cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Protein secretion systems in bacterial-host associations, and their description in the Gene Ontology

Protein secretion plays a central role in modulating the interactions of bacteria with their environments. This is particularly the case when symbiotic bacteria (whether pathogenic, commensal or mutualistic) are interacting with larger host organisms. In the case of Gram-negative bacteria, secretion requires translocation across the outer as well as the inner membrane, and a diversity of molecular machines have been elaborated for this purpose. A number of secreted proteins are destined to enter the host cell (effectors and toxins), and thus several secretion systems include apparatus to translocate proteins across the plasma membrane of the host also. The Plant-Associated Microbe Gene Ontology (PAMGO) Consortium has been developing standardized terms for describing biological processes and cellular components that play important roles in the interactions of microbes with plant and animal hosts, including the processes of bacterial secretion. Here we survey bacterial secretion systems known to modulate interactions with host organisms and describe Gene Ontology terms useful for describing the components and functions of these systems, and for capturing the similarities among the diverse systems.
Laser Fusion Target Irradiation Uniformity With The 24-Beam OMEGA Facility

The uniform compression of laser irradiated spherical targets to thermonuclear conditions places exacting requirements on the uniformity of energy deposition. This issue is currently under investigation with the 4 kJ, 24-beam OMEGA laser facility operating at 1.05 μm with 1 ns pulses. Estimation of the irradiation uniformity is made in terms of the amplitudes of specific low order spherical harmonic modes, deduced from precise characterization of the individual beam target intensity profiles. The factors which influence these beam characteristics, and the adoption of measures to improve the overall uniformity are discussed.© (1983) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Age Differences in Perception of Risk

Age differences in perception of risk and the likelihood of disregarding warning signs were examined. A total of 358 adults, between 18 and 85 years old, were asked to rate 12 warning labels with respect to (a) how risky it would be to ignore the warning, (b) how likely it was that they would disregard the warning, and (c) how familiar they were with the labels. The older groups indicated higher risk in ignoring the signs than did the younger group. The older subjects were also less willing to disregard the signs than the younger subjects.
Measuring Tg in ultra‐thin polymer films with an excimer fluorescence technique

An excimer fluorescence technique has been applied to the measurement of Tg of ultra-thin polystyrene films. This technique utilizes an excimer-forming molecule with fluorescent emission in two wavelength bands. The intensity ratio of these bands is a sensitive measure of local viscosity. This technique has been applied to five polystyrene films in the thickness range of 25 nm to 200 nm supported on quartz substrates. The observed Tg for the five ultra-thin polymer films was similar to the bulk Tg with no observed dependence upon thickness. Additionally, the Tg determined for each film did not show any dependence upon thermal history.
Can decentralization be beneficial

Abstract A conventional justification for government hierarchy in the fiscal federalism literature is based upon asymmetry in policy tools or in information access that is available to different levels of government. This paper demonstrates that even if these asymmetries are eliminated, addition of local (regional) governments to a one-tier central government can be strictly welfare improving.
In vitro and in vivo pharmacokinetic characterizations of AMG 900, an orally bioavailable small molecule inhibitor of aurora kinases

AMG 900 is a small molecule being developed as an orally administered, highly potent, and selective pan-aurora kinase inhibitor. The aim of the investigations was to characterize in vitro and in vivo pharmacokinetic (PK) properties of AMG 900 in preclinical species.AMG 900 was rapidly metabolized in liver microsomes and highly bound to plasma proteins in the species tested. It was a weak Pgp substrate with good passive permeability.AMG 900 exhibited a low-to-moderate clearance and a small volume of distribution. Its terminal elimination half-life ranged from 0.6 to 2.4 h. AMG 900 was well-absorbed in fasted animals with an oral bioavailability of 31% to 107%. Food intake had an effect on rate (rats) or extent (dogs) of AMG 900 oral absorption.The clearance and volume of distribution at steady state in humans were predicted to be 27.3 mL/h/kg and 93.9 mL/kg, respectively.AMG 900 exhibited acceptable PK properties in preclinical species and was predicted to have low clearance in humans. AMG 900 is currently...
Neural Modulation of Temporal Encoding, Maintenance, and Decision Processes

Time perception emerges from an interaction among multiple processes that are normally intertwined. Therefore, a challenge has been to disentangle timekeeping from other processes. Though the striatum has been implicated in interval timing, it also modulates nontemporal processes such as working memory. To distinguish these processes, we separated neural activation associated with encoding, working-memory maintenance, and decision phases of a time-perception task. We also asked whether neuronal processing of duration (i.e., pure tone) was distinct from the processing of identity (i.e., pitch perception) or sensorimotor features (i.e., control task). Striatal activation was greater when encoding the duration than the pitch or basic sensory features, which did not differentially engage the striatum. During the maintenance phase, striatal activation was similar for duration and pitch but at baseline in the control task. In the decision phase, a stepwise reduction in striatal activation was found across the 3 tasks, with activation greatest in the timing task and weakest in the control task. Taskrelated striatal activations in different cognitive phases were distinguished from those of the supplementary motor area, inferior frontal gyrus, thalamus, frontoparietal cortices, and the cerebellum. Our results were consistent with a model in which timing emerges from context-dependent corticostriatal interactions.
Association of Reference Payment for Colonoscopy With Consumer Choices, Insurer Spending, and Procedural Complications

