cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Clinical Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics of Evolocumab, a PCSK9 Inhibitor.

Proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) increases plasma low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) by decreasing expression of the LDL receptor on hepatic cells. Evolocumab is a human monoclonal immunoglobulin G2 that binds specifically to human PCSK9 to reduce LDL-C. Evolocumab exhibits nonlinear kinetics as a result of binding to PCSK9. Elimination is predominantly through saturable binding to PCSK9 at lower concentrations and a nonsaturable proteolytic pathway at higher concentrations. The effective half-life of evolocumab is 11–17 days. The pharmacodynamic effects of evolocumab on PCSK9 are rapid, with maximum suppression within 4 h. At steady state, peak reduction of LDL-C occurs approximately 1 week after a subcutaneous dose of 140 mg every 2 weeks (Q2W) and 2 weeks after a subcutaneous dose 420 mg once monthly (QM), and returns towards baseline over the dosing interval. In several clinical studies, these doses of evolocumab reduced LDL-C by approximately 55–75% compared with placebo. Evolocumab also reduced lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] levels and improved those of other lipids in clinical studies. No clinically meaningful differences in pharmacodynamic effects on LDL-C were observed in adult subjects regardless of mild/moderate hepatic impairment, renal impairment or renal failure, body weight, race, sex, or age. No clinically meaningful differences were observed for the pharmacodynamic effects of evolocumab on LDL-C between patients who received evolocumab alone or in combination with a statin, resulting in additional lowering of LDL-C when evolocumab was combined with a statin. No dose adjustment is necessary based on patient-specific factors or concomitant medication use.
Optomechanical entanglement of remote microwave cavities

We examine the entanglement properties of a system that represents two driven microwave cavities, each optomechanically coupled to two separate driven optical cavities, which are connected by a single-mode optical fiber. The results suggest that it may be possible to achieve near-maximal entanglement of the microwave cavities, thus allowing a teleportation scheme to enable interactions for hybrid quantum computing of superconducting qubits with optical interconnects.
Introduction: Toward the Theoretical Biology of Vascular Morphogenesis

Since its publication in 1917, On Growth and Form, the classical work of Scottish zoologist D’Arcy Thompson, has attracted investigators from different fields and with different backgrounds to the study of biological form in mathematical terms. The five chapters of the Part III of our book are devoted to mathematical modeling and computer simulation of vascular morphogenesis. It clearly demonstrates that vascular morphogenesis is becoming mature field with established broad spectrum of hypotheses, theories, assumptions, postulates, and experimental data which are suitable for mathematical analysis and modeling as well as computer simulation. From another point of view, these chapters indicate the emergence of a new field in the study of vascular morphogenesis which we propose to call vascular morphogenesis in mente (from the Latin word mente—a mind). We think that this term will fit better than other proposed terms (in numero, in computero) with the logic of the existing classification of research based on topological principles (where was experiment performed? in vivo, in vitro, in mente). The existing mathematical models of vascular morphogenesis may be classified into at least four basic groups: (a) models based on chemical gradients of activators and inhibitors of angiogenesis (Meinhardt, 1976; Meakin, 1986); (b) models exploiting mechanical factors involved in vascular morphogenesis (Waxman et al., 1981, Manoussaki et al., 1996); (c) models analyzing the cellular behavior (Stokes and Lauffenburger, 1991; Byrne and Chaplain, 1995); (d) models analyzing a fractality of vascular networks (Bassingthwaite et al, 1994; Kiani and Hudetz, 1991; Pries et al., 1995; Sandau and Kurz, 1995). Collectively, in this book, these approaches give a whole and impressive picture of recent trends in mathematical modeling and computer simulation of vascular morphogenesis.
Advances in the Synthesis of Electroactive Materials and in the Characterization of Mechanisms of NLO Activity

Electroactive molecules including fused ring (ladder oligomer) dyes, phenylpolyenes, tetraazaannulenes, carbocyanine dyes, squarylium-heterocyclic moieties, etc. have been synthetically incorporated into a variety of traditional polymers both as pendants and as part of the polymer backbone. Such incorporation has permitted a means of addressing the intrinsic poor solubility of these materials and has permitted the realization of optical quality films by spin casting techniques. The approach has also permitted a comparative survey of a significant number of electroactive moieties and has permitted the systematic investigation of the dependence of second and third order optical nonlinearity upon the presence and nature of electron donating and/or withdrawing substituents, upon the concentration of electroactive units (effects of intermolecular interactions), upon the presence of oxidizing or reducing dopants, etc. Data obtained from copolymer studies are compared, where possible, with data from solution studies and studies of electroactive molecule/polymer composites. A new phase conjugate interferometric method is used to simultaneously measure the real and imaginary parts of the third order susceptibility over the frequency range 532–720 nm. These measurements are complemented by studies of the temporal, spatial, and concentration dependence of the phase conjugate signals. DFWM signals are also investigated as a function of pulse intensity and width and as a function of beam polarizations. Finally, the imaginary part of the third order susceptibility from these measurements correlates well with photobleaching/photo-induced absorption data demonstrating a contribution to optical nonlinearity from photo-induced bipolaron species for ladder copolymers. Analysis of the temporal and frequency dependence establish the existence of excitonic, bipolaronic, and four photon parametric mixing contributions to optical nonlinearity.
Optimizing Waveform Descriptors and Pupillometry of the Pupillary Light Reflex Using Data Acquired from Video-Based Eye Trackers:

