cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Larval diapause in the eastern tree-hole mosquito, Aedes triseriatus: latitudinal variation in induction and intensity.

Larvae of Aedes triseriatus (Say) from 26 to 46°N latitude undergo 4th-instar diapause in response to short-day cool conditions. Both subtropical and northern populations have relatively greater incidence of continuous development at short photoperiods, whereas northern populations exhibit greater diapause at long photoperiods as well. Diapause intensity is relatively stronger in females and in the central area of the latitudinal range; intrapopulation variance is greatest at range extremes. The critical photoperiod (CP) for larval diapause increases only slightly with population latitude and much less than the corresponding CP increase for embryonic diapause. Embryonic diapause CP exceeds larval diapause CP, within populations, by at least 1 h from Atlanta, Ga., north, indicating that eggs are the primary overwintering stage. Larval diapause may be maintained in the North by the selective effects of unpredictable spring weather, whereas in southern populations having incomplete embryonic diapause, progressively milder winter conditions favor larval diapause and continuous development.
Ion-Implanted Superionic Clusters

Ag + was implanted in silica glass and beta alumina crystal and studied using particle backscattering and optical absorption. We found that Ag aggregates into colloidal metallic particles and when annealed diffuses toward the surface. The activation energy for diffusion is 0.14 eV in silica glass and 0.16 eV in beta alumina. Computer simulations indicate fast Ag + diffusion is due to large concentrations of vacancies deposited along the track of the implanted ion. The high ionic conductivity of beta alumina promotes uniform spreading of the implanted layer.
Disquieting Complicities The Double Binds of Anthropology, Advocacy, and Activism

In seeking to balance the demands of social science research with complex ethical and political commitments, ethnographers often find themselves caught in a series of double binds. This is particularly true when we are asked to testify in court on behalf of subjects criminalized by the state. I explore how these tensions play out in settings where right and wrong cannot be clearly distinguished in anthropological terms but are demanded in legal or political terms. I consider the narrative strategies that anthropologists employ in an effort to produce social-legal knowledge from our ethnographic research that would satisfy the demands of the court, while simultaneously deploying analytical strategies that can account for multiple realities and conflicting truths. I consider my own participation in these overlapping and often incommensurate projects through a particular ethnographic and legal case in which I was implicated as researcher and as a witness for the defense.
Silver diffusivity measurement in ZrC with SIMS to study the release behavior of 110mAg for nuclear fuel applications

Abstract Recently, the diffusion coefficient of silver (Ag) in zirconium carbide (ZrC) at 1500 °C was determined to help elucidate the diffusive behavior of radioactive 110m Ag in the ZrC coating of the tri-structural isotropic (TRISO) nuclear fuel particle. This study was conducted using a recently developed diffusion experimental technique, known as the encapsulating source method. To verify the validity of this experimental method, modifications to the original experimental design have been made within the domain of this method. Primarily, the ability to retrieve the ZrC disk made it possible to create depth profiles using secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) for more precise depth profiling of Ag concentration in ZrC. Applying this improved experimental design, a sample was fabricated and diffusion annealed at 1500 °C for 2 h. Finally, silver concentrations on the ZrC disk were measured using SIMS. Consequently, the diffusion coefficient of Ag in ZrC 0.95 at 1500 °C was experimentally determined to be about 1.7 × 10 −17 m 2 /s, remarkably consistent with the previously reported value of 2.8 × 10 −17 m 2 /s, also obtained by means of the encapsulating source method. This proves that the encapsulating source method is a reliable experimental technique to determine the Ag diffusivity in ZrC.
A novel nano-energetic system based on bismuth hydroxide

We report the first study of gas generation and thermal wave behavior during the performance of a novel nano-energetic system based on aluminum and bismuth hydroxide Al–Bi(OH)3. Thermodynamic calculations demonstrate that this system is comparable to one of the most powerful known nano-thermite systems, Al–Bi2O3, in terms of energy capacity per initial charge mass, and may generate more than twice the gaseous products: 0.0087 mol g−1. Differential scanning calorimetry analysis shows that homogenization of the as-received powder using mechanical activation is an essential step to reduce the decomposition energy of bismuth hydroxide by 30%. This results in nano-thermite with higher pressure discharge abilities. The mechanical activation with energy of 450–750 kJ g−1 is enough to transform micro-meter sized particles to sub-micro and nano-sized particles. The resulting nano-thermite generated a significant pressure discharge with a value of up to 5.6 kPa m3 g−1.
Abstract CT118: Efficient basket trial designs

