cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Regioselective Control of the SNAr Amination of 5-Substituted-2,4-Dichloropyrimidines Using Tertiary Amine Nucleophiles

The SNAr reaction of 2,4-dichloropyrimidines, further substituted with an electron-withdrawing substituent at C-5, has selectivity for substitution at C-4. Here we report that tertiary amine nucleophiles show excellent C-2 selectivity. In situ N-dealkylation of an intermediate gives the product that formally corresponds to the reaction of a secondary amine nucleophile at C-2. This reaction is practical (fast under simple reaction conditions, with good generality for tertiary amine structure and moderate to excellent yields) and significantly expands access to pyrimidine structures.
Wealth in America

Preface Part I. Introduction: 1. Wealth and inequality 2. Measuring trends in wealth inequality Part II. Wealth Distribution: 3. Who owns what? the changing distribution of wealth 4. The rich and their wealth 5. The rest of the distribution: the middle class and poor 6. Are Americans getting richer? Part III. Wealth Accumulation: 7. The impact of social and economic trends on inequality 8. Families and wealth inequality 9. Wealth mobility 10. Conclusions and implications Appendix References Index.
Hurricane Studies of New York Harbor

A description is given of the New York Harbor hurricane studies undertaken by the New York District, Corps of Engineers, under authority of Public Law 71, 84th Congress. Results are presented of a ...
MMSE Dimension

If N is standard Gaussian, the minimum mean square error (MMSE) of estimating a random variable X based on √(snr) X + N vanishes at least as fast as 1/snr as snr → ∞. We define the MMSE dimension of X as the limit as snr → ∞ of the product of snr and the MMSE. MMSE dimension is also shown to be the asymptotic ratio of nonlinear MMSE to linear MMSE. For discrete, absolutely continuous or mixed distribution we show that MMSE dimension equals Renyi's information dimension. However, for a class of self-similar singular X (e.g., Cantor dis tribution), we show that the product of snr and MMSE oscillates around information dimension periodically in snr (dB). We also show that these results extend considerably beyond Gaussian noise under various technical conditions.
Information Flow and Expected Inflation: An Empirical Analysis

This article begins by ranking the absolute value of changes in the 10-year breakeven expected inflation (BEI) rates, calculated using 10-year Treasury notes and 10-year Treasury inflation-protected securities (TIPS). Next, a news search is conducted to determine what inflation-related information was released on days when the change in the BEI was greatest. The goal of the analysis is not only to see what information is associated with large changes in the BEI, but also to gain insight into the extent to which market participants accept the three competing theories of price determination: the classic monetary theory, the fiscal theory, and a “Keynesian” model that combines central bank setting of interest rates with the Phillips curve. The author finds that there was no mention of the money supply, the demand for money, or the rate of monetary growth on any of the days on which there was a large change in the BEI. Further, he finds that there was only one mention of the impact of government debt on a day that the BEI changed substantially. In comparison, there were 53 news items on large change days that either explicitly discussed Federal Reserve policy regarding interest rates or focused on the interaction between Fed policy, economic activity, and expected inflation. This suggests that market participants accept the “Keynesian” model of price determination.
Hip joint preservation: Avoiding or deferring arthroplasty?

Abstract Even as prosthetic reconstructions of the hip become progressively more reliable, a great need for nonprosthetic interventions remains to mechanically correct the malformed and malfunctioning hip, especially in young patients. Hip joint preservation for developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH) and femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) in particular can be especially effective when performed precisely in the right patient with correctable pathology.
Mission in Evolving Cultures: Constructively Managing Music-Related Conflict in Cross-Cultural Church Planting Contexts

The choice of music, an essential element of worship and church life, must be addressed in cross-cultural church planting contexts. As cultures evolve, church planters are faced with choices about ...
The effect of internet access on government corruption

The purpose of this paper is to quantify the effect that internet access in a country has on the level of government corruption by studying a cross section of approximately 170 countries. The papers' main model includes political, economic and technological factors that can affect corruption perception. The technological factors focus on internet access. The weighted least square statistical results indicate that the internet is having a positive effect on reducing corruption perception around the world; political factors such as red tape, good governance and freedom of the press appear to have a greater impact than economic factors, of which only the income level was significant. Corruption is a problem that needs to be controlled, if not completely eliminated. Because of the multiple causes of corruption, it is advisable that governments use the internet as one of the many tools available to them to fight corruption.
The Lillie Mae: A Capital Investment Project In Riverboat Restoration

This case involves a proposed capital investment project. It was written for use in an introductory business finance course to present students a capital budgeting scenario involving elements of both an expansion project and a replacement project that is more complex than the usual textbook problems. It also provides students an exercise in the application of standard spreadsheet software to a common analytical problem in corporate finance, namely, a proposed capital expenditure.
Crystal nucleation in Pd-Si alloys

