cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Some Effects of Temperature and Relative Humidity on Water-Balance in Females of the Spiny Rat Mite, Echinolaelaps echidninus (Acarina: Laelaptidae)1

Females of the spiny rat mite, E. echidninus (Berlese, 1887), were exposed to 8%, 90%, and near 100% relative humidities at 60°, 70°, 80°, and 90° F. The weight changes of individual mites were determined at intervals (luring exposure. Changes in weight resulted from loss or gain in water content. In this manner it was found that 90% r.h. was close to the equilibrium relative humidity at which mites neither gained nor lost weight. Mites exposed to 80% r.h. lost weight at the rate of about 18 Mg per mite per day until they died. After death they lost about 30 μ g per mite per day. The difference between the transpiration rates of live and dead mites is explained by assuming that active uptake of water occurs when the mites are alive and thus the net rate of loss is reduced. Dehydrated live mites exposed to relative humidities above 90% gain water and attain an equilibrium weight in 2 to 3 days. Dead mites at hydrating relative humidities lose rather than gain weight. Again an active process of uptake of water is indicated. It is postulated that the same active process is involved in both retention of water in dehydrating relative humidities and gain of water in hydrating humidities. It is further postulated that the active process involves; the extraction of water from some hygroscopic material by the tissues of the mite.
Hyperthermia enhances cytomegalovirus regulation of HIV-1 and TNF-α gene expression

The immediate-early (IE) genes of human cytomegalovirus (CMV) can be expressed in monocytic cells and are known to regulate viral and cellular genes. Reactivation of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1) may be stimulated by a variety of factors including other viruses and inflammatory cytokines. These studies examine the role of hyperthermia and CMV in the regulation of HIV-1 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α. THP-1 cells were transfected with the CMV IE genes. HIV-1 and TNF-α transcription were assessed with chloramphenicol acetyltransferase promoter constructs. Hyperthermia sufficient to stimulate production of heat shock proteins was used to stimulate the cells. Hyperthermia significantly enhances the effect of CMV IE gene products on the expression of HIV-1 and TNF-α. The increases in HIV-1 transcription appear to be in part due to increases in TNF-α. Heat shock proteins induced by hyperthermia may play an important role in the viral regulation of monocytic function by CMV.
Prevalence of Intimate Partner Violence among Women Veterans who Utilize Veterans Health Administration Primary Care

The objectives of this study were to identify the prevalence of past-year intimate partner violence (IPV) among women Veterans utilizing Veterans Health Administration (VHA) primary care, and to document associated demographic, military, and primary care characteristics. This was a retrospective cohort design, where participants completed a telephone survey in 2012 (84% participation rate); responses were linked to VHA administrative data for utilization in the year prior to the survey. A national stratified random sample of 6,287 women Veteran VHA primary care users participated in the study. Past-year IPV was assessed using the HARK screening tool. Self-report items and scales assessed demographic and military characteristics. Primary care characteristics were assessed via self-report and VHA administrative data. The prevalence of past-year IPV among women Veterans was 18.5% (se = 0.5%), with higher rates (22.2% - 25.5%) among women up to age 55. Other demographic correlates included indicators of economic hardship, lesbian or bisexual orientation, and being a parent/guardian of a child less than 18 years old. Military correlates included service during Vietnam to post-Vietnam eras, less than 10 years of service, and experiences of Military Sexual Trauma (MST). Most (77.3%, se = 1.2%) women who experienced IPV identified a VHA provider as their usual provider. Compared with women who did not report past-year IPV, women who reported IPV had more primary care visits, yet experienced lower continuity of care across providers. The high prevalence of past-year IPV among women beyond childbearing years, the majority of whom primarily rely on VHA as a source of health care, reinforces the importance of screening all women for IPV in VHA primary care settings. Key considerations for service implementation include sensitivity with respect to sexual orientation, race/ethnicity, and other aspects of diversity, as well as care coordination and linkages with social services and MST-related care.
Design of Belt Conveyor Electrical System Based on DSP

Design a new kind of belt conveyor electrical system based on DSP,this system is carried out by a way of multi-DSP and CAN bus communication,every function model which is made of DSP can play a function,such as display,control equipment,detecting conveyor fault,and get centralized control by CAN bus.This paper introduces its hardware design and software design,has the advantages of abundant control function,hardware design simple,easy to expand.It can be widely applied.
Modification of Feeding System in Heavy Oil Catalytic Cracking Unit

The feeding System of the heavy oil catalytic cracking unit with a capacity of 600,000 t/a in Shengli Petrochemical Plant was modified in order to meet the requirements of atmospheric residuum processing. The utilization of a special UPC nozzle and a step wise feeding methods improved the atomization of raw materials, lowered the a-mounts of steam, and improved the distribution of products. The yield of gasoline increased by 3. 23%, that of light oil by 0. 63%, and the incremental economic benefits were 19. 292 million RMB/a.
Efficacy and safety of endoscopic gallbladder drainage in acute cholecystitis: Is it better than percutaneous gallbladder drainage?

