cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Art Museums, Autonomy, and Canons

Museums influence society's ideas about canons in relation to art and the aesthetic. Such canons, as represented in museum exhibitions and col lections, have sometimes been criticized (often legitimately in my view) for exclusion of artists from some (unjustifiably "marginalized") groups. These artists include members of racial minorities, women, and others. It may be objected that there is a danger in some such criticism. Group membership might, it may be said, come to matter too much in choices by museums, rather than what should matter, producing and appreciating work of the highest artistic or aesthetic value (work also satisfying other conditions of canonical status).1 When this objection arises, various fears are at issue. There may be, for example, concern that issues properly artistic and aesthetic are being politicized in such a way that objective value or its absence is being overlooked. There may be the related concern that revised judgments about canonical value are being forced upon us, or that we are being manipulated, perhaps; that such judgments are not freely decided upon. There are other fears, but these two are of special interest in this essay. I argue here, not for the elimination of canons, but for testing, challenging, and supplementing of currently dominant canons in museum contexts by a variety of means. The testing, etc., should include subjecting traditional canons to the competition (in museum contexts) of deviant and alternative canons, and valuable work of currently doubtful canonicity. I do not try to describe all the forms such testing, and so on, should take, but only some. Without testing, challenging, and supplementing, it seems to me, the dominant canons, fortified by the prestige and practices of influen tial museums, contribute to the imposition of illegitimate authority, a viola tion of respect for autonomy in judgments about art and the aesthetic. What autonomy is, and whose autonomy is at issue (including unjustifiably marginalized artists, and the public whose experience is narrowed) will be discussed more as we proceed. It should be said immediately that the unjustifiably marginalized ar tists, and the groups whose sensibility they often express, are definitely among those whose autonomy is damaged. Others, too, however, sometimes ignorant of the process of unjustifiable marginalization, and of the possibilities of alternative approaches to canons, lack appreciation of
Radiation induced recombination centers in organic solar cells

Prolonged x-ray exposure of bulk heterojunction organic solar cells induces deep trap states that are observed in measurements of the photocurrent spectral response. The density of induced trap states is proportional to the density of recombination centers as measured by the voltage dependence of the photocurrent, therefore identifying the traps as primary recombination centers. The states are reversible by thermal annealing to about 100 \ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}C, which implies a metastable structural change with binding energy 1--1.2 eV. However, the annealing kinetics reveal three different annealing processes, although for defect states with essentially the same electronic character. Analysis of the radiation damage indicates that defects are formed by hydrogen release from C-H bonds due to electronic excitation by the energetic secondary electrons created by the x rays. Theoretical structure calculations of possible hydrogen-related defects find specific defect states that match the experimental observations and provide values for hydrogen migration energies that are consistent with the annealing kinetics. The effects of prolonged white light exposure are very similar to x-ray exposure, although the annealing kinetics are significantly different. Measurements of the spectral response with bias illumination provide information about the energy level of the localized states.
Energetics of MnO 2 polymorphs in density functional theory

We report the energetics and properties of the $\ensuremath{\beta}, \ensuremath{\alpha}$, R, $\ensuremath{\gamma}, \ensuremath{\lambda}$, and $\ensuremath{\delta}$ polymorphs of $\mathrm{MnO}{}_{2}$ within density functional theory, comparing the performance of the recently introduced SCAN functional with that of conventional exchange-correlation functionals and experiment. We find that SCAN uniquely yields accurate formation energies and properties across all $\mathrm{MnO}{}_{2}$ polymorphs. We explain the superior performance of SCAN based on its satisfaction of all known constraints appropriate to a semilocal exchange-correlation functional and its accurate representation of all types of orbital overlap.
Cardiac device related endocarditis

The increase in cardiac implantable electronic device (CIED) infection rates far outpaces the growth in the rate of device implantation. CIED related infective endocarditis (CIED-IE) accounts for approximately 10–23 % of all cardiac device infections. Multiple device-related procedures, lack of preoperative antibiotic prophylaxis, presence of central venous catheter, renal failure, immunosuppressed host and number of device leads are reported risk factors for CIED-IE. Device lead infection and endocarditis can develop as an extension of a pocket infection or due to hematogenous seeding of the leads or heart valves from a bloodstream infection. The likelihood of a bloodstream infection leading to CIED-IE varies based on the organism and staphylococci are most likely to results in hematogenous seeding. This is largely due to presence of virulence factors that enable staphylococci to attach to foreign objects and form biofilms. A transesophageal echocardiogram (TEE) is the modality of choice for diagnosing CIED-IE. However, differentiating thrombi attached to device leads from true vegetations can be difficult on TEE. Urgent removal of infected devices is necessary to cure CIED-IE, as device retention is associated with very high risk of relapse and mortality. If a replacement device is necessary, it may be implanted after 72 h of negative blood cultures in cases of lead infection and after 2 weeks of infected device removal in cases of valvular endocarditis.
Gain-band self-clocked comparator for DC-DC converters hysteretic control

