cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Moral Aspect of Nonmoral Goods and Evils

The idea that immoral behaviour can sometimes be admirable, and that moral behaviour can sometimes be less than admirable, has led several of its supporters to infer that moral considerations are not always overriding, contrary to what has been traditionally maintained. In this paper I shall challenge this inference. My purpose in doing so is to expose and acknowledge something that has been inadequately appreciated, namely, the moral aspect of nonmoral goods and evils. I hope thereby to show that, even if immorality can be admirable (and morality less than admirable), this poses no threat to morality.
On a planar representation of 3D figures commutative with respect to set and morphological operations

In order to reduce the amount of time required for computing set and morphological operations on 3D figures, we pose and solve the problem of finding such a planar representation of 3D figures, which is commutative with respect to these operations. The proposed representation is a generalization of the well known halftone technique, called ordered dithering, and thereby is a new kind of halftoning which can find applications elsewhere.
Fluorescence Detection of Bloodstain Patterns

Two fluorescent probes, ANS and TNS, were found to be effective in detecting bloodstain patterns. These materials, which are not fluorescent in aqueous solution, react non-specifically with protein and enable an observer to discern a pattern when viewed under UV light at 366 nm.
Interleukin‐37 reduces liver inflammatory injury via effects on hepatocytes and non‐parenchymal cells

Background and Aim The purpose of the present study was to determine the effects of IL-37 on liver cells and on liver inflammation induced by hepatic ischemia/reperfusion (I/R).
Rough set theory: a data mining tool for semiconductor manufacturing

The growing volume of information poses interesting challenges and calls for tools that discover properties of data. Data mining has emerged as a discipline that contributes tools for data analysis, discovery of new knowledge, and autonomous decisionmaking. In this paper, the basic concepts of rough set theory and other aspects of data mining are introduced. The rough set theory offers a viable approach for extraction of decision rules from data sets. The extracted rules can be used for making predictions in the semiconductor industry and other applications. This contrasts other approaches such as regression analysis and neural networks where a single model is built. One of the goals of data mining is to extract meaningful knowledge. The power, generality, accuracy, and longevity of decision rules can be increased by the application of concepts from systems engineering and evolutionary computation introduced in this paper. A new rule-structuring algorithm is proposed. The concepts presented in the paper are illustrated with examples.
Priority Shifting and the Dynamics of Managing Eradicable Infectious Diseases

Public health budget constraints force policy makers to prioritize resources toward those interventions that yield the highest perceived benefits. Intuitively, it appears optimal to focus resources on affordable interventions against prevalent diseases. However, due to the dynamics of infectious disease eradication, policies focusing on a static perception of priorities may lead to economically suboptimal outcomes. Using a hypothetical two-disease dynamic transmission model, we explore several different decision rules with respect to vaccination policy for eradicable diseases. The simulations show that cost-effectiveness decreases as the extent of priority shifting increases. This model suggests the need for a longer-term dynamic perspective to appropriately recognize costs and benefits of different policies for eradicable diseases.
Many substrates and functions of type II secretion: lessons learned from Legionella pneumophila

Type II secretion is one of six systems that exist in Gram-negative bacteria for the purpose of secreting proteins into the extracellular milieu and/or into host cells. This article will review the various recent studies of Legionella pneumophila that have increased our appreciation of the numbers, types and novelties of proteins that can be secreted via the type II system, as well as the many ways in which type II secretion can promote bacterial physiology, growth, ecology, intracellular infection and virulence. In this context, type II secretion represents a potentially important target for industrial and biomedical applications.
Spatially Resolved Temperature Measurements of Atmospheric-Pressure Normal Glow Microplasmas in Air

The rotational and vibrational temperatures of DC normal glow air discharges were measured by comparing modeled optical emission spectra of the N2 second positive system with spectroscopic measurements from the discharges. By using an imaging spectrometer and optical assembly, the temperature measurements were spatially resolved to about 6 mum. Results are presented for a 3.8-mA discharge at an electrode spacing of 400 mum. Rotational temperatures are highest in the near-cathode region around 1500 K and decrease toward the anode to about 1100 K. Throughout the discharge, higher rotational temperatures correspond with lower vibrational temperatures. The maximum vibrational temperature measured is around 5000 K. Emission from the N2 + first negative system was also measured and is only intense in the negative glow (NG) region. The temperature near the anode is sensitive to the anode material. Gold, stainless steel, and tungsten electrodes were studied. Oxidizing anode materials can create a bright and hot anode spot several hundred kelvin warmer than for nonreacting anode materials. In addition, comparisons between spatially resolved and previously studied emission-averaged temperatures indicate that the emission-averaged temperatures correspond to those of the NG regions.
An energy-conscious exploration methodology for reconfigurable DSPs

As the "system-on-a-chip" concept is rapidly becoming a reality, time-to-market and product complexity push the reuse of complex macromodules. Circuits combining a variety of the macromodules (micro-processors, DSPs, programmable logic and embedded memories) are being reported by a number of companies. Most of these systems target the embedded market where speed, area, and power requirements are paramount, and a balance between hardware and software implementation is needed. Reconfigurable computing devices have recently emerged as one of the major alternative implementation approaches, addressing most of the requirements outlined above.
Diffuse leiomyomatosis of the uterus: a case report with clonality analysis.

