cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Thermodynamic analysis of a high temperature hybrid compressed air energy storage (HTH-CAES) system

Abstract The integration of energy storage with renewable sources is imperative as it mitigates the intermittency of the available energy. A novel high temperature hybrid compressed air energy storage (HTH-CAES) system design is presented as a viable solution, which has the benefit of eliminating the necessary combustion and emissions in conventional CAES plants. The hybrid configuration incorporates two stages of heating through separate low-temperature and high temperature thermal energy storage units. A thermodynamic analysis of the HTH-CAES system is presented along with parametric studies, which illustrate the importance of the operating pressure and thermal storage temperature on the performance of the storage system. Realistic isentropic component efficiencies and throttling losses were considered. Additionally, two extreme cavern conditions were analyzed and the cyclic behavior of an adiabatic cavern was investigated. An optimum operating pressure resulting in maximum roundtrip storage efficiency of the hybrid storage system is reported. The hybrid system was found to be more efficient and energy dense as compared with an advanced adiabatic design of the same power output.
Stigma, Disclosure and Relationship Agency in Black Women’s Sexual Relationships with Behaviorally Bisexual Black Men

The health needs and relationships of Black women partnered with behaviorally bisexual Black men are under addressed in the public health literature. This paper explores the relationship dynamics of Black women’s sexual relationships with behaviorally bisexual Black men. We conducted thirty qualitative interviews with a group of HIV negative and HIV positive women partnered with behaviorally bisexual Black men in the San Francisco Bay Area. Women took part in a one-time qualitative interview that addressed relationships, bisexual partners, sexuality, HIV risk behaviors, and disclosure. Women described experiences of their own and their partner’s experiences of disclosure and sexual stigma, along with structural racism and masculine cultural norms that contribute to men’s non-disclosure of sex with men. The paper identifies the ways in which disclosure and stigma are experienced by a sample of women in relationships with behaviorally bisexual Black male partners, pointing to the ways in which these women demonstrate sexual agency in these relationships. These sexual narratives emphasize the ways in which Black women are at once agentic and also navigate gendered vulnerability in their relationships with bisexual men. These findings of Black women’s sexual agency present a call to develop health interventions resonant with Black women’s relationship experiences and structures of bisexual relationships.
Internet Use by Gynecologic Oncology Patients and Its Relationship with Anxiety

This study describes the use of the Internet for health information research by patients attending a gynecologic oncology practice and examines the association between its use and anxiety. A self-administered survey assessed patients' demographic information and Internet use. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) were administered concurrently. Of 212 patients who consented to the study, 98 (46%) had an appointment because of a cancer diagnosis. Of 199 respondents, 91 (46%) reported searching the Internet for information about their condition. Internet searching was unassociated with race/ethnicity and positively associated with education level, annual household income, and married/partnered civil status. Only 16% of the patients reported that a health-care provider recommended use of the Internet for research. Comparing patients who used the Internet for research with those who did not, the STAI state and trait anxiety scores were similar. The HADS anxiety subscale score was higher for those who used the Internet versus those who did not, which suggests heightened anxiety. Internet use for research is common in gynecologic oncology patients, and its use is associated with increased anxiety. Physicians can use this medium to educate patients about their disease, build trust, and alleviate fear.
Balancing Academic Rigor and Creative Thinking: A Transformational Approach to Teaching Senior Design

Innovation arises from creativity. "Thinking outside the box" has long been seen as a necessary precursor to innovation and invention in engineering. However, creativity is rarely part of traditional engineering curricula. In 2015, our group began to explore integrating theater-based creativity methods into bioengineering capstone design. Evaluation of student outcomes was encouraging, so we continued to develop the course in 2016 and 2017. As we worked to refine the pedagogical process, we discovered tensions (real or perceived) between providing academic rigor and allowing students to embrace their creativity; for instance, we experienced some resistance from engineering faculty and students toward adopting methods they viewed as "artsy" or lacking academic rigor. Here, we discuss the tensions we observed offer potential ways to mitigate such tensions and begin to consider how to expand on our successes.
Double trouble: Weekend sleep changes are associated with increased impulsivity among adolescents with bipolar I disorder.

Objectives Both sleep disruption and impulsivity are important predictors of the course of bipolar disorder (BD). Although sleep disruption has been shown to intensify impulsivity, little research has considered how these two important domains interact within BD. Adolescence is a critical period for the onset of BD, and is often associated with increases in impulsivity and substantial changes in sleep. We tested the hypothesis that disruptions in sleep would increase impulsivity among adolescents, and that this effect would be more pronounced among those with BD. Methods Thirteen- to nineteen-year-olds diagnosed with BD-I (n = 33, age [mean ± standard deviation (SD)] 16.2 ± 1.66 years, 54.5% female) and psychiatrically healthy controls (n = 26, age [mean ± SD] 15.5 ± 1.45 years, 55.6% female) reported their past-week bedtime, rise time, and sleep duration, separately for school days and weekends, and completed a self-report questionnaire on impulsivity. Stepwise regression was used to examine the effects of sleep on impulsivity, and the moderation of this effect by BD status. Results Adolescents with BD reported significantly higher impulsivity, later and more variable rise time, and more variable time in bed and sleep duration on school days than did controls. Greater change in sleep duration between school days and weekends was associated with significantly more impulsivity among adolescents with BD as compared to controls. Conclusions These findings highlight the important effect of sleep on impulsivity among adolescents with BD and add to the growing evidence that establishing sleep routines may be an important therapeutic target for youth with BD.
Unintended widespread facial autoinoculation of varicella by home microneedling roller device.