Background and Aims The efficacy and safety of endoscopic gallbladder drainage (EGBD) performed via endoscopic retrograde cholangiography (ERC)-based transpapillary stenting or EUS-based transmural stenting are unknown. We aimed to conduct a proportion meta-analysis to evaluate the cumulative efficacy and safety of these procedures and to compare them with percutaneous gallbladder drainage (PGBD). Methods We searched several databases from inception through December 10, 2015 to identify studies (with 10 or more patients) reporting technical success and postprocedure adverse events of EGBD. Weighted pooled rates (WPRs) for technical and clinical success, postprocedure adverse events, and recurrent cholecystitis were calculated for both methods of EGBD. Pooled odds ratios (ORs) were also calculated to compare the technical success and postprocedure adverse events in patients undergoing EGBD versus PGBD. Results The WPRs with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of technical success, clinical success, postprocedure adverse events, and recurrent cholecystitis for ERC-based transpapillary drainage were 83% (95% CI, 78%-87%; I 2 = 38%), 93% (95% CI, 89%-96%; I 2 = 39%), 10% (95% CI, 7%-13%; I 2 = 27%), and 3% (95% CI, 1%-5%; I 2 = 0%), respectively. The WPRs for EUS-based drainage for technical success, clinical success, postprocedure adverse events, and recurrent cholecystitis were 93% (95% CI, 87%-96%; I 2 = 0%), 97% (95% CI, 93%-99%; I 2 = 0%), 13% (95% CI, 8%-19%; I 2 = 0%), and 4% (95% CI, 2%-9%; I 2 = 0%), respectively. On proportionate difference, EUS-based drainage had better technical (10%) and clinical success (4%) in comparison with ERC-based drainage. The pooled OR for technical success of EGBD versus PGBD was .51 (95% CI, .09-2.88; I 2 = 23%) and for postprocedure adverse events was .33 (95% CI, .14-.80; I 2 = 16%) in favor of EGBD. Conclusions EGBD is an efficacious and safe therapeutic modality for treatment of patients with acute cholecystitis who cannot undergo surgery. EGBD shows a similar technical success as PGBD but appears to be safer than PGBD.
Affine-like Hecke algebras and p-adic representation theory

1 Introduction 2 Structure of p-adic \({\rm GL}(V)\) and \({\rm Sp}(V)\) 2.1 Preliminaries 2.2 Bruhat decomposition of \({\rm GL}(V)\) 2.3 Iwahori-Bruhat decomposition of \({\rm GL}(V)\) 2.4 Bruhat decomposition of \({\rm Sp}(V)\) 2.5 Iwahori-Bruhat decomposition of \({\rm Sp}(V)\) 3 Structure of the Iwahori Hecke Algebra 3.1\(\mathcal{H}(G//K)\) 3.2 \(\mathcal{H}(G//J)\) 4 Results on representations of G 4.1 Fundamental techniques 4.2 Connection of Jacquet functor to \(\mathcal{H}(G//J)\) 4.3 Category equivalence 5 Spherical Function Algebras 5.1 Structure 5.2 Lie lattices and characters 5.3 Harish-Chandra homomorphism for \({\rm SL}_2\) 5.4 General minimal principal series 6 Consequences References
Bewertung linearelastischer Finite-Elemente-Analysen bei mechanischer und thermomechanischer Beanspruchung

Classical linearly elastic stress analysis can still be considered a principal practical application of the finite element (FE) method. This statement is not meant to imply a comparison with the class of non-linear problems such as that of limit analysis. It should be viewed in relationship to problems of stress categorization and evaluation according to the considered load case. The demand of harmonizing stress analysis (load model, idealization of geometry, element type etc.) and the mechanism of evaluation may appear at first sight obvious. However, difficulties of interpretation and other uncertainties are widespread regarding specific components and analysis tasks. Examples of typical questions that arise in these situations are: Should the maximum stress be considered or is it without influence on the load carrying behavior of the structure? Is the linearized stress of primary or secondary category and does it comply with the code that is used (e. g. ASME-Code)? Does the idealization and discretization of the applied model meet the requirements for the verification of the strength of the structure? Nevertheless, stress classification has proven itself to be a valuable tool for the evaluation of linearly elastic stress analyses, provided that the requirements for the load carrying capacity and fatigue strength have also been considered. The aim of the presentation is to give practical guidelines using concrete examples of power plant components subjected to mechanical and thermomechanical loadings.
How Marriage Became One of the Sacraments: The Sacramental Theology of Marriage from its Medieval Origins to the Council of Trent

Among the contributions of the medieval church to western culture was the idea that marriage was one of the seven sacraments, which defined the role of married folk in the church. Although it had ancient roots, this new way of regarding marriage raised many problems, to which scholastic theologians applied all their ingenuity. By the late Middle Ages, the doctrine was fully established in Christian thought and practice but not yet as dogma. In the sixteenth century, with the entire Catholic teaching on marriage and celibacy and its associated law and jurisdiction under attack by the Protestant reformers, the Council of Trent defined the doctrine as a dogma of faith for the first time but made major changes to it. Rather than focusing on a particular aspect of intellectual and institutional developments, this book examines them in depth and in detail from their ancient precedents to the Council of Trent.
Thermodynamic assessment of an electrically-enhanced thermochemical hydrogen production (EETHP) concept for renewable hydrogen generation

