cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
moocRP: Enabling Open Learning Analytics with an Open Source Platform for Data Distribution, Analysis, and Visualization

In this paper, we address issues of transparency, modularity, and privacy with the introduction of an open source, web-based data repository and analysis tool tailored to the Massive Open Online Course community. The tool integrates data request/authorization and distribution workflow features as well as provides a simple analytics module upload format to enable reuse and replication of analytics results among instructors and researchers. We survey the evolving landscape of competing established and emerging data models, all of which are accommodated in the platform. Data model descriptions are provided to analytics authors who choose, much like with smartphone app stores, to write for any number of data models depending on their needs and the proliferation of the particular data model. Two case study examples of analytics and responsive visualizations based on different data models are described in the paper. The result is a simple but effective approach to learning analytics immediately applicable to X consortium MOOCs and beyond.
The environment as a strategic healthcare partner.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW To describe the growing-consensus opinion regarding the contribution of natural processes - 'nature' - to human health. Globally, natural environments are becoming smaller and critically degraded because of various human-related factors. Consequently, some of the 'free' health benefits nature confers are being lost. This is especially problematic for people in rural areas with limited access to clinical services whose lives depend closely upon nature. RECENT FINDINGS In 2001, an assessment of the world's 'ecosystems' was initiated - the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. It explored ecosystem changes and their subsequent effects in various locales on human well being, including health. Global Burden of Disease studies have also revealed the importance of environmental factors to health, in some countries in particular. Not coincidentally, geographic areas in the two research efforts overlap. Despite this, convincing research describing how conserving healthy environments may positively affect human health remains lacking. SUMMARY Establishing ecosystem-human health causal linkages via traditional epidemiological approaches is challenging. Innovative research initiatives are beginning to increase our understanding and appreciation of nature's role as a provider of health, rendering conservation potentially a healthcare strategy. Transdisciplinary university teaching is also playing a role in broadening the awareness of these important linkages and developing research skills to meet the challenge.
The Naturalization of Rosika Schwimmer

nism and pacifism. Furthermore, it was the first Supreme Court case in history to raise the question of whether an alien consci entious objector to war could qualify for citizenship.3 It set a temporary precedent in American jurisprudence and stimu lated considerable congressional and public debate. This essay tells the story of Rosika Schwimmer's attempt to become an American citizen and its aftermath.
Teaching the Two Faces of Medical History

In this article, medical history is described as falling into two large classes. The first is macrohistory, the grand sweep of great events over the centuries. The second is microhistory, the small, detailed, historical development of procedures, drugs, and therapies, as well as diagnostic procedures, that provides the basis for today's treatment in medicine, pediatrics, and surgery. Knowledge of both of these aspects of medical history is essential to the safe practice of medicine, as well as to the enjoyable life of the physician or surgeon working in applied biomedical science.
A Unified Evolutionary Optimization Procedure for Single, Multiple, and Many Objectives

Traditionally, evolutionary algorithms (EAs) have been systematically developed to solve mono-, multi-, and many-objective optimization problems, in this order. Despite some efforts in unifying different types of mono-objective evolutionary and non-EAs, researchers are not interested enough in unifying all three types of optimization problems together. Such a unified algorithm will allow users to work with a single software enabling one-time implementation of solution representation, operators, objectives, and constraints formulations across several objective dimensions. For the first time, we propose a unified evolutionary optimization algorithm for solving all three classes of problems specified above, based on the recently proposed elitist, guided nondominated sorting procedure, developed for solving many-objectives problems. Using a new niching-based selection procedure, our proposed unified algorithm automatically degenerates to an efficient equivalent population-based algorithm for each class. No extra parameters are needed. Extensive simulations are performed on unconstrained and constrained test problems having single-, two-, multi-, and many-objectives and on two engineering optimization design problems. Performance of the unified approach is compared to suitable population-based counterparts at each dimensional level. Results amply demonstrate the merit of our proposed unified approach and motivate similar studies for a richer understanding of the development of optimization algorithms.
The design and implementation of the TRIPS prototype chip

This article consists of a collection of slides from the authors' conference presentation. They conclude that: distributed microarchitecture acknowledges and tolerates wire delay and scalable protocols tailored for distributed components. Tiled microarchitecture simplifies scalability and improves design productivity. The next step for instruction-level parallelism is EDGE ISA enables increased ILP while also exploiting coarser types of parallelism.
The Effect of Freezing of Amniotic Fluid on the Lamellar Body Count Fetal Lung Maturity Test

The study purpose was to determine if amniotic fluid that is inadvertently frozen falsely elevates the lamellar body count (LBC) fetal lung maturity test. Because the TDx-FLM test is no longer available, many laboratories are converting to the LBC test. Studies to date on the effect of freezing prior to running the test are limited by small numbers; used …
Monetary Policy Implications of Recent Changes in the Financial Systems in the United States and Europe