A novel digital comparator topology is presented. The proposed digital comparator cell uses transistors' ratio to program a fixed comparison level. A double-bound hysteretic control comparator, for DC-DC converters, is built using the proposed digital comparator cell. The hysteretic-band width variation, due to process effects, decreases with increased preamplifier stage gain and constitutes a fixed ratio of the hysteretic-band width. The proposed comparator does not require offset cancellation circuits, which reduces power consumption as well as the die area and increases the comparison speed. In addition, one preamplifier and one reference generation circuit are needed to build the double-bound comparison levels. The proposed topology also does not require a sampling clock. A prototype hysteretic control comparator is implemented in 65-nm TSMC low-power CMOS process. The hysteretic-band width exhibits a maximum variation of 300 μV for a 10 mV width. The comparator dissipates 80 μA of ground current to sample a 1.5 GHz input signal.
INFLUENCE OF CHLORINATED AND PYRETHROID INSECTICIDES ON CELLULAR CALCIUM REGULATORY MECHANISMS

Abstract Chlorinated and pyrethroid insecticides have been found to inhibit various Ca-stimulated ATPases in the nerve. Two ATPases that were found to be particularly sensitive to these insecticides were Ca-ATPase and Ca-Mg ATPase. The proposed functions of these enzymes are reduction of intracellular Ca ++ and regulation of Ca ++ permeability across the nerve plasma membrane for the former enzyme, and Ca ++ pumping and Ca ++ sequesteration to keep the intracellular free Ca ++ concentration low for the latter. The former is mainly inhibited by DDT, and the latter is particularly sensitive to heptachlor epoxide and other cyclodiene insecticides. Though pyrethroids affect both enzymes, pyrethrin and its closely related analog allethrin selectively inhibit Ca-ATPase, and cypermethrin and decamethrin have more profound effects on Ca-Mg ATPase. Permethrin, on the other hand, affected both enzymes. Two most likely consequences of inhibition of these enzymes are membrane destabilization and synaptic facilitation due to increased transmitter release, respectively.
From functional programs to pipelined dataflow circuits

We present a translation from programs expressed in a functional IR into dataflow networks as an intermediate step within a Haskell-to-Hardware compiler. Our networks exploit pipeline parallelism, particularly across multiple tail-recursive calls, via non-strict function evaluation. To handle the long-latency memory operations common to our target applications, we employ a latency-insensitive methodology that ensures arbitrary delays do not change the functionality of the circuit. We present empirical results comparing our networks against their strict counterparts, showing that non-strictness can mitigate small increases in memory latency and improve overall performance by up to 2×.
Bronchial Thermoplasty for Asthma

Bronchial thermoplasty is a new treatment for severe and refractory asthma. Treatment consists of delivering ontrolled thermal energy to the airway wall to decrease bronchoconstriction in patients with asthma who are not adequately controlled on medical therapy.Bronchial thermoplasty is performed using flexible bronchoscopy, a radiofrequency controller and a catheter in three separate sessions, spaced approximately 3 weeks apart.Several studies have demonstrated improvements in asthma related quality of life following BT, and treatment may be recommended for patients on inhaled corticosteroids and long-acting s-agonists who are considering additional treatment for symptom control.
Supramolecular Assembly of Uridine Monophosphate (UMP) and Thymidine Monophosphate (TMP) with a Dinuclear Copper(II) Receptor.

Understanding the intermolecular interactions between nucleotides and artificial receptors is crucial to understanding the role of nucleic acids in living systems. However, direct structural evidence showing precise interactions and bonding features of a nucleoside monophosphate (NMP) with a macrocycle-based synthetic molecule has not been provided so far. Herein, we present two novel crystal structures of uridine monophosphate (UMP) and thymidine monophosphate (TMP) complexes with a macrocycle-based dinuclear receptor. Structural characterization of these complexes reveals that the receptor recognizes UMP through coordinate–covalent interactions with phosphates and π–π stackings with nucleobases and TMP through coordinate–covalent interactions with phosphate groups. Furthermore, the receptor has been shown to effectively bind nucleoside monophosphates in the order of GMP > AMP > UMP > TMP > CMP in water at physiological pH, as investigated by an indicator displacement assay.
Is Justice Possible Under Welfare State Capitalism

Our current economic regime, welfare state capitalism (WSC), according to John Rawls, is unable to realize his two principles of justice. WSC is a system in which productive property (capital) is largely controlled by a relatively small number of individuals. He proposes as an alternative that could realize justice property owning democracy (POD), where productive property (capital) would be more equally distributed among citizens. I criticize his argument on two grounds. First, Rawls is likely mistaken when he argues that justice cannot be realized under WSC. Second, there is good reason to think that POD is neither a coherent notion nor a plausible alternative.
Professional Contacts and Perceived Occupational Prestige

