cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A role for bradykinin in the development of anti-collagen antibody-induced arthritis

Objectives. Clinical and experimental observations have suggested that bradykinin, a major activation product of the plasma kallikrein–kinin system, is involved in the pathogenesis of arthritis, but the pathogenic role of bradykinin receptors remains inconclusive. In this study we examined whether bradykinin receptors are important in the pathogenesis of anti-collagen antibody-induced arthritis (CAIA) using double receptor–deficient (B1RB2R−/−) mice. Methods. CAIA was induced in B1RB2R+/+ and B1RB2R−/− mice by injection of an anti-collagen antibody cocktail on day 0 and lipopolysaccharide on day 3. Severity of disease was evaluated by measurement of joint diameter and histological analysis. The expression of proinflammatory cytokines in joint tissue and peripheral mononuclear cells was determined by ELISA and real-time RT-PCR. Results. The absent expression of B1R and B2R mRNA in B1RB2R–/– mice was confirmed by RT-PCR. Although B1RB2R+/+ mice developed severe CAIA, the severity of the disease was significantly attenuated in B1RB2R–/– mice. In B1RB2R+/+ mice bearing CAIA, both B1R and B2R mRNA levels were increased in joint tissue and peripheral mononuclear cells. Compared with B1RB2R+/+ mice, the production of IL-1β and IL-6 in joint tissue and their mRNA expression in peripheral mononuclear cells were remarkably reduced in B1RB2R–/– mice. Conclusion. These observations provide genetic evidence that bradykinin plays an important role in the pathogenesis of CAIA. B1R, whose expression is induced in inflamed joint tissue and peripheral inflammatory cells, is important in the development of CAIA.
Constrained C/sup 1/ piecewise bicubic Bezier surface interpolation

The construction of a C/sup 1/ piecewise bicubic Bezier surface that interpolates a set of data points and lies on the same side of a given plane as the data points is presented. The main tasks in this construction process are the adjustment of the tangent vectors and the determination of the twist vectors at the data points. The tangent vectors are modified by decreasing their magnitudes. The twist vectors are first set by an energy minimization process and then filtered through a modification process to ensure the constructed surface lies on one side of the given plane. The technique for determining the twist vectors has an interpolation precision of cubic polynomials.
A One-Step Preparation of 1,2-(α-Ketotetramethylene) ferrocene

Abstract A one-step preparation of 1,2(α-ketotetramethylene) ferrocene has been developed. This method should be superior to existing methods for preparation of small quantities of this material.
Application of landfill treatment approaches for stabilization of municipal solid waste

This research sought to compare the effectiveness of three landfill enhanced treatment approaches aimed at removing releasable carbon and nitrogen after anaerobic landfilling including flushing with clean water (FB 1), leachate recirculation with ex-situ treatment (FB 2), and leachate recirculation with ex-situ treatment and in-situ aeration (FB 3). After extensive treatment of the waste in the FB scenarios, the overall solids and biodegradable fraction were reduced relative to the mature anaerobically treated waste. In terms of the overall degradation, aeration did not provide any advantage over flushing and anaerobic treatment. Flushing was the most effective approach at removing biodegradable components (i.e. cellulose and hemicellulose). Leachate quality improved for all FBs but through different mechanisms. A significant reduction in ammonia-nitrogen occurred in FB 1 and 3 due to flushing and aeration, respectively. The reduction of chemical oxygen demand (COD) in FB 1 was primarily due to flushing. Conversely, the reduction in COD in FBs 2 and 3 was due to oxidation and precipitation during Fenton's Reagent treatment. A mass balance on carbon and nitrogen revealed that a significant fraction still remained in the waste despite the additional treatment provided. Carbon was primarily converted biologically to CH4 and CO2 in the FBs or removed during treatment using Fenton's Reagent. The nitrogen removal occurred through leaching or biological conversion. These results show that under extensive treatment the waste and leachate characteristics did meet published stability values. The minimum stability values achieved were through flushing although FB 2 and 3 were able to improve leachate quality and solid waste characteristics but not to the same extent as FB 1.
Where Do Actions Come From? Autonomous Robot Learning of Objects and Actions.

