cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Psychopharmacology Prescribing Workshops: A Novel Method for Teaching Psychiatry Residents How to Talk to Patients About Medications.

Traditional, lecture-based methods of teaching pharmacology may not translate into the skills needed to communicate effectively with patients about medications. In response, the authors developed an interactive course for third-year psychiatry residents to reinforce prescribing skills. Residents participate in a facilitated group discussion combined with a role-play exercise where they mock-prescribe medication to their peers. Each session is focused on one medication or class of medications with an emphasis on various aspects of informed consent (such as describing the indication, dosing, expected benefits, potential side effects, and necessary work-up and follow up). In the process of implementing the course at a second site, the original format was modified to include self-assessment measures and video examples of experienced faculty members prescribing to a simulated patient. The course was initially developed at one site and has since been disseminated to a number of other institutions. Between 2010 and 2016, 144 residents participated in the course at the authors’ two institutions. Based upon pre/post surveys conducted with a subset of residents, the course significantly improved comfort with various aspects of prescribing. Although residents may also gain comfort in prescribing with experience (as the course coincides with the major outpatient clinical training year), improvement in comfort-level was also noted for medications that residents had relatively little experience initiating. At the end of the year, half of the residents indicated the course was one of their top three preferred methods for learning psychopharmacology in addition to direct clinical experience and supervision (with none listing didactics). An interactive prescribing workshop can improve resident comfort with prescribing and may be preferred over a traditional, lecture-based approach. The course may be particularly helpful for those medications that are less commonly used. Based upon our experience, this approach can be easily implemented across institutions..
A Multiscale Description of Biomolecular Active Matter: The Chemistry Underlying Many Life Processes

This Commentary will describe the goal of developing and implementing novel, powerful, and integrated multiscale computer simulation methodology capable of accessing the large length and long time scales inherent in the behavior of biomolecular, multiprotein "active matter" complexes within the context of cellular biology. Examples include those involved in the actin-based cytoskeleton and its mechanochemistry. The primary objective is to connect detailed molecular and chemical properties with the key mesoscopic features manifest at the scales of cellular biology through a transformative theoretical and computer simulation approach, based on real physical and chemical interactions. This multiscale computational work would also make critical contact with rapidly developing experimental techniques such as super-resolution optical imaging, single molecule spectroscopy, and cryo-electron tomography, which are providing remarkable insight into the internal mesoscale self-organization and dynamics of cells.
Exploring Adolescents’ Talk About Bullying on an Online Message Board: Broadening and Complicating Understandings of Victimization

ABSTRACTCurrent definitions of bullying, crafted by policymakers and researchers, raise questions about the ways in which adult constructions of bullying reflect, or fail to reflect, the lived realities of adolescents. In particular, the narrow scope of “bullying,” as currently defined, may over-simplify adolescents’ experiences with relational aggression, which often sit in the space between bullying, discrimination, and harassment. This study investigates adolescents’ talk about bullying on an online message board, as one effort to better understand whether adolescents’ constructions of bullying are aligned with those of researchers and policymakers, and where these youth constructions may overlap with ideas about discrimination and harassment. Conducting a content analysis of data from an online, teen message board, we find that participants frequently use the term bullying to describe adult or familial aggression, and often describe bullying behaviors in ways that reflect elements of discrimination an...
Improving Phenotypic Measurements in High-Content Imaging Screens

Image-based screening is a powerful technique to reveal how chemical, genetic, and environmental perturbations affect cellular state. Its potential is restricted by the current analysis algorithms that target a small number of cellular phenotypes and rely on expert-engineered image features. Newer algorithms that learn how to represent an image are limited by the small amount of labeled data for ground-truth, a common problem for scientific projects. We demonstrate a sensitive and robust method for distinguishing cellular phenotypes that requires no additional ground-truth data or training. It achieves state-of-the-art performance classifying drugs by similar molecular mechanism, using a Deep Metric Network that has been pre-trained on consumer images and a transformation that improves sensitivity to biological variation. However, our method is not limited to classification into predefined categories. It provides a continuous measure of the similarity between cellular phenotypes that can also detect subtle differences such as from increasing dose. The rich, biologically-meaningful image representation that our method provides can help therapy development by supporting high-throughput investigations, even exploratory ones, with more sophisticated and disease-relevant models.
Conditioned reinforcement strength in rats as a function of pattern of reinforcement

One group of rats in each experiment experienced a 90% transition probability from nonreinforcement to reinforcement. This resulted in short runs of nonreinforced and reinforced stimulus presentations. The other group in each experiment experienced a 10% transition probability. This resulted in long runs of nonreinforced and reinforced stimulus presentations. Latencies in both groups were significantly shorter on trials with a 90% reinforcement probability than on trials with a 10% reinforcement probability. The extinction data indicated that the stimulus had become a conditioned reinforcer for both groups. However, the results of both experiments revealed that the pattern of reinforcement had no differential effect on conditioned-reinforcement strength.
Improving acoustic modeling using audio-visual speech