Microneedling was first described in the medical literature in 1995 to treat scars and rhytides1 by induction of collagen and elastin synthesis through microtrauma.2 In addition, individual microneedles have been attached to rollers to increase efficiency of puncturing the skin, such as for transdermal drug delivery to treat melasma.3, 4, 5 Depth of penetration has been described as ranging from 0.5 to 1.5 mm, which is sufficient to penetrate the papillary dermis.6 More recently, home microneedling systems use has grown and are commercially available at very low cost.4 However, data on the safety of home microneedling systems are scarce. Here we present a case of unintentional widespread facial autoinoculation of varicella zoster virus (VZV) after the use of a home microneedling system.
Combination of Satellite, Altimetric and Terrestrial Gravity Data

t h e t930 ' s g r a v i m e t e r s w e r e d e v e l o p e d t h a t led to m e a s u r e m e n t s of g r a v i t y d i f f e r e n c e s o v e r l a r g e a r e a s . T h e s e d i f f e r e n c e s led to g r a v i t y v a l u e s a n d t h e n g r a v i t y anomal ies o v e r b r o a d land a n d ocean a r e a s . The g r a v i t y anomaly v a l u e s a r e s t o r e d as p o i n t o r mean v a l u e s wi th c o o r d i n a t e s (¢, ~, H) g i v e n in some s p e c i f i e d da tum (bo th ho r i zon t a l a n d ve r t i ca l ) . The mean anomaly va lue a r e c o m p u t e d f o r a v a r i e t y of c o m p a r t m e n t s i z e s r a n g i n g f rom 6"x 10" to 5"x 5". A l though t h i s da t a s e t is f a r f rom un i fo rm in t e r m s of a r e a l c o v e r a g e a n d a c c u r a c y i t p r o v i d e s s u b s t a n t i a l i n fo rma t ion on t h e e a r t h ' s g r a v i t y f ie ld .
Development of a High-Throughput Biochemical Assay to Screen for Inhibitors of Aerobactin Synthetase IucA.

Acquiring sufficient quantities of iron to support survival is often a critical limitation for pathogenic bacteria. To meet this demand, bacteria have evolved unique strategies to scavenge iron and...
The Continued Relevance of the “Carnivalesque” (“This is America”)

Though it should not be claimed as a universal, the concept of the “carnivalesque” is among the phenomena that appear again and again in cultures separated by both time and space. Originally applie...
Reported Preference vs. Revealed Preference: Evidence from the Propensity to Spend Tax Rebates

We evaluate the consistency of two methods for estimating the effect of an economic policy: i) surveying people to report the change in their behavior caused by the policy, ii) inferring this change using (reported) actual behavior and differences in treatment across people. Both methods have been widely used to measure propensities to spend. Using Federal stimulus payments disbursed quasi-randomly over time in 2008, we find greater revealed-preference estimates of spending by households reporting greater spending and the two methods produce similar estimates of average spending. But, counterfactually, reported preferences estimates are not higher for households with lower liquidity.
Inhibition of the ATR-CHK1 pathway in Ewing sarcoma cells causes DNA damage and apoptosis via the CDK2-mediated degradation of RRM2

Inhibition of ribonucleotide reductase (RNR), the rate-limiting enzyme in the synthesis of deoxyribonucleotides, causes DNA replication stress and activates the ataxia telangiectasia and rad3-related protein (ATR)-checkpoint kinase 1 (CHK1) pathway. Notably, a number of different cancers, including Ewing sarcoma tumors, are sensitive to the combination of RNR and ATR-CHK1 inhibitors. However, multiple, overlapping mechanisms are reported to underlie the toxicity of ATR-CHK1 inhibitors, both as single agents and in combination with RNR inhibitors, toward cancer cells. Here, we identified a feedback loop in Ewing sarcoma cells in which inhibition of the ATR-CHK1 pathway depletes RRM2, the small subunit of RNR, and exacerbates the DNA replication stress and DNA damage caused by RNR inhibitors. Mechanistically, we identified that the inhibition of ATR-CHK1 activates CDK2, which targets RRM2 for degradation via the proteasome. Similarly, activation of CDK2 by inhibition or knockdown of the WEE1 kinase also depletes RRM2 and causes DNA damage and apoptosis. Moreover, we show that the concurrent inhibition of ATR and WEE1 has a synergistic effect in Ewing sarcoma cells. Overall, our results provide novel insight into the response to DNA replication stress, as well as a rationale for targeting the ATR, CHK1, and WEE1 pathways, in Ewing sarcoma tumors. IMPLICATIONS: Targeting the ATR, CHK1, and WEE1 kinases in Ewing sarcoma cells activates CDK2 and increases DNA replication stress by promoting the proteasome-mediated degradation of RRM2.
Wind sheltering impacts on land-atmosphere fluxes over fens

