cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Estimating distributions of numbers of organisms in food products

Procedures of sampling and measurement contribute variability and uncertainty to exposure models that predict incidence and levels of organisms in food products. This paper focuses on methods that account for sampling and measurement error in fitting distributions of organisms in food products for use in exposure models for microbial risk assessment. Define y to be a measured density on a sample selected with stipulated probability from a population, and define x to be the "true" density for that sample. Designate the conditional distribution of y given the sample with "true" value x as g(y/x), and let F(x) be the unknown cumulative density of x. The distribution of the observed values y, h(y), can be expressed through the integral equation h(y) = integral of g(y/x) dF(x). Knowledge of g(y/x) and h(y) enables an estimate of the unknown distribution of the organism's F(x). In applications to risk assessment, use of continuous distributions described by a few parameters is desirable. Also desirable may be imputation or assignment of possible nonzero values for nondetect observations--those results below the limit of detection of the methodology--that may not be truly zero. This paper explores the use of the above formulation for estimating distributions of organisms used for microbial risk assessment and presents some simple examples.
Aerogel Architectures Boost Oxygen‐Evolution Performance of NiFe2Ox Spinels to Activity Levels Commensurate with Nickel‐Rich Oxides

Nickel–iron oxides and oxyhydroxides are among the most active oxygen-evolution reaction (OER) catalysts in alkaline electrolytes. Compositions rich in Ni are reported to show superior activity, but the establishment of competitive OER activity with lower cost, Fe-rich analogues is more desirable for metal–air batteries and other devices that will see large-scale production. Herein, we demonstrate that by controlling pore–solid architecture and the degree of crystallinity, we achieve a single-phase, Fe-rich NiFe2Ox catalyst that matches the OER performance metrics previously demonstrated for compositions with higher Ni-to-Fe ratios. We also show that OER activity linearly tracks increases in the catalyst surface area, whereas the degree of ex situ surface hydroxylation does not play a significant role. To prepare the pore–solid structured forms, NiFe2Ox gels were synthesized by using an epoxide-initiated sol–gel method and subsequently processed to aerogels or xerogels. The activities of these two sol–gel-derived nanostructures were compared with a nanoparticulate analogue with lower specific surface area, prepared by using conventional precipitation methods. The higher surface area and larger pore volume expressed by the NiFe2Ox formed as an aerogel result in a performance-competitive OER overpotential of 356 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm−2, with an approximately 140 mV improvement relative to the low-surface-area, precipitated analogue.
Changes in Government Goods and the Tax Code

Throughout this monograph we have focused on behavioral and index concepts that view government services and the tax system as fixed. In practice, the consumer may receive benefits from taxes (eg., public goods), and the government may from time to time change the tax code. This chapter provides a brief look at these issues, and shows how earlier results may be extended to deal with the issues. We consider first the issue of government goods, and then the issue of tax code changes. Finally, some preliminary results concerning the indexation of tax codes are presented.
The Right Way to Do Sit-Ups

(1997). The Right Way to Do Sit-Ups. The Physician and Sportsmedicine: Vol. 25, No. 6, pp. 111-112.
Rapid Dissolution of ZnO Nanoparticles Induced by Biological Buffers Significantly Impacts Cytotoxicity

Zinc oxide nanoparticles (nZnO) are one of the most highly produced nanomaterials and are used in numerous applications including cosmetics and sunscreens despite reports demonstrating their cytotoxicity. Dissolution is viewed as one of the main sources of nanoparticle (NP) toxicity; however, dissolution studies can be time-intensive to perform and complicated by issues such as particle separation from solution. Our work attempts to overcome some of these challenges by utilizing new methods using UV/vis and fluorescence spectroscopy to quantitatively assess nZnO dissolution in various biologically relevant solutions. All biological buffers tested induce rapid dissolution of nZnO. These buffers, including HEPES, MOPS, and PIPES, are commonly used in cell culture media, cellular imaging solutions, and to maintain physiological pH. Additional studies using X-ray diffraction, FT-IR, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, ICP-MS, and TEM were performed to understand how the inclusion of these nonessential media com...
A highly active Pt–Fe/γ-Al2O3 catalyst for preferential oxidation of CO in excess of H2 with a wide operation temperature window

Highly efficient Pt–Fe/γ-Al2O3 catalysts for preferential oxidation of CO in excess of H2 (CO-PROX) were prepared by utilizing single-atom Fe species as active sites for O2 activation, which exhibited high catalytic activity and selectivity from 25 °C to 200 °C, with the highest Pt specific rate of Pt-based catalysts for CO-PROX.
Abstract 16134: Dysregulated Splicing of DICER1 mRNA in Myocardium From Infants With Tetralogy of Fallot Results in Altered Protein Isoforms