Decades of AI research have yielded techniques for learning, inference, and planning that depend on human-provided ontologies of self, space, time, objects, actions, and properties. Since robots are constructed with low-level sensor and motor interfaces that do not provide these concepts, the human robotics researcher must create the bindings between the required high-level concepts and the available low-level interfaces. This raises the developmental learning problem for robots of how a learning agent can create high-level concepts from its own low-level experience. Prior work has shown how objects can be individuated from low-level sensation, and certain properties can be learned for individual objects. This work shows how high-level actions can be learned autonomously by searching for control laws that reliably change these properties in predictable ways. We present a robust and efficient algorithm that creates reliable control laws for perceived objects. We demonstrate on a physical robot how these high-level actions can be learned from the robot’s own experiences, and can then applied to a learned object to achieve a desired goal.
The “New Normal” for Local Government:

This article argues that the bursting of the housing bubble, the banking crisis and the resulting great recession of 2008 have altered the landscape for local governments. The authors contend that ...
Is there androcentric bias in psychiatric diagnosis

Flaws, biases, and ethical problems surrounding research and diagnosis may lead to inappropriate or inequitable treatments that exacerbate or fail to improve the misery that some individuals face due to their psychiatric conditions. Possible androcentric biases in the choice and definition of categories for diagnosis available in DSM-III-R may in turn influence the approaches of therapists to clients, particularly male therapists towards female clients. Androcentric bias in diagnosis, which may also be reflected in the values of the psychiatrist, may lead to treatment regimens designed to make clients fit into roles, positions, and norms prescribed by a culture reflecting patriarchal values. Some acceptance of attempts by feminists to correct androcentrism are beginning to emerge in psychiatric diagnosis.
Benthic Bees? Emergence Phenology of Calliopsis pugionis (Hymenoptera: Andrenidae) at a Seasonally Flooded Site

Ground-nesting Calliopsis pugionis Cockerell emerged from nests that had been underwater for at least 3 mo. There was a significant correlation of the duration of submergence and the date of emergence, perhaps because inundation lowered soil temperature or oxygen availability. This delayed emergence excluded many bees from a major source of their normal forage, which grew at higher elevations than the flooded site and, thus, had unchanged phenology. The percentage of males among emerging bees increased with time, which contrasts with the expected pattern based on the mating biology of this species. Excavations of nests suggest that the life cycle of this species is univoltine and strictly annual. These results are discussed in terms of the effect of environmental unpredictability on a species tracking evolutionary optima.
Second-order moment tensors of microearthquakes at The Geysers geothermal field, California

The Geysers geothermal field is the site of intense microseismicity which appears to be associated with steam production. It seems that focal mechanisms of earthquakes at The Geysers vary systematically with depth, but P -wave first-motion focal mechanism studies have been hampered by inadequate resolution. In this study an unconstrained frequency domain moment tensor inversion method is used to over come P -wave first-motion focal sphere distribution problems and to investigate microearthquake source properties. A goal was to investigate the feasibility of using waveforms to invert for the second-order moment tensor of microearthquakes in the complex setting of The Geysers. Derived frequency-domain moment tensors for two earthquakes were verified by mechanisms estimated from P -wave first motions and required far fewer stations. For one event, 19 P -wave first motions were insufficient to distinguish between normal-slip and strike-slip focal mechanisms, but a well-constrained strike-slip solution was obtained from the waveform principal moment inversion using data from six stations. Improved waveform focal mechanism resolution was a direct consequence of using P - and S -wave data together in a progressive velocity-hypocenter inversion to minimize Green function errors. The effects of hypocenter mislocation and velocity model Green function errors on moment tensor estimates were investigated. Synthetic tests indicate that these errors can introduce spurious isotropic and compensated linear vector dipole components as large as 26 per cent for these events, whereas principal moment orientations errors were <8°. In spite of unfavorable recording geometries and large (0.6 km) station elevation differences, the results indicate that waveform moment tensor estimates for microearthquake sources can be robust and constrain source mechanisms using data from a relatively small number of stations.
An Investigation of Current Debt Levels of Equity REITs

Executive Summary. This study investigates the current debt levels of equity real estate investment trusts (EREITs) and the ability of these companies to meet their interest and dividend payments. Critical financial ratios for the aggregate industry show that EREIT debt levels have consistently fallen since the recession of the early 1990s. In addition, lower debt levels and improved cash flows have reduced the risk of default as indicated by increasing debt coverage levels. However, this trend significantly reversed in 1998 when the industry experienced sharp increases in debt and reductions in interest coverage ratios.
The Evolution of Mandates

Three Congresses in the modern era have started work in the presence of widespread belief – inside and outside the institution – that their actions would be closely watched by willful voters. The 89th Congress in 1965, the 97th in 1981, and the 104th in 1995 had in common a charged Washington environment, a sense that they must act. This sense, a widely shared belief that they acted under a voter mandate, came from some place and some time before early January, when they began their business. It came, or at least seemed to, from the previous November, from the first Tuesday after the first Monday of that previous November. But elections do not interpret themselves, do not speak of mandates, do not speak of much of anything except who got how many votes. From somewhere in the campaign, from Election Day, and from the public dialogue after the election, a message arose, was debated, and became agreed on by most people in the Washington community – and by the community of politics outside the beltway. The task of this chapter is find when, how, and from where it came. Our task is to try to understand public dialogues about mandates.
Setting the Stage: Longer-Term Implications of Suez

