cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
In vitro evaluation of margins of replaced resin-based composite restorations.

Purpose: To evaluate in vitro any increase in size of Class V resin-based composite (RBC) restorations as a result of replacement. Materials and Methods: For group 1, 20 Class V cavity preparations were prepared in extracted incisor and canine teeth. The cavosurface margin was prepared as a butt joint 90-degree angle toward the occlusal wall. Impressions were made of all preparations with a polyvinyl siloxane material. The cavities then received a 1.5-mm 45-degree bevel at the cavosurface margin of the occlusal wall. Impressions were again made of the preparations. The cavities were then restored with a conventional multistep bonding system (Scotchbond Multi-Purpose, 3M Dental Products, St. Paul, Minnesota) and a microfilled RBC (Silux Plus, 3M Dental Products). As a second part of the study (group 2), another 20 Class V cavity preparations were prepared. Half of the cavities received a bevel at the cavosurface margin of the occlusal wall, and half were finished with a butt joint. Impressions were made from all 20 specimens followed by resin-based composite restoration in the same manner as previously described. All the restorations from both group 1 and group 2 were then removed with carbide burs. New impressions were made, and 100 stone models were fabricated. The perimeter and area of the cavity preparations, including the beveled area, were recorded using a video-based imaging system equipped with macro lens, at 10 to 15 times magnification. Both perimeter and area of the postoperative cavity preparation were compared to the initial cavity size for both butt joint and bevel finishing. Results: Intraclass correlation coefficient and paired t-test showed no significant difference between the preoperative bevel type of cavity preparation and its postoperative counterparts for both group 1 and group 2 (p > .05). However, a significant increase in the size of the cavity preparation was found preoperatively when a bevel was placed at the cavosurface margin. Postoperatively, a significant increase in size of the cavities was found for butt joint type finishing for both area (p= .0001) and perimeter (p= .0001), compared to initial cavity size. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE This in vitro study showed that clinicians are likely to be more conservative when resin-based composite restorations are removed if a bevel rather than a butt joint had been placed at the occlusal cavosurface margin. However, the study also showed that a significant amount of tooth structure is lost when a bevel is placed preoperatively at the occlusal cavosurface margin of a Class V resin-based composite restoration.
Nonsexist Language Use in Transition

For both men and women, the best inducement to change sexist language habits was a female who encouraged them to do so.
Studies on Hematoxylin Stains

Selected formulae and procedures for securing specific objectives in staining with hematoxylin are discussed in this article. The separate sections are numbered serially for ready reference, and the subject matter of the paper is arranged under the following self-explanatory divisions:
Struggling with the Creative Class

This article develops a critique of the recently popularized concepts of the ‘creative class’ and ‘creative cities’. The geographic reach and policy salience of these discourses is explained not in terms of their intrinsic merits, which can be challenged on a number of grounds, but as a function of the profoundly neoliberalized urban landscapes across which they have been traveling. For all their performative display of liberal cultural innovation, creativity strategies barely disrupt extant urban-policy orthodoxies, based on interlocal competition, place marketing, property- and market-led development, gentrification and normalized socio-spatial inequality. More than this, these increasingly prevalent strategies extend and recodify entrenched tendencies in neoliberal urban politics, seductively repackaging them in the soft-focus terms of cultural policy. This has the effect of elevating creativity to the status of a new urban imperative — defining new sites, validating new strategies, placing new subjects and establishing new stakes in the realm of competitive interurban relations. L’article presente une critique des concepts de ‘classe creative’ et ‘villes creatives’ publies recemment. La portee geographique et la pertinence politique de ces discours s’expliquent non par leurs merites intrinseques, ceux-ci pouvant etre remis en question a plus d’un titre, mais en tant que fonction des paysages urbains fortement neoliberaux qu’ils ont traverses. Quant a leur manifestation concrete de l’innovation culturelle liberale, les strategies de creativite derangent a peine les orthodoxies qui subsistent en politique urbaine, fondees sur une competition interlocale, un marketing de lieu, une expansion axee sur la propriete et le marche, un embourgeoisement et une inegalite socio-spatiale normalisee. Mais surtout, ces strategies toujours plus presentes prolongent et recodifient des tendances bien installees en politique urbaine neoliberale, les rhabillant de maniere attrayante dans un flou artistique terminologique de politique culturelle. Ainsi, la creativite est elevee au statut de nouvel imperatif urbain pour definir de nouveaux sites, valider de nouvelles strategies, positionner de nouveaux sujets et instaurer de nouveaux enjeux dans la concurrence interurbaine.
Subcritical Delamination of Dielectric and Metal Films from Low-k Organosilicate Glass (OSG) Thin Films in Buffered pH Solutions