Previous models of the pupillary light reflex (PLR) provided a compelling narrative to the complex dynamics of pupil oscillations. However, simple descriptors, such as the time constant obtained fr...
Combined Natural Gas Separation and Storage based on in silico Material Screening and Process Optimization

We propose an intensified process for combined separation and storage (CSS) of natural gas from various unconventional sources using a single multifunctional unit. The CSS process involves selectively storing methane in a column filled with an existing nanoporous zeolite material, while venting out the impurities. A multiscale model is used to optimize the methane storage and screen for the top zeolites under minimum purity requirements and loss constraints. Adsorption properties for different zeolites are obtained via Monte Carlo simulations. Zeolite SBN with a high storage capacity for pure methane is found to be most suitable for combined separation and storage over a range of feed compositions. A rank ordered list of top zeolites is also obtained along with the optimal process conditions. It is, however, observed that the effectiveness of the intensification of natural gas separation and storage is limited by the constraint on the loss of methane exiting the column.
End-to-end Streaming Keyword Spotting

We present a system for keyword spotting that, except for a front-end component for feature generation, it is entirely contained in a deep neural network (DNN) model trained "end-to-end" to predict the presence of the keyword in a stream of audio. The main contributions of this work are, first, an efficient memoized neural network topology that aims at making better use of the parameters and associated computations in the DNN by holding a memory of previous activations distributed over the depth of the DNN. The second contribution is a method to train the DNN, end-to-end, to produce the keyword spotting score. This system significantly outperforms previous approaches both in terms of quality of detection as well as size and computation.
Challenges to natural and human communities from surprising ocean temperatures.

The community of species, human institutions, and human activities at a given location have been shaped by historical conditions (both mean and variability) at that location. Anthropogenic climate change is now adding strong trends on top of existing natural variability. These trends elevate the frequency of “surprises”—conditions that are unexpected based on recent history. Here, we show that the frequency of surprising ocean temperatures has increased even faster than expected based on recent temperature trends. Using a simple model of human adaptation, we show that these surprises will increasingly challenge natural modes of adaptation that rely on historical experience. We also show that warming rates are likely to shift natural communities toward generalist species, reducing their productivity and diversity. Our work demonstrates increasing benefits for individuals and institutions from betting that trends will continue, but this strategy represents a radical shift that will be difficult for many to make.
Inference, Prediction, and Entropy-Rate Estimation of Continuous-time, Discrete-event Processes

Author(s): Marzen, SE; Crutchfield, JP | Abstract: Inferring models, predicting the future, and estimating the entropy rate of discrete-time, discrete-event processes is well-worn ground. However, a much broader class of discrete-event processes operates in continuous-time. Here, we provide new methods for inferring, predicting, and estimating them. The methods rely on an extension of Bayesian structural inference that takes advantage of neural network's universal approximation power. Based on experiments with complex synthetic data, the methods are competitive with the state-of-the-art for prediction and entropy-rate estimation.
Induction heating response of iron oxide nanoparticles in varyingly viscous mediums with prediction of brownian heating contribution

This study examines the effects of nanoparticle concentration, magnetic field frequency, and carrier fluid viscosity on the induction heating response of nanofluids exposed to an alternating magnet...
Infrared Diffraction-Free Space-Time Light Sheets

We report the demonstration of infrared diffraction-free space-time pulsed 1D light sheets. We achieved diffraction-free propagation for a 60-nm-bandwidth, 2.35 μm central-wavelength, 300-μm-FWHM beam up to 7 m, 80× the corresponding Rayleigh range.
Corticospinal neurons encode complex motor signals that are broadcast to dichotomous striatal circuits

Sensorimotor cortex controls movement in part through direct projections to the spinal cord. Here we show that these corticospinal neurons (CSNs) possess axon collaterals that innervate many supraspinal brain regions critical for motor control, most prominently the main input to the basal ganglia, the striatum. Corticospinal neurons that innervate the striatum form more synapses on D1- than D2-striatal projection neurons (SPNs). This biased innervation strategy corresponds to functionally distinct patterns of termination in spinal cord. CSNs are strongly driven during a striatum-dependent sequential forelimb behavior, and often represent high level movement features that are not linearly related to kinematic output. Copies of these activity patterns are relayed in a balanced fashion to both D1 and D2 projection pathways. These results reveal a circuit logic by which motor cortex corticospinal neurons relay both kinematic-related and unrelated signals to distinct striatal and spinal cord pathways, where postsynaptic connectivity ultimately dictates motor specificity.
Boosting Bit-Error Resilience of DNN Accelerators Through Median Feature Selection

