cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Investigation of the Mechanism of the Enhanced Z3DT in PbTe Based Superlattices

Various possible mechanisms for the recently discovered enhanced Seebeck coefficient S in PbTe/Te superlattices relative to the corresponding PbTe bulk are investigated. Among the various mechanisms which can account for the enhanced S, the energy dependent τ model (τ ∼ ɛr) seems the most plausible. Here the effective scattering parameter r is preferably increased due to the extra scattering by the periodic Te layers introduced in the superlattice. Other transport properties including the longitudinal magnetoresistance are also discussed.
The Patient Self-Determination Act and Psychiatric Care

The Patient Self-Determination Act (PSDA) has been in effect since December 1, 1991. The primary purpose of the PSDA is to promote patient awareness of advance directives. Many psychiatrists are unaware of the PSDA and its requirements or believe that the PSDA does not apply to psychiatric facilities and patients. In this article the requirements of the PSDA are reviewed. Potential applications of advance directives in psychiatric care are discussed and problem areas are identified. It is suggested that psychiatrists take an active role in the implementation of the PSDA.
Large anisotropies of >60 MeV protons throughout the inner belt observed with the Van Allen Probes mission

We report large directional anisotropies of >60 MeV protons using instrumentation on the Van Allen Probes. The combination of a spinning satellite and measurements from the Relativistic Proton Spectrometer instruments that are insensitive to protons outside the instrument field of view together yield a new look at proton radial gradients. The relatively large proton gyroradius at 60 MeV couples with the radial gradients to produce large (maximum ~10:1) flux anisotropies depending on (i) whether the proton guiding center was above or below the Van Allen Probes spacecraft and (ii) the sign of the local flux gradient. In addition to these newly measured anisotropies, below ~2000 km we report a new effect of systematically changing minimum altitude on some proton drift shells that further modulates the anisotropy caused by the atmosphere. This discovery may offer a new way of monitoring changes to the loss of inner belt protons into the Earth's atmosphere.
Adaptive evolution and inherent tolerance to extreme thermal environments.

When introduced to novel environments, the ability for a species to survive and rapidly proliferate corresponds with its adaptive potential. Of the many factors that can yield an environment inhospitable to foreign species, phenotypic response to variation in the thermal climate has been observed within a wide variety of species. Experimental evolution studies using bacteriophage model systems have been able to elucidate mutations, which may correspond with the ability of phage to survive modest increases/decreases in the temperature of their environment. Phage ΦX174 was subjected to both elevated (50°C) and extreme (70°C+) temperatures for anywhere from a few hours to days. While no decline in the phage's fitness was detected when it was exposed to 50°C for a few hours, more extreme temperatures significantly impaired the phage; isolates that survived these heat treatments included the acquisition of several mutations within structural genes. As was expected, long-term treatment of elevated and extreme temperatures, ranging from 50-75°C, reduced the survival rate even more. Isolates which survived the initial treatment at 70°C for 24 or 48 hours exhibited a significantly greater tolerance to subsequent heat treatments. Using the model organism ΦX174, we have been able to study adaptive evolution on the molecular level under extreme thermal changes in the environment, which to-date had yet to be thoroughly examined. Under both acute and extended thermal selection, we were able to observe mutations that occurred in response to excessive external pressures independent of concurrently evolving hosts. Even though its host cannot tolerate extreme temperatures such as the ones tested here, this study confirms that ΦX174 is capable of survival.
Relative effect of soil moisture on emissions and distribution of 1,3-dichloro-propene and chloropicrin in soil columns.

Emissions of soil fumigants are regulated to protect air quality in California. Irrigation prior to fumigation can reduce fumigant emissions at relatively low costs; however, the optimum range of soil water content that reduces emissions without reducing efficacy is not clearly defined. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of soil water content [at 30, 45, 60, 75, 90 and 100% field capacity (FC)] on the emission and distribution of fumigants 1,3-dichloropropene (1,3-D) and chloropicrin (CP) in columns packed with a sandy loam soil. After injecting equal amounts of cis-1,3-D, trans-1,3-D, and CP, fumigant emissions and distribution in soil were monitored for 14 days. Emissions of all three compounds showed similar response to soil water content except that CP emissions were lower than both isomers of 1,3-D. The emission peak flux was highest and occurred earliest in the driest soil while it was reduced and delayed as soil water content increased. After the peak, emission flux decreased rapidly in the driest soil but more slowly in higher water content treatments. Initially, higher soil water content resulted in substantially lower cumulative emissions among the treatments, but as time progressed, the differences in cumulative emissions decreased or even disappeared. These trends were likely due to the effect of the closed-bottom short soil columns which allowed fumigants to only move upward and contribute to emission. Higher fumigant concentrations in the soil–gas phase were observed in high soil water content treatments, due to less emission loss and more fumigant retained in the soil.
The Ecology of Obesity: Perspectives from Life Course, Design, and Economics