We report here a study of the crystal phase nucleation in undercooled droplets of Pd-Si alloys with composition near the Pd 84.5 Si 15.5 eutectic composition. Molten droplets are released at the top of a drop tube and solidify (to either a crystalline or glassy state) during descent. This provides a containerless (and nearly gravity free) environment so that nucleation due to container walls or vibrations is eliminated. We found that crystallization, due to homogeneous nucleation, is bypassed in droplets of 1 mm diameter when cooled at 760 K/sec. From this an upper limit of the homogeneous nucleation rate is estimated. Results are compared with our previously published study of nucleation in 0.06mm to 0.33 mm diameter droplets, which indicated that nucleation results from heterogeneous surface nucleation and that the number of these nuclei is dependent on the atmosphere in the drop tube.
Insider Trading and Option Grant Timing in Response to Fire Sales (and Purchases) of Stocks by Mutual Funds

Mutual funds experiencing large outflows (inflows) tend to decrease (expand) their positions, creating downward (upward) price pressure in the stocks held in common by them (Coval and Stafford [2007]). This study shows that corporate insiders exploit the resulting mispricing by buying (selling) their company's stock if it is subject to such fire sales (purchases) by funds. We also show that the likelihood of option grants is greater for stocks that are subject to mutual fund fire sales. Finally, we show that both the insider trading and the option granting activities help speed up the correction of the flow-driven mispricing. Overall, this study illustrates that insiders enhance personal benefits by trading on their personal account and influencing the timing of option grants in response to mispricing due to flow-driven fund trading. Moreover, these activities help improve the informational efficiency of stock price.
Seeing Double in the Local Group: Extragalactic Binaries

Abstract Eclipsing binaries, both inside and outside our Galaxy, are proving to be powerful tools for studying a wide spectrum of astrophysical problems. They are also are extremely valuable for providing fundamental quantities such as stellar masses, radii, luminosities, ages and distances. Recently, eclipsing binaries are turning out to be accurate distance indicators for star clusters inside our Galaxy and for determining accurate distances to nearby galaxies – such as the Magellanic Clouds and the Andromeda Galaxy. Also with eclipsing binaries, it is possible to study the physical properties and determine evolution for a wide variety of objects that are lucky enough to be binary members. These objects include pre-main sequence stars, main sequence stars, giants, supergiants, various pulsating stars, white dwarfs, black holes and even exosolar planets. At the present time over 7000 eclipsing binaries have been discovered in Local Group galaxies. These systems are mostly members of the Magellanic Clouds and the Andromeda Galaxy. But also an increasing number of extragalactic binaries are being found as members of dwarf elliptical galaxies and low surface density irregular galaxy members of the Local Group. It will be important to study the properties of eclipsing binaries that have formed in galaxies with vastly different dynamical, star formation, and chemical histories than our home Galaxy. The study of these binaries may provide clues about the star formation rates and dynamics of their host galaxies as well as the possible effects of varying chemical abundance on stellar evolution and structure. An overview of eclipsing and interacting binary star systems in exterior galaxies is presented that traces the development of this emerging field of research. Also discussed are some recent developments and future expectations for the study of extragalactic binaries.
Efficient estimation of semiparametric transformation models for the cumulative incidence of competing risks

Summary The cumulative incidence is the probability of failure from the cause of interest over a certain time period in the presence of other risks. A semiparametric regression model proposed by Fine and Gray has become the method of choice for formulating the effects of covariates on the cumulative incidence. Its estimation, however, requires modelling of the censoring distribution and is not statistically efficient. We present a broad class of semiparametric transformation models which extends the Fine and Gray model, and we allow for unknown causes of failure. We derive the non-parametric maximum likelihood estimators and develop simple and fast numerical algorithms using the profile likelihood. We establish the consistency, asymptotic normality and semiparametric efficiency of the non-parametric maximum likelihood estimators. In addition, we construct graphical and numerical procedures to evaluate and select models. Finally, we demonstrate the advantages of the proposed methods over the existing methods through extensive simulation studies and an application to a major study on bone marrow transplantation.
Applications of Social Networks and Crowdsourcing for Disaster Management Improvement

Emergency resources are often insufficient to satisfy the demands for professional help and supplies in the wake of a public disaster. The authors provide insights into the trends, innovations, and challenges of contemporary crowdsourced e-health and medical informatics applications in the context of emergency preparedness and response.
Evaluation of purebred and crossbred rabbits for carcass merit.

