cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Polymer Reptation in Disordered Media

The effect of ambient disorders and sequence heterogeneities on the reptation of a long polymer is studied with the aid of a disordered tube model. The dynamics of a random heteropolymer is found to be much slower than that of a homopolymer due to collective pinning effects. The asymptotic properties belong to the universality class of a directed path in $(1+1)\ensuremath{-}\mathrm{dimensional}$ random media.
Discrete event simulation applied to pediatric phase I oncology designs.

Little attention has been paid to the study of trial efficiency despite increasing pressures to conduct clinical research in an expedient manner and the ever-present “time is money” mantra that governs the pharmaceutical research concerned with drug development. Still less appreciated is the impact that trial inefficiency can have when studies compete for a finite study population desperate to test potentially lifesaving new medicines. We have used discrete event simulation techniques to examine such sensitivities in pediatric oncology. Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics (2008); 84, 6, 729–733 doi:10.1038/clpt.2008.193
Growth of iron(III)-reducing bacteria on clay minerals as the sole electron acceptor and comparison of growth yields on a variety of oxidized iron forms.

Smectite clay minerals are abundant in soils and sediments worldwide and are typically rich in Fe. While recent investigations have shown that the structural Fe(III) bound in clay minerals is reduced by microorganisms, previous studies have not tested growth with clay minerals as the sole electron acceptor. Here we have demonstrated that a pure culture of Shewanella oneidensis strain MR-1 as well as enrichment cultures of Fe(III)-reducing bacteria from rice paddy soil and subsurface sediments are capable of conserving energy for growth with the structural Fe(III) bound in smectite clay as the sole electron acceptor. Pure cultures of S. oneidensis were used for more detailed growth rate and yield experiments on various solid- and soluble-phase electron acceptors [smectite, Fe(III) oxyhydroxide FeOOH, Fe(III) citrate, and oxygen] in the same minimal medium. Growth was assessed as direct cell counts or as an increase in cell carbon (measured as particulate organic carbon). Cell counts showed that similar growth of S. oneidensis (10 8 cells ml 1 ) occurred with smectitic Fe(III) and on other Fe forms [amorphous Fe(III) oxyhydroxide, and Fe citrate] or oxygen as the electron acceptor. In contrast, cell yields of S. oneidensis measured as the increase in cell carbon were similar on all Fe forms tested while yields on oxygen were five times higher, in agreement with thermodynamic predictions. Over a range of particle loadings (0.5 to 4 g liter 1 ), the increase in cell number was highly correlated to the amount of structural Fe in smectite reduced. From phylogenetic analysis of the complete 16S rRNA gene sequences, a predominance of clones retrieved from the clay mineral-reducing enrichment cultures were most closely related to the low-GC gram-positive members of the Bacteria (Clostridium and Desulfitobacterium) and the -Proteobacteria (members of the Geobacteraceae). Results indicate that growth with smectitic Fe(III) is similar in magnitude to that with Fe(III) oxide minerals and is dependent upon the mineral surface area available. Iron(III) bound in clay minerals should be considered an important electron acceptor supporting the growth of bacteria in soils or sedimentary environments.
The hippocampal debate: are we asking the right questions?

For years, the debate has been: "Is the hippocampus the cognitive map?" or "Is the hippocampus the core of memory?" These two hypotheses derived their original power from two key experiments--the cognitive map theory from the remarkable spatial correlates seen in recordings of hippocampal pyramidal cells and the memory theory from the profound amnesias seen in the patient H.M. Both of these key experiments have been reinterpreted over the years: hippocampal cells are correlated with much more than place and H.M. is missing much more than just his hippocampus. However, both theories are still debated today. The hippocampus clearly plays a role in both navigation and memory processing. The question that must be addressed is rather: "What is the role played by the hippocampus in the navigation and memory systems?" By looking at the navigation system as a whole, one can identify the major role played by the hippocampus as correcting for accumulation errors that occur within idiothetic navigation systems. This is most clearly experimentally evident as reorientation when an animal is lost. Carrying this over to a more general process, this becomes a role of recalling a context, bridging a contextual gap, or, in other words, it becomes a form of recognition memory. I will review recent experimental data which seems to support this theory over the more general spatial or memory theories traditionally applied to hippocampus.
The story they missed