Reliable visual features that encode the articulator movements of speakers can dramatically improve the decoding accuracy of automatic speech recognition systems when combined with the corresponding acoustic signals. In this paper, a novel framework is proposed to utilize audio-visual speech not only during decoding but also for training better acoustic models. In this framework, a multi-stream hidden Markov model is iteratively deployed to fuse audio and video likelihoods. The fused likelihoods are used to estimate enhanced frame-state alignments, which are finally used as better training targets. The proposed framework is so flexible that it can be partially used to train acoustic models with the available audio-visual data while a conventional training strategy can be followed with the remaining acoustic data. The experimental results show that the acoustic models trained using the proposed audio-visual framework perform significantly better than those trained conventionally with solely acoustic data in clean and noisy conditions.
Cadaveric Biomechanical Analysis of 3 Lateral Ulnar Collateral Ligament Reconstructions.

OBJECTIVE To biomechanically assess the angular stability provided by 3 techniques for reconstruction of the lateral ulnar collateral ligament. METHODS Eight cadaveric elbows were tested with the lateral collateral ligament complex intact, disrupted from the origin at the lateral epicondyle, and reconstructed with 3 different techniques using ulnar bone tunnels: a suture "lasso" or palmaris longus tendon "lasso" both docked with a metal button at the origin, and a doubled-over palmaris longus tendon docked with metal buttons at both the origin and ulnar insertion. Elbows were tested with a physiologic elbow simulator, and varus angular position was quantified with an optical tracking system. Statistical analysis was performed using a repeated measures analysis of variance test to determine whether significance existed, and a Tukey post hoc analysis to compare statistical difference between native, disrupted, and repair states. RESULTS There was a statistically significant difference between all repairs and the disrupted state (P < 0.05). The varus angulation after the repairs showed that the suture reconstruction was closest to the native case. The tendon reconstructions were similar to each other but less similar to the native elbow. Quantitatively, the suture reconstruction was within an average of 0.86 degrees of the native elbow throughout range of motion. CONCLUSIONS A suture reconstruction was most similar to a native elbow, but both tendon reconstructions significantly improved angular stability under varus gravitational loads.
Teacher Racial/Ethnic Diversity: Distribution of Special and General Educators of Color Across Schools:

Students benefit from a teacher workforce that represents the full racial/ethnic diversity of the United States. We examine racial/ethnic composition of general education teacher (GET) and special ...
Dextrogastria and Malrotation of Midgut in a Neonate

A neonate presented with bilious vomiting and hematochezia. The infantogram and upper gastrointestinal contrast study were suggestive of dextrogastria with malrotation of midgut. Laparotomy confirmed isolated dextrogastria, malrotation of the midgut and volvulus. Reverse Ladd’s procedure was done.
Instrumentation for RHEED Pole Figure

In this chapter, we describe the major reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) hardware components: a vacuum system, an electron gun, a sample manipulator, a step motor, a phosphor screen, and a charge-coupled device camera. Most molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) laboratories with in situ RHEED characterization capability are equipped with this hardware. We discuss what has been learned from past practices on issues such as minimization of sample wobbling during rotation and sample size required due to glancing incidence angle of the electron beam. Data collection and step-by-step operational procedures are described in Appendix A. Data processing program codes developed for RHEED pole figure construction are also given in Appendix A. With this hardware and software, one can perform RHEED experiments in the transmission mode and construct RHEED pole figures to study the sample’s textures. We highlight the RHEED instrument response function for reflection and transmission modes for quantitative analysis of texture dispersions. We also discuss the part of the instrument response function for transmission mode diffracted from rough surfaces that does not exist in the instrument response function of the reflection mode.
Wie Tiere entstehen

In den vorhergehenden Kapiteln haben wir gesehen, dass einzelliges Leben unter Bedingungen existieren kann, die zuvor fur zu unwirtlich und zu extrem gehalten wurden. Wir haben auserdem festgestellt, dass dieses Leben nicht nur unter extremen Bedingungen existieren kann, sondern dass es, wenigstens auf der Erde, sogar dort entstanden sein konnte. Die Folgerung aus diesen neuen Forschungsergebnissen ist, dass mikrobielles Leben generell in extremen Umgebungen uberleben und entstehen kann, dass es also im Universum weit verbreitet sein konnte, vielleicht sogar auf anderen Planeten im Sonnensystem. Wie steht es aber nun mit den hoheren Lebensformen? Konnen vielzellige Tiere und Pflanzen, ahnlich wie Bakterien, auf anderen Planeten weit verbreitet sein? In diesem Kapitel wird versucht, solche Fragen zu beantworten, indem untersucht wird, wie die hoheren Lebensformen auf dieser Erde entstanden sind. Fur die extremophilen Mikroorganismen haben wir das bereits getan. Anschliesend wissen wir vielleicht, wie wahrscheinlich es ist, dass auch anderswo hoheres Leben existiert.
Determinate Meaning and Analytic Truth

