cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Kalman-extended genetic algorithm for search in nonstationary environments with noisy fitness evaluations

In basic genetic algorithm (GA) applications, the fitness of a solution takes a value that is certain and unchanging. This formulation does not work for ongoing searches for better solutions in a nonstationary environment in which expected solution fitness changes with time in unpredictable ways, or for fitness evaluations corrupted by noise. In such cases, the estimated fitness has an associated uncertainty. The uncertainties due to environmental changes (process noise) and to noisy evaluations (observation noise) can be reduced, at least temporarily, by re-evaluating existing solutions. The Kalman formulation provides a formal mechanism for treating uncertainty in GA. It provides the mechanics for determining the estimated fitness and uncertainty when a new solution is generated and evaluated for the first time. It also provides the mechanics for updating the estimated fitness and uncertainty after an existing solution is re-evaluated and for increasing the uncertainty with the passage of time. A Kalman-extended GA (KGA) is developed to determine when to generate a new individual, and when to re-evaluate an existing one and which to re-evaluate. This KGA is applied to the problem of maintaining a network configuration with minimized message loss, with mobile nodes and stochastic transmission. As the nodes move, the optimal network changes, but information contained within the population of solutions allows efficient discovery of better-adapted solutions. The sensitivity of the KGA to several control parameters is explored.
Improving the performance of motor-impaired users with automatically-generated, ability-based interfaces

We evaluate two systems for automatically generating personalized interfaces adapted to the individual motor capabilities of users with motor impairments. The first system, SUPPLE, adapts to users' capabilities indirectly by first using the ARNAULD preference elicitation engine to model a user's preferences regarding how he or she likes the interfaces to be created. The second system, SUPPLE++, models a user's motor abilities directly from a set of one-time motor performance tests. In a study comparing these approaches to baseline interfaces, participants with motor impairments were 26.4% faster using ability-based user interfaces generated by SUPPLE++. They also made 73% fewer errors, strongly preferred those interfaces to the manufacturers' defaults, and found them more efficient, easier to use, and much less physically tiring. These findings indicate that rather than requiring some users with motor impairments to adapt themselves to software using separate assistive technologies, software can now adapt itself to the capabilities of its users.
Adolescent Friendship Selection and Termination: The Role of Similarity

We examined friendship selection and termination on a wide variety of variables using longitudinal data from 1183, 6th, 8th and 10th graders in two school systems. To control for the effects of peer influence on similarity, adolescents were matched at Time 1 with the persons they would become friends with by Time 2. Adolescents were significantly similar to Time 1 about-to-be friends on minor delinquency and cigarette and alcohol use, the number of reciprocated friendships and activities suggesting that friendship selection was based on these variables. The similarity seen on covert variables such as values and personality could be accounted for by selection on problem behaviors. Adolescents were as similar to stable friends as to about-to-be friends, suggesting that selection plays a stronger role in similarity than influence. Termination was related to fewer variables than was selection.
Using the staff meeting format to teach oral communications

Instructors in the Colorado School of Mines' EPICS Program have had considerable practice over the past 15 years teaching engineering students to communicate effectively using the staff meeting format in authentic contexts. EPICS students have made approximately 12 oral presentations in a variety of contexts and to a variety of audiences by the end of their sophomore year. The paper explains the philosophy behind the CSM program and presents some of the logistical and pedagogical details as well as evaluation data.
Influence of Poultry Species, Muscle Groups, and NaCl Level on Strength, Deformability, and Water Retention in Heat‐Set Muscle Gels

The effects of poultry species (chicken and turkey), muscle groups (breast, thigh, and drum) and NaCl concentration (1% and 2%) on a low fat gel system were compared using measurements of shear stress (strength), shear strain (deformability), and two water retention measurements. Results showed doubling NaCl tended to double stress for all species and muscle groups and increased strain by 30–50%. Cross species differences showed higher stress in turkey gels than in chicken gels with 2% NaCl. For both species, stress, strain and water retention were lowest in breast gels with both NaCl concentrations, and strain was greater in thigh gels than in drum gels with 2% NaCl.
Personality Traits and Attitudes and Their Relationship to Student Drug Using Behavior

Few issues in contemporary American life arouse more anxiety, fear, and irrationality than “student drug abuse.” Opponents of drug use consider it self-indulgent and degenerate, a sign of psychological and moral weakness of American youth. The users and proponents of drug use, on the other hand, view psychedelic compounds as “mind expanders” which make life more meaningful and more enjoyable. There is little evidence to support either of these extreme views. What little evidence there is indicates one thing: the use of psychotropic drugs on college campuses is considerable. Whether this drug use per se creates a problem or whether the problem is created by the reactions of people to the drug use is a moot point. It has been said that the real problem is not the drug problem but the drug problem problem; that is, the real problem comes from the over-reaction of parents, administrators, and other community members to the drug use of students and the lack of communication and understanding which results from...
DEVELOPMENT OF THE NEUROMUSCULAR JUNCTION III. Degeneration of Motor End Plates After Denervation and Maintenance In Vitro by Nerve Explants