Wetlands and their ability to mitigate climate change motivates restorative and protective action; however, scientific understanding of land-atmosphere interactions is restricted by our limited continuous observations of gaseous fluxes. Many wetlands are small in spatial scale and embedded in forested landscapes. Yet, little is known about how the relative sheltering of forests affects net carbon (C) and energy balance. Here, we analyze coterminous USGS and Ameriflux eddy covariance flux tower observations over three years in two shrub fens in Northern Wisconsin, one more sheltered (US-ALQ) than the other (US-Los). Unsurprisingly, the open site showed higher overall wind speeds. This should have implications for atmospheric fluxes in wetlands as wind-forced processes are essential in promoting gas exchange over water. While both sites had similar half-hourly net ecosystem exchange of CO2 (NEE) during daytime, there were significant differences in nighttime NEE, as well as in net radiation partitioning in early spring and late summer. Sensible heat (H) fluxes were smaller at the sheltered fen except for the months of July-September. In contrast, latent heat (LE) fluxes were higher in every month except July. Additionally, sheltered fen ecosystem respiration had a weaker linear correlation with air temperature (R: 0.08 versus 0.57 for the open fen). Our work suggests that canopy sheltering does not cause significant differences in half-hourly NEE during the day, but rather the largest differences such as lower CO2 emissions occur at nighttime due to higher variance at very low wind speeds. Sheltering also influenced direction of air flow, mean wind speeds in day versus night, energy balance, and sensible and latent heat fluxes. We discuss implications of these findings for wetland restoration.
Multifingered Grasp Planning via Inference in Deep Neural Networks: Outperforming Sampling by Learning Differentiable Models

We propose a novel approach to multifingered grasp planning that leverages learned deep neural network (DNN) models. We trained a voxel-based 3D convolutional neural network (CNN) to predict grasp-success probability as a function of both visual information of an object and grasp configuration. From this, we formulated grasp planning as inferring the grasp configuration that maximizes the probability of grasp success. In addition, we learned a prior over grasp configurations as a mixture-density network (MDN) conditioned on our voxel-based object representation. We show that this object-conditional prior improves grasp inference when used with the learned grasp success-prediction network compared to a learned, objectagnostic prior or an uninformed uniform prior. Our work is the first to directly plan high-quality multifingered grasps in configuration space using a DNN without the need of an external planner. We validated our inference method by performing multifinger grasping on a physical robot. Our experimental results show that our planning method outperforms existing grasp-planning methods for neural networks (NNs).
Get More from Less: A Hybrid Machine Learning Framework for Improving Early Predictions in STEM Education

This paper builds a Machine Learning based novel classification framework that performs multi-class classification optimally when the features are scarce. It uses the context of undergraduate STEM courses for making periodic predictions of student performance at a fine-grained level. It shows that neither a vanilla multi-class classifier nor an ensemble multi-class classifier perform optimally when the number of features are small (during early predictions). The novel ML based hybrid framework predicts four classes at four equally spaced intervals during the semester: at-risk (grade below C), prone to risk (grade C), ok (grade B), and good (grade A). It uses a pipeline to single out the groups successively in the order of their increasing importance. First, it identifies the most critical group, i.e., the at-risk group. Then, it identifies the other three groups. Experimental results show that the hybrid approach outperforms the other two approaches during early predictions.
Identifying spatial transitions in heterogenous granular flow

It is well known that heterogeneous granular flows exhibit collisional, dense and creep regimes that can coexist in space. How to correctly predict and control such complex phenomena has many applications in both mitigation of natural hazards and optimization of industrial processes. However, it still remains a challenge to establish a predictive granular rheology model due to the lack of understanding of the internal structure variation across different regimes and its interaction with the boundary. In this work, we use DEM simulations to investigate the internal structure of heterogeneous granular flow developed at the center of rotating drum systems. By systematically varying the side wall conditions, we are able to generate various heterogeneous flow fields under different levels of boundary effects. Our extensive simulation results reveal a highly relevant micro-structural quantity $$\delta \theta = |\theta _c - \theta _f|$$, where $$\theta _c$$ and $$\theta _f$$ are the preferred direction of inter-particle contacts and the preferred direction of inter-particle force transmissions, respectively. We show that $$\delta \theta $$ can characterize the internal structure of granular flow in collisional, dense and creep regimes, and its variation can identify the transition between them. In particular, in dense and collisional regimes, the classical rheological relation between bulk friction $$\mu $$ and inertia number I holds, while in the creep regime, such relation breaks down and $$\mu $$ instead depends on $$\delta \theta $$. Our findings hold for all investigated flow fields regardless of the level of boundary effect imposed, and regardless of the amount of shear experienced. $$\delta \theta $$ thus provides a unified micro-structural characterization for heterogeneous granular flow in different regimes, and lays the foundation of establishing microstructure-informed granular rheology models.
Diffuse Optical Biomarkers of Elevated Intracranial Pressure in Hydrocephalus