Importance Regulatory limits on consumer cost sharing permit wide variation in the prices charged for screening and diagnostic tests such as colonoscopy. Employers are experimenting with reference payment initiatives that offer full insurance coverage at low-priced facilities but require substantial cost sharing if patients select high-priced alternatives. Objective To ascertain the effect of reference payment on facility choice, insurer spending, consumer cost sharing, and procedural complications for colonoscopy. Design, Setting, and Participants The California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) implemented reference payment in January 2012. We obtained data on 21 644 CalPERS enrollees who underwent colonoscopy in the 3 years prior to implementation and on 13 551 patients in the 2 years after implementation. Control group data were obtained on 258 616 Anthem Blue Cross enrollees who underwent colonoscopy and who were not subject to reference payment initiatives during this 5-year period. Main Outcomes and Measures Consumer choice of facility, price paid per procedure, total insurer spending, consumer cost sharing, and procedural complications. Exposures Choices, prices, and complications were compared for CalPERS and Anthem patients before and after implementation of reference payments, using difference-in-difference multivariable regressions to adjust for patient demographic characteristics and comorbidities, procedure indications, and geographic location. Results Utilization of low-priced facilities for CalPERS members increased from 68.6% in 2009 to 90.5% in 2013. After adjusting for patient demographic characteristics, comorbidities, and other factors, the implementation of reference payment increased use of low-priced facilities by 17.6 percentage points (95% CI, 11.8 to 23.4; P P P = .47). In the first 2 years after implementation, CalPERS saved $7.0 million (28%) on spending for the procedure. Conclusions and Relevance Implementation of reference payment for colonoscopy was associated with reduced spending and no change in complications.
Decreased mitochondrial tRNALys steady-state levels and aminoacylation are associated with the pathogenic G8313A mitochondrial DNA mutation

Mutations in human mitochondrial tRNA genes cause a number of multisystemic disorders. A G-to-A transition at position 8313 (G8313A) transition in the mitochondrial tRNALys gene has been associated with a childhood syndrome characterized by gastrointestinal-system involvement and encephaloneuropathy. We have used transmitochondrial cybrid clones harbouring patient-derived mitochondrial DNA with the G8313A mutation for the study of the molecular pathogenesis. Our results showed that mutant mitochondrial cybrids respired poorly, and had severely defective mitochondrial protein synthesis and respiratory-chain-enzyme activity. Mutant cybrids also showed a marked decrease in tRNALys steady-state levels and aminoacylation, suggesting that these molecular abnormalities may underlie the pathogenesis of the mitochondrial G8313A mutation.
From Isolation to Cooperation: An Alternative View of a System of Experts

We introduce a constructive, incremental learning system for regression problems that models data by means of locally linear experts. In contrast to other approaches, the experts are trained independently and do not compete for data during learning. Only when a prediction for a query is required do the experts cooperate by blending their individual predictions. Each expert is trained by minimizing a penalized local cross validation error using second order methods. In this way, an expert is able to find a local distance metric by adjusting the size and shape of the receptive field in which its predictions are valid, and also to detect relevant input features by adjusting its bias on the importance of individual input dimensions. We derive asymptotic results for our method. In a variety of simulations the properties of the algorithm are demonstrated with respect to interference, learning speed, prediction accuracy, feature detection, and task oriented incremental learning.
Query merging: improving query subscription processing in a multicast environment

This paper introduces techniques for reducing data dissemination costs of query subscriptions in a multicast environment. The reduction is achieved by merging queries with overlapping, but not necessarily equal, answers. The paper formalizes the query-merging problem and introduces a general framework and cost model for evaluating merging. We prove that the problem is NP-hard and propose exhaustive algorithms and three heuristic algorithms: the pair merging algorithm, the directed search algorithm, and the clustering algorithm. We develop a simulator, which uses geographical queries as a representative example for evaluating the different heuristics and show that the performance of our heuristics is close to optimal.
Probabilistic arithmetic and energy efficient embedded signal processing