To determine the effects of nerve explants on the integrity of motor end plates in vitro, cholinesterase activity and structure of end plates were compared in newt muscle denervated in vivo, cultured in the absence of nerve explants, and cultured in the presence of sensory ganglia. In neuromuscular junctions denervated in vivo or in vitro, the synaptic vesicles become clumped and fragmented. A few intact vesicles escape into the synaptic cleft. Axon terminals degenerate until they are left as residual bodies within the Schwann cell cytoplasm. Junctional folds on the muscle surface are reduced in height and are no longer evident once traces of axoplasm within the Schwann cell disappear. End plate cholinesterase activity is reduced as junctional folds are lost. When muscle is cultured in the presence of a sensory ganglion, the terminal axoplasm degenerates in the same manner but junctional folds persist on the muscle surface. Moderately intense cholinesterase activity remains in association with the junctional folds, so that normal motor end plates are maintained in the absence of innervation. These results show that degenerative changes in the structure of the motor end plate and loss of cholinesterase activity occurring in organ culture as a result of denervation can be retarded by nerve explants that do not directly innervate the muscle.
Macro- and Microlevel Processes Affect Food Choice and Nutritional Status in The Republic of the Marshall Islands

Despite its relative isolation from the world stage and lack of resources, the Marshall Islands serve as an example of the interaction between global political power, macroeconomic forces and local cultural factors. At the national level, patterns of food importation and government programs encourage the consumption of high fat foods. These factors have fostered dependency on Western foods and a loss of traditional food practices. Beliefs come into play as microlevel factors that influence food choice and aspects of lifestyle. Nearly three quarters of women are overweight or obese in this setting. Obesity in women is associated with greater age, higher education and more imported food consumption. Over a third of children ages 1-5 y are stunted, with stunting associated with worse economic status, less active feeding, increased consumption of imported foods and urban residence. What can be done at the microlevel is constrained by macrolevel factors of disempowerment. In this way, issues of power and belief are played out in the bodies of individuals.
The Economics of Dual Job Holding: A Job Portfolio Model of Labor Supply ∗

In this paper we develop a job portfolio model of dual job holding based on a Stone-Geary utility function. We derive the associated Slutsky equation components. Because the job portfolio model applies only to unconstrained dual jobholders, we separate individuals who moonlight because of an hours constraint from dual jobholders who work on two job for reasons different from an hours constraint. Income and wage elasticities are estimated for workers without hours constraints using data from the May 1991 supplement to the Current Population Survey. Our study finds that the income and compensated wage elasticities are much larger for labor supply to job 2 compared with job 1.
The influences of restaurant menu font style, background color, and physical weight on consumers’ perceptions

Abstract Restaurateurs often attempt to signal the scale [e.g., casual vs. upscale] and service standards of their operations through the use of various cues on their menus. Fancy font, gold menu paper, and heavy physical menu weight are frequently used as attempts to signal an upscale environment and high service standards to potential diners. Therefore, this research conducts a 2 × 2 × 2 between subjects experimental design on students at a large Mid-Atlantic University to test these effects. Results indicate that when menu font is italicized potential diners do perceive the restaurant to be more upscale and as having the capability to deliver top-rate service. The same findings also held true for menu weight: heavier menus, as opposed to lighter ones, drive perceptions of scale and anticipated service quality. Regarding background color, however, no significant effects of gold versus white background colors were found.
Of Visible Race-Consciousness and Institutional Role: Equal Protection and Disparate Impact after Ricci and Inclusive Communities

When Ricci v. DeStefano was decided in 2009, I identified three possible reading of that case, one of which would be fatal to statutory disparate impact standards and two of which would not. Inclusive Communities strongly suggests that the fatal reading will not prevail. The two readings that remain viable are the "institutional reading," on which Ricci restricts the freedom of employers to remedy their own disparate-impact problems without similarly restricting the ability of courts to order disparate-impact remedies, and the "visibility reading," on which the key question about any given disparate-impact remedy is the degree to which its race-conscious aspect is publicly visible. Inclusive Communities seems to reinforce the visibility reading and to suggest that visibility will be an important element of the Court's forthcoming decision in Fisher v. Texas.
An Ontology of Ideas

