cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
THE POTENTIAL ROLE OF HYPERCARBIA IN THE TRANSITION FROM WATER-BREATHING TO AIR-BREATHING IN VERTEBRATES.

In the transition from waterto air-breathing among the vertebrates, it is commonly theorized that aquatic hypoxia was the selective factor directing fishes toward the development and/or enhancement of air-breathing capabilities, probably during the Devonian. At this stage, the gills could still serve as a site for CO2 elimination, because of the high diffusivity of CO2 in water, thus averting respiratory acidosis. As transitional forms left the water, the gills were lost, and CO2 elimination was taken over by the skin, thus avoiding a respiratory acidosis while the [HCO3-] evolutionarily increased to buffer the increase in Pco2 associated with air-breathing. Finally, as [HCO3-] approached the high levels typical of present endotherms, the skin was no longer needed as a CO2 exchanger, the PCO2 of the body fluids could be maintained at high levels, and acute control of acid-base regulation, via the ventilatory control of CO2 elimination, was taken over by the lungs (Rahn, 1966; Rahn and Howell, 1976). This permitted the comification of the integument and consequent reduction of water loss, thereby permitting exploitation of inland environments. Studies of extant animals appear to support this theory, as fishes are characterized by a low PCO2 and [HCO3-] and achieve acid-base balance largely by regulating their [HCO3-I (Cameron, 1978; Heisler, 1980, 1982b),whileendothermshaveahighPC02and[HCO3-i and use ventilation to control pH. Amphibians are frequently noted to have intermediate levels of PCO2 and [HCO3-], but much of such data is on anurans, and they are a rather specialized group that is questionable for use as an argument in formulating evolutionary theory (Gans, 1970a, 1970b).
The Identification of the Metallic Glass State

David Turnbull has been the most prominent figure in the identification of the metallic glass state. This paper reviews his many contributions: the free volume model for transport in simple liquids, the demonstration of a substantial crystal nucleation barrier in liquid metals, the prediction of the universality of the glass transition, the formulation of criteria for glass formation, the first demonstration of the characteristic glass transition phenomena in a metallic glass, and important contributions to the study of the structure and physical properties.
A Septicemic Condition of Adult Bees

A heretofore unrecognized organism, Bacillus apisepticus , is shown to be the cause of a fatal septicemic condition of adult bees. Experimental results obtained thus far seem to indicate that the presence of external moisture aids in the transmission of the disease.
Using deterministic decisions for low-entropy bits in the encoding and decoding of polar codes

We show how to replace some of the randomized decisions in the encoding and decoding of polar codes by deterministic decisions. Specifically, we prove that random decisions on low-entropy bits may be replaced by an argmax decision without any loss of performance. We illustrate the usefulness of this result in the case of polar coding for the Wyner-Ziv problem and for channel coding.
Finite Element Implementation

The state-of-the-art methodology for modeling nonlinear geometrical and material response in the field of solid mechanics is the finite element method. Embedded in any finite element computational model is a material model. The solution of a set of nonlinear equilibrium equations in the finite element analysis of finite deformations is typically achieved through the employment of a Newton-Raphson iteration procedure. This requires the linearization of the equilibrium equations, which necessitates an understanding of the directional derivative. A relatively simple numerical technique for solving nonlinear equations in computational finite elasticity consists of employing the so-called incremental/iterative solution technique of Newton’s type. It is an efficient method with the desirable feature of a quadratic convergence rate near the solution point. It requires a consistent linearization of all of the quantities associated with the nonlinear problem, generating efficient recurrence update expressions. The nonlinear problem is then replaced by a sequence of easily solved linear equations at each iteration. The element stiffness formulation, based upon the “first elasticity tensor,” is carried out.
Preoperative Hospitalization to Hydrate Living Kidney Donors can be Omitted without Sacrificing Graft Function

AbstractThis prospective study was done to determine whether preoperative hospitalization for hydration of living kidney donors could be omitted without sacrificing graft function in the recipient. The study group consisted of 36 consecutive kidney donors who underwent donation on a “to come in” basis. Fluid management consisted of 1 1. Lactated ringer’s solution per hour beginning 2 hours preoperatively. The control group was hospitalized preoperatively for intravenous hydration of an equivalent amount of saline solution given for 12 to 16 hours. No recipient of the study group donors experienced delayed graft function. Furthermore, in that group immediate and longer term graft function, as defined by immediate graft output, serum creatinine on postoperative day 1 and nadir serum creatinine levels, was equivalent to or better than that in the control group. We conclude that a rapid infusion of saline solution in the immediate preoperative period can replace overnight intravenous hydration of living kidne...
Cyberbullying, Race/Ethnicity and Mental Health Outcomes: A Review of the Literature