Even though British foreign policy shifted to emphasize the Indian Ocean role in the years following Suez, the questioning and uncertainty which became most apparent in 1956 would return. The Macmillan government suffered a string of political setbacks in the early 1960s: the failed bid to enter the European Economic Community in 1963, the costly failure of Blue Streak and dependence on American missile technology, by-election defeats, and a series of spy scandals which culminated in the Profumo affair. Added to this, Britain’s economy ran into trouble again after 1961. Production and exports stagnated, and the country endured a series of balance of payments crises from 1961 to 1964. The economic satisfaction which characterized the late 195Os rapidly dissolved. Worse still, signs of the country’s relative economic decline were becoming more difficult to ignore, with, for example, West Germany’s postwar GNP first outstripping Britain’s in 1960. The country’s share of exports from the 11 major manufacturing countries fell from 20 per cent of the total to well under 14 per cent from 1954 to 1964.1 Britain was feeling the pinch of increased economic competition in the early 1960s, perhaps in an acute form. As the 1960s wore on, legitimate questions about what Britain’s rightful place in the world was, and what it should be, became increasingly widespread and germane Eventually, such changes, along with the tremors which were working their way through the political system after the Suez debâcle, would create a mood of apprehension and expectant change in the mid-1960s.
Archaeogeophysical and geochemical studies at George Washington Carver National Monument, Diamond, Missouri

Geophysical and geochemical prospection studies were carried out at George Washington Carver National Monument in the mid- to late 1970s. Together with a reanalysis of materials excavated by P. L. Beaubien in the 1950s, a reasonable historical and archaeological picture of Dr. Carver’s birthplace and family dwellings has been developed. Revisiting the geophysical data in the 1990s prompted this synthesis of the various studies by this author. The results will be seen as informative of the methodology of archaeological geophysics as well as to midwestern historical archaeology.
Wombs and Whippersnappers: Reflections on Health Education Research and Opportunities for the Future

My talk will describe two public health problems facing women and children that were the focus of the work my colleagues and I did over my years as a health behavior change researcher. I start by addressing why a focus on women and children is important from a public health perspective and then provide two mini case studies: (1) identifying needs and interventions for women living with HIV and intimate partner violence and (2) disseminating proven interventions to reduce unintentional injuries in children. The conclusions present thoughts on the contributions of health education to these public health concerns and opportunities for the future.
Time-resolved kelvin probe force microscopy to study population and depopulation of traps in electron or hole majority organic semiconductors

Abstract We present a time-resolved Kelvin Probe Force Microscopy (KPFM) technique that can record carrier motion on the scale of milliseconds, appropriate for polycrystalline materials like organic semiconductors. The organic semiconductors are studied in a transistor geometry to which we apply a step voltage to the back-gate. We record the change in potential at a specific location and observe the times associated with filling and emptying majority carrier traps, observed in hole majority carrier poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl) (P3HT) and a perylene diimide electron majority carrier, PDI-CN2. We see signs of bias stress with repeated measurements in P3HT.
Student-Instructor Perception of Computer Technologies in Developing Countries: The Case of Jordan

The purpose of this study was to analyze students' and instructors' perceptions about computer technologies in developing countries. Using Jordan as a case study, this paper examined computer usage, computer literacy, attitude toward computer technologies, and perceptions about computers and productivity. A questionnaire was distributed to a random sample of students and instructors at three universities in Jordan during the spring of 2002. Results showed that approximately one-third of students and two-thirds of instructors had computers at home, used computers mostly for word processing, had a mixed attitude toward computer technologies, felt confident about their ability to learn about these technologies, and agreed that technology increased their productivity. While students reported using the Internet primarily for communication (such as e-mails), instructors utilized the Internet for research activities. Students were more likely to avoid using computer technologies than instructors. In this study, ...
A Comparison Between Boundary Layer Measurements in a Laminar Separation Bubble Flow and Linear Stability Theory Calculations

This research examines the details of the boundary layer flowfield from wind tunnel measurements of a two-dimensional Liebeck LA2573A airfoil over a range of Reynolds numbers from 235000 to 500000. In this range, a laminar separation bubble becomes significant in the boundary layer and provides a measurable contribution to the airfoil drag. Measurements include airfoil drag, mean and turbulent boundary layer velocity profiles, a calculation of integral parameters associated with these profiles, and energy spectra of the velocity signal inside the boundary layer. Evidence of the growth of boundary layer velocity fluctuations within a range of frequencies in the laminar separation and transition regions has been found in these spectral measurements. Results have shown that the peak frequencies measured in the velocity spectra for the instability region agree with the most amplified wave number and frequency scaling predicted by linear stability theory for these inflectional profiles. Additionally, the maximum measured growth rates at this peak frequency correlate with growth rates calculated from similarly shaped Falkner-Skan profiles at the corresponding frequency of maximum amplification. This agreement between experimental and theoretical peak frequencies and growth rates was confirmed for the range of Reynolds numbers and for airfoil incidence ranging from zero lift to stall.
Does Giving Parents Their Choice of Interventions for Child Behavior Problems Improve Child Outcomes