Understanding subcritical fracture of low-k dielectric materials and barrier thin films in buffered solutions of different pH value is of both technical and scientific importance. Subcritical delamination of dielectric and metal barrier films from low-k organosilicate glass (OSG) films in pH buffer solutions was studied in this work. Crack path and subcritical fracture behavior of OSG depends on the choice of barrier layers. For the OSG/TaN system, fracture takes place in the OSG layer near the interface, while in OSG/SiNx system, delamination occurs at the interface. Delamination behavior of both systems is well described by a hyperbolic sine model that had been developed previously based on a chemical reaction controlled fracture process at the crack tip. The threshold toughness of both systems decreases linearly with increasing pH value. The slopes of the reaction-controlled regime of the crack velocity curves for both systems are independent of pH as predicted by the model. Near transport-controlled regime behavior was observed in OSG/TaN system.
A neuro-fuzzy inference system for modeling and prediction of heart rate variability in the neuro-intensive care unit

In the neurological intensive care unit (NICU), prediction of impending changes in patient condition would be highly beneficial. In this paper, we employ a neuro-fuzzy inference system (NFIS) for short-term prediction of heart rate variability in the NICU. An NFIS was selected because it allows for a ''gray-box'' approach through which a system identification procedure is used in conjunction with fuzzy modeling. The NFIS is described in detail and is compared to an auto-regressive moving average (ARMA) model for its ability to model both simulated and measured data from NICU patients. We found that the NFIS is capable of predicting changes in heart rate to a reasonable extent, and that the NFIS has both advantages and limitations over the ARMA model. The NFIS may therefore be a reasonable technique to consider for more extensive prediction purposes in ICU settings.
Negative hopping magnetoresistance of two-dimensional electron gas in a smooth random potential.

We show that the tunnel coupling between semiclassical states localized in different minima of a smooth random potential increases when magnetic field is applied. This increase originates from the difference in gauge factors which electron wave functions belonging to different electron ``lakes'' acquire in the presence of the field. In the common case of a narrow barrier between two lakes, the characteristic magnetic field is determined by the area of the lakes, and thus may be quite small. The effect of the field on coupling constants leads to a negative magnetoresistance in low-temperature conduction.
Sizing a pilot production line using simulation

The semiconductor industry is rapidly expanding worldwide. With the continuing advancement of technology, companies are continually striving to develop and maintain cutting edge products to stay "ahead of the curve." As a result, old and new companies alike often have the need to develop pilot production lines to test new engineering and processing ideas. We present a case study example of how simulation can be used to establish the initial tooling and operator requirements for pilot production lines, as well as to estimate the fixed and recurring costs associated with the line.
Sequence context analysis in the mouse genome: single nucleotide polymorphisms and CpG island sequences.

A genome-wide view of sequence mutability in mice is still limited, although biologists usually assume the same scenario for mice as for humans. In this study, we examined the sequence context in the local environment of 482,528 mouse single nucleotide po
Does labour supply respond to a flat tax

We exploit the exogenous change in marginal tax rates created by the Russian flat tax reform of 2001 to identify the effect of taxes on the labour supply of men and women. We apply a weighted difference-in-difference regression approach and instrumental variables to estimate labour supply functions using a panel dataset. The mean regression results indicate that the tax reform led to a statistically significant increase in hours of work for men but had no effect on work hours for women. However, we find a positive response to tax changes in both tails of the female work hour distribution. We also find that the reform increased the probability of finding a job among both men and women. Despite significant variation in individual responses, the aggregate labour supply elasticities are trivial. This suggests that reform-induced changes in labour supply are an unlikely explanation for the amplified personal income tax revenues that followed the reform.
Porous Al Alloys by Local Melting and Diffusion of Metal Powders

A novel method exploiting local melt and diffusion induced porosity is described for producing porous Al alloys. Aluminum powder and zinc powder were blended and cold-compacted to a near net shape. A porous Al-Zn alloy component was then formed by annealing the material above the melting point of zinc but below the solidus temperature of the alloy. Pores were generated by the diffusion of molten Zn into the solid Al grains. The pore structure is shown to be determined by the volume fraction, distribution, and size of the Zn powders in the powder mixture, and by time and temperature of the annealing heat treatment. The pores can be further expanded by incorporating small amounts of titanium hydride into the powder blend and conducting the annealing treatment above the decomposition temperature of the titanium hydride (T > 447 C). Porosity levels of 45 vol.% have been achieved to date. This processing approach appears amenable to the production of sandwich panels with a gradient porosity core and fully dense face sheets, and is applicable to other solid solution systems.
Andrological and Pedagogical Training Differences for Online Instructors

Colleges and universities are rushing at an alarming rate to answer the call of the growing number of online learners. Many are motivated by promising financial forecasts. Others are simply keeping up with their peer institutions. Regardless of the reasons, the rush to join the ranks of "e-institutions" often results in the significant aspects of the online learning paradigm being overlooked. Can faculty make effective use of the online platform to design, construct and deliver a meaningful online course that addresses the motivations, needs, learning styles and constraints of nontraditional learners, while achieving the same learning outcomes as onground?
Quantitative Kinematics of Gait Patterns During the Recovery Period After Stroke