We performed diffuse optical neuromonitoring concurrently with invasive neuromonitoring across a wide range of increasing intracranial pressure (ICP) levels in a piglet model of hydrocephalus. Pilot comparisons of critical closing pressure to ICP are presented.
Renal tumors in tuberous sclerosis complex

Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is a multisystem hereditary disorder characterized by the growth of benign tumors (hamartomas) in multiple organs, including the kidneys. Renal angiomyolipomas (AML) are a major diagnostic feature of TSC and are present in the majority of patients by adulthood. However, AML are usually asymptomatic during childhood when neurological and developmental manifestations are the main source of morbidity. Kidney manifestations of TSC have historically been the main cause of morbidity and mortality of adults with TSC. The recognition that the complications of TSC are caused by dysregulation of the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway has led to an enormous progress in the management of patients with TSC in the last two decades, the establishment of diagnostic guidelines, and trials which have shown the therapeutic benefit of mTOR inhibitors. Kidney surveillance of children with TSC now provides the opportunity for timely interventions to reduce the impact of TSC in adulthood. In this review, we discuss the current management of kidney tumors associated with TSC, including the diagnosis, surveillance, and treatment options for these lesions. We also present outcome data from international registries demonstrating the effectiveness of the current management strategies. With clear management guidelines and efficient treatment of kidney tumors, we envisage that the long-term outcomes of patients with TSC will further improve in the future.
Statistically Defined Parkinson's Disease Executive and Memory Cognitive Phenotypes: Demographic, Behavioral, and Structural Neuroimaging Comparisons.

Background Some individuals Parkinson's disease (PD) experience working memory and inhibitory difficulties, others learning and memory difficulties, while some only minimal to no cognitive deficits for many years. Objective To statistically derive PD executive and memory phenotypes, and compare PD phenotypes on disease and demographic variables, vascular risk factors, and specific neuroimaging variables with known associations to executive and memory function relative to non-PD peers. Methods Non-demented individuals with PD (n = 116) and non-PD peers (n = 62) were recruited to complete neuropsychology measures, blood draw, and structural magnetic resonance imaging. Tests representing the cognitive domains of interest (4 executive function, 3 memory) were included in a k-means cluster analysis comprised of the PD participants. Resulting clusters were compared demographic and disease-related variables, vascular risk markers, gray/white regions of interest, and white matter connectivity between known regions involved in executive and memory functions (dorsolateral prefrontal cortices to caudate nuclei; entorhinal cortices to hippocampi). Results Clusters showed: 1) PD Executive, n = 25; 2) PD Memory, n = 35; 3) PD Cognitively Well; n = 56. Even after disease variable corrections, PD Executive had less subcortical gray matter, white matter, and fewer bilateral dorsolateral-prefrontal cortex to caudate nucleus connections; PD Memory showed bilaterally reduced entorhinal-hippocampal connections. PD Cognitively Well group showed only reduced putamen volume and right entorhinal cortex to hippocampi connections relative to non-PD peers. Groups did not statistically differ on cortical integrity measures or cerebrovascular disease markers. Conclusion PD cognitive phenotypes showed different structural gray and white matter patterns. We discuss data relative to phenotype demographics, cognitive patterns, and structural brain profiles.
Mapping lung ventilation through stress maps derived from biomechanical models of the lung.

PURPOSE Most existing computed tomography (CT)-ventilation imaging techniques are based on deformable image registration (DIR) of different respiratory phases of a four-dimensonal CT (4DCT) scan of the lung, followed by the quantification of local breathing-induced changes in Hounsfield Units (HU) or volume. To date, only moderate correlations have been reported between these CT-ventilation metrics and standard ventilation imaging modalities for adaptive lung radiation therapy. This study evaluates the use of stress maps derived from biomechanical model-based DIR as an alternative CT-ventilation metric. MATERIALS AND METHODS Six patients treated for lung cancer with conventional radiation therapy were retrospectively analyzed. For each patient, a 4DCT scan and Tc-99m SPECT-V image acquired for treatment planning were collected. Biomechanical model-based DIR was applied between the inhale and exhale phase of the 4DCT scans and stress maps were calculated. The voxel-wise correlation between the reference SPECT-V image and map of the maximum principal stress was measured with a Spearman correlation coefficient. The overlap between high (above the 75th percentile) and low (below the 25th percentile) functioning volumes extracted from the reference SPECT-V and the stress maps was measured with Dice similarity coefficients (DSC). The results were compared to those obtained when using two classical CT-ventilation metrics: the change in HU and Jacobian determinant. RESULTS The mean Spearman correlation coefficients were: 0.37 ± 18 and 0.39 ± 13 and 0.59 ± 0.13 considering the changes in HU, Jacobian and maximum principal stress, respectively. The corresponding mean DSC coefficients were 0.38 ± 0.09, 0.37 ± 0.07 and 0.52 ± 0.07 for the high ventilation function volumes and 0.48 ± 0.13, 0.44 ± 0.09 and 0.52 ± 0.07 for the low ventilation function volumes. CONCLUSION For presenting a significantly stronger and more consistent correlation with standard SPECT-V images than previously proposed CT-ventilation metrics, stress maps derived with the proposed method appear to be a promising tool for incorporation into functional lung avoidance strategies.
QKD-Enhanced Cybersecurity Protocols