Cyberbullying is a relatively new phenomenon associated with the widespread adoption of various digital communication technologies, including the internet and mobile phones. As of 2013, nearly 20% of youths in grades 9–12 in the US reported being traditionally bullied in face-to-face encounters while almost 15% reported being cyberbullied (Kann et al., 2014). Bullying victimization is associated with a variety of behavioral and psychological effects, from becoming bullies themselves (i.e., bully-victims), to poor academic performance, depression and suicidal ideation (Nansel et al., 2001; Wang, Nansel, & Iannotti, 2011; Willard, 2007). Research on these phenomena has focused primarily on white youth, leaving a void in our understanding of how cyberbullying has affected youth of color. This narrative literature review addresses this oversight by providing an overview of recent cyberbullying research that focuses on Hispanic, Asian and black adolescents (k=15). We found that youth of color appear to be less likely to experience cyberbullying than white youth but they experience suicidal ideation and attempts at about the same rates when they do experience cyberbullying.
The American Dream in a Diminished Economy

The 1980s and early 1990s redirected disenchantment with the American way of life as economic stagnation and assorted economic disruptions threatened the American Dream. As Newman documented in her influential studies, middle-class Americans—who had come to expect prosperity as a birthright—suffered social dislocation and disenchantment as the economy they had come to depend on undermined their way of life. Bluestone and Harrison, for their part, analyzed the macroeconomic factors that drove corporate actions of the era while Phillips dissected the political implications of middle-class anxiety. Bellah and his collaborators, noting middle-class disaffection, pursued the social effects of democratic malaise in their seminal Habits of the Heart. Wilson, investigating the economic destruction of the inner-city underclass, carefully broke down the structural factors that decimated the lives of urban unskilled workers.
Thermodynamics and statistical mechanics

Condensed matter physics by its very nature deals with systems with a large number of degrees of freedom, i.e. systems for which a statistical description is essential. In this chapter, we will present a rather comprehensive review of the fundamentals of thermodynamics and statistical mechanics. Much of this chapter, especially the parts dealing with homogeneous fluids (ideal and interacting gases and liquids), should be familiar to everyone. They are included here mostly to establish a basis for discussing more complicated ordered systems. As we saw in the preceding chapter, a great deal of useful and experimentally accessible information is contained in correlation functions such as the density-density correlation function C nn ( x,x ′). This chapter will define these functions in a statistical mechanical context and develop a method of calculating them using functional differentiation with respect to spatially varying external fields. Functional differentiation will allow us to calculate position-dependent correlation and response functions by a simple generalization of the familiar technique used to calculate the magnetic susceptibility by differentiating the free energy with respect to the magnetic field. This is a very powerful tool that will be used throughout this book. It is presented here first in a familiar context that should make it easy to grasp. After reviewing the properties of homogeneous fluids, we will introduce order parameters in Sec. 3.5 and show how they modify both thermodynamics and statistical mechanics.
Use of Twitter Polls to Determine Public Opinion Regarding Content Presented at a Major National Specialty Society Meeting.

Abstract Purpose The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of using Twitter polls to assess public opinion regarding session content at a national specialty society meeting. Methods Twitter polls allow users to embed multiple-choice questions within tweets and automatically aggregate responses. Two radiologists attending the 2016 annual meeting of the ACR posted a Twitter poll containing the hashtag #ACR2016 during 10 meeting sessions addressing socioeconomics/advocacy, patient experience, and social media/informatics (20 polls total). Each poll contained a question asking for an opinion regarding the session's content. Polls were open for responses for 24 hours. Results The average number of responses per poll was significantly higher for the user with the larger number of Twitter followers (24.3 ± 14.4 versus 11.2 ± 9.8, P = .015). A total of 57% of respondents agreed that radiologists' payments should shift to value-based payments, and 86% agreed that radiologists should routinely survey their patients to monitor quality; however, 83% disagreed with basing physician payments on patient satisfaction scores. A total of 85% disagreed that the artificial intelligence supercomputer Watson will entirely replace radiologists. A total of 76% agreed that social media can drive business at less cost than standard marketing. A total of 56% agreed with the direction of the ACR's advocacy and regulatory efforts, whereas 74% considered the ACR's advocacy efforts to be moderately or very useful for their practice. A total of 50% planned to change their practice on the basis of keynote remarks by Dr Ezekiel Emanuel. Conclusions Twitter polls provide a free and easy infrastructure to potentially capture global public sentiment during the course of a medical society meeting. Their use may enrich and promote discussions of key session content.
The Use of Epicutaenous Patch Testing in the Evaluation of Gastrointestinal Disease