Abstract Background and Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess the potential of a new quantitative kinematic analysis for the documentation and evaluation of recovery of gait function after neurological injury. Methods: We assessed the kinematics of gait function in 16 patients with hemiplegia at varying intervals over a 1-year period after a stroke, using a novel method for gait pattern assessment based on principal component analysis. Conventional measures such as gait speed and stride length were also evaluated. Testing started as soon as patients became ambulatory after stroke. Results: Of the 16 patients assessed, 7 showed at least a 50% increase in self-selected gait speed from the first to the last test. The results of the pattern analysis closely mirrored self-selected gait speed at higher speeds, but relative rankings derived from gait speed and the pattern analysis did not match for 6 of the 16 patients. Kinematic pattern analysis suggested that different mechanisms were used to generate changes in gait speed at different speed levels. Conclusion: There is a sizable fraction of the stroke population for whom kinematic gait pattern analysis can provide information that is different from that provided by speed, stride length, and cadence. The kinematic analysis can potentially provide information about the mechanisms of pathological gait.
Abundant Indispensable Redundancies in Cellular Metabolic Networks

Cellular life is a highly redundant complex system; yet, the evolutionary maintenance of the redundancy remains unexplained. Using a systems biology approach, we infer that 37–47% of metabolic reactions in Escherichia coli and yeast can be individually removed without blocking the production of any biomass component under any nutritional condition. However, the majority of these redundant reactions are preserved because they have differential maximal efficiencies at different conditions or their loss causes an immediate fitness reduction that can only be regained via mutation, drift, and selection in evolution. The remaining redundancies are attributable to pleiotropic effects or recent horizontal gene transfers. We find that E. coli and yeast exhibit opposite relationships between the functional importance and redundancy level of a reaction, which is inconsistent with the conjecture that redundancies are preserved as an adaptation to back up important parts in the system. Interestingly, the opposite relationships can both be recapitulated by a simple model in which the natural environments of the organisms change frequently. Thus, adaptive backup is neither necessary nor sufficient to explain the high redundancy of cellular metabolic networks. Taken together, our results strongly suggest that redundant reactions are not kept as backups and that the genetic robustness of metabolic networks is an evolutionary by-product.
Solving Triangular System in Parallel is Accurate

An error complexity analysis of two algorithms for solving a unit diagonal triangular system is given. The results show that the usual sequential algorithm is optimal in terms of having the minimal maximum and cumulative error complexity measures. The parallel algorithm described by Sameh and Brent is shown to be essentially equivalent to the optimal sequential one.
Construction of high-complexity combinatorial phage display peptide libraries.

Random peptide libraries displayed on the surface of filamentous bacteriophage are widely used as tools for the discovery of ligands for biologically relevant macromolecules, including antibodies, enzymes, and cell surface receptors. Phage display results in linkage of an affinity-selectable function (the displayed peptide) to the DNA encoding that function, allowing selection of individual binding clones by iterative cycles of in vitro panning and in vivo amplification. Critical to the success of a panning experiment is the complexity of the library: the greater the diversity of clones within the library, the more likely the library contains sequences that will bind a given target with useful affinity. A method for construction of high-complexity (> or = 10(9) independent clones) random peptide libraries is presented. The key steps are highly efficient binary ligation under conditions where the vector is relatively dilute, with only a modest molar excess of insert, followed by efficient electrotransformation into Escherichia coli. Library design strategies and a protocol for rapid sequence characterization are also presented.
Reliability of Absolute and Relative Predictions of Population Persistence Based on Time Series

Conventional population viability analysis (PVA) is often impractical because data are scarce for many threatened species. For this reason, simple count-based models are being advocated. The simplest of these models requires nothing more than a time series of abundance estimates, from which variance and autocorrelation in growth rate are estimated and predictions of population persistence are generated. What remains unclear, however, is how many years of data are needed to generate reliable estimates of these parameters and hence reliable predictions of persistence. By analyzing published and simulated time series, we show that several decades of data are needed. Predictions based on short time series were very unreliable mainly because limited data yielded biased, unreliable estimates of variance in growth rate, especially when growth rate was strongly autocorrelated. More optimistically, our results suggest that count-based PVA is sometimes useful for relative risk assessment (i.e., for ranking populations by extinction risk), even when time series are only a decade long. However, some conditions consistently lead to backward rankings. We explored the limited conditions under which simple count-based PVA may be useful for relative risk assessment.
Parallel Neighbor-Sort (or the Glory of the Induction Principle),

Abstract : Array A(1:N) (N > or = 2) is to be sorted in ascending order using procedure NS(i) which arranges the values of an adjacent pair A(i), A(i+1) in the right order. It is shown that a parallel process P which can perform at least N divided by 2 executions of procedure NS in parallel will sort array A in p steps where p < or = N. The proof is based on the observation that the distance of the position of a number in array A after p steps and its final position is bounded by N - p. (Author)
Building Dignity’s Diaspora through Rapumentary Film: Learning from Ngātahi

