

A popular approach to characterizing activity in neuronal networks is the use of statistical models that describe neurons in terms of their firing rates (i.e., the number of spikes produced per unit time). The output realization of a statistical model is, in essence, an $n-$ dimensional binary time series, or pattern. While such models are commonly fit to data, they can also be postulated de novo , as a theoretical description of a given spiking network. More generally, they can model any network producing binary events as a function of time. In this paper, we rigorously develop a set of analyses that may be used to assay the controllability of a particular statistical spiking model, the point-process generalized linear model. Our analysis quantifies the ease or difficulty of inducing desired spiking patterns via an extrinsic input signal, thus providing a framework for basic network analysis, as well as for emerging applications such as neurostimulation design.
Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy in Older Adults with Heart Failure.

Heart failure is a disease of poor prognosis marked by frequent hospitalizations, premature death, and impaired quality of life. Despite advances in medical therapy for patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction, mortality and hospitalizations with advanced disease are still increased and the quality of life continues to be poor in this population. The advent of cardiac resynchronization therapy has led to a significant improvement in both survival and symptom management in patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction. Its beneficial effects in the elderly population, however, are not well-defined.
Ephemeral collision complexes mediate chemically termolecular transformations that affect system chemistry

Termolecular association reactions involve ephemeral collision complexes—formed from the collision of two molecules—that collide with a third and chemically inert ‘bath gas’ molecule that simply transfers energy to/from the complex. These collision complexes are generally not thought to react chemically on collision with a third molecule in the gas-phase systems of combustion and planetary atmospheres. Such ‘chemically termolecular’ reactions, in which all three molecules are involved in bond making and/or breaking, were hypothesized long ago in studies establishing radical chain branching mechanisms, but were later concluded to be unimportant. Here, with data from ab initio master equation and kinetic-transport simulations, we reveal that reactions of H + O2 collision complexes with other radicals constitute major kinetic pathways under common combustion situations. These reactions are also found to influence flame propagation speeds, a common measure of global reactivity. Analogous chemically termolecular reactions mediated by ephemeral collision complexes are probably of significance in various combustion and planetary environments. Chemically termolecular reactions — arising from the collision of ephemeral collision complexes with other chemically reactive species — have been neglected in current gas-phase chemical mechanisms of combustion and planetary atmospheres. First-principles calculations reveal that such chemically termolecular reactions constitute major pathways affecting macroscopic observables.
At the Interface of Learning and Cognition:An Associative Learning Perspective

Author(s): Delamater, Andrew R. | Abstract: This paper reviews some of the literature on Pavlovian and instrumental conditioning as they relate to“cognitive” factors in behavior. Studies of Pavlovian learning have centered around the notion that a representation of the unconditioned stimulus plays a critical role in performance. However, much work will need to go into characterizing the nature of the representations that mediate learning. In particular, current research illustrates that “images” and “expectancies” of reward may differ in fundamental ways, and also that learning about temporal, motivational, and sensory properties of reward might involve different systems. The study of instrumental learning also poses challenges for addressing the question of what representations, i.e., associative structures, underlie such learning.Current work reveals a host of associative structures that may participate in learning and performance though how these different structures participate in a unified approach is currently unknown. The associative approach can be contrasted with inferential reasoning approaches to instrumental action, and there are two key findings that seem outside the scope of a reasoning approach. Nevertheless, future work will be required to determine just how far purely associative models will be able to go in order to account for complex behavior.
Thermally tunable infrared metasurfaces

We report a computational and experimental study using tunable infrared (IR) metasurfaces to demonstrate amplitude modulation (59%) in reflectance mode. The tuning was achieved through the addition of an active material — germanium telluride (GeTe) — within the unit cell of the metasurface architecture. An applied stimulus (temperature) is used to induce a dielectric change in the active material and subsequent variation in the absorption and reflection properties of the metasurface in the IR. Additionally, we explore the prospect of dynamic opto-thermal switching for the prospect of fast modulation.
Preexisting psychiatric illness worsens acute care outcomes after orthopaedic trauma in obese patients.