Background: Basket trials are used to study targeted treatments across a range of tumor sites. In these designs all patients have the same target altered and receive the same regimen but they are placed in baskets defined by the site of primary tumor. This design is particularly appealing since the prevalence of the target mutation is typically low in any given tumor site, and the drug sponsor is naturally interested in as broad an indication for use as possible. Given the multiple baskets, this design requires the investigation of whether the activity of the regimen applies uniformly to all baskets, i.e., homogeneity of treatment effect, and if not, which baskets show sufficient response. Many basket trial designs to date have resembled parallel phase II studies, using Simon9s two-stage design separately for each basket. The inclusion of multiple baskets increases the overall false positive rate in the trial, an aspect that is commonly not taken into account in current designs. More importantly, the use of independent, parallel phase II trials fails to take advantage of the opportunity to combine baskets in the event that the interim results suggest common responsiveness across baskets, either common evidence of efficacy or common evidence of lack of efficacy. Methods: We develop a novel, adaptive study design that makes use of an interim assessment of the heterogeneity of treatment effect across baskets to determine the most appropriate statistical analysis, while controlling the overall false positive rate in the trial. Our proposed design allows for aggregation of baskets in stage 2 when evidence points to a common effect of the drug, while retaining the option to maintain selected individual baskets in stage 2, if the interim evidence supports this strategy. Similar to conventional designs, our proposed design allows for early termination of baskets for lack of responsiveness. Using simulations we demonstrate the potential reduction in the number of patients required compared with the traditional strategy based on parallel Simon two-stage designs, while maintaining similar levels of Type I and II errors. Citation Format: Kristen M. Cunanan, Alexia Iasonos, Ronglai Shen, David Hyman, Colin Begg, Mithat Gonen. Efficient basket trial designs. [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 CT118.
Five rules for pragmatic blue growth

Abstract The concept of blue growth is the newest of many recent calls for more holistic management of complex marine social-ecological systems. The complexity of ocean systems, combined with limitations on data and capacity, demands an approach to management that is pragmatic—meaning goal- and solution-oriented, realistic, and practical. This article proposes and discusses five rules of thumb upon which to build such an approach. 1) Define objectives, quantify tradeoffs, and strive for efficiency. Understanding stakeholders’ objectives, and the nature of tradeoffs between them, keeps management goal-oriented, aware of its full range of options, and maximizes the likelihood of finding win-win solutions. 2) The data you have can do more than you think. Cross-system similarity, within-system complexity, and general first principles all add informational value to data collected both within and outside the system being managed. 3) Engage stakeholders, but do it right. Co-management and citizen science can be important tools in the science and management toolbox, especially in data- and capacity-limited regions. 4) Measure your impact and learn as you go. This can increase short-term start-up costs but can prevent larger wastes of resources in the long-term. 5) Design institutions, not behaviors. Management does not directly control fishing efforts, pollution rates or other behaviors, but instead controls institutions under which stakeholders make choices. Each of these rules of thumb is inspired by real-world successes and case studies. Concrete examples are used to illustrate key concepts, with the aim of providing a digestible set of guidelines that any manager can follow.
Analysis and mitigation of reflected wave voltages and currents in WBG devices based motor drives

In inverter based motor drives, the fast switching speeds of the power devices along with the cable, result in overvoltage at the motor end. Corresponding to the overvoltage at the motor end, there are currents at the inverter end. While the overvoltage increases the stress on motor and insulation, the load parasitics along with the cable increases the switching loss of the power devices. These effects are more pronounced in converters using WBG devices because of faster switching times. Previous works have only studied either over-voltages & currents in 2-L converters. The 2-L converters have low source and high load impedances. This work involves the study of the effect of inductive source impedance and RC terminal network on the reflected wave phenomenon and the switching loss of the device. Simulation and experimental results are shown to verify the analysis.
State Building in the Middle East

This review examines state building in the Middle East from a long-term, historical perspective. The Middle East's early transition to settled agriculture meant the region was home to many of the most sophisticated and best-developed states in the ancient world. As Middle Eastern states emerged from Late Antiquity, their fiscal and bureaucratic capacity enabled institutional forms not possible in Europe, including reliance on slave soldiers for the state military elite as well as state control of land that could be distributed to state servants in the form of temporary, revocable land grants. Because a landed gentry did not emerge as an influence-wielding social class in the Middle East until a relatively late date, religious elites—who served as important providers of public goods as a result of their control of Islamic charitable foundations—became key intermediaries between state and society. Core features of the institutions of Islam's classical period largely persisted until the decline of the Ottoma...
Investigating and securing communications in the Controller Area Network (CAN)

The Controller Area Network (CAN) is a broadcast communications network invented by Robert Bosch GmbH in 1986. CAN is the standard communication network found in automobiles, industry equipment, and many space applications. To be used in these environments, CAN is designed for efficiency and reliability, rather than security.
Pragmatic trial of a Study Navigator Model (NAU) vs. Ambassador Model (N+) to increase enrollment to health research among community members who use illicit drugs