A random sample of 142 social workers in Israel, were asked to indicate the other professionals whom they meet in the course of their work, and the frequency of these contacts. They were also asked to assess the occupational prestige of social workers relative to that of the other professionals. The findings showed that social workers tended to downgrade their own prestige, the more frequently they met with representatives of occupations which have higher rankings on an objective occupational prestige scale. Although social work has been described in the past as an "emerging" profession (Schwartz 1967), there are doubts today about its position and future within the social services (Bell 1983), a struggle is underway for acknowledgment of its vital role in social welfare (Bell 1983; Karger 1983(b); Meyer 1983; Pecora and Austin 1983; Sherer 1986; Tambor 1983). The prestige of a profession may influence its bargaining power on the path toward recognition and development. Occupational prestige: All complex societies are characterized by the division of labor, and by an occupational prestige hierarchy. Studies have revealed a substantial consensus on the relative prestige of occupations (Balkwell, Bates & Garbin, 1982; Hodge, Kraus & Schild 1982; Kraus, Schild & Hodge 1978; Treiman 1977). Knowledge and skill are widely considered the principal basis of occupational prestige, but race, gender, income, training, intelligence, rewards of the job and the overall value of the occupation to society are potential contributing factors. Power, control, authority, and privilege are granted to members of more valued occupations (Balkwell, Bates & Garbin, 1982; Bielby & Kalleberg 1981; Bose & Rossi 1983; Hall 1983; Parcel & Mueller 1983; Ritzer 1972). The Occupational Prestige of Social Work: Social work prestige has long been a matter of concern. Kadushin (1958) argues that it affects social workers' self concept, their relationships with other professions, their feelings about their jobs, and to some extent, their professional effectiveness. Social work is usually ranked low in prestige among the professions. Thus Treiman (1977) found that it has an international ranking of 52, on a scale from 1 to 100, while Kraus (1981) reported that in Israel social workers rank 74. Euster (1980a) asked social work educators to rank social work prestige relative to that of 22 other occupations; it emerged in fifteenth place. Similar results were obtained when those educators compared their own prestige with that of their colleagues in 22 other academic disciplines (Euster 1980b). It is possible that the low esteem of social work is partly perpetuated by the low prestige of social workers and social work educators.
Applications of Power Series

This chapter provides an overview of applications of power series. Power series solutions, because of their form, can be used to solve Cauchy–Euler equations. The chapter illustrates this method of solution. It shows that, in most cases, the result of the power series method only approximates an exact solution. It also examines a Cauchy–Euler problem that involves a logarithmic function. The chapter discusses the hypergeometric equation. An equation of particular interest in applied mathematics is the second order linear differential equation with nonconstant coefficients, x (1-x)y”+[c-(a+b+1)x]y’-aby=0, where a, b, and c are constants. This differential equation is commonly known as the hypergeometric equation. The chapter presents the solutions of equation using hypergeometric equation.
CON-DI-FI-CATION: Transnationalism, Diaspora and the Limits of Domestic Racial or Feminist Discourses

Titled “Equal Opportunity, and tellingly published in her last major collection of poetry, Our Dead Behind Us, is a poem which anticipated Condoleezza Rice, the current United States Secretary of State and the theme of this paper. On the cover of this particular edition of Lorde’s book, stand three wizened old African women superimposed over another photograph of a vibrant demonstration of South African activists protesting perhaps the racial injustices of apartheid, fists clenched in the black power sign. A whole other though not unrelated text unfolds in these images. The “Equal Opportunity” poem describes a black woman who has made it into the highest echelons of the U.S. military complex and in her role has to assist in the execution of the worst of U.S. policies, in this case the invasion of Grenada. The images the poet selects include the desecration of the island’s nutmeg trees, that is, the island’s spice but also its national resource, a telling symbol of U.S. government’s normal functioning. Its first few verses go as follows: The American deputy assistant secretary of defense for Equal Opportunity and safety is a home girl Blindness slashes our tapestry to shreds The moss green military tailoring sets off her color beautifully she says “when I stand up to speak in uniform you can believe everyone takes notice!” Superimposed skull-like across her trim square shoulders dioxin smear the stench of napalm upon growing cabbage the chug and thud of Corsairs in the foreground advance like a blush across her cheeks up the unpaved road outside Grenville, Grenada An M-16 bayonet gleams slashing away the wooden latch of a one-room slat house in Soubise mopping up weapons search pockets of resistance Imelda young Black in a tattered headcloth standing to one side on her left foot takes notice one wrist behind her hip the other palm-up beneath her chin watching armed men in moss-green jumpsuits turn out her shack watching mashed up nutmeg trees the trampled cocoa pods graceless broken stalks of almost ripe banana her sister has been missing now ten days . . .
DO FOLIAR PHENOLICS PROVIDE PROTECTION TO Heliothis virescens FROM A BACULOVIRUS

The effects of chlorogenic acid on larval survival and growth of the tobacco budworm Heliothis virescens and larval susceptibility to Helicoverpa zea nucleopolyhedrovirus (HzSNPV) were studied with an artificial diet and transgenic tobacco Nicotiana tabacum. Survival of neonates on over- or underexpressed phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL) transgenic tobacco lines was positively correlated with the level of chlorogenic acid. Larval weight was not correlated with the level of chlorogenic acid in tobacco foliage. On the other hand, larval weights on artificial diet supplemented with chlorogenic acid were negatively correlated with chlorogenic acid concentration. Second instars treated on virus-treated (10 occlusion bodies/larva) tobacco leaf disks for 24 hr and then reared on tobacco leaves showed higher survival time and increased mortality on lines with increasing levels of chlorogenic acid. However, viral-related larval mortality on artificial diet was negatively correlated with dietary chlorogenic acid. These results illustrate the inadequacy of artificial diet studies in establishing causal relationships among plant chemistry, herbivores, and natural enemies.
The Ambiguous Promise of a Post Racial Society: Racial Resentment, Partisanship, and the 2008 Presidential Election

