cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Relative toxicity of herbicide use in the United States 1990 to 2015

Abstract. Herbicide use is among the most criticized aspects of modern farming operations, especially in response to widespread adoption of genetically-engineered (GE) herbicide-resistant crops. Many previous analyses of herbicide use have relied on flawed metrics in an attempt to evaluate trends in herbicide intensity and toxicity. Here, it is shown that herbicide use intensity has increased over the last 25 years in corn, cotton, rice, and wheat. Although GE glyphosate-resistant crops have been previously blamed for increasing herbicide use, herbicide use increased more rapidly in the non-GE crops rice and wheat. Even as herbicide use has increased, the chronic toxicity hazard associated with herbicide use decreased in 3 out of 6 crops, while acute toxicity hazard decreased in 5 out of 6 crops. In GE glyphosate-resistant crops, glyphosate accounted for 26% of corn, 43% of soybean, and 45% of cotton herbicide applications. However, due to it’s relatively low chronic toxicity, glyphosate contributed only 0.1%, 0.3%, and 3.5% of the chronic toxicity hazard in these same crops, respectively.
Fixations Gate Species-Specific Responses to Free Viewing of Faces in the Human and Macaque Amygdala.

Neurons in the primate amygdala respond prominently to faces. This implicates the amygdala in the processing of socially significant stimuli, yet its contribution to social perception remains poorly understood. We evaluated the representation of faces in the primate amygdala during naturalistic conditions by recording from both human and macaque amygdala neurons during free viewing of identical arrays of images with concurrent eye tracking. Neurons responded to faces only when they were fixated, suggesting that neuronal activity was gated by visual attention. Further experiments in humans utilizing covert attention confirmed this hypothesis. In both species, the majority of face-selective neurons preferred faces of conspecifics, a bias also seen behaviorally in first fixation preferences. Response latencies, relative to fixation onset, were shortest for conspecific-selective neurons and were ∼100 ms shorter in monkeys compared to humans. This argues that attention to faces gates amygdala responses, which in turn prioritize species-typical information for further processing.
Your Brain on Facebook: Neuropsychological Associations with Social

We measured individuals’ mental associations between four types of media (books, television, social/Facebook, and general informational web pages) and relevant concepts (Addictive, Story, Interesting, Frivolous, Personal, and Useful) using three different measurements: a Likert scale questionnaire, a speeded Yes/No judgment task, and electrical brain activity. The three measures were designed to capture associations at different levels of mental processing, from very automatic (electrical brain activity) to conscious and reasoned (questionnaire). At more conscious levels of cognitive processing, Facebook was seen as interesting, addictive, and highly personal. Results for the electrical brain activity measure show that Facebook tells less of a story and, surprisingly, is less personal than other forms of media. We discuss differences in results across the three measures and how our findings can inform the design of future social media systems.
Urinary retention and catheter use among U.S. female Medicare beneficiaries: Prevalence and risk factors.

AIMS To identify the prevalence of and risk factors for urinary retention and catheterization among female Medicare beneficiaries. METHODS We identified women with a diagnosis of urinary retention in a 5% sample of Medicare claims in 2012. Women were categorized into three groups based on the occurrence and duration of urinary catheterization within a 1 year period: 1) no catheterization; 2) short-term catheterization (ie, one or more catheterizations in less than 30 days); and 3) chronic catheterization (catheterizations in multiple 30 day periods within 1 year). We then identified a group of age-matched controls without catheterization or a diagnosis of urinary retention in 2012. Clinical and demographic data were collected for each patient, and risk factors for retention and catheterization were compared across groups. We assessed factors associated with urinary retention using multivariable logistic regression. RESULTS We estimated the rate of retention to be 1532 per 100 000 U.S. female Medicare beneficiaries in 2012, with rates of short term and chronic catheterization estimated to be 160 and 108 per 100 000 women, respectively. Prior diagnoses of neurologic condition, urinary tract infection, and pelvic organ prolapse were positively associated with retention and catheterization in multivariable analyses. CONCLUSIONS We estimated the prevalence of urinary retention diagnoses among female Medicare beneficiaries to be 1532 per 100 000 women. Retention and catheterization were significantly associated with comorbid disease, with the strongest associations identified with a concomitant diagnosis of neurologic condition, UTI, and POP.
Electron-atom collisions: From Franck-Hertz experiment to atom traps

The key features of the cross sections for electron-impact excitation out of the ground levels of the rare-gas atoms are summarized and application of these cross section data is shown. This is followed by discussions of recent experiments on determination of electron-impact cross sections for excitation out of the metastable levels of He and Ar. The metastiable atom targets are produced by two different methods, i.e., hollow-cathode discharges and charge-exchange collisions of rare-gas ions with Cs atoms. The former method is simple but is limited to low electron energies because of the very small metastable concentration, whereas the latter method yields a fast target beam with predominantly metastable atoms allowing measurements up to the keV range. The measured cross sections show features very different from those of excitation out of the ground levels. Another new development in electron-atom collision is the use of atom traps for measuring ionization cross sections. The experiment is conducted by passing an electron beam pulse through magneto-optically trapped Rb atoms while the trap is momentarily turned off. Turning the trap back on immediately after the electron beam pulse recaptures the unionized atoms allowing only the ions to escape. The ionization cross section is determined bymore » measuring the electron beam current density at the trapped atom region and the fractional loss of trapped atoms due to the electron beam. This method avoids measurements of the absolute number of the target atoms and the overlap between the atomic and electron beams and therefore eliminates the major sources of uncertainty associated with the crossed-beam method for measuring ionization cross section.« less
Exploring potential components of wildlife-inspired awe