Probabilistic arithmetic, where the ith output bit of addition and multiplication is correct with a probability pi , is shown to be a vehicle for realizing extremely energy-efficient, embedded computing. Specifically, probabilistic adders and multipliers, realized using elements such as gates that are in turn probabilistic, are shown to form a natural basis for primitives in the signal processing (DSP) domain. In this paper, we show that probabilistic arithmetic can be used to compute the FFT in an extremely energy-efficient manner, yielding energy savings of over 5. 6X in the context of the widely used synthetic aperture radar (SAR) application [1]. Our results are derived using novel probabilistic cmos (PC-MOS) technology, characterized and applied in the past to realize ultra-efficient architectures for probabilistic applications [2, 3, 4]. When applied to the dsp domain, the resulting error in the output of a probabilistic arithmetic primitive, such as an adder for example, manifests as degradation in the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) ofthe sar image that is reconstructed through the FFT algorithm. In return for this degradation that is enabled by our probabilistic arithmetic primitives ?- degradation visually indistinguishable from an image reconstructed using conventional deterministic approaches -- significant energy savings and performance gains are shown to be possible per unit of SNR degradation. These savings stem from a novel method of voltage scaling, which we refer to as biased voltage scaling (or BIVOS), that is the major technical innovation on which our probabilistic designs are based.
Innovation leadership honors program: Addressing engineering education needs through curriculum enhancement

The emerging challenges of the “engineer of 2020” have been clearly identified and extensively discussed. It has become evident that there is a crucial need for change in the practice of engineering and the education of future engineers. Specifically, engineering disciplines need to be broadened and enriched to better prepare graduates for working in a constantly changing global economy. In response to these challenges, the Executive Advisory Council of the College of Engineering and Computer Science undertook the task of advising the College on the strategic changes needed in the engineering curricula. As a result a new program was conceptualized and designated by Florida Atlantic University as the Innovation Leadership Honors Program. This program, which we believe to be the first of its kind, was designed as an overlay for our existing curricula in engineering and computer science, and is intended to provide a select group of students an enhanced background and training in innovation, entrepreneurship, leadership, and communication. Program content, criteria and procedures for selection of student participants, Advisory Council participation in delivery of the program, and other administrative details are described in the paper.
Data Clustering of Tolerance Space in MATLAB

This paper introduces an abstract data clustering model and its implementation in MATLAB. The similarity in the model is an arbitrary reflexive and symmetric binary relation, called a tolerance relation. A space with a tolerance relation is called a tolerance space. This paper considers representative clusterings of a tolerance space. Such a clustering is a set of representatives in the space and each element in the space is similar to one of the representatives. In general, a representative clustering is not a partition of the space. A heuristic method to compute a sub-minimal representative clustering is implemented in MATLAB. Finally, the paper demonstrates the clusterings using an example dataset.
The political-economic causes of change in the ecological footprints of nations, 1991-2001: A quantitative investigation

This study tests a series of hypotheses concerning the political-economic causes of change in per capita consumption-based environmental impacts. To test the hypotheses, panel regression analyses are conducted to assess the eVects of level of economic development, export intensity, domestic economy structure, and other factors on growth in per capita ecological footprints of nations, 1991–2001. Analyses conWrm multiple hypotheses: more-developed nations and those with a greater intensity in the services sector experience higher increases in per capita footprints, while manufacturing intensity and export intensity are inversely related to growth in consumption-based impacts. The Wndings support key tenets of treadmill of production theory, uneven ecological exchange theory, export dependence theory, and world-systems theory. © 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Characterization of Electrograms from Multipolar Diagnostic Catheters during Atrial Fibrillation

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common arrhythmia in USA with more than 2.3 million people affected annually. Catheter ablation procedure is a method for treatment of AF, which involves 3D electroanatomic mapping of the patient's left atrium (LA) by maneuvering a conventional multipolar diagnostic catheter (MPDC) along the LA endocardial surface after which pulmonary vein (PV) isolation is performed, thus eliminating the AF triggers originating from the PVs. However, it remains unclear how to effectively utilize the information provided by the MPDC to locate the AF-sustaining sites, known as sustained rotor-like activities (RotAs). In this study, we use computer modeling to investigate the variations in the characteristics of the MPDC electrograms, namely, total conduction delay (TCD) and average cycle length (CL), as the MPDC moves towards a RotA source. Subsequently, a study with a human subject was performed in order to verify the predictions of the simulation study. The conclusions from this study may be used to iteratively direct an MPDC towards RotA sources thus allowing the RotAs to be localized for customized and improved AF ablation.
Advances in Mycotoxin Research: Public Health Perspectives

Aflatoxins, ochratoxins, fumonisins, deoxynivalenol, and zearalenone are of significant public health concern as they can cause serious adverse effects in different organs including the liver, kidney, and immune system in humans. These toxic secondary metabolites are produced by filamentous fungi mainly in the genus Aspergillus, Penicillium, and Fusarium. It is challenging to control the formation of mycotoxins due to the worldwide occurrence of these fungi in food and the environment. In addition to raw agricultural commodities, mycotoxins tend to remain in finished food products as they may not be destroyed by conventional processing techniques. Hence, much of our concern is directed to chronic health effects through long-term exposure to one or multiple mycotoxins from contaminated foods. Ideally risk assessment requires a comprehensive data, including toxicological and epidemiological studies as well as surveillance and exposure assessment. Setting of regulatory limits for mycotoxins is considered necessary to protect human health from mycotoxin exposure. Although advances in analytical techniques provide basic yet critical tool in regulation as well as all aspects of scientific research, it has been acknowledged that different forms of mycotoxins such as analogs and conjugated mycotoxins may constitute a significant source of dietary exposure. Further studies should be warranted to correlate mycotoxin exposure and human health possibly via identification and validation of suitable biomarkers.
The Association between the Use of Urinary Catheters and Morbidity and Mortality among Elderly Patients in Nursing Homes