Introduction: Congenital heart defects (CHDs) are the most common birth defect and represent a substantial health care burden. Research in the last 10 years has led to improved understanding of the genetic regulation of vertebrate heart development, but despite this effort, approximately 70% of all CHD cases still have an unknown etiology. We recently showed that splicing is dysregulated in pathways that regulate heart development in cardiac tissue from infants with tetralogy of Fallot (TOF). Hypothesis: Alternative splicing during cardiogenesis results in alternative protein isoforms. Methods: Right ventricular (RV) tissue was obtained at the time of surgical repair of TOF and control RV tissue was obtained from donor pulmonary valve samples as we have previously described. In addition, 5 controls were obtained from the Brain and Tissue Bank. Protein was extracted using T-PER Tissue Extraction Reagent from Thermo-Fisher Scientific according to manufacturer’s specifications. The protein concentration of the lysed tissue was quantified using the Pierce BCA Protein Assay Kit from Thermo-Fisher Scientific according to company specifications. Western Blots were performed using the Wes 66-440kDa Master Kit with Split Running Buffer. The primary antibody was specific for DICER1 (Abiocode, cat # R2388-2), and we used an anti-Rabbit secondary antibody following WES system (Protein Simple, Inc.) standard protocols. Results: We focused our preliminary analysis on DICER1 as it has been shown to be an integral regulator of splicing in vertebrate heart development and our previous data showed that it was alternatively spliced in myocardium from infants with TOF. Control samples had two isoforms of DICER1, a very prominent lower band (~190 kDa) and faint upper band (~220 kDa). The protein from the TOF RV samples had no visible lower band but their upper band was approximately 7 fold more intense than the corresponding upper band in the control lanes. Conclusions: Thus mRNA splicing variants in DICER1 in TOF myocardium resulted in corresponding protein isoform synthesis and resulted in changed protein variant concentrations. Therefore, failure of precise splicing that leads to changes in protein isoforms may be a contributing factor to TOF.
Efficient RNA structure comparison algorithms.

Recently proposed relative addressing-based (rab) RNA secondary structure representation has important features by which an RNA structure database can be stored into a suffix array. A fast substructure search algorithm has been proposed based on binary search on this suffix array. Using this substructure search algorithm, we present a fast algorithm that finds the largest common substructure of given multiple RNA structures in rab format. The multiple RNA structure comparison problem is NP-hard in its general formulation. We introduced a new problem for comparing multiple RNA structures. This problem has more strict similarity definition and objective, and we propose an algorithm that solves this problem efficiently. We also develop another comparison algorithm that iteratively calls this algorithm to locate nonoverlapping large common substructures in compared RNAs. With the new resulting tools, we improved the RNASSAC website (linked from http://faculty.tamuc.edu/aarslan). This website now also includes...
Lipoyl-E2-PDH Gets a Second Job

Pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH) plays a well-known metabolic role inside cells. In this issue of Cell Host & Microbe, Grayczyk et al. (2017) show that the bacterial pathogen Staphylococcus aureus unexpectedly secretes and repurposes the lipoylated E2 subunit of PDH to suppress TLR-mediated activation of host macrophages by bacterial lipoproteins.
Academic Homeopaths Reinvented

Rapprochement of homeopathy and medicine in the early twentieth century was short-lived, as homeopathy completely disappeared from all US medical schools by midcentury. Its abandonment challenged the few remaining academic homeopaths to adapt to the new world. Four leading figures who adapted successfully are described here: Roy Upham, Conrad Wesselhoeft, Linn Boyd, and Thomas McGavack. Upham did much to promote the study of gastroenterology and hepatic disease, Wesselhoeft became an expert on infectious disease, Boyd became a well-known cardiologist, and McGavack was an early leader in gerontology, obesity, and endocrinology. The later medical writings of these physicians made almost no mention of homeopathy, yet traces of their homeopathic loyalties persisted in other ways.
Genomics and Functional Genomics in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

The availability of the Chlamydomonas reinhardtii nuclear genome sequence continues to enable researchers to address biological questions relevant to algae, land plants, and animals in unprecedented ways. As we continue to characterize and understand biological processes in C. reinhardtii and translate that knowledge to other systems, we are faced with the realization that many genes encode proteins without a defined function. The field of functional genomics aims to close this gap between genome sequence and protein function. Transcriptomes, proteomes, and phenomes can each provide layers of gene-specific functional data while supplying a global snapshot of cellular behavior under different conditions. Herein we present a brief history of functional genomics, the present status of the C. reinhardtii genome, how genome-wide experiments can aid in supplying protein function inferences, and provide an outlook for functional genomics in C. reinhardtii.
Conjuring Salem: Identity and Authority in Nineteenth-Century Women's Storytelling

“That is the puzzle of it—was it a horrid nightmare, an insane vision, or was it true?” —Harriet Prescott Spofford, “Her Story” 1872Madeline Yale Wynne’s haunting 1895 story “The Little Room” opens...
How Does One Get So Much Information from So Few Assumptions