Traditionally, gastrointestinal (GI) diseases such as gastroesophageal reflux, gastritis, esophagitis, and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) have not been thought of as hypersensitivity (allergy)-mediated illnesses; however, there has been growing research suggesting that food and environmental allergens may play a role in the development of GI illnesses, particularly those with refractory symptoms not responding to traditional therapies. The GI system and skin share similar components of the immune system and in some cases respond to foreign antigens in the same manner. With respect to confirmatory diagnostic testing, the skin is the more easily accessible organ compared to the gastrointestinal system. Patch testing is a well-established standardized non-invasive skin based test utilized for the evaluation of hypersensitivity reactions to antigenic triggers. There is growing evidence that patch testing may be helpful in the diagnostic evaluation of gastrointestinal manifestations of immune-mediated diseases. We predict that further utilization of the standard patch test in the diagnostic assessment of patients with GI symptomatology will prove useful for the identification of specific allergens and etiologic agents responsible for gastrointestinal type IV hypersensitivity reactions.
Effects of Nine Years of Fox Predation on Two Species of Breeding Gulls

-Ring-billed Gulls (Larus delawarensis) and Herring Gulls (L. argentatus) nesting on South Manitou Island in Lake Michigan were subjected to at least 9 yr of intense fox predation. Both gull species experienced total or nearly total reproductive failure during all but 1 yr between 1975 and 1983. The number of active nests declined significantly during this period, with Ring-bills showing a more regular rate of reduction. These gull species are unlikely to produce progeny when subjected to regular fox predation. Persistence of the colonies may be the result of a nucleus of experienced, site-tenacious breeders returning to the site year after year. Received 11 March 1985, accepted 12 April 1985. LARUS gulls generally breed on islands free of terrestrial mammals. Such islands usually are too distant from mainland areas to permit regular visitation by mammals and too small to provide alternate food supplies for predators while gulls are seasonally absent. In some instances, mainland sites may suffice for nesting because they are spatially isolated from terrestrial predators by broad expanses of habitat (e.g. industrial developments) unsuitable for pred-
Valuation of a Developmental Drug as a Real Option

Valuing a capital investment as a real option (or series of options) has advantages over standard DCF valuation when the investment creates the future flexibility to delay, abandon, or expand an element of the project based on the resolution of a major source of uncertainty. The uncertainty is generally dealt with using a “volatility” term that aims to reflect the variability in the future value of the underlying asset. But there are certain situations in which the uncertainty has a second dimension. For example, drugs in development can be abandoned either because of bad technical outcomes (the drug doesn't work) or unfavorable resolutions of market risk (though the drug works, its market potential turns out to be too limited). In an article published earlier in this journal, the authors illustrated the valuation of an early-stage pharma R&D investment using a real options approach in which the market and technical risks were folded together into the volatility parameter. In this article, the authors explain why they have concluded that this is an incorrect approach and then show how to handle market and technical risk as two separate dimensions of risk in valuing an R&D program. The potential use of this technique extends beyond pharma and biotech R&D to any situation in which the outcome of an important uncertainty is independent of the resolution of market risk associated with the underlying asset.
Roma Victor: Europe's First Serial Acquirer

Besides adopting the tactics and types of arms and armor effectively used by its adversities, the Romans also incorporated superior intangibles such as tactical knowledge of their enemies. This case is used in Darden's "Post-Merger Acquisition" course elective to draw parallels to M & A strategies used by corporations today. Excerpt UVA-BP-0551 Rev. Feb. 5, 2015 Roma Victor: Europe's First Serial Acquirer In 753 BC, Rome, a small settlement on the banks of the Tiber River in Italy, began an expansion of its sphere of influence over almost all Europe that would last for the next eight centuries. At its greatest extent, it stretched from the rugged territories of Britannia to the deserts of Mesopotamia and included all the states adjacent to the Mediterranean Sea. Through its approach to managing expansion and subsequent integration, Rome not only became Europe's first serial acquirer but also the continent's first enduring superpower, based almost exclusively on cross-border takeovers. Building an Empire Rome's growth was achieved almost entirely through conquests. Although these takeovers were literally hostile, the continuous expansion of the Roman Empire brought the Western World a period of major stability and prosperity. The growth and development of Rome up to the time of its zenith can be divided into four phases: domestic consolidation, Mediterranean campaigns, Gallic Wars, and expansion under its emperors. . . .
Technology Forecasting: Case of Robot Technology

Technology in Healthcare sector is undergoing a fast growth compared other sectors due to the opportunity for improvement. Among the few emerging technologies implemented in hospitals Radio frequency identification (RFID) is considered to be a prominent technology. Even though RFID has been applied successfully in various sectors like retail, manufacturing etc., the adoption pattern in hospitals differs because of factors like hospital application, risk, privacy and security. This chapter’s objective is to determine the adoption pattern of RFID in Healthcare considering such factors. The objective has achieved by using technology forecasting methods. The first part of the chapter helps understanding the application of RFID in hospitals and provides insight into technology forecasting methods. Second part of the chapter explains the execution of the methods with analysis and results derived considering RFID application in hospitals. In general this chapter provides an insight towards application of RFID technology in hospitals and opens up potential options which require further research to improve application of similar technologies in healthcare.
Using compliant leg design for impact attenuation of airdrop landings of quadruped robots