Diffuse uterine leiomyomatosis is a rare condition distinguished from the common uterine leiomyomata by involvement of the entire myometrium by innumerable, ill-defined, often small and confluent, histologically benign smooth-muscle nodules. Fourteen cases have been previously described in the literature. We report a case of diffuse leiomyomatosis in a 39-year-old woman. Several microscopic foci of the process were microdissected for clonality analysis. All samples showed a non-random X-chromosome inactivation pattern, and thus were consistent with a monoclonal neoplastic population of cells. However, in different foci of tumor, different X chromosomes were inactivated, supporting the independent origin of neoplastic clones and rejecting the possibility of a single clonal origin of all tumor cells. The results of the molecular analysis suggest that diffuse uterine leiomyomatosis may be an exuberant example of diffuse and uniform involvement of the entire myometrium by multiple leiomyomata.
Publishing in the USSR and Yugoslavia

Book publishing in Eastern Europe is a large enterprise dominated by the USSR in style and organization. While the Soviet influence is generally thought to be one of censorship principally, this influence resulted in other changes in most Eastern European nations following their communization shortly after World War II. Censorship exists wherever there is communist rule—or, for that matter, wherever there exists a single ruling party. The influence of the Soviet Union on publishing, however, also extended into the areas of author payments, publishing house organization, and the distribution of books. Yugoslavia was under this influence until her break with Russia in 1948. However, starting in the early 1950s, book publishing followed the pattern of general change in Yugoslavia's economic and political systems. Mass decentralization occurred, and the market-price system was gradually introduced. Moral censorship slowly disappeared, and political control of what was published was minimized. It is impossible...
Tipping and Service Quality: A Within-Subjects Analysis

Restaurant tips are supposed to be an incentive/reward for the delivery of good service. For tipping to serve this function, consumers must leave larger tips in response to better service. Numerous studies have found a relationship between evaluations of service and tip size, but these studies have involved between-subjects, correlational designs that mean the observed relationships could be due to extraversion, friendliness, generosity, or other stable dispositional differences between tippers that affect both service ratings and tip sizes. The current study attempts to rule out these alternative explanations by examining the tipping behavior of 51 people across multiple dining occasions. Results indicate that tip sizes are reliably correlated with service ratings after controlling for the identity of the tipper and, therefore, all potential stable dispositional difference confounds. The theoretical and practical implications of this finding are discussed.
The Financial Crisis of 1929 Reexamined: The Role of Soaring Inequality

AbstractThe financial crisis of 1929 that triggered the Great Depression has been endlessly studied. Still there is little consensus regarding what caused it. This article claims that wage stagnation and exploding inequality fueled three dynamics that set the stage for a financial crisis. First, consumption was constrained by the smaller share of total income accruing to workers, thereby restricting investment opportunities in the real economy. Flush with greater income and wealth, the elite flooded financial markets with credit, helping keep interest rates low and encouraging the creation of new credit instruments, some of which recycled the rich's surplus assets as debt to those less well off. Second, greater inequality pressured households to find ways to consume more in order to maintain their relative social status, resulting in reduced household saving, greater household debt, and possibly longer work hours. Third, as the rich took larger shares of income and wealth, they gained relatively more comm...
The Effect of Brain Tumors on BOLD Functional MR Imaging Activation in the Adjacent Motor Cortex: Implications for Image-guided Neurosurgery

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Functional MR (fMR) imaging data coregistered to a neurosurgical navigation system have been proposed as guides for the resection of brain tumor in or adjacent to eloquent cortices. The purpose of this study was to compare data obtained from the side of the brain affected by tumor with the contralateral side and to determine if there are physiological limitations of fMR imaging in accurately determining the location of the primary motor cortex. METHODS: Ten patients with tumors in or directly adjacent to the motor cortex were studied with fMR imaging (finger-tapping paradigm). fMR imaging data were analyzed using multiple R values. These data were coregistered to a real-time intraoperative neurosurgical navigation system. RESULTS: Significant variability of motor cortex activation patterns was noted among individual patients. The activation volumes on the side of the tumor were significantly smaller compared with the contralateral side for all tumors not previously resected (0.66±0.47). This was most pronounced in glioblastomas (0.27±0.21). We propose that these differences were caused by a loss of autoregulation in the tumor vasculature of glioblastomas and venous effects. CONCLUSION: Notwithstanding the differences noted, the motor cortex was identified successfully in all patients. This was confirmed by intraoperative physiological identification of the motor cortex and a lack of postoperative neurologic deficit.
An analysis of clinical queries in an electronic health record search utility