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses how assumptions in mathematical theorems help mathematicians derive so much information from them. The oldest example is familiar—the mathematics behind analytic geometry. The origins of the subject go back to Greek times, but it assumed its modern form in the seventeenth century and has since permeated both pure and applied mathematics. Nevertheless, there was no theorem to undergird the subject for a long time as no one saw fit to make a serious analysis of either the geometry or the real number system used to describe the geometry. This is a modest system of axioms, and it is stated in purely combinatorial terms. There is nothing in the system that smacks of arithmetic or algebra. The objective of science is to identify and describe those underlying regularities and to divorce them from the surrounding complications.
Conditional Brownian Motion and Conditional Gauge

In this section, we develop the notion of conditional Brownian motion introduced by Doob in 1957 (see Doob (1984)) for a general boundary theory. Here it will be used as a tool to sharpen our previous results to include the exit place as well as the exit time. Our treatment is essentially self-contained.
Lipids in normal and pathological desquamation.

Publisher Summary This chapter presents the evidence that stratum corneum lipids are critical effectors of corneocyte cohesion and desquamation. Lipids in the stratum corneum are in the right place to modulate desquamation; that is, they are localized to the intercellular domain. Because normal desquamation occurs through detachment of single, intact corneocytes, it is reasonable to examine constituents of the cell membrane and intermembrane domain for effectors of this process. Desmosomes are intercellular attachment plaques that appear to function as spot welds in epithelial cell cohesion. A progressive loss of desmosomal structures occurs during stratum corneum transit, such that these structures are fragmentary or absent in the outer layers of normal stratum corneum. Thus, it can be inferred that cohesion of at least these outermost corneocytes normally must be mediated by other factors. A number of hypocholesterolemic agents induce scaling as a prominent side effect. In most instances in which the underlying metabolic defect in genetic disorders of cornification has been defined, inborn errors of lipid metabolism are responsible. Both the drug-induced scaling disorders and the genetic ichthyoses associated with lipid metabolic defects have provided invaluable models for the examination of the role of specific lipids in stratum corneum cohesion/desquamation.
Arrhythmogenic Substrates for Atrial Fibrillation in Obesity

Global obesity rates have nearly tripled since 1975. This obesity rate increase is mirrored by increases in atrial fibrillation (AF) that now impacts nearly 10% of Americans over the age of 65. Numerous epidemiologic studies have linked incidence of AF and obesity and other obesity-related diseases, including hypertension and diabetes. Due to the wealth of epidemiologic data linking AF with obesity-related disease, mechanisms of AF pathogenesis in the context of obesity are an area of ongoing investigation. However, progress has been somewhat slowed by the complex phenotype of obesity; separating the effects of obesity from those of related sequelae is problematic. While the initiation of pathogenic pathways leading to AF varies with disease (including increased glycosylation in diabetes, increased renin angiotensin aldosterone system activation in hypertension, atrial ischemia in coronary artery disease, and sleep apnea) the pathogenesis of AF is united by shared mediators of altered conduction in the atria. We suggest focusing on these downstream mediators of AF in obesity is likely to yield more broadly applicable data. In the context of obesity, AF is driven by the interrelated processes of inflammation, atrial remodeling, and oxidative stress. Obesity is characterized by a constant low-grade inflammation that leads to increased expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines. These cytokines contribute to changes in cardiomyocyte excitability. Atrial structural remodeling, including fibrosis, enlargement, and fatty infiltration is a prominent feature of AF and contributes to the altered conduction. Finally, obesity impacts oxidative stress. Within the cardiomyocyte, oxidative stress is increased through both increased production of reactive oxygen species and by downregulation of scavenging enzymes. This increased oxidative stress modulates of cardiomyocyte excitability, increasing susceptibility to AF. Although the initiating insults vary, inflammation, atrial remodeling, and oxidative stress are conserved mechanisms in the pathophysiology of AF in the obese patients. In this review, we highlight mechanisms that have been shown to be relevant in the pathogenesis of AF across obesity-related disease.
Grassmann Manifold Optimization for Fast $L_1$ -Norm Principal Component Analysis

In this letter, we propose a fast Grassmann manifold optimization method for $L_1$ -norm based principal component analysis (GM- $L_1$ -PCA). Our approach is a two-step iterative cost-minimization and manifold retraction technique that efficiently finds all principal components simultaneously. We perform complexity analysis and show that GM- $L_1$ -PCA achieves a significant reduction in processing time while obtaining comparable or better results to current state-of-the-art $L_1$ -PCA methods. We further demonstrate the improvement of GM- $L_1$ -PCA technique over $L_2$ -PCA on a dataset of facial imagery corrupted with outlying data points. Our experiments show that GM- $L_1$ -PCA is computationally more efficient and produces results with lower reprojection error than previous methods. Furthermore, the processing time of our approach is relatively independent of dataset size and well suited for various big-data problems commonly encountered today.
Towards Better Confidence Estimation for Neural Models