Philosophers often talk about and engage with ideas. Scientists, artists, and historians do, too. But what is an idea? In this paper, we first motivate the desire for an ontology of ideas before discussing what conditions a candidate ontology would have to satisfy to be minimally adequate. We then offer our own account of the ontology of ideas and consider various strategies for specifying the underlying metaphysics of the account. We conclude with a discussion of potential future work to be done on the ontology of ideas.
Termites and ungulates affect arbuscular mycorrhizal richness and infectivity in a semiarid savanna

In savanna ecosystems, mound-building termites and ungulate herbivores profoundly affect the abundance and diversity of aboveground organisms. Yet, surprisingly little is known about how these two groups interact to impact belowground communities. Using the Kenya Long-term Exclosure Experiment (KLEE), where ungulate herbivores have been excluded for over 15 years, we examined how the presence of termites and ungulate herbivore exclusion affected species richness, community composition, and infectivity of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF). We also measured plant richness and soil nutrients to examine how the effects of termites and ungulate exclusion may indirectly impact AMF communities. AMF richness and infectivity and plant richness were significantly lower on termite mounds than in off-mound areas. AMF infectivity and plant richness were significantly higher in off-mound areas, especially where herbivores had access. Our results revealed a strong suppressive effect of termites on AMF communities that ...
Analysis of status of food contaminantsin in Hangzhou

Objective:To investigate the pollution status of Salmonella,Listeria monocytogenes,O157:H7 and Vibrio parahaemolyticus in Hangzhou food market.Methods:95 cases of samples including raw meat,cooked meat,aquatic product and vegetables were collected from May to October 2008 in Hangzhou and the detection were carried out base on GB/T4789-2003.Results:21 cases of pathogenic bacteria were isolated from 95 samples including 11 cases of Salmonella,9 cases of Listeria monocytogenes and 1 case of Vibrio parahaemolyticus,O157:H7 was not found.Conclusion:The situation of food contamination is not good in Hangzhou,especially the raw meat is polluted by Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes more seriously,and the management of food hygiene should be improved and enhanced.
Abstract 3817: Recombinant stapled proteins for the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia

The oncoprotein Bcr-Abl is the cause of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). Current therapies target the tyrosine kinase domain of Bcr-Abl, but due to their non-curative nature, resistance to these drugs is common. Therefore, new treatments are needed for those patients refractive to available therapies. Bcr-Abl homo-oligomerization via its N-terminal coiled coil (CC) domain is required for tyrosine kinase activity. Our previous work has shown that it is possible to inhibit Bcr-Abl activity by targeting the CC domain with a peptidomemetic known as CCmut, delivered as a protein using a cell-penetrating peptide (CPP-CCmut). CPP-CCmut selectively enters leukemic cells and inhibits Bcr-Abl, as seen by Western blot, 7AAD, Annexin V, cell proliferation, and colony forming assays. This leukemia cell-permeable CPP-CCmut protein domain is our lead compound for CML therapy, but to be translatable to the clinic it must be modified to improve proteolytic stability. For this reason, we created stapled versions of this CPP-CCmut. Stapled peptides are resistant to proteolysis, and are emerging as a viable strategy for disrupting protein-protein interactions in diseases including HIV and cancer. Until recently, peptide stapling required incorporation of unnatural amino acids; therefore these peptides were created via solid-state synthesis. However, the synthesis of the 81 amino acid CPP-CCmut is no trivial matter. The ability to staple a longer sequence such as our protein domain is now possible using thiol-ene coupling. This exciting new chemistry allows for the stapling of recombinant proteins at substituted cysteine residues (instead of stapling substituted unnatural amino acids incorporated into synthetically made peptides). Thiol-ene coupling is used here to staple recombinant CPP-CCmut, and provides a path for translation of our lead compound to the clinic. Molecular modeling has identified optimal locations for staples on CPP-CCmut, which include 29/36, 36/43, 50/57, 57/64, as well as double staples 29/36-50/57 and 36/43-50/57. These staple locations still allow for dimerization of CPP-CCmut with Bcr-Abl, as indicated by free energy calculations and helicity. The staple locations have also been optimized for maximal coverage from proteolytic degradation. This work acts as a proof-of-concept that proteins (not just peptides) can be stapled, thus greatly expanding the variety and complexity of stapled proteins for use in the exciting field of targeting protein-protein interfaces to treat disease. Citation Format: Benjamin J. Bruno, Sean P. Cornillie, Thomas E. Cheatham, Daniel H. Chou, Carol S. Lim. Recombinant stapled proteins for the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2016 Apr 16-20; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(14 Suppl):Abstract nr 3817.
A biologically informed method for detecting rare variant associations.