Purpose: While search engines have become nearly ubiquitous on the Web, electronic health records (EHRs) generally lack search functionality; furthermore, there is no knowledge on how and what healthcare providers search while using an EHR-based search utility. In this study, we sought to understand user needs as captured by their search queries. Methods: This post-implementation study analyzed user search log files for 6 months from an EHR-based, free-text search utility at our large academic institution. The search logs were de-identified and then analyzed in two steps. First, two investigators classified all the unique queries as navigational, transactional, or informational searches. Second, three physician reviewers categorized a random sample of 357 informational searches into high-level semantic types derived from the Unified Medical Language System (UMLS). The reviewers were given overlapping data sets, such that two physicians reviewed each query. Results: We analyzed 2207 queries performed by 436 unique users over a 6-month period. Of the 2207 queries, 980 were unique queries. Users of the search utility included clinicians, researchers and administrative staff. Across the whole user population, approximately 14.5% of the user searches were navigational searches and 85.1% were informational. Within informational searches, we found that users predominantly searched for laboratory results and specific diseases. Conclusions: A variety of user types, ranging from clinicians to administrative staff, took advantage of the EHR-based search utility. Though these users’ search behavior differed, they predominantly performed informational searches related to laboratory results and specific diseases. Additionally, a number of queries were part of words, implying the need for a free-text module to be included in any future concept-based search algorithm.
Seiches over parabolic bottoms

The solutions are derived for the shallow water standing waves of small amplitude that can form in channels or lakes of varying breadth with a concave parabolic bottom. In addition explicit solutions are given for standing waves in a ring-type lake with a parabolic bottom and a central circular island that has vertical walls.
Localization of MODY3 to a 5-cM Region of Human Chromosome 12

Maturity-onset diabetes of the young (MODY) is a heterogeneous disorder that appears to be characterized by a primary defect in insulin secretion. Mutations in an unknown locus (MODY1) on chromosome 20 and the glucokinase gene (MODY2) on chromosome 7 can cause this form of non-insulin-dependent diabetes. Recent genetic studies have identified a third locus on chromosome 12 (MODY3) that is linked to MODY in a group of French families. We have identified three families from Denmark, Germany, and the U.S. (Michigan) showing evidence of linkage with MODY3 and a family from Japan showing suggestive evidence. Analysis of key recombinants in these families localized MODY3 to a 5-cM interval between the markers D12S86 and D12S807/D12S820.
Demonstration of a GaN-spacer high electron mobility transistor with low alloy scattering

A new kind of high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) based on a GaN-spacer is reported. To confine the two-dimensional electron gas in this AlGaN-free HEMT, a GaN/ultrathin AlN/GaN pseudo-heterojunction has been used. The effective conduction band discontinuity is given by the AlN polarization-induced electric field. This new transistor shows a superior general performance than the standard HEMT due to a decrease in the alloy and real space transfer scattering, as well as lower ohmic contact resistance.
Seasonal phenology and management of Tomarus subtropicus (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) in St. Augustinegrass.

Abstract The grub Tomarus subtropicus Blatchley (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) is one of the most destructive pests of turfgrass and sugarcane (Saccharum spp.) in southern Florida, but its life cycle has only been described in sugarcane production. Preventive insecticides applied against T. subtropicus in turfgrass when adult activity and oviposition were expected in sugarcane have necessitated subsequent curative treatments. Thus, the seasonal activity of T. subtropicus was monitored using UV blacklight traps and by sampling soil in infested St. Augustinegrass lawns in Cape Coral and Punta Gorda, FL, during 2005–2006. Several preventive and curative insecticides and entomopathogenic nematode species were evaluated in laboratory, greenhouse and field tests. T. subtropicus is univoltine in both sugarcane and St. Augustinegrass, but adult flight peaked ≈1 mo later in St. Augustinegrass than in sugarcane. Halofenozide, clothianidin, and imidacloprid were effective preventive control products, and carbaryl and tr...
The Characterization of Riordan Arrays and Sheffer-type Polynomial Sequences