In this work we focus on confidence modeling for neural network based text classification and sequence to sequence models in the context of Natural Language Understanding (NLU) tasks. For most applications, the confidence of a neural network model in it’s output is computed as a function of the posterior probability, determined via a softmax layer. In this work, we show that such scores can be poorly calibrated [1]. We propose new ensemble and gradient based features that predict model uncertainty and confidence. We evaluate the impact of these features through a gradient boosted decision tree (GBDT) framework to produce calibrated confidence scores. We demonstrate that the performance of our proposed approach surpasses the baseline across multiple tasks. Moreover, we show that this method produces confidence scores which are better suited for Out-Of-Distribution(OOD) classification when compared to the baseline.
Investigating the Benefits of Scaffolding in Assessments of Young English Learners: A Case for Scaffolded Retell Tasks

ABSTRACTScaffolding, an instructional strategy for providing support until learners can perform a task on their own, holds a potential to improve assessments for test takers who need support to dem...
Nearest Keyword Search on Probabilistic XML Data

This paper pays attention to the nearest keyword (NK) problem on probabilistic XML data (NK-P). NK search occupies an important position in information discovery, information extraction and many other areas. Compared with traditional XML data, it is more expensive to answer NK-P search because of so many possible worlds. NK-P can be seen as an NK problem on many traditional XML documents. For a given node q and a keyword k, an NK-P query returns the node which is nearest to q among all the nodes associated with k in all the possible worlds. NK-P search is not only useful independent operator but also as an important part for keyword search. Firstly, we propose a new NK concept on probabilistic XML data based on possible worlds. Next, we present an indexing algorithm to answer an NK-P query efficiently. Finally, extensive experimental results show that our approach is an effective method on probabilistic XML data, and it could significantly reduce the execution time.
"It Makes People Uneasy, but It's Necessary. #BTSM": Using Twitter to Explore Advance Care Planning among Brain Tumor Stakeholders

Background: Advance care planning (ACP) often occurs too late in the disease course of those who are affected by brain tumors. Furthermore, the perspectives of brain tumor stakeholders on ACP are not well described. We reviewed a social media tweet chat to understand barriers to ACP experienced by brain tumor stakeholders. Methods: We used qualitative methods to analyze a tweet chat (real-time virtual discussion) of brain tumor stakeholders. The one-hour tweet chat was hosted by Brain Tumor Social Media chat (@BTSMchat), a patient-run Twitter community, in January 2018. Participants reflected on four questions about ACP by including the hashtag "#BTSM" in tweets. Unique tweets and stakeholder type (i.e., patient, caregiver, advocate or organization member, clinician or researcher, or @BTSMchat leader) were coded. The tweet chat was qualitatively analyzed to identify key themes. Results: A total of 52 participants from four countries contributed 336 tweets. Most participants were patients (people with brain tumors), followed by clinicians or researchers, and advocates or organizations. Three key themes emerged regarding brain tumor stakeholder perspectives about ACP: (1) attitudinal barriers prevent discussions of death; (2) need to ensure one's voice is heard; and (3) Goldilock's approach to timing-fearing ACP is too early or too late. Conclusions: Various stakeholders, including people with brain tumors, shared perspectives on ACP through a tweet chat and highlighted important challenges and opportunities. Twitter is a new avenue for patients, clinicians, and advocates to engage with each other to better understand each other's perspectives related to ACP.
ADHD Diagnosis and Treatment Guidelines: A Historical Perspective

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is the most common behavioral condition and the second most common chronic illness in children. The observance of specific behaviors in multiple settings have remained the most successful method for diagnosing the condition, and although there are differences in specific areas of the brain, and a high heritability estimate (∼76%), they are not diagnostically specific. Medications, and particularly stimulant medication, have undergone rigorous studies to document their efficacy dating back to the 1970s. Likewise, behavioral interventions in the form of parent training and classroom programs have demonstrated robust efficacy during the same time period. Both medication and behavioral interventions are symptomatic treatments. The availability of only symptomatic treatments places ADHD in the same category as other chronic conditions such as diabetes and asthma. Successful treatment of most individuals requires ongoing adherence to the therapy. Improved communication between patients and their families, primary and mental health providers, and school personnel is necessary for effective ADHD treatment. Further enhancement of electronic systems to facilitate family, school, and provider communication can improve monitoring of ADHD symptoms and functional performance. The American Academy of Pediatrics ADHD guidelines were initially developed to help primary care clinicians address the needs of their patients with ADHD and were further refined with the second revision in 2019.
Study of multiphase aqueous solutions for nonisothermal conditions using the complex permittivity in the microwave range

The complex permittivity of a multiphase aqueous solution is measured in the microwave frequency range of 2.8–6GHz using the cavity perturbation method for a temperature domain of −15 °C up to 0 °C...
Abstract 361: The Significance of Higher Mean Arterial Pressure After Inpatient Cardiac Arrests in Improving Neurological Outcome and Mortality

