cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Inter-annual variability in isotope and elemental ratios recorded in otoliths of an anadromous fish

Abstract Isotope ratios and elemental concentrations in otoliths are often used as natural tags to reconstruct migratory movements and connectivity patterns in marine and anadromous fishes. Although differences in otolith geochemistry have been documented among geographically separated populations, inter-annual variation within locations is less frequently examined. We compared otolith isotope (δ 18 O and 87 Sr: 86 Sr) and elemental ratios (Sr:Ca and Ba:Ca) from several annual cohorts of juvenile American shad ( Alosa sapidissima ) in three rivers. These four geochemical signatures distinguished among river-specific populations of this species at both large and small geographic scales, with δ 18 O and 87 Sr: 86 Sr generating the majority of multivariate variation. We found significant variation among years for all variables in two to three rivers. However, the magnitude of variability differed among ratios, with δ 18 O ratios showing substantial inter-annual shifts while 87 Sr: 86 Sr ratios were relatively stable across years. Sr:Ca and Ba:Ca ratios also varied among years. These results imply that investigators using environmentally labile signatures must quantify geochemical signatures for each cohort of interest in order to confidently identify origins of migrants.
Tidal imprints of a dark subhalo on the outskirts of the Milky Way

We present a new analysis of the observed perturbations of the HI disk of the Milky Way to infer the existence of a dark sub-halo that tidally interact ed with the Milky Way disk. We examine tidal interactions between perturbing dark sub-halos and the gas disk of the Milky Way using high resolution Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) simulations. We compare our results to the observed HI map of the Milky Way to find that the F ourier amplitudes of the planar disturbances are best-fit by a perturbing dark sub-halo w ith a mass that is one-hundredth of the Milky Way with a pericentric distance of 5 kpc. This best-fit to the Fourier modes occurs about a dynamical time after pericentric approach, when the perturber is 90 kpc from the galactic center. Our analysis here represents a new method to indirectly characterize dark subhalos from the tidal gravitational imprints they leave on th e gaseous disks of galaxies. We also elucidate a fundamental property of parabolic orbits. We show that under certain conditions, one can break the degeneracy between the mass of the perturber and the pericentric distance in the evaluation of the tidal force ‐ to directly determine t he mass of the dark perturber that produced the observed disturbances.
Hybrid integration of fiber pigtailed silicon nitride microcavities with atom-chips for cavity QED applications

Fiber coupled silicon nitride microcavities with Q > 3.6 times 106 and effective mode volume < 10(lambda/n)3 at wavelengths resonant with alkali atom transitions are robustly integrated with magnetostatic atom-chips.
Characterization of five CYP4 genes from Asian citrus psyllid and their expression levels in Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus-infected and uninfected psyllids.

imb_1103 733..744 Previously, we reported that Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (Las)-infected Diaphorina citri are characterized by lower levels of cytochrome P450 monooxygenases than uninfected counterparts. In the present study, we investigated expression levels of family 4 cytochrome P450 (CYP4) genes in Las-infected and uninfected D. citri adults. Five novel CYP4 genes (CYP4C67, CYP4DA1, CYP4C68, CYP4DB1 and CYP4G70) were identified. Four of the five CYP4 genes were expressed at significantly higher levels in uninfected than Las-infected males, whereas only one was expressed at significantly higher levels in uninfected than Las-infected females. These results suggest that levels of cytochrome P450 monooxygenases in D. citri may be linked to expression levels of these CYP4 genes. Expression of all five CYP4 genes was induced by exposure of D. citri to imidacloprid, suggesting their possible involvement in metabolism of this toxin. Higher expression of the five CYP4 genes was found in nymphs than adults, which is congruent with previous results indicating higher levels of cytochrome P450 monooxygenases in nymphs than adults. These five CYP4 genes may be promising candidates for RNA-interference to silence overexpression of genes associated with insecticide resistance in D. citri. These newly identified genes may also serve as DNA-based screening markers for cytochrome P450-mediated insecticide resistance in field populations of D. citri.
Risk Factors for Invasive Pneumococcal Disease among Navajo Adults

Invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) is 3-5 times more common among Navajo adults than in the general US population. The authors conducted a case-control study to identify risk factors for IPD among Navajo adults. Navajos aged > or =18 years with IPD were identified through prospective, population-based active laboratory surveillance (December 1999-February 2002). Controls matched to cases on age, gender, and neighborhood were selected. Risk factors were identified through structured interviews and medical record reviews. The authors conducted a matched analysis based on 118 cases and 353 controls. Risk factors included in the final multivariable analysis were chronic renal failure (odds ratio (OR) = 2.6, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.9, 7.7), congestive heart failure (OR = 5.6, 95% CI: 2.2, 14.5), self-reported alcohol use or alcoholism (OR = 2.9, 95% CI: 1.5, 5.4), body mass index (weight (kg)/height (m)(2)) 95th (OR = 2.8, 95% CI: 1.0, 8.0) percentile, and unemployment (OR = 2.6, 95% CI: 1.2, 5.5). The population attributable fractions were 10% for chronic renal failure, 18% for congestive heart failure, 30% for self-reported alcohol use or alcoholism, 6% for body mass index, and 20% for unemployment. Several modifiable risk factors for IPD in Navajos were identified. The high prevalence of renal failure, alcoholism, and unemployment among Navajo adults compared with the general US population may explain some of their increased risk of IPD.
Diminished autologous mixed lymphocyte reaction in patients with Hodgkin disease: evidence for non-T cell dysfunction.