Awe was defined by Shiota, Keltner, and Mossman (2007) as an emotional human response to stimuli that overwhelm current ways of thinking and feeling as people attempt to accommodate the stimuli. For the purposes of these findings, wildlife-inspired awe was defined as the attempted accommodation of overwhelming emotional human–wildlife interactions. To explore the development of a tool for measuring wildlife-inspired awe, an online questionnaire was employed and sent to a convenience sample in which memories of wildlife-inspired awe were chronicled. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was used for identifying and sorting factors related to how people made sense of these memorable wildlife encounters. Three factors of wildlife-inspired awe emerged from the EFA and were labeled beauty, transcendence, and threat. The complexity of awe as an emotional response appeared to be captured within this study as awe has been framed as having both positive and negative affects. Results in the report provide insight into potential future strategies for measuring wildlife-inspired awe.
Numerical bifurcation analysis of large-scale detailed kinetics mechanisms

Despite the benefits of studying dynamical behavior of chemically reacting systems by bifurcation analysis, its utilization for large mechanisms is greatly limited by the lack of available software, and clear and published strategies for improving the technique. This paper reviews recent progress, and reports strategies we identified that greatly improve reliability and speed of computations. These are tested by combining two open-source software packages: AUTO-07p (bifurcation analysis) and Cantera (kinetics mechanism interpreter). Examples are shown for one-parameter and two-parameter bifurcation curves of methane partial oxidation. Cool and hot-flame regions and their dependence on secondary parameters can be identified and used to gain insight to previously unexplored operating regimes and potentially new reactor designs. Invariance in the bifurcation diagram provides evidence of successful mechanism reduction.
Focus On . . . Waste in the Health Care System

Waste in the health care system might seem like a strange topic for a pension journal. However, waste is directly connected to retirement security: to the extent that waste increases the cost of health care, (1) employers have less money available for retirement plan contributions, (2) working individuals have less available resources to save for retirement, because they are paying more than they should in premiums, deductibles, and co-pays, and (3) retired individuals need more income to enable them to pay out-of-pocket health expenses.
Engineering Elevated Vitamin C in Plants to Improve their Nutritional Content, Growth, and Tolerance to Abiotic Stress

Vitamin C (L-ascorbic acid, AsA) is essential for human health; however, despite our dependency on plants as dietary sources of this nutrient, little is known about its metabolism in crops. Ascorbate protects cells and organelles from oxidative damage by scavenging reactive oxygen species that are produced in response to abiotic and biotic insults, and is also a cofactor of many enzymes, controls cell division, affects cell expansion, and is a modulator of plant senescence. Biosynthesis of AsA in plants is carried out by a complex metabolic network involving D-mannose/L-galactose, D-galacturonate, L-gulose, and myo-inositol as main precursors. The recent cloning of several genes that regulate AsA synthesis and recycling has facilitated the generation of transgenic plants with enhanced AsA levels, and in some cases as much as sixfold increases in AsA relative to wild-type plants have been achieved. In this review, we provide an overview of research revealing three aspects of the biochemistry of AsA that have not been fully covered elsewhere. First, we discuss the main findings of studies on feeding plant tissues with precursors as a proxy to determine which of the AsA biosynthetic pathways are operational in model and crop plants, and discuss these in the context of the forward and reverse genetic studies that support the operation of each pathway. Next, we critically discuss the consequences of elevating AsA content for plant growth, and finally we explore the effect of AsA content on plant performance under environmental stress.
Structural and Functional Characterization of the Hemoglobin from Lumbricus terrestris

The extracellular Hb of the earthworm Lumbricus terrestris has an M m near 3,800 kDa (1) and is composed of four major kinds of 02-binding chains: a, b and c which form a disulfide-linked trimer, and chain d which is not covalently linked to any other chain (2, 3). Amino acid sequencing has shown both the position of the intra-molecular disulfide bond in each of the four chains and the positions of interchain disulfide bonds in the trimer (4, 5). Analyses of the heme content of the intact Hb, the abc trimer, and of isolated subunits a, b, c and d indicate that the intact molecule has 2200 g of non-heme protein per mole of heme (6). This value corresponds to 35,200 g of non-heme protein per one twelfth subunit, a value which appears to be consistent with those for bands V and VI observed with SDS-PAGE (7). An emerging picture of the structure of the intact molecule is that it consists of 192 heme-containing chains and 12 nonheme chains, at least some of which are required for the assembly of the intact molecule (8).
Relationship of vitamin D monitoring and status to bladder cancer survival in veterans.