Deep learning techniques have enjoyed wide adoption in real life, including in various safety-critical embedded applications. While neural network computations require protection against hardware errors, the substantial overheads of conventional error-tolerance techniques limit their use on embedded platforms, which carry out demanding deep neural network computations with limited resources. The utilization of conventional techniques is further constrained in high error rate scenarios, increasingly prevalent under aggressive energy and performance optimizations. To resolve this conundrum, we introduce a novel median feature selection technique to filter the impact of bit errors prior to the execution of each layer. While our technique can be deemed as a fine-grained modular redundancy scheme, its construction purely out of the inherent redundancy of the network necessitates neither additional parameters nor extra multiply-accumulate operations, squashing the inordinate overheads typically associated with such techniques. Median feature selection can be efficiently performed in hardware and seamlessly integrated into embedded deep learning accelerators as a modular plug-in. Deep learning models can be trained with standard tools and techniques to ensure a graceful operational interface with the feature selection stages. The proposed technique allows the system to perform accurately even at high error rates by improving its resilience up to four orders of magnitude, yet incurs negligible 0.19%–0.48% area and 0.07%–0.19% power overheads for the required operations.
Discovering healthcare provider behavior patterns through the lens of Medicare excess charge

The phenomenon of excess charge, where a healthcare service provider bills Medicare beyond the limit allowed for a medical procedure, is quite common in the United States public healthcare system. For example, in 2014, healthcare providers charged an average of 3.27 times (and up to 528 times) the allowable limit for cataract surgery. Previous research contends that such excess charges may be indicative of the actual amount that providers bill to non-Medicare patients and subsequent cost-shifting behavior, where a healthcare provider tries to recoup underpayment by Medicare from privately insured, self-pay, out-of-network, and uninsured patients. The objective of this study is to examine the drivers of a provider’s excess charge patterns, especially the extent to which the degree of excess charges may be associated with physician characteristics, Medicare reimbursement policy, or socioeconomic status and demographics of a provider’s patient base. Using data from the 2014 Medicare Provider Utilization files, we identify three procedures with the highest variation in Medicare reimbursements to study the excess charge phenomenon. We then employ a two-step cluster analysis within each procedure to identify distinct provider groups. Each procedure code yielded distinct healthcare provider segments with specific patient demographics and related behavior patterns. Cluster silhouette coefficients indicate that these segments are unique. Three random subsamples from each procedure establish the stability of the clusters. For each of the three procedures investigated in this study, a sizeable number of healthcare providers serving poorer, riskier patients are often paid significantly lower than their peers, and subsequently have the highest excess charges. For some providers, excess charges reveal possible cost-shifting to private insurance. Patterns of excess charges also indicate an imbalance of market power, especially in areas with lower provider competition and access to health care, thus leading to urban-rural healthcare disparities. Our results reinforce the call for price transparency and an upper limit to overbilling.
Neuropsychiatrische Post-COVID-Symptome: Folgen von COVID-19.

Die durch das Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) hervorgerufene Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) kann zum Teil anhaltende schwerwiegende Folgen haben.Die COVID-19-Pandemie stellt fur die Gesellschaft und das Gesundheitssystem eine in der jungeren Vergangenheit einzigartige Belastung dar. Es ist davon auszugehen, dass auch nach dem Abklingen der Pandemie die COVID-19-Erkrankung in der arztlichen Tatigkeit prasent bleiben wird. Dieser Artikel soll einen Uberblick uber neuropsychiatrische post-akute COVID-19-Symptome geben.
Family Theory and Methods in the Classics

Great strides have been made in family theory and methods in the past 30 years. The works of W. J. Goode, Bernard Farber, Reuben Hill and recent feminist scholars have advanced theories concerning many aspects of the family. This chapter is intended to remind us that theorizing about the family has a long and rich history. The sociocultural milieu surveyed here is primarily that of the great thinkers of Western civilization such as Plato, Aristotle, and Rousseau, who described, defined, and commented on family life. While we would like to avoid continuing a Euro-Caucasian focus in the study of human thought, our own education and experiences have this bias. Non-Western thinkers are incorporated whenever possible, but we must acknowledge that the classical theories discussed here were promulgated by theorists who were primarily male, white, and Western, for the consumption of an audience that was primarily male, white, and Western.
Parallel Processing in DNA Analysis