BioBin is a bioinformatics software package developed to automate the process of binning rare variants into groups for statistical association analysis using a biological knowledge-driven framework. BioBin collapses variants into biological features such as genes, pathways, evolutionary conserved regions (ECRs), protein families, regulatory regions, and others based on user-designated parameters. BioBin provides the infrastructure to create complex and interesting hypotheses in an automated fashion thereby circumventing the necessity for advanced and time consuming scripting. In this manuscript, we describe the software package for BioBin, along with type I error and power simulations to demonstrate the strengths and various customizable features and analysis options of this variant binning tool. Simulation testing highlights the utility of BioBin as a fast, comprehensive and expandable tool for the biologically-inspired binning and analysis of low-frequency variants in sequence data. The BioBin software package has the capability to transform and streamline the analysis pipelines for researchers analyzing rare variants. This automated bioinformatics tool minimizes the manual effort of creating genomic regions for binning such that time can be spent on the much more interesting task of statistical analyses. This software package is open source and freely available from http://ritchielab.com/software/biobin-download
Evaluating Failing Fontans for Heart Transplantation: Predictors of Death

Background Late complications of the Fontan operation represent a significant management challenge. Failing Fontan patients have two modes of presentation: impaired ventricular function (IVF) and those with preserved ventricular function (PVF) but with failing Fontan physiology (protein-losing enteropathy [PLE] and plastic bronchitis [PB]). This study evaluated whether failing Fontan patients referred for heart transplantation had a different outcome based on the mode of presentation. Methods The medical records of all Fontan patients evaluated for heart transplantation at a single institution from 1994 to 2008 were retrospectively reviewed. Demographic, hemodynamic, and laboratory data were collected. Patients were stratified into an IVF or PVF group by echocardiographic criteria. Descriptive statistics and Kaplan-Meier analysis were used for hypothesis testing. Results Thirty-four Fontan patients were evaluated for heart transplantation. According to echo description of systolic function, 18 were categorized as IVF and 16 as PVF. The IVF group had a significantly lower cardiac index and venous oxygen saturation, and significantly higher systemic vascular resistance vs the PVF group (p Conclusions Failing Fontan patients with PVF have decreased overall survival independent of whether they underwent transplantation. This trend indicates a need to improve the management and timing for transplantation amongst this population.
Diabetes Control and the Risks of ESRD and Mortality in Patients With CKD

Background Diabetes is the leading cause of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) and a significant contributor to mortality in the general population. We examined the associations of hemoglobin A 1c (HbA 1c ) levels with ESRD and death in a population with diabetes and chronic kidney disease (CKD). Study Design Cohort study. Setting & Participants 6,165 patients with diabetes (treated with oral hypoglycemic agents and/or insulin) and CKD stages 1 to 5 at a large health care system. Predictor HbA 1c level (examined as a categorical and continuous measure). Outcomes All-cause and cause-specific mortality ascertained from the Ohio Department of Health mortality files and ESRD ascertained from the US Renal Data System. Results During a median 2.3 years of follow-up, 957 patients died (887 pre-ESRD deaths) and 205 patients reached ESRD. In a Cox proportional hazards model, after multivariable adjustment including for kidney function, HbA 1c level 1c levels of 6% to 6.9% (HR, 1.23; 95% CI, 1.01-1.50). Similarly, HbA 1c level ≥ 9% was associated with higher risk for all-cause death (HR, 1.34; 95% CI, 1.06-1.69). In competing-risk models, baseline HbA 1c level was not associated with ESRD. For cause-specific mortality, diabetes accounted for >12% of deaths overall and >19% of deaths among those with HbA 1c levels > 9%. Limitations Small proportion of participants with advanced kidney disease; single-center population. Conclusions In this cohort of patients with CKD with diabetes, HbA 1c levels 1c levels were not associated with ESRD in this specific CKD population. Diabetes-related deaths increased with higher HbA 1c levels.
Correlation of fitness landscapes from three orthologous TIM barrels originates from sequence and structure constraints

Sequence divergence of orthologous proteins enables adaptation to environmental stresses and promotes evolution of novel functions. Limits on evolution imposed by constraints on sequence and structure were explored using a model TIM barrel protein, indole-3-glycerol phosphate synthase (IGPS). Fitness effects of point mutations in three phylogenetically divergent IGPS proteins during adaptation to temperature stress were probed by auxotrophic complementation of yeast with prokaryotic, thermophilic IGPS. Analysis of beneficial mutations pointed to an unexpected, long-range allosteric pathway towards the active site of the protein. Significant correlations between the fitness landscapes of distant orthologues implicate both sequence and structure as primary forces in defining the TIM barrel fitness landscape and suggest that fitness landscapes can be translocated in sequence space. Exploration of fitness landscapes in the context of a protein fold provides a strategy for elucidating the sequence-structure-fitness relationships in other common motifs.
Life cycle assessment of co-firing coal and wood pellets in the Southeastern United States