Abstract Background Although drug use is common in the population, drug users are sometimes excluded from research without justification. Two models of individualized study matching were compared for effectiveness in enrolling people who “endorsed current drug use” and those who “did not” into appropriate research. Methods Participants in the NIDA-funded Transformative Approach to Reduce Research Disparities Towards Drug Users study (Navigation Study) were recruited through a Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) community engagement model. Of the 614 community-recruited adults, 326 endorsed current drug use (cases); 288 did not (controls). Participants were randomized to one of two intervention groups: Navigation as Usual (NAU) [individualized study matching through a Study Navigator] or Enhanced Navigation (N+) [individualized study matching plus transportation and other assistance through an Ambassador]. Rates of enrollment into research studies were compared. Results At 90 days, N+ vs. the NAU intervention was associated with higher enrollment among both drug users (36.0% N+ vs. 24.9% NAU) and non-drug users (45.5% N+ vs. 25.2% NAU). NAU attained the same rate of enrollment for users of drugs (24.9%) and non-users (25.2%); N+ had similar rates as well (36.0% drug users vs. 45.5% non-drug users). In addition, high rates of enrollment were achieved among all groups of participants, from 24.9% (drug users in NAU) to 45.5% (non-drug users in N+). Conclusions Both the NAU and N+ methods can reduce barriers and help users and non-users become part of the population that participates in research. Working with the local CTSA adds significant value to the research enterprise.
The Market's Law of Privacy: Case Studies in Privacy and Security Adoption

It might be possible for individual actors in a marketplace to drive the adoption of particular privacy and security standards. Using HTTPS, two-factor authentication, and end-to-end encryption as case studies, the author tries to ascertain which factors are responsible for successful diffusion that improves the privacy of a large number of users.
The Fracture and Fatigue Crack Growth Behavior of Forged Damage-Tolerant Niobium Aluminide Intermetallics

The micromechanisms of fracture and fatigue crack growth are elucidated for a new class of damage-tolerant niobium aluminide Nb 3 Al-xTi intermetallics. Fatigue crack growth in alloys containing 10 and 25 at% Ti is shown to occur primarily by cleavage, while alloys containing ∼40 at% Ti are shown to exhibit similar fracture and fatigue crack growth behavior to ductile metals and their alloys. Slower elevated-temperature (750°C) crack growth rates in the Nb 3 Al-40Ti alloy are attributed largely to the effects of oxide-induced crack closure. The transition from cleavage fracture (in the Nb 3 Al-10Ti and Nb 3 Al-25Ti alloys) to ductile fracture in the Nb 3 Al-40Ti is correlated with the onset of significant levels of crack-tip plasticity, which is predicted using atomistic simulations.
Emerging adults’ self-identified peer crowd affiliations and college adjustment.

Crowd affiliations are integral to academic functioning and school adjustment during adolescence. However, less is known about crowd structures within institutions of higher education. The current study was designed to validate the College Peer Crowd Questionnaire (CPCQ), an instrument designed to assess college students’ self-reported crowd identifications, and examine associations with academic and socioemotional problems that derail college success. Participants were 498 students at a small liberal arts college in the western United States (Mage = 20.08; SD = 1.38, range = 18–26). Confirmatory factor analysis showed that the peer crowd structure could best be described by four underlying crowd dimensions (i.e., social, athletic, scholastic and counterculture) and that the factor structure was invariant across gender and college standing. Using structural equation modeling, we also found that crowd identification was significantly correlated with indices of college adjustment and behaviors that jeopardize academic success. The results highlight the importance of crowd affiliations for college students’ success and adjustment. The results also highlight that the CPCQ is a valid tool for researchers who undertake this research.
A framework for a critical physical geography of ‘sacrifice zones’: Physical landscapes and discursive spaces of frac sand mining in western Wisconsin

Abstract The term sacrifice zone has been applied within activism, journalism, and scholarship to a wide range of polluted and degraded areas, including places playing host to relatively new extractive activities. This article proposes a conceptual framework for analyzing the phenomenon of the sacrifice zone within the emerging research paradigm of critical physical geography, using the illustrative case of frac sand mining in western Wisconsin, USA. In this case, we find that the meanings of sacrifice and the sacrifice zone vary along two major dimensions—the object of sacrifice and the initiator of sacrifice—and we propose that future research should attend to relationships between these dimensions and the efficacy of the framing for influencing future landscape change. We also argue that analyses in critical physical geography require investigating how in controversial situations some physical geographic (and human geographic) explanations and accounts stabilize as “matters of fact” and others emerge as disputed “matters of concern.” The latter, we contend, generate the conditions that lend themselves to the “sacrifice zone” frame. We suggest that this distinction both complicates and enriches efforts to integrate social and biophysical explanations.
Formation Learning Control of Multiple Autonomous Underwater Vehicles With Heterogeneous Nonlinear Uncertain Dynamics