Most airdropped cargo use a combination of one or more parachutes and an impact attenuation system to land safely. The latter adds cost, weight and complexity. However, by using their legs for impact attenuation, airdropped quadruped robots may avoid the need for such a system. In this paper, various leg configurations for attenuating impact of airborne landings were studied and tested. Using simple lumped element models for simulation and analysis, a quadruped robot with a three-segment leg was designed and built. This model was validated with experiments with a small scale 20 cm-tall test robot. During the experiments, the test robot experienced 7.7 × 10 m/s2 or 7.9 g-acceleration when dropped from height of 37.85 cm. This result is much better than the result of 1.4 × 102 m/s2 or 14.7g-acceleration when dropped at 10% of the original height with the same robot equipped with rigid legs. Such compliant leg design could be potentially used for impact attenuation of airdrop landings of robots five times larger.
Immediate signaling flexibility in response to experimental noise in urban, but not rural, white-crowned sparrows

Background noise can interfere with acoustic communication. Signal modifications have the potential to increase signal-to-noise ratios and reduce the masking effect of noise. Immediate signaling flexibility, a type of vocal plasticity, allows animals to modify their signal to optimize transmission depending on ambient noise conditions. Results from previous studies provide conflicting evidence about whether expression of immediate signaling flexibility is dependent upon the signaler having prior experience with noisy environments. To improve our understanding of vocal plasticity, we examined immediate signaling flexibility in white-crowned sparrows Zonotrichia leucophrys nuttalli in urban and rural locations. We experimentally broadcast noise with three different spectral profiles—city (low frequency), inverse of city (high frequency), and white (equal intensity at all frequencies)—successfully to 107 males and measured multiple features of songs produced prior to and during the experiment. We predicted that all males would adjust their song structure during the noise broadcast, but that the extent of plasticity would be greater in noisier territories and the manner of adjustment would depend on the type of experimental noise broadcast. Instead, we found that only urban males exhibit immediate signaling flexibility, through which bandwidth decreases in response to experimental noise. Signal modification did not change with type of noise broadcast or territory background noise. Although songs were less flexible than predicted, the relative reduction in signal bandwidth in urban birds could improve their signal-to-noise ratio during the noise broadcast.
Genetic Drift and Indel Mutation in the Evolution of Yeast Mitochondrial Genome Size

Mitochondrial genomes (mitogenomes) are remarkably diverse in genome size and organization, but the origins of dynamic mitogenome architectures are still poorly understood. For instance, the mutational burden hypothesis postulates that the drastic difference between large plant mitogenomes and streamlined animal mitogenomes can be driven by their different mutation rates. However, inconsistent trends between mitogenome sizes and mutation rates have been documented in several lineages. These conflicting results highlight the need of systematic and sophisticated investigations on the evolution and diversity of mitogenome architecture. This study took advantage of the strikingly variable mitogenome size among different yeast species and also among intraspecific strains, examined sequence dynamics of introns, GC-clusters, tandem repeats, mononucleotide repeats (homopolymers) and evaluated their contributions to genome size variation. The contributions of these sequence features to mitogenomic variation are dependent on the timescale, over which extant genomes evolved from their last common ancestor, perhaps due to a combination of different turnover rates of mobile sequences, variable insertion spaces, and functional constraints. We observed a positive correlation between mitogenome size and the level of genetic drift, suggesting that mitogenome expansion in yeast is likely driven by multiple types of sequence insertions in a primarily nonadaptive manner. Although these cannot be explained directly by the mutational burden hypothesis, our results support an important role of genetic drift in the evolution of yeast mitogenomes.
Research on the Power State Estimation Based on the Combination of the Innovation Graph Approach and the Current Reckoning Method

The scale of the network determines the need for system partition management, the network block partition estimation makes the state estimation problem of large network converse into two medium or small network. This paper proposes combination of the innovation graph approach and the current reckoning method to form a new partition identification method, which can achieve complementary advantages of the two methods and can performance comprehensive identification. In the process of partition, take several factors related to the regional characteristics and measurement configuration into account, there are differences in different regions by using the innovation graph approach or current reckoning method.
Subsets of fields whose nth-root functions are rational functions

Let R be an integral domain with quotient field F, let S be a non-empty subset of R and let n 2 be an integer. If there exists a rational function ϕ: S → F such that ϕ(a) n = a for all a S, then S is finite. As a consequence, if F is an ordered field (for instance, R) and S is an open interval in F, no such rational function ϕ exists. Applications to finite fields and additional examples are given. The methods used are algebraic. A closing remark indicates how this note could be used as enrichment material in courses ranging from precalculus to undergraduate courses on abstract algebra or analysis.
In vivo Brain Imaging with Non-Degenerate 2-Photon Microscopy

We demonstrate that non-degenerate 2-photon excitation offers a ~3-fold increase in excitation efficiency compared to degenerate 2-photon excitation and realize this advantage for in vivo brain imaging, trading the excitation efficiency for laser power.
The Spatial Turn in Planetary Theologies: Ambiguity, Hope and Ethical Imposters