Here we present a characterization of Sheffer-type polynomial sequences based on the isomorphism between the Riordan group and Sheffer group and the sequence characterization of Riordan arrays. We also give several alternative forms of the characterization of the Riordan group, Sheffer group and their subgroups. Formulas for the computation of the generating functions of Riordan arrays and Sheffer-type polynomial sequences from the characteristics are shown. Furthermore, the applications of the characteristics to lattice walks and recursive construction of Sheffer-type polynomial sequences are also given.
Emerging seed enhancement technologies for overcoming barriers to restoration

Rangelands occupy over a third of global land area, and in many cases are in less than optimum condition as a result of past land use, catastrophic wildfire, and other disturbances, invasive species, or climate change. Often the only means of restoring these lands involves seeding desirable species, yet there are few cost effective-seeding technologies, especially for the more arid rangeland types. The inability to consistently establish desired plants from seed may indicate that seeding technologies being employed are not successful in addressing the primary sources of mortality in the progression from seed to established plant. Seed enhancement technologies allow for the physical manipulation and application of materials to the seed that can enhance germination, emergence, and/or early seedling growth. In this article, we examine some of the major limiting factors impairing seedling establishment in North America's sagebrush steppe ecosystem and propose seed enhancement technologies that may have the potential to overcome these restoration barriers. We discuss specific technologies for: (1) increasing soil water availability; (2) enhancing seedling emergence in crusting soil; (3) controlling the timing of seed germination; (4) improving plantability and emergence of small-seeded species; (5) enhancing seed coverage of broadcasted seeds; and (6) protecting seedlings from pre-emergent herbicide. Concepts and technologies in this article for restoring the sagebrush steppe ecosystem may apply generally to semiarid and arid rangelands around the globe.
The Variation of Stress in a Tension-Field Beam

T purpose of this paper is to increase the present meager knowledge concerning the variation of stress in tension-field beams, which at present is limited to two solutions by Herbert Wagner in N.A.C.A. Technical Memorandums 604 and 605. These two cases are for a concentrated load at the free ends of a rectangular and of a trapezoidal beam, the solution for the latter being only an approximate one.* Consider a cross section of the beam at a distance z from the origin. Let h be the height of the cross section, t the thickness, and TV the shearing stress at a point P whose distance from the median line of the beam is y (Fig. 1). If Q is the shear force on the cross section,
Machine Tongues XIV: CSP -- Communicating Sequential Processes

The possibility of performing parallel computations has long held out the promise of breaking the speed limits imposed by sequential monoprocessors. However, even though some significant inroads have been made into this extremely complex area, we are still very much struggling to understand how to design, build, and program multiprocessor machines effectively. All areas of computing are or will be affected by this ongoing development, and computer music is certainly no exception. We need all the computing speed we can get, especially because real-time performance is of such importance in our field. In order to utilize parallelism effectively we must have tools-languages and models that allow us to understand and formulate concurrent algorithms. A number of schemes have been put forward, but one of the most successful proposals to date is the model developed by computer science superstar C. A. R. Hoare in 1978: Communicating Sequential Processes, or CSP as it is commonly known (Hoare 1978). In this seminal paper Hoare describes a parallel computational model and its associated notation, which has been almost universally adopted by computer scientists. This success is due to several factors: the economy of the model, its efficient notation, and the elegant way the simple primitives combine to provide a very powerful and general computational paradigm. Hoare did not set out to define a complete programming language, but rather to propose and illustrate some new language primitives. Since then, CSP has taken a course more in the direction of a mathematical theory and notation to specify the behavior of concurrent, abstract processes, rather than developing as a programming language per se. Several "real" programming languages based on CSP have been implemented, the chief one being OCCAM2 (INMOS 1988; Wexler 1989), which is the language used to program the INMOS Transputer processors.
Micropatterned thermoresponsive surfaces by polymerization of monomer crystals: modulating cellular morphology and cell-substrate interactions.

A novel and facile approach has been developed to create thermoresponsive surfaces with macroscale patterns together with microscale features. The surface patterns were formed by applying macroscale nucleation agent patterns onto saturated N-isopropylacrylamide monomer solution membranes to induce the divergent growth of needlelike monomer crystals; the patterned monomer crystals were then photopolymerized to form patterned thermoresponsive films. A series of analytical tools (i.e., scanning electron microscopy, profilometry, and contact angle measurement) were used to characterize the properties of the patterned films. Cell coculture on this patterned thermoresponsive films enables cell separation and sorting by modulating temperature- and topography-dependent cell–substrate interactions and cell morphology, respectively. This versatile technique allows the formation of various macroscale patterns with microscale features over large areas, and on most solid substrates, within minutes, all of this without...
HFS Job Description Survey: The Question of Gender