To determine whether the use of urinary catheters in elderly patients in nursing homes has an independent effect on morbidity and mortality, the authors conducted a 1-year prospective study among 1,540 patients in a stratified random sample of nursing homes. Patient mortality was assessed at 1 year in relation to the presence or absence of a catheter at entry to the study, acquisition of a catheter, and the proportion of nursing home days spent catheterized during the study year. The independent association of catheter use with mortality was assessed by logistic regression analysis adjusted for age, activities of daily living, mental status, skin condition (decubitus ulcers), and 20 medical diagnoses. The effect of catheterization on hospitalization, use of systemic antimicrobial drugs, and mortality was also examined by matched pairs analysis. At entry, 10.5% of patients had catheters, and they tended to remain catheterized during most of the study year. An additional 10% were catheterized during the year. The following factors were found to have a significant independent association with mortality: urinary catheters, age, mental status or activities of daily living, cancer, cardiac disease, diabetes, and skin condition. There was a stepwise increase in mortality with duration of catheterization. Patients who were catheterized for 76% or more of their days in the nursing home were three times more likely to die within a year. The number of hospitalizations, duration of hospitalization, and use of antimicrobial drugs were all three times greater among catheterized patients.
The Digital IdeaKeeper: combining digital library services with support for online inquiry

Major science education standards call on students to engage in inquiry-based science learning where they pose driving questions and collect, analyze, and synthesize information (National Research Council, 1996). Along these lines, we are developing the Digital IdeaKeeper, a scaffolded work environment integrating digital libraries with services and scaffolds to address the challenges learners face in online inquiry. The IdeaKeeper incorporates three overarching areas of support for middle-school learners by providing them with an integrated online inquiry environment that incorporates support for analyzing and synthesizing information they find in digital libraries.
Reductive Functionalization of a Rhodium(III)–Methyl Bond in Acidic Media: Key Step in the Electrophilic Functionalization of Methane

The reductive functionalization of RhIII–Me bonds in acids is a key step for RhI/III-based catalysts for methane functionalization. Heating electronic-rich [tBu3terpy]Rh(Me)(Cl)I (1; tBu3terpy = 4,4′,4″-tri-tert-butylterpyridine) in H2O, AcOD, or trifluoroacetic acid (HTFA) released a stoichiometric amount of methane. With use of a less donating ligand, [(NO2)3terpy]Rh(Me)(Cl)I (2; (NO2)3terpy = 4,4′,4″-trinitroterpyridine), a mixture of CH4 and CH3X (X = Cl, TFA, OAc, OH) was obtained. The selectivity between MeX and CH4 was found to be dependent on the halide present (I– or Cl–). In a key experiment with the removal of one halide from 2, {[(NO2)3terpy]Rh(Me)Cl}{BF4} (3) was completely protonated in acidic solvent. DFT calculations were employed to investigate the mechanism of reductive functionalization and protonation.
Phylogenetic analysis of nuclear ribosomal DNA places the nematode parasite, Drechmeria coniospora, in Clavicipitaceae

The nematode endoparasite, Drechmeria coniospora, was originally described by Drechsler and placed in the hyphomycete form genus Meria, to- gether with Meria laricis, a foliar parasite of Larix (Pinaceae). Although both species produce 1-celled hyaline conidia from serial phialides on hyphal con- idiomata, the new genus Drechmeria was proposed subsequently to accommodate the nematode parasite based on pure culture studies, ecological differences, and having integrated phialides compared to the mainly discrete phialides of M. laricis. Morphological characteristics and phylogenetic analysis of nuclear ribosomal DNA (nrDNA) support the affinity of Mer- ia laricis to the inoperculate discomycete genus of foliar parasites, Rhabdocline. Small subunit and ITS region sequences from nrDNA were determined from an accession of D. coniospora that continued to produce diagnostic features in culture. BLAST com- parisons of the sequences to nucleotide databases re- vealed high similarities to accessions from the peri- thecial ascomycete order Hypocreales. Separate phy- logenetic analyses were conducted using ITS region sequences from Hypocrealean species and partial se- quences from the small subunit of species represent- ing perithecial ascomycetes and inoperculate disco- mycetes. Analyses placed Drechmeria in the hypocre- alean family, Clavicipitaceae. Drechmeria coniospora shares the ecological strategy of animal parasitism also exhibited by some members of Clavicipitaceae. These findings support the separation of the ana- morphic fungi Drechmeria and Meria into distinct genera and indicate that there is no close phyloge- netic relationship between them.
Cyclone Combustor of Coal Water Mixture