Recent language in environmental philosophy, environmental ethics and religion and ecology focus on such tropes as an “ecology without nature” (Morton), a “virtue of ignorance” (Vitek & Jackson) and a “theology without nature” (Albertson & King). There is a move in philosophy of science towards event-based and emergent understandings of reality that is neither dualistic nor monistic; it is being referred to as a “new materialism” (Bennett, Coole, Stengers). The idea of a planetary imagination (Moore and Rivera) has been opposed to that of the global imagination as one that connects through diversity rather than forcing all diversity into some common sameness. These shifts in theology represent the turn toward spatial thinking that begins with Nietzsche’s “Death of God” and finds its way into contemporary eco-theologies and post-colonial theologies. I explore the tension of living in these in-between, ambiguous places and argue that the tools of planetary theology can provide at least three resources for dealing with these times of transition (Tweed). First, planetary theology provides tools for dealing with the fears associated with ambiguity that are not based on ignoring current contexts (denial) or responding with hate (violence). Second, it suggests that the opposite of hope is not despair, but certainty. Despair can be a healthy part of living when responding to terror and violence. Third, it emphasizes humility and love of “others,” which are necessary motivations given the reality that we are always-already hypocrites when we act in the world. Ethical ambiguity helps us uncover the ways in which we benefit from the destructive processes of globalization even as we move toward visions of a “better” planetary community.
Systems of Fredholm Integral Equations

Systems of Volterra and Fredholm integral equations have attracted much concern in applied sciences. The systems of Fredholm integral equations appear in two kinds. The system of Fredholm integral equations of the first kind [1–5] reads $$\begin{gathered} {f_1}\left( x \right) = \int_a^b {\left( {{K_1}\left( {x,t} \right)u\left( t \right) + {{\tilde K}_1}\left( {x,t} \right)v\left( t \right)} \right)} dt, \hfill \\ {f_2}\left( x \right) = \int_a^b {\left( {{K_2}\left( {x,t} \right)u\left( t \right) + {{\tilde K}_2}\left( {x,t} \right)v\left( t \right)} \right)} dt, \hfill \\ \end{gathered} $$ (11.1) where the unknown functions u(x) and v(x) appear only under the integral sign, and a and b are constants. However, for systems of Fredholm integral equations of the second kind, the unknown functions u(x) and v(x) appear inside and outside the integral sign. The second kind is represented by the form $$\begin{gathered} u\left( x \right) = {f_1}\left( x \right) + \int_a^b {\left( {{K_1}\left( {x,t} \right)u\left( t \right) + {{\tilde K}_1}\left( {x,t} \right)v\left( t \right)} \right)} dt, \hfill \\ v\left( x \right) = {f_2}\left( x \right) + \int_a^b {\left( {{K_2}\left( {x,t} \right)u\left( t \right) + {{\tilde K}_2}\left( {x,t} \right)v\left( t \right)} \right)} dt. \hfill \\ \end{gathered} $$ (11.2) The systems of Fredholm integro-differential equations have also attracted a considerable size of interest. These systems are given by $$\begin{gathered} {u^{\left( i \right)}}\left( x \right) = {f_1}\left( x \right) + \int_a^b {\left( {{K_1}\left( {x,t} \right)u\left( t \right) + {{\tilde K}_1}\left( {x,t} \right)v\left( t \right)} \right)} dt, \hfill \\ {v^{\left( i \right)}}\left( x \right) = {f_2}\left( x \right) + \int_a^b {\left( {{K_2}\left( {x,t} \right)u\left( t \right) + {{\tilde K}_2}\left( {x,t} \right)v\left( t \right)} \right)} dt, \hfill \\ \end{gathered} $$ (11.3) where the initial conditions for the last system should be prescribed.
Factors influencing production of inflorescence-derived somatic seedlings of sweetgum

Somatic embryos derived from staminate inflorescence tissues of three mature sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua) trees were tested for germination and conversion frequencies and early growth variables following pregermination cold treatments. Individual mature embryos were selected from repetitively embryogenic cultures maintained on Woody Plant Medium (WPM) with 1 mg l−1 naphthaleneacetic acid and cultured on basal WPM at 10 8C for 0, 4 or 8 weeks prior to being transferred to WPM germination medium in the light. After 4 weeks, germinated embryos were planted in potting mix in an acclimatization chamber, grown for an additional 8 weeks and evaluated for conversion and growth. Conversion frequency, which ranged up to 80%, was affected by ortet and clonal line, while the number of first-order lateral roots was affected by ortet, clonal line and cold treatment, with 8 weeks of cold promoting the highest number.
Using Data-Driven Approach for Modeling Timing Parameters of American Sign Language