Abstract A novel concept for coupling a thermochemical cycle with an electrochemical separation device for the generation of hydrogen from steam is reported and a thermodynamic analysis of the system is presented. In a conventional thermochemical cycle, an oxygen carrier material is thermally reduced, cooled, and then reoxidized in steam thereby generating hydrogen. However, this process often requires high temperatures (>1700 K) and/or low oxygen partial pressures (
An optical alignment system improves precision of soluble aggregate quantitation by sedimentation velocity analytical ultracentrifugation

Appropriate characterization of soluble aggregates is an important aspect of biologics development and manufacturing, and sedimentation velocity analytical ultracentrifugation (SV-AUC) is often used an orthogonal technique to size-exclusion chromatography (SEC) for this purpose. Precise quantification of low levels of soluble aggregates by SV-AUC can be adversely impacted by improper cell alignment. This report describes the development of an optical system capable of quantifying cell alignment that affords a substantial improvement compared to historical approaches.
Transverse relaxation time constants of the five major metabolites in human brain measured in vivo using LASER and PRESS at 3 T.

Purpose The goal of this study was to measure and compare the apparent transverse relaxation time constants (T2 ) of five intracellular metabolites using localization by adiabatic selective refocusing (LASER) and point-resolved spectroscopy (PRESS) sequences in the human brain at 3 T. Methods Five healthy subjects were studied at 3 T. 1 H spectra from the prefrontal cortex were acquired at six different echo times using LASER and PRESS sequences. Postprocessed data were analyzed with LCModel, and the resulting amplitudes were fitted using a mono-exponential decay function to determine the T2 of metabolites. Results Twenty-one percent higher apparent T2 values for the singlet resonances of N-acetyl aspartate, total creatine, and total choline were measured with LASER as compared with PRESS, whereas comparable apparent T2 values were measured for strongly coupled metabolites, glutamate, and myo-inositol, with both sequences. Conclusions Reliable T2 measurements were obtained with both sequences for the five major intracellular metabolites. The LASER sequence appears to be more efficient in suppressing the diffusion component for singlets (having nonexchangeable protons) compared to J-coupled metabolites. Magn Reson Med 79:1260-1265, 2018. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.
Abstract 1952: Epigenetic modifiers outperform chemotherapy in prolonging survival in patient-derived xenograft models of Down syndrome AML

Children with Down syndrome (DS) are at a 500-fold increased risk for developing acute myeloid leukemia (AML) before they reach five years of age. DS-AML blasts have somatic mutations in the gene encoding the essential hematopoietic transcription factor GATA-1 resulting in hypersensitivity to chemotherapeutic drugs such as cytarabine and daunorubicin. However, therapy-induced toxicity results in greater morbidity and remains a major barrier in attaining higher survival rate. Thus, alternate therapy approaches to minimize toxicity and increase efficacy are needed. Trisomy 21 and GATA-1 mutations in DS-AML are known to alter the epigenetic landscape in multiple ways. Therefore, we evaluated the efficacy of epigenetic drugs in comparison to chemotherapy in two patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models of DS-AML. We developed two distinct PDX models by successfully engraftment and serial passage of primary DS-AML cells in NSG-B2m mice. Both PDX lines possessed GATA-1 mutation resulting in the expression of a truncated form of GATA-1. NTPL-60 had a nonsense mutation generating a premature stop codon after the initiation codon, while NTPL-386 had a 136 bp deletion in exon 2 resulting in the loss of the initiation codon. The mouse passaged cells were intravenously injected into 6-8 week old NSG-B2m mice. Once disease establishment was confirmed based on the presence of human cells in mouse peripheral blood, five mice per group were treated with vehicle or DNA methylation inhibitor azacitidine and histone deacetylase inhibitor panobinostat either singularly or in combination at a previously determined maximally tolerated dose of 2.5 mg/Kg each. NTPL-386 xenografted mice treated with azacitidine or panobinostat survived 29 and 21 days longer than the vehicle-treated mice respectively, while the mice treated with the combination survived the longest (35 days). Similarly, azacitidine and panobinostat extended the survival of mice transplanted with NTPL-60 by 48 and 31 days respectively compared to the vehicle-treated mice. NTPL-60 mice treated with the epigenetic drug combination are alive at 57 days. Thus, we observed that the azacitidine-panobinostat combination showed statistically significant (p We also tested the efficacy of epigenetic therapy followed by chemotherapy. The inclusion of epigenetic therapy before chemotherapy prolonged survival by 39 days compared to vehicle-treated mice. Taken together, our data indicate that epigenetic therapy may be of benefit for the treatment of children with DS-AML. Citation Format: Sonali P. Barwe, E A. Kolb, Anilkumar Gopalakrishnapillai. Epigenetic modifiers outperform chemotherapy in prolonging survival in patient-derived xenograft models of Down syndrome AML [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2017; 2017 Apr 1-5; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 1952. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2017-1952
In a constitutional moment: science and social order at the millennium