Two hundred twenty-six fryers representing four breed types, New Zealand White (NZW) and Californian (CAL) purebreds, CAL x NZW (CxN), and Flemish Giant (FG) terminal crossbreds (the latter group including FG x CAL, FG x CHA [CHA = Champagne D'Argent], and 1/2FG x 1/4CAL x 1/4CHA), were appraised for carcass merit. Evaluation criteria included the following: preslaughter and carcass weights; pelt, visceral, giblet, abdominal fat, and dressing percentages; percentages of carcass in loin, forequarter, and hindquarter primal cuts; and weight of lean in loin and ratio of lean to bone weight in loin cut. The least squares model consisted of breed type (B), season of birth (S), and gender (G) as fixed effects, B x G and S x G interactions, litter within B and S as a random variable, and random residual. Breed type influenced (P less than .10) all traits except giblet and forequarter cut percentages. Season of birth significantly influenced all all traits except percentage of loin cut. Gender of rabbit affected (P less than .05) only the percentage of forequarter cut. A B x G interaction was observed (P less than .05) for pelt and visceral percentages. The NZW control purebreds were generally inferior (P less than .05) to the three other breed types for carcass yield and cutability traits. Purebreds were lighter for preslaughter, carcass, and loin lean cut weights and lower for loin lean-to-bone ratio than were CxN crossbreds (P less than .05). The FG crossbreds had heavier preslaughter and carcass weights and a lower abdominal fat percentage (P less than .01) than NZW, CAL and CxN. Results of this study provide corroborative evidence in support of terminal crossbreeding using CAL sires with NZW dams and FG purebred or crossbred sires with CAL and CHA purebred or crossbred dams to improve carcass merit.
A simple behavioral electro-thermal model of GaN FETs for SPICE circuit simulation

This paper develops a behavioral electro-thermal model of GaN FETs in SPICE environment for power-electronic circuit simulation. The model couples an available GaN FET electrical model with a thermal RC network for junction temperature estimation, while using modification circuits between the gate driver and device to consider thermal impacts on device performance. Both static and switching characteristics of the developed model are compared with those from the original electrical model. To demonstrate the performance and functionality of the developed electro-thermal model in circuit simulation studies, it is implemented in a boost converter as a benchmark system. Finally, a Double Pulse Tester (DPT) circuit is built and the performance of the developed model is compared with experimental results.
Toward an Energy Efficient Language and Compiler for (Partially) Reversible Algorithms

We introduce a new programming language for expressing reversibility, Energy-Efficient Language (Eel), geared toward algorithm design and implementation. Eel is the first language to take advantage of a partially reversible computation model, where programs can be composed of both reversible and irreversible operations. In this model, irreversible operations cost energy for every bit of information created or destroyed. To handle programs of varying degrees of reversibility, Eel supports a log stack to automatically trade energy costs for space costs, and introduces many powerful control logic operators including protected conditional, general conditional, protected loops, and general loops. In this paper, we present the design and compiler for the three language levels of Eel along with an interpreter to simulate and annotate incurred energy costs of a program.
Inductive Transfer for Bayesian Network Structure Learning

We study the multi-task Bayesian Network structure learning problem: given data for multiple related problems, learn a Bayesian Network structure for each of them, sharing information among the problems to boost performance. We learn the structures for all the problems simultaneously using a score and search approach that encourages the learned Bayes Net structures to be similar. Encouraging similarity promotes information sharing and prioritizes learning structural features that explain the data from all problems over features that only seem relevant to a single one. This leads to a significant increase in the accuracy of the learned structures, especially when training data is scarce.
The Systems Biology of Glycosylation

Glycosylation can have a profound influence on the function of a variety of eukaryotic cells. In particular, it can affect signal transduction and cell-cell communication properties and thus shape critical cell decisions, including the regulation of differentiation and apoptosis. Regulation of glycosylation has multiple layers of complexity, both structural and functional, which make its experimental and theoretical analysis difficult to perform and interpret. Novel research methodologies provided by systems biology can help to address many outstanding issues and integrate glycosylation with other metabolic and cell regulation processes. Here we review the toolbox available for biochemical systems analysis of glycosylation.
MECHANICAL TISSUE PROPERTIES OF THE ILIOPSOAS TENDON: A TENSILE TEST