Although I have been an admirer of Quine’s philosophy for many years, I have become convinced that his attack on the analytic-synthetic distinction has had some unfortunate consequences for epistemology (Quine 1953). Perhaps the most striking of these consequences is the recent revival of epistemologi-cal Cartesianism. Instead of concluding from Quine’s criticism that purely a priori knowledge is nonexistent — that all our beliefs must face the tribunal of sense-experience — a growing number of philosophers, having retained their conviction that the existence of purely a priori knowledge is beyond question, simply insist that a priori knowledge cannot be achieved by mere analysis but requires, and gets, the support of “intuition” (Bealer 1987). Since I am as critical of intuition as Frege or Peirce and, at the same time, convinced that some genuine a priori knowledge is possible, I believe that a doctrine of analytic truth must be rehabilitated. A promising strategy for doing so can be found, I believe, in Peirce’s writings. I intend to develop it here.
Front-end ASIC for germanium strip detectors

Abstract The characteristics of a recently developed front-end application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) designed for high-purity germanium (HPGe) strip detectors are detailed. The ASIC contains 32 channels, and can instrument either cathode or anode signals from the HPGe detector. The channels provide low-noise charge amplification, four shaping times, four gain ranges, trimmable discrimination for each channel, time to analog output, and peak detectors with analog memory. The channels process events in parallel, and the ASIC emits a logical-OR of the internal discriminators for external control. Each channel contains a time-to-analog circuit to allow the depth of interaction in a detector to be determined. The ASIC has a small noise slope, allowing it to maintain germanium energy resolution at the large, 30 pF, input capacitance of a germanium strip detector connected through the cryostat by a kapton flex cable. The ASIC sparsifies the triggered channels for low deadtime readout. Each channel dissipates 6.2 mW and covers an energy range up to 4 MeV in HPGe. Measurements demonstrate an equivalent noise charge (ENC) of 260 electrons at an input capacitance of 32.5 pF with a slope of 6.4 electrons/pF for a peaking time of 2 μ s .
Daily estimates reveal fine-scale temporal and spatial variation in fish survival across a stream network

Environmental drivers of population vital rates, such as temperature and precipitation, often vary at short time scales, and these fluctuations can have important impacts on population dynamics. Ho...
Treatment Planning Based on Dynamic Positron Emission Tomography for Boron Neutron Capture Therapy for Glioblastoma Multiforme

BNCT is a form of brachyradiotherapy based on the nuclear fission that results from the interaction of a boron-10 atom with a thermal neutron.1,2,3 Lithium ions and alpha particles are produced in this annihilation reaction and each deposits a large amount of energy within 10 microns of the original boron atom. The advantage of BNCT is that the individual components are non-toxic to the cell: boron is non-toxic in the chemical forms utilized in BNCT and the neutron beam is of sufficiently low energy (0.5eV – 30keV) such that radiation necrosis is minimized in normal tissue. The clinical success of BNCT depends on accurate treatment planning with respect to dosimetry. However, treatment planning protocols are themselves dependent on accurate knowledge of the quantity of boron present in both the targeted lesion as well as in the non-targeted tissue and the characteristics of the neutron beam. These data were not readily available to researchers at the time of the earlier BNCT clinical trials.4
Effect of temperature on methane oxidation and community composition in landfill cover soil

Municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills are the third largest anthropogenic source of methane (CH4) emissions in the United States. The majority of CH4 generated in landfills is converted to carbon dioxide (CO2) by CH4-oxidizing bacteria (MOB) present in the landfill cover soil, whose activity is controlled by various environmental factors including temperature. As landfill temperature can fluctuate substantially seasonally, rates of CH4 oxidation can also vary, and this could lead to incomplete oxidation. This study aims at analyzing the effect of temperature on CH4 oxidation potential and microbial community structure of methanotrophs in laboratory-based studies of landfill cover soil and cultivated consortia. Soil and enrichment cultures were incubated at temperatures ranging from 6 to 70 °C, and rates of CH4 oxidation were measured, and the microbial community structure was analyzed using 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing and shotgun metagenome sequencing. CH4 oxidation occurred at temperatures from 6 to 50 °C in soil microcosm tests, and 6–40 °C in enrichment culture batch tests; maximum rates of oxidation were obtained at 30 °C. A corresponding shift in the soil microbiota was observed, with a transition from putative psychrophilic to thermophilic methanotrophs with increasing incubation temperature. A strong shift in methanotrophic community structure was observed above 30 °C. At temperatures up to 30 °C, methanotrophs from the genus Methylobacter were dominant in soils and enrichment cultures; at a temperature of 40 °C, putative thermophilic methanotrophs from the genus Methylocaldum become dominant. Maximum rate measurements of nearly 195 μg CH4 g−1 day−1 were observed in soil incubations, while observed maximum rates in enrichments were significantly lower, likely as a result of diffusion limitations. This study demonstrates that temperature is a critical factor affecting rates of landfill soil CH4 oxidation in vitro and that changing rates of CH4 oxidation are in part driven by changes in methylotroph community structure.
Informatics Methods for Molecular Profiling