Empowering consumers to be active decision-makers in their own care is a core tenet of personalized, or precision medicine. Nonetheless, there is a dearth of research on intervention preferences in families seeking interventions for a child with behavior problems. Specifically, the evidence is inconclusive as to whether providing parents with choice of intervention improves child/youth outcomes (i.e., reduces externalizing problems). In this study, 129 families presenting to community mental health clinics for child conduct problems were enrolled in a doubly randomized preference study and initially randomized to choice or no-choice conditions. Families assigned to the choice condition were offered their choice of intervention from among three different formats of the Parent Management Training-Oregon Model/PMTO (group, individual clinic, home based) and services-as-usual (child-focused therapy). Those assigned to the no-choice condition were again randomized, to one of the four intervention conditions. Intent-to-treat analyses revealed partial support for the effect of parental choice on child intervention outcomes. Assignment to the choice condition predicted teacher-reported improved child hyperactivity/inattention outcomes at 6 months post-treatment completion. No main effect of choice on parent reported child outcomes was found. Moderation analyses indicated that among parents who selected PMTO, teacher report of hyperactivity/inattention was significantly improved compared with parents selecting SAU, and compared with those assigned to PMTO within the no-choice condition. Contrary to hypotheses, teacher report of hyperactivity/inattention was also significantly improved for families assigned to SAU within the no-choice condition, indicating that within the no-choice condition, SAU outperformed the parenting interventions. Implications for prevention research are discussed.
Exhausting Intellectual Property Rights: A Comparative Law and Policy Analysis

Even as globalization seems to be in retreat in political circles, the march of commercialization and markets continues. Government policies, whether tariffs, exits, or walls, cannot impede the competitive drive to meet consumer demand for products and services, whether within national boundaries or across them. In the sphere of intellectual property rights, the doctrine of exhaustion serves to limit the rights of intellectual property owners after a specific exercise of some or all of the rights. This volume provides an assessment of the successes and failures of the exhaustion doctrine as it has been applied through recent judicial decisions in the United States and the European Union. Irene Calboli and Shubha Ghosh explore how evolving interpretations of the exhaustion doctrine affects the large trade in gray market products and other international trade issues. A comparative approach to exhaustion, Exhausting Intellectual Property Rights offers a unique discussion of the often overlooked issue of overlapping rights.
Disjunctures in Experiences of Support During the Transition to Fatherhood of Men Who Have Used Intimate Partner Violence

The transition to fatherhood has been shown to be a stressful time for men, and their experiences of identifying and accessing formal and informal support are mixed. However, research on the experience of men who use intimate partner violence (IPV) during the transition to fatherhood is limited. The evidence documenting the prevalence and short- and long-term impact of violence perpetrated by men against women during pregnancy and postpartum demonstrates the seriousness of this public health issue. To understand the mechanisms of interrupting IPV by engaging men, the gap between what is known about experiences of identifying the need for and access to support during the transition to fatherhood of men with past and current histories of using IPV must be bridged. The study described explores experiences of support during the transition to fatherhood of men who have used IPV. Descriptive findings revealed that men had a range of types of supports from multiple sources; however, most also identified crucial unmet instrumental and socioemotional needs. Four themes surfaced disjunctures in how participants described resources they needed, accessed, and desired. Specifically, these disjunctures were related to men's adherence to a self-reliant identity, a lack of male-specific peer or role model support, the tendency for childbirth classes to be geared toward mothers and not seen by fathers as sources of support, and a gap between men's goals for themselves as fathers, and the actual tools, resources, and modeling that were accessible and "acceptable." The implications include suggestions for group-based programmatic efforts, and three initial steps for organizations to assess and build current capacity to engage-with safety and accountability at the forefront-fathers who use IPV.
A Review of ACE Inhibitors and ARBs in Black Patients With Hypertension.