INTRODUCTION Mechanical tissue properties of some ligaments and tendons have been described in the literature. However, to our knowledge no data exists describing the tensile properties of the Iliopsoas tendon. The iliopsoas complex is in very close proximity to the hip joint running through the psoas notch from the inner side of the pelvis to the lesser trochanter on the posterior aspect of the proximal femur. The tendon muscle complex wraps around the anterior aspect of the femoral head. Hip joint intervention such as total hip arthroplasty (THA) can interfere with iliopsoas function and contact mechanics, and thereby play a major role in the clinically known condition of anterior hip pain. For computer simulations such as finite element analysis (FEA) precise knowledge of soft-tissue mechanical properties is crucial for accurate models and therefore, the goal of this study was to describe the iliopsoas tensile properties using uniaxial testing equipment. METHODS Ten iliopsoas tendons were harvested from five specimens (2 male, 3 female; 82.4 yrs ±7.4 yrs) and then carefully cleaned from any fat and muscle tissue. Two freeze clamps were fixed to each end of the tendon sample. The clamps were submerged in liquid nitrogen for 30 seconds to prevent tendon slip and attached to the test frame and load cell via carabiners allowing the tendon to rotate around its long axis. Width, thickness and initial gauge length of each tendon were measured before testing. The test protocol included 10 cycles of preconditioning between 6 N and 60 N at 0.4 mm/s, followed by continuous distraction at 0.4 mm/s until failure. For each tendon the linear stiffness was determined by fitting a straight line to the liner region on the force-displacement curve ( Fig. 1 ). RESULTS The average linear stiffness of the ten iliopsoas tendons was measured to be 339 N/mm ±81 N/mm and the average failure load resulted in 2154 N ±418 N ( Fig. 2 ). Average width and thickness were determined to be 13.9 mm ±3.2 mm and 3.8 mm ±0.5 mm respectively. The initial gauge length of the ten tendons revealed an average of 56.5 mm ±10.5 mm. CONCLUSION An average stiffness of 339 N/mm and average failure load of 2154 N was found in our experiments. A trend of increased stiffness and reduced failure load with higher age could be observed. Soft-tissue mechanical properties are dependent on tissue geometry such as cross-sectional area and length and therefore can be variable in comparison with other anatomical structures (e.g. patella tendon). To our knowledge no data has been published on the mechanical properties of iliopsoas tendons and therefore results from this research could be used for future simulation models involving the iliopsoas tendon such as FEA analysis to evaluate the effect of anterior hip pain due to soft-tissue impingement.
Cooperative data offloading in opportunistic mobile networks

Opportunistic mobile networks consisting of intermittently connected mobile devices have been exploited for various applications, such as computational offloading and mitigating cellular traffic load. Different from existing work, in this paper, we focus on cooperatively offloading data among mobile devices to maximally improve the probability of data delivery from a mobile device to an intermittently connected remote server or data center within a given time constraint, which is referred to as the cooperative offloading problem. Unfortunately, cooperative offloading is NP-hard. To this end, a heuristic algorithm is designed based on the proposed probabilistic framework, which provides the estimation of the probability of successful data delivery over the opportunistic path, considering both data size and contact duration. Due to the lack of global information, a distributed algorithm is further proposed. The performance of the proposed approaches is evaluated based on both synthetic networks and real traces, and simulation results show that cooperative offloading can significantly improve the data delivery probability and the performance of both heuristic algorithm and distributed algorithm outperforms other approaches.
Estimating a Falsified Model

It is common econometric practice to propose a system of equations, termed the “structure,” estimate each endogenous variable in the structure via a linear regression with all of the exogenous variables as arguments, and then employ one of variety of regression techniques to recapture the coefficients in the (Jacobian) arrays of the structure. A recent literature, e.g., [1], has shown that a qualitative analysis of a model’s structural and estimated reduced form arrays can provide a robust procedure for assessing if a model’s hypothesized structure has been falsified. This paper shows that the even weaker statement of the model’s structure provided by zero restrictions on the structural arrays can be falsified, independent of the proposed nonzero entries. When this takes place, multi-stage least squares, or any procedure for estimating the structural arrays with the zero restrictions imposed, will present estimates that could not possibly have generated the data upon which the estimated reduced form is based. The examples given in the paper are based upon a Monte Carlo sampling procedure.
Universal service policies as wealth redistribution

Abstract This article, which offers a critical reassessment of the underlying rationale for universal service policies, argues that public policies designed to promote universal telecommunications access are simply a form of wealth redistribution. By reconceptualizing universal service subsidies in this way, one can obtain a more realistic assessment of the proper scope and limits of universal service policies. Universal service policies, at best, can play a supplementary role. Economic reforms that encourage investment and promote robust competition are more fundamental to the development of an ubiquitous infrastructure than government subsidies. The redistribution of wealth via telecommunications can ameliorate inequalities, but it cannot eliminate their causes, and advocates should stop pretending that it can. Furthermore, universal service advocates must become more aware of the political and economic risks and pitfalls that are inherent in the process of wealth redistribution.
Assessing implementation of the principles for public credit guarantees for SMEs : a global survey

This paper presents evidence on implementation of the World Bank Group and Financial Sector Reform and Strengthening Initiative "Principles for Public Credit Guarantee Schemes for Small and Medium Enterprises" . The evidence is based on a self-assessment of 60 schemes in 54 countries. Overall, the results show a fairly decent level of implementation of the Principles, especially in the areas of legal and regulatory framework, mandate and eligibility rules, and claim management process. The results also show several gaps where reform and actions may be warranted, namely identification and accountability of funding sources, corporate governance and risk management, prudential regulatory recognition of guarantees, program/product calibration, and reporting and disclosure.
Lithium Plus Valproate as Maintenance Polypharmacy for Patients With Bipolar I Disorder: A Review