Security of QKD is guaranteed by the quantum mechanics laws rather than unproven assumptions employed in computational cryptography. Unfortunately, the secret-key rates are way too low and transmission distances are limited. The post-quantum cryptography (PQC) is proposed as an alternative to QKD. However, the PQC protocols are based on conjecture that there are no polynomial time algorithms to break the PQC protocols. To overcome key challenges of both post-quantum cryptography and QKD, we propose to use the QKD only in initialization stage to set-up corresponding cybersecurity protocols. The proposed concept is applied to both computational security and PQC protocols. The proposed QKD-enhanced cybersecurity protocols are tolerant to attacks initiated by quantum computers.
Synergy and Antagonism between Allosteric and Active-Site Inhibitors of Abl Tyrosine Kinase

Allosteric inhibitors of Abl kinase are being explored in the clinic, often in combination with ATP-site inhibitors of Abl kinase. However, there are conflicting data on whether both ATP-competitive inhibitors and myristoyl-site allosteric inhibitors can simultaneously bind Abl kinase. Here, we determine whether there is synergy or antagonism between ATP-competitive inhibitors and allosteric inhibitors of Abl. We observe that clinical ATP-competitive inhibitors are not synergistic with allosteric ABL inhibitors, however, conformation-selective ATP-site inhibitors that modulate the global conformation of Abl can afford synergy. We demonstrate that kinase conformation is the key driver to simultaneously bind two compounds to Abl kinase. Finally, we explore the interaction of allosteric and conformation selective ATP-competitive inhibitors in a series of biochemical and cellular assays.
Comparative Incidence of Periocular Surgical Site Infections with Increased Surgical Mask Use during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Purpose To evaluate the effect of surgical mask use on infection rates for office-based periocular surgeries during the pandemic. Methods An Institutional Review Board-approved retrospective review of medical records identified patients who had an office-based oculofacial plastic surgery procedure during the pandemic between March and December 2020. Statistical analysis was used to compare this group to patients that underwent procedures between March and December 2019, prior to the pandemic when neither surgeon nor patient wore a surgical mask. Results The study consisted of 680 patients. Thirty-one different types of procedures were encountered. The incidence of infections in 2020 compared to 2019 was not statistically significant (1.12% (n = 3) versus 1.21% (n = 5), p = 1). All patients with infections were treated with oral antibiotics and improved without long-term complications. Conclusions Periocular surgical site infections are uncommon, and the wearing of surgical masks by patient and surgeon during our office-based oculofacial procedures did not change the incidence of SSIs.
The Galactic Radio Nebulae

The range of galactic nebulae that emit radio waves is reviewed showing dramatic images of what they look like to radio telescopes. These include objects telling of star birth, such as the Orion nebula, as well as the remains of stars that died in supernova explosions, such as the Crab nebula.
Cognitive Mode Determination

Dedicated readers who have mastered the decoupling formulas in Chap. 4 may still be wondering why it is worth the effort. The present chapter will show that decoupled attitudes make for simpler expressions when they are combined with the functions to form cognitive modes.
Abstract T MP13: Tak1 Knockdown In Myeloid Lineage Protects Against Transient Focal Cerebral Ischemia In Mice

Introduction: Stroke is 4th cause of death and one of the leading causes of disability in United States. Transforming growth factor β activated kinase-1 (TAK1) is a major contributor in the progression of injury post stroke. Pharmacological inhibition of TAK1 is neuroprotective after stroke, but the cell type responsible for these effects is unknown. Myeloid cells play a key role in inflammation after stroke and selective deletion of TAK1 in myeloid cells reduced neuro-inflammation in models of multiple sclerosis. Therefore, we hypothesized that the detrimental effects of TAK1 activation after ischemic injury were mediated by myeloid-specific activation of TAK1. Methods: Young male ovary-intact and ovariectomized female [litter mates TAKfl/fl and TAKfl/flLysMcre (mTAK-/-)], (8-12 weeks) were randomly divided into sham and stroke group and subjected to 90 minutes of right middle artery occlusion. Neurobehavioral assessments were performed after 24 hours and brains were taken for analysis. Results: In sham males, there was a significant increase in the percentage of circulating macrophages and neutrophils in mTAK-/- (62.48 ± 2.43 and 33.33 ± 3.01 respectively) compared to TAKfl/fl (35.38 ± 3.09 and 17.04 ± 3.26) (p<0.05) mice. After stroke, a significant decrease in macrophages and neutrophils was observed in mTAK-/- (22.60 ± 1.23 and 17.57 ± 2.60, respectively) compared to TAKfl/fl (72.90 ± 4.63 and 57.78 ± 5.9, respectively) (p<0.05). There was a significant improvement in neurological deficit score (NDS) in mTAK-/- (1.9 ± 0.4) compared to WT littermates (3 ± 0.7) (p<0.05). An increase in total TAK1 expression was seen in mTAK-/- mice after stroke but there was no difference in levels of phosphorylated TAK1 (p<0.05). In females, there was a significant improvement in the NDS and corner test in ovx mTAK-/-females (2.2 ± 0.4 and 0.7 ± 0.1) as compared to ovx TAKfl/fl females (3.0 ± 0.6and 0.9 ± 0.2) (p<0.05) respectively. Ovary intact mTAK-/- and TAKfl/fl females had similar infarct suggesting a role for estrogen in TAK signaling or post stroke inflammation. Conclusion: TAK1 deletion in myeloid cells leads to neuroprotection against ischemic injury. Further studies will be performed to determine the contribution of different cell types in the TAK1 signaling.
Psychomotor retardation and agitation in depression. Relationship to age, sex, and response to treatment.