Financial markets have evolved significantly in recent years in the United States and Europe. Although economic growth has slowed almost everywhere among high-income countries, growth would have slowed even more without improvements in economic efficiency arising from the growth of world trade and accompanying developments in international finance. The differential attitude toward freedom of trade and international capital flows — the attitude that free trade was to be encouraged but international capital flows were to be controlled — has broken down to a considerable extent. In part this change reflects the profitability of trade in financial services, which cannot occur without the capital flows to be serviced. The change in attitude also reflects recognition of the intimate relationship between trade in goods and services and the financing mechanisms including long-term capital flows, short-term trade finance, and foreign exchange dealing that accompany trade.
Evidence for Alpha Adrenergic Activation of Phosphorylase and Inactivation of Glycogen Synthase in Rat Adipocytes : Effects of Alpha and Beta Adrenergic Agonists and Antagonists on Glycogen Synthase and Phosphorylase

The effects of alpha and beta adrenergic agonists and antagonists on the percentages of phosphorylase a and glycogen synthase I activities were investigated in isolated rat adipocytes. (-)-Epinephrine, (-)-norepinephrine, and (-)-isoproterenol increased the concentration of adenosine cyclic 39,59-monophosphate (cAMP) and the percentage of phosphorylase a activity in a dose-dependent manner. Isoproterenol was about 10 times more potent than epinephrine or norepinephrine with respect to these increases as well as to decreases in the percentage of glycogen synthase I activity. Although all three agents decreased synthase I activity to the same extent, the maximal effects of epinephrine and norepinephrine on phosphorylase a activity were approximately 25% greater than the maximal effect of isoproterenol. In the presence of the alpha adrenergic antagonists phentolamine, phenoxybenzamine, and dihydroergotamine, the maximal effect of norepinephrine on increasing the percentage of phosphorylase a was reduced to that of isoproterenol. All three alpha adrenergic antagonists potentiated the ability of norepinephrine to increase the concentration of cAMP. The maximal effect of (-)-phenylephrine on phosphorylase a activity was less than the maximal effect of isoproterenol. When cells were incubated with isoproterenol plus phenylephrine, phosphorylase a activity was increased to levels observed with epinephrine or norepinephrine. Methoxamine also increased phosphorylase a activity, and the effects of isoproterenol and methoxamine on phosphorylase were additive. Incubation of cells with 5 mM dibutyryl cAMP decreased synthase I activity and increased phosphorylase a activity to the level observed with isoproterenol. When dibutyryl cAMP was added to cells together with isoproterenol or epinephrine, no further increase in phosphorylase a activity over that obtained with the catecholamines alone was observed. However, when cells were incubated with phenylephrine plus dibutyryl cAMP, the percentage of phosphorylase a activity was increased to that observed with epinephrine. (-)-Propranolol completely blocked the rise in cAMP observed following incubation of cells with epinephrine, norepinephrine, or phenylephrine; yet an increase in phosphorylase a activity and a decrease in synthase I activity were still observed. Incubation of cells with 20 µM propranolol together with 1 µM phenoxybenzamine did not reverse the decrease in synthase I activity produced by 200 milliunits/ml of adrenocorticotrophic hormone, but completely abolished the effect of 200 µM phenylephrine. Incubation of cells with methoxamine (1-10 µM) decreased glycogen synthase I activity. Phentolamine (20 µM) completely blocked this effect of methoxamine, as well as the ability of methoxamine to increase phosphorylase a activity.
Safety Planning for Suicide Prevention

The Safety Plan was developed to help individuals at risk of suicide to prevent and/or manage suicidal crises. The risk of suicide is elevated for people with serious mental illness, that is, a mental illness that interferes with the ability to carry out one or more major life activities. Serious mental illness makes it difficult to think clearly, make decisions, and take positive action. In other words, it impairs executive functioning. A wide variety of diagnoses, including depression (unipolar or bipolar), borderline personality disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and schizophrenia, are associated with this kind of impairment. A Safety Plan in easy reach reduces the burden of problem-solving when a crisis is looming and the ability to think clearly is impaired. There is no need to figure out what to do to interrupt a darkening mood, because strategies that may help are already written out. There is no need to look up emergency contact information, because it has already been compiled. Essential as this information can be, a well-constructed Safety Plan is more than just a list of strategies and contacts. When the items are individualized and described in detail, they can be potent reminders of cherished memories, simple pleasures that give comfort, and people who care who are in reach and can be counted on to respond when needed. In other words, a well-constructed Safety Plan can reassure its owner that s/he is neither helpless nor alone. Since 2008, the construction of a Safety Plan has been mandated for every patient at risk of suicide at every facility under the auspices of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Today, 8 years since the issuance of this mandate, VA clinicians have not only become accustomed to developing and reviewing Safety Plans in the medical record but also, as this review will suggest, begun to discover for themselves how helpful a Safety Plan can be. As it is not yet known which patients (e.g., with respect to age, sex, or diagnosis) are likeliest to benefit, or whether the impact varies with the timing of its construction (e.g., at time of discharge, or the day before), setting, (e.g., in the emergency department or the inpatient unit), and/or mode of delivery (e.g., in group or individual sessions), these and other questions that aim to optimize Safety Plan effectiveness merit further investigation.
Q-learning for continuous-time graphical games on large networks with completely unknown linear system dynamics