Through an exploration of Ngātahi: Know the Links, a six-part docu/rapumentary film by Maori filmmaker, rapper, musician, and activist Dean Hapeta, I propose that Hapeta, the folks in his films, and the many they identify with are part of a diaspora, one based on interlinked struggles for dignity rather than any particular place or ethnic affiliation. The film uncovers and encourages a diaspora made up of the many local spaces and small politics that seek to make dominant neoliberal, race, or power relations unworkable on the ground, even if only for a moment at a festival, spontaneous musical or poetic performance, or house party. The project both documents and cultivates dignity’s diaspora, showing how people make sense of and strike back against the forces of globalization. They reveal connections between a range of movements for autonomy and freedom. In the larger-than-life murals of pre-Columbian history in Los Angeles and revolutionary struggle in Belfast, the poetic verses thrown on streets in Rapid City and Cape Town or the public marches for the return of indigenous land and against police brutality in San Francisco and the Philippines, Ngātahi illumines dignity’s diaspora. Hapeta and the many new friends he makes along the Ngātahi trail show us that the small politics of cultural work and performance may not be so small after all. More than just imaginary solutions to real problems, the cultural practices evident in Ngātahi enable people to speak back against their own erasure by making a record of events, injustices, and calls for change that might be otherwise ignored or forgotten. Hapeta’s films suggest that “revolution” in the neoliberal, postmodern, postcolonial era may be more plausible with a small “r” and an “s” at the end. The artists and activists in Ngātahi ultimately practice a politics of the possible, demonstrating that utopian hopes for a better future can emerge from the dystopian and almost apocalyptic misery left in the wake of global capitalism and imperialism.
Slander, Buzz and Spin: Telegrams, Politics and Global Communications in the Uganda Protectorate, 1945-55

Ugandans, from the earliest days of empire, did not simply receive information and messages from a distant Britain. Instead, with methods rooted in pre-colonial understandings of communications as establishing personal, affective, social closeness and reciprocities, they invested in education, travel and correspondence and built wide-ranging information and communications networks. Networked, they understood imperial institutions and pushed their own priorities via both official and unofficial channels. By the 1940s, political activists combined these information networks with the modern technologies of newspapers, telegrams and global press campaigns to destabilize colonial hierarchies. Generating slanderous allegations, repeating them to generate popular buzz, interpreting and constructing evidence through repetition and spin, Ugandan information activists shaped the politics of the 1940s and 1950s through lobbying. The formal, structural characteristics of Ugandans’ late colonial information activism help explain the failures of Britain’s post–World War II scientific, progressive, centrally planned initiatives for development and control.
Emergent Subjectivity: The Parallel Temporalities of Psychoanalysis and Social Theory

ABSTRACTKirsten Lentz uses Preciado’s Testo Junkie (2013) as an occasion to explore the rivalry between psychoanalysis and social theory in their attempts to account for human subjectivity. Although a commonsense view holds that the 2 fields have completely different relationships to temporality—psychoanalysts fix their gaze to the past, whereas social theorists imagine radical futures—the distinction is more complex than it appears. The analyst does not lead the patient toward the past but holds and guards the place of futurity so that new experiences of subjectivity eventually become available. Like “theory,” then, psychoanalysis tries to make room for “emergent subjectivity,” for ways of being in the world that have not yet been imagined or formulated, that have not yet been born in the mind of culture. Lentz thus insists that the radical critique of gender can and should be understood as fundamental to the work of psychoanalysis.
The Evolution of Scientific Skepticism in the Media Violence “Debate”

After 60 years of research on media violence and aggression, the scientifically skeptical positions have evolved. This article examines some of the reasons why this issue continues to be a difficult one, and argues that, after examining the preponderance of data, the interesting skeptical questions are: (1) How can we put the pieces of the puzzle back together, given humans’ inherent complexity? (2) How do differing perspectives affect the interpretation of the data? Questions such as these may help to move past the polarizing rhetoric that has characterized much of the recent debate.
Detection of heterozygotes for phenylketonuria

The widespread screening of newborn infants for phenylketonuria in South Australia over a period of 6 yr has shown that the disorder may affect as many as one in 6,000 persons. If this is so then approximately one in every 40 persons is heterozygous for the abnormal gene which produces phenylketonuria. A test capable of distinguishing the heterozygous from the homozygous normal state would be of particular value in genetic counselling of close relatives of phenylketonurics. Phenylalanine (100 mg/kg body wt.) was administered orally to parents of proven phenylketonurics, close relatives of these cases, and controls whose family history gave no reason to suspect phenylketonuria. Concentrations of phenylalanine and tyrosine in the plasma were determined fluorimetrically before and at 2,4 and 6 hr after loading. The results show (1) the values obtained 4 and 6 hr after phenylalanine are the most discriminatory, and (2) there was a clear distinction between heterozygotes (22 cases) and homozygote normals (13 cases) in all but one suspected heterozygote.
Inhibition of Bcr-Abl kinase activity by PD180970 blocks constitutive activation of Stat5 and growth of CML cells

Chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) is a myeloproliferative disease characterized by the BCR-ABL genetic translocation and constitutive activation of the Abl tyrosine kinase. Among members of the Signal Transducers and Activators of Transcription (STAT) family of transcription factors, Stat5 is activated by the Bcr-Abl kinase and is implicated in the pathogenesis of CML. We recently identified PD180970 as a new and highly potent inhibitor of Bcr-Abl kinase. In this study, we show that blocking Bcr-Abl kinase activity using PD180970 in the human K562 CML cell line resulted in inhibition of Stat5 DNA-binding activity with an IC(50) of 5 nM. Furthermore, abrogation of Abl kinase-mediated Stat5 activation suppressed cell proliferation and induced apoptosis in K562 cells, but not in the Bcr-Abl-negative myeloid cell lines, HEL 92.1.7 and HL-60. Dominant-negative Stat5 protein expressed from a vaccinia virus vector also induced apoptosis of K562 cells, consistent with earlier studies that demonstrated an essential role of Stat5 signaling in growth and survival of CML cells. RNA and protein analyses revealed several candidate target genes of Stat5, including Bcl-x, Mcl-1, c-Myc and cyclin D2, which were down-regulated after treatment with PD180970. In addition, PD180970 inhibited Stat5 DNA-binding activity in cultured primary leukemic cells derived from CML patients. To detect activated Stat5 in CML patient specimens, we developed an immunocytochemical assay that can be used as a molecular end-point assay to monitor inhibition of Bcr-Abl signaling. Moreover, PD180970 blocked Stat5 signaling and induced apoptosis of STI-571 (Gleevec, Imatinib)-resistant Bcr-Abl-positive cells. Together, these results suggest that the mechanism of action of PD180970 involves inhibition of Bcr-Abl-mediated Stat5 signaling and provide further evidence that compounds in this structural class may represent potential therapeutic agents for CML.
Effect of Amino Acid Levels on a Cell-Free System for Protein Synthesis

SummaryCell sap must be passed through Sephadex G-25 and then dialyzed to remove all of the amino acids. The cell-free system for protein synthesis has an optimal amino acid requirement which is approximately the same level as that observed in normal cell sap and the absence or excess of amino acids can markedly inhibit the rate of protein synthesis in the ribosomal-dependent system. In the nonribosomal system, the incorporation rate as well as the amino acid requirement are low.
Molecular Sensing and Computing Systems

Advances in the field of synthetic biology have been key to demonstration of molecular computing systems in general and DNA in particular. This paper presents an overview of how continuous-time, discrete-time, and digital signal processing systems can be implemented using molecular reactions and DNA. In this paper, discrete-time systems refer to sampled signals with continuous signal amplitude. Signals that are sampled in discrete time steps with digital amplitude are referred to as digital signals. Delay elements in sampled signals are implemented using molecular reactions in the form of molecular transfer reactions. Completion of all phases of transfer reactions once corresponds to a computation cycle. These molecular systems can be implemented in a fully-synchronous, globally-synchronous locally-asynchronous or fully-asynchronous manner. The paper also presents molecular sensing systems where molecular reactions are used to implement analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) and digital-to-analog converters (DACs). Molecular implementations of digital logic systems are presented. A complete example of the addition of two molecules using digital implementation is described where the concentrations of two molecules are converted to digital by two 3-bit ADCs, and the 4-bit output of the digital adder is converted to analog by a 4-bit DAC. This system is demonstrated using both molecular reactions and DNA. A brief comparison of molecular and electronic systems is also presented.
Virtual Reality Social Cognition Training for children with high functioning autism

Virtual reality appears to be a promising and motivating platform to safely practice and rehearse social skills for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). However, the literature to date is subject to limitations in elucidating the effectiveness of these virtual reality interventions. This study investigated the impact of a Virtual Reality Social Cognition Training to enhance social skills in children with ASD. Thirty children between the ages of 7-16 diagnosed with ASD completed 10, 1-h sessions across 5 weeks. Three primary domains were measured pre-post: emotion recognition, social attribution, attention and executive function. Results revealed improvements on measures of emotion recognition, social attribution, and executive function of analogical reasoning. These preliminary findings suggest that the use of a virtual reality platform offers an effective treatment option for improving social impairments commonly found in ASD. The VR-SCT provides an interactive and stimulating approach for children with ASD.The VR-SCT can improve social cognitive skills in children with ASD.Training improved emotion recognition, social attribution, and executive function.The training is a safe and socially non-threatening platform.
HUB SIAASHING: a knowledge-based system for severe, temporary airline schedule reduction