Potential analogies exist between the way computers process and analyze data and the way data is handled in biological systems. Biological data is predominantly in the form of DNA. DNA data is at least two-fold redundant, and it is often multi-fold redundant. Thus it is relatively error resistant. A key aspect of DNA data is that the sequence of DNA bases which is the information stored in DNA also provides a way for the specific purification of DNA subsets. Thus, DNA, in principle, can be handled as very complex mixtures of species with the ability to sort things out afterwards. As a result, DNA-based manipulations can sometimes be formulated into highly parallel strategies. In this paper we will introduce the reader to the general properties of DNA and the currently used methods for manipulating and studying DNA molecules. We will emphasize how DNA properties allow parallel strategies to be used for direct biological experiments, and we will also speculate on possible future applications of such strategies which go beyond pure biological applications.
Privatization and Restructuring in Central and Eastern Europe: Evidence and Policy Options

This paper analyzes the financial and operating data (1992 to 1995) for more than 6,300 industrial firms in seven countries in Central and Eastern Europe--Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovak Republic and Slovenia. The authors compare the extent of restructuring across firms in these countries to determine which country's policies are most effective in encouraging restructuring. The analysis examined the following measures of restructuring: a) profitability; b) proportion of firms with a positive operating cash flow; c) average operating cash flow as a percent of revenue; d) growth in labor productivity; e) growth in total factor productivity; and f) growth in exports. The authors next used econometric analysis to identify government policies that most encouraged firms to restructure. The study also found that privatization had a large impact on restructuring, but there was little difference in productivity between private firms in countries that used mass privatization methods and in the other countries which have used standard methods. The authors also examined the role of banks in the restructuring of firms. They concluded that recapitalizing banks to compensate for their bad loans and encouraging them to forgive bad loans is unlikely to help firms restructure very much. A safer course of action is to recapitalize banks only at the time of their privatization and after a large share of enterprises are privatized.
The Red Lion of Cable, and Beyond? - Turner Broadcasting v. FCC

This Article first describes the FCC's previous, unsuccessful efforts to promulgate must-carry obligations for cable operators that could survive judicial review. It also documents Congress's response in attempting a procedural and substantive end-run around the First Amendment when it codified must-carry. This alone demonstrates the importance of stringent judicial review of Congress's action. The article then discusses the Supreme Court's default in this regard and the very "mixed bag" from its decision amounting to a give and take for broadcasters, cable operators and programmers, telephone companies, and other media. The Telecommunications Act of 1996 alters some of the immediate landscape, especially for telephone companies. But a particular concern remains in the Turner majority's willingness to overlook the clear content-based nature of government regulation and apply less than strict scrutiny. In addition, the Court's reliance on a diversity interest regarding the media, and its approval of the artificial construct of "gatekeeper" control, both raise a troubling First Amendment specter. Finally the article describes the difficulty the majority's approach engendered even for the remand panel, demonstrating the virtue in the full First Amendment freedom of the press that follows from a unified view of the mass media.
The R 2 cosmology: Inflation without a phase transition

A pure gravity inflationary model for the Universe is examined which is based on adding an \ensuremath{\epsilon}${R}^{2}$ term to the usual gravitational Lagrangian. The classical evolution is worked out, including eventual particle production and the subsequent join to radiation-dominated Friedmann behavior. We show that this model gives significant inflation essentially independent of initial conditions. The model has only one free parameter which is bounded from above by observational constraints on scalar and tensorial perturbations and from below by both the need for standard baryogenesis and the need for galaxy formation. This requires ${10}^{11}$${\ensuremath{\epsilon}}^{\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}1/2}$${10}^{13}$ GeV.
Technological support for work group collaboration

Contents: M.H. Olson, Preface. R. Johansen, User Approaches to Computer-Supported Teams. V. Dhar, M.H. Olson, Assumptions Underlying Systems that Support Work Group Collaboration. B.M. Johnson, How is Work Coordinated? Implications for Computer-Based Support. T.W. Malone, K.R. Grant, K-Y. Lai, R. Rao, D.A. Rosenblitt, The Information Lens: An Intelligent System for Information Sharing and Coordination. T.K. Bikson, J.D. Eveland, B.A. Gutek, Flexible Interactive Technologies for Multi-Person Tasks: Current Problems and Future Prospects. C. Pava, Organizational Architecture for Distributed Computing: The Next Frontier in System Design. P.M. Cashman, D. Stroll, Developing the Management Systems of the 1990s: The Role of Collaborative Work. M. Stefik, J.S. Brown, Toward Portable Ideas. B.D. Floyd, J.A. Turner, A Method for Evaluating Work Group Productivity Products.
The landry-guillain-barré strohl syndrome 1859 to 1992 a historical perspective.