Following cardiac arrest and the return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC), hemodynamic status can be critically unstable which may lead to the hypoperfusion of vital organs and poor clinical outcom...
Recurrent Tube Erosions with Anti-Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Therapy in Patients with Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Purpose To determine the rates of primary and recurrent glaucoma tube shunt erosions in patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) receiving anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) intravitreal injections. Design Retrospective case series. Participants Patients with AMD who underwent tube revision for erosion at the Duke Eye Center from January 1, 1999, to January 1, 2019, were identified. Patients with and without anti-VEGF injections were compared. Methods Patient demographics, ocular diagnoses, glaucoma tube shunt types and locations, and dates of glaucoma surgeries and anti-VEGF injections were collected. Statistical analyses were performed with P Main Outcome Measures Outcome measures included the number of tube erosions, time from anti-VEGF injection to tube erosion, and secondary complications after tube revisions. Results A total of 150 patients with AMD with anti-VEGF (309 tubes) and 262 patients with AMD without anti-VEGF (459 tubes) were identified. There was no statistically significant difference in the number of tube erosions in patients with anti-VEGF (15 tubes, 4.8%) versus without anti-VEGF (12 tubes, 2.6%) (P = 0.10). However, patients receiving anti-VEGF had on average a greater number of tube erosion events (2.1±0.7 events) compared with patients without anti-VEGF (1.3±0.7, P Conclusions Our results suggest intravitreal anti-VEGF injections are linked to higher rates of recurrent glaucoma tube erosions in patients with AMD. The majority of patients received chronic and serial anti-VEGF injections. Thus, additional consideration should be given to glaucoma surgical planning in patients receiving anti-VEGF injections, especially in those with a primary tube erosion.
Yield Loss of Cotton Cultivars Due to Rotylenchulus reniformis and the Added Benefit of a Nematicide

The objective was to determine cotton yield loss due to Rotylenchulus reniformis and document any yield benefit from the addition of a nematicide. Field trials were established in two adjacent fiel...
Core Values and the Identity-Supportive Classroom: Setting LGBTQ Issues within Wider Frameworks for Preservice Educators

Whenever I introduce a new group of teacher education students or other preservice educators to the research about lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) youth and schooling-related issues, I begin with this prompt. I ask students to write privately for a few minutes and then to share some of their ideas aloud while I collect them on the board. Because, in many cases, I have asked students to complete some reading about LGBTQ issues prior to the class, some of the rights that they identify are those that one might expect to hear directly after students have read this material, including “a safe learning environment,” “freedom from bullying and harassment,” and “acceptance and respect at school.” Often, however, students are able to think beyond the content of the reading and to come up with a broad spectrum of ideals to which they believe all students are entitled and that drive their most fundamental motivations to pursue careers in education. These ideals include “opportunities to develop their own unique talents and
Changing the narrative: UNCF and its role in policy advocacy for Historically Black Colleges and Universities

Through the use of qualitative content analysis, we highlight the various advocacy strategies of and technologies of resistance utilized by the United Negro College Fund (UNCF), an organization established to raise funding, awareness, and engage in policy advocacy on behalf of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Providing an overview of the literature on minoritized policy advocacy, as well as highlighting the dearth of inquiry on minoritized organizations that engage in policy advocacy on behalf of and in consortium with HBCUs, this article highlights the work of the UNCF, its history, and its evolving role in policy advocacy to combat policy borne out of predominantly White policy arenas. We identify the ways UNCF challenge deficit narratives about HBCUs and the minoritized populations these institutions serve as well as offer concrete strategies and technologies of resistance that can be used for engaging in policy advocacy on behalf of minoritized organizations and communities.
Written All Over Their Faces: Neutrality and Nonverbal Expression in Sandy Hook Coverage:

During crises, it’s challenging for journalists to keep their emotions out of reports. While broadcast journalists try to keep linguistic messages neutral, nonverbal behaviors are difficult to conc...
Dynamic Strength of Copper at High Pressures Using Pressure Shear Plate Experiments

Measurement of strength at high pressures is critical to understanding the behavior of materials subjected to extreme loading conditions. Recent developments have extended the pressure shear plate impact (PSPI) technique to the high-pressure regime. Such experiments provide a unique opportunity to extract the complete stress–strain behavior of materials at relatively high pressures. The modified technique includes a new fiber-optic heterodyne transverse velocity interferometer system and new analysis methods to account for the inelastic response of the anvil plates. In this study, PSPI experiments are conducted on oxygen-free high conductivity (OFHC) copper at pressures ranging from 10 to 43 GPa and at strain rates of ~ 105 s−1. Complete stress–strain curves of copper are obtained using a hybrid methodology that relies on numerical simulations and particle velocity records gathered in these experiments. Experiments are conducted at similar pressures and strain rates using two types of anvils that undergo different levels of plastic strains: tool steel and tungsten carbide, to check the robustness of the hybrid method. The behavior of copper at these high pressures and strain rates is compared with previous literature data, and the effect of pressure and strain rate on the strength behavior of copper are discussed. It was observed that the rate of change in yield strength with pressure was 2.5 times the rate of change of shear modulus with pressure. The strength models that predict the response of copper at these extreme conditions are also examined and validated.
Application of systemic-structural activity theory to the design of BOTs and AI software

