cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Influenza A Virus Polymerase Is an Integral Component of the CPSF30-NS1A Protein Complex in Infected Cells

The NS1A protein of influenza A virus binds the cellular CPSF30 protein, thereby inhibiting the 3'-end processing of all cellular pre-mRNAs, including beta interferon pre-mRNA. X-ray crystallography identified the CPSF30-binding pocket on the influenza virus A/Udorn/72 (Ud) NS1A protein and the critical role of two hydrophobic NS1A amino acids outside the pocket, F103 and M106, in stabilizing the CPSF30-NS1A complex. Although the NS1A protein of the 1997 H5N1 influenza A/Hong Kong/483/97 (HK97) virus contains L (not F) at position 103 and I (not M) at position 106, it binds CPSF30 in vivo to a significant extent because cognate (HK97) internal proteins stabilize the CPSF30-NS1A complex in infected cells. Here we show that the cognate HK97 polymerase complex, containing the viral polymerase proteins (PB1, PB2, and PA) and the nucleocapsid protein (NP), is responsible for this stabilization. The noncognate Ud polymerase complex cannot carry out this stabilization, but it can stabilize CPSF30 binding to a mutated (F103L M106I) cognate Ud NS1A protein. These results suggested that the viral polymerase complex is an integral component of the CPSF30-NS1A protein complex in infected cells even when the cognate NS1A protein contains F103 and M106, and we show that this is indeed the case. Finally, we show that cognate PA protein and NP, but not cognate PB1 and PB2 proteins, are required for stabilizing the CPSF30-NS1A complex, indicating that the NS1A protein interacts primarily with its cognate PA protein and NP in a complex that includes the cellular CPSF30 protein.
Mapping the genomic architecture of adaptive traits with interspecific introgressive origin: a coalescent-based approach

Recent studies of eukaryotes including human and Neandertal, mice, and butterflies have highlighted the major role that interspecific introgression has played in adaptive trait evolution. A common question arises in each case: what is the genomic architecture of the introgressed traits? One common approach that can be used to address this question is association mapping, which looks for genotypic markers that have significant statistical association with a trait. It is well understood that sample relatedness can be a confounding factor in association mapping studies if not properly accounted for. Introgression and other evolutionary processes (e.g., incomplete lineage sorting) typically introduce variation among local genealogies, which can also differ from global sample structure measured across all genomic loci. In contrast, state-of-the-art association mapping methods assume fixed sample relatedness across the genome, which can lead to spurious inference. We therefore propose a new association mapping method called Coal-Map, which uses coalescent-based models to capture local genealogical variation alongside global sample structure. Using simulated and empirical data reflecting a range of evolutionary scenarios, we compare the performance of Coal-Map against EIGENSTRAT, a leading association mapping method in terms of its popularity, power, and type I error control. Our empirical data makes use of hundreds of mouse genomes for which adaptive interspecific introgression has recently been described. We found that Coal-Map’s performance is comparable or better than EIGENSTRAT in terms of statistical power and false positive rate. Coal-Map’s performance advantage was greatest on model conditions that most closely resembled empirically observed scenarios of adaptive introgression. These conditions had: (1) causal SNPs contained in one or a few introgressed genomic loci and (2) varying rates of gene flow – from high rates to very low rates where incomplete lineage sorting dominated as a primary cause of local genealogical variation.
Occult pulmonary lymphangitic carcinomatosis presenting as 'chronic cough' with a normal HRCT chest.

A diagnosis of ‘chronic cough’ (CC) requires the exclusion of sinister pulmonary pathology, including infection and malignancy. We present a patient with a 3 month history of CC who had an extensive workup including a normal high resolution computed tomography of the chest (HRCT) 6 weeks prior to consultation at our center. He subsequently developed constitutional symptoms including weight loss and loss of appetite 5 weeks after initial consultation. A repeat HRCT chest and a subsequent whole body PET scan found that he had developed extensive pulmonary lymphangitic carcinomatosis (PLC) from a colon primary. Treatment of the colon cancer resulted in significant decrease in metastatic disease burden and cough resolution. PLC is a very rare cause of ‘chronic cough’ and incipient/occult PLC presenting with chronic cough and a normal initial HRCT chest has not been previously reported.
Multi-objective simulation optimization on finite sets: optimal allocation via scalarization

We consider the multi-objective simulation optimization problem on finite sets, where we seek the Pareto set corresponding to systems evaluated on multiple performance measures, using only Monte Carlo simulation observations from each system. We ask how a given simulation budget should be allocated across the systems, and a Pareto surface retrieved, so that the estimated Pareto set minimally deviates from the true Pareto set according to a rigorously defined metric. To answer this question, we suggest scalarization, where the performance measures associated with each system are projected using a carefully considered set of weights, and the Pareto set is estimated as the union of systems that dominate across the weight set. We show that the optimal simulation budget allocation under such scalarization is the solution to a bi-level optimization problem, for which the outer problem is concave, but some inner problems are non-convex. We comment on the development of tractable approximations for use when the number of systems is large.
Case Study Using Open Source Additive Manufacturing (AM) Technology for Improved Part Function