Existing problems of dual swirl combustor used in CWM industrial boiler were discussed.A tentative idea and thinks of cyclone combustor was put forward based on the above discussion.The technical feasibility of cyclone combustor has been verified in terms of theory through foundation study.However,a few of technical difficult problems of cyclone combustor were also existed and to be continued the research before popularity application.
CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR CONTROLLED THERMAL EXPANSION POLYMER COMPOSITES

Negative thermal expansion materials are of interest as filler particles in controlled thermal expansion composites.The preparation of high quality composites poses a number of challenges like compatibility of NTE material and composite matrix,stability of the NTE phase,and particle morphology and size,which affect mixing.This paper gives an overview of potential problems that can interfere with composite formation.Promising NTE materials for use as fillers are discussed,with a focus on synthetic control over filler particle size and compatibility.The best particle size control is achieved in systems with crystalline precursors that are related to the target NTE phases through topotactic transformations.
Pseudomonas folliculitis from a health club whirlpool.

PreviewPseudomonas folliculitis is a self-limited dermatitis that can be acquired in poorly maintained public whirlpools. Dr Breitenbach describes a patient in whom folliculitis developed after she used a health club whirlpool, and he reviews risk factors and treatment options. He also discusses the results of testing water samples from three health clubs.
DEVELOPMENT OF A BITE FORCE TRANSDUCER FOR USE WITH ENDOSSEOUS DENTAL IMPLANTS

A method is presented for measuring the apical (vertical) components of in vivo biting forces on an endosseous dental implant in an experimental animal. A removable strain-gaged portion of the dental implant serves as the load-sensing element. In a two-day in vivo trial of the transducer, measurements were made of apical force components on a previously-implanted blade-type implant which was attached to bridgework in the premolar region of a beagle's mandible. The range of measured forces was from 0 to 170N with a “number average” value of 12.7N. It is concluded from the experimental trial that the current transducer can successfully measure in vivo apical force components on a dental implant. Further work is underway to optimize transducer design and performance based on the preliminary concept described in this paper.
Development and Communication of Bayesan Methodology for Medical Device Clinical Trials

This paper presents Bayesian methods that have been proposed for the analysis (O’Malley, Normand, and Kuntz, 2003) and design (O’Malley, Normand, and Kuntz, 2002) of medical device clinical trials. Whereas the referenced papers are methodological, this paper is application oriented. This work is motivated by medical device trials, particularly those of coronary-artery stents (small metallic scaffolds used to enlarge coronary artery segments with plaque narrowing) .However, it has applications to all clinical trials.
Innate immune responses during infection with Yersinia pestis.

Yersinia pestis, the etiologic agent of plague, is one of the deadliest pathogens in the modern world. Y. pestis achieves its virulence in a biphasic manner promoting anti-inflammatory responses during early stage of infection and inducing pro-inflammatory responses during late disease. Multiple host signaling pathways are involved in combating this highly pathogenic bacterium. To understand the molecular mechanisms that are disrupted by Y. pestis during infection, we have been studying major pathways of activation of innate and adaptive immunity induced by toll-like receptor (TLR) and non-TLR signaling pathways, resulting in activation of NFκB or interferons. We found a central role for inflammatory mediators signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 and interferon response factor 3 but not NFκB or adaptive immune cells in mediating host defense against infection. Together, the data reveal delicate intricacies between proliferation of the pathogen within the host and involvement of multiple inflammatory pathways during Y. pestis infection.
Concurrent Mental Health and Sport Performance Enhancement in an Athlete Initiating Behavioral Intervention with No Assessed Pathology: A Case Examination Supporting Optimization

iii CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW 1 CHAPTER 2: PURPOSE OF THE PRESENT STUDY 34 CHAPTER 3: CASE STUDY Case Introduction 36 Presenting Complaints 36 History 37 Assessment 38 Case Conceptualization 45 Course of Intervention and Assessment of Progress 48 Complicating Factors 65 Treatment Implications of the Case 65 Limitations 65 APPENDIX: FBT Interventions Menu 67 REFERENCES 75 CURRICULUM VITAE 108
Oblivious RAM: a dissection and experimental evaluation

Many companies choose the cloud as their data and IT infrastructure platform. The remote access of the data brings the issue of trust. Despite the use of strong encryption schemes, adversaries can still learn valuable information regarding encrypted data by observing the data access patterns. To that end, one can hide the access patterns, which may leak sensitive information, using Oblivious RAMs (ORAMs). Numerous works have proposed different ORAM constructions, but they have never been thoroughly compared against and tested on large databases. There are also no open source implementation of these schemes.These limitations make it difficult for researchers and practitioners to choose and adopt a suitable ORAM for their applications. To address this issue, we provide a thorough study over several practical ORAM constructions, and implement them under the same library. We perform extensive experiments to provide insights into their performance characteristics with respect to efficiency, scalability, and communication cost.
Open label study of ambrisentan in patients with exercise pulmonary hypertension.