Objectives: Veterans of the armed forces, like most population groups, have a high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency, which may be associated with adverse outcomes in several types of cancer. Ultraviolet irradiation is inversely linked with the risk of bladder cancer, presumably through enhanced vitamin D synthesis. We hypothesized that variations in vitamin D status and monitoring predict adverse outcomes in bladder cancer among veterans. Methods: A retrospective analysis of data in the Veterans Integrated Service Network-9 (southeastern United States) was performed for patients diagnosed between October 1, 1999 and February 29, 2008. Age, tobacco exposure, body mass index, and latitude and seasonality of sampling were included as variables in addition to serum vitamin 25(OH)D levels. Results: Monitoring of vitamin D and vitamin D levels and status were closely linked to survival in bladder cancer. Both the chances of survival and longevity improved with enhanced vitamin D status and monitoring. Veterans with bladder cancer had better outcomes if the initial vitamin D level was higher and had more monitoring of the vitamin. Initial vitamin D levels were more strongly related to outcomes than follow-up levels. The link between vitamin D and outcomes remained after adjusting for background variables such as age, body mass index, latitude, seasonality, and tobacco exposure. Conclusions: Findings suggest that adequate vitamin D levels early in the course of the disease provide the best opportunity to improve outcomes. Ensuring that veterans with bladder cancer have adequate vitamin D reserves with appropriate monitoring may play a role in improving outcomes in bladder cancer.
Simulation of Digital Camera Images from Hyperspectral Input

An important goal for digital color cameras is to record enough information about a scene so that it can be reproduced accurately for a human observer. By accurately, we mean so that the human observer will perceive the reproduction as looking like the original.
Genes in Cochliobolus heterostrophus affecting conidiation and lesion development

Slow growing mutants of Cochliobolus heterostrophus, a pathogen of maize, were tested to determine the effect of vigor on pathogenicity. Eighteen mutants with reduced growth, measured as colony diameter and biomass, were obtained by mutagenizing protoplasts of the fungus and their pathogenicity was assessed. Mutants tended to make smaller lesions than wild type. The correlation between colony diameter and lesion length was significant (R^= .313), but a significant correlation between biomass and lesion length was not detected (R2= .192). To test whether the same genes were causing both the growth and the pathogenicity defects, mutants were crossed to a wild-type progenitor. Twelve of the mutants produced viable progeny; eight of these mutants had growth phenotypes that were heritable and segregated as single loci. Mutant progeny also tended to make smaller lesions than wild type, and again, there was a significant correlation between colony diameter and lesion size (R^= .302), but not between biomass and lesion size (R^= .200). Significant correlations were not detected between conidial germination or appressorium formation and lesion size. However, one of the mutants produced very small flecks, yet grew in vitro similarly to other mutants that produced larger lesions; therefore, correlation coefficients were recalculated, omitting this mutant. Highly significant correlations were found between colony diameter and lesion size (R2= .529), and biomass and lesion size (R2= .616). Therefore, growth of this fungus, as determined by colony diameter or biomass, can significantly affect pathogenicity. Additional kevwords: Bipolaris maydis, com, Dreschslera maydis, fungal pathogen, Helminthosporium maydis, mutagenesis, Zea mays
Structure-Based Design of Novel EphA2 Agonistic Agents with Nanomolar Affinity in Vitro and in Cell

EphA2 overexpression is invariably associated with poor prognosis and development of aggressive metastatic cancers in pancreatic, prostate, lung, ovarian, and breast cancers and melanoma. Recent efforts from our laboratories identified a number of agonistic peptides targeting the ligand-binding domain of the EphA2 receptor. The individual agents, however, were still relatively weak in affinities (micromolar range) that precluded detailed structural studies on the mode of action. Using a systematic optimization of the 12-mer peptide mimetic 123B9, we were able to first derive an agent that displayed a submicromolar affinity for the receptor. This agent enabled cocrystallization with the EphA2 ligand-binding domain providing for the first time the structural basis for their agonistic mechanism of action. In addition, the atomic coordinates of the complex enabled rapid iterations of structure-based optimizations that resulted in a novel agonistic agent, named 135H11, with a nanomolar affinity for the receptor, as demonstrated by in vitro binding assays (isothermal titration calorimetry measurements), and a biochemical displacement assay. As we have recently demonstrated, the cellular activity of these agents is further increased by synthesizing dimeric versions of the compounds. Hence, we report that a dimeric version of 135H11 is extremely effective at low nanomolar concentrations to induce cellular receptor activation, internalization, and inhibition of cell migration in a pancreatic cancer cell line. Given the pivotal role of EphA2 in tumor growth, angiogenesis, drug resistance, and metastasis, these agents, and the associated structural studies, provide significant advancements in the field for the development of novel EphA2-targeting therapeutics or diagnostics.
Sepsis associated acute kidney injury

