cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Heterodyne frequency measurements of 13 CO 2 laser hot band transitions

The frequencies of twenty-eight lines in the P-branch of the 0111–[1110, 0310]I band of 13C16O2, observed in laser emission, and three lines in the R-branch, observed in absorption with a diode laser, have been carefully measured with stabilized CO2 lasers. A significant improvement in the ro-vibrational constants has been obtained from a least squares fit to these data. The laser lines stabilized by saturated absorption techniques provide convenient, accurate (uncertainty <0.1 MHz) frequency references near 11.7 μm.
The impact of sodium contamination in tin sulfide thin-film solar cells

Through empirical observations, sodium (Na) has been identified as a benign contaminant in some thin-film solar cells. Here, we intentionally contaminate thermally evaporated tin sulfide (SnS) thin-films with sodium and measure the SnS absorber properties and solar cell characteristics. The carrier concentration increases from 2 × 1016 cm−3 to 4.3 × 1017 cm−3 in Na-doped SnS thin-films, when using a 13 nm NaCl seed layer, which is detrimental for SnS photovoltaic applications but could make Na-doped SnS an attractive candidate in thermoelectrics. The observed trend in carrier concentration is in good agreement with density functional theory calculations, which predict an acceptor-type NaSn defect with low formation energy.
Abstract 38: Exosomes Secreted From Human Renal Proximal Tubule Cells Can Transfer Their Contents to Proximal Tubule, Distal Tubule and Collecting Duct Cells

Exosomes are 50-90 nm extracellular membrane particles that may mediate trans-cellular communication between cells and tissues. We have previously found that urinary exosomes contain miRNA that are biomarkers for salt sensitivity and inverse salt sensitivity of blood pressure. We also found that urinary exosomes contain dopamine 1 receptor and G protein-coupled receptor kinase type 4. We have also shown that exosomes can transfer between cultured human renal proximal tubule cells (RPTC). Here, we further explored RPTC-to-RPTC exosomal transfer using 5 RPTC lines containing exosomes that were fluorescently labelled with either exosomal-specific marker CD63-EGFP or CD9-mCherry. Transfer between RPTCs was confirmed by co-culturing CD63-EGFP and CD9-mCherry stable RPTC clones and performing live confocal microscopy. Dual color time-lapse videos reveal unique cellular secretion and uptake patterns for exosomes and eventual accumulation into the multi-vesicular body. We hypothesized that proximal tubule-derived exosomes could also be taken up by the distal tubule (DT). Five DT and 3 collecting duct (CD) cell lines were isolated and immortalized by infecting with hTert-containing lentiviral particles. DT cells were isolated from human kidney by collagenase digestion and biotinylated lectin or immuno-magnetic affinity separation (using dolichos biflorus agglutinin (DBA) or anti-Tamm-Horsfall protein antibody). CD cells were similarly isolated with anti-L1CAM antibody. Using sterile-filtered cell culture supernatant from 3 different CD9-mCherry RPTC lines, all 5 DT cell lines showed exosome transfer at 24 hours as measured by microplate fluorometry (10,406 ± 1132 SEM RFU above background, p In conclusion, intra-nephron cellular exosomal transfer is demonstrated in RPTCs and between RPTCs and distal tubule and collecting duct cells. This proximal to distal nephron transfer may represent a new trans-cellular communication within the human kidney.
Physiological energetics of the intertidal sea anemone Anthopleura elegantissima : III. Biochemical composition of body tissues, substrate-specific absorption, and carbon and nitrogen budgets.

Lipid is the major energy storage molecule, and protein is highly conserved when food availability is low in high- and low-intertidal individuals of Anthopleura elegantissima. Under laboratory conditions zooxanthellae were lost from anemones, and tissue carbohydrate was mobilized to support metabolic demands. Routine catabolic requirements for carbohydrate are probably met by translocated photosynthate. Substrate-specific absorption efficiencies were greater than 95% for protein and lipid, but considerably lower (10 to 60%) for carbohydrate. This pattern of absorption is directly related to very low levels of dietary carbohydrate compared to the other substrates. High-intertidal anemones absorbed more lipid than low-intertidal anemones. Integrated budgets for organic nitrogen, the first reported for any cnidarian, indicate that low-intertidal anemones require larger daily rations than high-intertidal anemones to meet their higher metabolic demands for protein. These results are considered in relation to potential importance of zooxanthellae in nutrient cycling.
American Rights in the Panama Canal

The return of maritime warfare in the Atlantic and Pacific, and the proclamation by the United States of its neutrality in the existing state of war, raise anew important questions of law concerning the Panama Canal. While there is an abundant literature on the history of the Canal project, on the Panama Revolution, the Tolls controversy, the economic importance of the Canal and the cost of its defense, little has been written on the legal status of the Canal as a completed and operating institution. No complete survey of the treaties, laws, executive orders, regulations, agreements, opinions and decisions, and diplomatic correspondence seems to exist. Only by a laborious consultation of source materials, not all of which are easily accessible, can a comprehensive picture of the legal situation be pieced together. It is hoped that the treatment which follows may help to fill this lacuna.
Robot Experiment Analysis of Airport Ramp Area Time Constraints