ABSTRACT This paper presents an ecological perspective on obesity drawing on papers presented at the Ecology of Obesity Conference held at the College of Human Ecology at Cornell University. The conference presentations examined obesity through the life course perspective and two disciplinary orientations: design and economics. In this paper, the presentations are focused through Bronfenbrenner's ecology of human development. Particular attention is paid to identifying people, times, and places of vulnerability and leverage points–points of influence in a lifetime, environments, and policies that may be targets for effective intervention to prevent obesity.
Stromal Matrix Metalloproteinase-9 Regulates the Vascular Architecture in Neuroblastoma by Promoting Pericyte Recruitment

Advanced stages of neuroblastoma show increased expression of matrix metalloproteinases MMP-2 and MMP-9 (Y. Sugiura et al ., Cancer Res., 58: 2209–2216, 1998) that have been implicated in many steps of tumor progression, suggesting that they play a contributory role. Using pharmacological and genetic approaches, we have examined the role of these MMPs in progression of SK-N-BE (2).10 human neuroblastoma tumors orthotopically xenotransplanted into immunodeficient mice. Mice treated with Prinomastat, a synthetic inhibitor of MMPs, showed an inhibition of tumor cell proliferation in implanted tumors and a prolonged survival (50 versus 39 days in control group, P < 0.035). Treatment with Prinomastat did not affect formation of liver metastases ( P = 0.52) but inhibited intravascular colonization by the tumor cells in the lung by 73.8% ( P = 0.03) and angiogenesis in both primary tumors and experimental liver metastases. The primary tumors from Prinomastat-treated mice showed a 39.3% reduction in endothelial area detected by PECAM/CD31 staining in tumor sections ( P < 0.001), primarily due to the presence of smaller vessels ( P = 0.004). MMP-2 is expressed by neuroblastoma tumor cells and stromal cells, whereas MMP-9 is exclusively expressed by stromal cells, particularly vascular cells. To examine the contribution of MMP-9 to tumor angiogenesis, we generated RAG1/MMP-9 double-deficient mice. We observed a significant inhibition of angiogenesis in the immunodeficient RAG1/MMP-9 double-deficient mice orthotopically implanted with tumor cells ( P = 0.043) or implanted s.c. with a mixture of tumor cells and Matrigel ( P < 0.001). Using an FITC-labeled lectin, we demonstrated an inhibition in the architecture of the tumor vasculature in MMP-9-deficient mice, resulting in fewer and smaller blood vessels. These changes were associated with a 48% decrease in pericytes present along microvessels. Taken together, the data demonstrate that in neuroblastoma, stromally derived MMP-9 contributes to angiogenesis by promoting blood vessel morphogenesis and pericyte recruitment.
Synthesis and biocompatibility of a biodegradable and functionalizable thermo-sensitive hydrogel

Injectable thermal gels are a useful tool for drug delivery and tissue engineering. However, most thermal gels do not solidify rapidly at body temperature (37°C). We addressed this by synthesizing a thermo-sensitive, rapidly biodegrading hydrogel. Our hydrogel, poly(ethylene glycol)-co-poly(propanol serinate hexamethylene urethane) (EPSHU), is an ABA block copolymer comprising A, methoxy poly ethylene glycol group and B, poly (propanol L-serinate hexamethylene urethane). EPSHU was characterized by gel permeation chromatography for molecular weight and (1)H NMR and Fourier transformed infrared for structure. Rheological studies measured the phase transition temperature. In vitro degradation in cholesterol esterase and in Dulbecco's phosphate buffered saline (DPBS) was tracked using the average molecular weight measured by gel permeation chromatography. LIVE/DEAD and resazurin reduction assays performed on NIH 3T3 fibroblasts exposed to EPSHU extracts demonstrated no cytotoxicity. Subcutaneous implantation into BALB/cJ mice indicated good biocompatibility in vivo. The biodegradability and biocompatibility of EPSHU together make it a promising candidate for drug delivery applications that demand carrier gel degradation within months.
Measurements of cognitive skill by survey mode: Marginal differences and scaling similarities

This paper addresses how measurements of cognitive skill differ based on survey mode, from a face-to-face interview to a self-completed survey, using the Wordsum vocabulary test found in the General Social Survey. The Wordsum acts as a proxy for general cognitive skill, and it has been used to predict a variety of political variables. Therefore, knowing differences in cognitive skill by mode are important for political science research because of the proliferation of self-completed Internet surveys. I leverage a large-scale mode experiment that randomizes a general population sample into a face-to-face or self-completed interview. Results show that historically easy questions are more likely to yield correct answers in the face-to-face treatment, but modest-to-difficult test questions have a higher rate of correct answers in the self-completed treatment (marginal distributions). A cognitive skill scale using item response theory, however, does not differ by mode because the ordering of ideal points does n...
Deep Microwave Hyperthermia for Metastatic Tumors of the Liver