Abstract Purpose Pre-existing psychiatric illness, illicit drug use, and alcohol abuse adversely impact patients with orthopaedic trauma injuries. Obesity is an independent factor associated with poorer clinical outcomes and discharge disposition, and higher hospital resource use. It is not known whether interactions exist between pre-existing illness, illicit drug use and obesity on acute trauma care outcomes. Patients and methods This cohort study is from orthopaedic trauma patients prospectively measured over 10 years (N = 6353). Psychiatric illness, illicit drug use and alcohol were classified by presence or absence. Body mass index (BMI) was analyzed as both a continuous and categorical measure ( Results Statistically significant BMI by pre-existing condition (psychiatric illness, illicit drug use) interactions existed for LOS and number of acute care services provided (β values 0.012–0.098; all p Discussion Obese patients with orthopaedic trauma, particularly with preexisting mental health conditions, will require more hospital resources and longer care than patients without psychiatric illness. Early identification of these patients through screening for psychiatric illness and history of illicit drug use at admission is imperative to mobilize the resources and provide psychosocial support to facilitate the recovery trajectory of affected obese patients.
Geostatistical analysis of intelligent compaction measurements for asphalt pavement compaction

Abstract Although unable to address the issue of spatial uniformity, univariate statistics are commonly used to evaluate the compaction uniformity of asphalt layers nowadays. Intelligent compaction (IC) technology can provide the spatial IC measurement values (ICMV) with 100% coverage during compaction and offers an opportunity to perform the geostatistical analysis on the compacted asphalt layers. In this study, the construction quality of two typical asphalt pavement projects, including one new pavement construction project and one resurfacing construction project, were evaluated by performing geostatistical analysis for ICMV. Some critical issues regarding the use of geostatistical method for the evaluation of construction quality were also addressed by the case studies. The results from the geostatistical analyses show that IC technology can offer detailed information about spatial compaction uniformity. Upon comparison of the spatial uniformity between different layers, the semivariogram after the normal score transformation was suggested due to the measuring depths of the IC roller. The spatial statistics of ICMV could be adopted to monitor the changes in spatial uniformity during compaction. The factors affecting ICMV and geostatistical analysis were further discussed.
Membrane Stabilization by Antioxidant Recycling

Enzymatic and non-enzymatic pathways of lipophilic antioxidant action can be exploited to stabilize membranes. Vitamin E can be enzymically regenerated from its chromanoxyl radicals formed in the course of peroxidation. Chromanoxyl radicals of vitamin E can be reduced by NADPH-, NADH-, and succinate-dependent electron transporting enzymes of microsomes and mitochondria. Ubiquinones can act as co-factors in the enzymic regeneration of vitamin E. Other aqueous reductants (ascorbate, glutathione, dihydrolipoate) can synergistically enhance vitamin E regeneration. Thus, vitamin E molecules (tocopherols and tocotrienols) possess a unique ability to act as membrane free radical harvesting centers due to their regeneration in membranes.
Simultaneous Velocity, Thickness and Profile Imaging by Ultrasonic Scan

Ultrasonic velocity is widely used in the investigation of material properties. Physical dimensions such as sample thickness and surface profile can also be the information sought after in nondestructive testing. In a conventional ultrasonic measurement, however, the measured quantity is usually the time-of-flight, not velocity or thickness. When either velocity or thickness is precisely known, the other can be easily deduced. Unfortunately in many cases, neither the velocity nor the thickness is known to the required precision, or they can both vary spatially. A method is therefore needed to map out the spatial distribution of the velocity and thickness simultaneously. The ability to image the surface profiles that give rise to the thickness variation is also desirable. Simultaneous velocity and thickness scan can be implemented in a number of configurations and have been reported by a number of authors in the literature. This paper focuses on the ability of this technique to image very small changes in velocity and thickness simultaneously. This technique is also extended to map out the surface elevation contours and cross-sectional profiles of a sample. Special considerations for achieving accurate and reliable velocity, thickness and profile images are discussed in detail. This technique for nondestructive evaluation and material characterization is then demonstrated using three industrially relevant materials: (1) plasma sprayed thermal barrier coating, (2) composite laminates containing foreign objects and anomalies, and (3) creep/rupture tested superalloy samples.
The Recent Blue-Green Algal Blooms of Long Lake, Washington