Today, artificial intelligence (AI) and BOTs (build–operate–transfer) transform our individual lives and businesses. Some authors even claim that this is the era of intelligence in machines. AI and BOTs are developed to mimic various human behaviors. The Systemic-Structural Activity Theory (SSAT) is the framework that offers numerous methods of analyzing and optimizing human performance and reducing the number of errors. This paper focuses on how the SSAT methodology can be utilized to develop AI and BOTs. The SSAT analysis of the tasks, their design, and testing can be improved via building a human algorithm of the task performance. Such analysis allows users to choose the most efficient method of task performance that can then be applied to the development of an AI or a BOT. This paper discusses the examples of BOT development and demonstrates the capabilities, utilization, and future applications of the SSAT framework.
Spatial Distribution of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Contaminants after Hurricane Harvey in a Houston Neighborhood.

Background Hurricane Harvey made landfall along the Texas Gulf Coast as a Category 4 hurricane on August 25, 2017, producing unprecedented precipitation that devastated coastal areas. Catastrophic flooding in the City of Houston inundated industrial and residential properties resulting in the displacement and transfer of soil, sediment, and debris and heightening existing environmental justice (EJ) concerns. Objectives The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the presence, distribution, and potential human health implications of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in a residential neighborhood of Houston, Texas following a major hurricane. Methods Concentrations of PAHs in 40 soil samples collected from a residential neighborhood in Houston, Texas were measured. Spatial interpolation was applied to determine the distribution of PAHs. Potential human health risks were evaluated by calculating toxicity equivalency quotients (TEQs) and incremental excess lifetime cancer risk (IELCR). Results Total priority PAH concentrations varied across samples (range: 9.7 × 101 ng/g-1.6 × 104 ng/g; mean: 3.0 × 103 ng/g ± 3.6 × 103 standard deviation). Spatial analysis indicated a variable distribution of PAH constituents and concentrations. The IELCR analysis indicated that nine of the 40 samples were above minimum standards. Conclusions Findings from this study highlight the need for fine scale soil testing in residential areas as well as the importance of site-specific risk assessment. Competing interests The authors declare no competing financial interests.
Effect of heat treatment on microstructure and hardness of a worn rail repaired using laser powder deposition

Abstract The frequent replacement of worn rails on tracks brings an immense economic burden on the railroad industry, and also causes significant interruptions to railroad operation. Restoration of worn rails via laser powder deposition (LPD) can considerably reduce the associated maintenance costs. This study was focused on the use of LPD to repair the worn profile of a standard U.S. rail. The microstructure of the 304L stainless steel deposits with a minimum hardness of 85 HRB was composed of austenite, δ-ferrite, and sigma. Micropores were dispersed throughout the deposit, and microcracks were found at the rail-deposition interface. The pearlitic rail substrate showed a moderate hardness of 94 HRB. The fine-grain, pearlitic-ferritic heat affected zone had the maximum hardness of 96 HRB, which was still below the minimum required hardness of 97 HRB for a typical rail. To increase the hardness to or above 97 HRB and to mitigate the microstructural defects, the as-repaired rail went through a heat treatment process. The average hardness of the as-treated rail was increased significantly, i.e., to 103 HRB. Besides, the porous and coarse-grain deposition materials were transformed into an impermeable and fine-grain microstructure. However, heat treatment intensified the microcracks at the rail-deposition interface and also led to the formation of martensite and augmentation of the micropores in the parent rail. Isolation of the base rail during heat treatment and preheating were suggested as solutions for the problematic results. The LPD process ultimately was found to be a promising technique for repairing rails.
Crafting Compliance Regime under COVID-19: Using Taiwan's Quarantine Policy as a Case Study

Abstract One year after the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic, governments around the world adopt similar practices in containing the COVID-19 spread. Nevertheless, variation exists in the level of policy compliance, which directly contribute to policy success/failure across countries. As the pandemic continues, pandemic fatigue also decreases the public?s willingness to comply. Increasing policy compliance during the remainder of pandemic has become a transnational concern. Using Taiwan?s quarantine policy as an example, this article illustrates three aspects to craft an effective compliance regime to fight public health crises like COVID-19: (1) a comprehensive policy mix to reduce heterogeneous compliance barriers that impact different social groups;(2) constant and various policy communication with heterogeneous target audiences;and (3) leveraging and integrating street-level bureaucrats in the policy implementation stages. Taiwan?s case provides several policy lessons for other countries: compliance regime is not driven by top-down enforcement but through the integration of policy design and implementation that remove all barriers for compliance. Taiwan?s street level bureaucrats are the glue of the compliance regime. This article bears policy implications for policy makers around the world when aiming for increasing policy compliance.
Free Exercise's Lingering Ambiguity

Religious challenges to state-issued stay-at-home orders have become a staple of the litigation generated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Judges hearing these challenges have had to grapple with an old question imbued with new pandemic-related nuance: What constitutes discrimination against religion under the Free Exercise Clause? The answer—as evidenced by the wide divergence in courts’ responses—is anything but straightforward. In this essay, I explore an ambiguity surrounding the meaning of religious discrimination in current free exercise jurisprudence, the role this ambiguity has played in recent religious challenges to stay-at-home orders, and how the Supreme Court next term may finally lay this ambiguity to rest.
Measuring population health: association of self-rated health and PROMIS measures with social determinants of health in a cross-sectional survey of the US population.