In this paper, a new concept of formation learning control is introduced to the field of formation control of multiple autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), which specifies a joint objective of distributed formation tracking control and learning/identification of nonlinear uncertain AUV dynamics. A novel two-layer distributed formation learning control scheme is proposed, which consists of an upper-layer distributed adaptive observer and a lower-layer decentralized deterministic learning controller. This new formation learning control scheme advances existing techniques in three important ways: 1) the multi-AUV system under consideration has heterogeneous nonlinear uncertain dynamics; 2) the formation learning control protocol can be designed and implemented by each local AUV agent in a fully distributed fashion without using any global information; and 3) in addition to the formation control performance, the distributed control protocol is also capable of accurately identifying the AUVs’ heterogeneous nonlinear uncertain dynamics and utilizing experiences to improve formation control performance. Extensive simulations have been conducted to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed results.
Discrete Cosine Transform Spectral Pooling Layers for Convolutional Neural Networks

Pooling operations for convolutional neural networks provide the opportunity to greatly reduce network parameters, leading to faster training time and less data overfitting. Unfortunately, many of the common pooling methods such as max pooling and mean pooling lose information about the data (i.e., they are lossy methods). Recently, spectral pooling has been utilized to pool data in the spectral domain. By doing so, greater information can be retained with the same network parameter reduction as spatial pooling. Spectral pooling is currently implemented in the discrete Fourier domain, but it is found that implementing spectral pooling in the discrete cosine domain concentrates energy in even fewer spectra. Although Discrete Cosine Transforms Spectral Pooling Layers (DCTSPL) require extra computation compared to normal spectral pooling, the overall time complexity does not change and, furthermore, greater information preservation is obtained, producing networks which converge faster and achieve a lower misclassification error.
Oxalate Transport Across The Renal Papilla: Implications in Sites and Mechanism of Initial Kidney Stone Formation

Although we have a good understanding of the physico-chemical processes of stone nucleation and growth, disagreement exists regarding the site of nucleation1. The only systematic evidence for the site of initial stone formation has been provided by Carr who used microradiographic techniques to demonstrate that the initial stone formed within the fornix and in time grew large enough to be detected by conventional radiographic techniques2.
Categorizing decision support systems: a multidimensional approach

This chapter summarizes a multidimensional approach to categorizing specific decision support systems (DSS) developed in Power (2002) and related works. The suggested approach or expanded framework emphases evaluates DSS in terms of one primary dimension and three secondary dimensions. Managers and analysts need to examine what drives the DSS and provides the dominant functionality of the system. Then a DSS can be further categorized in terms of targeted users, purpose of the system and primary deployment technology. The framework can improve discussions about DSS and assist in organizing our current knowledge about DSS.
Building Clean Energy Support with Young Millennials in the United States

Abstract Young millennials will play an important role in addressing the intergenerational climate change crisis related to energy production. Drawing from the Theory of Planned Behavior and community resilience literatures, we analyzed how awareness of local clean energy initiatives, risk perceptions, environmental messaging, and environmental orientation influence young millennial support for federal clean energy policy and taxes as mediated through local clean energy support.
The influence of seawater chemistry on carbonate-associated sulfate derived from coral skeletons

Abstract It has long been established that seawater Mg/Ca ratios fluctuate over geological time scales (106 years), synchronous with seawater sulfate (SO42−) concentrations. As carbonate minerals closely track the Mg/Ca ratio of seawater and contain a substantial amount of carbonate-associated sulfate (CAS), they may therefore be excellent proxies for coeval oscillations in seawater Mg/Ca ratios and SO42− concentrations. Here, we report on a series of experiments designed to understand CAS incorporation into biogenic aragonite under seawater conditions characteristic of the Mesozoic and Cenozoic. In order to understand the combined effect of fluctuations in seawater Mg/Ca ratios and SO42− concentrations on CAS incorporation in coral skeletons, fragments of Pocillopora damicornis were grown in treatments in which the SO42−, Ca2+ and Mg2+ concentrations were varied independently and Ca2+ and SO42− concentrations were varied in combination. These experiments demonstrate that CAS incorporation in coral skeletons linearly and proportionally correlates with seawater SO42− concentrations, but is complicated by concomitant changes in seawater Ca2+ concentrations. These trends do not appear to be rate dependent and are likely related to the formation of ion complexes in seawater and/or biological changes induced by increased/decreased seawater Ca2+ concentrations. This work has important implications for understanding fluctuations in Mesozoic and Cenozoic SO42− concentrations and does not necessarily exclude coral skeletons as archives for understanding fluctuations in the SO42− isotopic (δ34S) composition of seawater.
Using Game Theory in Real Time in the Real World: A Conservation Case Study