In the autologous mixed lymphocyte reaction (AMLR), T lymphocytes are stimulated to proliferate by autologous non-T mononuclear cells. In five untreated patients with Hodgkin disease, the AMLR was diminished. In addition, in the same five patients, T cell response to PHA was inhibited by a cell in the non-T cell fraction, the response of non-T cells to PWM was diminished, and there was a diminished ability of the non-T cell population to stimulate in allogeneic MLR. However, the response of T cells from patients with Hodgkin disease to allogeneic antigen was normal. The AMLR and allogeneic MLR were then studied in an additional five untreated patients before and after monocyte depletion of the stimulating non-T mononuclear cell population. In this second group of Hodgkin disease patients, the AMLR was again diminished when T cells were incubated either with non-T cells or non-T cells depleted of monocytes. In the Hodgkin patients, monocyte depletion did not alter the T cell response in the AMLR. In the controls, monocyte depletion greatly diminished the proliferative response. The diminished AMLR in untreated Hodgkin disease patients may be the result of a failure of adequate monocyte stimulation of autologous T cells.
Effect of atracurium, vecuronium, pancuronium and tubocurarine on renal sympathetic nerve activity in baroreceptor denervated dogs

The mechanism of arterial hypotension induced by non-depolarizing neuromuscular blocking agents may be multifactorial and differ between drugs. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of high-dose atracurium and equivalent doses of other non-depolarizing neuromuscular blocking agents on haemodynamic state and sympathetic nervous activity. In studies on 24 mongrel dogs anaesthetized with alpha-chloralose, the left kidney was exposed retroperitoneally and renal sympathetic nerve activity was recorded continuously after bilateral sino-aortic denervation and cervical vagi section. The dogs were allocated to four groups; atracurium 1.5 mg kg−1, tubocurarine 0.3 mg kg−1 pancuronium 0.3 mg kg−1 or vecuronium 0.3 mg kg−1 was administered to six dogs in each group. Histamine 1 μg kg−1 was given to two dogs in each group, 1 h before administration of neuromuscular blocking agents. We observed that atracurium and tubocurarine significantly decreased arterial pressure, heart rate and renal sympathetic nerve activity (P
Technologies of Information: HCI and the digital library

Digital libraries represent the latest and perhaps the most important stage in the transformation of our relationship to information and its supporting technologies. While the World Wide Web has raised to broad consciousness the ideas of rapid, remote access to vast collections of distributed, hyperlinked documents, users are as often confused and disoriented by such resources as they are empowered. As we enter the new millennium the possibilities for new forms of information seem boundless. Meeting the design challenges requires HCI to offer valid, reliable and timely guidance. At the same time, the creation of digital libraries provides a research forum for HCI that is rich, relevant and receptive to our inputs. The present chapter will briefly examine the initiation of the digital library concept, the early HCI involvement in this domain and present a vision of the future of HCI research and design for new information technologies.
Economic Losses Resulting from Mastitis. A Review

Abstract Mastitis reduces the milk yield, changes milk composition, shortens the productive life of affected cows, and is very costly to the dairy farmer. Losses in total milk production range from 5.0 to 25.0%, with one extreme of 83.9%. In terms of milk losses per quarter per day, 0.76 to 5.86 lb, or 9.0 to 43.3%, have been observed. Decreases in the composition of milk have been recorded for fat, 0.1 to 0.45%; solids-not-fat, 0.1 to 0.57%; lactose, 0.1 to 0.77%; and total solids, 1.07%. Total annual economic losses to dairymen in the United States attributable to mastitis have been estimated at $400 to $500 million, or $23 per cow. Other estimates obtained during various stages of a control program indicate annual losses per cow of $23.26 to $154.34 before, and averaging $28.09 to $82.00 after, the initiation of such a program. Control of this costly disease must be based on a continuing program of prevention and elimination of infection. Instituting and maintaining such a program can reduce losses from mastitis by 50% or more.
Cutting edge: STAT1 is required for IL-6-mediated Bcl6 induction for early follicular helper cell differentiation.

Bcl6 is required for CD4 T cell differentiation into T follicular helper cells (Tfh). In this study, we examined the role of IL-6 in early processes of in vivo Tfh differentiation, because the timing and mechanism of action of IL-6 in Tfh differentiation have been controversial in vivo. We found that early Bcl6+CXCR5+ Tfh differentiation was severely impaired in the absence of IL-6; however, STAT3 deficiency failed to recapitulate that defect. IL-6R signaling activates the transcription factor STAT1 specifically in CD4 T cells. Strikingly, we found that STAT1 activity was required for Bcl6 induction and early Tfh differentiation in vivo. IL-6 mediated STAT3 activation is important for downregulation of IL-2Rα to limit Th1 cell differentiation in an acute viral infection. Thus, IL-6 signaling is a major early inducer of the Tfh differentiation program unexpectedly mediated by both STAT3 and STAT1 transcription factors.
Regulation of hepatic triglyceride lipase by thyroid hormone in HepG2 cells