Improvement in airport operations using optimization schemes has been an active research area in the recent years. Particular attention has been given to improve taxiway and runway queue operations. However, once these operations are improved by an efficient taxiway schedule, its execution relies on the planning of ramp-area aircraft movements. An important step in the integration of the taxiway schedule with the planning of ramp-area aircraft maneuvers is to understand the constraints imposed on the aircraft trajectories due to the geometry of ramp-area and aircraft kinematics. Data for ramp trajectories are usually unavailable. To address this, we use an inexpensive scaled-down robot experiment to collect some critical data about aircraft trajectories. Ramp movement trajectories are then modeled by stochastic processes since they are heavily dependent on the human operator. We use the stochastic model to analyze the relationship between aircraft pushback time intervals and ramp-area conflicts. We then discuss constraints that can be imposed on aircraft pushback intervals to avoid any conflicts among trajectories.
Background Concepts and Relationships in a Globalized World

The United States has, historically, enjoyed a large degree of self-sufficiency in international economic affairs so that the ratio of exports and imports to gross domestic product is extremely low in comparison with smaller countries such as those in western Europe and in East Asia. There is, therefore, a tendency for US-trained economists and economic policymakers to downplay international phenomena in much of their thinking and to focus on closed-economy models. The ratio of exports and imports to gross domestic product in the United States has increased in recent years and the value of international financial transactions has also grown. There are many reasons. They include the liberalization of international trade, the greater freedom of international transfers of funds, the growth of foreign direct investments by multinational corporations and the end of approximate self-sufficiency in petroleum and other sources of energy. The word “globalization” has come to signify the greater interdependence of national economies. Some relationships must be spelled out. In addition, some of the issues of major concern to the subject matter of this volume are not a part of the mainstream of modern economic thought.
Modeling Count Data from Multiple Sensors: A Building Occupancy Model

Knowledge of the number of people in a building at a given time is crucial for applications such as emergency response. Sensors can be used to gather noisy measurements which when combined, can be used to make inferences about the location, movement and density of people. In this paper we describe a probabilistic model for predicting the occupancy of a building using networks of people-counting sensors. This model provides robust predictions given typical sensor noise as well as missing and corrupted data from malfunctioning sensors. We experimentally validate the model by comparing it to a baseline method using real data from a network of optical counting sensors in a campus building.
Generic and Branded Low Molecular Weight Heparins Can Be Differentiated Based on Biologic and Pharmacologic Assays.

Abstract Several generic versions of the low molecular weight heparins enoxaparin and dalteparin have become available in different parts of the world and several products are currently under review by the FDA. At this time, there are no regulatory guidelines for defining equivalence of complex biologic drugs. Because of their complexity and hybrid nature (biologic and chemical), the available generic versions may not be acceptable by using currently applicable generic criteria. Due to their complex nature, the pharmacologic effect of these may not be similar to the branded product. Therefore, additional methods are needed to equate these drugs with the branded products. In this study, multiple lots of Lovenox or generic enoxaparin such as Lupenox (Lupin Pharma, India), Dripanina (Ariston, Brazil), Dilutol (Lazar, Argentina), Clenox (Pharmayect, Columbia), and Cutenox (Gland Pharma, India) and generic versions of dalteparin such as Daltehep (Gland Pharma, India) were supplemented to human plasma in the absence or presence of protamine sulfate (PS). Anticoagulant activity was measured using the aPTT, Heptest, PiCT assays. Antithrombin and anti-factor Xa activity were assessed by amidolytic assays. Effects on thrombin generation and the activation of thrombin activatable fibrinolytic inhibitor (TAFI) were determined by functional assay. At prophylactic levels of LMWH, no differences in anticoagulant or antiprotease activities were observed between generic and branded LMWHs. At therapeutic concentrations, significantly higher anticoagulant and antiprotease activities were observed with Lovenox. Assay-dependent variations in PS neutralization of antiprotease and anticoagulant activities were observed at higher concentrations of the generic versions of enoxaparin and dalteparin. Significant differences were noted in the effects of these agents on thrombin generation and the activation of TAFI. Current generic LMWHs possess some differences from branded LMWHs in known biologic properties of heparin. Variations in PS neutralization raise the question as to whether the interaction with other plasmatic proteins also differs from that of the branded drug. These results emphasize a need to consider multiple functional parameters when defining bioequivalence of complex biologic drugs and underscore the importance of further pharmacologic studies involving animal models and human clinical trials. Such approaches can be incorporated in the recommendations to develop guidelines for the approval of the generic versions of low molecular weight heparins.
(Mis)Reading the Classroom: A Two-Act “Play” on the Conflicting Roles in Student Teaching