Strolling east along the splendid swath of Constitution Avenue, beyond the recessed lawns of the White House, diagonally across from the back entrance to the National Gallery of Art, the visitor to Washington, D.C. will be drawn to a building whose soaring Corinthian columns signal the presence of something exceptional within. Inside, under the hushed central rotunda of the National Archives of the United States, the nowcurious visitor may take her place in the slow-moving line of tourists for a brief glimpse of the three documents that anchor the American state: the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the Declaration of Independence. Encased in thick, greenish, helium-filled, bronze and glass frames, elevated on a marble pedestal, the faded parchments are barely readable in the dim, protective light. It is hard to linger long enough to decipher the script; the guards take care to keep the line moving. But the entire setting — the heroic murals,1 the sober display cases around the circular gallery, the inlaid floor and monumental architecture — encourages a feeling of reverence. This is no ordinary public space; it is the closest thing to a holy of holies in this brashly populist, secular republic.
Testing automation for an intrusion detection system

Intrusion detection systems are used in computer networking and other applications to detect and respond to attempts to compromise computers, servers, firewalls and other network resources. As intrusion detection systems move beyond providing simple pattern recognition capabilities for known attack types, the ability to test these systems with conventional techniques (or use formal or other similar methods) becomes extremely limited. Environmental factors and other considerations present numerous scenarios that cannot be exhaustively identified, much less fully tested. This paper presents the use of an adaptive and automated testing paradigm to more fully validate intrusion detection systems that cannot be effectively fully tested by other means.
Complex Processes of Religion and Spirituality Among Midwestern LGBTQ Homeless Young Adults

The role of religion and spirituality in young people’s lives is diverse and multifaceted. Little research has examined how religion shapes the experiences of socially marginalized groups, such as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) homeless young adults. This study illustrates how Midwestern LGBTQ homeless young people interpret the role of religion and spirituality in their lives. Drawing from a sample of 22 LGBTQ homeless young people between the ages of 19 and 26 years, we qualitatively explore how they distinctively frame religion, spirituality and religious identity through an intersectional lens of their life experiences. Our findings demonstrate the complex ways that young adults from multiple marginalized social groups can interpret religion in the unique context of their social environments. Many young people highlighted the positive impact of religion and spirituality in their lives by constructing them as sources of resilience. Other LGBTQ young adults also discussed how religion was often a source of stigma that interacted with participants’ highly vulnerable social environments and backgrounds. Implications for service providers and policy improvements are discussed.
Accuracy of the Expected Root Position Setup to Monitor Root Angulations and Inclinations during Orthodontic Treatment: A Pilot Study:

Introduction: Accurate root placement is important for successful orthodontic treatment. Current radiographic techniques to monitor root positions are inaccurate, exhibit poor definition, or use relatively large amounts of radiation in relation to the benefit to the patient. A new methodology that generates an “expected root position” (ERP) setup may be a potential alternative to monitor root position accurately and with minimal radiation. Materials and Methods: This retrospective pilot study included five patients who have completed phase II orthodontic treatment. An ERP setup was generated for all patients at posttreatment. The ERP setup was compared to the posttreatment cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) scan which served as the control. Mesiodistal angulation and buccolingual inclination of all teeth in both the ERP setup and posttreatment CBCT scans were compared to assess the accuracy of the ERP setup. A power analysis was performed. Results: A total of 128 teeth were measured in this study. Nine teeth (7.0%) were measured for mesiodistal angulation and seven teeth (5.5%) were measured for buccolingual inclination which were outside of the ±2.5° range of clinical acceptability. Conclusion: The methodology of generating an “ERP” has the potential to accurately monitor root movement during orthodontic treatment. The power analysis found that 15 patients would be necessary to validate this methodology with adequate power.
The Effects of Workstation Flexibility on the (N × N) Job Shop Problem

To obtain insight into the potential for improving FMS design and operation, workstation flexibility is examined using shop problems of various sizes. Simulation results show a near-linear relationship, with average performance improvement explaining 92% of the variation. The results are based on 58,320 simulations, 30 replications of each of the 1,944 combinations of sharing m worksations from 6 × 6 through 10 × 10 job shops. The strong probabilistic relations suggest that analytical methods of prediction may exist. The results provide practitioners with several guidelines for process plan development and FMS design and operation.
Presence of nickel in Factor F430 from Methanobacteriumbryantii

Abstract Two compounds with properties of Factor F-430 were purified from Methanobacterium bryantii by column chromatography. Analysis of these compounds by neutron activation and atomic absorption spectroscopy revealed the presence of nickel and the absence of other metals commonly associated with molecules of biological origin. For the two compounds, the masses are 3300 daltons per mol Ni and 1500 daltons per mol Ni. The absorbance at 430 nm of both compounds is between 2.7−2.1 × 104 cm−1 L (mol Ni)−1. Factor F-430 appears to be a unique, nickel-containing compound of low molecular weight.
Perioperative Acute and Chronic Pain Management