Abstract Coal-fired power plants produce nearly 40% of the electricity in the United States, contributing more than three-quarters of all carbon dioxide emissions from the electricity sector. While many European coal-fired power plants have been transitioning to wood pellets to abate carbon dioxide emissions, such a changeover has not occurred in the United States electricity sector. This analysis examines the environmental implications of co-firing coal and wood pellets in the Southeastern United States, where the vast majority of wood pellet exports to Europe originate. Utilizing primary data from existing wood pellet manufacturers, a life cycle inventory is presented that characterizes the full cradle-to-grave environmental performance of co-firing coal and wood pellets for electricity generation. Furthermore, the avoided life cycle emissions related to shipping wood pellets to Europe are calculated. Life cycle assessment modeling scenarios for co-firing wood pellets in existing coal-fired power plants within the Southeastern United States result in reductions in eight of nine impact categories. The results presented here indicate that co-firing with wood pellets could be a viable interim solution for the aging fleet of coal-fired power plants within the Southeastern United States, particularly if stricter emission regulations and renewable portfolio standards are implemented.
Investigating the toxic effects of 2-aminoanthracene ingestion in pregnant Sprague Dawley dams.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) refer to organic compounds that are byproducts of incomplete combustion of fossil fuels and wood. One specific polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon, 2-aminoanthracene (2AA), is a member of a broader group of compounds known as anthracenes, which have been classified by the United States Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ASTDR) as one of a group of PAHs of top concern based on their greater potential risk for exposure and greater harmful effects to humans, compared to other PAHs. Previous research has shown that 2AA affects genes involved in carbohydrate and lipid metabolism, inflammatory stress responses, and immune system responses, among other processes. The objective of the present study was to examine the toxicity of dietary ingestion of 2AA from gestation through the postnatal period. Pregnant dams (Day 1) were purchased from Taconic Hudson, NY, and assigned into dose regimens of 0 mg/kg- (control-C), 50 mg/kg- (low dose-LD) and 100 mg/kg-diet (high dose-HD) 2AA. Dams were fed 2AA contaminated diet during the period of gestation and postpartum. Insulin and H&E immunohistochemical staining were undertaken and indicated no significant changes between control and treated groups. However, percent pancreatic islets (islets within the pancreas) were larger in the exposed groups. The value was 1.5% in the control dams compared to 3.2% and 4.3% low dose and high dose groups respectively. Serum concentrations of albumin and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) were increased in the exposed groups, with the HD group experiencing the greater increase. Analyses of Fabp4, Mgmt , Fas, Nhej1, Aldh1a1 and Ncam1 were conducted via real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-pPCR), using β-Actin as the control gene. There was an up-regulation of the Mgmt and Nhej1 gene transcripts in the exposed groups, with the extent of upregulation being highest in the HD group. Taken together, a link between environmental exposure to 2AA and pancreatic effects appears to exist.
A two-photon Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor for the near-infrared wavelength

We present a novel wavefront sensing scheme based on two-photon absorption in a conventional silicon camera for measuring aberrations of pulsed laser beams in the near-infrared wavelengths up to 2.0 μm.
Modeling of a thermal energy storage system based on coupled metal hydrides (magnesium iron – sodium alanate) for concentrating solar power plants

Abstract Concentrating solar power plants represent low cost and efficient solutions for renewable electricity production only if adequate thermal energy storage systems are included. Metal hydride thermal energy storage systems have demonstrated the potential to achieve very high volumetric energy densities, high exergetic efficiencies, and low costs. The current work analyzes the technical feasibility and the performance of a storage system based on the high temperature Mg 2 FeH 6 hydride coupled with the low temperature Na 3 AlH 6 hydride. To accomplish this, a detailed transport model has been set up and the coupled metal hydride system has been simulated based on a laboratory scale experimental configuration. Proper kinetics expressions have been developed and included in the model to replicate the absorption and desorption process in the high temperature and low temperature hydride materials. The system showed adequate hydrogen transfer between the two metal hydrides, with almost complete charging and discharging, during both thermal energy storage and thermal energy release. The system operating temperatures varied from 450 °C to 500 °C, with hydrogen pressures between 30 bar and 70 bar. This makes the thermal energy storage system a suitable candidate for pairing with a solar driven steam power plant. The model results, obtained for the selected experimental configuration, showed an actual thermal energy storage system volumetric energy density of about 132 kWh/m 3 , which is more than 5 times the U.S. Department of Energy SunShot target (25 kWh/m 3 ).
Inference in Deep Networks in High Dimensions