This case study examined concentric and reciprocal notions of reading—that of high school students, a pre-service teacher, and a teacher educator. An intern charged with teaching students to read, interact with, and compose texts in an English/language arts classroom constructed her role in the classroom based on her reading the “text” of her internship experiences, relationships, and responsibilities. Using interviews and observations, a teacher educator read and interpreted the classroom “text” the pre-service teacher “composed” during her internship and then constructed a two-act “play” which details the conflict in the intern’s enacting the dual role of student-teacher and her subsequent reading of the classroom “text” from her stance as student-teacher. Concepts of classroom literacy for teachers and teacher educators are considered.
Re: Effect of beam profile measurement on arc therapy plan quality assurance: A case study

We present an example when profile measurement and modeling of an Elekta Agility multileaf collimator (MLC) had a large effect specifically on arc therapy plan quality assurance (QA) results using ArcCheck. ArcCheck absolute dose measurements of these plans were systematically lower than planned by 3-10%. Failing QA results were seen even with unmodulated static and conformal arcs. Furthermore, the effect was found to be dependent on collimator angle, with worse results associated with near-zero collimator angles. In contrast, step-and-shoot QA results were not affected. Changing the beam model to match steeper profile measurements obtained using a different measurement device resolved the problem. This case study demonstrates that conventional gamma index analysis can be sensitive to small profile modeling changes.
Text and Contexts: Pedagogical Practices for a History Textbook Lesson on the 1947 British India Partition

In this chapter, Meenakshi Chhabra draws attention to the practices that teachers employ in the teaching of a history lesson on a historical event of mass violence, the 1947 British India Partition of Punjab. Through interviews with three high school history teachers in three different contexts, Chhabra engages in the complex dynamic between collective memory, textbook content, school context and the teachers’ multiple pedagogical practices of challenging, appropriating and reframing or adapting textbook and collective memory narratives of Partition. The analysis suggests implications for teacher training and possibilities for innovative practices related to historical events of violence, toward promoting a just, humane and inclusive democratic society.
A Nonparametric Renewal Model for Modeling Daily Precipitation

A nonparametric wet/dry spell model is developed for describing daily precipitation at a site. The model considers alternating sequences of wet and dry days in a given season of the year. All the probability densities of interest are estimated nonparametrically using kernel probability density estimators. The model is data adaptive, and yields stochastic realizations of daily precipitation sequences for different seasons at a site. Applications of the model to data from rain gauges in Utah indicate good performance of the model.
Time in the Babylonian Talmud: Natural and Imagined Times in Jewish Law and Narrative

In this book, Lynn Kaye examines how rabbis of late antiquity thought about time through their legal reasoning and storytelling, and what these insights mean for thinking about time today. Providing close readings of legal and narrative texts in the Babylonian Talmud, she compares temporal ideas with related concepts in ancient and modern philosophical texts and in religious traditions from late antique Mesopotamia. Kaye demonstrates that temporal flexibility in the Babylonian Talmud is a means of exploring and resolving legal uncertainties, as well as a tool to tell stories that convey ideas effectively and dramatically. Her book, the first on time in the Talmud, makes accessible complex legal texts and philosophical ideas. It also connects the literature of late antique Judaism with broader theological and philosophical debates about time.
Challenges in Transitioning Cocrystals from Bench to Bedside: Dissociation in Prototype Drug Product Environment.

Tablets containing a theophylline–glutaric acid (TG) cocrystal dissociated rapidly forming crystalline theophylline (20–30%), following storage at 40 °C/75% RH for 2 weeks. Control tablets of TG cocrystal containing no excipients were stable under the same conditions. The dissociation reaction was water-mediated, and the theophylline concentration (the dissociation product), monitored by synchrotron X-ray diffractometry, was strongly influenced by the formulation composition. Investigation of the binary compacts of the TG cocrystal with each excipient revealed the influence of excipient properties (hydrophilicity, ionizability) on cocrystal stability, providing mechanistic insights into a dissociation reaction. Ionizable excipients with a strong tendency to sorb water, for example, sodium starch glycolate and croscarmellose sodium, caused pronounced dissociation. Microcrystalline cellulose (MCC), while a neutral but hydrophilic excipient, also enabled solution-mediated cocrystal dissociation in intact tab...
Stream Sequence Mining for Human Activity Discovery

During the past decade, supervised activity recognition methods have been studied by many researchers; however, these methods still face many challenges in real-world settings. Supervised activity recognition methods assume that we are provided with labeled training examples from a set of predefined activities. Annotating and hand-labeling data is a very time-consuming and laborious task. Also, the assumption of consistent predefined activities might not hold in reality. More important, these algorithms do not take into account the streaming nature of data, or the possibility that the patterns might change over time. This chapter provides an overview of the state-of-the-art unsupervised methods for activity recognition. In particular, we describe a scalable activity discovery and recognition method for complex large real-world datasets based on sequential data mining and stream data mining methods.
The emergence of linguistic complexity