Summary In this paper, we consider the problem of leader synchronization in systems with interacting agents in large networks while simultaneously satisfying energy-related user-defined distributed optimization criteria. But modeling in large networks is very difficult, and for that reason, we derive a model-free formulation that is based on a separate distributed Q-learning function for every agent. Every Q-function is a parametrization of each agent's control, of the neighborhood controls, and of the neighborhood tracking error. It is also evident that none of the agents has any information on where the leader is connected to and from where she spreads the desired information. The proposed algorithm uses an integral reinforcement learning approach with a separate distributed actor/critic network for each agent: a critic approximator to approximate each value function and an actor approximator to approximate each optimal control law. The derived tuning laws for each actor and critic approximators are designed appropriately by using gradient descent laws. We provide rigorous stability and convergence proofs to show that the closed-loop system has an asymptotically stable equilibrium point and that the control policies form a graphical Nash equilibrium. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method on a network consisting of 10 agents. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Human Gene Editing: Where Does the 2017 National Academy of Sciences Report Bring Us?

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine report on human gene editing signifies an effort to establish responsible policies and practices in a fast-moving field. Whether the po...
The Case of Circumcision: Diaspora Judaism as a Model for Islam?

Two moments in recent history: a religious community in France is banned from wearing distinctive clothing in public schools, as that is seen as an egregious violation of secular society; a religious community in Switzerland is forbidden from ritually slaughtering unstunned animals, as such slaughter is seen as a cruel and unnatural act. These acts take place more than a hundred years apart: the former recently in France, the latter more than a century ago in 1893 in Switzerland (where the prohibition against ritual slaughter still stands and has now been adopted widely, from New Zealand in 2010 to Sweden, where even fish must be stunned). But who are these religious communities? In France (among other countries), the order banning ostentatious religious clothing and ornaments in schools and other public institutions has as much impact on religious Jewish men who cover their heads (and perhaps even religious Jewish married women who cover their hair) as it does the evident target group, Muslim women. (The law is written in such a politically correct [PC] way as also to ban the ostentatious wearing of a cross: ‘Pierre, you can’t come into school carrying that six-foot-high cross on your back. You will have to simply leave it in the hall.’) Ironically, in 2013 such a law was proposed for civil servants in the Province of Quebec for much the same reasons, but with a twist: ‘The government went as far … as publishing sartorial dos-and-don’ts, with pictograms of Sikh turbans and Muslim face veils in the verboten category, and discreet cross pendants or Star of David rings on the acceptable list.’1 Both Jewish and Muslim groups objected to the state’s definition of what is or is not a religious ritual object.
Human relaxins (RLNH1, RLNH2), their receptor (RXFP1) and fetoplacental growth.

Relaxin, a systemic and placental hormone, has potential roles in fetoplacental growth. Human placenta expresses two RLN genes, RLNH1 and RLNH2 Maternal obesity is common and is associated with abnormal fetal growth. Our aims were to relate systemic and cord blood RLNH2, placental RLNs and their receptor (RXFP1) with fetoplacental growth in context of maternal body mass index, and associations with insulin-like growth factor 2 (IGF2) and vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA) in the same placentas. Systemic, cord blood and placental samples were collected prior to term labor, divided by prepregnancy body mass index: underweight/normal (N = 25) and overweight/obese (N = 44). Blood RLNH2 was measured by ELISA; placental RLNH2, RLNH1, RXFP1, IGF2 and VEGFA were measured by quantitative immunohistochemistry and mRNAs were measured by quantitative reverse transcription PCR. Birthweight increased with systemic RLNH2 only in underweight/normal women (P = 0.036). Syncytiotrophoblast RLNH2 was increased in overweight/obese patients (P = 0.017) and was associated with placental weight in all subjects (P = 0.038). RLNH1 had no associations with birthweight or placental weight, but was associated with increased trophoblast and endothelial IGF2 and VEGFA, due to female fetal sex. Thus, while systemic RLNH2 may be involved in birthweight regulation in underweight/normal women, placental RLNH2 in all subjects may be involved in placental weight. A strong association of trophoblast IGF2 with birthweight and placental weight in overweight/obese women suggests its importance. However, an association of only RLNH1 with placental IGF2 and VEGFA was dependent upon female fetal sex. These results suggest that both systemic and placental RLNs may be associated with fetoplacental growth.
Understanding misunderstandings in source code