The history of the development of knowledge about Guillain-Barre-Syndrome (GBS) is reviewed. The clinical profile, including characteristic CSF findings, were established by Laundry in 1859 and Barre in 1916. Pathologic features of GBS were defined ill three landmark papers by Haymarker and Kernohan in 1949, Waksman and Adams in 1955, and Asbury, Arnason and Adams in 1969. Although GRS is considered to be an immune-mediated disorder, the exact immune mechanism(s) leading to demyelination is riot yet well established bill probably involves both cellular and humoral responses. Treatment modalities have progressed from massages and volatile liniments used by Landry to anticipatory and supportive care, plasma exchange, and intravenous immunoglobulin. Outcome continues to be generally favorable as originally emphasized. Clinical and electrophysiologic predictors of unfavorable outcome have been identified.
Whitman Noir: Black America and the Good Gray Poet

In the epigraph for Giovanni's Room, James Baldwin quotes Walt Whitman: “I am the man, I suffered, I was there” (Whitman 225). This line evokes the complicated politics of inclusion in Whitman's wo...
Perceptual integration and differentiation of spectral cues for intervocalic stop consonants.

The place of articulation of intervocalic stop consonants is conveyed by temporally distributed spectral information, viz, the formant transitions preceding and following the silent closure interval (VC and CV transitions). Experiment 1 shows that more than 200 msec of silent closure is needed to hear VC and CV formant transitions as separate phonemic events (geminate stops). As closure duration is reduced, these cues are integrated into a single phonemic percept, and the VC transitions become increasingly redundant (Experiments 2 and 3). VC and CV transitions conveying different places of articulation, on the other hand, are heard as separate phonemes at closure durations as short as 100 msec. If closure duration is further reduced, a single stop is heard whose place of articulation corresponds to the CV transitions (Experiment 3). Even in the absence of CV transitions, VC transitions carry little perceptual weight at very short closure durations (Experiment 4). Despite their apparent redundancy, however, the VC transitions exert a positive bias on the perception of CV transitions at very short closure durations. At closure durations beyond 100 msec, on the other hand, VC and CV transitions interact contrastively in perception and tend to be heard as different phonemes (Experiments 5 and 6). The results of these experiments suggest two different processes of temporal integration in phonetic perception, one taking place at a precategorical level, the other combining identical phoneme categories within a certain time span.
Cobalt and copper distributions in the waters of Santa Monica Basin, California

The trace metals cobalt and copper are removed from the oceans interior by scavenging on to particle surfaces1, but the mechanisms for removal of these two metals are probably quite different. Cobalt appears to be scavenged by manganese oxide particles1,2, whereas organic compounds are the main carrier phase for copper3,4. Remobilization of these metals in marine sediments therefore proceeds by different pathways. The differences in the pathways of remobilization are accentuated in oxygen-deficient environments: manganese oxide reduction is accelerated at low oxygen levels5 and organic carbon is preserved6. Cobalt fluxes from sediments underlying oxygen-deficient waters should be enhanced and copper fluxes reduced. We report here measurements of the cobalt and copper distributions in the waters of an oxygen-deficient marine basin in the Southern California Bight. Cobalt concentrations near the bottom are raised four times above the background level, whereas copper concentrations show no increase. These measurements confirm features of existing models for the oceanic cycles of these metals.
Mothers' and Fathers' Psychological Symptoms and Marital Functioning: Examination of Direct and Interactive Links with Child Adjustment.

A community sample of 51 mother-father dyads with a school-age child rated marital functioning, parental psychological symptoms, and children's adjustment problems. Parents with more psychological symptoms reported lower marital satisfaction levels. Mothers' and fathers' marital functioning and symptomatology individually related to children's adjustment in the expected directions. In addition, interaction tests revealed that, for mothers but not fathers, the combination of poorer marital functioning and higher levels of psychological symptoms amplified the negative effects on children's adjustment problems. These findings support the hypothesis that parental psychopathology and marital adjustment together affect children's functioning in an interactive way, underscoring the need to consider multiple family influences in studies of child development.
A Two-Defect Model For Radiation-Induced Attenuation In Multimode Fiber

The growth and recovery rates of X-ray and gamma-ray-induced infrared adsorption in a germanium-silicate multimode fiber can be qualitatively explained by assuming that two types of color centers are responsible for the absorption. One color center (type A) recovers at a fast rate and reaches a steady state concentration during irradiation. The second color center recovers at a slow rate and shows an increase in concentration during irradiation. The formation of color center type A can be suppressed during irradiation by the addition of molecular hydrogen.
Energy savings via harnessing partial packets in body area networks

This work considers the incorporation, implications and potential energy savings of partial packet recovery schemes in Body Area Networks (BANs). Received packets which have not been fully corrected by the physical layer, called partial, are discarded by the vast majority of BAN protocols, as opposed to valid packets, which satisfy the error detection check and are propagated to higher layers. In typical networks using ARQ protocols, dropping partial packets results in retransmissions. However, because these packets contain useful information, partial packet recovery schemes have been proposed with demonstrated throughput and reliability benefits, targeting mostly wireless LANs. In order to quantify the potential energy benefits of harnessing partial packets in BANs, we use an experimental setup with four sensors mounted on a human body, transmitting information to a receiving node in a typical office environment. By precisely modeling the state transitions and energy consumption of sensors, we compare the efficiency of a baseline ARQ protocol against a scheme which leverages information in partial packets. Our results indicate that exploiting partial packets reduces on average the energy consumption of our sensors by 8--20%. The energy savings are pronounced in challenged channel conditions of high PER, where they can be up to 50%.
ROS Function in Redox Signaling and Oxidative Stress