Sepsis is defined as organ dysfunction resulting from the host's deleterious response to infection. One of the most common organs affected is the kidneys, resulting in sepsis associated acute kidney injury (SA-AKI) that contributes to the morbidity and mortality of sepsis. A growing body of knowledge has illuminated the clinical risk factors, pathobiology, response to treatment, and elements of renal recovery that have advanced our ability to prevent, detect, and treat SA-AKI. Despite these advances, SA-AKI remains an important concern and clinical burden, and further study is needed to reduce the acute and chronic consequences. This review summarizes the relevant evidence, with a focus on the risk factors, early recognition and diagnosis, treatment, and long term consequences of SA-AKI. In addition to literature pertaining to SA-AKI specifically, pertinent sepsis and acute kidney injury literature relevant to SA-AKI was included.
Stage of disease and initial surgical intervention in colon cancer patients: An exploratory analysis of the SEER database.

e15170Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third-leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. CRC’s decreasing mortality rate has been attributed to increased screening and ea...
Suzuki coupling catalyzed by chloro({2-[mesityl(quinolin-8-yl-κN)boryl]-3,5-dimethylphenyl}methyl-κC)palladium(II)

Abstract The title compound was evaluated as catalyst for Suzuki coupling of aryl halides (X = I, Br) with phenylboronic acid at room temperature. The rates of the reactions increase with increasing Hammet sigma constant of m-substituents on the arylhalide. The presence of ortho groups on the arylhalides had the effect of lowering the reaction rates. Density functional theory study of the mechanism for the formation of a Pd(0) complex from the title molecule was performed. Reductive elimination of chloride and the η4-BCCC moiety was endergonic and ruled out as a likely pathway. Instead, conversion of the title molecule to phenyl({2-[mesityl(quinolin-8-yl-κN)boryl]-3,5-dimethylphenyl}methyl-κC)palladium(II) complex is thermodynamically favored and predicted to further react with the solvent and the Suzuki coupling reagents to undergo reductive elimination of diphenyl to form a reactive Pd(0) complex.
Molecular Simulation Study on the Volume Swelling and the Viscosity Reduction of n-Alkane/CO2 Systems

Carbon dioxide (CO2) injection is a successful enhanced oil recovery (EOR) technology that is being widely applied in North American oil fields. Studies have suggested CO2-based EOR is technically ...
Wideband Leakage Cancellation Network for Monostatic Continuous-Wave Radars

For a monostatic stepped-frequency continuouswave (SFCW) radar operating from 2 GHz to 4 GHz, a wideband passive leakage cancellation network using two circulators and a wideband 180-degree power combiner has been developed. Two similar circulators are utilized to provide two identical leakage signals and then leakage is canceled when both leakage signals are combined by a 180-degree power combiner. The wideband 180-degree power combiner has been implemented using parallelstrip lines. This proposed leakage canceller provides more than 33 dB cancellation over 2 GHz bandwidth, has 27.7 dB cancellation depth, does not require exhaustive adjustments, and is suitable for monostatic radar operation. The successful realtime monitoring of the subject using this monostatic radar indicates that the proposed leakage canceller can be utilized in a monostatic CW radar with a wideband antenna.
Double-Take: A Revisionist Harlem Renaissance Anthology

In this important new anthology. Venetria K. Patton and Maureen Honey bring together a comprehensive scicction of texts from the Harlem Renalssance a key period in the literary and cultural history of the cultural life of the United States. The collection revolutionizes our way of viewing this era, as it redresses the ongoing emphasis on the male writers of this time. Double.Take offers a unique, balanced collection of writers - men and women, gay and straight, familiar and obscure. The editors have also included works from a wide variety of genres poetry, short stories, drama, essays, music, and art - allowing readers to understand the true interdisciplinary quality of this cultural movement. Biographical sketches of the authors are provided and most of the places are included in their entirely. Double.Take also includes artwork and illustrations, many of which are from periodicals and have never before been reprinted. Significantly, Double-Take is the first book to include music lyrics to illustrate the interrelation of various art forms. Arranged by author, rather than by genre, this anthology includes works from major Harlem Renaissance figures as well as often-overlooked essayists, poets, dramatists, and artists.
CD200 Checkpoint Reversal: A Novel Approach to Immunotherapy.

Purpose: Advances in immunotherapy have revolutionized care for some cancer patients. However, current checkpoint inhibitors are associated with significant toxicity and yield poor responses for patients with central nervous system tumors, calling into question whether cancer immunotherapy can be applied to glioblastoma multiforme. We determined that targeting the CD200 activation receptors (CD200AR) of the CD200 checkpoint with a peptide inhibitor (CD200AR-L) overcomes tumor-induced immunosuppression. We have shown the clinical efficacy of the CD200AR-L in a trial in companion dogs with spontaneous high-grade glioma. Addition of the peptide to autologous tumor lysate vaccines significantly increased the median overall survival to 12.7 months relative to tumor lysate vaccines alone, 6.36 months. Experimental Design:This study was developed to elucidate the mechanism of the CD200ARs and develop a humanized peptide inhibitor. We developed macrophage cell lines with each of four CD200ARs knocked out to determine their binding specificity and functional response. Using proteomics, we developed humanized CD200AR-L to explore their effects on cytokine/chemokine response, dendritic cell maturation and CMV pp65 antigen response in human CD14+ cells. GMP-grade peptide was further validated for activity. Results: We demonstrated that the CD200AR-L specifically targets a CD200AR complex. Moreover, we developed and validated a humanized CD200AR-L for inducing chemokine response, stimulating immature dendritic cell differentiation, significantly enhanced an antigen-specific response and determined that the use of the CD200AR-L downregulated the expression of CD200 inhibitory and PD-1 receptors. Conclusions:These results support consideration of a CD200AR-L as a novel platform for immunotherapy against multiple cancers including glioblastoma multiforme.
The influence of hypoxic hypoxia on coronary blood flow heterogeneity.