A large number of human tumors have liver as a common site of metastatic disease.The prognosis of patients with this involvement is very poor. In a study of 390 patients with untreated metastatic liver disease the median survival was 75 days, with less than 7% surviving 1 year (Jaffe et al. 1968). In the same study, the proportion of the liver involved or the tumor volume was found to be an important factor influencing the duration of survival. In addition to the poor survival, patients with liver metastases frequently have poor quality of life due to distressing signs and symptoms, such as severe upper abdominal pain, nausea, and jaundice requiring therapeutic intervention. Unfortunately, therapy of hepatic metastases is not very effective. Hepatic artery ligation with or without infusion chemotherapy was found to be effective in selected patients. This treatment, however, has an unacceptable morbidity and mortality (Fortner et al. 1972). The use of an implanted pump for the administration of chemotherapeutic agents directly into the hepatic artery (HAI) has been investigated. In studies using 5-fluorodeoxyuridine (FUDR) and mitocycin C or FUDR and dichloromethotrexate via HAI, excellent response rate and good palliation were noted (Niederhuber et al. 1984; Shepard et al. 1985). This route of administration of chemotherapy (CT) may result in significant complications, including hepatitis in nearly half of the patients (Shepard et al. 1987). A combination of HAI with FUDR and liver irradiation was reported by Byfield et al. (1984). This combination was found to be effective for selected patients with liver metastases; however, there was again treatment toxicity, which resulted in one mortality in 28 patients so treated. Radiation therapy (RT) alone was reported in the early 1950s to be an effective and well-tolerated treatment for hepatic metastases (Phillips et al. 1954).
Science Diplomacy in the Geosciences

Scientists who work with international colleagues in their own country or outside its boundaries are, ultimately, practicing science diplomats. This chapter will explore the definition of science diplomacy and its functions, describe the types of individuals that practice science diplomacy, suggest potential resources and list potential challenges, discuss the key role of diaspora in science diplomacy, and outline best practices. It will also describe the global organizations that specifically promote geoscience engagement, such as the international unions for the geosciences, and others working on Earth system science issues, including both academic programs and global bodies such as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and UNESCO. From this point of view, it will describe the roles and activities of the US National Committees for the international geoscience unions hosted by the US National Academy of Sciences and will present case studies of geoscience diplomacy excellence, such as the US Geological Survey-Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance’s Volcano Disaster Assistance Program (VDAP). Though this discussion will be done largely from the US perspective, the underlying concepts should be applicable around the world. The issues of global climate change and natural hazard risk communication in many instances involve interactions across cultures and across boundaries. An understanding of the diplomacy element in those interactions, and the integration of those approaches in the planning and establishment of those programs will increase their likelihood of success.
Software Security

Security vulnerabilities are increasingly due to software. While we focus much of our attention today on code-level vulnerabilities, such as buffer overflows, we should be paying more attention to design-level vulnerabilities. Independently designed and implemented components may individually behave properly, but when put together, unanticipated interactions may occur. An unanticipated interaction between two software components is an opportunity for an attacker to exploit.
Quantifying Synovial Enhancement of the Pediatric Temporomandibular Joint.

Purpose The purposes of this study were to assess a novel method for quantifying temporomandibular joint (TMJ) synovial enhancement on gadolinium-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and to establish normative values to allow early detection of synovitis. Materials and Methods This is a retrospective cohort study of pediatric patients (aged 0 to 16 years) without jaw pathology who underwent MRI scans with contrast that included the TMJs. From a coronal T1-weighted image, the signal intensity within the superior and inferior joint spaces was divided by the signal intensity of the longus capitis muscle to establish a ratio by age. Intrarater reliability and inter-rater reliability were assessed. A mixed-model regression analysis was used to determine the 95% specificity threshold for normal ratios. Results Temporal and optic nerve MRI scans of 158 patients were included. Normative synovial enhancement ratios (95% specificity) thresholds were established: 1.52, 1.68, and 1.55 for superior joint space, inferior joint space, and average of both joint spaces, respectively. Intrarater and inter-rater agreement was excellent. Conclusions A ratio of signal intensity of the TMJ synovium to the longus capitis is a reliable method to quantify enhancement controlling for time after contrast infusion and may be useful for diagnosis of TMJ synovitis.
Long-Term Retention of CENP-A Nucleosomes in Mammalian Oocytes Underpins Transgenerational Inheritance of Centromere Identity