Deep generative networks provide a powerful tool for modeling complex data in a wide range of applications. In inverse problems that use these networks as generative priors on data, one must often perform inference of the inputs of the networks from the outputs. Inference is also required for sampling during stochastic training of these generative models. This paper considers inference in a deep stochastic neural network where the parameters (e.g., weights, biases and activation functions) are known and the problem is to estimate the values of the input and hidden units from the output. A novel and computationally tractable inference method called Multi-Layer Vector Approximate Message Passing (ML-VAMP) is presented. Our main contribution shows that the mean-squared error (MSE) of ML-VAMP can be exactly predicted in a certain large system limit. In addition, the MSE achieved by ML-VAMP matches the Bayes optimal value recently postulated by Reeves when certain fixed point equations have unique solutions.
Variable Temperature Electron Energy-Loss Spectroscopy

Atomic column-resolved electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) in combination with Z-contrast imaging in a scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) has become a very popular approach for characterizing the atomic and electronic structures of interfaces and defects in a wide range of solid-state materials. However, while the development of aberration correction in electron microscopes now allows for sub-A spatial resolution to be achieved, many of these high-resolution experiments are currently limited to the ambient environment inside the microscope column. Yet, there is an increased interest in the areas of catalyst and functional oxide research to utilize in situ heating and cooling experiments with high spatial resolution. In this chapter, we will describe recent advances in atomic-resolution variable temperature EELS and discuss the required setup and techniques for achieving high-resolution variable temperature Z-contrast imaging and EELS. In particular, we will concentrate on three examples where in situ heating and cooling experiments in the temperature range between 10 and 700 K have been crucial to understanding the magnetic and electronic transport properties of functional oxide materials. We will also discuss some of the limitation of current heating/cooling sample holder technologies for high-resolution Z-contrast imaging and EELS.
Relationship Proposal Networks

Image scene understanding requires learning the relationships between objects in the scene. A scene with many objects may have only a few individual interacting objects (e.g., in a party image with many people, only a handful of people might be speaking with each other). To detect all relationships, it would be inefficient to first detect all individual objects and then classify all pairs, not only is the number of all pairs quadratic, but classification requires limited object categories, which is not scalable for real-world images. In this paper we address these challenges by using pairs of related regions in images to train a relationship proposer that at test time produces a manageable number of related regions. We name our model the Relationship Proposal Network (Rel-PN). Like object proposals, our Rel-PN is class-agnostic and thus scalable to an open vocabulary of objects. We demonstrate the ability of our Rel-PN to localize relationships with only a few thousand proposals. We demonstrate its performance on the Visual Genome dataset and compare to other baselines that we designed. We also conduct experiments on a smaller subset of 5,000 images with over 37,000 related regions and show promising results.
Faculty mentoring faculty: career stages, relationship quality, and job satisfaction

The purpose of this paper is to understand faculty mentoring experiences across career stages and the influence of mentoring relationship quality on job satisfaction. The study participants were faculty members from a consortium of liberal arts colleges in the USA. The theoretical lens draws from scholarship on career stages, developmental networks, and working alliances.,The analysis is based on a subset of 415 faculty member responses about mentoring from a larger data set on faculty development. The online survey was conducted in Spring 2014. Frequencies, χ2, regression equations, and confirmatory factor analysis were computed using R statistical software.,Over half the faculty members were both mentors and proteges; although, a sizable minority of faculty members did not engage in mentoring. Early-career faculty members were significantly more likely to have a mentor than were mid- or late-career faculty members. For both mentors and proteges, the higher they rated the quality of the mentoring relationship, the more job satisfaction they reported; this finding was greatest for mid-career (associate rank) faculty members. Participants reported significantly higher relationship quality with their mentors than with their proteges.,The results may not generalize to faculty members who work at other institution types, for example, research-intensive or two-year schools, or to non-US higher education contexts. Statements made regarding those who do not participate in mentoring are speculative on the part of the authors.,Institutions may need to develop support for faculty members who may not desire to engage in mentoring. More attention may be warranted to create individual and institutional supports focused on high-quality mentoring.,This study extends the literature on mentoring by establishing that many employees serve in mentor and protege roles simultaneously. Further, employees engage in mentoring relationships across career stages as mentors and as proteges. The authors developed a reliable measure of mentoring relationship quality that may be used in future mentoring studies. Higher quality mentoring relationships were associated with significantly greater job satisfaction.
Nature of Pathogenic Process of Bacillus thuringiensis

Bacillus thuringiensis is a rod-shaped, Gram-positive spore-forming bacterium, 1 to 1.2 μm wide and 3 to 5 urn long, which was first discovered in 1901 by the Japanese bacteriologist Ishiwata (originally named Bacillus sotto). Ishiwata called this organism Sotto Bacillen and noted that one of the characteristics of the infection was the speed with which the disease could spread through a silkworm colony, resulting in blackened, spore packed larval cadavers. B. thuringiensis resembles B. ceveus in many of its biochemical characteristics, but is different by the presence of a crystalline-like parasporal body that it synthesizes within the cell at the time of sporulation.
Molecular cloning and functional characterization of the canine androgen receptor.