This paper reports findings with respect to sex differences from a job description survey of members, fellows, and associates of the Human Factors Society living in the continental U.S. Gender differences are reported for salary, where we work, what we do, characteristics of our jobs, and job satisfaction. Only those at the masters degree level are included because of the small number of females with doctorates in the sample.
Preparing Students for Careers in Multichannel Retailing Using an Authentic Experiential Learning Project

Multichannel retailing education has penetrated into fashion marketing programmes with the emergence of ecommerce. Although class textbooks and lectures help set the curriculum in motion, there is a lack of educational literature on the experiential learning practices in multichannel retailing classes. This paper introduces an experiential learning group project that complements multichannel textbooks and lectures to better prepare students for careers in the multichannel retailing world. The project specifically assigned students the task of building an online presence for actual brick and mortar stores near the university. The four learning modes of experiential learning were used as the framework to record the transformations which occurred from the students’ experiences with the project. The learning outcomes demonstrated the students’ development of knowledge and skills relevant to careers in today's multichannel retailing environment. Future research opportunities and limitations are also discussed.
Stackelberg Games for Vaccine Design

Stackelberg game models have recently seen considerable practical and academic success in security applications, with defender as the leader, and attacker the follower. The key conceptual insight of Stackelberg security games is that defense needs to be proactive, optimally accounting for attacker's response to a defensive posture. We propose that this insight has relevance in another important application domain: vaccination. Vaccination therapies are important tools in the battle against infectious diseases such as HIV and influenza. However, many viruses, including HIV, can rapidly escape the therapeutic effect through a sequence of mutations. We propose to design vaccines, or, equivalently, antibody sequences, that make such evasion difficult. Formally, we model the interaction between a vaccine and a virus as a Stackelberg game in which the vaccine designer chooses an antibody, and the virus chooses a minimal sequence of mutations to escape it.Our crucial observation is that we can leverage protein modeling software, Rosetta, as an oracle to compute binding score for an input virus-antibody pair. This observation enables us to develop a fully automated bi-level stochastic optimization algorithm for optimal antibody "commitment" strategy. A key technical challenge is that score calculation for each possible antibody-virus pair is intractable. We therefore propose a novel simulation-based bi-level optimization algorithm to address this, which consists of three elements: first, application of local search, using a native antibody sequence as leverage, second, machine learning to predict binding for antibody-virus pairs, and third, a Poisson regression to predict escape costs as a function of antibody sequence assignment. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed methods, and exhibit an antibody with a far higher escape cost (7) than the native (1).
Object Orientation, Open Regional Science, and Cumulative Knowledge Building

Because so many present and future challenges are regional in scope, regional solutions will be needed, and the next 50 years of research at the regional level will only grow in importance. In the future, appropriate regional scales will be supranational, national, and subnational, many global problems will require localized solutions, and there will be an increasing recognition of the importance of integrating multi-scale human and physical systems models, recognizing that economic and environmental sustainability are inseparable. Models of systems of integrated systems will play an increasingly prominent role. Future modeling research will move away from individual efforts and toward projects that leverage new technologies that support group development and intelligence. The cumulative knowledge-building promise of open source and open science dwarfs that of the individual and small team research silos of the past. The collective development of software tools like Linux, Python and R libraries, and PySAL, to name just a few, is well underway, and fledgling models integrating human and environmental systems are clearly on the horizon. This chapter presents our vision of the path forward in integrated systems modeling, founded on the open source, open science, object oriented modeling triumvirate, using a dynamic interindustry space time economic model to focus the discussion.
Sexuality After Urinary Undiversion

We report on the sexuality of 2 young men following urinary undiversion. One patient reported improved sexual experience due to loss of the appliance and improved self-image. Urine leakage during sexual activity can be prevented only by catheterization before intercourse. The other patient has undergone rediversion after a technically satisfactory undiversion because of urine leakage during intercourse that did not respond to intense pharmacologic therapy and bladder emptying before sexual activity. Sexuality following undiversion has not been studied previously. Additional guidelines in preoperative evaluation and patient education are suggested.
Characterization of Resistances of a Capacitive Deionization System

Capacitive deionization (CDI) is a promising desalination technology, which operates at low pressure, low temperature, requires little infrastructure, and has the potential to consume less energy for brackish water desalination. However, CDI devices consume significantly more energy than the theoretical thermodynamic minimum, and this is at least partly due to resistive power dissipation. We here report our efforts to characterize electric resistances in a CDI system, with a focus on the resistance associated with the contact between current collectors and porous electrodes. We present an equivalent circuit model to describe resistive components in a CDI cell. We propose measurable figures of merit to characterize cell resistance. We also show that contact pressure between porous electrodes and current collectors can significantly reduce contact resistance. Lastly, we propose and test an alternative electrical contact configuration which uses a pore-filling conductive adhesive (silver epoxy) and achieves ...
Marbury, Hayburn's Case, and the Separation of the Judicial and Executive Powers