Hypothyroidism has been reported to be associated with reduced hepatic triglyceride lipase (HTGL) activity. In order to understand the molecular mechanism by which thyroid hormone regulates HTGL activity, effects of triiodothyronine (T3) on HTGL activity, mRNA level, transcription run-on activity, and protein synthetic rate were studied in HepG2 cells. HepG2 cells treated with 1 nM T3 showed an increase in HTGL activity that was first detected at 24 h; HTGL activity continued to increase at 36 h and stayed at the elevated level at 48 and 60 h. At maximal stimulation (48 h), T3-treated cells had the following HTGL activities: 155% in spontaneously released (SR) and 224% in heparin-releasable (HR) HTGL activities (mean levels compared to control). Stimulation of HTGL activity by T3 was dose-dependent and saturable. There was, however, no change in HTGL mRNA level throughout the course of T3 treatment. The effects of T3 were reduced when transcription was blocked by actinomycin D (mean level compared to actinomycin D treatment in the absence of T3: 109% in SR and 127% in HR activities) or translation was blocked by cycloheximide (127% in SR and 122% in HR activities), but HTGL activities were still significantly higher than control. Nuclear run-on assays indicate that T3 did not change the rate of transcription of the HTGL gene. We further determined the rate of HTGL synthesis by measuring the amount of [35S]methionine incorporated into newly synthesized HTGL immunoprecipitated by a monospecific anti-human HTGL antibody. We found that the T3-stimulated increase in HTGL activity was not accompanied by any change in the rate of HTGL biosynthesis. Our experimental data indicate that the T3 stimulation of HTGL activity in HepG2 cells is mediated at posttranscriptional and posttranslational levels. The partial but significant inhibition of the T3 stimulation of HTGL activity by actinomycin D and cycloheximide suggests that the effects of T3 may be mediated by other cellular processes that are more directly regulated by the hormone. This study represents the initial report on the mechanism of HTGL activation by physiological concentrations of thyroid hormone.
Enhancing science performance in students with learning disabilities using cover, copy, and compare: A student shows the way

A student who participated in a previous study where he was trained to use a self-managed academic intervention known as cover, copy, and compare (CCC) to enhance his mathematics performance developed the specific intervention used in the current study. Without prompting, this student adapted and employed this procedure to learn bone in the human body. In the current study a multiple baseline across tasks design was used to determine if CCC could be used to enhance accuracy in identifying parts of the human heart in three students with learning disabilities. Three students learned how to perform the self-management procedures during one session that lasted less than 15 minutes. Results showed that immediately after implementing the CCC intervention students' accuracy improved. Following 11 brief sessions, students were able to identify 15 parts of a human heart with an overall accuracy of 80% over 2 consecutive days. Discussion focuses on limitations and implications of this study and school psychologists' and students' contributions to the development and empirical validation of academic interventions. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
An Analytic Scaling Law for the Depositional Growth of Snow in Thin Mixed-Phase Layer Clouds

In various practical problems, such as assessing the threat of aircraft icing or calculating radiative transfer, it is important to know whether mixed-phase clouds contain significant liquid water content. Some mixedphase clouds remain predominantly liquid for an extended time, whereas others glaciate quickly. The glaciation rate of mixed-phase layer clouds is thought to depend on various factors, including number concentration of snow crystals, terminal velocity of snow crystals, and crystal habit type. This paper attempts to quantify some of these factors by deriving scaling laws (i.e., power laws) for the mixing ratio and sedimentation flux of snow at cloud base. The scaling laws are derived from the governing equation for snow mixing ratio. They neglect aggregation of snow crystals and accretion of supercooled liquid by snow crystals. The scaling laws permit arbitrary exponents and prefactors of the mass‐diameter and fall speed‐diameter power laws, allowing flexibility in crystal habit properties. The scaling laws are tested using idealized large-eddy simulation (LES) of three thin, midlevel layer clouds. The scaling laws agree adequately with the LES over one order of magnitude for snow flux and over two orders of magnitude for snow mixing ratio. They indicate, for instance, that in the present LES, cloud-base snow flux and snow mixing ratio increase faster than linearly with increasing cloud thickness and supersaturation with respect to ice. By varying the exponents and prefactors of the scaling laws, one may explore the sensitivity of glaciation rate to habit type. The relationship is complex, but, for the cloud cases examined, dendrites tend to glaciate cloud more rapidly than plates.
Precipitation thresholds for CO2 uptake in grass and shrub plant communities on Walnut Gulch Experimental Watershed