Abstract Patients with primary affective disorder who had either psychomotor agitation alone or psychomotor retardation alone were studied. Compared to psychomotor retardation, psychomotor agitation appears to be seen more frequently in women, older patients, and individuals who have a late onset their illness. In addition, those with agitation alone appeared to have a better and faster response to electroconvulsive therapy.
Diversification of β-Augmentation Interactions between CDI Toxin/Immunity Proteins

Contact-dependent growth inhibition (CDI) is a widespread mechanism of inter-bacterial competition mediated by the CdiB/CdiA family of two-partner secretion proteins. CdiA effectors carry diverse C-terminal toxin domains (CdiA-CT), which are delivered into neighboring target cells to inhibit growth. CDI(+) bacteria also produce CdiI immunity proteins that bind specifically to cognate CdiA-CT toxins and protect the cell from auto-inhibition. Here, we compare the structures of homologous CdiA-CT/CdiI complexes from Escherichia coli EC869 and Yersinia pseudotuberculosis YPIII to explore the evolution of CDI toxin/immunity protein interactions. Both complexes share an unusual β-augmentation interaction, in which the toxin domain extends a β-hairpin into the immunity protein to complete a six-stranded anti-parallel sheet. However, the specific contacts differ substantially between the two complexes. The EC869 β-hairpin interacts mainly through direct H-bond and ion-pair interactions, whereas the YPIII β-hairpin pocket contains more hydrophobic contacts and a network of bridging water molecules. In accord with these differences, we find that each CdiI protein only protects target bacteria from its cognate CdiA-CT toxin. The compact β-hairpin binding pocket within the immunity protein represents a tractable system for the rationale design of small molecules to block CdiA-CT/CdiI complex formation. We synthesized a macrocyclic peptide mimic of the β-hairpin from EC869 toxin and solved its structure in complex with cognate immunity protein. These latter studies suggest that small molecules could potentially be used to disrupt CDI toxin/immunity complexes.
Innate Immunity and Human Milk

Human neonates are born with an immature and naive acquired immune system, and many of the innate components of mucosal immunity are not fully developed. Thus, the innate immune system of human milk is an important complement to the mucosal barrier of the developing gut. The nursing mother provides her infant many protective agents through milk, a growing number of which have been identified as isolates of milk in laboratory models of infection. The number, the potency, and the importance of these protective agents are probably greater than previously thought. For example, many potent protective agents are not found in milk until digestion releases antimicrobial agents such as fatty acids and peptides. An alternate conformer of alpha-lactalbumin forms from milk in the stomach and inhibits cancer cells. Many of the protective constituents of human milk inhibit different aspects of a pathogenic process, creating a synergy, where much lower concentrations of each component become protective. Some components have a temporal and a spatial specificity that would cause their protective role to go unrecognized by most laboratory models of infection. Some protective components had remained underappreciated because of technical challenges in their isolation and testing. Recent reports suggest that human milk contains a highly potent mixture of protective agents that constitute an innate immune system, whereby the mother protects her infant from enteric and other diseases. These human-milk components may represent a rich source of novel classes of therapeutic agents against human pathogens.
A university-based distributed satellite mission control network for operating professional space missions

Abstract For more than a decade, Santa Clara University׳s Robotic Systems Laboratory has operated a unique, distributed, internet-based command and control network for providing professional satellite mission control services for a variety of government and industry space missions. The system has been developed and is operated by students who become critical members of the mission teams throughout the development, test, and on-orbit phases of these missions. The mission control system also supports research in satellite control technology and hands-on student aerospace education. This system serves as a benchmark for its comprehensive nature, its student-centric nature, its ability to support NASA and industry space missions, and its longevity in providing a consistent level of professional services. This paper highlights the unique features of this program, reviews the network׳s design and the supported spacecraft missions, and describes the critical programmatic features of the program that support the control of professional space missions.
Dynamic simulation of multispecies reaction/diffusion in nonisothermal porous spheres