Since the 2008 Presidential election a number of studies have surfaced asserting that the Presidential election of Barack Obama ignited stronger levels of racial resentment than in previous presidential elections. Employing data from the American National Election Study, this empirical analysis examines the effect of racial resentment on presidential vote choice in 2008. These findings suggest that the presence of an African American candidate activated strong racial attitudes. This study also finds that political party, racial resentment, and presidential approval were all significant predictors of vote choice in 2008.
Visual Assays of Transformation in Plant Cells

We discuss the utility of visual assays for the expression of genes introduced into plant cells. Such assays are valuable for both transient and stable gene expression studies. We review the properties of three visual assays that are already in use or under development phase for maize and other cereal crops. These assays depend on the expression of β-galactosidase, luciferase, or structural genes required for anthocyanin pigment biosynthesis.
On Global Stability of Some Stochastic Economic Processes: A Synthesis

Publisher Summary This chapter presents a systematic and unified exposition of those continuous-time dynamic processes that can be formally described by diffusion processes. Such processes are Markovian with continuous sample paths, with probability one, and are of interest for a number of reasons. Continuous-time Markov processes have richer structures, and not every discrete-time Markov process can be imbedded in a continuous-time process; it is possible to exploit such structures effectively to derive powerful stability results circumventing the awkward cycling problems that arise in discrete-time versions and are often quite nonintuitive. It is also possible to obtain analytical characteristics of steady states that are relevant in comparative statics and dynamics. There are significant qualitative differences in the nature of steady states and in the global dynamic behavior even in relatively simple aggregative models. The stability property is even stronger than the variables converging weakly (or in distribution) to the invariant distribution.
The first targeted therapy to treat cancer: the tamoxifen tale

The chance discovery of a new group of medicines called nonsteroidal anti-estrogens opened the door to new opportunities in therapeutics. Ethamoxytriphetol (MER25) was the first. However, based on studies in rats and mice, initial hopes were that nonsteroidal anti-estrogens would be new “morning after pills.” However, the discovery that clomiphene and tamoxifen induced ovulation in subfertile women would produce only a niche market in the 1960s. The treatment of metastatic breast cancer was an obvious choice as endocrine ablative surgery, i.e., oophorectomy, adrenalectomy, or hypophysectomy, was standard of care. Over a decade, in the 1970s, numerous nonsteroidal anti-estrogens were tested, but only tamoxifen went forward for the treatment of all stages of breast cancer, ductal carcinoma in situ, and male breast cancer and the reduction of risk for breast cancer in high-risk pre- and postmenopausal women.
Identification of a Small Molecule Anti-biofilm Agent Against Salmonella enterica

Biofilm formation is a common strategy utilized by bacterial pathogens to establish persistence in a host niche. Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi, the etiological agent of Typhoid fever, relies on biofilm formation in the gallbladder to chronically colonize asymptomatic carriers, allowing for transmission to uninfected individuals. S. enterica serovar Typhimurium utilizes biofilms to achieve persistence in human and animal hosts, an issue of both clinical and agricultural importance. Here, we identify a compound that selectively inhibits biofilm formation in both S. Typhi and S. Typhimurium serovars at early stages of biofilm development with an EC50 of 21.0 and 7.4 μM, respectively. We find that this compound, T315, also reduces biofilm formation in Acinetobacter baumannii, a nosocomial and opportunistic pathogen with rising antibiotic resistance. T315 treatment in conjunction with sub-MIC dosing of ciprofloxacin further reduces S. enterica biofilm formation, demonstrating the potential of such combination therapies for therapeutic development. Through synthesis of two biotin-labeled T315 probes and subsequent pull-down and proteomics analysis, we identified a T315 binding target: WrbA, a flavin mononucleotide-dependent NADH:quinone oxidoreductase. Using a S. Typhimurium strain lacking WrbA we demonstrate that this factor contributes to endogenous S. enterica biofilm formation processes and is required for full T315 anti-biofilm activity. We suggest WrbA as a promising target for further development of anti-biofilm agents in Salmonella, with potential for use against additional bacterial pathogens. The development of anti-biofilm therapeutics will be essential to combat chronic carriage of Typhoid fever and thus accomplish a meaningful reduction of global disease burden.
Retrospective evaluation of the clinical performance and longevity of porcelain laminate veneers 7 to 14 years after cementation.