Standard pharmacotherapy for the maintenance of treatment of patients with bipolar I disorder consists of lithium, valproate, or carbamazepine. However, many patients fail to respond to monotherapy with any of these agents, and as a result, psychiatrists often resort to polypharmacy. Findings from some open-label trials and retrospective chart reviews suggest this approach may be useful, but in the few controlled trials that have been conducted, the results have been negative. One drug combination that warrants further study as maintenance therapy is lithium plus valproate. Each is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for treatment of acute mania, and lithium has demonstrated efficacy for maintenance treatment as well. Some preliminary evidence suggests that the combination can be effective for patients who do not respond to monotherapy, and it seems to be no more dangerous than monotherapy. Concomitant administration of lithium plus valproate does not significantly alter lithium pharmacokinetics, and statistically significant changes that arise in valproate pharmacokinetics are not clinically significant. Although it is not known whether the drugs interact to augment response, many of their effects in the central nervous system do differ, and there is no indication of pharmacodynamic interactions that oppose each other. Finally, some evidence suggests that lithium and valproate may differ with regard to clinical variables that predict response to treatment. (J Clin Psychopharmacol 1998;18:38–49)Bipolar I disorder afflicts approximately 1% of the U.S. adult population, with a median age at onset of 19 years. In many respects, it is a disabling disease. Acute episodes of mania and depression are often protracted with 24% of patients still acutely ill after 1 year has elapsed, 16% after 2 years, and 9% after 5 years. Subsyndromal symptoms, which impose significant morbidity that falls short of meeting full criteria for a mood episode, may occur frequently. Patients with bipolar I disorder are more likely than not to be unemployed or underemployed, less likely to marry and more likely to divorce than matched control subjects, and almost every family perceives the illness as a burden. Even remitted patients manifest poor psychosocial functioning, Ultimately, nearly 19% of patients die from suicide.
Continued use of antipsychotic drugs increased long-term mortality in patients with Alzheimer disease

Source Citation Ballard C, Hanney ML, Theodoulou M, et al. The dementia antipsychotic withdrawal trial (DART-AD): long-term follow-up of a randomised placebo-controlled trial. Lancet Neurol. 2009;8...
Complications of Chemical Peeling

Procedural side effects and complications of chemical peeling should be considered as distinct entities. Careful preoperative screening and operative technique and attentive surgical follow-up best manage them in the first preoperative week.
Advancing Systems Biology in the International Conference on Intelligent Biology and Medicine (ICIBM) 2015

The 2015 International Conference on Intelligent Biology and Medicine (ICIBM 2015) was held on November 13–15, 2015 in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. ICIBM 2015 included eight scientific sessions, three tutorial sessions, one poster session, and four keynote presentations that covered the frontier research in broad areas related to bioinformatics, systems biology, big data science, biomedical informatics, pharmacogenomics, and intelligent computing. Here, we present a summary of the 10 research articles that were selected from ICIBM 2015 and included in the supplement to BMC Systems Biology.
Forensic Analysis of Packet Losses in Wireless Networks

Due to the lossy nature of wireless links, it is difficult to determine if packet losses are due to wireless-induced effects or from malicious discarding. Many prior efforts on detecting malicious packet drops rely on evidence collected via passive monitoring by neighbor nodes. However, they do not analyze the cause of packet losses. In this paper, we ask: 1) Given certain macroscopic parameters of the network (like traffic intensity and node density) what is the likelihood that evidence exists with respect to a transmission? 2) How can these parameters be used to perform a forensic analysis of the reason for the losses? Toward answering the above questions, we first build an analytical framework that computes the likelihood that evidence (we call this transmission evidence, or TE for short) exists with respect to transmissions, in terms of a set of network parameters. We validate our analytical framework via both simulations as well as real-world experiments on two different wireless testbeds. The analytical framework is then used as a basis for a protocol within a forensic analyzer to assess the cause of packet losses and determine the likelihood of forwarding misbehaviors. Through simulations, we find that our assessments are close to the ground truth in all examined cases, with an average deviation of 2.3% from the ground truth and a worst case deviation of 15.0%.
Resource sharing begins at home: opportunities for library partnerships on a university campus

Purpose This paper aims to demonstrate that academic library cooperation is not only limited to work with other institutions but also includes partnerships with related campus units. The primary goal of interdepartmental collaboration is to enhance student success, a common institutional priority in the twenty-first century. Design/methodology/approach The paper offers examples of successful library/campus collaboration along with goals, advantages, disadvantages and challenges of such activity. Elements necessary for success as well as the importance of project assessment are emphasized. Findings Many opportunities for cooperation exist, especially with student development, centers for teaching excellence, information technology, academic departments, writing centers and more. The Information Commons model in particular offers the academic library many opportunities for shared services. Based on the successes of many colleges and universities, libraries are encouraged to consider and undertake partnerships with other student and faculty support services. Originality/value The paper incorporates an overview of the literature of library/campus cooperation along with the author’s experience to provide a roadmap for future projects at any college or research library.
New Maize Variety Adoption in Mozambique: A Spatial Approach