The purpose of this study is to validate the design of plastic PLA extruded everyday use parts created in open source 3D printers, and to provide examples of design alterations so a 3D printed part will function similar to the OEM component. The methodology begins with selection of a common everyday use component that may fail under a load and need replacement. As a test specimen an aluminum coat hook is purchased, measured, modeled with 3D CAD software, analyzed and physically tested. Using AM a coat hook with identical specifications is created on a Delta style RepRap 3D printer with PLA as a material in the orientation providing the maximum strength. The 3D printed coat hook is analyzed using finite element analysis as well as physically using a loading apparatus test with identical loading and supporting conditions. The software used for the experimentation and data collection are NX9, ANSYS and NI LabVIEW. Material physical properties of open source 3D printed PLA parts obtained from tensile testing indicate that the strength of a 3D printed part will be less than that of an aluminum OEM part. Initial finite element analysis reveals the Coat Hook 3D printed using PLA deflects almost 20 times that of the OEM aluminum component when subjected to an identical load. This indicates that the component cannot be replaced with identical specifications even if there was a large factor of safety applied to the coat hook design. As a result of the study, part reinforcement features are proposed for redesign of a 3D printed part to perform as well as the OEM part under a similar load. Additional part redesigns utilizing these reinforcement features include shelf support brackets and solar photovoltaic mounting bracket systems.Copyright © 2015 by ASME
DISPERSAL OF ERYTHRONIUM GRANDIFLORUM POLLEN BY BUMBLEBEES: IMPLICATIONS FOR GENE FLOW AND REPRODUCTIVE SUCCESS.

Dispersion du pollen d'E. grandifolium par le bourdon etudie a l'aide du polymorphisme de la couleur du pollen, contribution a la variation du succes reproducteur mâle et au flux genique
Technique for Measuring Female Attractiveness to Sterile Male Boll Weevils (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)

A device, consisting of two 5-cm cube boxes with screen tops and cone-shaped screens opening into the inside, was used to measure the attractiveness of the male Anthonomus grandis Boheman contained inside the 5-cm cube boxes in a screen-covered bottle cap above the screen cone opening. The small boxes were placed inside an enclosed cube boxes in a screen-covered bottle cap above the screen cone opening. The small boxes were placed inside an enclosed plastic box (26 by 35 by 8 cm) provided with a top to contain the loose females. Tests were run for 24 h. Sterile males used in some of the tests had been fed for 5 days on an artificial diet containing diflubenzuron at 100 ppm, followed by a 10-krad acute dose in a 137Cs irradiator. When sterile males were tested against normal males for female responsiveness, the normal males were 1.6 times more attractive for the first 5 days after treatment.
An Archaeological Survey of the Blowouts of Yuma County, Colorado

Ever since Yuma points were recognized as being particularly ancient, Yuma County, Colorado has been a logical area of interest. Nevertheless, until 1941 the county had received scant attention from professional archaeologists, with the sole exception of a partial surface survey by Dr. E. B. Renaud. On the other hand, there had been considerable collecting by local residents, most particularly by Perry and Harold Andersen of Yuma, Colorado, who have amassed a large and valuable collection including numerous Folsom and Yuma points. In 1941 Yuma County was still liberally spotted with blowouts resulting from wind erosion of the sandy soil consequent upon the previous drought. Conditions were, for the archaeologist, optimal. Thanks to Dr. Donald Scott, who arranged that expenses be defrayed by the Peabody Museum of Harvard University, my wife and I were enabled to spend part of the summer and early fall in Yuma County and adjacent portions of other counties.
Why Deep Neural Networks: A Possible Theoretical Explanation

In the past, the most widely used neural networks were 3-layer ones. These networks were preferred, since one of the main advantages of the biological neural networks—which motivated the use of neural networks in computing—is their parallelism, and 3-layer networks provide the largest degree of parallelism. Recently, however, it was empirically shown that, in spite of this argument, multi-layer (“deep”) neural networks leads to a much more efficient machine learning. In this paper, we provide a possible theoretical explanation for the somewhat surprising empirical success of deep networks.
Generalized MM-Tests for Symmetry

Comparing the sample mean to the sample median gives rise to a test of univariate symmetry commonly referred to as the MM-test of symmetry. The general idea underlying this test is that the mean and median are equal at symmetric distributions, but not necessarily so at asymmetric distributions. In this paper, we study properties of a more general form of the MM-test of symmetry based upon the comparison of any two location estimators, and in particular upon the comparison of two different M-estimators of location. For these generalized MM-tests of symmetry, the asymptotic null distribution is obtained as well as the asymptotic distribution under local alternatives to symmetry. The local power functions help provide guidelines for choosing good members within the class of MM-tests of symmetry, e.g. in choosing good tuning constants for the M-estimators of location. A study of the local power also shows the advantages of the MM-test relative to other tests of symmetry. The results of the paper are shown to readily extend to testing the symmetry of the error term in a linear model.
Typologies of Social Support and Associations with Mental Health Outcomes Among LGBT Youth.