While many organizations provide a website in multiple languages, few provide a sign-language version for deaf users, many of whom have lower written-language literacy. Rather than providing difficult-to-update videos of humans, a more practical solution would be for the organization to specify a script (representing the sequence of words) to generate a sign-language animation. The challenge is we must select the accurate speed and timing of signs. In this work, focused on American Sign Language (ASL), motion-capture data recorded from humans is used to train machine learning models to calculate realistic timing for ASL animation movement, with an initial focus on inserting prosodic breaks (pauses), adjusting the pause durations for these pauses, and adjusting differentials signing rate for ASL animations based on the sentence syntax and other features. The methodology includes processing and cleaning data from an ASL corpus with motion-capture recordings, selecting features, and building machine learning models to predict where to insert pauses, length of pauses, and signing speed. The resulting models were evaluated using a cross-validation approach to train and test multiple models on various partitions of the dataset, to compare various learning algorithms and subsets of features. In addition, a user-based evaluation was conducted in which native ASL signers evaluated animations generated based on these models. This paper summarizes the motivations for this work, proposed solution, and the potential contribution of this work. This paper describes both completed work and some additional future research plans.
Responsibilities beyond the Quest: Gene-Environment Research SNP by SNP

Critical epidemiological research is being conducted to understand the complex interactions among genes and environmental factors, and how biological sequelae translate to physiological dysfunction...
AIRWAY OBSTRUCTION IN PATIENTS WITH COMPLEX CONOTRUNCAL ANOMALIES

Airway obstruction (AO) has been well described in patients with vascular rings and absent pulmonary valve syndrome, however its incidence in patients with other forms of complex congenital heart disease is unknown. We sought to assess the incidence of AO in patients with complex vascular anatomy in
Communication-Computation co-Design of Decentralized Task Chain in CPS Applications

In this paper, we present a method to find an optimal trade-off between computation and communication of decentralized linear task chain running on a network of mobile agents. Task replication has been deployed to reduce the data links among highly correlated nodes in communication networks. The primary goal is to reduce or remove the data links at the cost of increase in computational load at each node. However, with increase in complexity of applications and computation load on end devices with limited resources, the computational load is not negligible. Our proposed selective task replication enables communication-computation trade-off in decentralized task chains and minimizes the overall local computation overhead while keeping the critical path delay under a threshold delay. We applied our approach to decentralized Unscented Kalman Filter (UKF) for state estimation in cooperative localization of mobile multi-robot systems. We demonstrate and evaluate our proposed method on a network of 15 Raspberry Pi3B connected via WiFi. Our experimental results show that, using the proposed method, the prediction step of decentralized UKF is faster by 15%, and for the same threshold delay, the overall computation overhead is reduced by 2.41 times, compared to task replication without resource constraint.
Subgrains, Texture Evolution, and Dynamic Abnormal Grain Growth in a Mo Rod Material

The roles of subgrains, texture, and surface energy during dynamic abnormal grain growth (DAGG) were examined in a commercial-purity Mo rod material. DAGG was observed in this material during tensile deformation at 2023 K (1750 °C). Cooling of specimens after tensile testing was sufficiently rapid to preserve both subgrain structures developed during deformation and several abnormal grains at early stages of growth. These and other microstructural features were characterized to evaluate how subgrains and boundary character influence the early stages of DAGG. Subgrains were observed in the deformed polycrystalline material but were generally absent in newly formed abnormal grains. This was identified as the cause of the sudden drop in flow stress observed at the initiation of DAGG. It is proposed that subgrain intersections with abnormal grain boundaries provide a driving pressure for DAGG. Subgrains within the deformed polycrystals were observed to locally change the boundary curvature at their intersections with abnormal grain boundaries, which likely encouraged growth of the abnormal grains into the deformed polycrystals. Abnormal grains produced by DAGG retained crystallographic orientations and boundary characters that closely resembled those of the polycrystalline material from which they grew. This suggests that neither differences in orientation nor boundary character were important to DAGG in this material.
Genital morphology and the mechanics of copulation in the millipede genus Pseudopolydesmus (Diplopoda: Polydesmida: Polydesmidae)

Mate choice, copulation, genital morphology, and sperm storage are not very well understood in millipedes. The use of three-dimensional x-ray computed tomography (μCT) provides new morphological data regarding millipede reproductive systems in both the female and male, including chitinous sclerites and membranes, muscles, glands, oviducts, and sperm conduits. Here we present a complete integrated account of the morphology and function of the female genital organs in the family Polydesmidae (Diplopoda: Polydesmida) using μCT, UV fluorescence imaging, and scanning electron microscopy. These data allow us to consider competing hypotheses regarding millipede vulva formation. We additionally present the morphology of copulatory interface in Pseudopolydesmus Attems, 1898 using images of a mating pair in copula and by simulating the interface of the organs using 3D models from μCT, allowing us to tentatively identify a lock-and-key-like mechanism. Finally, we use μCT to reveal the topology of the seminal canal in the gonopod of male Pseudopolydesmus, a topic that has remained unresolved for nearly 80 years.
Optimization of western blotting for the detection of proteins of different molecular weight