Linguists have often argued that recursion produces linguistic complexity. However, recursion itself preexisting processes such as lexical insertion, lexical combination, memory stacks, and methods of interpretation. In the brain, recursion is an emergent property of a set of adaptations that involve at least six processing systems. Linguistic complexity arises from the interplay of all six of these systems. The complexity of this neuronal support means that the full complexity of human language could not have arisen fortuitously at some single moment in evolution. However, there is evidence that some pieces of the six systems supporting complexity have developed more recently than others.
A Preliminary Investigation of the Sources of Information Used by Raters When Appraising Performance

Raters (N = 135) from six organizations completed a survey regarding the sources of information used when appraising an employee's performance. Results indicated that multiple sources of information are used, and that raters are active seekers, as well as passive recipients of performance information. The perceived usefulness of volunteered versus requested second-hand performance information was found to differ across the various information sources. Also, the number of sources of performance information used by a rater was found to be related to rater characteristics (e.g., job level, number of subordinates). Implications for performance appraisal research and practice are discussed.
Botulinum Toxin as Prophylaxis for Adverse Dermatologic Effects of Tumor-Treatment Fields (TTF) (P6.132)

Objective: Glioblastoma therapy traditionally consists of maximal surgical debulking and radiation therapy with concomitant chemotherapy. TTFields were FDA-approved for recurrent glioblastoma in 2011. Transducer arrays are placed on a shaved scalp and a conductive hydrogrel forms the contact. The transducers emit low intensity (1–2 V/cm), intermediate frequency (200 Hz) wavelengths which interfere with mitotic microtubular assembly in rapidly dividing cancer cells, leading to apoptosis. The TTFields must be worn for at least 18 hours/day for optimal results. Skin irritation is the most common adverse effect associated with this device treatment. Background: 57 year-old left-handed woman presented with progressive left face and hand numbness persisting over one day. Brain MRI demonstrated two ring-enhancing lesions in the right precentral gyrus. The patient underwent a frontal craniotomy near-total resection. Pathology indicated glioblastoma (MGMT methylated, IDH1 negative). She underwent radiotherapy (6000 cGy in 30 fx) with concurrent temozolomide followed by 5 cycles of post-radiation chemotherapy. Two months later, in the setting of tumor progression, she elected to pursue TTFields. Treatment onset was during warm summer months and was complicated by contact dermatitis, folliculitis, erosions, and ulcerations at the sites of contact with hydrogel. It was hypothesized that perspiration caused these complications because they abated during the winter. Eleven months into TTFields therapy, she began intradermal botulinum toxin injections of the scalp and forehead every 3–4 months. Her hyperhidrosis and tolerance of TTFields improved significantly. She remains on TTFields 22 months after beginning treatment. Design/Methods: NA Results: NA Conclusions: TTFields has been shown to prolong progression-free and overall survival in patients with glioblastoma when used as an adjunct to surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy, but compliance is critical for efficacy. Botulinum toxin therapy reduced dermatologic adverse effects, and enabled compliance in this patient. A systematic investigation of this remedy should be considered to improve patient comfort and quality of life. Disclosure: Dr. Bucklan has nothing to disclose. Dr. Stevens has nothing to disclose. Dr. Peereboom has nothing to disclose. Dr. Vidimos has nothing to disclose. Dr. Staugaitis has nothing to disclose.
Representing Mental Illness in Late Medieval France: Machines, Madness, Metaphor

An exploration of the medieval mind as a machine, and how it might be affected and immobiled, in textual reactions to the madness of Charles VI of France.
The Roles of Intrinsic Barriers and Crystal Fluidity in Determining the Dynamics of Crystalline Molecular Rotors and Molecular Machines.

Crystalline solids are a promising platform for the development of molecular machines. They have the potential of combining the molecular-level control of physical properties caused by isomerizatio...
Coparenting in the feeding context: perspectives of fathers and mothers of preschoolers

This study examined how fathers and mothers coparent around child feeding. Father–mother pairs (N = 30) of preschool-aged children (M child age = 4.1 years old) participated in joint or group interview sessions. Three themes emerged from the qualitative analysis: (1) couples’ division of labor regarding feeding tasks seemed to align with stereotypical gender roles; (2) couples noted that they attempted healthier family eating habits in comparison to families of origin and recognized the influence of extended family on their attempts at healthier feeding; (3) couples agreed on the importance of family mealtime, routines, and healthy meals, yet disagreed on strategies to limit unhealthy foods and achieve harmonious family meals. This study identified processes of coparenting and child feeding areas that were particularly challenging to manage among parents, which could be important targets for childhood obesity interventions. V, descriptive study.
Do You Really Want a Diverse Program

Despite multiple calls for diversifying academia in general, and Library and Information Science programs (LIS) specifically, the number of faculty of color working in higher education remains low....
Impact of Statewide Essential Health Benefits on Utilization of Bariatric Surgery.