Farmers in developing countries can dramatically improve their productivity by adopting new plant varieties. Yet, informational barriers often mean adoption rates remain low. In this study, we focus on how learning from others represents one means of removing informational barriers. We capture the effect of social learning through an explicitly spatial econometric model applied to farm-level maize adoption rates in Mozambique. We find that social learning is significant and can help explain the apparent clustering of adoption among farmers. Agencies interested in promoting variety adoption, therefore, would be well served to leverage the strength of existing information networks, rather than imposing solutions that work against interfarmer information flow.
Iridium-Catalyzed Diastereo-, Enantio-, and Regioselective Allylic Alkylation with Prochiral Enolates

Transition-metal-catalyzed asymmetric allylic alkylation of enolates is a powerful method for the formation of carbon− carbon bonds. Within this field, palladium-catalyzed allylic alkylation reactions have undoubtedly been the most studied. Aside from limited cases, palladium catalysts preferentially form the linear substitution product through alkylation at the less-substituted terminus of the allylic electrophile (Scheme 1). However, in contrast to palladium, most other transition metals (e.g., Mo, W, Fe, Ru, Co, Rh, Ni, Pt, and Ir) have been shown to favor the construction of the branched product, with iridium catalysts being some of the most efficient and selective. The potential application of these chiral, branched products to the synthesis of natural products and biologically active compounds has motivated the development of practical and reliable transition-metal-catalyzed methods for their construction.
Learning How to Communicate in the Internet of Things: Finite Resources and Heterogeneity

For a seamless deployment of the Internet of Things (IoT), there is a need for self-organizing solutions to overcome key IoT challenges that include data processing, resource management, coexistence with existing wireless networks, and improved IoT-wide event detection. One of the most promising solutions to address these challenges is via the use of innovative learning frameworks that will enable the IoT devices to operate autonomously in a dynamic environment. However, developing learning mechanisms for the IoT requires coping with unique IoT properties in terms of resource constraints, heterogeneity, and strict quality-of-service requirements. In this paper, a number of emerging learning frameworks suitable for IoT applications are presented. In particular, the advantages, limitations, IoT applications, and key results pertaining to machine learning, sequential learning, and reinforcement learning are studied. For each type of learning, the computational complexity, required information, and learning performance are discussed. Then, to handle the heterogeneity of the IoT, a new framework based on the powerful tools of cognitive hierarchy theory is introduced. This framework is shown to efficiently capture the different IoT device types and varying levels of available resources among the IoT devices. In particular, the different resource capabilities of IoT devices are mapped to different levels of rationality in cognitive hierarchy theory, thus enabling the IoT devices to use different learning frameworks depending on their available resources. Finally, key results on the use of cognitive hierarchy theory in the IoT are presented.
CARTILAGE REPAIR AND KNEE JOINT PRESERVATION

Although cartilage repair has been around since the time of open Pridie drilling, clinical outcomes for newer techniques such as arthroscopic debridement, microfracture (MFX), osteochondral autograft transfers (OATS), osteochondral allograft transplantation and Autologous Chondrocyte Implantation (ACI) are still finding their place in treating injured knees. Early mechanical symptoms are best managed by a gentle arthroscopic debridement of loose articular flaps. This allows the surgeon to assess the defect size, location in the tibio-femoral or patellofemoral joint, status of the cartilage overall and patients response to the intervention. If the symptom improvement is not satisfactory to the patient, after assessing background factors that will influence the results of a cartilage repair procedure, (alignment of the patellofemoral joint or axial alignment, ligament stability and status of the meniscus), the surgeon can choose the best procedure for that individual based on the expected outcomes of the various cartilage repair techniques while addressing the background factors. As all the techniques have failures and informed discussion with the patient prior to performing the procedure is critical in avoiding disappointment for the patient and the surgeon. The repair technique used should incorporate considerations of the defect size, location, and the patient age, activity level, expectations and ability to comply with the longer rehabilitation needed for biological procedures as compared to prosthetic implants.
Professional development, motivation, and community in a Moscow in-service recertification course

Between September 2010 and May 2013, the author conducted six cycles of an 8-week recertification course for in-service English teachers in Moscow, Russia. The course syllabus was built on developing a community of practice, as a motivating factor in teacher development. The community was fostered both during in-person meeting time and online participant interaction. While the participants’ objectives were varied, the overarching goal of the course – beyond knowledge and skill building – was to engender a sense of ownership among the participants, both of the course itself and of their own continuing professional development. This was realized in both small incremental ways, such as launching a new discussion online, and in bolder, farther-reaching ways, such as organizing a mini-conference for a local school district.
Tissue Transglutaminase Activates Cancer-Associated Fibroblasts and Contributes to Gemcitabine Resistance in Pancreatic Cancer.