In the real world, real-time data are now widely available, especially in security domains. Security cameras, aerial imagery, and even social media keep defenders informed when protecting important events, locations, and people. Further, advances in artificial intelligence have led to tools that can interpret these data automatically. Game theoretic models, for example, have shown great success in security. However, most of them ignore real-time information. In this paper, we demonstrate the potential to use real-time information from imagery to better inform our decisions in game theoretic models for security. As a concrete example, a conservation group called Air Shepherd uses conservation drones equipped with thermal infrared cameras to locate poachers at night and alert park rangers. They have also used lights aboard the drones, or signaled, to warn poachers of their presence, which often deters the poachers. We propose a system that (i) allocates drones and humans strategically throughout a protected area, (ii) detects poachers in the thermal infrared videos recorded by the conservation drones flying through the protected area in the predetermined location, and (iii) recommends moving to the location and/or signaling to the poacher that a patroller is nearby depending on real-time detections. View the demonstration: http://bit.ly/aamas19-demo-bondi-et-al.
Suppression of Sub-Synchronous Resonances Through Excitation Control of Doubly Fed Induction Generators

The paper considers the problem of sub-synchronous resonances (SSR) in doubly fed induction generators connected to the grid through series-compensated lines. The existence of oscillations is observed on a laboratory test-bed in various conditions, with instabilities developing in the worst-case scenario. Despite the limitations of a small-scale test-bed, the ability to investigate problems and solutions in ways that would not be possible on a full-scale system is very valuable. In particular, the paper demonstrates the significant effect of the choice of dq reference frame on the severity of SSR. Stator-aligned algorithms are found to be significantly more resonant than grid-oriented algorithms, as evidenced in experiments as well as using an analysis method proposed in the paper. From this observation, an algorithm is proposed to emulate a grid-alignment using stator voltages and currents, but without measurements of the grid and series-capacitor voltages. Two control laws are then presented to regulate the active and reactive powers generated, resulting in well-damped transient responses. SSR oscillations are found to be eliminated in experime, as well as simulations of a full-scale system and using a frequency response analysis of the closed-loop system. The effectiveness of the proposed control schemes is verified through experiments for different compensation levels and varying speeds. Within the assumptions made in the design, the proposed controllers are global.
Outcomes of stem cell transplant in patients with Richter transformation.

7526Background: Stem cell transplant (SCT) was considered to be beneficial in CLL patients with Richter transformation (RT). We report a single center experience of SCT for RT. Methods: CLL patient...
Teaching technical surgery.

Abstract Surgical educators face many challenges on the path toward ensuring surgical trainee technical-skill acquisition. We present effective intraoperative teaching techniques and discuss the utilization of simulation to improve technical skills outside of the operating room. Adjuncts, including coaching, mental skills, and nontechnical-skill assessments, are also reviewed. Finally, an example of a clinical curriculum that incorporates best practices in teaching technical surgery is presented.
Contrasting mechanistic accounts of the lexical boost

While many recent studies focused on abstract syntactic priming effects have implicated an error-based learning mechanism, there is little consensus on the most likely mechanism underlying the lexical boost. The current study aimed at refining understanding of the mechanism that leads to this priming effect. In two eye-tracking during reading experiments, the nature of the lexical boost was investigated by comparing predictions from competing accounts in terms of decay and the requirement of structural overlap between primes and targets. Experiment 1 revealed facilitation of target structure processing for shorter relative to longer primes, when there were fewer intervening words between prime and target verbs. In Experiment 2, significant lexically boosted priming effects were observed, but only when the target structure also appeared in the prime, and not when the prime had a different structure but a high degree of lexical overlap with the target. Overall, these results are most consistent with a short-lived mechanistic account rather than an error-based learning account of the lexical boost. Furthermore, these results align with dual-mechanism accounts of syntactic priming whereby different mechanisms are claimed to produce abstract syntactic priming effects and the lexical boost.
To: -) or to ?, That Is the Question: A Study of Students' Initial Impressions of Instructors' Paralinguistic Cues.

This paper explores the use of paralinguistics, defined as cues which facilitate interaction and communication without the use of specific words (e.g., emoticons, emojis) in instructor-student technologically-mediated out-of-class communication (TMOCC). Using an experiment manipulating cue use and instructor sex in initial emails, we examined how respondents’ (N = 236) impressions of instructors’ credibility and immediacy are influenced by these paralinguistics. Results suggest instructors who use paralinguistics may be perceived as more immediate and caring but less competent; perceived trustworthiness was unaffected by paralinguistic use. Instructor sex did not generate significant differences in students’ impressions. These findings have implications for current instructors when engaging in TMOCC with students; limitations and future directions are also discussed.
AI for Advancing Scientific Discovery for a Sustainable Future