In response to concerns about inadequate insurance coverage, bariatric surgery was included in the Affordable Care Act’s essential health benefits program—requiring individual and small-group insurance plans in 23 states to cover bariatric surgery. We evaluated the impact of this policy on bariatric surgery utilization. Multiple-group interrupted time series analyses of IBM MarketScan commercial claims data from 2009 to 2016. Bariatric surgery utilization increased in all states after ACA implementation, but this increase was no greater in states with a bariatric surgery essential health benefit. Our findings suggest that the essential health benefits program may have been too narrow in scope to meaningfully increase bariatric surgery utilization at the population level.
Flexible Magnetostrictive Nanocellulose Membranes for Actuation, Sensing and Energy Harvesting Applications

Magnetostrictive composite known as magnetostrictive nanocellulose membrances (MNMs) were fabricated by embedding Terfeonol-D particles into cellulose nanofibers (CNF). MNMs inherit flexibility and biodegradability from CNF while exhibiting magnetomechanical responses; as such, the valuable rare-earth (Terfenol-D) particles can be recycled. Various orientations of the Terfenol-D particles were induced in the MNMs, and those with in-plane alignment showed the strongest magnetostrictive effect but the lowest Villari effect. Materials with such a unique combination of properties dovetail nicely with Internet of Things that require ubiquitous sensing, actuation and energy harvesting in one package.
Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophy carriers: Evidence of cardiomyopathy by exercise and cardiac MRI testing.

Abstract Background Varied detection methods have resulted in conflicting reports on the prevalence of cardiac disease in Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophy carriers (MDC). Methods We performed a prospective cohort study of 77 genetically-confirmed MDC mothers, 22 non-carrier mothers, and 25 controls. All participants underwent Cardiopulmonary Exercise Testing (CPET) and Cardiac Magnetic Resonance imaging (CMR). Results 25% of carriers had ventricular ectopy in recovery of exercise (RecVE) as compared to 1 non-carrier and no controls (p = .003). No difference in age or maximal oxygen consumption was noted. 11 carriers had abnormal ( 289 U/l; 52.8% v 31.6%, p = .065). Conclusion We describe the prevalence of disease using CPET and CMR in genetically-proven MDC. 49% of carriers had fibrosis, opposed to 5% of non-carriers, highlighting the importance of genetic testing in this population. Despite cardiomyopathy, functional assessment by treadmill was normal, illustrating the discrepancy in cardiac and skeletal muscle impacts. Age, RecVE and serum CK appear to have an important role in predicting cardiomyopathy. Serum CK levels suggest that a systemic higher global disease severity and not tissue heterogeneity may be the etiology for greater cardiac disease and relatively spared skeletal muscle disease in this population. Clinical Trial Registration https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02972580?term=mendellc ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02972580
Macrophage Efferocytosis in Cardiac Pathophysiology and Repair.

ABSTRACT As an integral component of cardiac tissue, macrophages are critical for cardiac development, adult heart homeostasis, as well as cardiac healing. One fundamental function of macrophages involves the clearance of dying cells or debris, a process termed efferocytosis. Current literature primarily pays attention to the impact of efferocytosis on apoptotic cells. However, emerging evidence suggests that necrotic cells and their released cellular debris can also be removed by cardiac macrophages through efferocytosis. Importantly, recent studies have demonstrated that macrophage efferocytosis plays an essential role in cardiac pathophysiology and repair. Therefore, understanding macrophage efferocytosis would provide valuable insights on cardiac health, and may offer new therapeutic strategies for the treatment of patients with heart failure. In this review, we first summarize the molecular signals that are associated with macrophage efferocytosis of apoptotic and necrotic cells, and then discuss how the linkage of efferocytosis to the resolution of inflammation affects cardiac function and recovery under normal and diseased conditions. Lastly, we highlight new discoveries related to the effects of macrophage efferocytosis on cardiac injury and repair.
Automated Pulmonary Fibrosis Segmentation Using a 3D Multi-Scale Convolutional Encoder-Decoder Approach in Thoracic CT for the Rhesus Macaque with Radiation-Induced Lung Damage

To develop an automated pulmonary fibrosis (PF) segmentation methodology using a 3D multi-scale convolutional encoder-decoder approach following the robust atlas-based active volume model in thoracic CT for Rhesus Macaques with radiation-induced lung damage. 152 thoracic computed tomography scans of Rhesus Macaques with radiation-induced lung damage were collected. The 3D input data are randomly augmented with the Gaussian blurring when applying the 3D multi-scale convolutional encoder-decoder (3D MSCED) segmentation method.PF in each scan was manually segmented in which 70% scans were used as training data, 20% scans were used as validation data, and 10% scans were used as testing data. The performance of the method is assessed based on a10-fold cross validation method. The workflow of the proposed method has two parts. First, the compromised lung volume with acute radiation-induced PF was segmented using a robust atlas-based active volume model. Next, a 3D multi-scale convolutional encoder-decoder segmentation method was developed which merged the higher spatial information from low-level features with the high-level object knowledge encoded in upper network layers. It included a bottom-up feed-forward convolutional neural network and a top-down learning mask refinement process. The quantitative results of our segmentation method achieved mean Dice score of (0.769, 0.853), mean accuracy of (0.996, 0.999), and mean relative error of (0.302, 0.512) with 95% confidence interval. The qualitative and quantitative comparisons show that our proposed method can achieve better segmentation accuracy with less variance in testing data. This method was extensively validated in NHP datasets. The results demonstrated that the approach is more robust relative to PF than other methods. It is a general framework which can easily be applied to segmentation other lung lesions.
MEASURING TURBULENCE IN THE INTERSTELLAR MEDIUM BY COMPARING N(H I; Lyα) AND N(H I; 21 cm)