Resistance to chemotherapy is a hallmark of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA) and has been partly attributed to the dense desmoplastic stroma, which forms a protective niche for cancer cells. Tissue transglutaminase (TG2), a Ca2+-dependent enzyme, is secreted by PDA cells and cross-links proteins in the tumor microenvironment (TME) through acyl-transfer between glutamine and lysine residues, promoting PDA growth. The objective of the current study was to determine whether secreted TG2 by PDA cells alters the response of pancreatic tumors to gemcitabine. Orthotopic pancreatic xenografts and co-culture of PDA and stromal cells were employed to determine the mechanisms by which TG2 alters tumor-stroma interactions and response to gemcitabine. Analysis of the pancreatic The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database demonstrated that increased TG2 expression levels correlate with worse overall survival (hazard ratio = 1.37). Stable TG2 knockdown in PDA cells led to decreased size of pancreatic xenografts and increased sensitivity to gemcitabine in vivo. However, TG2 downregulation did not increase cytotoxicity of gemcitabine in vitro. Additionally, multivessel density and gemcitabine uptake in pancreatic tumor tissue, as measured by mass spectrometry (MS-HPLC), were not significantly different in tumors expressing TG2 versus tumors in which TG2 was knocked down. Fibroblasts, stimulated by TG2 secreted by PDA cells, secrete laminin A1, which protects cancer cells from gemcitabine-induced cytotoxicity. In all, our results demonstrate that TG2 secreted in the pancreatic TME orchestrates the cross talk between cancer cells and stroma, impacting tumor growth and response to chemotherapy. Our study supports TG2 inhibition to increase the antitumor effects of gemcitabine in PDA.
One-To-Many Network for Visually Pleasing Compression Artifacts Reduction

We consider the compression artifacts reduction problem, where a compressed image is transformed into an artifact-free image. Recent approaches for this problem typically train a one-to-one mapping using a per-pixel L_2 loss between the outputs and the ground-truths. We point out that these approaches used to produce overly smooth results, and PSNR doesnt reflect their real performance. In this paper, we propose a one-to-many network, which measures output quality using a perceptual loss, a naturalness loss, and a JPEG loss. We also avoid grid-like artifacts during deconvolution using a shift-and-average strategy. Extensive experimental results demonstrate the dramatic visual improvement of our approach over the state of the arts.
Large time decay estimates for the Muskat equation

ABSTRACTWe prove time decay of solutions to the Muskat equation in 2D and in 3D. In the previous work, the following norms were utilized to prove global existence of solutions to the Muskat problem: In this paper, for the 3D Muskat problem, given initial data for some l≥3 such that for a constant k0≈1∕5, we prove uniform in time bounds of ∥f∥s(t) for −2<s<l−1 and assuming we prove time decay estimates of the form for 0≤s≤l−1 and −2≤ν<s. These large time decay rates are the same as the optimal rate for the linear Muskat equation. We also prove analogous results in 2D.
Scalable Bayesian Learning of Recurrent Neural Networks for Language Modeling

Recurrent neural networks (RNNs) have shown promising performance for language modeling. However, traditional training of RNNs using back-propagation through time often suffers from overfitting. One reason for this is that stochastic optimization (used for large training sets) does not provide good estimates of model uncertainty. This paper leverages recent advances in stochastic gradient Markov Chain Monte Carlo (also appropriate for large training sets) to learn weight uncertainty in RNNs. It yields a principled Bayesian learning algorithm, adding gradient noise during training (enhancing exploration of the model-parameter space) and model averaging when testing. Extensive experiments on various RNN models and across a broad range of applications demonstrate the superiority of the proposed approach relative to stochastic optimization.
Differences in cervical cancer screening knowledge, practices, and beliefs: An examination of survey responses.

Abstract Among the identified barriers to HPV vaccination is the concern that women may compensate for their reduced susceptibility to cervical cancers by reducing cervical cancer screening. This exploratory study examined the relationship between cervical cancer screening rates and HPV vaccination. We conducted a cross-sectional survey using a convenience sample of women aged 21–35 attending a local minority health fair in July 2015. Data were analyzed in 2015–2016. Outcomes assessed were: receiving a Pap test within the last three years, awareness and comfort with current Pap test recommendations, and knowledge regarding the purpose of a Pap test. A total of 291 women were included in the analyses. Mean age was 28.5 years and 62% were non-Hispanic black. 84% had received a Pap test in the last three years and 33% had received at least one HPV vaccine. Logistic regression results showed that women who had been vaccinated did not have lower odds of having a Pap test in the past three years (OR = 1.32; 95% CI = 0.66–2.65). In an adjusted regression model controlling for age and race, vaccinated women were significantly more likely to have had a Pap test (AOR = 3.06; 95% CI = 1.37–6.83). Yet only 26% of women knew the purpose of a Pap test and the proportion who answered correctly was higher among non-Hispanic white women. Women who have been vaccinated for HPV are more likely to have been screened for cervical cancer. These results suggest areas for more robust studies examining pro-health attitudes, behaviors, and communication regarding vaccination and preventive screening.
Pose-Selective Max Pooling for Measuring Similarity