In semiarid ecosystems, precipitation is the major driving force for carbon uptake and subsequent plant growth. The hypothesis for this study was that the timing, frequency, and precipitation amount would produce different precipitation thresholds for uptake of carbon dioxide in grass and shrub plant communities. Eight years of precipitation data were used to determine the amount needed for carbon dioxide uptake thresholds in spring and summer seasons. Bowen ratio energy balance systems were used to measure carbon dioxide and moisture fluxes. In spring at the shrub site, close to or above long-term average spring precipitation of 59 mm was required to produce an uptake response. At the grass site a minimum of 23 mm was needed to produce an uptake response, which was much less than the long-term precipitation average of 68 mm. At both sites, spring or multiple summer responses reduced the threshold values for a summer response. Summer threshold ranges for the shrub site were 57-94 mm with a spring response and 123-140 mm without. Grass site summer thresholds were 51-95 mm with a spring response and 80-148 mm without. Summer precipitation threshold values were higher than spring values relating to the high summer evapotranspiration demand. The influence and variability of precipitation timing and frequency on carbon dioxide uptake threshold values resulted in no definitive conclusions as to differences between the grass and shrub plant communities, except that the grass site had slightly lower thresholds. Precipitation timing and frequency influence on total carbon uptake in some situations were more important than total precipitation. The lower grass site threshold values, along with a shift in climate toward more frequent and smaller precipitation events, may give grass ecosystems a competitive growth advantage.
Phase locking in a passive multicore photonic crystal fiber

We investigate the possibility of phase locking in a multicore photonic crystal fiber. We analyze the modal behavior of photonic crystal fibers with two and six cores and compare them with the usual single-core case. We also show how the strength of the coupling among modes belonging to different cores can be controlled by adjusting the size of the airholes between the waveguiding cores. We then analyze the Talbot effect in the case of the six-core photonic crystal as a pseudoperiodic structure and show that there exists the possibility of using a Talbot resonator to achieve phase locking in multicore photonic crystal fibers.
Kinetics of the processes of desorption from fatty acid monolayers

The surface area, A, of contracting fatty acid mono- layers was measured as a function of time, t, at constant surface pressure. In the initial temporal phase, In A was linear with dt. In a subsequent steady-state phase, In A was linear with t. The initial desorption coefficient for sodium palmitate, Ki, and the steady-state desorption coefficient, K,, varied directly with surface pressure and subphase pH, and these desorption coefficients also varied with the composition of the subphase buffer. However, the K,/K, ratio was independent of these variables. The diffusion coefficient, DaE, for sodium palmitate calculated from desorption coefficient ratios was 4.8 f. 0.6 X lows cmz/sec. This value was in reasonable agreement with 025 for sodium palmitate measured by time-lag diffusion, 3.7 f. 0.6 x 10-6 cm2/sec. D25 values obtained for a series of fatty acids suggested that higher members of the series diffused as small aggregates averaging two to four molecules in size. Kinetic and diffusion data both supported a model for the desorption process described by Ter Minassian-Saraga.
Faculty Service As Board Members In The Non-Profit Organizational Arena: An Act Of Altruism Complicated By Sarbanes Oxley

Throughout higher education, a common approach to evaluate faculty consists of three components: scholarship, teaching, and service. The service component can be broadly interpreted to encompass two themes, service on campus via committee assignments or service off campus with organizations in the surrounding community. Serving as a board member for a local non-profit organization often fulfills the required service component. Unfortunately, many board members do not have a clear understanding of what this responsibility entails. This paper will look at the responsibilities a board member assumes within the non-profit organization. Consideration will also be given to these responsibilities from the perspective of Sarbanes-Oxley.
A design and focus group evaluation of dietary choices tools for an underserved population.

Abstract Introduction: Our objective was to develop and evaluate dietary teaching tools for a select population diagnosed with a severe mental illness and limited financial ability. Patients with s...
Effect of Method of Application on Uptake of Di-Syston by the Cotton Plant

P32-labelcd Di-Syston® ( O,O -diethyl S -[2-(ethylthio)ethyl] phosphorodithioate) was applied to the soil with and without irrigation and at a variety of locations in relation to the cotton plant. Results indicated that irrigation, deep placement, and sidedressing on both sides instead of on one side of the drill row increased uptake. Radioassay of different parts of the cotton plant indicated that after applications were made to soil greater quantities of radioactivity accumulated in the leaves than elsewhere. After application to the stem, Di-Syston did not translocate to other parts of the plant to the extent reported for some other systemic insecticides.
Role of Molecular Chaperones in Biogenesis of the Protein Kinome

Molecular chaperones promote polypeptide folding in cells by protecting newly made and otherwise misfolded proteins against aggregation or degradation by the ubiquitin proteasome pathway. The roles of Saccharomyces cerevisiae Cdc37 and Ydj1 molecular chaperones are described in this chapter. We focus on biogenesis of protein kinases that require several different molecular chaperones for their proper folding. Specific among these is Cdc37, which binds directly to its kinase clients either during or shortly after translation and protects them against rapid proteasomal degradation. Ydj1 has a similar role, but is less specific for protein kinases in its role as a molecular chaperone. The method that we describe uses pulse chase and immunoprecipitation to analyze the fate of newly made proteins. Two kinetically distinct pathways of degradation can be discerned using this methodology that is dependent on the presence of an Hsp90 inhibitor or occurs in mutants of the molecular chaperones under study. The first is "zero-point" degradation that occurs either during or immediately after translation. The second is a slower pathway, where the half-life of kinase is approximately 20 min after translation.
Aortic valve replacement with coronary bypass grafting. Significant determinants of ten-year survival.