In 1976 and 1977, toxic blooms of Anabaena flos-aquae occurred in the upper end of Long Lake, Washington, an impoundment of the Spokane River downstream from the city of Spokane. A non-toxic bloom of Microcystis aeruginosa followed in 1978 despite significant reductions in phosphorus loading to the reservoir because of Spokane’s new advanced wastewater treatment facility. Microcystis aeruginosa, Anabaena circinalis and A. spiroides pulsed in 1979, but standing crops were substantially less in magnitude.
Isolation and characterization of human monocyte subsets.

Human peripheral blood monocytes manifest several functions in vitro that are thought to be important to host defenses. Monocytes and/or their more differentiated forms exhibit chemotaxis, phagocytosis, bacterial killing, tumor cytotoxicity, and modulation of immunity and hematopoiesis. Peripheral blood monocytes, for all their demonstrable functions, are thought to be cells in transit, i.e., merely passengers in the blood stream traveling from their origin in the bone marrow to their destiny in tissues where they function as macrophages (1–3). Tissue macrophages in animals demonstrate a staggering heterogeneity wherein function differs depending upon the site from which they are obtained, the stimulus which induced their accummulation, and the interval between that stimulus and their collection and testing (4–9).
Methods for MicroRNA Microarray Profiling

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are single-stranded, small RNA molecules of 21-23 nucleotides that are primarily involved in the regulation of gene expression. A number of recent studies have shown that miRNAs play a vital role in signaling pathways important for human oncogenesis and may hold promise as potential biomarkers for cancer diagnosis, prognosis, and therapeutics. Microarray-based expression analysis is an emerging and powerful strategy for initially identifying candidate miRNAs, which can then be correlated to specific biological process such as carcinogenesis, and eventually developed as a molecular signature for a disease state. This chapter presents a protocol for miRNA microarray profiling using the Agilent platform, which is one of the most widely utilized technologies currently available.
Factors contributing to depression in pharmacy residents

We thank Williams et al.[1][1] for their article describing the rates of depressive symptoms among pharmacy residents. Their work adds to the literature and critical discussion of depression rates among healthcare providers. The researchers found the overall rate of depressive symptoms in pharmacy
Positional Stability and Membrane Occupancy Define Skin Fibroblast Homeostasis In Vivo

Fibroblasts are an essential cellular and structural component of our organs. Despite several advances, the critical behaviors that fibroblasts utilize to maintain their homeostasis in vivo have remained unclear. Here, by tracking the same skin fibroblasts in live mice, we show that fibroblast position is stable over time and that this stability is maintained despite the loss of neighboring fibroblasts. In contrast, fibroblast membranes are dynamic during homeostasis and extend to fill the space of lost neighboring fibroblasts in a Rac1-dependent manner. Positional stability is sustained during aging despite a progressive accumulation of gaps in fibroblast nuclei organization, while membrane occupancy continues to be maintained. This work defines positional stability and cell occupancy as key principles of skin fibroblast homeostasis in vivo, throughout the lifespan of mice, and identifies membrane extension in the absence of migration as the core cellular mechanism to carry out these principles.
FATTY KIDNEY DISEASE: A NEW RENAL AND ENDOCRINE CLINICAL ENTITY? DESCRIBING THE ROLE OF THE KIDNEY IN OBESITY, METABOLIC SYNDROME, AND TYPE 2 DIABETES.