Centromeres control genetic inheritance by directing chromosome segregation but are not genetically encoded themselves. Rather, centromeres are defined by nucleosomes containing CENP-A, a histone H3 variant [1]. In cycling somatic cells, centromere identity is maintained by an established cell-cycle-coupled CENP-A chromatin assembly pathway, but how centromeres are inherited through the mammalian female germline is unclear because of the long (months to decades) prophase I arrest. Here we show that mouse oocytes retain the pool of CENP-A nucleosomes assembled before birth, and that this pool is sufficient for centromere function, fertility, and genome transmission to embryos. Indeed, oocytes lack any measurable CENP-A nucleosome assembly through the entire fertile lifespan of the female (>1 year). Thus, the remarkable stability of CENP-A nucleosomes confers transgenerational centromere identity in mammals.
Determination of TN in water by on-line UV persulfate digestion and flow injection analysis

Objective:To research the determination of TN in water by On-line UV persulfate digestion and flow injection analysis and detect the total nitrogen in surface water,groundwater,sewage and industrial wastewater in order to realize automatic batch analysis.Methods: After total nitrogen module installed by flow circuit diagram,access the pump to connect appropriate solvent for the automated detection of TN.Results: The detection limit of TN by this method was 0.018 mg/L.The linear range of determination of TN was 0 mg/L～10 mg/L(r0.999).The method had high precision and accuracy.RSD of 1.5% and the recoveries of 90.5%～106% were obtained.Conclusion: The method of determination of TN by On-line persulfate digestion and flow injection analysis is suitable for the detection of large numbers of samples,with low detection limit,high accuracy and sensitivity.
Effects of L-carnitine on plasma free carnitine levels and cardiac functions in children with cardiomyopathy

Objective To investigate the effect of exogenous L-carnitine on plasma free carnitine levels and cardiacfunction in children with cardiomyopathy.MethodsA total of 88 patients with myocardiopathy were divided into treat-ment group and control group randomly. The control group received conventional therapy. The treatment group receivedadditional intravenous L-carnitine therapy of 100mg/kg.d for 14 days on the basis of conventional therapy, then changedto oral L-carnitine consistently. The oral dosage was 10 ml once a day in patients under 6 years of age,10 ml twice a dayin patients over 7 years.The plasma free carnitine levels and the improvement of cardiac function including left ventricu-lar ejection fraction(LVEF),cardiac output(CO),stroke volume(SV),cardiac index(CI),EF slope(MVEF)and leftventricular wall motion fast filling phase fraction(LFFPW),combined with electrocardiography,the plasma free carni-tine levels,C-reactive protein(CRP),myocardial enzymes were analyzed before and after therapy.ResultsCom-pared with control group,or those before treatment,the LVEF,CO,SV,CIMVEF and LFFPW of the treatment group im-proved significantly.The plasma free carnitine levels increased markly and had significant difference compared withthose before treatment or control group.ConclusionL-carnitine supplement significantly increases the plasma free car-nitine levels and improves cardiac function in children with cardiomyopathy.L-carnitine had a good therapeutic effect inchildren with cardiomyopathy.
Multiple Description Coding

Abstract With the development of 3G/4G and WiFi networks, there has been a growing demand for multimedia delivery over wireless channels. The dramatic increase in multimedia traffic over such lossy channels has driven the development of efficient, reliable, and adaptable coding techniques. Multiple description coding (MDC) has emerged as one of the most effective coding techniques to address such scenarios, especially in case of real-time applications when retransmission is unacceptable. In MDC, source data is coded into multiple descriptions containing controlled redundancy that is used to combat the unpredictable packet loss during delivery across a channel. Using the received descriptions, the source data is reconstructed by the decoder. Since its conception, many MDC based tools and systems have been developed for generic and specific applications. In this chapter, we review the development of MDC in the context of some selected applications.
Sugar Industry and Coronary Heart Disease Research: A Historical Analysis of Internal Industry Documents

Early warning signals of the coronary heart disease (CHD) risk of sugar (sucrose) emerged in the 1950s. We examined Sugar Research Foundation (SRF) internal documents, historical reports, and statements relevant to early debates about the dietary causes of CHD and assembled findings chronologically into a narrative case study. The SRF sponsored its first CHD research project in 1965, a literature review published in the New England Journal of Medicine, which singled out fat and cholesterol as the dietary causes of CHD and downplayed evidence that sucrose consumption was also a risk factor. The SRF set the review's objective, contributed articles for inclusion, and received drafts. The SRF's funding and role was not disclosed. Together with other recent analyses of sugar industry documents, our findings suggest the industry sponsored a research program in the 1960s and 1970s that successfully cast doubt about the hazards of sucrose while promoting fat as the dietary culprit in CHD. Policymaking committees should consider giving less weight to food industry-funded studies and include mechanistic and animal studies as well as studies appraising the effect of added sugars on multiple CHD biomarkers and disease development.
Study of energy transfer between quantum dots and a two-dimensional semiconductor