HUB SIAASHING is a knowledge-based system that recommends contingency plans for American Airlines System Operations Control (SOC) during inclement weather or other airport disruptions where severe schedule reductions must be made. The system evaluates the current situation to determine flight cancellation, delay, and overfly candidates that will provide relief at the hub airport with minimal impact on systemwide operations. HUB SIAASHING provides an expedient method for reducing the schedule by locating and ranking all possible candidate plans with explanations for these suggestions.
The Childhood Executive Functioning Inventory (CHEXI): Factor structure, measurement invariance, and correlates in US preschoolers

ABSTRACTThis study tests the factor structure, measurement invariance, and correlates of the Childhood Executive Functioning Inventory (CHEXI) with a large and diverse sample of 3- to 5-year-olds (n = 844). Consistent with previous studies, a two-factor model that distinguishes working memory from inhibition provides the best fit to the observed data. This two-factor model has been shown to demonstrate strong measurement invariance for different subgroups of children (boys vs. girls, high vs. low income). Whereas boys tend to have greater working memory and inhibition difficulties (Cohen’s d = 0.15 and 0.20, respectively), children from low-income households tend to have more working memory problems than their peers from high-income households (Cohen’s d = 0.25). Finally, correlations between CHEXI scores, examiner reports of child behavior, and child performance on a battery of executive function (EF) tasks were investigated. CHEXI scores were found to be more consistently related to examiner reports of ...
Acoustic Signaling by Singing Humpback Whales (Megaptera novaeangliae): What Role Does Reverberation Play?

When humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) sing in coastal waters, the units they produce can generate reverberation. Traditionally, such reverberant acoustic energy has been viewed as an incidental side-effect of high-amplitude, long-distance, sound transmission in the ocean. An alternative possibility, however, is that reverberation actually contributes to the structure and function of songs. In the current study, this possibility was assessed by analyzing reverberation generated by humpback whale song units, as well as the spectral structure of unit sequences, produced by singers from different regions. Acoustical analyses revealed that: (1) a subset of units within songs generated narrowband reverberant energy that in some cases persisted for periods longer than the interval between units; (2) these highly reverberant units were regularly repeated throughout the production of songs; and (3) units occurring before and after these units often contained spectral energy peaks at non-overlapping, adjacent frequencies that were systematically related to the bands of reverberant energy generated by the units. These findings strongly suggest that some singing humpback whales not only produce sounds conducive to long-duration reverberation, but also may sequentially structure songs to avoid spectral overlap between units and ongoing reverberation. Singer-generated reverberant energy that is received simultaneously with directly transmitted song units can potentially provide listening whales with spatial cues that may enable them to more accurately determine a singer’s position.
Superconvergence of the discontinuous Galerkin method for nonlinear second-order initial-value problems for ordinary differential equations

In this paper, we propose and analyze a superconvergent discontinuous Galerkin (DG) method for nonlinear second-order initial-value problems for ordinary differential equations. Optimal a priori error estimates for the solution and for the auxiliary variable that approximates the first-order derivative are derived in the L2-norm. The order of convergence is proved to be p+1, when piecewise polynomials of degree at most p are used. We further prove that the p-degree DG solutions are O(h2p+1) superconvergent at the downwind points. Finally, we prove that the DG solutions are superconvergent with order p+2 to a particular projection of the exact solutions. The proofs are valid for arbitrary nonuniform regular meshes and for piecewise Pp polynomials with arbitrary p1. Computational results indicate that the theoretical orders of convergence and superconvergence are optimal.
Wheel running exercise and tumorigenesis in ENU-treated in FVB x C57BL/6J ApcMin/+ mice

B72 We examined the effects of wheel running exercise on the development of mammary hyperplasias and tumors, intestinal polyps, and lung tumors in female FVB x B6 F1 mice. Three week-old female mice (n=24/group) were randomly assigned to either a control (CON) or voluntary wheel running condition (WHL), where they were individually housed in a standard cage or with a running wheel, respectively. Mice were given standard rodent breeding diet and water ad libitum, and weighed weekly. At 35-40 days of age, mice were treated with ENU, and euthanized at ~120 days post-ENU treatment for the evaluation of hyperplastic foci and adenocarcinomas in the mammary glands, lung adenocarcinomas, and intestinal polyps. Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry was used to quantify body fat. WHL mice ran 6.2 ± 2.9 km/day. There was no difference in weekly body weights between groups (p=0.39), and the percent body fat was no different (33.1 ± 1.5 vs. 32.1 ± 2.0 in CON vs. WHL, p=0.68). There was no difference in any cancer endpoint, with similar numbers of mammary hyperplasias (3.3 ± 0.4 vs. 3.4 ± 0.4, p=0.84), mammary tumors (1.1 ± 0.2 vs. 1.2 ± 0.2, p=0.74), time to tumor development (117 ± 7 vs. 96 ± 10 days, p=0.08), number of intestinal polyps (20.7 ± 1.6 vs. 19.3 ± 2.1, p=0.58), and the percent of each group that developed lung tumors (25 vs. 21%, p=0.99) in the CON vs. WHL, respectively. Wheel running did not affect any tumor-related outcome. The similar body weights in the two groups suggest that the WHL mice increased their energy intake to compensate for their increased energy expenditure. This maintenance of energy balance may have negated any beneficial effect of exercise, suggesting that the anti-cancer effects of exercise in this ENU-induced model of carcinogenesis in Apc-deficient mice may be dependent on energy balance modulation.
Evolutionary Aspects of Plant Selenium Accumulation