The news made the front page of my home-town newspaper, The Boston Globe. Stories about Harvard or Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) often do. Because such stories sometimes cast the institution in question in an unfavorable light, I'm often glad that my own little university, Brandeis, is so small that it tends to fly under many reporters' radar screens. The headline alone made it clear that this story would not be one that MIT would use in its recruiting literature: Tenure at MIT still largely a male domain http://www.boston.com/news/education/higher/articles/2007/12/06/tenure_at_mit_still_largely_a_male_domain/.
Explaining the Growth of Social Benefits in Advanced Capitalist Countries, 1960–80

A number of political, economic, and demographic explanations are considered for the expansion of public social benefits in the advanced capitalist countries in recent decades. These explanations a...
Healthier fundraising in U. S. elementary schools: associations between policies at the state, district, and school levels.

Objectives We examined whether state laws and district policies pertaining to nutritional restrictions on school fundraisers were associated with school policies as reported by administrators in a nationally-representative sample of United States public elementary schools. Methods We gathered data on school-level fundraising policies via a mail-back survey during the 2009–10 and 2010–11 school years. Surveys were received from 1,278 public elementary schools (response rate = 60.9%). Data were also gathered on corresponding school district policies and state laws. After removing cases with missing data, the sample size for analysis was 1,215 schools. Results After controlling for school characteristics, school policies were consistently associated with state laws and district policies, both those pertaining to fundraising generally, as well as specific restrictions on the sale of candy and soda in fundraisers (all Odds Ratios >2.0 and Ps<.05). However, even where district policies and state laws required fundraising restrictions, school policies were not uniformly present; school policies were also in place at only 55.8% of these schools, but were more common at schools in the West (77.1%) and at majority-Latino schools (71.4%), indicating uneven school-level implementation of district policy and state law. Conclusions District policies and state laws were associated with a higher prevalence of elementary school-level fundraising policies, but many schools that were subject to district policies and state laws did not have school-level restrictions in place, suggesting the need for further attention to factors hindering policy implementation in schools.
Xenopus Egg Wnt/β-Catenin Pathway

In embryonic development in vertebrates, β-catenin signaling promotes polarization of the embryo to establish the dorsoventral axis, and it is this process that is highlighted by the Xenopus Egg Wnt/β-Catenin Pathway. In the amphibian Xenopus , fertilization of the egg results in the establishment of a parallel array of microtubules with the plus end pointing away from the sperm entry point. Concurrent with a process of cortical rotation, in which the cortex of the egg utilizes these microtubules to rotate relative to the inner cytoplasm, there is a movement of small vesicles toward the plus end of the microtubules. Cells inheriting these vesicles are destined to give rise to dorsal and anterior structures of the embryo. Three components of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway—Dishevelled, glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK-3)-binding protein (GBP), and β-catenin—accumulate on the side of the egg and early embryo that receive these small vesicles. It is likely that Dishevelled and GBP are associated with the vesicles that move along the microtubules and that they promote the stabilization and dorsal accumulation of β-catenin. Although Wnts and Frizzled are present in the egg, their roles in axis specification remain unclear. Dorsal β-catenin then activates direct target genes, including the homeobox genes siamois and twinned . Activation of these genes on the prospective dorsal side is necessary and sufficient for formation of the gastrula organizer, which organizes the embryonic germ layers and axes.
Ironic effects of explicit gender prejudice on women’s test performance

As prejudice becomes more subtle in its manifestations, members of stigmatized groups must often contend with the ambiguity of not knowing whether others are biased against them. In this study, we tested whether explicitly communicated gender prejudice would facilitate women’s performance on a difficult task compared to contexts where such discrimination might be possible but is not explicitly communicated. The findings revealed that the task performance of women who are chronically concerned about gender discrimination suffered when a male interviewer’s gender attitudes were ambiguous, relative to when his attitudes were either explicitly chauvinistic or explicitly egalitarian. As expected, the performance of women low in discrimination concerns was not affected by the experimental manipulation. The findings are discussed in light of growing evidence for the ironic effects of prejudice for the targets of stigma.
MPI over uDAPL: Can High Performance and Portability Exist Across Architectures?