We explore the efficiency of energy transfer between colloidal quantum dots with a cadmium selenide core and cadmium sulfide shell and monolayer molybdenum diselenide (MoSe2), separating them by thin layers of hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN).
Sequence and functional characterization of hypoxia inducible factors, HIF1α, HIF2αa, and HIF3α, from the estuarine fish, Fundulus heteroclitus

The hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) family of transcription factors plays central roles in the development, physiology, pathology, and environmental adaptation of animals. Because many aquatic habit...
Biochemistry of Molybdopterin Nitrate/Nitrite Reductases

Several enzymatic and nonenzymatic processes have been proposed as sources of nitric oxide alternative to the canonical nitric oxide synthase pathway. These processes are noted to reduce nitrate to nitrite and/or nitrite to nitric oxide under hypoxic/acidic conditions similar to those encountered in vivo during inflammation. As such, they have been implicated as contributory to the salutary consequences of in vivo and in vitro nitrate or nitrite supplementation. However, the identity, extent of contribution, and physiological milieu where the various sources of proposed nitrate/nitrite reductase activity are operative is, to date, not well understood. As another chapter reveals, progress has been realized by assigning a nitrite reductase activity to molybdopterin-containing enzymes such as xanthine oxidoreductase (XOR) and aldehyde oxidase (AO). This is evidenced by in vitro studies demonstrating the enzymatic reduction of nitrite to nitric oxide from these enzymes coupled to in vivo reports revealing diminution in the beneficial actions of nitrite on: (1) broad-spectrum inhibition of molybdopterin proteins, (2) specific inhibition of the molybdopterin enzyme XOR, and (3) inactivation or removal of oral bacteria expressing nitrate reductases. Combined, this body of work has focused considerable attention on molybdopterin enzymes as critical components of the noncanonical nitric oxide synthesis apparatus. In order to establish a more clear understanding of molybdenum enzyme-catalyzed nitric oxide generation, this chapter will focus on their biochemistry in order to define conditions whereby their nitrate/nitrite reductase activity is operative as well as the extent to which it is biologically relevant.
C2-Selective Branched Alkylation of Benzimidazoles by Rhodium(I)-Catalyzed C-H Activation.

Herein, we report a Rh(I)/bisphosphine/K3PO4 catalytic system allowing for the first time the selective branched C–H alkylation of benzimidazoles with Michael acceptors. Branched alkylation with N,N-dimethyl acrylamide was successfully applied to the alkylation of a broad range of benzimidazoles incorporating a variety of N-substituents and with both electron-rich and -poor functionality displayed at different sites of the arene. Moreover, the introduction of a quaternary carbon was achieved by alkylation with ethyl methacrylate. The method was also shown to be applicable to the C2-selective branched alkylation of azabenzimidazoles.
Knobby Eye Syndrome.

Introduction: A spherical globe is traditionally assumed, but this study employed magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to demonstrate frequent occurrence of non-spherical staphylomata in strabismic pat...
Religious Communities and Their Mission

In the past thirty years, religious orders of men and women within the Roman Catholic Church have witnessed both the graying of its members and a decrease in the number of new vocations. Research has shown that only those communities with a clear focus in terms of charism and mission will survive. The present study reports the results of survey research conducted with 484 Roman Catholic religious which investigated three research questions: the uniqueness of the stated mission of seven religious communities, the awareness and experience of each community's unique charism, and an understanding of those lived experiences within community life which contribute to and predict a community's charism. The findings indicate that, while each of the religious communities surveyed can both identify and experience their community's stated charism, their mission statements poorly reflect the charism which is unique to each community. The data also indicates that time spent in prayer, both personal and communal, as well as the level of one's formal education, contribute to and predict and community's charism.
Individual Differences in Creativity

Creativity seems to be one of those concepts understood by everyone in the world except behavioral scientists. Although some segments of the public might hypothesize other reasons for this state of affairs, we believe the reason for this seeming paradox is as simple as the difference between the terms concept and construct. As a concept used by laypersons, creativity carries meaning in everyday speech that, although somewhat imprecise, is nevertheless widely shared; any surplus meaning is relatively unimportant; and operationalization for measurement purposes is a nonissue. As a scientific construct, however, creativity is held to a higher (or, at least, different) standard, and the construct validity issues surrounding the term can be frustrating in the extreme for researchers interested in investigating the phenomena of creative behavior and creative persons.
The Welding of Opposite Views: Land-Grant Historiography at 150 Years