Concomitant aortic valve replacement (AVR) and myocardial revascularization were performed on 197 patients between 1969 and 1981. Operative mortality during the period 1969 to 1975 was 15.6% compared to 5.0% for the years 1976 to 1981 (p
Functions of a pancreaticoduodenal allograft in man.

Certain functions of a pancreaticoduodenal allograft were studied 3 months after transplantation in a patient previously ill with end-stage renal failure complicating advanced diabetes mellitus. Pancreatic exocrine function was not impaired under basal circumstances; in response to maximal stimulation with pancreozymin, the enzyme output was normal, apart from failure of trypsin output to increase in response to the stimulus. This isolated abnormality is consistent with local production of a trypsin inhibitor. At subsequent autopsy, the pancreatic graft appeared normal on histologic examination. Functions of the duodenal allograft were variably affected. Absorption of amino acids was grossly reduced, glucose absorption was impaired, and there was a slight reduction in basal electric rhythm. Transmural potential difference was not affected, and endogenous secretion of cholecystokinin-pancreozymin from the transplanted duodenum was adequate. These changes were associated with histologic abnormalities consistent with partial rejection of the duodenal allograft at autopsy.
Ginsenoside Rg3 Activates Human EAG Family of K+ Channels via Allosteric Modification of Gating

The human ether-a-go-go (EAG) family of voltage-gated K+ channels, including hERG, hEAG, and hELK exhibit variable biophysical and physiological properties. Ginsenoside Rg3 (Rg3), a steroid glycoside is a potent hERG channel activator. Here we characterize the mechanisms of action of Rg3 on three EAG-family representative channels, including hERG1, hEAG1 and hELK1 heterologously expressed in Xenopus laevis oocytes. Rg3 enhanced hERG1 channel current via a negative shift in the half-point for the voltage dependence of activation (V0.5act) that saturated at −14 mV, and a profound slowing in the rate of deactivation (EC50 = 242 nM). Rg3 had no effect on the rate of activation or the voltage dependence of hERG1 inactivation gating. For hEAG1 channels, Rg3 induced a −28 mV maxiumal shift in V0.5act (EC50 = 1.18 µM) and accelerated the rate of activation (∼20-fold faster). The maximum shift in V0.5act for hELK1 channels was much greater (>-100 mV; EC50 = 176 nM). The onset of Rg3 effects upon extracellular application was very fast and rapidly reversible upon washout for all 3 channel types, indicating this large molecule (MW = 785) binds to an extracellular region. Rg3 at 3 µM had no effect on Kv1.5 channels and only affects other Kv channels at much higher concentrations. Understanding the mechanisms of action of Rg3 may facilitate the development of more potent and selective gensenosides for therapeutic use.
Chapter 5 The Socratic Statesman

The requisites for developing this statesman, who can be called Socratic and prudent, lead to the examination of Cicero’s thinking on how such statesmen (historical exempla) have been and might be educated. This entails reflection on the role of friendship, including intergenerational friendship, in that education and the maintenance of true statesmanship. To aspire to such statesmanship entails a consideration of the use and abuse of the quest for glory by the greatly talented. The Dream of Scipio and the prospect of immortality are considered, and the path of virtue as that of true glory is explored.
A Liberal and a Classic: Pierre Manent's Neo-Aristotelian Reading of Raymond Aron

ABSTRACTThe contemporary French political philosopher Pierre Manent is, by his own account, deeply influenced by the Christian tradition, by Leo Strauss, and by his teacher Raymond Aron. This article explores Manent's indebtedness to Raymond Aron (1905–1983), one of the great political thinkers of the twentieth century. In a series of writings about Aron over the past thirty-five years, Manent presents a public man who spoke with “authority and competence of the things of the city, whose eloquence was able to instruct the public as it retained the ear of princes, of whom the sovereign reason seized, in each situation, the essential.” Manent has thought long and hard about Aron's lucid and courageous opposition to totalitarianism, his defense of human liberty and political reason, and his affinities with the prudence and sobriety of the first great political scientist, Aristotle. Manent's Aron is a liberal classic more than a classical liberal. His defense of modern liberty never forgot that even a free so...
Hydricity, electrochemistry, and excited-state chemistry of Ir complexes for CO2 reduction

We prepared electron-rich derivatives of [Ir(tpy)(ppy)Cl]+ with modification of the bidentate (ppy) or tridentate (tpy) ligands in an attempt to increase the reactivity for CO2 reduction and the ability to transfer hydrides (hydricity). Density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveal that complexes with dimethyl-substituted ppy have similar hydricities to the non-substituted parent complex, and photocatalytic CO2 reduction studies show selective CO formation. Substitution of tpy by bis(benzimidazole)-phenyl or -pyridine (L3 and L4, respectively) induces changes in the physical properties that are much more pronounced than from the addition of methyl groups to ppy. Theoretical data predict [Ir(L3)(ppy)(H)] as the strongest hydride donor among complexes studied in this work, but [Ir(L3)(ppy)(NCCH3)]+ cannot be reduced photochemically because the excited state reduction potential is only 0.52 V due to the negative ground state potential of -1.91 V. The excited state of [Ir(L4)(ppy)(NCCH3)]2+ is the strongest oxidant among complexes studied in this work and the singly-reduced species is formed readily upon photolysis in the presence of tertiary amines. Both [Ir(L3)(ppy)(NCCH3)]+ and [Ir(L4)(ppy)(NCCH3)]2+ exhibit electrocatalytic current for CO2 reduction. While a significantly greater overpotential is needed for the L3 complex, a small amount of formate (5-10%) generation in addition to CO was observed as predicted by the DFT calculations.
Can FPGAs Beat GPUs in Accelerating Next-Generation Deep Neural Networks?