Oxidative stress refers to elevated intracellular levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) that cause damage to lipids, proteins and DNA. Oxidative stress has been linked to a myriad of pathologies. However, elevated ROS also act as signaling molecules in the maintenance of physiological functions — a process termed redox biology. In this review we discuss the two faces of ROS — redox biology and oxidative stress — and their contribution to both physiological and pathological conditions. Redox biology involves a small increase in ROS levels that activates signaling pathways to initiate biological processes, while oxidative stress denotes high levels of ROS that result in damage to DNA, protein or lipids. Thus, the response to ROS displays hormesis, given that the opposite effect is observed at low levels compared with that seen at high levels. Here, we argue that redox biology, rather than oxidative stress, underlies physiological and pathological conditions.
Ground State(s) of the Spin-Boson Hamiltonian

We establish that the finite temperature KMS states of the spin-boson hamiltonian have a limit as the temperature drops to zero. Using recent advances on the one-dimensional Ising model with long range, 1/r2, interactions, we prove qualitative properties of the ground state(s) in the ohmic case. We show (i) the asymptotics of the critical coupling as the bare energy gap goes to zero and to infinity, (ii) a jump in the order parameter, and (iii) that the number of bosons is finite below and infinite at and above the critical coupling strength.
Endogenous factors, external cues, and eccentric construction in Polistes annularis (Hymenoptera: Vespidae).

This study explores the relationship between various factors and the construction of the distinctive inclined, eccentric, and curved combs of Polistes annularis.Foundation and early construction show stereotypical inclination and bilateral symmetry. Eccentric comb shape is modestly related to inclination and highly repeatable by wasps building on combs of high inclination. Later construction by the foundresses or by their worker offspring is less stereotypical. Features associated with curvature of mature nests, such as nonhexagonal cells, are peculiar to construction by workers and occur nonrandomly, suggesting functional adaptation.
Dilatons and Majorana neutrinos

Abstract We derive bounds on neutrino masses in an extension of the standard model with right-handed neutrinos and Jordan-Brans-Dicke dilaton. Heavy Majorana neutrinos have to be lighter than 200 GeV. The upper bound on light Majorana neutrinos depends on the dilaton decay constant f . For f ≈10 9 GeV, neutrino masses above 30 keV are compatible with the present cosmological mass density.
Individual Differences in the Spontaneous Construal of Behavior: Idiocentrism and the Automatization of the Trait Inference Process

Previous research indicated that idiocentrism (an individual difference corresponding to the culture-level variable of individualism) is positively correlated with spontaneous trait inference (STI). This finding is consistent with the hypothesis that a belief in the utility of trait interpretations should lead one to practice and automatize the trait inference process. In Study 1, idiocentrism correlated negatively with spontaneous inferences about situational causes of behavior. The positive relationship between idiocentrism and spontaneous inference is thus specific to trait inferences. In Study 2, a priming manipulation was used to examine the accessibility of trait concepts as a possible mediator of the relationship between idiocentrism and STI. However, trait priming boosted trait-cued recall only for idiocentric participants, suggesting instead that the key distinction between nonidiocentric and idiocentric people is that the former lack an automatized trait inference procedure. This research demons...
GemDroid: a framework to evaluate mobile platforms

As the demand for feature-rich mobile systems such as smartphones and tablets has outpaced other computing systems and is expected to continue at a faster rate, it is projected that SoCs with tens of cores and hundreds of IPs (or accelerator) will be designed to provide unprecedented level of features and functionality in future. Design of such mobile systems with required QoS and power budgets along with other design constraints will be a daunting task for computer architects since any ad hoc, piece-meal solution is unlikely to result in an optimal design. This requires early exploration of the complete design space to understand the system-level design trade-offs. To the best of our knowledge, there is no such publicly available tool to conduct a holistic evaluation of mobile platforms consisting of cores, IPs and system software.This paper presents GemDroid, a comprehensive simulation infrastructure to address these concerns. GemDroid has been designed by integrating the Android open-source emulator for facilitating execution of mobile applications, the GEM5 core simulator for analyzing the CPU and memory centric designs, and models for several IPs to collectively study their impact on system-level performance and power. Analyzing a spectrum of applications with GemDroid, we observed that the memory subsystem is a vital cog in the mobile platform because, it needs to handle both core and IP traffic, which have very different characteristics. Consequently, we present a heterogeneous memory controller (HMC) design, where we divide the memory physically into two address regions, where the first region with one memory controller (MC) handles core-specific application data and the second region with another MC handles all IP related data. The proposed modifications to the memory controller design results in an average 25% reduction in execution time for CPU bound applications, up to 11% reduction in frame drops, and on average 17% reduction in CPU busy time for on-screen (IP bound) applications.
A new method to monitor Kupffer cell phagocytosis continuously in perfused rat liver