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a rapidly advancing field. Novel machine learning methods combined with reasoning and search techniques have led us to reach new milestones: from computer vision, machine translation, and Go and Chess world-champion level play using pure self-training strategies, to self-driving cars. These ever-expanding AI capabilities open up new exciting avenues for advances in new domains. I will discuss our AI research for advancing scientific discovery for a sustainable future. In particular, I will talk about our research in a new interdisciplinary field, Computational Sustainability, which has the overarching goal of developing computational models and methods to help manage the balance between environmental, economic, and societal needs for a sustainable future. I will provide examples of computational sustainability problems, ranging from biodiversity and wildlife conservation, to multi-criteria strategic planning of hydropower dams in the Amazon basin and materials discovery for renewable energy materials. I will also highlight cross-cutting computational themes and challenges for AI at the intersection of constraint reasoning, optimization, machine learning, multi-agent reasoning, citizen science, and crowd-sourcing.
Outside Director to Executive: A New View of the Resource-Provision Role of Directors

Our study examines how and why outside directors of firms sometimes accept senior executive roles in those firms, thus converting from outside directors to inside directors. We approach this resear...
Tumor detection rates in screening of individuals with SDHx-related hereditary paraganglioma-pheochromocytoma syndrome.

Minimal data exist regarding the efficacy of screening protocols for individuals with SDHx germline pathogenic variants with hereditary paraganglioma–pheochromocytoma syndrome. This study aimed to evaluate the SDHx-related tumor detection rate in individuals undergoing clinical screening protocols. A multicenter retrospective longitudinal observational study was conducted. Individuals with germline SDHx pathogenic variants underwent clinical whole-body imaging and biochemical testing. Two hundred sixty-three individuals with SDHx germline pathogenic variants completed 491 imaging screens. Individuals with SDHB germline pathogenic variants were most common (n = 188/263, 72%), followed by SDHD (n = 35/263, 13%) and SDHC (n = 28/263, 11%). SDHx-related tumors were found in 17% (n = 45/263) of the cohort. Most SDHx-related tumors were identified on baseline imaging screen (n = 39/46, 85%). Individuals with SDHD pathogenic variants had the highest tumor detection rate (n = 14/35, 40%). Of imaging screens identifying SDHx-related paraganglioma/pheochromocytoma, 29% (n = 12/41) had negative biochemical testing. Secondary actionable findings were identified in 15% (n = 75/491) of imaging screens. Current SDHx screening protocols are effective at identifying SDHx-related tumors. Tumor detection rates vary by SDHx gene and screening has the potential to uncover actionable secondary findings. Imaging is an essential part of the screening process as biochemical testing alone does not detect all disease.
Infant Vaccinations among Mothers with Substance-Use Disorders: A Comparative Study

Introduction: Infants of mothers with substance use disorder (SUD) are exposed to complex social environments and increased childhood health risks that can lead to adverse consequences throughout the lifespan. GunderKids, a voluntary, specialized, comprehensive pediatric care management program, was developed to mitigate many of these adverse consequences. Our organization is evaluating several clinical outcomes related to health and development in children born to women with SUD. The current study addressed the timeliness of vaccination coverage among these infants.Methods: This descriptive comparative preliminary study evaluated data of infants and their mothers with SUD who were previously identified during prenatal care visits either by self-report or by positive urine screens. Sociodemographic and vaccination data were extracted from a longitudinal master dataset of variables developed and maintained through retrospective review of electronic health records (EHRs) of these mothers and their infants. Timeliness of vaccination coverage of SUD-exposed infants participating in GunderKids was compared with that of SUD-exposed infants receiving standard pediatric care and was determined using a cumulative vaccinations method.Results: Overall, infants in the GunderKids group (n=50) had more timely vaccination coverage than those receiving standard pediatric care (n=20). Examples of timelier coverage included Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) at 4 months (P = .01; OR 4.3, 95% CI 1.4-13.4), for pneumococcal (P = .004; OR 6.6, 95% CI 1.8-23.8) and Hib (P = .004; OR 5.8, 95% CI 1.6-21.9) vaccinations at 15 months. More than 77% of GunderKids received all 6-month vaccinations in a timely manner compared with less than 45% of the standard care group; odds ratios suggest that GunderKids had 4.0-5.6 higher odds of receiving 6-month vaccinations.Conclusion: Vaccination coverage of infants participating in GunderKids was timelier than that of infants receiving standard pediatric care. Results suggest that specialized programs like GunderKids may assist in mitigating adverse health consequences and timeliness of vaccination coverage might be used as a proxy for measuring program effectiveness. Further investigation is recommended to determine clinical, individual, and organizational factors that influence parental behaviors and pediatric outcomes within SUD-exposed families.
Population-aware hierarchical bayesian domain adaptation via multi-component invariant learning