Humans often mistake the meaning of source code, and so misjudge a program's true behavior. These mistakes can be caused by extremely small, isolated patterns in code, which can lead to significant runtime errors. These patterns are used in large, popular software projects and even recommended in style guides. To identify code patterns that may confuse programmers we extracted a preliminary set of `atoms of confusion' from known confusing code. We show empirically in an experiment with 73 participants that these code patterns can lead to a significantly increased rate of misunderstanding versus equivalent code without the patterns. We then go on to take larger confusing programs and measure (in an experiment with 43 participants) the impact, in terms of programmer confusion, of removing these confusing patterns. All of our instruments, analysis code, and data are publicly available online for replication, experimentation, and feedback.
Research on architecture design of wind power prediction system

With the increasing proportion of wind power in recent years, problems have emerged due to inherent characteristics of randomness and volatility of the wind power. Wind power prediction as a solution to the problem has received high attention. It is worth designing the wind power prediciton system suitable for electrical production, based on design principle, system function specification, and requirements of security protection for secondary system. It is analyzed the function specification of wind power prediction system in the industry standard — Wind Power Prediction System Function Specification (NB/T 31046-2013). Then this paper researches on the design of overall architecture, functional architecture and data flow architecture. Finally, it is presented a practical overall architecture of wind power prediction system, providing references for the future work in this field.
Collagen-induced whole blood platelet aggregation in patients undergoing surgical procedures associated with minimal to moderate blood loss

Intraoperative bleeding due to platelet disorders is a persistent problem. Therefore, a screening assay to identify patients who are likely to bleed as a result of platelet dysfunction would be useful in formulating decisions about patient care. A previous study indicated that preoperative collagen-induced whole blood platelet aggregation predicts bleeding in patients undergoing surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass, a procedure associated with substantial blood loss. In the current study, we assessed the ability of the same whole blood platelet aggregation test to predict blood loss in patients undergoing surgical procedures not associated with substantial blood loss. The study included 369 adult patients (165 men and 204 women). Patients were categorized in three groups depending on the invasiveness of the operation and the expected blood loss. The intraoperative estimated blood loss value, obtained from the operative report in the patient record, increased significantly with increasing surgical invasiveness. Patients with excessive blood loss (defined as blood loss at or above the 75th or 90th percentile of the estimated blood loss values of patients undergoing procedures of similar invasiveness) had similar platelet aggregation values as patients who did not experience excessive blood loss. Thus, for patients undergoing operations not associated with substantial blood loss, the results of preoperative collagen-induced whole blood platelet aggregation are not effective in identifying patients likely to experience excessive blood loss.
Genomics, Bioinformatics, and Computational Biology

In this chapter, we describe how computational biology can be aided by informatics infrastructure to provide the basis for in silico studies that no longer require the generation of data, and instead facilitate the collection, organization, and analysis of existing datasets that can drive discovery. A new reality is that we are awash in data and tools to analyze these data and one of the most significant challenges is that of enabling the researcher to discover datasets relevant to their work, collect these data, assess its quality, and analyze it. The development of an adequate infrastructure within a researcher’s institution greatly facilitates progress on this front, both in terms of the development of tools and the development of local informatics expertise necessary to complement the domain-specific expertise of the researcher. As an informatics community we often ponder the heterogeneity of tools and resources on a global scale at the expense of the more immediate local problems encountered on a routine basis. Here, we suggest that getting our own houses in order by first employing interoperable solutions that support and facilitate collaboration amongst the complementary disciplines within our own institutions places the informatics community in a better position to address global informatics challenges. This approach can ensure that the solutions implemented employ an architecture and standards that support interoperability. Indeed, this is an organizational and cultural challenge rather than a technological one. Organizational structure and practices are described that provide a comprehensive base of talent capable of creating an environment that supports a sustainable informatics infrastructure, and that can quickly grow as needed to support the specific and rapidly evolving needs unique to that institution.
Cost-Effective Behavior Therapy for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Publisher Summary Behavior therapy in the form of exposure and response prevention is a highly effective treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). This chapter reviews studies that examine behavior therapy (ERP) for OCD. Although some evidence supports the use of newly developed cognitive therapies for OCD, too few of these studies are available for review. Adequate dosages of selective serotonergic reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) medications, usually delivered over lengthy time periods, cost considerably more than time-limited psychosocial methods. Group treatment trials strongly suggest that individual ERP intervention can be delivered in a group format with results comparable to those for individual ERP. Beyond the issue of the relative cost-effectiveness of group vs. individual treatment for OCD is the issue of relative efficacy. Although the few studies on this topic suggest they are roughly comparable in efficacy, there are several reasons to explore group approaches. Certain features of group treatment have the potential to solve the most vexing problems of individual ERP–treatment refusal, homework noncompliance, and maintaining motivation to continue treatment. Apart from the efficacy of modes of delivery of ERP, efficiency of clinical services is one way to reduce OCD treatment costs.
Wetting and Work of Adhesion in Oxide/Metal Systems