Abstract Statement of problem Studies on the long-term clinical assessment and longevity of porcelain laminate veneers (PLVs) are lacking. Purpose The purpose of this clinical study was to assess the clinical performance and longevity of PLVs after 7 to 14 years of clinical service. Material and methods Patients with PLVs placed 7 to 14 years earlier were recalled for clinical evaluation. At the recall visit, clinical parameters such as margin integrity, margin discoloration, porcelain surface, anatomic form, and secondary caries were evaluated according to the Ryge criteria. Standardized photographs of veneers were made for each participant. Data were tabulated for all descriptive criteria and analyzed statistically. The Cohen Kappa assessment was carried out to determine interrater agreement, the Kaplan-Meier survival analysis for survival probability, and the Cox regression for significance between the arches. Results One hundred and fourteen veneers (83 maxillary and 31 mandibular) were evaluated in 26 participants, including 19 women restored with 87 veneers and 7 men restored with 27 veneers. Distribution of the veneers included 37 central incisors, 41 laterals, and 36 canines. The Alfa ratings for the veneers were as follows: porcelain surface (85%), anatomic form (87%), and secondary caries (96%). For margin integrity, 37% rated Alfa, 60% Bravo, and 3% Charlie. For margin discoloration, 56% rated Alfa and 44% Bravo. The overall Cohen Kappa interrater agreement was 0.7023 with an agreement rate of 88.3%. Clinical deficiencies included fracture rate of 4.35% (n=5); porcelain chipping 5.26% (n=6); caries 4% (n=4); debonding 2% (n=2); crack/craze lines 5.26% (n=6); loss of vitality 2% (n=2); and replaced veneers 4.38% (n=5). The main reason for failure was porcelain fracture. The survival rate for the veneers was 98%. The Kaplan-Meier success probability was 0.976 at 7 years and 0.882 at 14 years. Conclusions Within the limitations of this clinical study, PLVs exhibited an estimated survival probability of 0.976 over 7 years and 0.882 over 14 years, a high survival rate of 98%, and a low failure rate of 4.38%.
Old dog PU.1 reveals new tricks.

The transcription factor PU.1 is not needed for the maintenance of neutrophil identity but is essential for the prevention of excessive tissue damage due to a prolonged immune response. PU.1 restrains the activation of neutrophils by antagonizing the AP-1 transcription factor JunB.
Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Opioid Prescribing for Long Bone Fractures at Discharge From the Emergency Department: A Cross-sectional Analysis of 22 Centers From a Health Care Delivery System in Northern California.

Study objective We examine racial and ethnic differences in opioid prescribing and dosing for long bone fractures at emergency department (ED) discharge. Methods We conducted an electronic health records–based cross-sectional study of adults with long bone fractures who presented to the ED across 22 sites from a health care delivery system (2016 to 2017). We examined differences in opioid prescribing at ED discharge and, among patients with a prescription, differences in opioid dosing (measured as morphine milligram equivalents) by race/ethnicity, using regression modeling with statistical adjustment for patient, fracture, and prescriber characteristics. Results A total of 11,576 patients with long bone fractures were included in the study; 64.4% were non-Hispanic white; 16.4%, 7.3%, 5.8%, and 5.1%, respectively, were Hispanic, Asian, black, and of other or unknown race; and 65.6% received an opioid at discharge. After adjusting for other factors, rates of opioid prescribing were not different by race/ethnicity; however, among patients with an opioid prescription, total morphine milligram equivalent units prescribed were 4.3%, 6.0%, and 8.1% less for Hispanics, blacks, and Asians relative to non-Hispanic whites. Conclusion Racial and ethnic minority groups with long bone fractures receive similar frequencies of opioid prescriptions at discharge, with a small potency difference. How this affects pain relief and why it happens is unclear.
Tunneling field-effect junctions with WS2 barrier

Abstract Transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs), with their two-dimensional structures and sizable bandgaps, are good candidates for barrier materials in tunneling field-effect junctions (TFEJ) formed from atomic precision vertical stacks of graphene and insulating crystals of a few atomic layers in thickness. We report first-principles study of the electronic properties of the Graphene/WS2/Graphene sandwich structure revealing strong interface effects on dielectric properties and predicting a high ON/OFF ratio with an appropriate WS2 thickness and a suitable range of the gate voltage. Both the band spin-orbit coupling splitting and the dielectric constant of the WS2 layer depend on its thickness when in contact with the graphene electrodes, indicating strong influence from graphene across the interfaces. The dielectric constant is significantly reduced from the bulk WS2 value. The effective barrier height varies with WS2 thickness and can be tuned by a gate voltage. These results are critical for future nanoelectronic device applications.
Inhomogeneous Systems of Equations

Let aij, 1 ≤ i ≤ k, 1 ≤ j ≤ n be a set of constants, and fix k constants u1,u2,...,ukThe system $$\left\{ \begin{gathered} {a_{11}}{x_1} + {a_{12}}{x_2} + \cdots + {a_{1n}}{x_n} = {u_1}, \hfill \\ {a_{21}}{x_1} + {a_{22}}{x_2} + \cdots + {a_{2n}}{x_n} = {u_2}, \hfill \\ \vdots \hfill \\ {a_{k1}}{x_1} + {a_{k2}}{x_2} + \cdots + {a_{kn}}{x_n} = {u_k}, \hfill \\ \end{gathered} \right.$$ (I)
T-box RNA gets boxed