This is an early draft of a working paper. Many aspects of the holdings in Marbury v. Madison and Hayburn's Case, two famous early instances of federal courts refusing to give effect to unconstitutional congressional statutes, can be better understood by viewing the cases in the context of the executive functions previously exercised by courts in Britain and the colonies. Scholars often wonder how the first Congresses could have enacted the laws invalidated in Marbury and Hayburn's Case, given that those laws seem to assign responsibilities and jurisdiction to federal courts that clearly violate the dictates of Article III. The answer, this paper argues, may be that the concept of the "judicial power" was not yet fully developed in the early American Republic. Courts in England and the colonies exercised a variety of administrative functions, and the British Crown considered courts a subset of the executive apparatus available to administer laws and policies and to supervise officials. This would explain both why Congress may have assumed that federal courts would play a similar role in the new order, and why the federal courts ultimately rejected that assumption as inconsistent with the notion of a distinct and independent judicial power. The new interpretation of Marbury and Hayburn's Case offered in this paper helps to clarify lessons about justiciability and separation of powers doctrines that courts and scholars continue to draw from these and other early cases, particularly with respect to the supervisory powers of the Supreme Court.
Complementation of Cobalamin Auxotrophy in Synechococcus sp. Strain PCC 7002 and Validation of a Putative Cobalamin Riboswitch In Vivo

ABSTRACT The euryhaline cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002 has an obligate requirement for exogenous vitamin B12 (cobalamin), but little is known about the roles of this compound in cyanobacteria. Bioinformatic analyses suggest that only the terminal enzyme in methionine biosynthesis, methionine synthase, requires cobalamin as a coenzyme in Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002. Methionine synthase (MetH) catalyzes the transfer of a methyl group from N5-methyl-5,6,7,8-tetrahydrofolate to l-homocysteine during l-methionine synthesis and uses methylcobalamin as an intermediate methyl donor. Numerous bacteria and plants alternatively employ a cobalamin-independent methionine synthase isozyme, MetE, that catalyzes the same methyl transfer reaction as MetH but uses N5-methyl-5,6,7,8-tetrahydrofolate directly as the methyl donor. The cobalamin auxotrophy of Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002 was complemented by using the metE gene from the closely related cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 73109, which possesses genes for both methionine synthases. This result suggests that methionine biosynthesis is probably the sole use of cobalamin in Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002. Furthermore, a cobalamin-repressible gene expression system was developed in Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002 that was used to validate the presence of a cobalamin riboswitch in the promoter region of metE from Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 73109. This riboswitch acts as a cobalamin-dependent transcriptional attenuator for metE in that organism. IMPORTANCESynechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002 is a cobalamin auxotroph because, like eukaryotic marine algae, it uses a cobalamin-dependent methionine synthase (MetH) for the final step of l-methionine biosynthesis but cannot synthesize cobalamin de novo. Heterologous expression of metE, encoding cobalamin-independent methionine synthase, from Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 73109, relieved this auxotrophy and enabled the construction of a truly autotrophic Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002 more suitable for large-scale industrial applications. Characterization of a cobalamin riboswitch expands the genetic toolbox for Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002 by providing a cobalamin-repressible expression system.
Carriage and Transmission of Kingella kingae

Kingella kingae is a commensal organism in the human oropharynx and can be readily collected from the tonsillar surfaces of colonized children for isolation on selective media or detection using PCR-based approaches. Studies of K. kingae carriage have found colonization rates of 3–12 %, with the highest rates in children 6–29 months of age. Children can be colonized multiple times during early life, generally with different strains. Current evidence supports the conclusion that colonization is a prerequisite for the development of invasive disease. While the mechanism of transmission has not been investigated, multiple studies have reported colonization by genotypically identical strains in close contacts such as daycare facility classmates and siblings, suggesting direct person-to-person transmission of the organism. Daycare facility attendance itself has been identified as a risk factor for K. kingae colonization and for outbreaks of K. kingae invasive disease.
Assessing the Negative and Positive Emotion-Dependent Nature of Risky Behaviors Among Substance Dependent Patients:

Despite literature highlighting the relevance of negative and positive emotions to risky behaviors, little research has examined the emotion-dependent context of risky behaviors. This study sought to develop and validate a comprehensive measure of the frequency and emotion-dependent context of distinct clinically relevant risky behaviors (the Risky Behavior Questionnaire [RBQ]), as well as to examine the unique relations of the RBQ Negative and Positive Scales (which assess the general tendency to engage in risky behaviors in the context of negative vs. positive emotions, respectively) to specific risky behaviors. Participants were 176 patients in a residential substance use disorder treatment facility ( M age = 34.18; 65.3% White, 53.4% female). Results provided support for the construct and incremental validity (relative to extant measures of related constructs) of the RBQ Scales, as well as the differential relevance of RBQ Negative and Positive Scales to specific risky behaviors.
Defining wake characteristics from scanning and vertical full- scale lidar measurements

This paper describes the use of lidar to capture full-scale wake characteristics. Measuring wake characteristics such as velocity deficit, wake width and asymmetry as well as wake meander with scanning Doppler lidar requires an efficient scan geometry in which wake volumes are comprehensively scanned while 'empty' volumes are excluded and also requires optimization for maximum spatial and temporal coverage. Some examples are given from a field experiment in Prince Edward Island in 2015 that show wake characterization from both scanning and vertical lidar.
Is enhanced recovery enough for reducing 30-d readmissions after surgery?

Abstract Background Few enhanced recovery pathways (ERPs) include processes related to the hospital to home transfer. Little has been reported regarding readmissions in enhanced recovery programs. This study evaluates readmissions and identifies areas to optimize ERPs to prevent readmissions. Methods We conducted an observational, retrospective study at a single tertiary care center. Patients in an ERP for colorectal surgery were compared with a similar cohort who underwent surgery before protocol implementation. We evaluated 30-d readmission, compliance to enhanced recovery protocol, and diagnoses and patient care experiences related to transition of care. Results Readmission rates (17.6% versus 19.4%; P = 0.55) were similar. There was significant reduction in index hospitalization length of stay (5.3 versus 7.0 d; P versus 16.6%; P = 0.01). Although enhanced recovery was associated with reduced readmissions for surgical site infections (31% versus 50.7%, P = 0.02), there was a trend toward increased readmissions for small bowel obstruction–ileus (31% versus 19.1%, P = 0.13). ERPs did not impact perceptions of care transitions; however, those who were readmitted rated their transition lower than those that were not. Conclusions Although ERPs did not reduce readmissions, the program was associated with reduced length of stay and surgical site infections. ERPs did not influence perceptions of the transition to home. Transition process measures aimed at reducing readmission and improving patient outcomes, including use of transition guides, remote vital sign and symptom monitoring, and early clinical follow-up have not traditionally been part of ERP protocols but should be considered.
Perinatal exposure to 2,2',4'4' -Tetrabromodiphenyl ether induces testicular toxicity in adult rats.

Abstract Since 1965, polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) have been used internationally as flame-retardant additives. PBDEs were recently withdrawn from commerce in North America and Europe due to their environmental persistence, bioaccumulative properties and endocrine-disrupting effects. Generations exposed perinatally to the highest environmental doses of PBDE account for one-fifth of the total United States population. While, toxicity of PBDE for the male reproductive system has been demonstrated in several human and animal studies, the long-lasting effects of perinatal exposures on male reproduction are still poorly understood. In this study, pregnant Wistar rats were exposed to 0.2 mg/kg 2,2′,4,4′-tetrabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-47) from gestation day 8 until postnatal day 21. Male reproductive outcomes were analyzed on postnatal day 120 in offspring. Exposed animals had significantly smaller testes, displayed decreased sperm production per testis weight, had significantly increased percentage of morphologically abnormal spermatozoa, and showed an increase in spermatozoa head size. Perinatal BDE-47 exposure led to significant changes in testes transcriptome, including suppression of genes essential for spermatogenesis and activation of immune response genes. In particular, we observed a 4-fold average decrease in expression of protamine and transition protein genes in testes, suggesting that histone-protamine exchange may be dysregulated during spermatogenesis, resulting in an aberrant sperm epigenome. The possibility of long-lasting effects of developmental PBDE exposures calls for additional studies to build a foundation for the development of preventive and protective interventions against the environmentally-induced decline in fertility.
Separation of Landfill Gas CH4 from N2 Using Pressure Vacuum Swing Adsorption Cycles with Heavy Reflux

Simulations were carried out to study the purification of CH4 from pretreated landfill gas containing 88 vol % CH4 and 12 vol % N2 using BPL activated carbon and three different four-bed four-step pressure vacuum swing adsorption (PVSA) cycles. All three PVSA cycle schedules included feed (F), heavy reflux (HR), countercurrent depressurization (CnD), and light product pressurization (LPP) steps. The light-end heavy-reflux plus recycle (LEHR–Rec) cycle had a HR step fed to the light end of a bed by a partial reflux of the product from the CnD step and a full recycle of the product from the HR step blended back with the feed. The heavy-end HR plus recycle (HEHR–Rec) cycle was the same as the LEHR–Rec cycle except the HR step was fed to the heavy end of a bed. The heavy-end HR (HEHR) cycle was the same as the HEHR–Rec cycle, except that it did not have Rec, so the product from the HR step was taken as light product. For all three PVSA cycles, increases in either the feed throughput or the HR reflux ratio cau...
Sex Differences in Sleep Duration among Older Adults with Self-Reported Diagnosis of Arthritis: National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2009-2012.