Understand the basic neurophysiology of pain Understand the types of acute and chronic pain (i.e. nociceptive, inflammatory, neuropathic, and dysfunctional) Learn the common pain syndromes encountered in the pain clinic, and describe the basic treatment options
Bioreclamation of Oilfield Produced Wastewaters: Characterization and Feasibility Study

This research evaluates the feasibility of bioreclamation of hydrocarbon contaminated brine waters produced during oil and gas recovery. Samples from five typical oil field waste storage pits and separatory tanks in southeastern New Mexico were evaluated. Studies focused on physical-chemical characterization and biodegradability of the samples. A commercially available culture, PETROBAC-S (Polybac Corporation, 1990) was selected for the biodegradability evaluation. Batch biotreatability studies using a computer interfaced respirometer were conducted to evaluate the degradation of petroleum hydrocarbons under acclimated and non-acclimated biomass conditions.
THE EVOLUTION OF FITNESS.

In every generation, the mean fitness of populations increases because of natural selection and decreases because of mutations and changes in the environment. The magnitudes of these effects can be measured in two ways: either directly, by comparing the fitnesses of selected and unselected populations, or indirectly, by measuring the additive variance of fitness and making use of the fundamental theorem of natural selection. The available data suggest that the amount by which natural selection increases mean fitness each generation (or degradation decreases mean fitness) will usually be between 0.1% and 30%; more tentatively, it is suggested that values will typically fall between 1% and 10%. These values can be used to set an upper limit of 5%-10% on the genetic advantage of mate choice.
Chapter 18 – Applications of Thermodynamics to Solutions Containing Electrolyte Solutes

This chapter focuses on the behavior of electrolytes as solutes. Electrolytes behave quite differently in solutions than nonelectrolytes. The special properties of electrolyte solutions consist of both advantages and disadvantages. One disadvantage is that significant deviations from the limiting law solution behavior occur at much lower concentrations for electrolyte solutes than for nonelectrolyte solutes, whereas an advantage is that the coulombic attractions and repulsions in the electrolyte solution dominate other types of interactions. The result is that theoretical descriptions of electrolyte solutions can concentrate on the coulombic interactions. Two principal approaches have been used to describe the thermodynamics of surfactant solutions —the pseudo-phase model and the mass action model. The pseudo-phase model considers a process in which a surfactant is added to water that is acting as a solvent, whereas the mass action model represents a very different approach to the interpretation of the thermodynamic properties of a surfactant solution as compared to the pseudo-phase model.
A linear speedup analysis of distributed deep learning with sparse and quantized communication

The large communication overhead has imposed a bottleneck on the performance of distributed Stochastic Gradient Descent (SGD) for training deep neural networks. Previous works have demonstrated the potential of using gradient sparsification and quantization to reduce the communication cost. However, there is still a lack of understanding about how sparse and quantized communication affects the convergence rate of the training algorithm. In this paper, we study the convergence rate of distributed SGD for non-convex optimization with two communication reducing strategies: sparse parameter averaging and gradient quantization. We show that O(1/√MK) convergence rate can be achieved if the sparsification and quantization hyperparameters are configured properly. We also propose a strategy called periodic quantized averaging (PQASGD) that further reduces the communication cost while preserving the O(1/√MK) convergence rate. Our evaluation validates our theoretical results and shows that our PQASGD can converge as fast as full-communication SGD with only 3% - 5% communication data size.
Streaked Thomson Scattering To Measure Heating Of Laboratory Plasma Jets By The Probe Laser

Thomson scattering measurements have been performed on laboratory plasma jets in order to measure the flow velocities and electron temperatures inside and near the edge of the jet. These jets were created using $\mathrm {a}15 \mu \mathrm {m}$ thick radial Al foil load on COBRA, a 1 MA pulsed power machine. The laser used for these measurements had a maximum energy of 10 J at 526.5 nm. Using this 10 J laser, however, significantly heats the $5\mathrm {x} 10 ^{18}$ cm $^{-3}$ jet by inverse bremsstrahlung, creating a density bubble in the jet. This was demonstrated by reducing the probe laser energy to 1 J, which reduced the measured electron temperature in the jet from about 40 to 20 eV and nearly eliminated the bubble. These measurements were made using a time gated spectrometer, with at least a 5 ns gate window, in order to encompass the entire 3 ns laser pulse. Therefore, no time dependent electron temperature measurements could be made from the Thomson scattering spectra. We are now developing an experimental arrangement to send the collected scattered spectra into a streak camera, in order to determine the plasma temperature as a function of time throughout the 3 ns laser pulse. With the streak camera data, we hope to track the changing plasma parameters during the laser heating of the plasma jet. In the future we hope to extend this diagnostic arrangement to other configurations, enabling time resolved measurements of the plasma parameters of various plasmas.
HMCES Maintains Genome Integrity by Shielding Abasic Sites in Single-Strand DNA