While machine learning is rapidly being developed and deployed in health settings such as influenza prediction, there are critical challenges in using data from one environment to predict in another due to variability in features. Even within disease labels there can be differences (e.g. "fever" may mean something different reported in a doctor's office versus in an online app). Moreover, models are often built on passive, observational data which contain different distributions of population subgroups (e.g. men or women). Thus, there are two forms of instability between environments in this observational transport problem. We first harness substantive knowledge from health research to conceptualize the underlying causal structure of this problem in a health outcome prediction task. Based on sources of stability in the model and the task, we posit that we can combine environment and population information in a novel population-aware hierarchical Bayesian domain adaptation framework that harnesses multiple invariant components through population attributes when needed. We study the conditions under which invariant learning fails, leading to reliance on the environment-specific attributes. Experimental results for an influenza prediction task on four datasets gathered from different contexts show the model can improve prediction in the case of largely unlabelled target data from a new environment and different constituent population, by harnessing both environment and population invariant information. This work represents a novel, principled way to address a critical challenge by blending domain (health) knowledge and algorithmic innovation. The proposed approach will have significant impact in many social settings wherein who the data comes from and how it was generated, matters.
ALGA: Active Learning-Based Genetic Algorithm for Accelerating Structural Optimization

Optimization of complex structures using standard evolutionary algorithms, like genetic algorithm (GA), is known to be computationally expensive, because a very large number of finite element analy...
Correlational Study of Student Perceptions of their Undergraduate Laboratory Environment with respect to Gender and Major

The science laboratory learning environment has been a distinctive area in science education since the 19th century. Unfortunately, students are generally not aware of what science instructors expect from laboratory experiences, and far too often, the undergraduate science laboratory curriculum lacks explicit, well-defined goals. Science instructors assume that they have created their laboratory curriculum in such a way as to reflect an ideal science instructional laboratory, but students may not recognize this. What previous studies do not indicate is the extent to which students understand the laboratory goals for instruction as intended by the instructors. This study, therefore, using a quantitative design, examined undergraduate science major (biology, chemistry, and physics) and non-major students’, and female and male perceptions of their science instructional laboratory with respect to instructors’ goals for the laboratory. Data was collected via the Student Perceptions of the College Instructional Laboratory Survey (SPCILS) at a Midwestern University in the USA. The findings suggest that, on the whole, students perceive their instructional labs much as intended by their instructors. Female and male students were just as likely to view their instructional laboratories as intended by the instructors. Moreover, the study found no differences between science majors and non-majors. This study provides baseline data for future qualitative studies about how major and gender might be impacting students’ laboratory experiences in ways beyond what was measured on this survey. Our research was done at a teaching-oriented, midsized university. It would thus be appropriate for similar investigations to be carried out at a research-oriented university.
Developing National Genotype-Independent Indicators for Recent Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Transmission Using Pediatric Cases-United States, 2011-2017.

IntroductionPediatric tuberculosis (TB) cases are sentinel events for Mycobacterium tuberculosis transmission in communities because children, by definition, must have been infected relatively rece...
Algorithms and Complexity of Alliances in Graphs

A set S of vertices in a graph G = (V, E) is a defensive alliance if for every vertex in v ∈ S, \(|N[v] \cap S| \geq |N(v) \cap \overline {S}|\). That is, every vertex in S has at least as many neighbors in S, including itself, as it has neighbors in \(\overline {S} = V - S\). In this chapter we discuss algorithms and complexity of various types of alliances in graphs.
The misleading certainty of uncertain data in biological network processes

Mathematical models are often used to study the structure and dynamics of network-driven cellular processes. In cell biology, models representing biochemical reaction networks have provided significant insights but are often plagued by a dearth of available quantitative data necessary for simulation and analysis. This has in turn led to questions about the usefulness of biochemical network models with unidentifiable parameters and high-degree of parameter sloppiness. In response, approaches to incorporate highly-available non-quantitative data and use this data to improve model certainty have been undertaken with various degrees of success. Here we employ a Bayesian inference and Machine Learning approach to first explore how quantitative and non-quantitative data can constrain a mechanistic model of apoptosis execution, in which all models can be identified. We find that two orders of magnitude more ordinal data measurements than those typically collected are necessary to achieve the same accuracy as that obtained from a quantitative dataset. We also find that ordinal and nominal non-quantitative data on their own can be combined to reduce model uncertainty and thus improve model accuracy. Further analysis demonstrates that the accuracy and certainty of model predictions strongly depends on accurate formulations of the measurement as well as the size and make-up of the nonquantitative datasets. Finally, we demonstrate the potential of a data-driven Machine Learning measurement model to identify informative mechanistic features that predict or define nonquantitative cellular phenotypes, from a systems perspective.
Ecchordosis physaliphora: Case report and brief review of the literature