Objective: To determine whether fatty kidney disease deserves be designated as a distinct clinical entity similar to fatty liver disease. Methods: Analysis and interpretation of the literature in a novel conceptual framework. Results: The kidney contributes to hyperglycemia, hypertension, inflammatory cytokines, and thus to diabetes and metabolic syndrome. Fat accumulation in and around the kidney drives this process and contributes to progression of chronic kidney disease itself. Weight loss improves these complications of fatty kidney. Diagnosis currently must be inferred from comorbidities but ultimately should be made by imaging once the importance of fatty kidney disease is established, much like fatty liver disease. Conclusion: Fatty kidney disease merits designation as a specific clinical entity similar to fatty liver disease. Greater attention to this may help encourage research into ameliorating the negative consequences of fatty kidney disease and developing new therapies. Abbreviations: BP = blood pressure; CKD = chronic kidney disease; CT = computed tomography; ESRD = end-stage renal disease; FFA = free fatty acid; FKD = fatty kidney disease; GFR = glomerular filtration rate; MetS = metabolic syndrome; MRI = magnetic resonance imaging; NAFLD = nonalcoholic fatty liver disease; RAAS = renin-angiotensin system; SGLT2 = sodium-glucose cotransporter 2; SNS = sympathetic nervous system; T2D = type 2 diabetes; TG = triglyceride.
Modeling and friction estimation for automotive steering torque at very low speeds

The torque developed in the steering system of an automobile is a result of multiple interactions between a tyre and the roadway surface. Models are well established for high-speed ground vehicle o...
Unmanned aerial vehicle based measurement of urban forests

Abstract Urban forests are dynamic and change in response to both human and natural forces. To effectively monitor and manage urban forests, periodic inventories are needed to ensure that information about them is current and comprehensive. This task has traditionally been accomplished by manual ground-based field surveys, or more recently using GIS techniques utilizing remote sensing products, especially lidar. Low-cost Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) employing Structure from Motion (SfM) techniques have the potential to augment these sources for urban forest inventories. We present the results of an analysis of approximately 1000 urban trees and compare accuracy in the measurement of tree heights and diameters from manual measurements, lidar, and Structure from Motion (SfM) from UAV-based imaging. Results indicate that in an urban environment, the SfM method produces estimates of tree height (R2 = 0.96; RMSE =1.91 m) and diameter (R2 = 0.98; RMSE =3 cm) comparable to manual field measurement, and better than those derived from conventional aerial lidar. In addition, the gains in accuracy from SfM come largely from younger, smaller trees that are often poorly imaged with lidar.
Male teachers of color: charting a new landscape for educational research

The manuscripts in this special issue chart a new landscape for educational research on male teachers of color.The contributors examine the lived complexities subsumed under the umbrella of ‘male t...
A Passivity-Shortage Based Control Design for Teleoperation With Time-Varying Delays

This letter investigates the effect of time-varying delays in bilateral teleoperation, with respect to stability and performance, using the properties of passivity-shortage. Until recently, the desired stability and performance characteristics were achieved using the concept of passivity. However, passivity is limited to systems of relative degree zero or one, while passivity-shortage includes systems of higher relative degrees and possibly of non-minimum phase. Passivity-shortage also arises naturally when data transmission is subject to delays, either constant or time-varying. In this letter, the properties of passivity-shortage are employed to design a simple negative feedback controller. We show that the proposed method provides a faster responding solution and improved performance compared to the existing approaches. The performance improvements include improved steady-state error convergence, and robustness against environmental disturbances, even in the presence of varying delays.
Towards Security and Privacy for Edge AI in IoT/IoE based Digital Marketing Environments.