In this paper, we deal with two challenges for measuring the similarity of the subject identities in practical video-based face recognition - the variation of the head pose in uncontrolled environments and the computational expense of processing videos. Since the frame-wise feature mean is unable to characterize the pose diversity among frames, we define and preserve the overall pose diversity and closeness in a video. Then, identity will be the only source of variation across videos since the pose varies even within a single video. Instead of simply using all the frames, we select those faces whose pose point is closest to the centroid of the K-means cluster containing that pose point. Then, we represent a video as a bag of frame-wise deep face features while the number of features has been reduced from hundreds to K. Since the video representation can well represent the identity, now we measure the subject similarity between two videos as the max correlation among all possible pairs in the two bags of features. On the official 5,000 video-pairs of the YouTube Face dataset for face verification, our algorithm achieves a comparable performance with VGG-face that averages over deep features of all frames. Other vision tasks can also benefit from the generic idea of employing geometric cues such as 3-D poses to improve the descriptiveness of deep features learned from appearances.
Quantitative Trait Loci (QTL)-Guided Metabolic Engineering of a Complex Trait.

Engineering complex phenotypes for industrial and synthetic biology applications is difficult and often confounds rational design. Bioethanol production from lignocellulosic feedstocks is a complex trait that requires multiple host systems to utilize, detoxify, and metabolize a mixture of sugars and inhibitors present in plant hydrolysates. Here, we demonstrate an integrated approach to discovering and optimizing host factors that impact fitness of Saccharomyces cerevisiae during fermentation of a Miscanthus x giganteus plant hydrolysate. We first used high-resolution Quantitative Trait Loci (QTL) mapping and systematic bulk Reciprocal Hemizygosity Analysis (bRHA) to discover 17 loci that differentiate hydrolysate tolerance between an industrially related (JAY291) and a laboratory (S288C) strain. We then used this data to identify a subset of favorable allelic loci that were most amenable for strain engineering. Guided by this “genetic blueprint”, and using a dual-guide Cas9-based method to efficiently pe...
Coordinated Path Planning for Fixed-Wing UAS Conducting Persistent Surveillance Missions

Algorithms for fixed-wing unmanned aerial systems (UAS) must integrate on-board sensor capabilities and vehicle maneuver constraints to reliably satisfy the objectives of persistent surveillance, path planning, and trajectory management. In many cases, the characteristic dimensions of sensor fields of view are comparable with the turning radius of the UAS platform. Consequently, when persistent, full area, time-critical coverage is required and the number of assets is limited, the complexity of path planning is increased, as the turn radius becomes comparable with or exceeds the sensor footprint. A technique is developed to integrate persistent surveillance mission requirements with sensor resolution and field-of-view to facilitate efficient path planning. Graph search techniques and spline-based methods are combined to develop computationally simple algorithms that converge to feasible paths with $G^{2}$ continuity. ( $G^{2}$ continuity in this context means the path, which is constructed from a concatenated series of $C^{2}$ curve segments, and its derivatives are continuous through two derivatives, but the magnitudes of second derivatives may differ at the boundaries, where these curve segments are joined to form the entire path. Curvature is continuous throughout.) Two example cases are provided. In the first, the turning radius is small in comparison with the sensor footprint, while in the second, the minimum turn radius is a critical parameter in the determination of a feasible path.
Safe open-loop strategies for handling intermittent communications in multi-robot systems

In multi-robot systems where a central decision maker is specifying the movement of each individual robot, a communication failure can severely impair the performance of the system. This paper develops a motion strategy that allows robots to safely handle critical communication failures for such multi-robot architectures. For each robot, the proposed algorithm computes a time horizon over which collisions with other robots are guaranteed not to occur. These safe time horizons are included in the commands being transmitted to the individual robots. In the event of a communication failure, the robots execute the last received velocity commands for the corresponding safe time horizons leading to a provably safe open-loop motion strategy. The resulting algorithm is computationally effective and is agnostic to the task that the robots are performing. The efficacy of the strategy is verified in simulation as well as on a team of differential-drive mobile robots.
Computations of Torque-Balanced Coaxial Rotor Flows

Interactional aerodynamics has been studied for counter-rotating coaxial rotors in hover. The effects of torque balancing on the performance of coaxial-rotor systems have been investigated. The three-dimensional unsteady Navier-Stokes equations are solved on overset grids using high-order accurate schemes, dual-time stepping, and a hybrid turbulence model. Computational results for an experimental model are compared to available data. The results for a coaxial quadcopter vehicle with and without torque balancing are discussed. Understanding interactions in coaxial-rotor flows would help improve the design of next-generation autonomous drones.