Background Self-reported health-related quality of life is an important population health outcome, often assessed using a single question about self-rated health (SRH). The Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) is a new set of measures constructed using item response theory, so each item contains information about an underlying construct. This study's objective is to assess the association between SRH and PROMIS scores and social determinants of health (SDoH) to evaluate the use of PROMIS for measuring population health. Methods A cross sectional survey of 4142 US adults included demographics, 7 PROMIS domains with 2 items each, the PROMIS-preference (PROPr) score, self-rated health (SRH), 30 social determinants of health (SDoH), and 12 chronic medical conditions. SDoH and chronic condition impact estimates were created by regressing the outcome (PROMIS domain, PROPr, or SRH) on demographics and SDoH or a single chronic condition. Linear regression was used for PROMIS domains and PROPr; ordinal logistic regression was used for SRH. Results Both SRH and PROPr detected statistically significant differences for 11 of 12 chronic conditions. Of the 30 SDoH, 19 statistically significant differences were found by SRH and 26 statistically significant differences by PROPr. The SDoH with statistically significant differences included those addressing education, income, financial insecurity, and social support. The number of statistically significant differences found for SDoH varies by individual PROMIS domains from 13 for Sleep Disturbance to 25 for Physical Function. Conclusions SRH is a simple single question that provides information about health-related quality of life. The 14 item PROMIS measure used in this study detects more differences in health-related quality of life for social determinants of health than SRH. This manuscript illustrates the relative costs and benefits of each approach to measuring health-related quality of life.
Inhibition of Growth and Dissemination of Shay Myelogenous Leukemic Tumor in Rats by Glucan and Glucan Activated Macrophages

Among the various agents which have been employed in an attempt to delineate the physiological and immunological role of the reticuloendothelial system (RES) has been zymosan. Zymosan was the name given by Pillemer and Ecker (33) to a yeast fraction having the property of inactivating the third component of complement. This cell wall preparation, derived from Saccharomyces cerevisiae, was initially demonstrated to be an effective reticuloendothelial (RE) stimulant by Benacerraf and Sebestyen (4). Zymosan was reported by Northcote and Home (31) to be composed of protein, lipid and complex polysaccharides, namely mannan and glucan. Di Carlo and Fiore (11) reported that the composition of the yeast cell wall was approximately 58% glucan and 18% mannan. Glucan comprises the inner cell wall with mannan comprising the outer cell wall (30). Since the observations of Benacerraf and Sebestyen (4), zymosan has been uniformly demonstrated to produce marked stimulation of the RES. These events include increased phagocytosis, increased rate of intracellular degradation of phagocytized particles, increased resistance to infection, increased properdin levels, enhanced humoral immunity and inhibition or regression of various tumors (9, 12,28,32,38).
Deacetylation of p53 modulates its effect on cell growth and apoptosis

The p53 tumour suppressor is a transcriptional factor whose activity is modulated by protein stability and post-translational modifications including acetylation. The mechanism by which acetylated p53 is maintained in vivo remains unclear. Here we show that the deacetylation of p53 is mediated by an histone deacetylase-1 (HDAC1)-containing complex. We have also purified a p53 target protein in the deacetylase complexes (designated PID; but identical to metastasis-associated protein 2 (MTA2)), which has been identified as a component of the NuRD complex. PID specifically interacts with p53 both in vitro and in vivo, and its expression reduces significantly the steady-state levels of acetylated p53. PID expression strongly represses p53-dependent transcriptional activation, and, notably, it modulates p53-mediated cell growth arrest and apoptosis. These results show that deacetylation and functional interactions by the PID/MTA2-associated NuRD complex may represent an important pathway to regulate p53 function.
Intimate partner violence among men presenting to a university emergency department.