The delivery of oxygen and other nutrients to myocardial tissue is a two-step process involving first, convective delivery to the microcirculation and then, diffusive delivery across the capillary wall and interstitium into the tissue cells. The diffusive part of this process is important for substances like oxygen which are normally highly extracted. The amount of oxygen extracted is a function of capillary transit time (Honig et al., 1992). Capillary transit time, in turn, is directly related to capillary flow and inversely related to capillary path length. Heterogeneities in capillary transit time lead to heterogeneities in the extraction process. There is direct evidence that coronary blood flow shows heterogeneity (Marcus et al., 1977; King et al., 1985) and indirect evidence for heterogeneity of capillary transit times (Rose and Goresky, 1976; Rose et al., 1980). This can cause diffusion heterogeneity for a substance like oxygen which exhibits partially flow-limited diffusion.
Thou Shall Not Post the Ten Commandments? McCreary, Van Orden, and the Future of Religious Display Cases

On the last day of its 2004-2005 term, the Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional a pair of Kentucky county courthouse Ten Commandment displays but upheld a Ten Commandments monument on the grounds of the Texas State Capitol. The cases crystallized the deep divisions within the Rehnquist Court regarding the Establishment Clause's fundamental purpose and historical intention. The cases also brought forth significant but unannounced doctrinal developments. After discussing the relevant facts and lower court opinions of McCreary County v. ACLU and Van Orden v. Perry, this Article examines and evaluates the Supreme Court's Ten Commandments decisions, with particular attention given to the Court's use of the Founding Fathers and to the unannounced doctrinal alterations made in Establishment Clause jurisprudence. The Article also speculates as to how the Supreme Court might decide future Ten Commandments cases and other religious display cases in light of the appointments of Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito to the bench. The future of Establishment Clause jurisprudence, the Article concludes, remains very much unsettled.
Glucosylsphingosine but not Saposin C, is the target antigen in Gaucher disease-associated gammopathy

In Gaucher disease type 1 (GD1), genetic deficiency of lysosomal glucocerebrosidase results in the accumulation of glucosylceramide and glucosylsphingosine (GlcSph), that underlie chronic lipid-mediated metabolic inflammation. An important age-related phenotype is high risk of monoclonal gammopathy (MG), including multiple myeloma. We identified GlcSph, a pathological lyso-sphingolipid exclusively elevated in GD, as a mediator of B cell activation and as an antigenic target for GD1-associated MG. Saposin C (SapC), is a lipid-binding protein and activator of lysosomal glucocerebrosidase, which when mutated, cause a rare variant of GD. Sera of GD1 patients with MG of diverse immunoglobulin types were compared to GD patients without gammopathy for reactivity against GlcSph and SapC. We show reactivity of clonal immunoglobulin in GD1 to GlcSph but not to SapC. In two patients with GD1 and gammopathy, GlcSph-reduction therapy with eliglustat resulted in reduction in clonal Ig. Together, our data show that GlcSph but not SapC is the antigenic target in GD1-associated MG and that therapy aimed at reducing the levels of immunogenic lipid resulted in reduction of clonal immunoglobulin in vivo.
Small-hairpin RNAs cause target-independent microRNA dysregulation in neurons and elicit global transcriptomic changes

SUMMARY Small hairpin RNAs (shRNAs) allow highly efficient gene knockdown. Here we employed different shRNAs to knock down the reticulon RTN4A/NogoA in primary neurons. Depletion of NogoA correlates with altered synaptic protein composition and spontaneous neurotransmission. However, similar phenotypes are not observed upon genetic deletion of Nogo or its receptors. Step-wise introduction of mismatches in the seed region of shNogoA provides further evidence that synaptic phenotypes are NogoA-independent. RNA sequencing revealed global changes in the neuronal transcriptome of cultures transduced with the original shNogoA or closely related variants. Transcriptomic changes are shRNA seed sequence dependent, but not target-specific. Parallel sequencing of small non-coding RNAs revealed dysregulation of microRNAs. Computational analysis shows that the altered miRNA composition correlates with changes in mRNA expression and preferentially affects protein-protein networks that function at synapses. Thus, off-target effects associated with shRNAs are an inherent property, and in particular, altered miRNA composition needs careful consideration.
Pathophysiologic Signatures of Bloodstream Infection in Critically Ill Adults.