Edge Artificial Intelligence (Edge AI) is a crucial aspect of the current and futuristic digital marketing Internet of Things (IoT) / Internet of Everything (IoE) environment. Consumers often provide data to marketers which is used to enhance services and provide a personalized customer experience (CX). However, use, storage and processing of data has been a key concern. Edge computing can enhance security and privacy which has been said to raise the current state of the art in these areas. For example, when certain processing of data can be done local to where requested, security and privacy can be enhanced. However, Edge AI in such an environment can be prone to its own security and privacy considerations, especially in the digital marketing context where personal data is involved. An ongoing challenge is maintaining security in such context and meeting various legal privacy requirements as they themselves continue to evolve, and many of which are not entirely clear from the technical perspective. This paper navigates some key security and privacy issues for Edge AI in IoT/IoE digital marketing environments along with some possible mitigations.
Reply to Semelidou and Skoulakis: "Short-term" habituation has multiple distinct mechanisms.

The Letter by Semelidou and Skoulakis (1) questions the congruence of our model (2) with current experimental evidence of olfactory habituation. We thank the authors for their Letter and would like to make three points in response. ##### 1) Re: “and is independent of the mushroom bodies, unlike what the authors propose.” To clarify, our model studied the effect of antennae lobe (AL) habituation on the mushroom body (MB) downstream. We did not propose that 30-min habituation itself occurs in, or requires, the MB. Indeed, we directly followed the mechanism proposed by … [↵][1]1To whom correspondence may be addressed. Email: navlakha{at}cshl.edu. [1]: #xref-corresp-1-1
Sixteen facial expressions occur in similar contexts worldwide

Understanding the degree to which human facial expressions co-vary with specific social contexts across cultures is central to the theory that emotions enable adaptive responses to important challenges and opportunities1–6. Concrete evidence linking social context to specific facial expressions is sparse and is largely based on survey-based approaches, which are often constrained by language and small sample sizes7–13. Here, by applying machine-learning methods to real-world, dynamic behaviour, we ascertain whether naturalistic social contexts (for example, weddings or sporting competitions) are associated with specific facial expressions14 across different cultures. In two experiments using deep neural networks, we examined the extent to which 16 types of facial expression occurred systematically in thousands of contexts in 6 million videos from 144 countries. We found that each kind of facial expression had distinct associations with a set of contexts that were 70% preserved across 12 world regions. Consistent with these associations, regions varied in how frequently different facial expressions were produced as a function of which contexts were most salient. Our results reveal fine-grained patterns in human facial expressions that are preserved across the modern world. An analysis of 16 types of facial expression in thousands of contexts in millions of videos revealed fine-grained patterns in human facial expression that are preserved across the modern world.
Disability's Fourth Amendment

The Supreme Court’s Fourth Amendment jurisprudence is under-theorized in terms of issues relating to disability. Across the lower courts, although disability features prominently in excessive force cases, typically involving individuals with psychiatric disabilities, it features less prominently in other areas of Fourth Amendment doctrine. Similarly, scholars have yet to address substantively how the vast scope of police discretion the Fourth Amendment affords renders individuals with disabilities vulnerable to policing and police violence. Although there has been robust engagement with theories of criminalization and social control in critiques of Fourth Amendment doctrine that address race and racism, thus far, only limited engagement with disability and its intersections with other current and historically marginalized subordinated identities has occurred. This article centers disability as a lens for analysis in Fourth Amendment jurisprudence. In the article, I discuss the ways in which disability mediates interactions with law enforcement and how Fourth Amendment doctrine renders disabled people vulnerable to police intrusions and police violence. More specifically, the focus of my critique is on the Terry doctrine, consensual encounters, consent searches, and the objective reasonableness standard under Graham. Applying a disability and critical race lens to each these doctrines, taken together, demonstrates how Fourth Amendment doctrine both fails to adequately protect the constitutional rights of disabled people and reinforces a “normative bodymind” by rendering vulnerable to police surveillance, suspicion, searches, and force those persons whose physical and psychological conditions, abilities, appearances, behaviors, and responses do not conform to the dominant norm. By focusing in on how Fourth Amendment doctrine both erases disability and fails to adequately protect disabled people’s privacy and security interests, I suggest how the doctrine itself renders disabled people more vulnerable to policing and police violence.
Assembling the Career Firefighter Health Study cohort: A methods overview.