Abstract Purpose: Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youth show increased risk for a number of negative mental health outcomes, which research has linked to minority stressors such as victimization. Further, social support promotes positive mental health outcomes for LGBT youth, and different sources of social support show differential relationships with mental health outcomes. However, little is known about how combinations of different sources of support impact mental health. Methods: In the present study, we identify clusters of family, peer, and significant other social support and then examine demographic and mental health differences by cluster in an analytic sample of 232 LGBT youth between the ages of 16 and 20 years. Results: Using k-means cluster analysis, three social support cluster types were identified: high support (44.0% of participants), low support (21.6%), and non-family support (34.5%). A series of chi-square tests were used to examine demographic differences between these ...
General Circulation over North China in Drought and Flood Summers

The abnormal atmospheric circulation related to drought and flood over north China in summer in recent 50 years was analyzed using the data of monthly precipitation at 17 weather stations in north China during the period from 1960 to 2009 and the NCEP / NCAR reanalysis data,such as the average height of potential and wind speed. The results show that there was a significant difference in atmospheric circulation between the drought and flood summers over north China. The general circulation over north China in drought summer was characterized by that,at the middle level,there was a trough of low pressure near the Ural Mountains,but a ridge of high pressure over the Lake Baikal region. There was also a trough of low pressure over the Korean Peninsula,north China was affected by a high pressure,and the Western Pacific Subtropical High was shifted southeastward. At the low level,the Mongolia cyclone was very strong,and an obvious anomaly of northerly winds over east China occurred,so the transportation of atmospheric water vapor from the south to the north was blocked. There was an opposite atmospheric circulation in the flood years. The atmospheric circulation over north China in spring was very similar to that in summer before both flood and drought years.
Heparin-Sclerostin Interactions from Surface Plasmon Resonance and Molecular Dynamics Simulations

Bone tissue engineering focuses on developing tissue constructs that stimulate bone growth. Crucial to this process is promoting signal tranduction pathways essential for bone growth while inhibiting those that limit bone growth. Sclerostin is a protein in the Wnt-signalling pathway that inhibits bone growth. Previous research suggests that the polysaccharide heparin inhibits sclerostin thereby allowing bone growth to occur. However, intermolecular interactions between heparin and sclerostin are not well understood. As such, we have investigated these interactions using surface plasmon resonance and long timescale molecular dynamics simulations. Our results show strong ‘nanomolar’ interactions in atomic detail. Thus, our results confirm that heparin has high affinity for sclerostin and may be a useful polymer for bone tissue engineering constructs.
Undergraduate Laboratory Exercises Specific to Food Spoilage Microbiology

Food spoilage has an enormous economic impact, and microbial food spoilage plays a significant role in food waste and loss; subsequently, an equally significant portion of undergraduate food microbiology instruction should be dedicated to spoilage microbiology. Here, we describe a set of undergraduate microbiology laboratory exercises that focus specifically on food spoilage which were taught in 2 lab periods as part of the undergraduate food microbiology lab curriculum at Cornell University. The lab was broken down into 3 exercises. Two exercises lead students to determine the likely source of contamination in a canned salsa through (exercise 1a) plating and observation of colony morphology and (exercise 1b) determination of the thermal resistance for those isolates. The final exercise (2) involved detection of the spoilage bacterium Alicyclobacillus in apple juice. Spoiled juice demonstrations were also prepared in this exercise for students to observe sensorial changes resulting from spoilage, emphasizing that spoilage is not always visually detectable. Students were able to successfully determine the source of contamination based on the results of their laboratory findings, which they used to make recommendations for production to reduce microbial food spoilage in the canned salsa product. Based on student answers to discussion questions provided following lab exercises, participants were able to (a) identify the significance of microbial spoilage and how spoilage is principally different from food safety, (b) describe varying sensorial changes associated with microbial spoilage, and (c) employ methods and analysis to evaluate sources and type of contamination. Downloadable handouts and stepwise instructions are available as supporting information.
Periodic Incidence in a Discrete-Time SIS Epidemic Model