We present a study of the small-scale structure of the interstellar medium (ISM) in the Milky Way. We used HST STIS data to measure N(Hi) in a pencil beam toward 59 active galactic nuclei and compared the results with the values seen at 9 � –36 � resolution in the same directions using radio telescopes (Green Bank Telescope, Green Bank 140-ft, and LAB survey). The distribution of ratios N(Lyα)/N(Hi) has an average of 1 and a dispersion of about 10%. Our analysis also revealed that spectra from the Leiden–Argentina–Bonn (LAB) all-sky Hi survey need to be corrected, taking out a broad Gaussian component (peak brightness temperature 0.048 K, FWHM 167 km s −1 , and central velocity −22 km s −1 ). The column density ratios have a distribution showing similarities to simple descriptions of hierarchical structure in the neutral ISM as well as to a more sophisticated three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic simulation. From the comparison with such models, we find that the sonic Mach number of the local ISM should lie between 0.6 and 0.9. However, none of the models yet matches the observed distribution in all details, but with many more sightlines (as will be provided by the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph) our approach can be used to constrain the properties of interstellar turbulence.
The Use of Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System in Spine: A Systematic Review

ABSTRACT Background: The Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) was developed to provide an easily administered patient-outcome questionnaire that was adaptable to a variety of medical and surgical subspecialties. Numerous authors have examined the effectiveness of PROMIS in various areas of spine surgery. Our goal was to systematically review PROMIS scores compared with legacy patient-reported outcomes measures (PROMs) in spinal surgery and spine pathology. Methods: A systematic search of the PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane databases using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines was performed, yielding 254 unique studies reporting on “PROMIS” in “spine.” Each study was independently reviewed. A total of 16 studies were selected for inclusion. Results: The pooled sample size yielded a total of 4268 patients. In the cervical population, PROMIS physical function (PF; |r| = .47–.87, pain intensity (PIn; |r| = .61–.74), pain interference (PIf; |r| = .65–.88), and pain behavior (PB; |r| = .59–.74) correlated with the Neck Disability Index (NDI). PROMIS PF also strongly correlated with the modified Japanese Orthopaedic Association scale (mJOA; |r| = .61–.72). Among patients with lumbar pathology and adult spinal deformities, PROMIS PF (|r| = .53–.85), PIn (|r| = .73–.78), PIf (|r| = .59–.89), and PB (|r| = .58–.82) strongly correlated with the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI). PF (|r| = .51–.78), PIf (|r| = .60–.70), and anxiety (|r| = .73) also strongly correlated with the Scoliosis Research Society (SRS)-22 and SRS-30. When comparing measures of global health, PROMIS PF was strongly correlated with the Short Form (SF)-12 and SF-36 (|r| = .50–.85). On average, all PROMIS domains required less time to complete (49.6–56 seconds) than the ODI (176 seconds), NDI (190.3 seconds), SF-12 (214 seconds), and SF-36 physical function domains (99 seconds). The responsiveness of the PROMIS PF, PIf, and PB was comparable to that of legacy measures ODI, NDI, and SF-12. Conclusions: The PROMIS PF, PIn, PIf, and PB demonstrated moderate to strong correlations with NDI, mJOA, ODI, SRS, and SF-12 measures in various populations of spine patients. All PROMIS domains had decreased time to completion and similar responsiveness compared with legacy measures. Level of Evidence: 2. Clinical Relevance: These results highlight the potential of PROMIS as a valid and reliable tool to assess patient-reported outcomes in spinal surgery patients and support more widespread use of PROMIS in spine.
State Policy and Mental Health Outcomes under COVID-19.

CONTEXT: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused enormous damage to physiological health and economic security, especially among racial and ethnic minorities. We examine downstream effects on mental health, how effects vary by race and ethnicity, and the role of existing state-level social policies in softening the pandemic's impact. METHODS: We analyze an online, multi-wave Census Bureau survey fielded to nearly a million respondents between late April and July 2020. The survey includes questions measuring psychological distress as well as indirect measures of experience with the pandemic. We combine these data with state-level measures of COVID cases, lock-down orders, unemployment filings, and safety net policy. FINDINGS: We find significant mental stress among all respondents and a sizeable gap between non-white and white respondents. Adjusting for pandemic experiences eliminates this gap. The effect of losing work due to the pandemic is slightly offset by state policies such as unemployment benefit size and Medicaid expansion. The magnitude of these offsetting effects is similar across racial/ethnic groups. CONCLUSIONS: The racialized impacts of the pandemic are exacerbated by inequalities in state policy exemplifying structural racism. If the least generous states matched the policies of the most generous, inequalities caused by the pandemic would be diminished.
Health Care Access and Quality Among Children Exposed to Adversity: Implications for Universal Screening of Adverse Childhood Experiences.