A growing body of evidence suggests that exercise pulmonary hypertension (ePH) is an early form of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Identifying the disease at an early, potentially more respo...
Scientific capacity building and the ontologies of herbal medicine in Ghana

The Centre for Scientific Research into Plant Medicine, a large herbal medicine research center in Ghana, has received important research equipment and training through a transnational research col...
Polymeric Delivery Systems

Over the past decade there has been increasing attention devoted to the development of controlled release systems for drugs, pesticides, nutrients, agricultural products and fragrances. However, nearly all of the systems that have been developed have not been capable of slowly releasing drugs of large molecular weight (MW›600). In fact, up until 1976 it was a fairly common conception in the field of controlled release that effective systems could not be developed for macromolecules. However, after several years of effort we discovered an approach that permitted the continuous release of biologically active macromolecules as large as 2,000,000 daltons from normally impermeable, yet biocompatible, polymers for over 100 days (Langer and Folkman, 1976). In this paper we review two areas of our research 1) systems that release large molecules through porous polymer matrices and 2) modulated controlled release polymer systems.
Inferring user emotions using physiological signals from mouse and keyboard

In this paper, we have developed a mouse and keyboard which contains heart beat sensor, temperature sensor and force sensor. These sensors will generate the physiological signals. The signals from these devices will provide us the result for the current user. These results will be processed by the microcontroller and transmitted to the android device through Bluetooth module. The results will help us to determine the user's current emotional state and if found negative it can be altered.
Deriving Relative Weights from Difference Comparisons

The previous two chapters analyzed the case of eliciting information from the decision maker(s) by means of a number of pairwise comparisons. However, in other related domains such information may be elicited in terms of difference pairwise comparisons. That is, instead of asking questions of the type “How many times is item A more important than item B under criterion X?”, now such questions look like “How much is item A more important than item B under criterion X?”.
Research and SF Supervision

Steve de Shazer and Insoo Kim Berg (1997) said, “Ever since I (de Shazer) began practicing brief therapy in the early 1970s, my ‘research’ question was ‘What do therapists do that is useful?’ In the 1980s, we changed this to ‘What do clients and therapists do together that is useful?’” I believe this type of question is very informative when discussing research and SF supervision, but the questions become more complicated because of the additional therapist/client interactional system. Freitas (2002, p. 364) summed up this convolution well when he wrote:
On the hamiltonian completion problem

We define the Hamiltonian completion number of a graph G, denoted hc(G), to be the minimum number of lines that need to be added to G in order to make it Hamiltonian. The Hamiltonian completion problem asks for hc(G) and a specific Hamiltonian cycle containing hc(G) new lines. We derive an efficient algorithm for finding hc(T) for any tree T, and show that if S is the set of spanning trees of an arbitrary connected graph G, then Open image in new window .
Nest predator abundance and urbanization

We used infra-red triggered cameras, point counts, footprint monitors, and artificial nests baited with quail eggs to investigate the abundance of potential nest predators at 75 sites spread across a gradient of housing density in Franklin County, Tennessee. The total number of predators detected at each site showed a shallow positive rise with increasing housing density. Blue Jays (Cyanocitta cristata), domestic cats (Catus silvestris), raccoons (Procyon lotor), and opossums (Didelphis marsupialis) all increased in abundance, American Crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos) decreased in abundance, and the abundance of domestic dogs (Canis familiaris) was not related to housing density. Thus, in our study area, urbanization may increase populations of some nest predators, but not of others. The probability of predation on artificial nests containing a quail egg did not change with housing density, and quail egg predation was correlated only with the presence of raccoons and American Crows. These data suggest that quail eggs may not be an appropriate method for studying rates of predation on eggs or nestlings in urban settings, but may be helpful for assessing the abundance of American Crows and raccoons. More information is needed about how changes in the abundance of predators translates into changes in rates of predation on bird nests, and for studies of how urbanization affects populations of nest predators in regions other than North America and Europe. We also outline two parallel studies of economics and policy that may provide ways to connect conservation biology with changes in land-use planning.
Private Contractual Alternatives to Malpractice Liability