Mathematical models have continued to increase our understanding of the spread of infectious diseases and their control in both humans and animals. In most infectious diseases, the incidence coefficient or contact rate (the rate of new infections) plays a key role in ensuring that the model gives a reasonable qualitative description of the real disease dynamics. To accurately gauge the impact of infectious diseases prevention efforts, it is important to understand the relation between disease transmission and the host population dynamics. In [8–11], Castillo-Chavez and Yakubu introduced a framework for studying infectious disease dynamics in strongly fluctuating populations. In their model framework, Castillo-Chavez and Yakubu assumed that the host demographics is governed by the Ricker model and the contact rate is constant. However, periodicity in infectious disease incidence is known to occur in chickenpox, measles, pertussis, gonorrhea, mumps, influenza, and other infectious diseases.
Genome-wide DNA methylation profiling in zebrafish.

Genomic DNA methylation functions to repress gene expression by interfering with transcription factor binding and/or recruiting repressive chromatin machinery. Recent data support contribution of regulated DNA methylation to embryonic pluripotency, development, and tissue differentiation; this important epigenetic mark is chemically stable yet enzymatically reversible-and heritable through the germline. Importantly, all the major components involved in dynamic DNA methylation are conserved in zebrafish, including the factors that "write, read, and erase" this mark. Therefore, the zebrafish has become an excellent model for studying most biological processes associated with DNA methylation in mammals. Here we briefly review the zebrafish model for studying DNA methylation and describe a series of methods for performing genome-wide DNA methylation analysis. We address and provide methods for methylated DNA immunoprecipitation followed by sequencing (MeDIP-Seq), bisulfite sequencing (BS-Seq), and reduced representation bisulfite sequencing (RRBS-Seq).
The interaction between thyroid and kidney disease: an overview of the evidence.

Purpose of review Hypothyroidism is highly prevalent in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients, including those receiving dialysis. This review examines potential mechanistic links between thyroid and kidney disease; current evidence for hypothyroidism as a risk factor for de novo CKD and CKD progression; and studies of thyroid functional disorders, cardiovascular disease, and death in the CKD population. Recent findings Epidemiologic data have demonstrated an incrementally higher prevalence of hypothyroidism with increasing severity of kidney dysfunction. Various thyroid functional test abnormalities are also commonly observed in CKD due to alterations in thyroid hormone synthesis, metabolism, and regulation. Although the mechanistic link between thyroid and kidney disease remains unclear, observational studies suggest that hypothyroidism is associated with abnormal kidney structure and function. Previously thought to be a physiologic adaptation, recent studies show that hypothyroidism is associated with higher risk of cardiovascular disease and death in CKD. Summary A growing body of evidence suggests that hypothyroidism is a risk factor for incident CKD, CKD progression, and higher death risk in kidney disease patients. Rigorous studies are needed to determine the impact of thyroid hormone replacement upon kidney disease progression, cardiovascular disease, and mortality, which may shed light onto the causal implications of hypothyroidism in CKD.
Action Assembly Theory

Action Assembly Theory is a group of theories that seek to explain verbal and nonverbal message behavior by describing the system of cognitive structures and processes that gives rise to those behaviors. Central to these theories is the idea that a person's behavior at any moment is an amalgam of a great many elemental features that are selectively retrieved from memory and integrated, or assembled, to form thoughts and overt action. Specific details of three action assembly theories are discussed, and research based on the various theories is reviewed. Keywords: cognitive processes; communication skills; communication theory; creativity; information processing and cognitions
Insert Sexy Title Here: Moving Toward a Sex-Positive Criminology:

Literature on sexuality in criminological contexts exists, yet much of it is sex-negative, employs a “deviance frame,” and regards many sex acts as dangerous or destructive. Although research that ...
Determination of the Neutron Temperature at the Center of the Thermal Test Reactor

The effective temperature of the thermal neutrons at the center of the internal column of the Thermal Test Reactor has been measured by means of a danger coefficient technique. Assuming that the th...
Effect of clinical and laboratory parameters on quality of life in celiac patients using celiac disease-specific quality of life scores

Objectives: Health-related quality of life (HR-QOL) in patients with celiac disease is reduced compared to the general population. We investigated the association between HR-QOL and clinical, labor...
Convergence analysis for anisotropic monte carlo sampling spectra

Traditional Monte Carlo (MC) integration methods use point samples to numerically approximate the underlying integral. This approximation introduces variance in the integrated result, and this error can depend critically on the sampling patterns used during integration. Most of the well-known samplers used for MC integration in graphics---e.g. jittered, Latin-hypercube (N-rooks), multijittered---are anisotropic in nature. However, there are currently no tools available to analyze the impact of such anisotropic samplers on the variance convergence behavior of Monte Carlo integration. In this work, we develop a Fourier-domain mathematical tool to analyze the variance, and subsequently the convergence rate, of Monte Carlo integration using any arbitrary (anisotropic) sampling power spectrum. We also validate and leverage our theoretical analysis, demonstrating that judicious alignment of anisotropic sampling and integrand spectra can improve variance and convergence rates in MC rendering, and that similar improvements can apply to (anisotropic) deterministic samplers.
Polyaspartic Acid Concentration Controls the Rate of Calcium Phosphate Nanorod Formation in High Concentration Systems.