The Morrill Act of 1862 is a laudatory example of what can be achieved through partnerships between higher education and the state. Over the last 150 years, land-grant colleges contributed to national development, expanded college access and participation, and advanced knowledge. In this article, the authors explain the traditional, “romantic” historiography that has coalesced around a celebration of land-grant colleges’ democratization of American higher education. In contrast, recent histories offer more nuanced, inclusive, and empirically grounded accounts of land-grant college origins and development. These revisionists critique the traditional focus on a singular democratic ideal; highlight multiple economic, political, and social influences on the land-grant movement; elevate the experiences of land-grant women and African-Americans; and explore the inherent tensions within the Morrill Act—the welding of opposite views. This review evaluates the historiography across eight thematic areas: (1) antecedents, origins, and early institutions; (2) embracing the university model: flagships; (3) mechanic arts to engineering; (4) elusive equality: African-Americans and the Morrill Act of 1890; (5) gendered and contested spaces: women and land-grant colleges; (6) colleges of agriculture, extension, and federal sponsorship: the special partnership; (7) land-grant colleges since 1945; and (8) memory and history.
Inappropriate Prescribing in the Hospitalized Elderly Patient

The medication use process is a varied and complex progression of steps that begin with prescribing from a health care provider to communicating orders to a nurse or pharmacist, dispensing by a pharmacist, and administering either by a patient’s caregiver or the patient (Institute of Medicine 1999; Page et al. 2010).
Synthesis and Stereocontrolled Equatorially Selective Glycosylation Reactions of a Pseudaminic Acid Donor: Importance of the Side-Chain Conformation and Regioselective Reduction of Azide Protecting Groups

Pseudaminic acid is an amino deoxy sialic acid whose glycosides are essential components of many pathogenic Gram-negative bacterial cell walls including those from Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Vibrio cholerae, Campylobacter jejuni, Campylobacter coli, Vibrio vulnificus, and Pseudoalteromonas distincta. The study of pseudaminic acid glycosides is however hampered by poor availability from nature and the paucity of good synthetic methods and limited to no understanding of the factors controlling stereoselectivity. Conformational analysis of the side chains of various stereoisomeric sialic acids suggested that the side chain of pseudaminic acid would take up the most electron-withdrawing trans, gauche-conformation, as opposed to the gauche, gauche conformation of N-acetyl neuraminic acid and the gauche, trans-conformtion of 7- epi N-acetyl neuraminic acid, leading to the prediction of high equatorial selectivity. This prediction is borne out by the synthesis of a suitably protected pseudaminic acid donor from N-acetyl neuraminic acid in 20 steps and 5% overall yield and by the exquisite equatorial selectivity it displays in coupling reactions with typical glycosyl acceptors. The selectivity of the glycosylation reactions is further buttressed by the development and implementation of conditions for the regioselective release of the two amines from the corresponding azides, such as required for the preparation of the lipopolysaccharides. These findings open the way to the synthesis and study of pseudaminic acid-based bacterial lipopolysaccharides and, importantly in the broader context of glycosylation reactions in general, underline the significant role played by side-chain conformation in the control of reactivity and selectivity.
Computational Framework for the Identification of Bioprivileged Molecules

Bioprivileged molecules are biology-derived chemical intermediates that can be efficiently converted to a diversity of chemical products including both novel molecules and drop-in replacements. Bridging chemical and biological catalysis by bioprivileged molecules provides a useful and flexible new paradigm for producing biobased chemicals. However, the discovery of bioprivileged molecules has been demonstrated to require extensive experimental effort over a long period of time. In this work, we developed a computational framework for identification of all possible C6HxOy molecules (29252) that can be honed down to a manageable number of candidate bioprivileged molecules based on analysis of structural features, reactive moieties, and reactivity of species, and the evaluation of the reaction network and resulting products based on automated network generation. Required input is the structure data file (SDF) of the starting molecules and the reaction rules. On-the-fly estimation of thermodynamics by a group...
Chinese State Capitalism and the International Tax Regime

As signaled by its participation in the G-20/OECD Base Erosion and Profit Shifting Project, China is gaining significant influence over international tax rules. Yet, how exactly China intends to shape international tax law remains an open question, even amongst leading Chinese tax scholars. As both a major capital importer and exporter as well as a developing economy with tremendous global economic power, China does not fit neatly into the traditional dichotomies of the international tax regime. This article argues that China’s international tax policy is likely to be strongly influenced by its unique system of state capitalism. Both the history of Chinese domestic tax reforms and the Communist Party’s current mechanisms of control over the Chinese economy suggest that China’s tax policy cannot be understood separately from its system of state capitalism. This article contends that as a result, China is likely to adopt distinctive international tax policies including maintaining a worldwide system of corporate taxation, providing tacit state support for international tax planning by major Chinese multinationals, and negotiating for broad exemptions in tax treaties for state-associated entities. If not proactively addressed by OECD countries, these policies may lead to significant fractures within the international tax regime.
The prognostic value of FOXA1 expression in prostatectomy specimens for patients undergoing salvage radiation therapy.

e16129 Background: In this study, we evaluate the prognostic value of Forkhead box protein A1 (FOXA1), a pioneer transcription factor, Immunohistochemistry staining in a cohort of prostate cancer p...
An evaluation of automated tracing for orbitofrontal cortex sulcogyral pattern typing.