Bacterial T-boxes are regulatory mRNA regions that control the transcription or translation of factors involved in amino acid supply. T-boxes act by directly binding to non-aminoacylated tRNA in response to amino acid starvation. Three studies now capture three-dimensional structures of tRNA–T-box complexes and reveal a set of RNA features that are required for the recognition of specific tRNAs and modulation of gene expression.
O nicho cognitivo: coevolução de inteligência, sociabilidade e linguagem

Although Darwin insisted that human intelligence could be fully explained by the theory of evolution, the codiscoverer of natural selection, Alfred Russel Wallace, claimed that abstract intelligence was of no use to ancestral humans and could only be explained by intelligent design.Wallace’s apparent paradox can be dissolved with two hypotheses about human cognition.One is that intelligence is an adaptation to a knowledge-using, socially interdependent lifestyle, the “cognitive niche”. This embraces the ability to overcome the evolutionary fixed defenses of plants and animals by applications of reasoning, including weapons, traps, coordinated driving of game, and detoxification of plants. Such reasoning exploits intuitive theories about different aspects of the world, such as objects, forces, paths, places, states, substances, and other people’s beliefs and desires. The theory explains many zoologically unusual traits in Homo sapiens, including our complex toolkit, wide range of habitats and diets, extended childhoods and long lives, hypersociality, complex mating, division into cultures, and language (which multiplies the benefit of knowledge because know-how is useful not only for its practical benefits but as a trade good with others, enhancing the evolution of cooperation). The second hypothesis is that humans possess an ability of metaphorical abstraction, which allows them to coopt faculties that originally evolved for physical problem-solving and social coordination, apply them to abstract subject matter, and combine them productively. These abilities can help explain the emergence of abstract cognition without supernatural or exotic evolutionary forces and are in principle testable by analyses of statistical signs of selection in the human genome.
A Simple Intervention to Decrease Nutrient Losses in Continuous Feeds With Human Milk.

Objectives Current evidence suggests that a significant amount of human milk fat is lost because of tubing adsorption. The objective was to evaluate the effect of reintroducing tubing leftover milk on the quality of macronutrient content of delivered milk. Methods This was an in vitro study. The standard method of preparing and delivering fortified human milk includes preparing a small extra volume that would be used for priming the connection tubes. At the end of the infusion, the tubes and any milk leftover would be discarded. This method was compared with a new method where by the exact milk volume was prepared and used to prime the connection tubes. Leftover tubing milk was pushed with air. Results The standard method was associated with significant losses in fat, protein, and calories of 16.7%, 3.4%, and 9.2% compared with the new method of 8.2%, 0%, and 3.3%, respectively. These losses in the standard method were predominantly explained by the significant gains in the left over milk contents of fat 6.3 ± 1.1 g/dL, protein 3.5 ± 0.4 g/dL, and calories 28 ± 2.6 kcal/oz as compared with prepared milk of 4.8 ± 0.3, 2.9 ± 0.3 g/dL, and 24.0 ± 0.8 kcal/oz respectively, P = 0.002. Conclusions Traditional continuous delivery methods of human milk are associated with significant losses of fat and protein. By preparing the exact amount of ordered milk and then pushing through the residual milk left in the tubing with a small amount of air, this study offers a simple intervention that would significantly decrease these losses.
Economic feasibility analysis of commercial formaldehyde-based adhesives

Formaldehyde-based adhesives have been used for several decades due to its convenience. In this paper, we aimed to explore the economics of urea–formaldehyde (UF) adhesives that can be used in wood panels. Two formaldehyde production pathways: metal oxide pathway and silver pathway, were compared in this study. SuperPro Designer v9.5 software was employed to perform the techno-economic analysis (TEA). Key parameters of TEA were calculated and compared of these two pathways, including total capital investment, annual operating cost and product revenues. It was found that the unit production cost of UF adhesive made from metal oxide pathway ($0.86/kg) was less expensive than that from silver pathway ($0.99/kg), but the total capital cost was slightly higher in metal oxide pathway (40 million $) than silver pathway (38 million $). Additionally, sensitivity analysis indicated that final product yield and material costs were the most sensitive factors among all inputs.
Head-to-head comparative pharmacokinetic and biodistribution (PK/BD) study of two dexamethasone prodrug nanomedicines on lupus-prone NZB/WF1 mice.

Abstract HPMA copolymer-based dexamethasone prodrug (P-Dex) and PEG-based dexamethasone prodrug (PEG-Dex, ZSJ-0228) were previously found to passively target the inflamed kidney and provide potent and sustained resolution of nephritis in NZB/WF1 lupus-prone mice. While both prodrug nanomedicines effectively ameliorate lupus nephritis, they have demonstrated distinctively different safety profiles. To explore the underlining mechanisms of these differences, we conducted a head-to-head comparative PK/BD study of P-Dex and PEG-Dex on NZB/WF1 mice. Overall, the systemic organ/tissue exposures to P-Dex and Dex released from P-Dex were found to be significantly higher than those of PEG-Dex. The high prodrug concentrations were sustained in kidney for only 24 h, which cannot explain their lasting therapeutic efficacy (>1 month). P-Dex showed sustained presence in liver, spleen and adrenal gland, while the presence of PEG-Dex in these organs was transient. This difference in PK/BD profiles may explain PEG-Dex’ superior safety than P-Dex.
I Think I’ll Stay for a Year or Two: A Conversation With Dr. Mitchell Yell:

Dr. Mitchell Yell’s career has focused on children and youth with significant behavior and emotional challenges. His career has focused on special education law, progress monitoring, and behavior m...
Antiphospholipid syndrome: complement activation, complement gene mutations and therapeutic implications.

Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is an acquired thromboinflammatory disorder characterized by the presence of antiphospholipid antibodies as well as an increased frequency of venous or arterial thrombosis and/or obstetrical morbidity. The spectrum of disease varies from asymptomatic to a severe form characterized by widespread thrombosis and multiorgan failure, termed catastrophic APS (CAPS). CAPS affects only about ∼1% of APS patients, often presents as a thrombotic microangiopathy and has a fulminant course with >40% mortality, despite the best available therapy. Animal models have implicated complement in the pathophysiology of thrombosis in APS, with more recent data from human studies confirming the interaction between the coagulation and complement pathways. Activation of the complement cascade via antiphospholipid antibodies can cause cellular injury and promote coagulation via multiple mechanisms. Finally, analogous to classic complement-mediated diseases such as atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome, a subset of patients with APS may be at increased risk for development of CAPS because of the presence of germline variants in genes crucial for complement regulation. Together, these data make complement inhibition an attractive and potentially lifesaving therapy to mitigate morbidity and mortality in severe thrombotic APS and CAPS.
Cardiology and COVID-19.

In this Viewpoint, JAMA Cardiology editors review the journal's more inportant articles advancing the scientific understanding of COVID-19 and the heart in the
Improbability, chance, and the nineteenth-century realist novel: by Adam Grener, Columbus: Ohio State University Press, 2020, 210 pp., $79.95 (hardcover), ISBN 978-0-8142-1442-8

While crossing a sheep pasture in England once, my father grabbed another man, shouted and slapped him wildly about the torso. I thought he had started a fight, but actually he had just met a neigh...
Quantum Causal Inference in the Presence of Hidden Common Causes: an Entropic Approach.

Quantum causality is an emerging field of study which has the potential to greatly advance our understanding of quantum systems. One of the most important problems in quantum causality is linked to this prominent aphorism that states correlation does not mean causation. A direct generalization of the existing causal inference techniques to the quantum domain is not possible due to superposition and entanglement. We put forth a new theoretical framework for merging quantum information science and causal inference by exploiting entropic principles. For this purpose, we leverage the concept of conditional density matrices to develop a scalable algorithmic approach for inferring causality in the presence of latent confounders (common causes) in quantum systems. We apply our proposed framework to an experimentally relevant scenario of identifying message senders on quantum noisy links, where it is validated that the input before noise as a latent confounder is the cause of the noisy outputs. We also demonstrate that the proposed approach outperforms the results of classical causal inference even when the variables are classical by exploiting quantum dependence between variables through density matrices rather than joint probability distributions. Thus, the proposed approach unifies classical and quantum causal inference in a principled way. This successful inference on a synthetic quantum dataset can lay the foundations of identifying originators of malicious activity on future multi-node quantum networks.
Changes in Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Access to Care and Health Among US Adults at Age 65 Years.

Importance Medicare provides nearly universal health insurance to individuals at age 65 years. How eligibility for Medicare affects racial and ethnic disparities in access to care and health is poorly understood. Objective To assess the association of Medicare with racial and ethnic disparities in access to care and health. Design, Setting, and Participants This cross-sectional study uses regression discontinuity to compare racial and ethnic disparities before and after age 65 years, the age at which US adults are eligible for Medicare. There are a total of 2 434 320 respondents in the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System and 44 587 state-age-year observations in the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Wide-Ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research Data (eg, the mortality rate for individuals age 63 years in New York in 2017) from January 2008 to December 2018. The data were analyzed between February and May 2021. Exposures Eligibility for Medicare at age 65 years. Main Outcomes and Measures Proportions of respondents with health insurance, as well as self-reported health and mortality. To examine access, whether respondents had a usual source of care, encountered cost-related barriers to care, or received influenza vaccines was assessed. Results Of 2 434 320 participants, 192 346 were Black individuals, 104 294 were Hispanic individuals, and 892 177 were men. Immediately after age 65 years, insurance coverage increased more for Black respondents (from 86.3% to 95.8% or 9.5 percentage points; 95% CI, 7.6-11.4) and Hispanic respondents (from 77.4% to 91.3% or 13.9 percentage points; 95% CI, 12.0-15.8) than White respondents (from 92.0% to 98.5% or 6.5 percentage points; 95% CI, 6.1-7.0). This was associated with a 53% reduction compared with the size of the disparity between White and Black individuals before age 65 years (5.7% to 2.7% or 3.0 percentage points; 95% CI, 0.9-5.1;P = .003) and a 51% reduction compared with the size of the disparity between White and Hispanic individuals before age 65 years (14.6% to 7.2% or 7.4 percentage points; 95% CI, 5.3-9.5;P Conclusions and Relevance In this cross-sectional study that uses a regression discontinuity design, eligibility for Medicare at age 65 years was associated with marked reductions in racial and ethnic disparities in insurance coverage, access to care, and self-reported health.
Healthy Child Curriculum for Refugees: a family-based pediatric health education program for refugees