Given recent advances toward universal screening for Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), our objective was to investigate whether children with higher ACEs experience poorer quality of provider care and greater challenges accessing needed mental health treatment. This study uses a nationally representative sample of US children aged 0–17 years drawn from the National Survey on Children’s Health for 2016–2019. Caregivers and parents completed surveys between June 2016 and February 2020 (N = 131,774). Logistic regression models adjusting for identified covariates were used to test associations between a child’s number of ACEs, their quality of provider care, and their access to mental health treatment. All analyses used appropriate survey weighting commands. High ACEs (4 or more) were associated with lower quality of provider care, including effective care coordination [OR 0.45, 95% CI (0.38, 0.52)], family-centered care [OR 0.49, 95% CI (0.41, 0.58)], shared decision making [OR 0.50, 95% CI (0.39, 0.85)], and referrals for care [OR 0.58, 95% CI (0.43, 0.80)]; children with high ACEs were also less likely to have a medical home [OR 0.66, 95% CI (0.57, 0.76)]. High ACEs were also significantly associated with greater difficulty accessing mental health treatment [OR 0.55, 95% CI (0.43, 0.70)]. Similar results were found for children in the moderate ACE (2–3) and low ACE (1) groups. Findings indicate that greater ACEs were associated with poorer quality medical care and greater difficulty accessing needed mental health treatment. Because findings indicate that children with high ACEs may be the least likely to receive quality care or necessary mental health treatment to address this adversity, universal screening for ACEs should be considered with caution.
Environmental Stress and Cognitive Performance

Several general characteristics of research on the effects of stress on cognitive performance are noteworthy. There has been little theoretical development in the area of stress and cognition. We still have no theory of stress and cognition that can adequately account for or predict the circumstances in which stress will impact human task performance. One reason for this shortcoming is that task variables have not been adequately appreciated by researchers studying the effects of stress on cognition. Whether a particular stressor will affect human task performance is strongly influenced by characteristics of the physical stressor, by individual motivation and expectancy, and by task parameters, such as load demands or complexity.
Optoelectronic implementation of the Register Insertion Bus high-speed network

The Register Insertion Bus (RIB) is a scalable optical network using a folded-bus topology. The access scheme relies on two buffers found in each station to hold packets that would conflict. An active fiber optic tap has been utilized for the switching of the packets that may conflict. In this paper we present an optoelectronic implementation using, instead of the two buffers, a fiber optic delay line memory loop. Passive taps are used for the control of the bus and the fiber loop. LiNbO/sub 3/ electrooptic switches are also used as active switching elements. >
Reduced Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide Phosphate-Sulfite Reductase of Enterobacteria IV. THE ESCHERICHIA COLI HEMOFLAVOPROTEIN: SUBUNIT STRUCTURE AND DISSOCIATION INTO HEMOPROTEIN AND FLAVOPROTEIN COMPONENTS

Abstract Escherichia coli NADPH-sulfite reductase (EC 1.8.1.2), which catalyzes the 6-electron reduction of sulfite to sulfide, is a complex hemoflavoprotein, molecular weight approximately 700,000, which contains 4 FMN, 4 FAD, 20 to 21 atoms of iron, and 14 to 15 labile sulfides, and 3 to 4 molecules of a novel type of heme per enzyme molecule. This complex structure is composed of only two types of polypeptide chain and has the subunit structure α8β4. α and β each have molecular weights of 54,000 to 60,000, α being slightly larger than β. Sulfite reductase can be dissociated in 5 m urea into a hemoprotein and a flavoprotein component, which can be separated by DEAE-cellulose chromatography. The hemoprotein contains iron, labile sulfide, and the novel sulfite reductase heme, but no flavin. It exists as a β monomer in phosphate buffer, and exhibits reduced methyl viologen-sulfite reductase activity, but no NADPH-dependent activities. The flavoprotein contains FAD and FMN, but no iron, labile sulfide, or heme. It exists as an octamer in phosphate buffer, and exhibits an NADPH-cytochrome c reductase activity (as well as NADPH oxidase, transhydrogenase, and a variety of "diaphorase"-type activities characteristic of the sulfite reductase holoenzyme), but no NADPH- or reduced methyl viologen-sulfite reductase activity. By mixing the isolated hemoprotein and flavoprotein components in appropriate proportions, an NADPH-sulfite reductase activity can be reconstituted in vitro.
High-Level Production of β-Galactosidase by Escherichia coli Merodiploids

Two merodiploids of Escherichia coli that contain genes for the lac operon on both chromosome and episome were tested for production of lac enzymes after growth on various carbon sources. The specific activity of β-galactosidase (and of thiogalactoside transacetylase) was about twice that from haploid cells when grown on glycerol. With succinate as carbon source, the specific activity increased by an additional factor of 3. Up to 25% of the soluble cell protein is β-galactosidase in these strains, one of which is inducible and the other constitutive. The enzyme is purified easily in high yield by ammonium sulfate fractionation and electrophoresis.
Cutaneous Basophil Hypersensitivity and Contact Sensitivity After Cutaneous Trichophyton mentagrophytes Infection