Leading law and economics scholars claim that the best way to reform medical malpractice liability is to permit patients and medical providers to determine the scope of malpractice liability by contract. Contractual liability is superior to any form of tort liability for malpractice, it is argued, because contractual liability benefits those patients not well served by existing tort law, but does not hurt patients who benefit from malpractice liability because these patients can, and will, impose liability by contract. This chapter shows that contractual liability is not necessarily better than tort liability because it can make patients worse off. Proponents of contractual liability asserts that contractual liability cannot make patients worse off because they assume that liability obtained by contract affords patients the same benefits as liability imposed by tort. This is not the case. Medical providers often will be unable to design contracts that enable patients to obtain the same benefits from contracted-for liability as they can from tort liability because tort liability benefits patients through the incentives to invest in care (to benefit all patients) provided by the threat of liability for injuries to other patients, now and in the future. Providers may not be able to replicate this collective, multiperiod liability by contract. Patients unable to replicate the benefits of tort liability by contract may rationally reject contractual liability, even when they would have benefited from (and voted for) tort liability for malpractice. If so, contractual liability makes these patients worse off. Patients also are worse off if they are not sufficiently informed to contract in their own best interests. Accordingly, while malpractice liability reform is essential, policymakers cannot assume that it would be better accomplished by private contracting because contractual liability and tort liability are quite different products.
Insect Flight and Walking: Neuroethological Basis

Insects are, by any measure, the most successful animal group on the planet. One contributor to this success is their ability to move seamlessly through virtually any environment. This capacity has not been lost on engineers who attempt to build agile robots. However, no current robot moves with an insect’s agility and adaptability. A great deal of this capacity arises from remarkable control systems that process large amounts of sensory data, both locally in thoracic ganglia and in brain circuits, and then use this information to control and modify movements as needed. This article will review these systems.
Approaches for Dynamic IR N ano-Optics using 2D Materials

The current state-of-the-art in materials used for IR optical components (e.g. focusing elements, waveplates or prisms) is far from ideal. This problem is exacerbated by the long free-space wavelengths associated with the mid-wave IR (MWIR) to terahertz (THz) spectral domains. Through the use of polaritons, one can surpass the diffraction limit and thus the limitations of these long free-space wavelengths can be circumvented. The two most prevalent varieties are the surface plasmon (SPP) and surface phonon polariton (SPhP), resulting from the coupling of light with electronic charges in a metal or ionic charges on a polar lattice, respectively. Each exhibits significant limitations, for instance the narrow, material specific operational “Reststrahlen band” of SPhPs and the relatively high optical losses in SPPs. Thus, it would be ideal to identify a method to dictate the IR/THz response, while retaining the positive attributes of both.
From index to network: topic maps in the Enhanced Networked Monographs project

The Enhanced Networked Monographs (ENM) project was an experimental publishing project funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and carried out from 2015 to 2018. Over the course of the project, m...
Nucleoside Analogs with Antiviral Activity against Yellow Fever Virus.

Yellow fever virus (YFV) is a human Flavivirus reemerging in parts of the world. While a vaccine is available, large outbreaks have recently occurred in Brazil and certain African countries. Development of an effective antiviral against YFV is crucial, as there is no available effective drug against YFV. We have identified several novel nucleoside analogs with potent antiviral activity against YFV with 50% effective concentration (EC50) values between 0.25 and 1 μM with selectivity indices over 100 in culture.
Designing a Professional Development Course Sequence to Address Standard 4 Elements Using a CPD Framework.

ACPE defines personal and professional development as an expected outcome of the Doctor of Pharmacy degree program, but there is scarce data in the literature discussing methods for systematically addressing these concepts in curricula. This paper describes the development and attributes of a four-year professional development course sequence within a college of pharmacy designed to develop students’ knowledge, skills, abilities, behaviors, and attitudes necessary to demonstrate self-awareness, leadership, innovation and entrepreneurship, and professionalism through their life-long career. Each course has at least one required activity addressing each of the four elements of Standard 4. The continuous professional development framework is used as a backbone to the course sequence structure, utilizing the four elements of CPD—reflect, plan, act, evaluate. Article Type: Note
Perceptions of plea bargains for driving under the influence (DUI) cases involving alcohol and marijuana

Two experiments investigated plea bargains in a mock driving under the influence (DUI) case. In each experiment, participants (78 [47 females and 31 males] in Experiment 1 and 92 [48 females and 44...
Physical Activity Patterns in Children and Adolescents With Heart Disease.

PURPOSE To quantify the differences in daily physical activity (PA) patterns, intensity-specific volumes, and PA bouts in youth with and without heart disease (HD). METHODS Seven-day PA was measured on children/adolescents with HD (n = 34; median age 12.4 y; 61.8% male; 70.6% single ventricle, 17.7% heart failure, and 11.8% pulmonary hypertension) and controls without HD (n = 22; median age 12.3 y; 59.1% male). Mean counts per minute were classified as sedentary, light, and moderate to vigorous PA (MVPA), and bouts of MVPA were calculated. PA was calculated separately for each hour of wear time from 8:00 to 22:00. Multilevel linear mixed modeling compared the outcomes, stratifying by group, time of day, and day part (presented as median percentage of valid wear time [interquartile range]). RESULTS Compared with the controls, the HD group had more light PA (33.9% [15%] vs 29.6% [9.5%]), less MVPA (1.7% [2.5%] vs 3.2% [3.3%]), and more sporadic bouts (97.4% [5.7%] vs 89.9% [9.2%]), but fewer short (2.0% [3.9%] vs 7.1% [5.7%]) and medium-to-long bouts (0.0% [1.9%] vs 1.6% [4.6%]) of MVPA. The HD group was less active in the late afternoon, between 15:00 and 17:00 (P < .03). There were no differences between groups in sedentary time. CONCLUSION Children/adolescents with HD exhibit differences in intensity-specific volumes, PA bouts, and daily PA patterns compared with controls.
A simulation model to determine the economic value of changing diagnostic characteristics for identifying bovine respiratory disease