Essential selenium (Se) metabolism, as found in some photosynthetic cyanobacteria and algae, appears to have been lost in plants. Although not essential, Se is readily taken up by plants due to its similarity to sulfur (S), and typically plant accumulation of Se parallels that of S. In contrast, some plant species appear to preferentially take up Se over S, translocate and sequester Se and S independently, and accumulate Se to levels above 0.1% of dry matter. This so-called Se hyperaccumulation trait occurs in different plant lineages and likely has evolved independently multiple times. The variation in plant Se accumulation, particularly the phenomenon of hyperaccumulation, leads to some intriguing evolutionary questions: What may be the physiological and ecological benefits and constraints of Se hyperaccumulation? What sequence of events led to Se hyperaccumulation? Did tolerance and accumulation evolve simultaneously or sequentially, and what were the physiological, biochemical and genetic steps involved? These questions are explored in this chapter.
Role of the colossal frequency and temperature dependent dielectric constant in the performance of the organo-metallic tri-halide perovskites

Organo-metallic perovskites have emerged as a promising next generation semiconducting material. Despite achievements in the efficiencies of perovskite devices, and although crucial to future success, little is known about the fundamental dielectric behavior of these materials. The measurement of the dielectric behavior in perovskites has proven to be both difficult and controversial. This work reports the dielectric properties of tri-halide perovskites over broad frequency (10 mHz–6 MHz) and temperature (100 K–300 K) ranges. A colossal dielectric constant in the materials is observed. The dielectric constant is found to drop abruptly above the PbI3 polarization frequency of ∼106 Hz and is shown to be largely structure dependent. The immense dielectric constant is found to diminish the exciton binding energies to negligible, ∼10 meV, at 300 K, thus guaranteeing exciton separation and explaining previously observed impressive perovskite device performance. This work provides fundamental information about t...
The business of writing: literature as a commodity in Claudia Piñeiro’s Betibú

This article presents considerations about the status of literature as a commodity and writers as professionals in the twenty-first century. These considerations are based on an analysis of Argenti...
Effects of modafinil and sleep loss on physiological parameters

ABSTRACT Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of modafinil administration on physical performance, thermoregulation, and total energy expenditure (TEE) during continued wakefulness in Air Force operators. Methods: Participants (N = 12) were randomly assigned to the modafinil or placebo group. Participants performed physical performance and testing during 72 hours of wakefulness. Results: There were no differences between groups for physical performance. Oral temperature was higher for modafinil compared to placebo (36.5 ± 0.2°C versus 36.3 ± 0.2°C for modafinil and placebo, respectively, p < 0.05). Daily water turnover (8.8 ±1.0 L·day−1 and 9.0 ± 1.5 L·day−1) and total energy expenditure (19.4 ± 3.7 and 19.9 ± 2.1 MJ) were similar between the modafinil and placebo groups, respectively. Conclusion: modafinil did not improve physical performance. Despite elevating oral temperature, water turnover and TEE were similar between treatments. These findings suggest it is unnecessary f...
Evidence-Based Medicine and Pediatrics

The informed pediatrician, one who is aware of current medical research relevant to patient care, is evolving. Although many pediatricians are becoming better connected to current evidence, many barriers remain to its full incorporation into care. Information science and technology offer potential solutions to overcome these barriers to bring evidence to the point-of-care for effective decision making and for continuous professional development of pediatricians.
Feeling Relieved After the Death of a Family Member With Dementia: Associations With Postbereavement Adjustment