Ecchordosis physaliphora is a rare congenital benign hamartomatous lesion originating from nodal cord remnants. This is histopathologically indistinguishable from chordoma, and hence imaging plays a key role in diagnosis. These lesions are hypointense on T1-weighted and hyperintense on T2-weighted images, and follow CSF signal. In contrast to chordoma, Ecchordosis Physaliphora does not demonstrate contrast enhancement. Here, we present a case of 32-year-old male with no prior medical history, who presented to an outside facility for chronic headache workup and incidentally detected indeterminate lytic defect in the bony clivus with a well demarcated smoothly corticated margin. Further assessment with MRI brain showed findings characteristic of Ecchordosis physaliphora, a benign congenital hamartomatous lesion originating from nodal cord remnants requiring no additional follow-up imaging or intervention.
The fourth neutrino

There are reasons to think the neutrinos we know have a shy cousin that could explain dark matter, but it won't be easy to spot, writes Chanda Prescod-Weinstein
The M - sigma project

There is an intimate link between supermassive black hole (SMBH) mass (M) and the stellar velocity dispersion (sigma) of the host bulge. This has a fundamental impact on our understanding of galaxy and SMBH formation and evolution. However, the scatter, slope and zero-point of the relation is a subject of some debate. For any progress to be made on this relation, the established values of M and sigma must be robust. Over 50% of current M estimates have been made using the technique of stellar dynamics. However, there is serious concern over this method that prompts their re-evaluation. In addition, it is not clear how best to define sigma. The aim of the M-Sigma Project is to use STIS long-slit spectroscopy, integral field spectroscopy and the latest stellar models, to best estimate the values of M and sigma in as many cases as possible. The project will determine the most appropriate properties of the M-Sigma relation itself.
On Random Numbers And The Performance Of Genetic Algorithms

Pseudo random number generators (PRNGs) are the basic input to the stochastic selection, recombination, and mutation operations of genetic algorithms (GAs). Although it does not seem like a crucial decision, recent studies suggest that the choice of PRNG can affect the performance of GAs. The objective of this paper is to study the effect of PRNGs on a simple GA, and to identify the components that are most affected by the PRNG. The paper presents ablation experiments using two PRNGs and true random numbers from an atmospheric noise source. The experiments show that the PRNG used to initialize the population is critical, but the PRNG used as input to other operations does not affect the performance significantly. We confirmed these results with additional experiments that isolated single components of the GA. In a few cases, we obtained improved results with a poor PRNG, but we were unable to obtain improvements consistently across the test functions used or with different seeds. The results suggest that, in accordance with common practice in other fields, it is preferable to use the best PRNG available to avoid muddling the interpretation of the results.
[8] Quantitative PCR: Analysis of rare mitochondrial DNA mutations in central nervous system tissues

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the use of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in quantitative applications. Although the sensitivity of PCR has rendered it the method of choice in the detection of low amounts of nucleic acid target, its utility as a quantitative tool has been slower in gaining credibility. The ability of PCR to make rare sequences detectable also makes it extremely challenging to extrapolate the amounts of initial input template molecules from the measured amounts of product molecules after many cycles of amplification. In the past few years, a number of PCR strategies based on different methodological and technical approaches have been adopted for the semiquantitative or quantitative analysis of nucleic acids. These strategies deal with the basic problem of making the amplification process as predictable as possible. Because of the exponential nature of PCR, even minor variations in efficiency can lead to large deviations at the end of the reaction that will confound the quantitative relationship between the product and initial template. An understanding of the theoretical and technical aspects of the kinetics of PCR product accumulation is imperative to designing quantitative PCR experiments.
Elements of Ancient Jewish Nationalism: A Kingdom of Priests: The Priestly Component in Ancient Jewish Nationalism

T he title of this chapter comes from the famous verse at Exodus 19:6. That verse appears in the preliminaries leading up to the theophany at Mount Sinai. When the Israelites arrive at the wilderness of Sinai, Yahweh gives Moses a message to deliver to them. I shall quote the passage (Verses 3b–6) in the fairly literal translation of the Revised Standard Version. Thus shall you say to the house of Jacob and tell the people of Israel. You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you will obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my own possession [ segullah ] among all the peoples; for all the earth is mine, and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation [ mamlekhet kohanim vegoy qadosh ]. These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel. Of interest to us here is how later readers and hearers understood Verse 6. In Chapter 1 I mentioned the Bible's use of the word “ goy ” to refer to Israel as well as to other nations. Our passage explains how the Israelite nation will differ from those others as a result of its special relationship with Yahweh. It will be “holy” and “a kingdom of priests.” It is this last phrase that intrigues me, just as it has exercised exegetes. The original meaning of the passage is not our concern.