Looking at the TOP 500 list of supercomputers we can see that different architectures and networking technologies appear on the scene from time to time. The networking technologies are also changing along with the advances of processor technologies. While the hardware has been constantly changing, parallel applications written in different paradigms have remained largely unchanged. With MPI being the most popular parallel computing standard, it is crucial to have an MPI implementation portable across different networks and architectures. It is also desirable to have such an MPI deliver high performance. In this paper we take on this challenge. We have designed an MPI with both portability and portable high performance using the emerging uDAPL interface. We present the design alternatives and a comprehensive performance evaluation of this new design. The results show that this design can improve the startup time and communication performance by 30% compared with our previous work. It also delivers the same good performance as MPI implemented over native APIs of the underlying interconnect. We also present a multistream MPI design which aims to achieve high bandwidth across networks and operating systems. Experimental results on Solaris show that the multi-stream design can improve bandwidth over InfiniBand by 30%, and improve the application performance by up to 11%.
Extracting iso-valued features in 4-dimensional scalar fields

Isosurfaces are an important tool for finding features in 3D scalar data. The paper describes how recursive contour meshing is applied to extract similar features in 4-dimensional space. In the case of time-varying isosurfaces f(x, y, z, t)=c, the technique constructs a solid mesh for the isosurface that sweeps a volume in space-time. An instance of an isosurface at a particular time results from applying a second constraint against this volume. The envelope defined by the time-varying isosurface can be captured in a similar way: when a time-varying isosurface f=c reaches is maximum extent, the function's partial derivative with respect to time must be zero. This second constraint and produces a surface containing the extrema of the isosurfaces. Multi-resolution models and inter-penetrating blobby objects can also be extracted from 4-dimensional representations.
Management of Early-Instar Japanese Beetle (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) in Field-Grown Nursery Crops

Abstract Numerous field studies were conducted in commercial nurseries in Tennessee from 1996 through 1999 to evaluate chemical and biological treatments, application timing and rates, and method of application for control of early instars of Japanese beetle, Popillia japonica Newman. Insecticide treatments included bifenthrin, bendiocarb, chlorpyrifos, carbaryl, fipronil, halofenozide, imidacloprid, permethrin, tefluthrin, thiamethoxam, and trichlorfon. Biological treatments included entomopathogenic nematodes (Heterorhabditis bacteriophora HP88 or H. marelatus), Bacillus thuringiensis Berliner subspecies japonensis Buibui strain, and Beauveria bassiana (Balsamo) Vuillemin. All treatments were applied on the soil surface or injected into the soil around the base of each tree. Tree type and size varied among and within tests, however, the sampling unit (61-cm-diameter root ball) remained the same throughout all tests. The biological treatments provided poor-to-moderate control (0–75%) of Japanese beetle l...
Multiple contact planning for minimizing damage of humanoid falls

This paper introduces a new planning algorithm to minimize the damage of humanoid falls by utilizing multiple contact points. Given an unstable initial state of the robot, our approach plans for the optimal sequence of contact points such that the initial momentum is dissipated with minimal impacts on the robot. Instead of switching among a collection of individual control strategies, we propose a general algorithm which plans for appropriate responses to a wide variety of falls, from a single step to recover a gentle nudge, to a rolling motion to break a high-speed fall. Our algorithm transforms the falling problem into a sequence of inverted pendulum problems and use dynamic programming to solve the optimization efficiently. The planning algorithm is validated in physics simulation and experimentally tested on a BioloidGP humanoid.
Need for a Law of Church and Market

This essay uses Helfand and Richman’s article “The Challenge of Co-Religionist Commerce” to raise the question of the law of church and market. I argue that the question of religion’s proper relationship to the market is more than simply another aspect of church-state debates. Rather, it is a topic deserving explicit reflection in its own right. Courts and legislators have been creating a law of church and market without thinking about it when they resolve questions religious commerce poses by applying legal theories developed without any thought for the proper relationship between church and market. I also examine one of the few areas in our law where we do explicitly try to structure the relationship between commerce and religion: antidiscrimination laws. I argue that the assumptions about the proper role of religion in the market on which these laws are predicated are actually quite different than the ultimately contractual regime that Helfand and Richman assume. While anti-discrimination laws do not directly implicate the doctrinal issues flagged in their article, the theoretical gap between their approach and antidiscrimination law illustrates the need for greater attention to the law of church and market.
Identifying Uncertainties in Diesel Spray Rate-of-Momentum Transients Under Elevated Back Pressure