Molecular profiling using high dimensional omics data emerged in the late 1990s with the first FDA-approved test approved in 2007. This form of PPM is currently used across several diseases, allows for individualized prognosis, choice of optimal treatment for reducing toxicities and for enhancing effectiveness, as well as for reducing healthcare system costs. The majority of modern molecular profiling tests address various forms of cancer and use gene expression profiles, although the science and technology of molecular profiling can be used for virtually any disease and a large variety of clinico-molecular assays.
Psychologists' Leadership Roles and Leadership Training Needs in Academic Health Centers.

Psychologists are increasingly called upon to become more involved in academic health centers (AHCs) as leaders across a range of leadership roles in areas such as the clinical, teaching, and research missions, and in the administration thereof. Similarly, expansion of psychologists’ service in national associations, boards, and other forums is increasing. This paper attempts to delineate the nature and extent of psychologists’ involvement in leadership roles and their needs for professional leadership development to assist them in securing and succeeding in these positions. Members of the Association of Psychologists in Academic Health Centers (APAHC) were invited to complete a survey to identify current leadership roles and training needed to enhance leadership capabilities. Most (75%) of the respondents (total n = 105; 42% of APAHC full members; 70% female) were currently serving in leadership roles (range 1 to ≥ 10 positions). Years since degree conferred was positively associated with the number of leadership positions. Diversity of roles was delineated across AHC missions including psychology training (49.5%), clinical service (33.3%), and research (26.7%). An important subgroup (11.5%) served in upper-level administrative leadership positions. Leadership roles external to AHCs were common, particularly service ion committees (30.5%) and boards (27.6%) in state and national professional organizations. Half (51.4%) of survey respondents endorsed at least one leadership development need, with approximately 10% endorsing leadership development needs in all areas. The most common leadership development need was financial management skills, endorsed by nearly two-thirds of the sample. Early career respondents recognized more needs than advanced career respondents. AHC psychologists are expanding their leadership roles and distinguishing themselves as important contributors in AHCs. Despite this, many identified needs for further leadership training.
Phosphorylated Ligands Alter the Kinetics of CO2/Mg2+-activation of Ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate Carboxylase

Activation of Rubisco by CO2 and Mg2+ is slow and reversible, the rate-limiting step being the formation of a carbamate between activator CO2 and Lys-201 on the enzyme’s large, catalytic subunit (Lorimer 1981). Carbamate formation is followed by rapid addition of divalent metal ion (Lorimer et al. 1976) to a site which also is on the large subunit (Miziorko et al 1982). Divalent metal is thought to have two functions in Rubisco: (i) stabilization of the activator CO2 carbamate anion (Lorimer et al. 1976); and (ii) stabilization of the carbanionic reaction intermediate formed during catalysis. Although the requirement for CO2/Mg2+ -activation in the Rubisco catalytic mechanism has not been explicitly defined, a working hypothesis may be inferred from studies with the transition-state analogue CABP (Miziorko, Sealy 1980) which indicate that only one metal ion is tightly bound per 70-kDa enzyme protomer in a complex which resembles [Enz-activator CO2-Mg2+ -RuBP-substrate CO2]. This suggests that a single metal atom may be shared between the activator and catalytic sites and that the region encompassed by the two sites may constitute the enzyme’s catalytic center. Another interaction between the activator and catalytic sites is that the catalytic site influences CO2/Mg2+ -activation. The clearest example of this is seen with substrate RuBP, which is known to strongly inhibit the rates of both CO2/Mg2+ -activation and -deactivation in higher plant Rubisco (Laing, Christeller 1976; Jordan, Chollet 1983).
Automated detection of textured-surface defects using UNet-based semantic segmentation network