Objective. Sleep is restorative, essential, and beneficial to health. Prevalences of some diseases have been associated with sleep duration. There are few studies in the literature on the relationship of sleep duration and arthritis stratified by sex in older adults. The purpose of this research is to investigate sleep duration among older adults in the United States who have self-reported diagnosis of arthritis. Methods. A cross-sectional study design was used. The data source was the National Health and Nutrition Examination 2009-2010 and 2011-2012. Self-reported diagnosis of arthritis and sleep duration were the variables of interest. Results. There were 4,888 participants, aged 50 years and above, of whom 41.6% self-reported having a diagnosis of arthritis, and 60.6% were female. Of the people who had a self-reported diagnosis of arthritis, 15.2% reported sleeping 2-5 hours as compared with 10.9% of the people who did not have a self-reported diagnosis of arthritis ( ). In bivariate analysis of self-reported diagnosis of arthritis and sleep stratified by sex, there were significantly more people with self-reported diagnosis of arthritis who slept 2-5 hours for both women ( ) and men ( ). The overall relationship remained significant in adjusted overall logistic regression comparing for self-reported diagnosis of arthritis for 2-5 hours of sleep (with 6-7 hours of sleep as the reference) (odds ratio: 1.35 [95% CI: 1.08, 1.70; ]); however, when the data were stratified by sex, the association failed to reach significance. Conclusion. In this analysis of noninstitutionalized older adults in the United States, the prevalence of a self-reported diagnosis of arthritis was associated with shorter sleep duration in the overall analyses, but the association failed to reach significance when stratified by sex.
Differences in Engagement Among BabyCenter.com Community Forum Contributors: A Pilot Study

For many women, online health communities, such as BabyCenter.com, provide mediums to quell doubts and receive answers amidst the pressing uncertainties of pregnancy [1]. Women contributing to such community forums often suffer from complications such as postpartum depression, and likely want their posts addressed in a timely and adequate manner. This work examined quantitative and qualitative factors that contribute to various levels of responsiveness to posts in BabyCenter.com post-partum depression online health communities. Our aim was to identify post characteristics conducive to higher levels of engagement from online health forum contributors. In this study, we analyzed characteristics of posts (length of the main text, time of day, existence of exclamation points or question marks in the title) to see if there was a relationship between the number of community comments (as a measure of engagement) and varying levels of the characteristics. The number of comments was used as a measure of engagement because it is an estimate of the extent to which community members were drawn to and felt compelled to interact with the post. For each of 100 randomly-selected posts (from 3 groups related to postpartum depression and anxiety), we generated summary statistics and performed two-sample t-tests. For the length of main post variable, a regression analysis was performed as well. In the end, we found no significant differences in engagement resulting from the three variables. For time of day, the average comments was 14.25 for AM posts, whereas the average number of comments for PM posts was 7.87. (p-value = 0.054, 95% CI: -0.11, 12.9, Figure 1). Length of the main post did not appear to predict level of engagement by online health community members (R2=0.0006, p-value=0.814, Figure 1). The difference in number of comments for posts with more than 148 words (median length) compared to posts with fewer than 148 words was also non-significant (p-value=0.58, 95% CI: -5.1, 2.8). Differences in engagement for posts with punctuation (exclamation point or question mark) in title (N=33) compared to those without (N=67) were non-significant (p-value=0.81, 95% CI: -4.0, 5.1) as well. (Figure 1) The strengths of this pilot study are in revealing characteristics that may appeal to users responding on online health community forums, it also sets the stage for future work investigating user behavior trends on social question and answering sites. The limitations include small sample size given our use of 100 randomly selected forum posts. Future work will assess larger data sets and examine more in-depth characteristics such as content and previous user behavior. For those participating in online health forum discussions, this research provides insight into factors that may foster a more reciprocal, communal environment for posting questions and comments. This process may lead to health benefits through providing better social support to posters managing postpartum depression [2].
Abstract TP107: B cells Migrate to Remote Areas Supporting Functional Recovery After Stroke

Background: Neuronal networks in the post-stroke CNS undergo significant reorganization and plasticity to compensate for loss of function in stroke-injured tissue. Studies in our lab show that B ce...