Objective: To review current guidelines and recent data evaluating the efficacy and safety of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) in black hypert...
Motion Vector Prediction Based on Frame Differences

In this paper, we describe a motion prediction technique for video compression applications. The proposed technique utilizes statistical characterization of difference pictures of a video source, which can be described a Laplacian distribution reflecting both temporal and spatial correlation of the consecutive image frames. The prediction of unkown motion vectors in a short time-step ahead is formulated mathematically as a minimization of a global objective function which gives the solution to the unknown functionals, (u(x,y,t),v(x,y,t)), at each individual pixel location. This minimization is equivalent to solving stochastic coupled-elliptical partial differential equations under a natural boundary condition. From the physical condition, regularization process is employed and the stochastic partial differential equations are converted to a stochastic linear algebraic system AX =b with a sparse matrix A. Then an iteretive algorithm based on successive over-relaxation technique is utilized to predict the motion-vector field. The unique features of this technique include the utilization of difference picture for mathematical formulation which allows a better statistical characterization of video sources, and the computation of the mot ion-vector field based on the prediction.
The Objective Conditions

In the preceding chapter it was noted that the definition of the aesthetic object developed there — viz. an intrinsically valued natural symbol — was an incomplete definition. An obvious deficiency is that it provides no key for recognizing the whole type and character of the natural symbol to be identified as an aesthetic object. The way is left open, therefore, for identifying a mere part of a work of art as the whole aesthetic object. It is left open for accepting an extraneous but accidentally related object as part of the work of art (as sometimes the pianist is applauded rather than his music). And it is not clear whether all or only some intrinsically valued natural symbols are aesthetic objects. We turn, therefore, to consider what objective character the natural symbol must possess in order to become an aesthetic object. The way to a grasp of this specific character lies through a consideration of aesthetic form.
Students Becoming Chemists: Developing Representationl Competence

This chapter examines the role that representations and visualizations can play in the chemical curriculum. Two types of curricular goals are examined: students’ acquisition of important chemical concepts and principles and students’ participation in the investigative practices of chemistry—“students becoming chemists.” Literature in learning theory and research support these two goals and this literature is reviewed. The first goal relates to cognitive theory and the way that representations and visualizations can support student understanding of concepts related to molecular entities and processes that are not otherwise available for direct perception. The second goal relates to situative theory and the role that representations and visualizations play in development of representational competence and the social and physical processes of collaboratively constructing an understanding of chemical processes in the laboratory. We analyze research on computer-based molecular modeling, simulations, and animations from these two perspectives and make recommendations for instruction and future research.
Alliance Formation in a Side-Taking Experiment

We investigate in an economic experiment how people choose sides in disputes. In an eight-player side-taking game, two disputants at a time fight over an indivisible resource and other group members choose sides. The player with more supporters wins the resource, which is worth real money. Conflicts occur spontaneously between any two individuals in the group. Players choose sides by ranking their loyalties to everyone else in the group, and they automatically support the disputant they ranked higher. We manipulate participants’ information about other players’ loyalties and also their ability to communicate with public chat messages. We find that participants spontaneously and quickly formed alliances, and more information about loyalties caused more alliance-building. Without communication, we observe little evidence of bandwagon or egalitarian strategies, but with communication, some groups invented rank rotation schemes to equalize payoffs while choosing the same side to avoid fighting costs.
Multimodal Food Journaling

A food journal is essential for improving health and well-being. However, journaling every meal is extremely difficult because it depends on user initiative and intervention. Current approaches to food journaling are both potentially inaccurate and tedious, causing people to abandon their journals very soon after they start. In this paper, we propose a proactive and reactive mechanism that can significantly reduce user initiative while still remaining highly accurate. We first suggest a novel eating moment recognition technique using heart rate and activity patterns to trigger a food journaling process in a proactive manner. We then begin the food journaling process via voice command which utilized natural language processing when logging meals, which increases the ease of reactive self-reporting. Lastly, we enhance the food journal by automatically assessing ecological moments of eating activity through our personal chronicle system. We verified the method from a feasibility study conducted with three people for three months in their day-to-day lives. Our approach is designed to be unobtrusive and practical by leveraging multi-modal sensor data through the most common device combination of a smartphone and wearable device.
Diel fluctuations of high level nitrate and dissolved organic carbon concentrations in constructed wetland mesocosms

Abstract Portable in situ ultraviolet-visual spectrometers, through high frequency water quality measurements, provide new insight into biogeochemical processes occurring within dynamic ecosystems. Nitrogen and carbon cycling were observed in two distinct wetland mesocosm environments during a two-year mesocosm study. Simulated drainage water was loaded into the mesocosms across seasons with target nitrate-N levels between 2.5 and 10 mg L−1. Nitrate-N and dissolved organic carbon concentrations in the water column were measured hourly with the spectrometer and calibrated with water quality grab samples. Prominent and unique diel cycles were observed in both nitrate-N and dissolved organic carbon readings from the spectrometer, which reveal biogeochemical processes in these systems are more complicated than typically considered in empirical models. Findings support the importance of utilizing high frequency monitoring to advance current knowledge of nitrogen and carbon processes occurring in treatment wetland ecosystems.
Complements and allergic asthma