A new method was developed to monitor Kupffer cell phagocytosis continuously in perfused liver using a fluorescent probe, rhodamine-gelatin, synthesized from gelatin and rhodamine isothiocyanate. In perfused rat liver, phagocytosis by Kupffer cells was assessed both by uptake of the dye and from fluorescence measured from the liver surface. Uptake of rhodamine-gelatin and surface fluorescence (520----585 nm) increased as perfusate concentrations of rhodamine-gelatin were elevated. Histological examination revealed that fluorescence caused by rhodamine-gelatin was concentrated in cells lining the sinusoid. Furthermore, when hepatic parenchymal, endothelial and Kupffer cells were isolated by centrifugal elutriation after pretreatment in vivo with rhodamine-gelatin, the fluorescent label was detected nearly exclusively in the Kupffer cell fraction. Fluorescence of rhodamine-gelatin from the liver surface was directly proportional to uptake of rhodamine-gelatin, indicating that measurement of surface fluorescence could be used as an index of phagocytic activity of Kupffer cells. Uptake of rhodamine-gelatin and fluorescent labeling of sinusoidal cells were inhibited nearly completely by dextran sulfate, which decreases phagocytic activity, and were increased by about 50% by pretreatment with endotoxin, which stimulates phagocytosis. This new method was combined with standard procedures to monitor parenchymal cell function (e.g., oxygen uptake and release of lactate dehydrogenase), Kupffer cell phagocytic activity and parenchymal cell injury simultaneously during perfusion with the hepatotoxicant allyl alcohol. Activation of phagocytosis by Kupffer cells monitored by rhodamine-gelatin fluorescence occurred within 5 min of addition of allyl alcohol. On the other hand, parenchymal cell injury, assessed from release of lactate dehydrogenase, did not begin until 40 min and reached maximal values at around 90 min.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
RhoA and a Cytosolic 50-kDa Factor Reconstitute GTPγS-dependent Phospholipase D Activity in Human Neutrophil Subcellular Fractions

Receptor activation of phospholipase D has been implicated in signal transduction in a variety of cells. Reconstitution of cell-free guanosine 5′-O-(3-thiotriphosphate)(GTPγS)-dependent phospholipase D activity from human neutrophils requires protein factors in both the plasma membrane and the cytosol. We previously proposed that one of the factors is a Ras-family small molecular weight GTPase of the Rho subtype (Bowman, E. P., Uhlinger, D. J., and Lambeth, J. D.(1993) J. Biol. Chem. 268, 21509-21512). Herein, we have used RhoGDI (GDP dissociation inhibitor), an inhibitory Rho-binding protein, to selectively extract Rho-type GTPases from the plasma membrane, and have used immunoprecipitation as well as chromatographic methods to remove cytosolic Rho. Depletion of RhoA from either the plasma membrane or the cytosol resulted in a partial loss in GTPγS dependent activity, while removal of RhoA from both fractions resulted in a nearly complete loss in activity. Activity was nearly completely restored by adding purified recombinant RhoA, which showed an EC50 of 52 nM, while Rac1 showed little activity. Cytosol fractionated using DEAE-cellulose chromatography separated ADP-ribosylation factor and Rho from the major activating fraction. Gel exclusion chromatography of this fraction revealed an activating factor of 50 kDa apparent molecular mass. Using RhoA-depleted membranes, reconstitution of phospholipase D activity required both RhoA and the 50-kDa factor. Thus, RhoA along with a non-Rho, non-ADP-ribosylation factor 50-kDa cytosolic factor are both required to reconstitute GTPγS-dependent phospholipase D activity by neutrophil plasma membranes.
Toward Improved Instruction in Hearing Health at the Elementary School Level.

: The role public elementary schools have in educating children about hearing and hearing conservation is underscored by the high incidence of hearing loss in society and by the deleterious effect on communication and learning that hearing impairment causes in children. A survey to assess the extent and estimated effectiveness of the education regarding hearing and hearing conservation provided to children was conducted. One hundred sixty regular elementary school teachers returned a questionnaire, and their responses revealed that hearing and hearing conservation concepts were being taught in most classrooms. However, their responses questioned the effectiveness of the methods and materials used to teach these concepts. The findings of the survey suggest three ways to improve teaching in this area: provide in-depth instruction about the causes of hearing impairment; use more hands-on activities; and provide teachers with more resources to supplement instruction.
Infusing Professional Ethics Into Counselor Education Programs: A Multicultural/Social Justice Perspective