This paper evaluates the inherent influence of p(O2) on contact angle, θ, and work of adhesion W ad , of liquid metal/solid oxide systems. It also outlines factors that can alter macroscopic contact angles from their equilibrium values.
Echocardiography in the Evaluation of Thoracic Trauma

The causes and severity of post-traumatic cardiac dysfunction can be assessed rapidly and safely by both transthoracic and transesophageal echocardiography. Transesophageal echocardiography is rapid, portable, and provides more accurate evaluations because of better image resolution and wider exposure. It is also useful for diagnosing traumatic thoracic aortic disruption.
Prostate Cancer in World Trade Center Responders Demonstrates Evidence of an Inflammatory Cascade

An excess incidence of prostate cancer has been identified among World Trade Center (WTC) responders. In this study, we hypothesized that WTC dust, which contained carcinogens and tumor-promoting agents, could facilitate prostate cancer development by inducing DNA damage, promoting cell proliferation, and causing chronic inflammation. We compared expression of immunologic and inflammatory genes using a NanoString assay on archived prostate tumors from WTC Health Program (WTCHP) patients and non-WTC patients with prostate cancer. Furthermore, to assess immediate and delayed responses of prostate tissue to acute WTC dust exposure via intratracheal inhalation, we performed RNA-seq on the prostate of normal rats that were exposed to moderate to high doses of WTC dust. WTC prostate cancer cases showed significant upregulation of genes involved in DNA damage and G2-M arrest. Cell-type enrichment analysis showed that Th17 cells, a subset of proinflammatory Th cells, were specifically upregulated in WTC patients. In rats exposed to WTC dust, we observed upregulation of gene transcripts of cell types involved in both adaptive immune response (dendritic cells and B cells) and inflammatory response (Th17 cells) in the prostate. Unexpectedly, genes in the cholesterol biosynthesis pathway were also significantly upregulated 30 days after acute dust exposure. Our results suggest that respiratory exposure to WTC dust can induce inflammatory and immune responses in prostate tissue. IMPLICATIONS: WTC-related prostate cancer displayed a distinct gene expression pattern that could be the result of exposure to specific carcinogens. Our data warrant further epidemiologic and cellular mechanistic studies to better understand the consequences of WTC dust exposure.Visual Overview: http://mcr.aacrjournals.org/content/molcanres/17/8/1605/F1.large.jpg.
High‐resolution computed tomography reveals dynamics of desiccation and rehydration in fern petioles of a desiccation‐tolerant fern

Desiccation-tolerant (DT) plants can dry past -100 MPa and subsequently recover function upon rehydration. Vascular DT plants face the unique challenges of desiccating and rehydrating complex tissues without causing structural damage. However, these dynamics have not been studied in intact DT plants. We used high resolution micro-computed tomography (microCT), light microscopy, and fluorescence microscopy to characterize the dynamics of tissue desiccation and rehydration in petioles (stipes) of intact DT ferns. During desiccation, xylem conduits in stipes embolized before cellular dehydration of living tissues within the vascular cylinder. During resurrection, the chlorenchyma and phloem within the stipe vascular cylinder rehydrated before xylem refilling. We identified unique stipe traits that may facilitate desiccation and resurrection of the vascular system, including xylem conduits containing pectin (which may confer flexibility and wettability); chloroplasts within the vascular cylinder; and an endodermal layer impregnated with hydrophobic substances that impede apoplastic leakage while facilitating the upward flow of water within the vascular cylinder. Resurrection ferns are a novel system for studying extreme dehydration recovery and embolism repair in the petioles of intact plants. The unique anatomical traits identified here may contribute to the spatial and temporal dynamics of water movement observed during desiccation and resurrection.
Pediatric OTs’ experience of participating in a short-term online learning community with a competence assessment component