Background Studies of World Trade Center (WTC)-exposed rescue/recovery workers report the increased occurrence of health conditions after work at the WTC disaster site. However, the extent to which these associations are due to WTC exposure is unclear, in part due to the lack of suitable comparison groups. Accordingly, we identified a previously assembled National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) cohort of career firefighters from three US cities (n = 29,992). Here, we document the challenges in establishing this non-WTC-exposed firefighter cohort for the goal of tracking and comparing cancer and chronic health conditions in WTC-exposed and non-WTC-exposed firefighters. Methods Follow-up process included institutional review board applications, data use agreements, state cancer registry linkages and vital status determination for the NIOSH firefighter cohort. After completion of these steps, we undertook outreach to the three original city fire departments and union officials, before contact tracing and direct recruitment of 14,566 living firefighters to complete a confidential health survey. We staggered recruitment efforts by the city, using letters, postcards, emails, videos, and telephone outreach. Participants who completed the survey received $10. Results A total of 4962 of 14,566 alive firefighters responded to the baseline survey (34.1% response rate). Respondents were older and more likely to be non-Hispanic white than nonrespondents. Conclusions We provide an overview of the process for the first survey to collect information on physical and mental health conditions among US firefighters. The data collected will have an important impact on studies of WTC rescue/recovery work, firefighting, and related health conditions.
Where's the Beef? Looking for Information in Bacterial Chromosomes

The challenge to those trying to explain chromosome behavior is to identify the critical sequence elements. One might expect that a genome would be under constant selective pressure to expand, adding new genes that broaden the capabilities of the organism. Three aspects of population biology and lifestyle limit this expansion: mutation rate, population size, and recombination frequency. First, if all other factors remain constant, mutation rate limits genome size; beyond a critical point, the genome can expand only if the mutation rate drops. Second, larger populations allow genome expansion because selection is more effective and genes with a smaller fitness contribution can be maintained. Third, sexual recombination allows genome expansion by permitting assembly of intact information sets from those damaged by mutation. Selfish mechanisms used by phage, transposons, and plasmids can also contribute to maintenance of genes that are respectable chromosome residents. The chapter describes some genome features that depend to varying extents on their selfish behavior for their maintenance in the genome. These assumptions can be used in reverse to draw conclusions regarding the fitness contribution of genes based on their genomic position. Two short sequence elements have been extensively studied with regard to their effects on chromosome replication (Ter) and recombination (Chi). In Escherichia coli and Salmonella enterica, the positions and orientation of seven repeated rRNA operons are conserved. Several small sequence elements are found in the genome of E. coli.
Neutron streaming in plate criticals

Questions concerning neutron streaming in the sodium-void columns of LMFBR and helium-coolant columns of GCFR plate criticals are examined. The homogeneous isotropic diffusion coefficient is shown to substantially underpredict leakage in the axial direction. A misprediction of leakage is shown to produce only slight errors in neutron spectrum and such integral parameters as fission ratio. However, eigenvalue and material worths are found to be quite sensitive to leakage. One-dimensional unit cell modeling prescriptions are described which yield accurate cell-average, microscopic isotopic cross sections and Benoist diffusion coefficients in the presence of streaming.
Induced SHIP Deficiency Expands Myeloid Regulatory Cells and Abrogates Graft-versus-Host Disease