Introduction: The refugee population is at risk for lower health literacy and higher rates of illness compared to the general population. Refugees resettled by Integrated Refugee and Immigrant Services (IRIS) in Connecticut identified four pediatric health topics, nutrition, safety, oral health, and parenting, as areas of particular interest for further education. We therefore developed an innovative family-based, interactive pediatric health education curriculum addressing these topics for local refugee families. Program Report: We created four one-hour-long interactive classes based on literature review and …
Specialized Metabolite Mediated Predation Defense in the Marine Actinobacterium Salinispora.

The obligate marine actinobacterial genus Salinispora has become a model organism for natural product discovery, yet little is known about the ecological functions of the compounds produced by this taxon. The aims of this study were to assess the effects of live cultures and culture extracts from two Salinispora species on invertebrate predators. In choice-based feeding experiments using the bacterivorous nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, live cultures of both Salinispora species were less preferred than E. coli. When given a choice between the two species, C. elegans preferred S. areniolca over S. tropica. Culture extracts from S. tropica deterred C. elegans while those from S. arenicola did not, suggesting that compounds produced by S. tropica may account for the feeding deterrence. Bioactivity guided isolation linked compounds in the lomaiviticin series to the deterrent activity. Additional assays using the marine polychaete Ophryotrocha siberti and marine nematodes further support the deterrent activity of S. tropica against potential predators. These results provide evidence that Salinispora natural products may function as a defense against predation and that the strategies of predation defense differ between closely related species. Importance Bacteria inhabiting marine sediments are subject to predation by bacterivorous eukaryotes. Here we test the hypothesis that sediment-derived bacteria in the genus Salinispora produce biologically active natural products that function as a defense against predation. The results reveal that cultures and culture extracts of S. tropica deter feeding by Caenorhabditis elegans and negatively affect the habitat preference of a marine annelid (Ophryotrocha siberti). These activities were linked to the lomaiviticins, a series of cytotoxic compounds produced by S. tropica. Microbial natural products that function as a defense against predation represent a poorly understood trait that can influence community structure in marine sediments.
Hitch Your Antenna to the Stars: Early Television and Broadcast Stardom

Introduction 1. Radio and the Saliency of a Broadcast Star System 2. "A Marriage of Spectacle and Intimacy": Modeling the Ideal Television Performer 3. Lessons from Uncle Miltie: Ethnic Masculinity and the Vaudeo Star 4. "TV is a Killer!" The Collapse of the Vaudeo Star and Television's Talent Crisis 5. Our Man Godfrey: Product Pitching and the Meaning of Authenticity 6. For the Love of Lucy: Packaging the Sitcom Star Epilogue Notes Index
PATTERNS OF NEURAL DEGENERATION IN THE HUMAN COCHLEA AND AUDITORY NERVE : IMPLICATIONS FOR COCHLEAR IMPLANTATION

Although the identity of all the variables that may influence speech recognition after cochlear implantation is unknown, the degree of preservation of spiral ganglion cells is generally considered to be of primary importance. A series of experiments in our laboratories, directed at quantification of surviving spiral ganglion cells in the profoundly deaf, evaluation of the predictive value of a variety of clinical parameters, and the evaluation of the consequences of implantation in the inner ear, is summarized. Histologic study of the inner ears of patients who were deafened during life demonstrated that the cause of deafness accounted for 57% of the variability of spiral ganglion cell counts. Spiral ganglion cell counts were highest in individuals deafened by aminoglycoside toxicity or sudden idiopathic deafness and lowest in those deafened by postnatal viral labyrinthitis, congenital or genetic deafness, or bacterial meningitis. Study of the determinants of degeneration of the spiral ganglion revealed that degeneration is most severe in the basal compared with the apical turn and more severe when both inner and outer hair cells are absent. Unlike the findings in some experimental animal studies, no survival advantage of type II ganglion cells could be identified. There was a strong negative correlation between the degree of bony occlusion of the cochlea and the normality of the spiral ganglion cell count. However, even in specimens in which there was severe bony occlusion, significant numbers of spiral ganglion cells survived. A strong positive correlation between the diameter of the cochlear, vestibular, and eighth cranial nerves with the total spiral ganglion cell count (p < 0.001) was found. This would suggest that modern imaging techniques may be used to predict residual spiral ganglion cell population in cochlear implant candidates. Trauma from implantation of the electrode array was studied in both cadaveric human temporal bone models and temporal bones from individuals who received implants during life. A characteristic pattern of damage to the lateral cochlear wall and basilar membrane was identified in the upper basal turn. New bone formation and perielectrode fibrosis was common after cochlear implantation. Despite this significant trauma and reaction, there is no firm evidence that further degeneration of the spiral ganglion can be predicted as a consequence.