Bovine respiratory disease (BRD) is an economically important syndrome in the beef industry, and diagnostic accuracy is important for optimal disease management. Diagnostic test improvements are typically focused on changing sensitivity or specificity, but enhancement in both simultaneously is rare. The research objective was to determine whether improving diagnostic sensitivity or specificity was of greater economic value at varied levels of BRD prevalence by the use of Monte Carlo simulation.
Early experience with universal SARS-CoV-2 testing in a New York-based reproductive endocrinology practice.

The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic peak around March 2020 led to temporary closures of most fertility clinics. Many clinics reopened but required universal SARS-CoV-2 screening. However, the rate of positive ...
1-year outcomes for lung transplantation recipients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

Advanced hepatic fibrosis and cirrhosis are absolute contraindications to lung transplantation. [1] However, whether fatty liver disease with mild-moderate fibrosis contributes to increased adverse outcomes post-lung transplantation remains unknown. We present a retrospective analysis of patients transplanted at Brigham and Women9s Hospital between 2015–2017 to identify whether patients with mild-moderate non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) experience increased short-term complications compared to patients with normal liver architecture. Patients with advanced (F3–F4) fibrosis and/or cirrhosis were considered non-suitable transplant candidates, a priori. This study was powered for a difference in index hospital-free days within the first 30 days of 25% (alpha=0.05, beta=0.8). Secondary outcomes included index intensive care unit (ICU) free days within the first 10 days post-transplant, perioperative blood product transfusion, incidence of index hospitalisation arrhythmias and delirium, need for insulin on discharge post-transplant, tacrolimus dose required to maintain a trough of 8–12 ng·mL−1 at index hospital discharge, and 1-year post-transplant incidence of insulin-dependent diabetes, acute kidney injury, acute cellular rejection, unplanned hospital readmissions, and infection. One hundred fifty patients underwent lung transplantation between 2015–2017 and were included in the analysis; of these patients 40 (27%) had evidence of NAFLD. Median index hospital-free days for patients with NAFLD were non-inferior to those without (16 days, IQR 10.5–19.5 versus 12 days, IQR 0–18.0, p= 0.03). Regarding secondary outcomes, both index hospitalisation and 1-year outcomes were non-inferior between patients with NAFLD and those with normal liver architecture. This study demonstrates that mild-moderate severity NAFLD may not be a contraindication to lung transplantation.
Chapter 7 – Hydrogenases, Hydrogen Production, and Anoxia

Publisher Summary The focus of this chapter is hydrogenase activity, which remains unresolved and new advances are required to define more clearly the metabolic and enzymatic activities. The metabolisms carried out by hydrogenase viz. H2 metabolism and fermentative metabolism are elaborated here. Hydrogenases are the focus of research efforts aimed at producing H2 a renewable, non-polluting energy carrier, and organisms such as Chlamydomonasare currently being emphasized since they have the ability to couple H2 production to photosynthesis. Hydrogenases are the focus of research efforts aimed at producing H2 as a renewable, non-polluting energy carrier, and organisms such as Chlamydomonas are currently being emphasized since they have the ability to couple H2 production to photosynthesis. However, more efficient interactions with the photosynthetic electron-transport chain under oxygenic conditions and/or an O2-tolerant enzyme is probably required to improve yields. Several contemporary studies examining hydrogenases and H2 metabolism in Chlamydomonas have provided substantial insights into the fields of H2 photoproduction, hydrogenase activity and maturation, and anoxic algal physiology.
Reversible nucleophilic addition can lower the observed enantioselectivity in palladium-catalyzed allylic amination reactions with a variety of chiral ligands

Abstract Palladium-catalyzed allylic amination is an important synthetic reaction that is also frequently used as a benchmark for the design and evaluation of new chiral ligands. The effect of reversible nucleophilic addition on the reaction of benzylamine with ( E )-1,3-diphenylallyl ethyl carbonate ( 1 ) in CH 2 Cl 2 was examined with 12 different chiral ligands across a range of scaffolding types. In 8 out of 12 cases the observed ee was significantly higher when DBU or Cs 2 CO 3 was added to suppress the proton-driven reversibility. For chiral ligand screening with this test reaction, adding DBU or Cs 2 CO 3 provides a better measure of the ligand’s inherent enantioselectivity.