Date Presented 04/06/19 This mixed-methods study explored pediatric OTs’ experience of participating in a short-term learning community on evidence-based practices for children and youth with autism, integrated with an online competence assessment platform. The findings demonstrate the potential for socially mediated learning experiences, linked to competence assessment, to support professional development and practitioner-initiated use of evidence-based practices. Primary Author and Speaker: Christine Myers Additional Authors and Speakers: Ashley Parigian, Sandra Brown
Sponsor-Investigators, Approval Stamps, and Repeat Subjects

Q. Is the investigator responsible for monitoring a clinical study, even at his or her own study site, when serving as a “sponsor-investigator” for a study? A. When an investigator agrees to conduct an investigator-initiated research project, he or she assumes all the responsibilities and must
Chapter 25 – Bioluminescence

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses living light or bioluminescence in insects. It is most commonly is produced in tissues or organs within and shines out of the emitter's body, but some organisms ooze or squirt luminous secretions, some even smear them on attackers. The light-emitting layer is organized into a sheet of rosettes, each with a central channel (cylinder), through which airsupply tubes and nerve trunks pass. Analysis of adult morphology and DNA suggest that the flashing lantern, that is, one capable of emitting short bursts of light, evolved independently at least twice and possibly three times, indicating that structural similarities in divergent lampyrid groups are due to evolutionary convergence. Self-lighting species appear in all four kingdoms — Monera, Fungi, Plantae, and Animalia –—in 11 of 29 phyla. But the best-known insect bioluminescence is that of beetles of the family Lampyridae, known as fireflies, lightningbugs, blinkies, and many other local and colloquial names. Bioluminescence chemistry varies among organisms. Bacteria use riboflavin phosphate, sea pansies use diphosphoadenosine, and fireflies use adenosine triphosphate (ATP) in the oxidative decarboxylation of substrates generically known as luciferins, with enzymes termed luciferases. A tentative conclusion would be that bioluminescence has evolved from many separate biochemical origins.
Cutaneous Colon Cancer Metastases in a Surgical Scar.

Colon Cancer Metastases in a Surgical Scar A 59-year-old man with metastatic colon cancer presented with pink, firm skin lesions around his abdominal surgical scar. A biopsy showed cutaneous metast...
Structural analysis of the catalytic domain of Artemis endonuclease/SNM1C reveals distinct structural features

The endonuclease Artemis is responsible for opening DNA hairpins during V(D)J recombination and for processing a subset of pathological DNA double-strand breaks. Artemis is an attractive target for the development of therapeutics to manage various B cell and T cell tumors, because failure to open DNA hairpins and accumulation of chromosomal breaks may reduce the proliferation and viability of pre-T and pre-B cell derivatives. However, structure-based drug discovery of specific Artemis inhibitors has been hampered by a lack of crystal structures. Here, we report the structure of the catalytic domain of recombinant human Artemis. The catalytic domain displayed a polypeptide fold similar overall to those of other members in the DNA cross-link repair gene SNM1 family and in mRNA 3′-end-processing endonuclease CPSF-73, containing metallo-β-lactamase and β-CASP domains and a cluster of conserved histidine and aspartate residues capable of binding two metal atoms in the catalytic site. As in SNM1A, only one zinc ion was located in the Artemis active site. However, Artemis displayed several unique features. Unlike in other members of this enzyme class, a second zinc ion was present in the β-CASP domain that leads to structural reorientation of the putative DNA-binding surface and extends the substrate-binding pocket to a new pocket, pocket III. Moreover, the substrate-binding surface exhibited a dominant and extensive positive charge distribution compared with that in the structures of SNM1A and SNM1B, presumably because of the structurally distinct DNA substrate of Artemis. The structural features identified here may provide opportunities for designing selective Artemis inhibitors.
Teaching calculus with infinitesimals and differentials

Several new approaches to calculus in the U.S. have been studied recently that are grounded in infinitesimals or differentials rather than limits. These approaches seek to restore to differential notation the direct referential power it had during the first century after calculus was developed. In these approaches, a differential equation like dy = 2x·dx is a relationship between increments of x and y, making dy/dx an actual quotient rather than code language for $$\underset{h\to 0}{\mathrm{lim}}\frac{f\left(x+h\right)-f(x)}{h}$$ . An integral $${\int }_{a}^{b}2x dx$$ is a sum of pieces of the form 2x·dx, not the limit of a sequence of Riemann sums. One goal is for students to develop understandings of calculus notation that are imbued with more direct referential meaning, enabling them to better interpret and model situations by means of this notation. In this article I motivate and describe some key elements of differentials-based calculus courses, and I summarize research indicating that students in such courses develop robust quantitative meanings for notations in single- and multi-variable calculus.
Flexible ZnO Nanoparticle-Poly(methyl methacrylate) Hybrid Films and Their Ultraviolet Shielding Behaviors