Over the recent years, developing a reliable auto-mated visual inspection system/approach for manufacturing and industry sectors which are moving toward smart manufacturing operations faces lots of significant challenges. Traditional visual inspection techniques which are developed based on manually extracted features, can rarely be generalized and have shown weak performance in real applications in different industries. In this paper, we propose a novel and automated visual inspection system which can outperform the statistical methods in terms of detection and the quantification of anomalies in image data for performing critical industrial tasks such as detecting micro scratches on product. In particular, an end-to-end UNet-based fully convolutional neural network for automated defect detection in industrial surfaces is designed and developed. The proposed network has the capability to accept raw images as input and the output is pixel-wise masks. In order to avoid overfitting and improve the model generalization, we use real-time data augmentation approach during our training phase. To evaluate the performance of the proposed model, we use a publicly available data set containing ten different types of textured-surfaces with their associated weakly annotated masks. The findings indicate that despite working with roughly annotated labels, our results are in agreement with previous works and show improvements regarding the detection time.
The Changing Terrains of Research in a Time of Pandemic

If the regularities in the social, cultural, and political spheres are what we characterize as certainties, then what do we make of and do about the uncertainties? In this moment of pandemic, many ...
Right Atrial Appendage Thrombus in Atrial Fibrillation: A Case Report and Review of the Literature:

Atrial fibrillation (Afib) is the most common abnormal heart rhythm in adults and has become a significant public health concern affecting 2% to 3% of the population in Europe and North America. Left atrial appendage (LAA) thrombi is the source of 90% of left-sided cardiac thrombi in patients with Afib, which can cause stroke and other systemic vascular events. Right atrial appendage (RAA) thrombi formation in Afib is much less common but complications include pulmonary embolism or paradoxical migration across patent foramen ovale with risk of systemic embolization. The prevalence and subsequent clinical complications of RAA thrombi formation in Afib patients is not well understood. Management of RAA thrombi should be similar to that of LAA thrombi which includes delaying cardioversion and anticoagulating with warfarin therapy to achieve international normalized ratio of 2 to 3.
Compliance with State Concussion Legislation in Non-School-Affiliated Youth Sport Leagues

Youth league administrators (N = 172) documented knowledge of/compliance with state concussion legislation, and were assigned to groups based on whether their state concussion legislation extended ...
Alignment of Key Stakeholders’ Priorities for Patient-Facing Tools in Digital Health: Mixed Methods Study

Background: There is widespread agreement on the promise of patient-facing digital health tools to transform health care. Yet, few tools are in widespread use or have documented clinical effectiveness. Objective: The aim of this study was to gain insight into the gap between the potential of patient-facing digital health tools and real-world uptake. Methods: We interviewed and surveyed experts (in total, n=24) across key digital health stakeholder groups—venture capitalists, digital health companies, payers, and health care system providers or leaders—guided by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research. Results: Our findings revealed that external policy, regulatory demands, internal organizational workflow, and integration needs often take priority over patient needs and patient preferences for digital health tools, which lowers patient acceptance rates. We discovered alignment, across all 4 stakeholder groups, in the desire to engage both patients and frontline health care providers in broader dissemination and evaluation of digital health tools. However, major areas of misalignment between stakeholder groups have stymied the progress of digital health tool uptake—venture capitalists and companies focused on external policy and regulatory demands, while payers and providers focused on internal organizational workflow and integration needs. Conclusions: Misalignment of the priorities of digital health companies and their funders with those of providers and payers requires direct attention to improve uptake of patient-facing digital health tools and platforms.
The “Next” Effect: When a Better Future Worsens the Present:

Various domains of life are improving over time, meaning the future is filled with exciting advances that people can now look forward to (e.g., in technology). Three preregistered experiments (N = ...
Genetic control of the dynamic transcriptional response to immune stimuli and glucocorticoids at single cell resolution

Synthetic glucocorticoids are used to treat many immune conditions, such as asthma and severe COVID-19. Single cell data capture fine-grained details of transcriptional variability and dynamics to gain a better understanding of the molecular underpinnings of inter-individual variation in drug response. We used single cell RNA-seq to study the dynamics of the transcriptional response to glucocorticoids in activated PBMCs from African American donors. We employed novel statistical approaches to calculate a mean-independent measure of gene expression variability and a measure of transcriptional response pseudotime. We demonstrated that glucocorticoids reverse the effects of immune stimulation on both gene expression mean and variability. Our novel measure of gene expression response dynamics separated cells by response status and identified dynamic transcriptional patterns along the response pseudotime. We identified genetic variants regulating gene expression mean and variability, including treatment-specific effects, and demonstrated widespread genetic regulation of the transcriptional dynamics of the gene expression response. Synthetic glucocorticoids, such as dexamethasone, have been used as treatment for many immune conditions, such as asthma and more recently severe COVID-19. Single cell data can capture more fine-grained details on transcriptional variability and dynamics to gain a better understanding of the molecular underpinnings of inter-individual variation in drug response. Here, we used single cell RNA-seq to study the dynamics of the transcriptional response to glucocorticoids in activated PBMCs from 96 African American donors. We employed novel statistical approaches to calculate a mean-independent measure of gene expression variability and a measure of transcriptional response pseudotime. Using these approaches, we demonstrated that glucocorticoids reverse the effects of immune stimulation on both gene expression mean and variability. Our novel measure of gene expression response dynamics, based on the diagonal linear discriminant analysis, separated cells by response status on the basis of their transcriptional profiles and allowed us to identify different dynamic patterns of gene expression along the response pseudotime. We identified genetic variants regulating gene expression mean and variability, including treatment-specific effects, and demonstrated widespread genetic regulation of the transcriptional dynamics of the gene expression response.
The Implementation of Individuation Therapy with Structured Separations