Protein samples electroblotted onto nitrocellulose membranes and quenched with a mixture of blocking agents produced a strong signal for cystic fibrosis transmembrane-conductance regulator (CFTR), a high-molecular-weight protein, in western blotting. Optimized conditions for CFTR were then extended to medium- and low-molecular-weight proteins (LAMP1 and Rab11a, respectively) to determine the effects of methanol concentration (0-20%) in Towbin's transfer buffer (TTB). Methanol in TTB appears to have little to no effect on CFTR signal. However, for medium-sized (LAMP1) and small (Rab11a) proteins, a lower concentration of methanol (10%) was sufficient to produce a maximal signal. Therefore, methanol, a toxic solvent, can be removed from or reduced in TTB without compromising signal strength. Here, we show modifications that may be useful in detecting and/or improving the signal of low-abundance proteins.
SLSpy: Python-Based System-Level Controller Synthesis Framework.

Synthesizing controllers for large, complex, and distributed systems is a challenging task. Numerous proposed methods exist in the literature, but it is difficult for practitioners to apply them -- most proposed synthesis methods lack ready-to-use software implementations, and existing proprietary components are too rigid to extend to general systems. To address this gap, we develop SLSpy, a framework for controller synthesis, comparison, and testing. SLSpy implements a highly extensible software framework which provides two essential workflows: synthesis and simulation. The workflows are built from five conceptual components that can be customized to implement a wide variety of synthesis algorithms and disturbance tests. SLSpy comes pre-equipped with a workflow for System Level Synthesis (SLS), which enables users to easily and freely specify desired design objectives and constraints. We demonstrate the effectiveness of SLSpy using two examples that have been described in the literature but do not have ready-to-use implementations. We open-source SLSpy to facilitate future controller synthesis research and practical usage.
Electrosynthetic Route to Cyclopentadienyl Rhenium Hydride Complexes Enabled by Electrochemical Investigations of their Redox-Induced Formation

As the utility of electroanalytical methods to study reaction mechanisms continues to develop, a wider scope of chemical reactions will fall under the scrutiny of electrochemical investigation. We ...
New directions in chimeric antigen receptor T cell [CAR-T] therapy and related flow cytometry

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells provide a promising approach to the treatment of hematologic malignancies and solid tumors. Flow cytometry is a powerful analytical modality, which plays an expanding role in all stages of CAR T therapy, from lymphocyte collection, to CAR T cell manufacturing, to in vivo monitoring of the infused cells and evaluation of their function in the tumor environment. Therefore, a thorough understanding of the new directions is important for designing and implementing CAR T-related flow cytometry assays in the clinical and investigational settings. However, the speed of new discoveries and the multitude of clinical and preclinical trials make it challenging to keep up to date in this complex field. In this review, we summarize the current state of CAR T therapy, highlight the areas of emergent research, discuss applications of flow cytometry in modern cell therapy, and touch upon several considerations particular to CAR detection and assessing the effectiveness of CAR T therapy.
Building A Contemporary Public Library Through Community Engagement: A Personal Journey

This article discusses how a broad understanding of community engagement has influenced the conception, realization, and services of one of the most internationally lauded modern public libraries, ...
Aquatic Invertebrates in Tolerance Investigations from Aristotle to Naumann

The earliest use of aquatic invertebrates in tolerance research was carried out to answer questions concerning adaptation and evolution somewhat over a century and a half ago. The procedures were essentially the same as those we use today for bioassays in the determination of water quality. In the first studies that have been reported, freshwater invertebrates were subjected to seawater, and marine invertebrates were exposed to freshwater. Later, many workers carried out research on the effects of ions in various combinations and concentrations on both freshwater and marine invertebrates. Some investigators were interested in the actions of drugs. It was only about five decades ago that serious consideration was first given to the use of aquatic invertebrates as test animals for the determination of the toxicity of potential pollutants. The author reviews representative reports of tolerance studies in which aquatic invertebrates were employed as experimental animals up through the time of Naumann. This is followed by a brief exposition of the author's procedures using Daphnia magna as the test animal in the determination of apparent thresholds of toxicity.
A Study of Load-Balancing Solutions of Mobile Cloud Computing for Next-Generation Mobile Applications

Mobile applications are nowadays one of the most important parts in every person's life. Today's smartphones are more capable of operating different type of applications. Mobile devices can create an interface between people and service providers. But due to limited computation power, storage, and battery capacity, it is not possible to computing all process in mobile devices. Thus, a cloud-based solution using mobile devices is an effective solution to overcome smartphones' constraints and gets access through anywhere for different kinds of facilities and services by offloading computation activities from mobile devices. These outputs of that computation are returned back to mobile devices. However, cloud resources are also limited. In order to use the limited cloud resources, load-balancing solutions are recommended for improving Hybrid cloud computing architectures. In this paper, we address why hybrid cloud computing is important in mobile applications and also demonstrate why load balancing is required in hybrid cloud computing architectures. We demonstrate and evaluate load-balancing performances using the ns-3 network simulation tool.
Integrating FireFly fluorescence into image guidance for the da Vinci robot