Abstract Background Characterization of stereotyped orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) sulcogyral patterns formed by the medial and lateral orbitofrontal sulci (MOS and LOS) can be used to characterize individual variability; however, in practice, issues exist for reliability and reproducibility of anatomical classifications, as current methods rely on manual tracing. New Method We assessed whether an automated tracing procedure would be useful for characterizing OFC sulcogyral patterns. 100 subjects from a published collection of manual OFC tracings and characterizations of patients with bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and typical controls were used to evaluate an automated tracing procedure implemented using the BrainVISA Morphologist Pipeline. Results Automated tracings of caudal and rostral segments of the medial (MOSc/MOSr) and lateral (LOSc/LOSr) orbitofrontal sulci, as well as the intermediate (IOS) and transverse orbitofrontal sulci (TOS) were found to accurately identify OFC sulci, accurately portray sulci continuity, and reliably inform manual sulcogyral pattern characterization. Comparison with Existing Method Automated tracings produced visibly similar tracings of OFC sulci and removed subjective influence from locating sulci. The semi-automated pipeline of automated tracing and manual sulcogyral pattern characterization can eliminate the need for direct input during the most time-consuming process of the manual pipeline. Conclusions The results suggest that automated OFC sulci tracing methods using BrainVISA Morphologist are feasible and useful in a semi-automated pipeline to characterize OFC sulcogyral patterns. Automated OFC sulci tracing methods will improve reliability and reproducibility of sulcogyral characterizations and can allow for characterizations of sulcal patterns types in larger sample sizes, previously unattainable using traditional manual tracing procedures.
Enhancement of Thermal Conductivity of Bentonite Buffer Materials with Copper Wires/Meshes for High-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal

In high-level radioactive waste disposal, a heat-generating waste canister is generally encased with a layer of bentonite-based buffer material acting as an engineered barrier to limit water percol...
Spanish/English Codeswitching in a Written Corpus

Spanish/English codeswitching in published work represents a claim to the right to participate in the marketplace on a bilingual and not just monolingual basis. This book offers a syntactic and sociolinguistic analysis of the codeswitching in a corpus of thirty texts: novels and short stories published in the United States by twenty-four authors between 1970-2000. An application of the Matrix Language Frame model shows that written codeswitching follows for the most part the same syntactic patterns as its spoken counterpart. The reasons why some written codeswitching is considered to be artificial or inauthentic are examined. An overview of written codeswitching research is given, including titles of many texts in addition to the corpus that contain codeswitching between diverse languages. The book concludes with a look at how codeswitching is used by writers to attain their objectives, and what the implications may be for the relative positions of Spanish, English, and Spanish/English codeswitching in the United States.
Behavior and Performance of Suckling Piglets Provided Three Supplemental Heat Sources

This study compared water-heated mats (WM) and electric-heated mats (EM) with heat lamps (HL) as supplemental heat sources for suckling piglets. Forty-two litters were studied in 3 trials. In all trials, behavior of piglets was video-recorded on day 1, 3, 7, 14, and 21 postpartum. Videos were scan-sampled to register postures (lying and standing) and locations (on or away from mat) to assess piglet use of heat sources. Litter size and weight at birth and weaning, and pre-weaning mortality were recorded. Data were analyzed using Glimmix Procedures of SAS. Piglets spent more time on WM than under HL (67.5% vs. 51.0%, p = 0.002). No difference in piglet performance between WM and HL was observed, except mortality tended to be higher in WM (22.9% vs. 8.9%; p = 0.06). Piglet performance and use of the heat source were comparable for HL and EM. When comparing WM with EM, piglets provided WM spent more time on the mat compared to those provided EM (21.8% vs. 17.1%; p = 0.02). No difference in pre-weaning mortality, litter weight, and individual daily gain was observed between WM and EM group. These results suggest EM and HL were comparable to maintain performance and postural behaviors of piglets.
Twitter and political culture: Short text embeddings as a window into political fragmentation

Mapping polarization and relationships in political discourse on social media is challenging since politicians' positions and relationships can be hard to pin down. In this paper, we attempt to use politicians' tweets as a metric of their affinities using representation learning, by modifying the Word2Vec method such that politicians are directly encoded into a Euclidean space. Our analysis of Indian politicians shows that the relatively populous, linguistically more homogeneous northern states are cohesively clustered based on their party affiliations, whereas southern states cluster based on geography. We propose that computational methods can be useful in examining the tensions of regionalist tendencies against dominant national political narratives.
Encoded Check Driven Concurrent Error Detection in Particle Filters for Nonlinear State Estimation