Abasic sites are one of the most common DNA lesions. All known abasic site repair mechanisms operate only when the damage is in double-stranded DNA. Here, we report the discovery of 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) binding, ESC-specific (HMCES) as a sensor of abasic sites in single-stranded DNA. HMCES acts at replication forks, binds PCNA and single-stranded DNA, and generates a DNA-protein crosslink to shield abasic sites from error-prone processing. This unusual HMCES DNA-protein crosslink intermediate is resolved by proteasome-mediated degradation. Acting as a suicide enzyme, HMCES prevents translesion DNA synthesis and the action of endonucleases that would otherwise generate mutations and double-strand breaks. HMCES is evolutionarily conserved in all domains of life, and its biochemical properties are shared with its E. coli ortholog. Thus, HMCES is an ancient DNA lesion recognition protein that preserves genome integrity by promoting error-free repair of abasic sites in single-stranded DNA.
Perspective from the United States (US) Federal Research Action Plan (FRAP) on Recycled Tire Crumb Rubber Used on Synthetic Turf Playing Fields and Playgrounds

Concerns have been raised by the public, both nationally and internationally, about the safety of recycled tire crumb rubber used in synthetic turf fields and playgrounds. Previous studies have not...
Bioengineered models to study tumor dormancy

The onset of cancer metastasis is the defining event in cancer progression when the disease is considered lethal. The ability of metastatic cancer cells to stay dormant for extended time periods and reawaken at later stages leading to disease recurrence makes treatment of metastatic disease extremely challenging. The tumor microenvironment plays a critical role in deciding the ultimate fate of tumor cells, yet the mechanisms by which this occurs, including dormancy, is not well understood. This mini-review discusses bioengineered models inspired from tissue engineering strategies that mimic key aspects of the tumor microenvironment to study tumor dormancy. These models include biomaterial based three dimensional models, microfluidic based models, as well as bioreactor based models that incorporate relevant microenvironmental components such as extracellular matrix molecules, niche cells, or their combination to study microenvironmental regulation of tumor dormancy. Such biomimetic models provide suitable platforms to investigate the dormant niche, including cues that drive the dormant to proliferative transition in cancer cells. In addition, the potential of such model systems to advance research in the field of tumor dormancy is discussed.
Reprint of: The general equilibrium impacts of unemployment insurance: Evidence from a large online job board

Abstract During the Great Recession, U.S. unemployment benefits were extended by up to 73 weeks. Theory predicts that extensions increase unemployment by discouraging job search, a partial equilibrium effect. Using data from the large job board CareerBuilder.com , I find that a 10% increase in benefit duration decreased state-level job applications by 1%, but had no robust effect on job vacancies. Job seekers thus faced reduced competition for jobs, a general equilibrium effect. Calibration implies that the general equilibrium effect reduces the impact of unemployment insurance on unemployment by 39%.
Charging Analysis of Ground Support Vehicles in an Electrified Airport

Within a fully electrified airport, no fossil fuels would be used on the grounds. This includes the electric load of the building along with any indoor and outdoor operations such as the ground support vehicles servicing the jets on the runway. This paper focuses on the analysis of airside ground support vehicles and their plug-in charging requirements. Following the modeling proposal for such an airport and its ground support vehicles, this work describes a charging algorithm created to service each vehicle type efficiently. The simulation-based experiments for a synthesized airport model show numerically and graphically how this algorithm optimizes vehicle performance and minimizes operating costs by managing various parameters in Monte Carlo simulations. The results of the simulations are analyzed and discussed from an efficiency perspective according to the design variables using Pareto optimality.
Transcriptome analysis by cDNA microarray demonstrating the dichontomy in molecular pathways leading to cancer development in lateral and ventral lobes of rat prostate induced by testosterone and 17β-estradiol / diethylstibestrol

1661 Exposure of Noble rats to combined testosterone (T) and 17β-estradiol (E2) induces extensive multifocal dysplasia and invasive adenocarcinoma exclusively in the lateral lobe (LP) of prostate gland, whereas treatment of rats with T and diethylstibestrol (DES), a xenoestrogen, causes the development of atypical hyperplasia or dysplasia in a vacuolarized epithelium and carcinoma in situ (or adenoma) in the ventral lobe (VP) but not other lobes of prostate gland. At present, it remains unclear as to why these two estrogens, under the same exogenous androgen support, would target different prostatic lobes and produce different types of epithelial lesions. We used a cDNA array containing 3800 rat known transcripts to identify distinctive transcriptomes of prostate gland treated with T+E2 or T +DES. From our non-supervised learning data analysis approach, we are able to distinguish the hormone-treated groups with cancer induction (T+E2 LP and T+DES VP) from untreated control or hormone-treated groups with no cancer induced (T+E2 VP and T+DES LP). Hundred and thirteen genes in the T+E2- treated LP and hundred and thirty-three genes in T+DES- treated VP were identified as key gene sets by stringent data filtering. And only sixteen genes were found common in both key gene sets, demonstrating the dichontomous natures of cancer-specific transcriptomes between LP and VP. The cancer-specific differentially expressed gene fell into several functional clusters: oncogene/tumor suppressor genes, cancer-associated genes, neuronal growth and development and cytoskeleton/structural protein related genes. This study provided valuable information regarding the early development of the malignant tissue. The gene(s) identified form the study could be a potential cancer prevention target. *This study is supported by NIH grant No. CA15776, DK61084 & CA 62269
Heavenly Bodies: Why It Matters That Cyborgs Have Always Been About Disability, Mental Health, and Marginalization