Graft-vs-host disease (GVHD) is the leading cause of treatment-related death in allogeneic bone marrow (BM) transplantation. Immunosuppressive strategies to control GVHD are only partially effective and often lead to life-threatening infections. We previously showed that engraftment of MHC-mismatched BM is enhanced and GVHD abrogated in recipients homozygous for a germline SHIP mutation. In this study, we report the development of a genetic model in which SHIP deficiency can be induced in adult mice. Using this model, we show that the induction of SHIP deficiency in adult mice leads to a rapid and significant expansion of myeloid suppressor cells in peripheral lymphoid tissues. Consistent with expansion of myeloid suppressor cells, splenocytes and lymph node cells from adult mice with induced SHIP deficiency are significantly compromised in their ability to prime allogeneic T cell responses. These results demonstrate that SHIP regulates homeostatic signals for these immunoregulatory cells in adult physiology. Consistent with these findings, induction of SHIP deficiency before receiving a T cell-replete BM graft abrogates acute GVHD. These findings indicate strategies that target SHIP could increase the efficacy and utility of allogeneic BM transplantation, and thereby provide a curative therapy for a wide spectrum of human diseases.
Monoclonal B Cell Population in a Patient With Neurosarcoidosis (P5.175)

OBJECTIVE: Associations have been described between sarcoidosis and lymphoproliferative disorders. We present a case of transverse myelitis as the sole manifestation of sarcoidosis with a concomitant monoclonal B cell population identified in the CSF. A 48 year old male with past medical history of pulmonary embolism, insulin dependent Type 2 Diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia presented with six months of gait ataxia, difficulty urinating, and lower extremity paresthesias. Spinal MRI showed abnormal signal and enhancement throughout the cervical and thoracic cord. He was diagnosed with transverse myelitis and underwent extensive workup to identify the underlying etiology. No demyelinating lesions were seen on brain MRI. Lumbar puncture had normal cell counts and opening pressure with elevated protein and glucose (77mg/dL and 159mg/dL respectively). Hemoglobin A1C was 9.1%. Serum testing for NMO antibodies, ACE level, Lyme, HIV, ESR, ANA, RF, SPEP, immunofixation, ss-a/b were all normal, as was an extensive infectious workup that excluded lyme, viruses associated with transverse myelitis and fungal pathogens. Serum ACE, calcium, and vitamin D were unremarkable. One faint oligoclonal band was seen. Cytometry showed numerous small lymphocytes and hematopathology revealed a small monoclonal B cell population with brighter expression for CD20. CT of the chest, abdomen, and pelvis showed prominent mediastinal lymph nodes and an FDG/PET CT scan revealed corresponding FDG uptake. Biopsy of these nodes was positive for non-necrotizing granulomatous lymphadenopathy consistent with sarcoidosis. The patient received two courses of iv solumedrol without substantial improvement and is currently being followed by a hematologist. Neurosarcoidosis presents unique diagnostic challenges due to the diversity of its presentation. The presence of monoclonal B cells in the CSF of this patient initially pointed towards a lymphoid malignancy, however, this finding is relatively nonspecific having been identified in patients with meningitis and demyelination. This case underscores the need for more specific markers for sarcoidosis and to further characterize the underlying relationship between sarcoidosis and lymphoproliferative disorders. Disclosure: Dr. Brink has nothing to disclose.
Process tolerant design of N-tone /spl Sigma//spl Delta/ converters

An N-tone /spl Sigma//spl Delta/ converter is obtained by introducing N zeros in the noise transfer function (NTF) while maintaining a flat signal transfer function (STF). N-tone /spl Sigma//spl Delta/ converters are particularly well suited for multi-carrier systems. Like low-pass and band-pass /spl Sigma//spl Delta/ converters, the performance of this converter depends heavily on the resonator characteristics. Non-idealities in the resonator manifest themselves as a deterioration in the signal to noise ratio (SNR). In this paper, we study different implementations of N-tone /spl Sigma//spl Delta/ converters. We look into the various sources of non-idealities in the converter and their impact on system SNR. Using our understanding of the impact of nonidealities, we present a capacitor mismatch insensitive design for N-tone /spl Sigma//spl Delta/ converters.
Childhood events recalled by children and adults.