SUMMARY This article describes the application of individuation therapy to structured separations, the benefits of a structured separation, the conditions under which it can be used, and how it is implemented is discussed. A case example is used to illustrate the concepts and principles presented.
Stabilization techniques for the nonlinear analytic nodal method

The nonlinear analytic nodal method, which is formulated by combining the nonlinear itera- tion technique and the analytic nodal method (ANM), requires analytic solutions of the two-node prob- lems. When the method is applied to problems that contain near-critical nodes in which there is essentially no net leakage, the two-node ANM solution for such nodes results in highly ill-conditioned matrices and potential numerical instabilities, especially in single precision arithmetic. Two stabilization techniques are introduced to resolve the instability problem by employing alternate basis functions for near-critical nodes. The first uses the exact ANM solution for a critical node, and the second employs the nodal expan- sion method. Both techniques are shown to perform well; however, the solution accuracy can be mildly sensitive to the criterion used to invoke the stabilized coupling kernel. I. INTRODUCTION Nonlinear nodal methods 1 have been widely used to solve static and transient reactor physics problems. A well- known advantage of the nonlinear method is the reduc- tion in computer storage that results from not having to save the expansion coefficients. However, an equally im- portant advantage is a reduction in execution time be- cause the solution variables in the global coarse-mesh finite difference ~CMFD! portion of the algorithm are only the node-averaged fluxes for which efficient solution schemes have been developed. Furthermore, the two- node portion of the algorithm lends itself naturally to par- allel solution, and when solved in conjunction with a parallel CMFD method, significant execution time re- ductions can be achieved with the nonlinear nodal method on multiprocessors. 2 One of principal issues in the implementation of the nonlinear nodal method is the interface current tech- nique used in the two-node coupling relation. As dis- cussed in the review by Lawrence, 3 two principal classes of transverse-integrated methods have been developed over the years—the polynomial and the analytic meth- ods. In the polynomial nodal expansion method 4 ~NEM!,
Coordination of NF-κB and NFAT Antagonism by the Forkhead Transcription Factor Foxd1

Forkhead transcription factors play critical roles in the maintenance of immune homeostasis. In this study, we demonstrate that this regulation most likely involves intricate interactions between the forkhead family members and inflammatory transcription factors: the forkhead member Foxd1 coordinates the regulation of the activity of two key inflammatory transcription factors, NF-AT and NF-kappaB, with Foxd1 deficiency resulting in multiorgan, systemic inflammation, exaggerated Th cell-derived cytokine production, and T cell proliferation in autologous MLRs. Foxd1-deficient T cells possess increased activity of both NF-AT and NF-kappaB: the former correlates with the ability of Foxd1 to regulate casein kinase 1, an NF-AT inhibitory kinase; the latter with the ability of Foxd1 to regulate Foxj1, which regulates the NF-kappaB inhibitory subunit IkappaB beta. Thus, Foxd1 modulates inflammatory reactions and prevents autoimmunity by directly regulating anti-inflammatory regulators of the NF-AT pathway, and by coordinating the suppression of the NF-kappaB pathway via Foxj1. These findings indicate the presence of a general network of forkhead proteins that enforce T cell quiescence.
Maternal milk DHA content predicts cognitive performance in a sample of 28 nations.

Convergent evidence from neuronal biology and hominin brain hypertrophy suggests that omega-3 fatty acids are a limiting resource for neural and cognitive development in Homo sapiens, and therefore that children from populations with higher omega-3 availability should display superior cognitive performance. Using multiple regression, we tested this prediction in a sample of 28 countries, with Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) math scores in 2009 as an index of cognitive performance, and country-specific breast milk levels of omega-3 docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) as an index of omega-3 availability. Breast milk DHA makes a highly significant contribution to math scores (β = 0.462, P = 0.006), greater in magnitude than the control variables of per capita Gross Domestic Product (PCGDP) and educational expenditures per pupil. Together, dietary fish (positively) and total fat (negatively) explain 61% of the variance in maternal milk DHA in a larger sample of 39 countries.
Development of online solution algorithms for optimal periodic control problems with plant uncertainties