Current-generation Deep Neural Networks (DNNs), such as AlexNet and VGG, rely heavily on dense floating-point matrix multiplication (GEMM), which maps well to GPUs (regular parallelism, high TFLOP/s). Because of this, GPUs are widely used for accelerating DNNs. Current FPGAs offer superior energy efficiency (Ops/Watt), but they do not offer the performance of today's GPUs on DNNs. In this paper, we look at upcoming FPGA technology advances, the rapid pace of innovation in DNN algorithms, and consider whether future high-performance FPGAs will outperform GPUs for next-generation DNNs. The upcoming Intel® 14-nm Stratix? 10 FPGAs will have thousands of hard floating-point units (DSPs) and on-chip RAMs (M20K memory blocks). They will also have high bandwidth memories (HBMs) and improved frequency (HyperFlex? core architecture). This combination of features brings FPGA raw floating point performance within striking distance of GPUs. Meanwhile, DNNs are quickly evolving. For example, recent innovations that exploit sparsity (e.g., pruning) and compact data types (e.g., 1-2 bit) result in major leaps in algorithmic efficiency. However, these innovations introduce irregular parallelism on custom data types, which are difficult for GPUs to handle but would be a great fit for FPGA's extreme customizability. This paper evaluates a selection of emerging DNN algorithms on two generations of Intel FPGAs (Arria'10, Stratix'10) against the latest highest performance Titan X Pascal GPU. We created a customizable DNN accelerator template for FPGAs and used it in our evaluations. First, we study various GEMM operations for next-generation DNNs. Our results show that Stratix 10 FPGA is 10%, 50%, and 5.4x better in performance (TOP/sec) than Titan X Pascal GPU on GEMM operations for pruned, Int6, and binarized DNNs, respectively. Then, we present a detailed case study on accelerating Ternary ResNet which relies on sparse GEMM on 2-bit weights (i.e., weights constrained to 0,+1,-1) and full-precision neurons. The Ternary ResNet accuracy is within ~1% of the full-precision ResNet which won the 2015 ImageNet competition. On Ternary-ResNet, the Stratix 10 FPGA can deliver 60% better performance over Titan X Pascal GPU, while being 2.3x better in performance/watt. Our results indicate that FPGAs may become the platform of choice for accelerating next-generation DNNs.
PREDICTORS OF LATE BLEEDING IN THE TAVR POPULATION

Background: TAVR patients are often elderly with multiple comorbidities increasing their susceptibility to late bleeding. Post-TAVR anticoagulation is without data for guidance. To provide insight, the relationships between late bleeding, comorbidities and discharge medications were assesed.
Relationship between food insecurity, child weight status, and parent-reported child eating and snacking behaviors.

Purpose Prior studies showed that food insecurity may increase the odds of obesity in children and adults. We still know very little about the familial aggregation of obesity in food-insecure households or the mechanisms by which food insecurity confers an increased risk of obesity to children. The purpose of this study was to compare children and mothers from food-insecure and food-secure households in their weight status, child eating patterns/behaviors, and maternal feeding practices. Design and Methods Fifty mothers of 8–10-year-old children were asked to complete questionnaires, including the U.S. Household Food Security survey, and had their own and their children's heights and weights measured. Results The odds of a child being obese were five times higher for children from food-insecure households compared with children from food-secure households (95% confidence interval 1.15–20.8). In univariate analyses, children from food-insecure households showed significantly greater external eating, both past satiation and in the absence of hunger (p < .03), and mothers from food-insecure households expressed significantly greater concern about their children's weight and used restrictive feeding practices to a greater extent (p < .03) when compared with families from food-secure households. A greater proportion of children from food-secure households consumed three to four snacks per day (45.9 vs. 15.4%), while a higher proportion of children from food-insecure households consumed five or more snacks per day (15.4 vs. 0%; p = .02). Practice Implications These findings provide further support for an association between food insecurity and childhood obesity and suggest that differences in external eating, child snacking patterns, and select maternal feeding practices may be implicated in food-insecure children's overconsumption of calories. When caring for food-insecure children, healthcare providers should screen for problematic eating patterns and feeding practices.
Cash or Credit? Compensation in Psychology Studies: Motivation Matters