Abstract This is the last in a series of papers on the numerical dynamic simulation of a single, spherically symmetric, porous pellet in which diffusive transport and chemical reactions are taking place. It describes the extension of the technique to multiple fluid and solid reactants and products, underoing multiple reactions. As shown previously, the particular form of the model in which explicit references to individual fluid species fluxes have been eliminated offers favorable numerical characteristics. This paper describes the considerable additional effort, by comparison to the binary fluid system of the previous paper, required to accomplish the flux elimination. The fluxes can be replaced by functions of the fluid species mole fractions and the total molar flux if the transport equations can be inverted. An algorithm for obtaining a unique solution to the Stefan—Maxwell equations is described in detail with references to other approaches in the literature. This permits formulation of the model as an index one set of differential/algebraic equations suitable for numerical solution by a general-purpose DAE solver. We briefly describe a code, MSRS (Multispecies Shale Retorting Simulator), which uses the DAE solver DASSL to simulate nonisothermal reacting/diffusing pellet dynamics. Two example problems are presented: a smaller, three fluid/two solid/one reaction simplified model of oil shale combustion, and a larger, nine fluid/10 solid/15 reaction simulation of in situ oil shale retorting with time-dependent boundary conditions. Both models were run with coarse and fine spatial solution meshes. Simulator performance is discussed and several modifications to the models made to speed up execution.
Comparative Validity of Five Alcoholism Typologies

The objective of this study was to compare and rank the descriptive validity for five alcoholism typologies. Five typology systems were applied. These included the presence or absence of 1) primary alcoholism, 2) drug abuse or dependence, 3) antisocial personality disorder (ASPD), 4) early-onset alcoholism, and 5) parental alcoholism. The rank order (mean rank) from best to worst typology was presence or absence of ASPD (2.28), drug abuse or dependence (2.44), early-onset alcoholism (2.94), primary alcoholism (330), and parental alcoholism (4.03). Documenting DSM-III Axis I drug abuse or dependence comorbidity and Axis II ASPD comorbidity is a valid alcoholism typology strategy.
Gender differences in young children's interactions when learning fundamental motor skills

Abstract The purpose of the study was to examine how young children interact in the context of learning fundamental motor skills. Twenty-nine preschool children were observed during a period of six consecutive months while they were participating in their daily motor skills program. Fieldwork research methodology was used and data were collected using participant observation techniques. During data analysis, emerging patterns were identified and cross-referenced against data collected from other sources (triangulation). Girls were found to interact in a cooperative, caring, and sharing manner. Bays were found to interact in a competitive, individualized, and egocentric manner. A cultural pattern of cooperative interaction among Asian children was found. In addition, both boys and girls tried to maintain their gender style of interaction when dealing with the opposite sex. This study reveals several aspects of the social environment that may need to be considered when teaching motor skills to young children.
Nippostrongylus brasiliensis: peripheral leukocyte responses and correlation of basophils with blood histamine concentration during infection in rats.

Abstract Rats infected on Day 0 with 3000 infective L3 larvae of Nippostrongylus brasiliensis, and uninfected controls, were monitored daily through Day 23 postinfection for changes in peripheral leukocytes and blood histamine concentrations. A generalized leukocytosis was observed between Days 7 and 18, the period leading up to and immediately following the time of expulsion of adult worms from the small intestine. The total number of lymphocytes was elevated between Days 11 and 17 post-infection; however, there was no change in the percentage of lymphocytes relative to other white blood cell types. The total number and percentage of monocytes were no different from controls, with the exception of Day 5 postinfection. On that day, there was a significant elevation in the number (614/mm3 blood in infected rats, as compared to 160/mm3 blood in controls) and relative proportion (2.7% of total leukocytes in infected animals, compared to 0.8% in controls) of monocytes, coinciding with the termination of the pulmonary migration of larvae. A period of moderate neutrophilia occurred between Days 7 and 12, but this was not accompanied by any changes in the proportion of neutrophils. A biphasic eosinophil response was observed. An early elevation of eosinophils occurred between Days 3 and 5, corresponding to the period of larval migration through the lungs. A second period of eosinophilia began on Day 11, when worm expulsion was beginning, and continued through Day 19, i.e., beyond the period of worm expulsion. Basophilia was observed as early as Day 6 after infection, rising to a peak on Day 13 (6.8% of total leukocytes in the infected animals, as compared to 0.5% in controls), and declining thereafter, but remaining above control levels until termination of the experiment on Day 23. The histamine content of blood samples, as determined by an enzymic-isotopic assay, closely paralleled the development and decline of basophilia; histamine levels also peaked on Day 13 postinfection (422.5 pg histamine/mm3 blood in infected rats, compared to 66.0 pg histamine/mm3 blood in controls). As basophilia progressed during the course of infection, there was a decline in the amount of histamine per basophil. In uninfected rats and during the first week after infection, basophils contained about 1.5–2.0 pg histamine per cell. In the third week of infection, there was about 0.6 pg histamine per basophil. The time course of the basophilia suggests that these cells may be involved in the expression of immunity to N. brasiliensis.
An experimental study of receptivity of acoustic waves in laminar boundary layers

The receptivity of a laminar boundary layer developing on a flat plate was studied with two- and three-dimensional roughness elements. The layer was subjected to acoustic waves from speakers orientated perpendicular to the surface of the plate. Visualization of the transition patterns were obtained by heating temperature sensitive liquid crystals on the plate and observing the cooling patterns associated with the different flow regimes. Hot-wire data showed that the most amplified Tollmien-Schlichting waves dominated the downstream growth when the roughnesses were placed within the linearly unstable regime. The receptivity depended upon the size and aspect ratio of the three-dimensional roughness as predicted by Choudhari and Kerschen 1990.
The role of damping in vibration theory