Flexible hybrid films are finding increasing applications in functional devices. In this work, transparent ZnO nanoparticle and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) hybrid films are made for ultraviolet (UV) shielding with significantly higher ZnO contents than what has been reported. The tensile strength increases with the ZnO nanoparticle volume percent, from ~ 10 MPa for the pure PMMA samples to ~ 24 MPa for the 20 vol.% ZnO samples, a 150% increase. The elongation at break also increases with the ZnO content increase until 10 vol.% (a 67% increase), after which the elongation at break stays constant. All the ZnO-PMMA films show UV absorption at ~ 365 nm wavelength, with an increasing degree for higher ZnO content samples and a corresponding light transmittance decrease at longer wavelengths. Long-term UV irradiation leads to a reduction in tensile strength and elongation at break, along with lower UV shielding performance. This work proposes that the optimal ZnO content is 5–10 vol.% for the overall UV shielding performance while maintaining good mechanical properties.
Handing off the Torch.

This is the last issue of GENETICS that will carry my name on its masthead. I have served as Editor in Chief for 12 years, overseeing publication of 144 issues of the journal. I’ve enjoyed (almost) every minute of it; it’s been a satisfying and rewarding experience. I leave not because I’m
Validation of transcutaneous carbon dioxide monitoring using an artificial lung during adult pulsatile cardiopulmonary bypass.

Measurements of transcutaneous carbon dioxide (tcCO2) have been used in multiple venues, such as during procedures utilizing jet ventilation, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, as well as both the adult an...
Experimental Technique to Generate Complex Pressure Cycles in TBI-related In-vitro or Ex-vivo Samples

Blast-induced traumatic brain injury (bTBI) has been widely accepted as a “signature” wound affecting service members in modern conflicts, yet the mechanisms that cause bTBI still remain poorly understood. One of the main reasons for such poor understanding is the technical challenge of reproducing under controlled laboratory conditions the typical time-varying loading cycles induced on brain tissue after a blast event. Blast events have a sub-millisecond onset of high pressure followed by complex dynamics resulting from interaction between the blast wave and the complex anatomical structure of the human head. To tackle these experimental challenges, our group developed a novel apparatus using a water-filled piston-cylinder assembly driven by a piezoelectric actuator to generate complex and fast-varying pressure profiles. The versatility of our apparatus in producing complex pressure profiles was demonstrated by generating a single pressure pulse with various pulse-widths and magnitudes, an approximate Friedlander waveform, and a multi-modal waveform. A feedforward controller was also designed for the apparatus enhancing its capabilities to generate custom, user-defined pressure profiles. The apparatus successfully generated pressures up to 450 kPa at frequencies up to 5 kHz. The designed apparatus is compact, easily portable, and highly controllable, making it well suited for biomedical applications. This apparatus can be used to conduct ex-vivo and in-vitro experiments involving animal brain tissue specimens, cell cultures, and organoids to explore their response to the complex pressure loadings observed during a bTBI event.
Data Center Monitoring Using an Improved Faster Regional Convolutional Neural Network

The Data Center contains loads of servers whose pointer LEDs can give the issue data, which is significant for data security. A novel server recognition conspires joined with deep learning, and recognition computing was proposed to screen the server's functional status progressively. In this technique, the best in class Faster RCNN system was improved by fitting anchors selection, hard negative mining, and non-greatest concealment. Morphological tasks were utilized to fortify the vigor of the customary LEDs location calculations. For the Resnet model, our framework accomplished an edge pace of 14 fps and article exactness of 96% on an NVIDIA Titan X. The proposed algorithm got excellent location execution in natural conditions, making it considerably more exact and proficient at screening the servers' deficiency data.
mDrop-seq: Massively parallel single-cell RNA-seq of Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Candida albicans

Abstract Advances in high-throughput single-cell mRNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) have been limited till date by technical challenges like tough cell walls and low RNA quantity that prevented transcriptomic profiling of microbial species at throughput. We present microbial Drop-seq or mDrop-seq, a high-throughput scRNA-seq technique that is used on two yeast species, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, a popular model organism and Candida albicans, a common opportunistic pathogen. We benchmarked mDrop-seq for sensitivity and specificity and used it to profile 35,109 S. cerevisiae cells to detect variation in mRNA levels between them. As a proof of concept, we quantified expression differences in heat-shocked S. cerevisiae using mDrop-seq. We detected differential activation of stress response genes within a seemingly homogenous population of S. cerevisiae under heat-shock. We also applied mDrop-seq to C. albicans cells, a polymorphic and clinically relevant yeast species with thicker cell wall compared to S. cerevisiae. Single cell transcriptomes in 39,705 C. albicans cells was characterized using mDrop-seq under different conditions, including exposure to fluconazole, a common anti-fungal drug. We noted differential regulation in stress response and drug target pathways between C. albicans cells, changes in cell cycle patterns and marked increases in histone activity. These experiments are among the first high throughput single cell RNA-seq on different yeast species and demonstrate mDrop-seq as an affordable, easily implementable, and scalable technique that can quantify the variability in gene expression in different yeast species. We hope that mDrop-seq will lead to better understanding of genetic variation in yeasts in response to stimuli and find immediate applications in investigating drug resistance and infection outcome.
Rhetorics of data in nonprofit settings: How community engagement pedagogies can enact social justice