Objectives Bloodstream infection is associated with high mortality rates in critically ill patients but is difficult to identify clinically. This results in frequent blood culture testing, exposing patients to additional costs as well as the potential harms of unnecessary antibiotics. The purpose of this study was to assess whether the analysis of bedside physiologic monitoring data could accurately describe a pathophysiologic signature of bloodstream infection in patients admitted to the ICU. Design Development of a statistical model using physiologic data from a retrospective observational cohort. Setting University of Virginia Medical Center (Charlottesville, VA), a tertiary-care academic medical center. Patients Critically ill patients consecutively admitted to either the medical or surgical/trauma ICUs with available physiologic monitoring data between February 2011 and June 2015. Interventions None. Measurements and main results We analyzed 9,954 ICU admissions with 144 patient-years of vital sign and electrocardiography waveform data, totaling 1.3 million hourly measurements. There were 15,577 blood culture instances, with 1,184 instances of bloodstream infection (8%). The multivariate pathophysiologic signature of bloodstream infection was characterized by abnormalities in 15 different physiologic features. The cross-validated area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.78 (95% CI, 0.69-0.85). We also identified distinct signatures of Gram-negative and fungal bloodstream infections, but not Gram-positive bloodstream infection. Conclusions Signatures of bloodstream infection can be identified in the routine physiologic monitoring data of critically ill adults. This may assist in identifying infected patients, maximizing diagnostic stewardship, and measuring the effect of new therapeutic modalities for sepsis.
Cost-Effectiveness of Preoperative Type and Screen in Patients Undergoing Laparoscopic Hysterectomy

Study Objective To evaluate if routine preoperative type and screen (TS however, cases were more likely to be African-American, Asian and have a body mass index greater than 30 (p Conclusion Routine T&S is not cost-effective nor clinically useful for the majority of patients undergoing laparoscopic hysterectomy. Our findings parallel other published research on minimally invasive hysterectomies. Further analysis might identify a subset of patients who are at higher risk of blood loss and would benefit from a preoperative T&S.
Influence of osteochondrosis on the longevity and racing performance of standardbred trotters and pacers

OBJECTIVE To determine the influence of clinical osteochondrosis (OC) on the short-term (2, 3, and 4-year-old) and long-term racing performance and longevity of standardbred racehorses. STUDY DESIGN Retrospective case-control study. SAMPLE POPULATION Standardbred racehorses from a single breeding farm born between 2009 and 2017 that survived to racing age (n = 2711). Three hundred eighty-two (14%) horses were OC-affected (829 lesions confirmed arthroscopically during surgical treatment), and 2329 (86%) horses were nonaffected. METHODS Racing performance data were obtained from an online database and evaluated with multiple linear regression models. RESULTS Trotters were more likely than pacers to be affected by OC (odds ratio [OR] = 1.4, 95% CI = 1.1-1.9, P = .006). Compared with nonaffected horses, long-term OC-affected horses had 8.8 fewer starts (95% CI = -14.4 to -3.2, P = .002), 1.0 fewer wins (95% CI = -1.9 to -0.1, P = .030), and 3.8 fewer total number of first through third place finishes (95% CI = -6.2 to -1.4, P < .0001). Nonaffected horses had longer careers compared with OC-affected horses, racing 0.32 years longer (95% CI = -0.52 to -0.12, P = .002). Osteochondrosis had no impact on short-term racing performance. Horses with lesions at the distal intermediate ridge of the tibia or lateral trochlear ridge of the talus had decreased performance compared with horses without these lesions. CONCLUSION Pacers were less likely than trotters to be affected by OC. Affected horses had fewer starts and shorter careers, despite early surgical intervention. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE Osteochondrosis decreases long-term racing performance in racing standardbreds.
Memory-based Optimization Methods for Model-Agnostic Meta-Learning.

Recently, model-agnostic meta-learning (MAML) has garnered tremendous attention. However, stochastic optimization of MAML is still immature. Existing algorithms for MAML are based on the ``episode" idea by sampling a number of tasks and a number of data points for each sampled task at each iteration for updating the meta-model. However, they either do not necessarily guarantee convergence with a constant mini-batch size or require processing a larger number of tasks at every iteration, which is not viable for continual learning or cross-device federated learning where only a small number of tasks are available per-iteration or per-round. This paper addresses these issues by (i) proposing efficient memory-based stochastic algorithms for MAML with a diminishing convergence error, which only requires sampling a constant number of tasks and a constant number of examples per-task per-iteration; (ii) proposing communication-efficient distributed memory-based MAML algorithms for personalized federated learning in both the cross-device (w/ client sampling) and the cross-silo (w/o client sampling) settings. The key novelty of the proposed algorithms is to maintain an individual personalized model (aka memory) for each task besides the meta-model and only update them for the sampled tasks by a momentum method that incorporates historical updates at each iteration. The theoretical results significantly improve the optimization theory for MAML and the empirical results also corroborate the theory.
Analysis of Material Work Hardening and Fracture Strains for Sheet Metal Stamping Processes