Polyelectrolytes are known to greatly affect calcium phosphate (CaP) mineralization. The reaction kinetics as well as the CaP phase, morphology and aggregation state depend on the relative concentrations of the polyelectrolyte and the inorganic ions in a complex, nonlinear manner. This study examines the structural evolution and kinetics of polyaspartic acid (pAsp) directed CaP mineralization at high concentrations of polyelectrolytes, calcium, and total phosphate (19–30 mg/mL pAsp, 50–100 mM Ca2+, Ca/P = 2). Using a novel combination of characterization techniques including cryogenic transmission electron microscopy (cryo-TEM), spectrophotometry, X-ray total scattering pair distribution function analysis, and attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), it was determined that the CaP mineralization occurred over four transition steps. The steps include the formation of aggregates of pAsp stabilized CaP spherical nanoparticles (sNP), crystallization of sNP, oriented att...
Hypoxia-selective allosteric destabilization of activin receptor-like kinases: A potential therapeutic avenue for prophylaxis of heterotopic ossification

Heterotopic ossification (HO), the pathological extraskeletal formation of bone, can arise from blast injuries, severe burns, orthopedic procedures and gain-of-function mutations in a component of the bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) signaling pathway, the ACVR1/ALK2 receptor serine-threonine (protein) kinase, causative of Fibrodysplasia Ossificans Progressiva (FOP). All three ALKs (-2, -3, -6) that play roles in bone morphogenesis contribute to trauma-induced HO, hence are well-validated pharmacological targets. That said, development of inhibitors, typically competitors of ATP binding, is inherently difficult due to the conserved nature of the active site of the 500+ human protein kinases. Since these enzymes are regulated via inherent plasticity, pharmacological chaperone-like drugs binding to another (allosteric) site could hypothetically modulate kinase conformation and activity. To test for such a mechanism, a surface pocket of ALK2 kinase formed largely by a key allosteric substructure was targeted by supercomputer docking of drug-like compounds from a virtual library. Subsequently, the effects of docked hits were further screened in vitro with purified recombinant kinase protein. A family of compounds with terminal hydrogen-bonding acceptor groups was identified that significantly destabilized the protein, inhibiting activity. Destabilization was pH-dependent, putatively mediated by ionization of a histidine within the allosteric substructure with decreasing pH. In vivo, nonnative proteins are degraded by proteolysis in the proteasome complex, or cellular trashcan, allowing for the emergence of therapeutics that inhibit through degradation of over-active proteins implicated in the pathology of diseases and disorders. Because HO is triggered by soft-tissue trauma and ensuing hypoxia, dependency of ALK destabilization on hypoxic pH imparts selective efficacy on the allosteric inhibitors, providing potential for safe prophylactic use.
Leveled Garbage Collection.

Generational garbage collection (GGC) is one of the most popular garbage collection techniques. GGC gains a performance advantage by performing minor collections on the younger objects in the heap, reducing the number of major collections of the whole heap. A promotion policy determines when an object moves from the younger generation to the older. The design of GGC has been justified by the plausible assumption that many objects die very young, and a few live a very long time. But, attempts to tune the performance of GGC by adjusting the promotion policy have been disappointing—only the simplest immediate promotion policy has proved attractive. The success of GGC is probably due to simplicity and to avoiding scans of the whole heap, rather than to accurate lifetime predictions. This paper presents Leveled Garbage Collection (LGC), a new algorithm that is not based on object ages. It uses a heap structure and collection scheme similar to those of generational garbage collectors, and has a non-age-based promotion policy that doesn’t promote all of the live objects, but still guarantees ample free space immediately after each garbage collection. By tuning LGC’s promotion policy, we can often improve on GGC with immediate promotion. Performance comparisons show that LGC outperforms GGC with immediate promotion policy in many cases, while losing only slightly on cases favorable to immediate promotion. LGC has a substantial advantage when the heap fits in main memory, and an even greater advantage as the heap gets paged to disk.
On the Intersection of Health, Well-being, and Youth Development