Sex steroids, including testosterone, play a major role in determining peak bone mass in mammals and the subsequent loss of total bone mass with advancing age. Testosterone, and its active metabolite dihydrotestosterone (DHT), bind with high affinity to the androgen receptor (AR), a member of the nuclear hormone receptor superfamily. These receptors function as transcription factors, binding together with accessory proteins to specific DNA response elements in the promoters of androgen responsive genes. To further characterize AR function in a model species of relevance to bone and pharmaceutical research, we cloned a partial canine AR from a canine kidney cDNA library and then cloned the remaining 5′ segment by PCR from canine ventral prostate cDNA. The complete sequence obtained was 3577 bp. This sequence contained a single open reading frame of 2721 bp, potentially encoding a protein of 907 amino acids with a predicted molecular weight of 98.7 kD. Sequence analysis of the protein encoded by this open reading frame reveals that the modular domains providing the DNA binding and ligand binding functions are identical to those reported for eight other mammalian ARs. Northern analysis of poly-A+ RNA from ventral prostate revealed three very low abundance transcripts of approximately 9 kb and RT-PCR analysis showed relatively high expression of AR in canine ventral prostate, testis, and kidney, with lower levels detectable in spleen, skeletal muscle, heart, and liver. Competition binding studies using 3H-DHT as ligand demonstrated specific displacement by DHT, testosterone, and the anabolic steroid stanozolol, with IC50 values of 1.3, 2.5 and 3.8 nM, respectively. Binding of DHT also resulted in the stimulation of an androgen responsive-luciferase reporter following cotransfection with the canine AR into 293 cells. Immunohistochemistry using an antibody directed to the C-terminal 19 amino acids of the human AR showed strong staining of the secretory epithelial cells in canine ventral prostate. Together, these data indicate that we have cloned the canine AR and that its functional DNA binding and ligand binding domains are absolutely conserved with those reported for eight other species.
Prediction with Parameter Uncertainty

The model is the same one that introduced the Bayesian paradigm in Chapter 2. Observations have been obtained from a random variable with known general form, but unknown parameters. Of interest is the value of a future observation whose distribution also depends on these parameters. Of course, this is the traditional actuarial problem. The observations are the benefits paid in the past to policyholders and we desire to predict the payments that will be made in the future.
High Capacity Spectrum Allocation for Multiple D2D Users Reusing Downlink Spectrum in LTE

Device-to-Device (D2D) communications is regarded as an option to extricate cellular Base Stations (BSs) from heavy traffic load. With more devices using D2D communications, there is an urgent demand for more spectrum bands for D2D communications. To provide more licensed bands for D2D communications, downlink spectrum reuse is a promising way to solve this problem. In an FDD-OFDMA LTE network, discontinuous resource blocks (RBs) of downlink spectrum are allocated to the same cellular user, thus resulting in complex interference between D2D users and cellular users. In order to increase the number of D2D users in the system and to increase the capacity of D2D users, allowing RBs reuse by more D2D pairs is an effective method, which, however, may cause more complicated interference. Multiple D2D users communicate with the same RBs poses a trade-off between transmission power and D2D users data rates.To provide a high capacity and to serve more users, we propose the RICE algorithm to allocate continuous RBs to D2D pairs, by facilitating different D2D pairs to share the same RBs. Simulations show that the RICE algorithm provides the highest capacity as compared to the exclusive spectrum allocation (ESA) strategy and adaptive subcarrier allocation (ASA) algorithm.
Abstract P1-08-07: Risk factors for high-grade and low-grade DCIS in the cancer prevention study-II nutrition cohort

Background: Nuclear grade, believed to be established early in carcinogenesis, is an indicator of ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) prognosis. Women with high-grade DCIS have a higher risk of local recurrence compared to women with low-grade DCIS. Risk factors for DCIS overall are well-characterized but risk factors by grade are not. Given the prognostic capabilities of grade for DCIS, it is of interest to identify whether risk factors by DCIS grade differ. Methods: Among 75,630 women enrolled in the Cancer Prevention Study-II Nutrition Cohort in 1992-1993, we identified 422 who were diagnosed with low-moderate grade DCIS (i.e. grades 1 or 2) and 355 who were diagnosed with high-grade DCIS (i.e. grade 3) during follow-up through 2013. Beginning in 1997, biennial questionnaires were administered to update exposure status, including screening mammography in the previous two years. For this analysis, these questionnaires were used to partition follow-up time into approximately two-year intervals. Because screening is strongly linked to diagnosis of DCIS, contribution of person-time within a specific interval was conditional on reporting a screening mammogram in the interval prior. Multivariate joint Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to estimate adjusted hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for the associations of known breast cancer risk factors with DCIS overall, and with high-grade and low-grade DCIS individually. Results: Parity (HR=0.70; 95% CI: 0.63-0.78, parous vs. nulliparous), smoking status (HR=0.69; 95% CI: 0.58-0.82, current vs. never smoking) and menopausal status (HR=0.79; 95% CI: 0.73-0.87, natural menopause Conclusions: In this study, which is the first to comprehensively assess risk factors by DCIS grade, the association between personal history of BBD and risk of DCIS appeared to differ by grade. Due to limited power for some risk factor analyses, future studies using larger prospective cohorts or pooled data should be conducted to better identify these associations. Citation Format: Puvanesarajah S, Gapstur SM, Gansler T, Patel AV, Gaudet MM. Risk factors for high-grade and low-grade DCIS in the cancer prevention study-II nutrition cohort [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2018 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2018 Dec 4-8; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(4 Suppl):Abstract nr P1-08-07.
Programmable Modulation for Extracellular Vesicles