Experimental study of sheet material flow curves was performed using combined methods of cold rolling for prestraining material to targeted strain and then tensile testing. Experimental studies revealed that aluminum alloys show a tendency for flow curves saturation which substantially lowers work hardening of the sheet material. Performed numerical simulations of cup drawing illustrated that this effect leads to earlier material wrinkling compared to power law approximation of the flow curve. Examples of numerical simulation with Autoform software comparing the result of cup drawing for various cases of flow curve approximation are discussed in this paper. Analysis of fracture strains was performed by combined gridding and paint spraying on the sheet surface. This approach enabled measurements of local strains in the area closely adjacent to fracture without having continuous access to this area by video camera. This approach was used for sheet hole expansion, sheared edge stretchability along straight cut, hemming, and self-piercing riveting for high-strength steels and aluminum alloys.
Marie Seong-Hak Kim, Constitutional Transition and the Travail of Judges: The Courts of South Korea (Cambridge University Press, 2019)

Professor Marie Seong-Hak Kim has written an excellent book, one that should be read by everyone interested in South Korea’s legal system, as well as those interested in the complex and multifarious roles courts play in authoritarian political regimes everywhere. Some will take issue with Professor Kim’s overall assessment, that during South Korea’s authoritarian era the courts generally performed admirably, given the political constraints under which they operated. Her arguments are clear and reasoned, however, and she refers regularly to possible counterarguments as she presents her analysis. This Review will present a general description of the book’s contents, followed by a discussion of some of Professor Kim’s specific arguments.
Nigerian Cultural Concept of Humour and its Use as a Coping Strategy

There have been great strides in the field of positive psychology from various regions of the world. The current phase in positive psychology research is stimulating interest in the cultural nuances of positive constructs for human development. Humour is one of the positive human traits engendering current research in the field. Despite the reported regional contributions to the field, Africa’s influence seems negligible. This study stimulates the contribution of an African perspective to the global positive psychology discourse in humour research. Relying on the African belief that elders and authorities are custodians of culture and traditions, two Igbo elders, one Ogoni elder and an expert in Yoruba culture were interviewed to examine the use of humour in their sociocultural milieu as a creative escape and coping strategy to confront life’s challenges. Findings identify the cultural use of humour as a coping stratagem in all areas of the Nigerian life. Humour is also a political weapon that provides relief from bad governance and a contemporary means of survival in the face of unemployment. It is recommended that a deliberate effort be made to study the positive construct of humour as practised in the Nigerian cultural context and adapt the same practice to other milieu experiencing similar sociocultural challenges. Future researches should aim at building a synergy between Nigerian cultural nuances of humour and the gains of positive psychology for the purpose of deepening global comprehension and to add the needed African voice to the extant literature.
60GHz CMOS transmitter front-end with built-in temperature sensor

A 60 GHz transmitter front-end with built-in temperature sensor is designed and measured using 90nm digital CMOS process. This transmitter front-end integrated into a transceiver delivers the best performance of +11dBm saturated output power with more than 13dB conversion gain using digital CMOS process at 63 GHz. The built-in temperature sensor achieves a resolution better than 5°C in the temperature ranges of −10°C to +90°C.
Incidence of tracheobronchial anomalies found with hypoplastic left heart syndrome.

Background Tracheobronchial anomalies are rare congenital malformations that are typically managed conservatively. Several reports have documented their increased incidence in patients with congenital heart disease. However, none of these reports have detailed the incidence found among patients with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS). Airway obstruction, whether by extrinsic compression or an undiagnosed tracheobronchial anomaly, in the perioperative period may have significant morbidity in this tenuous population. Methods From June 2003 to August 2011, 164 consecutive patients with HLHS underwent a palliative surgical procedure for their cardiac disease. Sixty-three of these patients received either multidetector computed tomography (CT) of the chest or cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). A total of 124 studies (106 CT, 18 MRI) were performed during this time span. The studies were reviewed independently by a pediatric cardiologist and a pediatric radiologist. Length of intubation, intensive care unit (ICU) stay, and hospital stay were also reviewed for all patients. Results Three of the 63 patients had a congenital abnormality of the tracheobronchial tree (4.8%), which is higher than the incidence that has been reported in the general population. Two of the patients had bilateral left-sided bronchus with an absence of the right upper lobe bronchus. The third patient was found to have a very rudimentary right upper lobe bronchus with absence of the right upper lobe of the lung. The mean intubation time was not significantly different between the groups (P = .615). There was no significant difference of either the total ICU or hospital stay between the two groups. Conclusion Our study demonstrates a higher incidence of tracheobronchial anomalies among patients with HLHS, a severe form of cyanotic congenital heart disease. Patients with a tracheobronchial abnormality did not show a difference in morbidity during the postoperative time period.
A multi-language goal-tree based functional test planning system

This paper presents a multi-language test planning system, which is based on a goal-tree based test methodology. Multi-language support is achieved by adding a common abstraction layer on the top of different language specific details. The effectiveness of this strategy is demonstrated by using this tool for testing VHDL and SystemC models of a GSM system.
RNA-directed amino acid homochirality