This introduction sets forth the thinking that guided the journal’s special issue on youth health and well-being. Three main points provide the foundation: (a) that youth development is predicated on a strengths-based approach, (b) that an ecological approach to youth health is essential for real and lasting change, and (c) that the larger intent of youth development is encompassed in increasing youth well-being, of which youth health is a key component. The guest editors provide an overview of the articles included in the special issue. The articles highlight different settings, describe the processes involved in developing programs, and address organizations’ efforts to enhance youth health and well-being. The reader will also find resources and models that are suitable for use across youth development settings.
Impact of the Elemental Makeup of an IC in Generating Single-Event Upsets From Low-Energy (<10 MeV) Neutrons: A 3-D nand Flash Case Study

Neutron-induced single event upsets (SEUs) have become a significant reliability concern for advanced electronics. Ever-shrinking device sizes and the introduction of new elements in state-of-the-art integrated circuits (ICs) have increased device neutron SEU susceptibility. Various elements found in ICs each have a role in producing SEUs from low-energy neutrons (sub-10 MeV). This paper explores the role these elements play in a case study of a state-of-the-art 3-D NAND flash.
R. Scott Frey and the Unfinished Agenda of Unifying Economy and Environment in the World-System from Extraction to Waste

This essay discusses Scott Frey’s contributions to our understanding of what he called environmental ‘anti-wealth,’ including his analysis of how it is spread to the peripheries of the world-system, and how Frey’s work intersects with other research, including the author’s own, on the ongoing extraction of value from peripheries. In addition to noting Scott’s generosity as a scholar and mentor, Gellert reflects on Scott’s unfinished agenda research agenda, focused on unifying commodification and waste in the world-system.
Simultaneous ipsilateral intertrochanteric and subcapital fracture of the hip: a case report

This article presents a previously unreported subcapital and intertrochanteric fracture which was sustained simultaneously, in a 94 year old man
White Matter Hyperintensities in Patients with Sporadic Hemiplegic Migraine

Background and purpose To identify the differences in overall occurrence, location, and disease burden of white matter hyperintensities (WMH) in patients with sporadic hemiplegic migraine (SHM) and patients with migraine headaches. Methods We included patients who met diagnostic criteria proposed by the third International Classification of Headache Disorders (ICHD-3) for SHM and migraine headache. WMHs were identified using T2 fluid-attenuated inversion recovery axial sequence and classified based upon the location. The disease burden was assessed using Scheltens visual rating scale. Results Fifty patients met the diagnostic criteria for SHM and 100 patients for migraine headache. Patients in the study group were similar to the control group in terms of age (47.7 ± 12.2 years vs. 48.17 ± 9.7 years; P = .814) and gender (M: F; 14:36 vs. M: F 25:75; P = .693). WMH were found in 28 (56%) patients with SHM and 44 (44%) in patients with migraine headache. The proportion of patients with WMH was not different between the two groups (P = .166). On univariate analysis, the proportion of patients with WMH in parietal, occipital, and infratentorial regions was higher in patients with SHM. White matter burden determined by visual rating scale and proportion of patients with lesions ≥5 mm in diameter was also significantly higher in patients with SHM. On multivariate analysis, the WMH occurrence in the parietal lobe (P = .043) was found to be significantly higher in SHM. Conclusions The WMH occurrence in patients with SHM is significantly more in the parietal lobe when compared to those with migraine headaches. WMH burden was also higher in patients with SHM, and larger white matter lesions occurred more frequently in these patients with SHM (compared to ordinary migraineurs).
Measuring land use performance: from policy to plan to outcome

Abstract Research in the transportation-land use domain has led to widespread agreement that development patterns of higher density with a mixture of land uses improve access to employment and housing, reduce vehicle miles traveled, and promote the use of collective and nonmotorized modes. However, the processes through which such development patterns are implemented have been less studied, particularly the linkages between broad land use policy of states or regions and the more specific land use plans, polices, and decisions of local governments. Further, assessments of local land use plans have largely emphasized their policy content; evaluations less often consider whether and how the policies are implemented and whether and to what extent they change outcomes. This chapter provides a brief discussion of land use planning in the United States, and then takes stock of the current knowledge on the quality, consistency, stringency, and implementation of plans and policies. It also reviews the methods and data used to evaluate land use policies, plans, and impacts. The chapter shows that evidence of the efficacy of public policies crafted at state, regional, and local levels is mixed, and that efficacy depends in large part on policy design and implementation context. It must also be noted that many evaluations to date have been narrowly focused on plan content rather than on-the-ground impact. Even among those studies examining actual outcomes, few attempt to tease out the effects of the plan or policy from other factors affecting outcomes. Because policymakers, planning practitioners, and researchers have a significant interest in better understanding whether planning mandates can change land use outcomes, new studies designed to investigate these causal linkages are needed.
A complete design of a RISC processor for pedagogical purposes

In this paper we present the design of an instruction set architecture to address the need of providing a simple but realistic hands-on experience to computer organization and architecture students. To illustrate the goals of (Reduced Instruction Set Computer) RISC processors, we start with DLX architecture and show how we can apply the RISC philosophy and further reduce the DLX instruction set. At the end, students can build a complete pipelined processor in the lab with minimum cost using TTL chips. In this paper we give a recommendation to the chips needed to build this processor hoping that it would be useful for other Computer organization and architecture professors who want to provide their students with a deep insight on processor design.
Dysregulation of Calcium Handling in Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy-Associated Dilated Cardiomyopathy: Mechanisms and Experimental Therapeutic Strategies.

Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is an X-linked recessive disease resulting in the loss of dystrophin, a key cytoskeletal protein in the dystrophin-glycoprotein complex. Dystrophin connects the extracellular matrix with the cytoskeleton and stabilizes the sarcolemma. Cardiomyopathy is prominent in adolescents and young adults with DMD, manifesting as dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) in the later stages of disease. Sarcolemmal instability, leading to calcium mishandling and overload in the cardiac myocyte, is a key mechanistic contributor to muscle cell death, fibrosis, and diminished cardiac contractile function in DMD patients. Current therapies for DMD cardiomyopathy can slow disease progression, but they do not directly target aberrant calcium handling and calcium overload. Experimental therapeutic targets that address calcium mishandling and overload include membrane stabilization, inhibition of stretch-activated channels, ryanodine receptor stabilization, and augmentation of calcium cycling via modulation of the Serca2a/phospholamban (PLN) complex or cytosolic calcium buffering. This paper addresses what is known about the mechanistic basis of calcium mishandling in DCM, with a focus on DMD cardiomyopathy. Additionally, we discuss currently utilized therapies for DMD cardiomyopathy, and review experimental therapeutic strategies targeting the calcium handling defects in DCM and DMD cardiomyopathy.
FONTAN PATIENTS WITH HEART FAILURE AND PRESERVED EJECTION FRACTION HAVE SIMILAR AFTERLOAD BUT MORE FAVORABLE VENTRICULO-ARTERIAL COUPLING THAN FONTAN PATIENTS WITH REDUCED EJECTION FRACTION

The contribution of cardiac mechanics to the heterogenous heart failure phenotypes seen in Fontan patients have not been investigated. The objective of this study was to investigate the differences in mechanics between patients with heart failure and preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) versus those
A Review of Computational Models for the Flow of Milled Biomass Part II: Continuum-Mechanics Models

The design of efficient material-handling systems for milled lignocellulosic biomass is challenging due to their complex particle morphologies and frictional interactions. Computational modeling, i...
A novel digital approach for fixed full-mouth implant-supported rehabilitations: a case report

Successful rehabilitation of a patient's entire dentition with implant-supported fixed prostheses requires restoration of function, esthetics and comfort. To achieve this goal, the clinician and laboratory technician must work in concert with one another to navigate the multiple steps from the patient's initial evaluation to delivery of the final prostheses. Key to this is the ability of the clinician to provide the technician with detailed information regarding the patient's extra- and intraoral characteristics in a manner that can be easily and accurately transferred to the lab bench where it then serves as the foundation for reconstruction of the dentition. In recent years, the impressive evolution of digital technology in dentistry has dramatically facilitated this complex process. The aim of this case report is to illustrate how digital profiles of a patient's facial and intraoral features can be merged with one another and used to generate artificial teeth and gingival tissue of a full mouth implant supported rehabilitation via computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) technology to successfully rehabilitate a patient that initially presented with a terminal dentition. Key words:Facial scan, Zirconia, Implant-supported rehabilitation, Implant-supported prosthesis, Fixed prosthesis, Oral rehabilitation.
Profiling Insurrection: Characterizing Collective Action Using Mobile Device Data

We develop a novel approach for estimating spatially dispersed community-level participation in mass protest. This methodology is used to investigate factors associated with participation in the ‘March to Save America’ event in Washington, D.C. on January 6, 2021. This study combines granular location data from more than 40 million mobile devices with novel measures of community-level voting patterns, the location of organized hate groups, and the entire georeferenced digital archive of the social media platform Parler. We find evidence that partisanship, socio-political isolation, proximity to chapters of the Proud Boys organization, and the local activity on Parler are robustly associated with protest participation. Our research fills a prominent gap in the study of collective action: identifying and studying communities involved in mass-scale events that escalate into violent insurrection.
Eliminating Sharp Minima from SGD with Truncated Heavy-tailed Noise.