Publisher Summary This chapter examines two parallel yet distinctive phenomena of human memory. First, most adults can recall few if any specific events from the early years of life. Second, attempts by preschool children to recall past events on demand-even events of the previous day-frequently are unsuccessful by adult standards. A tantalizing parallelism is evident about the connection, if any, between the paucity of early childhood memories for adults and the limitations of an immature human memory system. The chapter delineates possible connections between early memory development and the difficulties that most adults experience when trying to remember events of their childhood. Two prior questions have to be addressed. First, evidence for the presumed lack of early memories in adults-commonly termed childhood amnesia-has with a few notable exceptions consisted of clinical case studies. Critical new data have been presented in the past few years. So, what is the current scientific status of this concept? Second, systematic studies of preschoolers' memory for naturally occurring events, practically nonexistent 10 or 20 years ago, also have increased sharply in the 1980s. Is a deficiency of memory in early childhood convincingly demonstrated? A review and integration of research on memories of childhood events is timely for two reasons. First, the most compelling evidence has appeared in the last few years and has not yet been synthesized. Second, both adults' and children's recall failures have practical consequences. For adults, reconstruction of early childhood events remains an important component of psychotherapy. For preschool children, the question of whether they can recall specific episodes has become a critical and controversial aspect of legal testimony.
The "tremor diary": a useful tool in the management of patients with tremor.

When caring for patients with essential tremor (ET) and other action tremors in the outpatient setting, a challenge for the clinician is to assess interval changes in tremor severity, particularly if such changes are subtle. Patients are often asked to report whether their tremor has worsened between visits or whether they have experienced an improvement in the setting of a therapeutic challenge with a new medication or an increase in dosage of an existing medication. Conversely, patients may be asked to report whether their tremor has worsened in the setting of a reduction in dosage. In these various settings, patients often have difficulty assessing whether their tremor has changed or improved, and this is made more challenging by the presence of normal day-to-day fluctuations in tremor severity that patients often experience. The patient’s level of anxiety or mood may further affect their ability to objectively assess the severity of their tremor. The tremor on the day of their clinical visit may be influenced by their psychological state or level of fatigue, confounding the neurological examination. In addition, “white coat syndrome” might influence the amount of tremor observed in the office. For several years, one of us (E.D.L.) has used a simple clinical aid to help assess response to medication change. To our knowledge, this method has not been published elsewhere. The goal of this brief report is to share this method with the larger community of movement disorder neurologists and discuss its benefits.
Medium Energy Nucleon Interactions with Nuclei

At this moment it is perhaps appropriate to ask the question what new information about the nucleus is medium energy physics going to give us ? And, if it gives new knowledge will we have to repeat all nuclear reactions which we have been studying at lower energy ? The use of pions as projectiles adds even a new dimension to the wealth of papers and Ph.D. theses which could be produced. As far as protons are concerned I will try to deal with this question by describing to you what I believe to be a few representative cases.
Gastric emptying in patients with diabetes mellitus.

We evaluated whether chronic nausea and vomiting in diabetic patients correlate with abnormal gastric emptying of liquid or solid, or both liquid and solid, radiolabeled meals and recorded the acute effects of metoclopramide. Last, we compared several methods of analyzing gastric emptying data obtained using the γ-camera. Eighteen healthy control subjects and 16 insulin-dependent diabetics with neuropathy were investigated. Ten of the patients suffered from chronic nausea and vomiting; the remaining 6 served as disease controls. Gastric emptying of solid and liquid meals could best be described by the slopes of two linear components and their intercept. Liquid meals generally were handled normally, while solid meals were emptied slowly by both groups of diabetics. A single dose of metoclopramide frequently corrected the delayed onset of the second, more rapidly emptying phase, that is, the major abnormality of solid emptying. The radiologic findings during a barium meal did not distinguish symptomatic from asymptomatic patients. We conclude that abnormal gastric motor function, manifested by delayed emptying of a solid meal or barium suspension, or both, is common in diabetics with neuropathy and that this motor abnormality is not the only cause of chronic vomiting. The beneficial, often short-term symptomatic effects of metoclopramide in these patients appear to be mediated by a combination of 'normalization of gastric emptying and a central antiemetic action.