Regulatory T (Treg) cells play a central role in protecting against the development of allergic asthma and interleukin-10 (IL-10) producing T regulatory type 1 (Tr1) cells contribute to the regulation of asthma. Complement regulatory protein CD46 was shown to stimulate the development of IL-10 producing Tr1 cells. Crosslinking of CD46 during CD4+ T cell priming induces production of large amount of IL-10 and granzyme B. These CD46-induced regulatory T cells (Tr1) does not require pre-existing basal expression of FoxP3. Through local IL-10 and granzyme B secretion, such Tr1 cell could control T-cell-mediated inflammation. In asthmatic patients, we found that diminished IL-10, granzyme B, and CCR 4 expression from CD3/CD46-activated Tr1 cells. CD3/CD46-activated Tr1 cells from asthma patients co-cultured with BEAS-2B cells suppressed dermatophagoides pteronyssinus 2 (Der p 2)-induced nuclear factor-κB/p65 by cell contact inhibition. Decreased interaction of CD3/CD46-activated Tr1 and BEAS-2B cells from asthmatics was associated with downregulation of phosphorylation of protein kinase B expression. Decreased interaction between CD46-mediated Tr1 and lung epithelial cells with less IL-10 and granzyme B production may contribute to airway inflammation in allergic asthma. Der p specific immunotherapy enhances the suppressive function of IL-10 in CD46-mediated Tr1 cell from asthmatic patients and suppresses airway inflammation in these patients. Based on these results, it might be possible to design therapeutic strategies to manipulate complement activated Tr1 cells to achieve allergen tolerance and suppress airway inflammation in patients with allergic asthma.
The Synthesis and Structure of New Transition Metal Lithium Calcium Nitride Compounds.

The the new nitrides (IV), (V), and (VII) are synthesized in a reactive lithium nitride flux.
Contributions of the basal ganglia to action sequence learning and performance.

Abstract Animals engage in intricately woven and choreographed action sequences that are constructed from trial-and-error learning. The mechanisms by which the brain links together individual actions which are later recalled as fluid chains of behavior are not fully understood, but there is broad consensus that the basal ganglia play a crucial role in this process. This paper presents a comprehensive review of the role of the basal ganglia in action sequencing, with a focus on whether the computational framework of reinforcement learning can capture key behavioral features of sequencing and the neural mechanisms that underlie them. While a simple neurocomputational model of reinforcement learning can capture key features of action sequence learning, this model is not sufficient to capture goal-directed control of sequences or their hierarchical representation. The hierarchical structure of action sequences, in particular, poses a challenge for building better models of action sequencing, and it is in this regard that further investigations into basal ganglia information processing may be informative.
A level-set based continuous scanning path optimization method for reducing residual stress and deformation in metal additive manufacturing

Abstract Thermal residual stress and distortion inherent in metal melting and solidification process is the main cause of build failure in metal additive manufacturing (AM) techniques such as laser powder bed fusion and directed energy deposition. To ensure build quality against residual stress/distortion, it is desirable to tailor the scanning path for a given geometry that needs to be built. Since the local deformation introduced by the moving heat source is anisotropic due to non-uniform heat transfer and mechanical constraints, the scanning path can affect residual stress within a part significantly. Aiming at thermal residual stress/distortion mitigation, this paper presents a novel level set-based scanning path optimization method. The method is developed to enable layer-wise continuous scanning path optimization for geometrically well-defined parts. To make the optimization efficient, a fast process simulation method called the inherent strain method is employed to simulate the thermal residual strain. Full sensitivity analysis for the formulated compliance- and stress-minimization problems is provided, where a novel strategy called the adaptive level set adjustment (ALSA) is proposed to remedy the deficiency of ignoring the non-implementable sensitivity terms. The effectiveness of the proposed continuous scanning path optimization method and ALSA strategy has been proved by a few numerical examples. Finally, the concurrent design scenario for simultaneous scanning path and structural optimization is investigated to demonstrate the further residual stress reduction.
Implications of climate change for managing urban green infrastructure: an Indiana, US case study