In many applications of vibration and wave theory the magnitudes of the damping forces are small in comparison with the elastic and inertia forces. These small forces may, however, have very great influence under certain special circumstances. Damping arises from the removal of energy by radiation or dissipation. It is generally measured under conditions of cyclic or near-cyclic motion. The nature of some important damping mechanisms is discussed and an indication is given of how the damping depends on the amplitude and frequency of the cyclic motion. The idealized models of damping which are commonly employed in theoretical analyses are described and some limitations are noted. Damping is of primary importance in controlling vibration response amplitudes under conditions of steady-state resonance and stationary random excitation. Damping also plays a crucial role in fixing the borderline between stability and instability in many dynamical systems. Some examples which illustrate this are discussed, including shaft whirl, and pipeline flutter.
Intercellular karyotypic similarity in near-diploid cell lines of human tumor origins

Abstract Intercellular karyotypic compositions were studied in seven near-diploid cultured cell populations (including six cell lines) of human colorectal and fibrosarcoma origins. Within each population, 50–88% of cells had the same cell-line-specific karyotype. In five of these seven populations, coexisting minor cell types could readily be identified, implicating the frequent occurrence of mosaicism in transformed cell lines. Nearly 90% of these cell types showed a single chromosome loss or gain from the modal cell karyotype. Parameters that may assist in the evaluation of karyotypic diversity of a transformed cell line are discussed briefly.
Inotropes in the hypoplastic left heart syndrome: Effects in an animal model

Background. Despite substantial changes in the surgical treatment of children born with the hypoplastic left heart syndrome, overall mortality remains high. Although further improvements in outcomes appear to depend on more effective perioperative care, few experimental data exist to guide appropriate pharmacologic therapy in these infants. Because different inotropic agents may have different effects on the ratio of pulmonary to systemic flow (Q p /Q s ), we hypothesize that they may not be equally effective at increasing oxygen delivery. Methods. In neonatal piglets (n = 6; 3.5 to 6.5 kg), we placed an innominate artery-to-pulmonary artery shunt, created an atrial septal defect, and then occluded right ventricular outflow. We examined the effects of a number of commonly used inotropic agents, administering high and low concentrations of dopamine (5 and 15 μg · kg −1 · min −1 ), dobutamine (5 and 15 μg · kg −1 · min −1 ), and epinephrine (0.05 and 0.1 μg/min). Results. Dobutamine at 15 μg · kg −1 · min −1 increased the Q p /Q s ratio from 1.03 ± 0.6 at baseline to 2.52 ± 0.55 ( p p p −1 · min −1 decreased the Q p /Q s ratio from 1.23 ± 0.21 to 0.82 ± 0.08 ( p p p p /Q s ratio and increased oxygen delivery, these changes were not statistically significant. Conclusions. Dopamine, dobutamine, and epinephrine all increased cardiac output but had substantially different effects on the Q p /Q s ratio and on oxygen delivery, possibly due to differential effects on systemic and pulmonary vascular resistances. This suggests that inotropic agents may not be equally beneficial in the clinical setting. Systemic venous oxygen saturation and the arteriovenous oxygen difference may help determine if a given inotrope improves oxygen delivery.
Software enabled cognitive radio antenna system

In this paper we discuss an antenna system composed of a reconfigurable communicating antenna and a wideband antenna for sensing purposes. The communicating antenna is a microstrip antenna that is reconfigured by moving its ground plane in a vertical or tilting manner. The sensing antenna is a printed monopole antenna designed for wideband sensing. The whole system is compactly packed and software controlled by an Arduino Uno microcontroller.
Enhancing candidate link generation for requirements tracing: The cluster hypothesis revisited

Modern requirements tracing tools employ information retrieval methods to automatically generate candidate links. Due to the inherent trade-off between recall and precision, such methods cannot achieve a high coverage without also retrieving a great number of false positives, causing a significant drop in result accuracy. In this paper, we propose an approach to improving the quality of candidate link generation for the requirements tracing process. We base our research on the cluster hypothesis which suggests that correct and incorrect links can be grouped in high-quality and low-quality clusters respectively. Result accuracy can thus be enhanced by identifying and filtering out low-quality clusters. We describe our approach by investigating three open-source datasets, and further evaluate our work through an industrial study. The results show that our approach outperforms a baseline pruning strategy and that improvements are still possible.
Development of the American dog tick, Dermacentor variabilis, following partial feeding by immatures.

The results of the reported studies show that incomplete feeding is more harmful to larvae than to nymphs of Dermacentor variabilis (Say) (Acarina: Ixodidae); more partially fed larvae than nymphs die and fewer insufficiently fed larvae than nymphs accept a 2nd blood meal. Deprivation results in miniature nymphs and adults, the latter having little or no scutal ornamentation. Data on minimum feeding time and nutritional requirements for satiation and molting are reported. The presumed ecological significance of the experimental results is discussed.