This paper introduces two online methods for optimal periodic control (OPC) of open-loop stable plants. The first method requires knowledge of the plant structure but allows for uncertainty in plant parameters. It employs recursive least squares to estimate parameters, then uses the estimates to adapt the shape of the optimal trajectory. The second method uses a model-free extremum seeking scheme to slowly converge to the optimal input trajectory. While relevant work has been done in the area of online optimal periodic control, the existing methods either rely heavily on knowledge of the plant or they assume a known period. This work proposes methods that do not require these assumptions/limitations. The methods are tested on a drug delivery example from the existing OPC literature. Average drug efficacy values obtained in this work are comparable to the literature, even though limited information about the plant is used.
Agents With Beliefs: Reflections on Bayesian Methods for User Modeling

Uncertainty is inescapable in real-world problem solving, and is particularly salient in attempts to infer the goals and intentions of people. Identifying the goals of users as they interact with computer-based systems, given such evidence as the user’s actions and background, and the specific context at hand—and effectively harnessing such information to enhance the quality of human-computer interaction—is typically a challenging problem in decision making under uncertainty.
Fatigue and fracture characteristics of aluminum alloy cylinders under internal pressure

Abstract This paper presents the results of tensile, plane-strain fracture-toughness, and fatigue evaluations of die forged and premium cast hydraulic cylinders of six high strength aluminum alloys. Comparisons are made of fatigue strengths at stress levels related to design values, and of relations between values of K Ic and the conditions under which unstable crack growth was observed in the fatigue tests.
Diurnal heating and cloudiness in the NCAR Community Climate Model (CCM2)

In this paper, the authors assess the suitability of the heating fileds in the latest version of the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) Community Climate Model (CCM2) for modeling the thermal forcing of atmospheric tides. Accordingly, diurnal variations of the surface pressure, outgoing longwave radiation (OLR), cloudiness, and precipitation are examined in the CCM2. The fields of radiative, sensible, and latent heating are similarly analyzed. These results are subjectively compared with available data. Equatorial diurnal surface pressure tides are fairly well simulated by CCM2. The model successfully reproduces the semidiurnal surface pressure tides; however, this may result in part from reflection of wave energy at the upper boundary. The CCM2 large-scale diurnal OLR is generally consistent with observations. The moist-convective scheme in the model is able to reproduce the diurnally varying cloudiness and precipitation patterns associated with land-sea contrasts; however, the amplitudes of CCM2 diurnal continental convective cloudiness are weaker than observations. The CCM2 boundary-layer sensible heating is consistent with a very limited set of observations, and with estimates obtained from simple models of diffusive heating. Although the CCM2 tropospheric solar radiative heating is similar in magnitude to previous estimates, there are substantial differences in the vertical structures. A definitive assessment of the validity of the CCM2 diurnal cycle is precluded by the lack of detailed observations and the limitations of our CCM2 sample. Nevertheless, the authors conclude that the global-scale components of the CCM2 diurnal heating are useful proxies for the true diurnal forcing of the tides.
Numerical testing of the stability of viscous shock waves

A new theoretical Evans function condition is used as the basis of a numerical test of viscous shock wave stability. Accuracy of the method is demonstrated through comparison against exact solutions, a convergence study, and evaluation of approximate error equations. Robustness is demonstrated by applying the method to waves for which no current analytic results apply (highly nonlinear waves from the cubic model and strong shocks from gas dynamics). An interesting aspect of the analysis is the need to incorporate features from the analytic Evans function theory for purposes of numerical stability. For example, we find it necessary, for numerical accuracy, to solve ODEs on the space of wedge products.
>400 kHz repetition rate wavelength-swept laser and application to high-speed optical frequency domain imaging.

We demonstrate a high-speed wavelength-swept laser with a tuning range of 104nm (1228-1332nm) and a repetition rate of 403kHz. The design of the laser utilizes a high-finesse polygon-based wavelength-scanning filter and a short-length unidirectional ring resonator. Optical frequency domain imaging of the human skin in vivo is presented using this laser, and the system shows sensitivity of higher than 98dB with single-side ranging depth of 1.7mm over 4dB sensitivity roll-off.
Relationships between serial blood lead levels and exfoliated tooth dentin lead levels: Models of tooth lead kinetics

Because bones and permanent teeth accumulate lead, exfoliated deciduous teeth have been utilized as retrospective markers of cumulative exposure in epidemiological surveys. In this paper we describe four models of lead uptake by the coronal dentin of shed primary teeth, each with different assumptions and ramifications. Each model is characterized by different relationships between blood lead at several ages and tooth lead. Values observed in our cohort of normal Boston children are most compatible with models positing the largest lead contribution coming at older ages (i.e., closer to age at exfoliation). Characteristics of models incompatible with our data include (1) lead deposition only during initial calcification and (2) no loss or resorption of lead.
Detection of arsenic in groundwater using a surface plasmon resonance sensor