The empirical success of deep learning is often attributed to SGD's mysterious ability to avoid sharp local minima in the loss landscape, as sharp minima are known to lead to poor generalization. Recently, empirical evidence of heavy-tailed gradient noise was reported in many deep learning tasks, and it was shown in Simsekli (2019a,b) that SGD can escape sharp local minima under the presence of such heavy-tailed gradient noise, providing a partial solution to the mystery. In this work, we analyze a popular variant of SGD where gradients are truncated above a fixed threshold. We show that it achieves a stronger notion of avoiding sharp minima: it can effectively eliminate sharp local minima entirely from its training trajectory. We characterize the dynamics of truncated SGD driven by heavy-tailed noises. First, we show that the truncation threshold and width of the attraction field dictate the order of the first exit time from the associated local minimum. Moreover, when the objective function satisfies appropriate structural conditions, we prove that as the learning rate decreases, the dynamics of heavy-tailed truncated SGD closely resemble those of a continuous-time Markov chain that never visits any sharp minima. Real data experiments on deep learning confirm our theoretical prediction that heavy-tailed SGD with gradient clipping finds a "flatter" local minima and achieves better generalization.
Investigation of Phylogeny and Drug Resistance Mechanisms of Elizabethkingia anophelis Isolated from Blood and Lower Respiratory Tract

Elizabethkingia species are environmental bacteria associated with opportunistic infections in vulnerable populations. Traditionally, Elizabethkingia meningoseptica was considered the predominant pathogenic species. However, commercial identification systems have routinely misidentified Elizabethkingia anophelis as E. meningoseptica, leading to a mischaracterization of clinical strains and an underestimation of the role of E. anophelis in human disease. Elizabethkingia spp. harbor multidrug resistance (MDR) genes that pose challenges for treatment. Differentiation between Elizabethkingia spp. is particularly important due to differences in antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and epidemiological investigation. In this study, we describe a case of MDR E. anophelis isolated from the blood and lower respiratory tract of a patient who was successfully treated with minocycline. These isolates were initially misidentified by matrix assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight as E. meningoseptica, whereas whole genome sequencing (WGS) confirmed the isolates as E. anophelis with the closest related strain being E. anophelis NUHP1, which was implicated in a 2012 outbreak in Singapore. Several AMR genes (blaBlaB, blaBlaGOB, blaCME, Sul2, erm(F), and catB) were identified by WGS, confirming the mechanisms for MDR. This case emphasizes the utility of WGS for correct speciation, elucidation of resistance genes, and relatedness to other outbreak strains. As E. anophelis is associated with a high mortality and has been found in hospital system sinks, WGS is critically important for determining strain relatedness and tracking outbreaks in the hospital setting.
Disaster Planning: A Practical Guide for Effective Health Outcomes

As disasters become more frequent and severe worldwide, disaster planning as a human endeavor is more important than ever, with the potential to save millions of lives globally. In this important new book, the author offers a practical, step-by-step guide for writing, implementing, and measuring the quality of your own disaster plan to address any threat with an approach that has been tested in public health and medical settings worldwide. Filling a significant gap in the existing literature, this book offers a comprehensive reference for both the principles and the practice of disaster planning. Access to a 25-lecture training course provides ancillary teaching materials for college level courses, offering added value for academic readers. An essential resource for public health graduates and anyone responsible for the management of disasters, primarily public health professionals, emergency physicians, first responders, and emergency managers.
Revisiting Dead Poets Society as a Tool for Studying Applications of Power

In organizational behavior, management, and leadership courses, the topic of power is often a focal point. However, as with many theories and concepts, students sometimes struggle to see the manage...
Microbial Metabolite Butyrate Suppresses Murine Mast Cell Activation

Background: Mast cell is known for its roles in mediating food allergy and regulating gut inflammation. Butyrate, a major short chain fatty acid produced by gut microbiota, exerts beneficial effect...
Approximate Computation of Sojourn Time Distribution in Open Queueing Networks

The method of decomposition of queues has been widely used in solution of large and complex queueing networks for which exact solutions do not exist. We apply the basic paradigm of decomposition in computing approximations to the sojourn-time distribution in open queueing networks in which the service times and arrival processes are non-Markovian. For doing so we have made use of existing results on sojourn time distribution at a single queue. Using these, a queueing network is translated into a semi-Markov chain, whose absorption time distribution approximates the sojourn time distribution of the queueing network. However, the semi-Markov model does not represent the state of the queueing network (i.e., number of jobs at each queue). The state-space size of the semi-Markov models is thus linear in the number of queues in the network. This is achieved by having one state in the semi-Markov model corresponding to each queue in the queueing network, and one absorbing state to denote exit out of the network. The states are then connected together according to the topology of the network. The holding time distribution of a state is the sojourn time distribution at the corresponding queue. This sojourn time distribution must be computed by considering each queue in isolation. We approximate the arrival process to each queue to a phase-type arrival process, and then compute the sojourn time distribution assuming it is a PH/G/1 queue. Once we have the holding time distributions and the routing probability matrix, the absorption time distribution of the semi-Markov chain can be computed. The absorption time distribution approximates the sojourn time distribution of the queueing network.