Over the past several years, researchers have made significant progress toward providing image guidance for the da Vinci system, utilizing data sources such as robot kinematic data, endoscope image data, and preoperative medical images. One data source that could provide additional subsurface information for use in image guidance is the da Vinci’s FireFly camera system. FireFly is a fluorescence imaging feature for the da Vinci system that uses injected indocyanine green dye and special endoscope filters to illuminate subsurface anatomical features as the surgeon operates. FireFly is now standard for many surgical procedures with the da Vinci robot; however, it is currently challenging to understand spatial relationships between pre-operative CT images and intraoperative fluorescence images. Here, we extend our image guidance system to incorporate FireFly information as well, so that the surgeon can view FireFly data in the image guidance display while operating with the da Vinci robot. We present a method for reconstructing 3D models of the FireFly fluorescence data from endoscope images and mapping the models into an image guidance display that also includes segmented, registered preoperative CT images. We analyze the accuracy of our reconstruction and mapping method and present a proof-of-concept application where we reconstruct a fluorescent subsurface blood vessel and map it into our image guidance display. Our method could be used to provide surgeons with additional context for the FireFly fluorescence imaging data or to provide additional data for computing or verifying the registration between the robot and preoperative images.
Blind spots on CT imaging of the head: Insights from 5 years of report addenda at a single institution.

Abstract Background Errors of detection (“misses”) are the major source of error in radiology. There is sparse prior literature describing patterns of detection error on CT head imaging. Purpose The objective of this study was to gain insight to areas on CT head imaging where radiologists are most likely to miss clinically relevant findings. Methods We performed a cross-sectional study of consecutive reports of CT imaging of the head at a single institution spanning 5/1/2013–5/1/2018 (5 years). Detection errors described in addenda were categorized according to anatomic location, type of pathology, and potential impact on management. Blind spots were defined by the most common sites of missed findings. Results A total of 165,943 reports for CT head imaging were obtained. Addenda were found in 1658 (~1%) of reports, of which 359 (21.7%) described errors of detection. Within the extracranial soft tissues (n = 73) the most common “misses” were at incidentally imaged parotid glands and the frontal scalp. Within osseous structures (n = 149), blind spots included the nasal and occipital bones. Vascular lesions (n = 47) which passed detection were most common at the distal MCA, carotid terminus and sigmoid sinus/jugular bulb. No predisposition was seen for anatomic subsites within the CSF space (n = 60) and brain parenchyma (n = 65). Conclusions Consistent patterns of blind spots are revealed. Radiologic teaching and search patterns to account for these sites of error may accelerate trainee competence and improve accuracy in the practice of radiology.
Can bots help create knowledge? The effects of bot intervention in open collaboration

Abstract Many open collaboration platforms (e.g., Wikipedia) have recently utilized automated algorithmic agents, called Bots, to solve the issue of stagnating user participation. However, understanding of how such a bot agent affects user activities in open collaboration is limited. In this study, we examine (i) whether bot intervention affects user participation and (ii) whether the impact of bot intervention could vary by characteristics of open collaboration works. We pursue our research goals by utilizing a rich dataset from between 2005 and 2017 from an online open collaboration platform. The platform has recently utilized two types of unique bots that interact with human users in open collaboration. By employing difference-in-differences approach, we show that bot intervention in open collaboration leads to unintended consequences as it significantly demotivates user participation. We further show that the negative effect of bot intervention is alleviated if more active users are engaged or if covered topics have a higher concentration in a collaboration work. This provides directions for businesses to resolve the unintended demotivation problem in utilizing bot agents.
Sex-Specific Response to Combinations of Shear Stress and Substrate Stiffness by Endothelial Cells In Vitro

By using a full factorial design of experiment, the combinatorial effects of biological sex, shear stress, and substrate stiffness on human umbilical vein endothelial cell (HUVEC) spreading and Yes-associated protein 1 (YAP1) activity are able to be efficiently evaluated. Within the range of shear stress (0.5-1.5 Pa) and substrate stiffness (10-100 kPa), male HUVECs are smaller than female HUVECs. Only with sufficient mechanical stimulation do they spread to a similar size. More importantly, YAP1 nuclear localization in female HUVECs is invariant to mechanical stimulation within the range of tested conditions whereas for male HUVECs it increases nonlinearly with increasing shear stress and substrate stiffness. The sex-specific response of HUVECs to combinations of shear stress and substrate stiffness reinforces the need to include sex as a biological variable and multiple mechanical stimuli in experiments, informs the design of precision biomaterials, and offers insight for understanding cardiovascular disease sexual dimorphisms. Moreover, here it is illustrated that different complex mechanical microenvironments can lead to sex-specific phenotypes and sex invariant phenotypes in cultured endothelial cells.