We have built a highly sensitive surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensor to detect arsenic (As) in groundwater. Using several thiol-containing organic compounds as sensor probes, we have been able to discriminate arsenic levels below and above the US EPA maximum containment level (0.010 mg/L =10 ppb, according to 2006 regulation), in drinking water. The SPR sensor is simple comparing to conventional spectroscopic techniques currently employed for As detection, and can be potentially used for As level screening in groundwater.
Changes in axon fluorescence during activity: Molecular probes of membrane potential

The fluorescence of dyes added to squid giant axons was studied during action potentials and voltage-clamp steps. One goal was to find fluorescence changes related to the increases in membrane conductance that underlie propagation. A second goal was to find large changes in fluorescence that would allow optical monitoring of membrane potential in neurons and other cells. Attempts were made to measure fluorescence changes using over 300 different fluorescent molecules and positive results were obtained with more than half of these. No evidence was found that would relate, any of the fluorescence changes to the increases in membrane conductance that accompany depolarization; most, instead, were correlated with the changes in membrane potential. The fluorescence changes of several dyes were relatively large; the largest changes during an action potential were 10−3 of the resting intensity. They could be measured with a signal-to-noise ratio of better than 10∶1 in a single sweep.
The distribution of myelinated nerve fibers in the mature opossum esophagus.

Abstract Myelination of nerve fibers could be important in establishing normal esophageal peristalsis. We therefore examined the general distribution and the age of appearance of myelinated nerve fibers in the smooth-muscle part of the esophagus of the American opossum. Tissues stained with thionin and Sudan black B were examined by light microscopy. Other tissues were prepared for electron microscopy and examined in the light microscope in Toluidine blue stained sections as well as at electron microscopy. In mature animals (weight > 2.0 kg, age ≧ 1 year), myelinated nerve fibers, oriented mainly craniocaudally, were most abundant at the striated muscle-smooth muscle junction, and declined in density distally along the organ. They were nearly absent at the esophagogastric junction. They were more abundant in the stomach just below the esophagogastric junction. The myelinated nerve fibers commonly lay within sheathed fascicles that had the appearance of peripheral nerves, like the shunt fascicles of the stomach and colon. In immature animals myelinated fibers did not appear until a weight of about 1 kg was reached, 50 days after weaning and about 150 days after birth. Since the younger animals are presumably swallowing normally, myelination of the extrinsic nerves is not essential for esophageal motor function.
Diversity, seasonality, and context of mammalian roadkills in the southern Great Plains.

Thousands of mammals are killed annually from vehicle collisions, making the issue an important one for conservation biologists and environmental managers. We recorded all readily identifiable kills on or immediately adjacent to roads in the southern Great Plains from March 2004–March 2007. We also recorded distance traveled, whether a road was paved or divided, the number of lanes, and prevailing habitat. Surveys were opportunistic and were conducted by car during conditions of good visibility. Over our 239 surveys and >16,500 km traveled, we recorded 1412 roadkills from 18 different mammal species (size ranged from Sciurus squirrels to the white-tailed deer, Odocolieus virginianus). The overall kill rate was 8.50 / 100 km. Four species were prone to collisions: the Virginia opossum (Didelphis virginiana), nine-banded armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus), striped skunk (Mephitis mephitis), and northern raccoon (Procyon lotor). Together they accounted for approximately 85% (1198) of all roadkills. Mortality rate differed significantly between 2- and 4-lane roads (8.39 versus 7.79 / 100 km). Kill rates were significantly higher on paved versus unpaved roads (8.60 versus 3.65 / 100 km), but did not depend on whether a road was divided. Roadkills were higher in spring than in fall (1.5×), winter (1.4×), or summer (1.3×). The spring peak (in kills / 100 km) was driven chiefly by the armadillo (2.76 in spring/summer versus 0.73 in autumn/winter) and opossum (2.65 versus 1.47). By contrast, seasonality was dampened by a late winter/early spring peak in skunk mortalities, for which 41% occurred in the 6-week period of mid-February through March. The raccoon did not exhibit a strong seasonal pattern. Our data are consistent with dispersal patterns of these species. Our results underscore the high rate of highway mortality in the southern plains, as well as differences in seasonality and road type that contribute to mortality. Conservation and management efforts should focus on creating underpasses or using other means to reduce roadkill rates.
IQ discrepancies among impulsive and non-impulsive inmates

In this study the relationship between the right and left hemispheres of the brain and criminal behavior was investigated. It was predicted that prisoners scoring higher on the verbal scale than the performance scale of the WAIS-R would tend to commit more analytical thought-out crimes. Those scoring higher on the performance scale may be more impulsive type criminals and tend to commit crimes less thought out. A total of 51 inmates were tested with the WAIS-R. Inmates who scored lower on the verbal scale than the performance scale tended to be more impulsive. Due to the overlap in crimes committed by both types of criminals, it was recommended that future research in this area may include a third category of both impulsive-non-impulsive along with the separation of the 2 categories.