Abstract Every living cell releases extracellular vesicles (EVs) that are critical for cellular signaling and a wide range of biological functions. The potential diagnostic and therapeutic applications of EVs are well recognized, and rapidly expanding. While a complete understanding of the molecular mechanisms underpinning EVs release remains elusive, here we demonstrate a novel method for programmable control of the release of EVs and their cargo using external electric fields. As a proof of principle, we use cultured rat astrocytes to demonstrate how the frequency of external electrical stimulation selectively modulates EV release, their surface proteins, and microRNA profiles. This method could broadly impact biological science and medical applications. First, it raises an interesting question of how endogenous electrical activity could modulate EV production. Second, it provides a novel mechanism for tuning therapeutic electrical stimulation that may be useful for treating brain disorders. Third, it provides a new way to generate EVs carrying desired cargos by tuning electrical stimulation parameters. Unlike chemical methods for creating EVs, electrical stimulation is a clean physical method with adjustable parameters including stimulation frequency, field strength and waveform morphology.
Gluing Interfaces with Soft Nanoparticles.

Nanoparticles have been recently shown to be able to act as effective adhesives capable of binding two soft materials together. We performed coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations to study contact mechanics of soft nanoparticles at the interfaces between two elastic surfaces. Depending on the nanoparticle size as well as the substrates’ elastic and interfacial properties, a nanoparticle at the interface between two elastic substrates could be in a bridging or Pickering state. The degree of penetration of a nanoparticle into a substrate is shown to be determined by nanoparticle size, strength of nanoparticle–substrate interactions, and nanoparticle and substrate elastic properties. Using the weighted histogram analysis method, we calculated the potential of mean force for separation of two substrates whose interface was reinforced by deformable nanoparticles. These simulations show that interface reinforcement is a function of nanoparticle size and elastic modulus. The most effective reinforcement o...
Intraspecific lineages as focal points in the extinction and persistence of species

A deteriorating environment causes species’ range contraction and places species on a trajectory toward rarity and ultimately extinction. Contraction hypotheses focus on the cumulative demise of single populations or groups thereof, without regard to their evolutionary/genetic affinity. I propose that genealogical lineages, be they referred to as subspecies, ecogeographical races, or otherwise, are focal points in the extinction trajectory of species. Such intraspecific entities are likely to be well integrated and respond individualistically to environmental change. Given that these entities have disparate geographical footprints, substantive and varied environmental degradation across a species’ range may cause the demise of intraspecific entities independently of each other. Eventually, all lineages may go extinct and with that the species as a whole. Biodiversity loss has tended to be measured in terms of changes in population and species numbers. The development and implementation of improved conservation policies is contingent upon recognizing the importance of discrete lineages in species survival.
Disturbance-Observer-Based Tracking Controller for Neural Network Driving Policy Transfer

The neural network policies are widely explored in the autonomous driving field, thanks to their capability of handling complicated driving tasks. However, the practical deployment of such policies is slowed down due to their lack of robustness against modeling gap and external disturbances. In our prior work, we proposed a planner-controller architecture and applied a disturbance-observer-based (DOB) robust tracking controller to reject the disturbances and achieved zero-shot policy transfer. In this paper, we present our latest progress on improving the policy transfer performance under this framework. Concretely, we applied adaptive DOB, so as to more accurately model the inverse system dynamics and increase the cut-off frequency of the Q-filter in the DOB. A closed-loop reference path smoothing algorithm is introduced to alleviate the step disturbance input imposed by the reference trajectory re-planning. On the neural network control policy side, we applied the parallel attribute networks, a hierarchical modular policy network to dynamically handle various driving tasks. We have carried out various simulations and experiments to validate the capability of our proposed method to achieve sim-to-sim and sim-to-real policy transfer. The proposed method achieves the most outstanding performance among a series of baseline control schemes.