Urban areas around the world are increasingly investing in networks of urban forests, gardens, and other forms of green infrastructure for their benefits, including enhanced livability, sustainability, and climate change mitigation and adaptation. Proactive planning for climate change requires anticipating potential climate change impacts to green infrastructure and adjusting management strategies accordingly. We apply climate change projections for the Midwest US state of Indiana to assess the possible impacts of climate change on common forms of urban green infrastructure and identify management implications. Projected changes in Indiana’s temperature and precipitation could pose numerous management challenges for urban green infrastructure, including water stress, pests, weeds, disease, invasive species, flooding, frost risk, and timing of maintenance. Meeting these challenges will involve managing for key characteristics of resilient systems (e.g., biodiversity, redundancy) as well as more specific strategies addressing particular climate changes (e.g., shifting species compositions, building soil water holding capacity). Climate change also presents opportunities to promote urban green infrastructure. Unlike human built infrastructure, green infrastructure is conducive to grassroots stewardship and governance, relieving climate change-related strains on municipal budgets. Resources for adapting urban green infrastructure to climate change are already being applied to the management of urban green infrastructure, and emerging research will enhance understanding of best management practices.
[FE1057] Valuing Florida Water Resources: Water Use in Irrigated Agriculture

Water resources provide us with a variety of goods and services (altogether often referred to as ecosystem services or environmental services.) Part of a series entitled Economic Value of Florida Water Resources, this 5-page fact sheet written by Tatiana Borisova, Syed Irfan Ali Shah, Tara Wade, Kelly Grogan, and Xiang Bi and published by the UF/IFAS Food and Resource Economics Department assesses the economic value of the ecosystem services provided by irrigation water and shows the importance to agriculture of water resource protection and restoration. http:edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fe1057
Humoral immune response and prolonged PCR positivity in a cohort of 1343 SARS-CoV 2 patients in the New York City region

Abstract Background Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has caused a global pandemic. The percentage of infected individuals who seroconvert is still an open question. In addition, it has been shown in some individuals that viral genome can still be detected at considerable time post symptom resolution. Here we investigated both seroconversion and PCR-positivity in a large cohort of convalescent serum donors in New York City. Methods Individuals with confirmed or suspected SARS-CoV-2 infection were screened via PCR for presence of viral genome and via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for presence of anti SARS-CoV-2 spike antibodies. Results All but three confirmed SARS-CoV-2 patients seroconverted to the SARS-CoV-2 spike while only 37.4% of suspected SARS-CoV-2 patients seroconverted. PCR-positivity was detected up to 28 days from symptom resolution. Conclusions Here we show that the vast majority of confirmed COVID19 patients seroconvert, potentially providing immunity to reinfection. We also report that in a large proportion of individuals, viral genome can be detected via PCR in the upper respiratory tract for weeks post symptom resolution, but it is unclear if this signal represents infectious virus.
急诊医学:美国的成功和挑战能给中国的同行提供指导吗?

2011年,北京和睦家医疗集团在北京举办了一场中美急诊医学教育论坛,参会人员包括医生、护士、政府官员等致力于推动中国急诊医学事业发展的各界人士.大家共同分享“急诊医学在美国”这一议题,以助于中美的同行交流经验以及相互学习.为了更好地阐明“急诊医学在美国”这个主题,作者介绍了几个方面的内容:目前急诊医学在美国的地位,急诊医学组织目前的地位、角色以及相关的活动。
Spread-Spectrum Frequency Modulation With Adaptive Three-Level Current Scheme to Improve EMI and Efficiency of Three-Level Boost DCM PFC

Discontinuous conduction mode controlled boosting power-factor-correction (PFC) converters suffer from high differential-mode electromagnetic interference (EMI) and require a large input filter due to high inductor current ripples at a single switching frequency. To remedy the shortcomings, a downward spread-spectrum frequency modulation (SSFM) is proposed in this letter. The SSFM can be used by boosting PFC converters for reduced EMI and improved efficiency. On top of the frequency modulation, a novel adaptive three-level current (ATC) scheme is devised with three-level boost PFC using multilevel capability to obtain further reductions of peak current and EMI amplitude. Analyses and experiments validate that the proposed SSFM and ATC scheme can bring improvements of EMI and efficiency at the cost of increased output-voltage ripple.
Green science: smart building technology to mitigate global energy and water crises

Abstract The adverse effects of burning fossil fuels to power the building sector around the world put our Mother Earth at risk because fossil fuels are being depleted due to the present level of consumption. The adverse effects on the planet from using fossil fuels to power the building sector around the world, together with the fact that these fuels are being depleted as a resource, demands fundamental changes in the building sector. Additionally, the traditional water supply to the building sector causes lowering of the ground water strata, which is a dangerous sign for the survival of future generations due to the shortage of ground water. Additionally, we see increases in the use of the water supply within the building sector, which is lowering the ground water levels to a state that threatens the survival of future generations. Thus, in this research, an innovative technology is proposed to mitigate these global energy and water crises being produced by the building sector. The use of solar energy to generate electricity within a building’s exterior curtain wall through the implementation of active PV panels can power the building naturally. Additionally, cloud water molecules have been proposed to catch static electricity, forming an insulator water tank in a building, which can be treated in situ by implementing a UV application to fulfill the day by day water needs of a building. The results of this research revealed that the use of only 25% of the exterior curtain wall skin of a building will capture the sufficient solar radiation for conversion into electric energy to meet 100% of the energy demand of the building. In addition, the possibility of cloud water capture by the static electricity force to fill an insulator tank near the building suggests tremendous potential of this mechanism regarding the use of cloud water treated it in situ by UV technology to meet the net water demands of a building. Thus, the combination of these two technologies to capture sunlight and the cloud water by designing smart building technology to satisfy the net energy and water needs of a building provides an innovative technology for mitigating global energy, environmental, and climate vulnerability.
Equity during peer conferences: A linguistic comparison by race and gender