This paper explores some history and theories about cyborgs — humans with biotechnological interventions which allow them to regulate their own internal bodily process — and how those compare to the realities of how we treat and consider currently-living people who are physically enmeshed with technology. I’ll explore several ways in which the above-listed considerations have been alternately overlooked and taken up by various theorists, and some of the many different strategies and formulations for integrating these theories into what will likely become everyday concerns in the future. In fact, by exploring responses from disabilities studies scholars and artists who have interrogated and problematized the popular vision of cyborgs, the future, and life in space, I will demonstrate that our clearest path toward the future of living with biotechnologies is a reengagement with the everyday lives of disabled and other marginalized persons, today.
Prison Reform: The Monitor’s First Report in the Nunez Case

Addressing the findings of the first quarterly report from the court-appointed monitor supervising Riker's Island which was imposed by federal district court in Nunez v. City of New York.
The quality of gardens tourism and the visitor experience: differentiating between first time and repeat visitors

Tourism literature rarely mentions gardens as relevant tourist attractions. Unlike previous garden studies, this study examines gardens from a demand perspective. This study examines quality of vis...
More than the Sum of My Parts: An Intrapersonal Network Approach to Identity Work in Response to Identity Opportunities and Threats

The existing research on identity work is primarily focused on individual identities and responses to identity threats. We seek to broaden the identity work literature in several ways. First, in or...
On expected utility in optimal stopping of diffusions

Abstract Suppose an agent with a static risk preference faces prize processes given by diffusion processes and decides when to stop. We show that the agent satisfies dynamic consistency of preferences if and only if she adheres to Expected Utility. This extends the classical dynamic characterization of Expected Utility to a setup of processes with continuous paths, in which the classical discrete-time proof techniques do not apply.
Police and mental health in elementary and secondary schools: A systematic review of the literature and implications for nursing

WHAT IS KNOWN ON THIS SUBJECT?: Police are often called on to respond to student mental health needs in schools. School nurses, who are part of interdisciplinary mental health teams, may collaborate with responding police officers. Currently, there are no reviews of the literature describing the use of police to respond to mental health crises in schools. WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS TO EXISTING KNOWLEDGE?: This systematic review found six articles addressing police response to student mental health needs in elementary and secondary schools. Articles primarily focused on the School Resource Officer programme; however, there was a lack of research on the effectiveness of this and other programmes in addressing the mental health needs of students. This paper highlights a significant gap in knowledge about how police are involved in responding to student mental health crises within schools. WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE?: Understanding how police respond to mental health crises on school campuses will help nurses serve in collaborative roles with responding officers. This study highlights gaps in research that need to be addressed for researchers and policymakers to best support students in crisis. Abstract INTRODUCTION: Response to student mental health crises involves interdisciplinary school-community teams, which can include police officers. This paper presents the first systematic review of literature on how police address mental health in school settings. Results have implications for school nurses interacting with responding police. Question/aim How are police involved in responding to student mental health needs in elementary and secondary schools? Method Using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) framework, six articles met criteria for inclusion in this review. Results Two themes were identified: (1) descriptions of roles of police in schools and (2) studies presenting programmes or models of police engagement. The most common use of police in schools is through the School Resource Officer model. Discussion There are very few studies examining police involvement in mental health response in schools and little data available on whether prevailing models are effective. We are therefore unable to ascertain what impact school police have in responding to mental health crises or the extent to which they interact with school nurses. Implications for practice Understanding mental health crisis responses in schools can inform policy, practice, research and education for police and school providers, including nurses.
Adversarial Listening in Argumentation

Adversariality in argumentation is typically theorized as inhering in, and applying to, the interactional roles of proponent and opponent that arguers occupy. This paper considers the kinds of adversariality located in the conversational roles arguers perform while arguing—specifically listening. It begins by contending that the maximally adversarial arguer is an arguer who refuses to listen to reason by refusing to listen to another’s reasons. It proceeds to consider a list of lousy listeners in order to illustrate the variety of ways that the conversational role of listener can be performed adversarially. Because conversational roles, while not adversarial by nature, can be enacted adversarially, arguers are properly subject to praise and blame for their performances of these roles. Thus, the paper concludes, argumentation theory stands in need of an articulated normative vocabulary and theory to codify, apply, explain, and justify the norms of listening governing, guiding, and appraising arguers’ performances of listening in argumentation.
Synthetic Versus Biologic Mesh for Complex Open Ventral Hernia Repair: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial

Background: Many surgeons utilize biologic mesh for elective complex ventral hernia repair (VHR; large hernias, contaminated fields, or patients with comorbid conditions). However, no randomized co...
Robust Maximum Coverage Facility Location Problem with Drones Considering Uncertainties in Battery Availability and Consumption

Given a set of a spatially distributed demand for a specific commodity, potential facility locations, and drones, an agency is tasked with locating a pre-specified number of facilities and assignin...
Applications of Optical Interferometer Techniques for Precision Measurements of Changes in Temperature, Growth and Refractive Index of Materials: A Brief Review

Different interferometer techniques and their applications are surveyed. The principle of optical heterodyne detection and its applications to in situ measurement of crystal growth rate, surface roughness measurement of coated mirrors and temperature changes due to laser heating are described in detail. Application of fluorescence ratio method, fluorescence lifetime measurement, Michelson interferometer and Mach-Zehnder interferometer techniques, for the measurement of temperature changes, are described in detail. The use of Mach-Zehnder interferometer to monitor changes in solution refractive index or concentration is described. A detailed error analysis is given for some of the measurements.
Pre-stroke factors (morbitities, diet, medication, demograhics) that affect the severity of a stroke

Abstract Background The goal of this study is to elucidate clinical characteristics in patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) that are associated with a potential improvement or worsening neurologic function who previously were taking an anti-hypertensive medication and then received recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rtPA). Methods The binary logistical regression model was developed to identify clinical determinants that are associated with an improving or worsening neurologic function in AIS patients taking an anti-HTN medication who received thrombolytic therapy. The area under the receiver operating curve was used to determine the sensitivity of the model. Results In the adjusted analysis for AIS population on combined rtPA and an anti-HTN medication therapy, increasing age (Odd ratio; OR = 1.035, 95% CI, 1.022–1.049, P Conclusion Our findings reveal specific demographic and clinical risk factors that are associated with worsening or improving neurological functions in AIS pretreated with an anti-HTN medication with a subsequent thrombolytic therapy. This finding suggests the development of management strategies to manage identified clinical risk factors in AIS pretreated with an anti-HTN medication prior to thrombolytic therapy.
Lean Brain — die größte Herausforderung der Zukunft

„Lean Brain“ bedeutet im Deutschen so etwas wie „moglichst wenig Gehirnschmalz“ oder, wie mein Sohn es sagen wurde, „null Hirn“.
The Response of Alpine Plants to Environmental Change: Feedbacks to Ecosystem Function

Alpine ecosystems occur on all continents, and potentially serve as sensitive indicators of biotic response to environmental change. Because environmental change associated with resource extraction and development is minimal in most alpine areas, biotic changes in the alpine are reflective of “indirect” anthropogenic environmental effects, including changes in climate, atmospheric chemistry, and transmission of ultraviolet radiation. Plant species respond differentially to these environmental changes, related in part to their ability to alter growth rates as resource supply changes and to changes in biotic interactions with neighbors (Theodose and Bowman 1995; Callaway et al. 2002). Thus, changes in plant species composition are likely to herald environmental change in the alpine. Floristic changes have been noted in some alpine areas, potentially associated with climate change (Grabherr et al. 1994), atmospheric pollution (Rusek 1992), and increased N deposition (Korb and Ranker 2001; see Baron et al., this volume for aquatic biotic responses to N deposition).
An accurate simulation technique for short-circuit power dissipation based on current component isolation

A circuit simulation technique is presented which permits the measurement of the average short-circuit power dissipation component in integrated circuits. This technique is most appropriate for low-power circuit design and can be applied effectively to any complementary circuit structure, such as CMOS, that does not permit current flow (other than leakage current) during steady-state operation. Short-circuit power dissipation expressions are derived, and SPICE simulation results for a differently ratioed W/sub p//W/sub n/ circuit are shown. >
Tolerance to low O2: lessons from invertebrate genetic models

There have been extensive studies and experiments on cells, tissues and animals that are susceptible to low O2, and many pathways have been discovered that can lead to injury in mammalian tissues. But other pathways that can help in the survival of low O2 have also been discovered in these same tissues. It should be noted, however, that the mechanisms that can lead to better survival in susceptible mammalian tissues have quantitatively a ‘narrow range’ for recovery, since these tissues are inherently at risk. Another strategy for understanding the susceptibility of organisms is to learn about pathways used by anoxia-resistant animals. Approximately a decade ago, I and my co-workers discovered that one such animal, Drosophila melanogaster, is very tolerant of low O2. Here, I detail some of the studies that we performed and the strategies that we developed to understand the mechanisms that underlie the fascinating resistance of Drosophila to measured partial pressure of O2 of zero. We employed three ideas to try to address our questions: (1) mutagenesis screens to identify loss-of-function mutants; (2) microarrays on adapted versus naive flies; and (3) studying cell biology and physiology of genes that seem important in flies and mammals. The hope is to learn from these studies about the fundamental basis of tolerance to the lack of O2, and with this knowledge be able to develop better therapies for the future.