It is common practice for psychology researchers to recruit their sample of participants from the undergraduate student population. Participants are typically compensated with partial course credit or a monetary payment. The current study reveals that the motivation to participate in a study (cash versus course credit) can relate to performance on a behavioral task of rewarded memory. In Experiment 1, undergraduate participants were recruited and compensated for their time with either partial course credit or cash. Potential performance-based cash rewards were earned during a rewarded memory task, where correct recognition of half the stimuli was worth a high reward and the other half a low reward. Memory for high reward items was better than low reward items, but only for the cash group. The credit group did not modulate their performance based on the value of the stimuli. In Experiment 2, undergraduates were compensated with partial course credit for their time and given the opportunity to earn a bonus credit for performance on a memory test. The findings were in line with the results from the credit group of Experiment 1, suggesting that the modulation of performance in the cash group of Experiment 1 cannot be accounted for by congruency between motivation to participate and reward for task performance. Of methodological importance, the findings indicate that recruiting and compensating participants with cash versus course credit may influence the results on a rewarded memory task. This factor should be taken into consideration in studies of reward motivation.
Modeling pH and Electrical Conductivity in Hydroponics using Artificial Neural Networks

Abstract A model for predicting pH and Electrical Conductivity (EC) responses of a deep trough hydroponic system is developed. Artificial Neural Networks are used as the method of modeling. The Feedforward Neural Network Model has 9 inputs (pH, EC, nutrient solution temperature, air temperature, relative humidity, light intensity, plant age, amount of added acid and amount of added base) and two outputs (pH and EC of the next time step). The most suitable and accurate combination of network architectures and backpropagation training algorithms was the one-hidden-layer with 9 hidden nodes architecture trained with the quasi-Newton backpropagation algorithm. During the testing of the model using new input data, one step ahead predictions of pH were within 0.01 and EC within 5 microS.cm -1 .
Selective C–O bond formation via a photocatalytic radical coupling strategy: access to perfluoroalkoxylated (ORF) arenes and heteroarenes

Development of an efficient process that employs commercially available and cost effective reagents for the synthesis of perfluoroalkoxylated aromatic compounds (Ar-ORF) remains a daunting challenge in organic synthesis. Herein, we report the first catalytic protocol using readily available perfluoroalkyl iodides (RFI) and N-(hetero)aryl-N-hydroxylamides to access a wide range of perfluoroalkoxylated (hetero)arenes. Mild reaction conditions allow for selective O-RF bond formation over a broad substrate scope and are tolerant of a wide variety of functional groups. Mechanistic studies suggest the formation and recombination of persistent N-hydroxyl radicals and transient RF radicals under photocatalytic reaction conditions to generate N-ORF compounds that rearrange to afford the desired products.
Generalized stacking fault energies, ductilities, and twinnabilities of CoCrFeNi-based face-centered cubic high entropy alloys

Abstract Effects of Cu, Mn, Al, Ti, Mo on generalized stacking fault energies, Rice-criterion ductilities, and twinabilities of CoCrFeNi-based face-centered cubic high entropy alloys were investigated using density functional theory calculations. The calculated barrier energies and twinnabilities revealed that the addition of Ti or Mo increased the tendency of dislocation glide and deformation twinning, while addition of Mn, Cu and relatively high amount of Al facilitated dislocation gliding and martensitic transformation. Low amount of Al resulted in only dislocation gliding. Furthermore, the addition of Mn and Cu increased the calculated Rice-criterion ductility while other elements decreased it.
Management of esophageal gastrointestinal stromal tumor: review of one hundred seven patients

Abstract Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) are the most common type of gastrointestinal mesenchymal tumor, but are rarely found in the thoracic esophagus. There is no clear consensus about the optimal treatment of this rare disease. A systematic search of the literature was performed for localized esophageal GIST that was resected between 2000 and 2015, and individual patients were included from two major academic institutions. We obtained information on demographics, tumor size and location, mitotic rate, treatment method, and time to recurrence or death. We performed univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses to evaluate the factors associated with recurrence or death. A total of 28 studies met our inclusion and exclusion criteria, and with two patients from two academic institutions, we had a total of 107 patients in the study. Due to lack of uniformity among studies, there were several missing data for different variables. The average patient age was 56 (n = 98) with mostly males (60%, n = 91). The average tumor size on the CT scan was 7.9 ± 5.4 cm (n = 91), located mostly in the distal esophagus (81%, n = 74). A similar number of patients underwent enucleation (n = 47) compared to esophagectomy (n = 42). Approximately half of the patients had a mitotic rate of 0-4 mitosis per 50 high-powered field (48%, n = 80). The median survival time was 73 months with a 5-year disease free survival of 57% (n = 97). Univariate Cox regression analyses showed that a large tumor, undergoing esophagectomy, and a high mitotic rate were associated with poor survival or recurrence control. We found that patients with a lesion smaller than or equal to 5 cm on the CT scan had a better disease-free survival rate than those with a size greater than 5 cm (HR = 12.41, p = 0.014) and had a 5-year survival rate of 92% with 90% of those patients undergoing enucleation (n = 29). Esophageal GIST is a very rare malignancy. The tumor size and mitotic rate of the tumor are associated with poor survival. However, patients with esophageal GIST measuring 5 cm or smaller may be safely treated with esophageal enucleation.
Eris: Coordination-Free Consistent Transactions Using In-Network Concurrency Control