Objective: We sought to investigate the one-year point prevalence for male intimate partner violence (IPV) in men presenting to a university emergency department, to identify types of violence, to examine differences in male IPV rates based on patient demographics, and to identify any differences in prevalence based on types of partnership. Methods: This survey study was conducted from September 2001 until January 2002 at a tertiary, academic, Level I Trauma Center with an emergency department (ED) that has 40,000 visits per year. The anonymous written survey consisted of 16 questions previously validated in the Colorado Partner Violence Study, Index of Spouse Abuse and the Conflict Tactics Scale. This survey was administered to all consenting adult men who presented to the ED. Odds ratios (OR) with 95% CI were calculated when appropriate and a p-value of 0.05 was set for significance. Results: The oneyear point prevalence rate of male IPV was 24% in our study population (82/346). Among the men who experienced some form of abuse specified as either physical, emotional, or sexual, the prevalence was calculated to be 15.6% (54/346), 13.6% (47/346), and 2.6% (9/346), respectively. Education, income, age, and race did not demonstrate an association for any one variable to be associated with intimate partner abuse (p>0.05) with the exception of increased risk of IPV among unemployed men in the relationship (p<0.04, OR 0.592). IPV towards men was found to affect both heterosexual as well as homosexual relationships. Overall, 2% (8/346) of the men surveyed had received medical treatment as a result of IPV by their intimate partner within the past year. Three percent (11/344) of those men reporting abuse were abusers themselves. Conclusion: The point prevalence of IPV among our study population was 24%. In our study of 346 men, male IPV crossed all socioeconomic boundaries, racial differences, and educational levels regardless of the sex of the partner.
Physical fitness in pregnancy: Its effect on pregnancy outcome

Abstract Does a high degree of maternal physical fitness benefit the fetus? Fifty-four women, 35 to 37 weeks pregnant, were tested on a bicycle ergometer and given a physical fitness score (PFS). Forty-one women completed the study. None of the following had a significant correlation with the maternal PFS: Length of gestation, complications of pregnancy, length of labor in primiparas, one-minute Apgar score, infant birth weight, infant length, and infant head circumference. The PFS varied inversely with the length of labor in multiparas (p
Conformational stability of the bacteriochlorophyll-protein complex isolated from the green photosynthetic bacterium Chloropseudomonas ethylicum: I. The conformational states at acid, neutral, and alkaline pH values☆

Abstract The nature of the pigment-pigment, pigment-protein, and protein-protein interactions in the bacteriochlorophyll-protein complex (BChl-P) isolated from a green photosynthetic bacterium Chloropseudomonas ethylicum has been investigated by means of absorption spectrum, optical rotatory dispersion, and circular dichroism. Pure bacteriochlorophyll in appropriate compositions of methanol-water mixture has been used as the model system to understand the state of the pigment molecules in the complex. There is a strong interaction between the pigment molecules in the BChl-P complex at neutral pH, but the interaction is very weak in both the Bph-P and the alkaline form of the complex. Despite significant structural modifications at acid and alkaline pH values, the pigment molecules are still attached to the protein moieties. Urea (8 m ) or 0.8% Triton X-100 do not produce any change in the conformational state of the BChl-P complex at, neutral pH, but they drastically alter the structures of the Bph-P and the alkaline forms of the complex. Hence, the BChl-P complex possesses the most compact and stable conformation at neutral pH, but becomes less stable at either of the extreme pH values. The results are discussed in view of the factors that are essential for stabilizing the pigment-protein relationship in the photosynthetic apparatus.
Hexa-μ(2)-chlorido-μ(4)-oxido-tetra-kis-[(3-methyl-5-phenyl-1H-pyrazole-κN)copper(II)].

The title compound, [Cu4Cl6O(C10H10N2)4], contains four CuII atoms which are bridged by six chloride anions. The central O atom is located on a crystallographic fourfold roto-inversion axis. Each CuII atom is coordinated by an N atom of a neutral monodentate 3-methyl-5-phenyl­pyrazole ligand, three Cl− anions, and one O2− anion. The geometry at each CuII atom is distorted trigonal–bipyramidal, with the three Cl− ions in the equatorial plane and the N and O atoms in the axial positions.
The Identification of Transposon-Tagged Mutations in Essential Genes That Affect Cell Morphology in Saccharomyces Cerevisiae

The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae reproduces by budding, and many genes are required for proper bud development. Mutations in some of these genes cause cells to die with an unusual terminal morphology--elongated or otherwise aberrantly shaped buds. To gain insight into bud development, we set out to identify novel genes that encode proteins required for proper bud morphogenesis. Previous studies screened collections of conditional mutations to identify genes required for essential functions, including bud formation. However, genes that are not susceptible to the generation of mutations that cause a conditional phenotype will not be identified in such screens. To identify a more comprehensive collection of mutants, we used transposon mutagenesis to generate a large collection of lethal disruption mutations. This collection was used to identify 209 mutants with disruptions that cause an aberrant terminal bud morphology. The disruption mutations in 33 of these mutants identify three previously uncharacterized genes as essential, and the mutant phenotypes suggest roles for their products in bud morphogenesis.
Employment growth in high-tech new ventures

We specify and estimate a model of the early employment growth of technology-driven new ventures. Our estimated model is derived from labor demand theory. A data set of 100 German firms is used to conduct this analysis. The study’s findings support the relevance of the theory as applied to these nascent firms. Employment growth is significantly enhanced in ventures exhibiting high profits, experienced founders, formal information processes, and outsourced product distribution. Our findings also confirm aspects of Penrose’s theory of firm growth suggesting that transactions costs associated with larger founder teams may inhibit employment growth.