The histopathology of cutaneous lesions and trichophytin skin test responses was examined by light microscopy after the infection of strain 2 guinea pigs with Trichophyton mentagrophytes. Skin biopsies were fixed and stained with procedures which allowed differentiation of the polymorphonuclear granulocytic leukocytes that were present in lesions or skin test reactions. Basophils comprised about one-third of the leukocytes infiltrating the 24 to 48-h trichophytin skin test reactions of guinea pigs sensitized by a cutaneous T. mentagrophytes infection. These results were comparable to the percentage of basophils counted in skin test lesions elicited by the contact agent dinitrochlorobenzene and are consistent with previously published descriptions of cutaneous basophil hypersensitivity. In contrast, the active T. mentagrophytes lesion in the skin of guinea pigs sacrificed at defined intervals after infection or reinfection did not appear to contain similarly elevated numbers of basophils. The early inflammation in primary T. mentagrophytes-induced skin lesions can be characterized histologically as a primary irritant dermatitis which evolves, during the course of the disease, into a chronic mononuclear inflammation. This shift apparently results from host sensitization to fungal antigens during infection and the concurrent development of acquired immunity. Reinfection of guinea pigs with T. mentagrophytes resulted in an accelerated cutaneous inflammation that was temporally and histologically similar to allergic contact dermatitis. These results support the hypothesis that contact sensitivity to T. mentagrophytes develops during the primary cutaneous infection of guinea pigs and is an early component of the hypersensitivity response to reinfection.
Impact of Changes in Marriage Law: Implications for Fertility and School Enrollment

Does the postponement of marriage affect fertility and investment in human capital? I study this question in the context of a 1957 amendment to the Mississippi marriage law that was aimed at delaying the age of marriage; changes included raising the minimum age for men and women, parental consent requirements, compulsory blood tests, and proof of age. Using a difference-indifferences design at the county level, I find that, overall, marriages per 1,000 in the population in Mississippi and its neighboring counties decreased by nearly 75 percent; the crude birth rate decreased between 2 and 6 percent; and school enrollment increased by 3 percent after the law was enacted (by 1960). An unintended consequence of the law change was that illegitimate births among young black mothers increased by 7 percent. I show that changes in labor market conditions during this period cannot explain the changes in marriages, births, and enrollment. I conclude that stricter marriage-related regulations that lead to a delay in marriage can postpone fertility and increase school enrollment.
Correlates of Public Sentiments About War: Local Referenda on the Vietnam Issue

Political science, by whatever definition of the discipline one might want to adopt, traditionally has been concerned with public opinion and participation on significant policy questions. Although the literature has become too vast for a complete enumeration of the varied contexts in which this research has been conducted, one issue that might rank high on a list of priorities for study—and yet has received somewhat less emphasis than other topics—is the subject of public attitudes toward war. Perhaps this relative neglect has been promoted by a lack of opportunities for direct public participation in foreign policy decisions. Unlike most domestic issues, controversies over world problems have been relatively insulated from popular influence. Hence, research on the development of international conflict usually has devoted more attention to the statements and behavior of national leaders or key influentials than to public sentiments regarding war. In recent years, however, the bitter debate generated by the war in Vietnam has stimulated mounting interest in popular attitudes concerning military action. The controversy has provoked both an unusual display of public disagreement about the war and a desire for basic changes in the policy-making process. Many persons not only have registered strong disapproval of American involvement in the Vietnam war, but they also have expressed an acute sense of frustration about their inability to affect the conduct of international relations. As a result, growing demands have emerged to permit expanded public access to critical decisions and to create increasingly democratic methods of formulating foreign policy.
Effects of chorda tympani transection on long-term salt preference in hamsters

The effects of denervation of fungiform taste buds on preference behavior were studied. Presurgery, 0.01, 0.1, 0.2, and 0.4 M NaCl, and 0.1, 0.2, and 0.4 M KCl were strongly avoided relative to water as measured with 48-h intakes. Bilateral cuts of the chorda tympani nerve (CT) resulted in a decrease in the strength of aversions to all concentrations of NaCl and to 0.2 and 0.4 M KCl. Only 0.4 M NaCl and KCl were strongly avoided after CT section. After CT section, when the animals were allowed to choose between equimolar (0.1 or 0.2 M) KCl and NaCl, they drank equal amounts, whereas intact hamsters preferred KCl to NaCl. In golden hamsters, unlike most laboratory rat strains, intake-based long-term preference behavior for salts is significantly affected by selective gustatory deafferentation.
Reversible coronary artery kinking caused by cardiopulmonary support.

Cardiopulmonary support is utilized to provide optimal hemodynamic stability in high risk patients undergoing percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty. This report describes a patient undergoing supported angioplasty in whom multiple new severe stenoses were noted following coronary dilation and that were completely reversed by discontinuing cardiopulmonary support. © Wiley-Liss, Inc.