Abstract More and more, nonprofit agencies and organizations are required to provide data-driven evidence of their impact on communities. Our research tackles the thorny problem of how to ensure that this data imperative captures the dignity of the human beings who might be represented in that data. We outline a service-learning partnership across multiple courses in which students collaborate in collecting, analyzing, and understanding data about visitors to a local food pantry, data that the pantry needs to create rich narratives and arguments on behalf of their users. We demonstrate how we teach students to navigate and adapt to the intricacies of existing nonprofit software, ethically initiate data sharing with vulnerable populations, and convert narrative and non-numerical data into more quantitative evidence. Our pedagogical approach helps students understand how digital data collection from, and analysis of, vulnerable populations can be accomplished ethically and productively for social justice. The ultimate goal in this case study is to exemplify the principles we want to enact as we teach students how to navigate, collect, analyze, and apply digital forms of data in ethical and humane ways.
Mobile Pastoralism and the Formation of Near Eastern Civilizations: Weaving Together Society

In this book, Anne Porter explores the idea that mobile and sedentary members of the ancient world were integral parts of the same social and political groups in greater Mesopotamia during the period 4000 to 1500 BCE. She draws on a wide range of archaeological and cuneiform sources to show how networks of social structure, political and religious ideology, and everyday as well as ritual practice worked to maintain the integrity of those groups when the pursuit of different subsistence activities dispersed them over space. These networks were dynamic, shaping many of the key events and innovations of the time, including the Uruk expansion and the introduction of writing, so-called secondary state formation and the organization and operation of government, the literary production of the Third Dynasty of Ur and the first stories of Gilgamesh, and the emergence of the Amorrites in the second millennium BCE.
Thermoelastisches Verhalten der Laminatschichten

Das thermoelastische Verhalten ist durch die thermischen Ausdehnungskoeffizienten charakterisiert. Die Messung der Dirnensionsanderungen, der von externen Spannungen freien Laminatschicht, in einem Temperaturbereich ermoglicht die Bestimmung von: Thermischer Ausdehnungskoeffizient in Faserrichtung, α1 Thermischer Ausdehnungskoeffizient senkrecht zur Faserr., α2
Two point mutations in the transmembrane domain of P68gag-ros inactive its transforming activity and cause a delay in membrane association.

Abstract The transforming protein of the avian sarcoma virus UR2 is a 68-kDa transmembrane tyrosine protein kinase. We examined the relationship between membrane localization and transforming activity of P68 by changing Val-168-Val-169 in its hydrophobic domain into Asp-168-Glu-169. The resulting transmembrane (TM) mutant (P68TM) lost transforming activity toward chicken embryo fibroblasts (CEF). We found that the mutant protein was expressed and rapidly degraded into a smaller form which was still membrane associated and kinase active. The instability of the TM mutant protein is a phenomenon only manifested in CEF, because the same mutant protein was expressed with efficiency and stability similar to those of the wild-type protein in a transient expression system in COS cells. However, there are several differences between the wild-type and the TM mutant proteins in COS cells. The wild-type protein is more heavily phosphorylated and associated with membrane fractions in a cotranslational manner. It is enzymatically active when recovered from membrane fractions. The TM mutant protein is less phosphorylated, more labile toward protease degradation, and delayed in membrane association, with a lag period of 30 min or longer, and has little kinase activity when recovered from membrane fractions. Most of the kinase-active TM mutant protein was found in the cytosol fractions. Despite the delay, most of the TM protein in COS cells was found to be membrane associated, and its orientation on the cell surface was similar to that of the wild-type protein. It is probable that loss of the CEF-transforming activity of the TM mutant protein is due to its susceptibility to protease degradation resulting from improper membrane association of the newly synthesized product. The differences in the kinetics of membrane association and the distribution of kinase activity in COS cells might not be directly applicable in explaining the inability of the TM mutant to transform CEF but are intriguing as regards protein biosynthesis and translocation. The difference between CEF and COS cells implies that different factors or pathways are involved in the biosynthesis and processing of the TM mutant protein in these two cellular environments. Changes of P68TM in the kinetics of membrane association indicate that the transmembrane domain of ros, besides functioning as a membrane anchor, also plays a role in directing initial membrane association.