In this paper we propose a framework for concurrent detection of soft computation errors in particle filters which are finding increasing use in robotics applications. The particle filter works by sampling the multi-variate probability distribution of the states of a system (samples called particles, each particle representing a vector of states) and projecting these into the future using appropriate nonlinear mappings. We propose the addition of a ‘check’ state to the system as a linear combination of the system states for error detection. The check state produces an error signal corresponding to each particle, whose statistics are tracked across a sliding time window. Shifts in the error statistics across all particles are used to detect soft computation errors as well as anomalous sensor measurements. Simulation studies indicate that errors in particle filter computations can be detected with high coverage and low latency.
Two-dimensional organic-inorganic hybrid perovskites for thermally stable photovoltaic and thermoelectric devices

Two-dimensional halide perovskites are exciting new semiconductors that show great promising in low cost and high performance optoelectronics devices. However, the weak chemical bonding of halide perovskites makes them chemically, thermally, and mechanically unstable. To address this critical issue and move forward for commercialization, deeper fundamental insights regarding the degradation mechanism and better stabilization strategies have to be achieved. In this talk, I will present a new molecular approach to the synthesis of high-quality organic-inorganic hybrid perovskite quantum wells through incorporating widely tunable organic semiconducting building blocks as the surface capping ligands. Then, I will talk about the applications of these materials in high performance and highly stable solar cells and thermoelectric conversion devices.
Mechanical and mechanothermal effects of focused ultrasound elicited distinct electromyographic responses in mice

The objective of this study was to compare focused ultrasound (FUS) neuromodulation-induced motor responses under two physical mechanisms: mechanical and mechanothermal effects. Mice were divided into two groups. One group was subjected to short-duration FUS stimulation (0.3 s) that induced mechanical effects (mechanical group). The other group underwent long-duration FUS stimulation (15 s) that produced not only mechanical but also thermal effects (mechanothermal group). FUS was targeted at the deep cerebellar nucleus in the cerebellum to induce motor responses, which were evaluated by recording the evoked electromyographic (EMG) signals and tail movements. Brain tissue temperature rise associated with the FUS stimulation was quantified by noninvasive magnetic resonance thermometryin vivo. Temperature rise was negligible for the mechanical group (0.2 °C ± 0.1 °C) but did rise within the range of 0.6 °C ± 0.2 °C-3.3 °C ± 0.9 °C for the mechanothermal group. The elongated FUS beam also induced heating in the dorsal brain (below the top skull) and ventral brain (above the bottom skull) along the beam path for the mechanothermal group. Both mechanical and mechanothermal groups achieved successful FUS neuromodulation. EMG response latencies were within the range of 0.03-0.1 s at different intensity levels for the mechanical group. The mechanothermal effect of FUS could induce both short-latency EMG (0.2-1.4 s) and long-latency EMG (8.7-13.0 s) under the same intensity levels as the mechanical group. The different temporal dynamics of evoked EMG suggested that FUS-induced mechanical and mechanothermal effects could evoke different responses in the brain.
Telehealth Use by Living Kidney Donor Transplant Programs During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Beyond: a Practical Approach.

Purpose of review COVID-19 pandemic led to a decline in living kidney donor evaluations and transplants. This was due to concerns for donor and recipient safety, restrictions on elective cases, and diversion of staff and resources in centers with a higher incidence of COVID-19 infections. Telehealth was explored as a strategy to continue living donor evaluations during the pandemic, but faced barriers including restrictive physician licensing, reduced reimbursement, lack of infrastructure, prohibitive local policies, limited exam, and personal biases. This review highlights these barriers and potential solutions. Recent findings Telehealth usage in the transplant population improves medication adherence, reduces hospitalization rates for recipients, and makes living donor evaluation convenient. Transplant centers have implemented telehealth successfully for living kidney donor evaluations. Broad use of telemedicine will be possible only if policies support the changing landscape of healthcare delivery. Summary Telehealth may increase access to timely kidney transplants by expediting living kidney donor evaluations. However, supportive infrastructure, regulatory policies, and reimbursement are needed to sustain access to telehealth for living kidney donor evaluation and care.
Immunotherapy for Alzheimer’s disease: past, present and future

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is an incurable, progressive, neurodegenerative disorder affecting over 5 million people in the US alone. This neurological disorder is characterized by widespread neurodegeneration throughout the association cortex and limbic system caused by deposition of Aβ resulting in the formation of plaques and tau resulting in the formation of neurofibrillary tangles. Active immunization for As showed promise in animal models of Alzheimer’s disease; however, the models were unable to predict the off-target immune effects in human patients. A few patients in the initial trial suffered cerebral meningoencephalitis. Recently, passive immunization has shown promise in the lab with less chance of off-target immune effects. Several trials have attempted using passive immunization for As, but again, positive end points have been elusive. The next generation of immunotherapy for Alzheimer’s disease may involve the marriage of anti-As antibodies with technology aimed at improving transport across the blood-brain barrier. Receptor mediated transport of antibodies may increase CNS exposure and improve the therapeutic index in the clinic.