Distributed storage systems aim to provide strong consistency and isolation guarantees on an architecture that is partitioned across multiple shards for scalability and replicated for fault tolerance. Traditionally, achieving all of these goals has required an expensive combination of atomic commitment and replication protocols -- introducing extensive coordination overhead. Our system, Eris, takes a different approach. It moves a core piece of concurrency control functionality, which we term multi-sequencing, into the datacenter network itself. This network primitive takes on the responsibility for consistently ordering transactions, and a new lightweight transaction protocol ensures atomicity. The end result is that Eris avoids both replication and transaction coordination overhead: we show that it can process a large class of distributed transactions in a single round-trip from the client to the storage system without any explicit coordination between shards or replicas in the normal case. It provides atomicity, consistency, and fault tolerance with less than 10% overhead -- achieving throughput 3.6-35x higher and latency 72-80% lower than a conventional design on standard benchmarks.
Accurate Modeling of Antennas for Radiating Short Pulses, FDTD Analysis and Experimental Measurements

Antennas used to radiate short pulses often require different design rules than those that are used to radiate essentially time-harmonic signals. If one considers only the performance in the time-domain, i.e., time varying waveforms, then the following are reasonable criteria for the performance of the antenna: (i) The radiated pulse should be a faithful reproduction of the excitation; i.e., there should be little pulse distortion on radiation, (ii) The reflected signal at the input of the antenna should be small. For practical systems, the peak amplitude of the reflected signal typically is required to be 40 dB below that of the incident signal, (iii) The amplitude of the radiated signal in the desired direction should be as large as possible.
Media and Culture in the US Jewish Labor Movement: Sweating for Democracy in the Interwar Era

By Brian DolberLondon: Palgrave Macmillan, 2017, 260 pp.American Jews have long been immersed in popular culture, both as consumers and creators. Although Jews could read the English-language press...
Electronic Cigarette and Cigarette Social Environments and Ever Use of Each Product: A Prospective Study of Young Adults in Southern California.

Background A supportive youth cigarette social environment, for example, friends' approval of use, leads to cigarette use initiation, and cigarette users develop a more supportive social environment. Whether there is a bidirectional relationship of electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) social environment with e-cigarette use has not been studied. Methods Prospective data were collected from 1441 Children's Health Study participants in 2014 (median age = 17.3 years) and at follow-up 1.5 years later. Associations were examined of (1) supportive e-cigarette social environment with subsequent e-cigarette use initiation and (2) baseline e-cigarette use with supportive e-cigarette social environment at follow-up (among those with a nonsupportive baseline social environment). Results Participants with three to four friends using e-cigarettes at baseline (vs. no friends) had an odds ratio (OR) of 4.08 of subsequent initiation (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.96 to 8.49); those with best friends who would have a very friendly (vs. unfriendly) reaction to e-cigarette use had an OR of 2.54 of initiation (95% CI = 1.57 to 4.10); and those with someone in the home using e-cigarettes had an OR of 1.94 of initiation (95% CI = 1.19 to 3.15). Participants who had ever used e-cigarettes at baseline developed a supportive social environment at follow-up (OR of 2.06 of having any friends who used e-cigarettes [95% CI = 1.29 to 3.30] and OR of 2.33 of having friends who were friendly toward use [95% CI = 1.32 to 4.11]). Similar bidirectional associations were observed between ever cigarette use and a supportive cigarette social environment. Conclusions The bidirectional relationship between a supportive e-cigarette social environment and ever use of e-cigarettes was similar to that previously observed between cigarette social environment and cigarette use. Implications Disrupting the social acceptability of youth e-cigarette use merits consideration as a strategy for preventing initiation of e-cigarette use, just as the social denormalization of cigarette use has proven to be effective in preventing cigarette initiation.
An Ethical Look at Paying Your 'Fair Share' of Taxes

There is a general feeling that people have a moral obligation to pay their fair share of taxes and that people who pay less than their fair share are acting immorally. Yet little is said about what fair share might be. The author explores this neglected aspect of the issue and develops some ethical guidelines for individuals to follow.
Professor Erich Lehmann’s Contributions to Testing of Hypotheses and Estimation

Professor Erich Lehmann, a major figure in the field of statistics, made fundamental contributions to several areas of statistical theory, especially in testing of hypotheses and estimation of unknown parameters. Although the foundations of these statistical methods were laid by Fisher, Neyman and Wald during the first half of the last century, no critical evaluation of these techniques was available. Lehmann by himself and in collaboration with some of his colleagues at the statistics department of the University of California, Berkeley, made a systematic study of these problems and provided a coherent theoretical structure. His contributions are reflected in his two great books. Testing of Hypotheses (1959) and Theory of Point Estimation (1983), which continue to be center pieces of graduate statistical education and have been translated into several languages.
Toward Distributed Context-Mediated Behavior for Multiagent Systems

Although much attention has been devoted to modeling and using context in intelligent agents, relatively little has been given to the problem for multiagent systems MASs. Yet, just as with an individual agent, context affects how a MAS should behave. In this paper, we discuss an approach to distributed context management for multiagent systems. The approach is based on earlier work on context-mediated behavior CMB for single agents, which explicitly represents contexts as c-schemas that contain knowledge about how to behave in the contexts represented. We are distributing CMB for use in advanced multiagent systems. This work is just beginning, and so the paper discusses issues and potential approaches to distributing CMB.