Objective After an extended period of caregiving, the death of a family member with dementia can provide a sense of relief to individuals because caregiving has ended and their loved one is no longer suffering. Little is known about predeath factors associated with feeling relieved after the death of a family member with dementia. This study examined 1) predeath factors associated with caregiver (CG) relief; and 2) whether CG relief is associated with postbereavement adjustment, namely complicated grief and depression symptoms. Methods Participants were bereaved CGs aged 28–90 years old drawn from the Resources for Enhancing Alzheimer's Caregiver Health (REACH) (N = 223) and Family Caregiver Transition Support (FaCTS) (N = 89) studies. In each sample, demographics were assessed at baseline, and CG relief was assessed at the first follow-up assessment after death. Each study administered a similar bereavement battery to CGs following the death of their care recipients (CRs). Results CGs of late-stage dementia patients (FaCTS) reported more relief compared with CGs of early- to midstage dementia patients (REACH). CGs were more likely to experience relief if they were prepared for their CR's death and if they perceived their CR's death to be a relief to the CR. A multivariate regression model showed that greater CG relief was associated with less complicated grief postbereavement. CG relief was not significantly associated with depression symptoms. Conclusion We show prospectively that the caregiving experience impacts feelings of relief, and that feeling relieved facilitates postbereavement adjustment by lessening symptoms of complicated grief.
Cost-Effectiveness of Niraparib and Olaparib as Maintenance Therapy for Patients with Platinum-Sensitive Recurrent Ovarian Cancer.

BACKGROUND: The recent approval of olaparib and niraparib as maintenance therapy can significantly affect the management of ovarian cancer. Clinical benefits, however, come with trade-offs in adver...
Free speech on US university campuses: differentiating perspectives using Q methodology

Recently, campus free speech has become a focus of contentious debate and increased scrutiny. This study confirms that although university stakeholders may generally embrace the concept of free spe...
Fast moving biomimetic ears

Like many other mammals, bats are known to rely on spectral signatures to determine the directions of incoming sounds, especially in elevation. Because of its simple hardware and computational realizations, this principle could also be suitable for small, parsimonious biomimetic sonar systems. However, the biosonar systems of bat species in families such as the rhinolophids and hipposiderids often—but not always—concentrate most of the emitted energy within a narrow frequency band in order to pick up prey-induced Doppler signatures. It remains unclear how the use of such narrow-band biosonar pulses could be reconciled with direction-finding based on spectral signatures. A possible solution to this paradox could be provided by fast pinna motions in these animals that have been shown to produce readily perceivable Doppler-shift signatures in biomimetic reproductions. In the current work, such a biomimetic pinna with fast deformations has been used to map Doppler-shift signatures as a function of direction. For this purpose, the Doppler-shift signatures were clustered based on the similarity of their spectrogram-representations. Mapping the signatures' different cluster associations into direction space resulted in contiguous patches. Hence, it should be possible to obtain stable estimates of target direction based on the received Doppler signatures.
Boundary conforming mesh to T-NURCC surface conversion

Abstract We present a method for converting an open triangle mesh, whose boundary is constrained to a set of smooth curves, to a T-NURCC surface approximating seamlessly both the mesh and the curve geometry. The curves represent boundaries of B-Rep faces adjacent to the mesh and include intersections, trim-curves, patch boundaries, etc. This conversion problem arises in generative design and topology optimization, where “organic” meshes are synthesized by a physics solver to complement an existing mechanical B-Rep model. It can also occur in reverse engineering, where a scanned mesh is converted to a collection of adjacent analytical and free-form surfaces. The core of our algorithm is a novel transfinite interpolation construction defining a C0 patch network interpolating the curves at the boundaries and coincident with the mesh in the interior. We convert this network to a T-NURCC surface by applying an approximation algorithm designed to produce a very accurate boundary fit and reproduce exactly all boundary corners. These properties allow a B-Rep modeling kernel to stitch the output T-NURCCs with adjacent B-Rep faces into a watertight, low tolerance B-Rep CAD model. We demonstrate our method’s results and applicability on several examples synthesized by topology optimization and generative design applications.
Integrate machine learning and geostatistics for high-resolution mapping of ground-level PM2.5 concentrations

Abstract Fine particulate matter with aerodynamic diameters equal to or less than 2.5 micrometers (PM2.5) is a major component of air pollutants. The adverse effects of PM2.5 on public health have been well recognized. Numerous methods have been developed for ground-level PM2.5 concentration mapping by exploiting the advancements of machine learning and observational technologies. The currently available gridded long-term PM2.5 concentration datasets are typically at a spatial resolution of 1 km × 1 km (or 0.01° × 0.01°) and a temporal granularity of a year, which is insufficient for public health applications that require higher spatiotemporal resolutions. In this study, we propose a statistical approach to integrate random forests, a commonly used machine learning algorithm, and regression kriging, a recognized geostatistical method, for high-resolution mapping of ground-level PM2.5 concentrations. This approach jointly considers the heterogeneous geospatial variables that are closely related to the distribution of PM2.5, including meteorological factors, socioeconomic development activities, and topographic information. The integration of the machine learning and traditional geostatistical methods enables the effective modeling of the nonlinear relationships between the PM2.5 concentration and the predictor variables (via random forests) while accounting for the complex spatiotemporal effects of the variables (via kriging). Using this integrative approach, we produce a time-series (January 2014 to December 2014) monthly PM2.5 concentration dataset at a spatial resolution of 500 m for the contiguous United States. The advantages of the proposed approach are discussed and highlighted with a performance comparison with a commonly used land use regression method in ground-level PM2.5 concentration mapping.