The phenomenon of L-amino acid homochirality was analyzed on the basis that protein synthesis evolved in an environment in which ribose nucleic acids preceded proteins, so that selection of L-amino acids may have arisen as a consequence of the properties of the RNA molecule. Aminoacylation of RNA is the primary mechanism for selection of amino acids for protein synthesis, and models of this reaction with both D- and L-amino acids have been constructed. It was confirmed, as observed by others, that the aminoacylation of RNA by amino acids in free solution is not predictably stereoselective. However, when the RNA molecule is constrained on a surface (mimicking prebiotic surface monolayers), it becomes automatically selective for the L-enantiomers. Conversely, L-ribose RNA would have been selective for the D-isomers. Only the 2′ aminoacylation of surface-bound RNA would have been stereoselective. This finding may explain the origin of the redundant 2′ aminoacylation still undergone by a majority of today's a...
Mycobacterial induction of activated killer cells: possible role of tyrosine kinase activity in interleukin-2 receptor alpha expression.

Abstract Mycobacterium avium is an intracellular opportunistic pathogen commonly seen in AIDS patients. M. avium-infected monocytes have been recently shown to be lysed by interleukin-2 (IL-2)-activated killer cells. Since some bacterial products can directly augment natural killer activity, we examined the ability of these microorganisms to induce killer cell activity. Coculture of M. avium with large granular lymphocytes (LGL) was found to augment the ability of LGL to lyse both tumor cells and bacterially infected autologous monocytes. The induction of tumoricidal activity by M. avium was only partially neutralized by the presence of anti-IL-2 antibodies, indicating that both IL-2-dependent and IL-2-independent mechanisms are responsible for activation of killer cells. Furthermore, only the direct interaction between bacterium and LGL could induce the expression of both IL-2 receptor alpha protein and mRNA, an effect which was abrogated by the presence of genistein, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor. Thus, M. avium was seen to induce killer cells, an activity that is concomitant with the up-regulation of IL-2 receptor alpha, or Tac antigen, expression and which involves signal transduction mechanisms mediated by tyrosine kinase activity.
V-ATPase-energized epithelia and biological insect control.

Background is provided for the experimentally detailed contributions concerning the structure, distribution and function of V-ATPase-based ion pumps in insect epithelia. The mode of action of an insecticidal bacterial protein, which is dependent upon the V-ATPase-energized state in larval lepidopteran midgut for activity, is discussed.
Effect of surface conjugation chemistry on the sensitivity of microcantilever sensors.

Microcantilever sensors are an offshoot of atomic force microscopy and are useful tools for effectively detecting a target biomolecule. The recognition of the target molecule on the biosensor is based on the physical bending of the microcantilever, which is driven by a specific molecular interaction between the target molecule and the sensor surface. In this study, to enhance the sensitivity of the microcantilever sensor, the sensor surface was modified through a surface conjugation method using self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) and heterobifunctional cross-linkers. After the surface modification of the microcantilever sensor, the sensitivity for L-cysteine was recorded. The detection of L-cysteine was influenced by the active site and the molecular size of the cross-linked compound attached onto the surface of the microcantilever. SCANNING 29: 245–248, 2007. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Consequences of Decreased Light Harvesting Capability on Photosystem II Function in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803

Cyanobacteria use large pigment-protein complexes called phycobilisomes to harvest light energy primarily for photosystem II (PSII). We used a series of mutants with partial to complete reduction of phycobilisomes to examine the effects of antenna truncation on photosystem function in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803. The antenna mutants CB, CK, and PAL expressed increasing levels of functional PSII centers to compensate for the loss of phycobilisomes, with a concomitant decrease in photosystem I (PSI). This increased PSII titer led to progressively higher oxygen evolution rates on a per chlorophyll basis. The mutants also exhibited impaired S-state transition profiles for oxygen evolution. Additionally, P700+ re-reduction rates were impacted by antenna reduction. Thus, a decrease in antenna size resulted in overall physiological changes in light harvesting and delivery to PSII as well as changes in downstream electron transfer to PSI.
A Method of Determining Ideological Groupings In the Congress

HE PURPOSE OF THIS ESSAY is to propose a method of determinI ing ideological groupings in an American legislative body, to illustrate the method by reference to the House of Representatives of the 79th Congress, and to suggest questions which this method might answer.' The argument supports the following hypotheses: 1. Some (but not necessarily all) of a legislator's roll call votes during a session (or term of office) define his "public ideology" for that session (or term).
RENORMALIZATION OF THE ONE-SPACE DIMENSIONAL YUKAWA MODEL BY UNITARY TRANSFORMATION.

Abstract A unitary transformation is used to renormalize the one-space dimensional Yukawa Model in a box. A momentum cut-off dependent sequence of unitary transformations is constructed such that weak limit matrix elements of the transformed Hamiltonian exist between a dense set of states as matrix elements of a symmetric operator.
Risk and safety of pediatric sedation/anesthesia for procedures outside the operating room.

Purpose of reviewSedation and anesthesia outside the operating room represents a rapidly growing field of practice that involves a number of different specialty providers including anesthesiology. The literature surrounding this work is found in a variety of journals – many outside anesthesiology. T