This paper provides an analysis of students’ peer assessment conversations in introductory college calculus. Prior research shows that this type of activity can support meaningful student learning. However, previous studies have suggested that students from different groups (e.g., by race or gender) may have different opportunities to participate in such discussion-based activities. Accordingly, this paper explores the participation of students in peer assessment conversations, by focusing on the types of feedback and word choices used by different groups of students, by race and gender. Based on computer-aided textual analysis, this paper provides insights into the types of words used by different students in the class. While there was evidence of inequities in participation between men and women, the results for race were inconclusive. These results suggest that peer conferences have some potential for producing more equitable participation in calculus.
Anodal stimulation in pediatric patients with permanent epicardial ventricular pacemakers.

OBJECTIVES We aimed to measure the frequency and factors associated with anodal stimulation in a pediatric population with epicardial pacing leads. BACKGROUND In bipolar pacemakers, capture of the myocardium typically occurs at the cathode. However, AS with capture at the anode has been described. This has not been described in epicardial pacemakers. METHODS Retrospective data were collected from patients ≤ 21 years of age with permanent bipolar epicardial ventricular pacemakers from 1/2017 to 1/2018. AS was defined as a clear change on surface ECG in at least one of the 12 leads assessed by two blinded pediatric electrophysiologists. RESULTS Twenty-four bipolar leads in 23 patients were included in the study. One patient had both biventricular leads tested. Median age was 7.1 years (IQR 5.0-10.9), weight was 20.9 kg (IQR 16.5-33.5), and 65% were male. Testing was performed at a median of 2.8 years (IQR 1.6-6.1) after implant. Congenital heart disease was present in 57%. Complete heart block was the pacemaker indication in 78%. AS was identified in 16/24 (67%) of leads tested. Identification of AS was associated with presence of congenital heart disease (p = 0.004) and 3DD between electrodes (p = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS AS is common in pediatric patients and was associated with a history of congenital heart disease and greater estimated 3DD between electrodes. The prevalent nature of AS may allow clinicians to utilize existing pacemakers as multisite pacing systems.
Percutaneous Lymphatic Embolization as Primary Management of Pelvic and Retroperitoneal Iatrogenic Lymphoceles.

Abstract Purpose To evaluate the efficacy of lymphatic embolization (LE) in decreasing catheter output and dwell time in iatrogenic lymphoceles after percutaneous catheter drainage. Materials and Methods Retrospective review of patients who underwent intranodal lymphangiography (INL) with or without LE for management of iatrogenic lymphoceles between January 2017 and November 2020 was performed. Twenty consecutive patients (16 men and 4 women; median age, 60.5 years) underwent a total of 22 INLs and 18 LEs for 15 pelvic and 5 retroperitoneal lymphoceles. Lymphatic leaks were identified in 19/22 (86.4%) of the INLs. Three patients underwent INL only because a leak was not identified or was identified into an asymptomatic lymphocele. One patient underwent repeat INL and LE after persistent high catheter output, and 1 patient underwent repeat INL with LE after the initial INL did not identify a leak. Catheter output was assessed until catheter removal, and changes in output before and after the procedure were reported. The patients were followed up for 2–30 months, and procedural complications were reported. Results The median catheter output before the procedure was 210 mL/day (50–1,200 mL/day), which decreased to a median of 20 mL/day (0–520 mL/day) 3 days after the procedure, with a median output decrease of 160 mL (0–900 mL). The median time between INL with LE and catheter removal was 6 days, with no recurrence requiring redrainage. Four patients experienced minor complications of low-grade fever (n = 2) and lower limb edema (n = 2). Conclusions Lymphangiogram and LE are safe and effective methods for the management of lymphoceles.
Classification of Workers’ Compensation Programs

Chapter 3 summarized the workers’ compensation program in 136 nations. This chapter will summarize the benefits for subgroups of these 136 nations categorized according to (1) six continents, (2) five income statuses, and (3) three security systems. The objective is to investigate the relationship, if any, between any of these characteristics and a nation’s workers’ compensation system. For example, one would expect higher income nations to cover more workers, provide more generous benefits, and incur higher costs.