Multiculturalism and social justice counseling issues influence counselors' ethical thinking and behavior. Counselor educators are responsible for facilitating students' understanding of the relevance of multicultural/social justice counseling issues and ethical standards for professional practices. Added insights in these areas aid students to work within a culturally diverse society. This article focuses on the importance of addressing these complex issues by outlining strategies to infuse ethics into counselor education programs from a multicultural/social justice counseling perspective.
An Optimal CumSum-based Knock Controller

Abstract Recent advances in knock control include new Cumulative-Summation-based control strategies which have the potential for improved knock control, as well as new strategies for optimizing the threshold level used for defining knock events. The optimization of knock thresholds has been demonstrated significantly to improve the performance of a traditional knock controller. In this paper, the same technique is applied to optimize the response of a CumSum controller. The resulting controller delivers a fast transient response to knock disturbances as well as tight regulatory control about the borderline audible knock condition.
Novel Assessment Tools for Osteoporosis Diagnosis and Treatment

This review describes new technologies for the diagnosis and treatment, including fracture risk prediction, of postmenopausal osteoporosis. Four promising technologies and their potential for clinical translation and basic science studies are discussed. These include reference point indentation (RPI), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Raman spectroscopy, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). While each modality exploits different physical principles, the commonality is that none of them require use of ionizing radiation. To provide context for the new developments, brief summaries are provided for the current state of biomarker assays, fracture risk assessment (FRAX), and other fracture risk prediction algorithms and quantitative ultrasound (QUS) measurements.
Benign neonatal sleep myoclonus: experience from the study of 38 infants.

Abstract Background Benign neonatal sleep myoclonus (BNSM) is characterised by myoclonic jerks that occur only during sleep and stop abruptly when the child is aroused. It is a benign condition that is frequently confused with epileptic seizures during infancy. Aims The purpose of this study was to examine the clinical characteristics of newborns and infants with BNSM. Methods In a retrospective study of 38 newborns with BNSM, the entire inpatient charts were reviewed and data on the clinical picture and results of investigations were studied. The data for analysis of the children's neurological development and the time at which myoclonic jerks ceased were provided from outpatient files and parental interviews. Results Myoclonic jerks started between day 1 and day 16 (median 3 days, 95% confidence interval 2–4 days); they were mostly bilateral synchronous and symmetrical in distribution and never involved the facial muscles. An episode of jerks lasted from a few seconds up to 20 min. In every instance, the jerks occurred only during sleep: when the child was drowsy or fell asleep in 20, when the child had been asleep for more than 20 min in 5, before awaking in 3 and in different stages of sleep in 5 infants. In the majority of cases (32), the jerks were reported to stop spontaneously, and in 6 on arousal. Neurological evaluation revealed optimal results in the majority of infants (22), hyperexcitability in 11 and mild abnormalities of muscle tone in 5. In two infants electroencephalography (EEG) performed during the attack of jerks showed no paroxysmal activity. In the remainder EEG performed between the episodes of jerks was normal, apart from mild abnormalities found in six infants. US revealed normal results in all except eight infants, in whom mild abnormalities were found. Myoclonic jerks remitted between the age of 2 weeks and 10 months (median 2 months, 95% confidence interval 1–2 months). Follow-up between 3 and 12 months of age revealed optimal results of neurological assessment in 30 infants and mildly abnormal neurological signs in 8. Conclusion In the studied group, myoclonic jerks occurred within the first 16 days (median 3 days) of life irrespective of other conditions. They were predominantly observed at the beginning of the sleep and disappeared spontaneously in the first 10 months (median 2 months) of life.
Taxonomic and sensory biases in the mate-choice literature: there are far too few studies of chemical and multimodal communication

The sexual selection literature has grown rapidly in recent years. In an effort to elucidate biases in the focus of current mate-choice research here, I review 297 studies among 230 species. Among taxa, studies of birds were most common (40% of all studies), with insects, fishes, and anurans less well represented (20%, 18%, 14%, respectively). All other taxa were poorly represented in the literature (<3%). Across sensory modalities, studies of visual and acoustic signals were most common (46%, 30%, respectively), with relatively few studies investigating chemical, tactile, and electrical signals in mate choice (3%, 3%, <1%, respectively). Most mate-choice studies of birds and fishes investigated visual signals, while the majority of insect and anuran studies investigated acoustic signals. While these associations may reflect biological realities—birds and anurans tend not to emphasize chemical cues in mate choice; electric communication may indeed be quite uncommon—they may also be grossly misleading: chemical cues are likely critical for mate choice in millions of insect species. Moreover, I suggest that the particularly high vulnerability of chemical communication networks to anthropogenic fouling should provide immediate motivation for many more studies of chemical signals in mate choice. Finally, I find that despite widespread acceptance that male displays are often comprised of multiple elements produced across sensory modalities, studies simultaneously investigating the use of multiple cues in mate choice are rare. While not exhaustive, this review identifies biases in the focus of mate-choice studies, and should serve to identify fruitful directions for future mate-choice research.