Rate-of-momentum measurements of transient fuel sprays are valuable for improving current combustion and emission strategies. This data provides boundary conditions for engine computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulations and provides insight into the transient mixing characteristics of the spray prior to and during combustion. Previous researchers have quantified the rate-of-momentum of transient sprays using the impingement technique, but uncertainties remain in relating the impingement force to the injected fuel momentum at the nozzle exit. Rate-of-momentum measurements are typically performed by directing a spray onto the face of a calibrated transducer in close proximity to the nozzle. The measured impingement force is then used to quantify the rate-of-momentum at the nozzle orifice exit with the aid of a simplified control volume analysis. However, under elevated back pressures, additional terms in the control volume analysis are no longer negligible. Other non-idealities, such as non-orthogonal droplet impingement outcomes and transient mass accumulation in the control volume, can also contribute to errors in the simplified analysis.This paper investigates the impact of non-idealities in impingement-based rate-of-momentum measurements on the quantified fuel injection rate. In specific, we compare the measured rate-of-momentum under back pressure and atmospheric pressure using two different transducers to quantify uncertainties that can arise under back pressure conditions. Uncertainties associated with transient mass accumulation and non-orthogonal spray deflection are also investigated. We found that back pressure affected both the start and end of injection when compared to atmospheric pressure. Under back pressure, there was a lengthened apparent start-of-injection transient, which likely results from a low pressure toroidal vortex occurring at the head of the spray. In addition, there was a longer apparent closing transient, which is likely a result of residual pressure distribution after the end-of-injection. No evidence of transient mass accumulation was observed for the injectors used in this study. Lastly, the transient spray was observed to deflect non-orthogonally from the impact point on the transducer instead of remaining parallel to the transducer face after initial impact. This deflection of the spray leads to uncertainties when quantifying the rate-of-momentum, where the apparent rate-of-momentum could be larger than the actual value.Copyright © 2015 by ASME
Call Off the Dog(ma): M1/M2 Polarization Is Concurrent following Traumatic Brain Injury

Following the primary mechanical impact, traumatic brain injury (TBI) induces the simultaneous production of a variety of pro- and anti-inflammatory molecular mediators. Given the variety of cell types and their requisite expression of cognate receptors this creates a highly complex inflammatory milieu. Increasingly in neurotrauma research there has been an effort to define injury-induced inflammatory responses within the context of in vitro defined macrophage polarization phenotypes, known as "M1" and "M2". Herein, we expand upon our previous work in a rodent model of TBI to show that the categorization of inflammatory response cannot be so easily delineated using this nomenclature. Specifically, we show that TBI elicited a wide spectrum of concurrent expression responses within both pro- and anti-inflammatory arms. Moreover, we show that the cells principally responsible for the production of these inflammatory mediators, microglia/macrophages, simultaneously express both "M1" and "M2" phenotypic markers. Overall, these data align with recent reports suggesting that microglia/macrophages cannot adequately switch to a polarized "M1-only" or "M2-only" phenotype, but display a mixed phenotype due to the complex signaling events surrounding them.
The MapCHECK Measurement Uncertainty function and its effect on planar dose pass rates

Our study aimed to quantify the effect of the Measurement Uncertainty function on planar dosimetry pass rates, as measured and analyzed with the Sun Nuclear Corporation MapCHECK 2 array and its associated software. This optional function is toggled in the program preferences of the software (though turned on by default upon installation), and automatically increases the dose difference tolerance defined by the user for each planar dose comparison. Dose planes from 109 static-gantry IMRT fields and 40 VMAT arcs, of varying modulation complexity, were measured at 5 cm water-equivalent depth in the MapCHECK 2 diode array, and respective calculated dose planes were exported from a commercial treatment planning system. Planar dose comparison pass rates were calculated within the Sun Nuclear Corporation analytic software using a number of calculation parameters, including Measurement Uncertainty on and off. By varying the percent difference (%Diff) criterion for similar analyses performed with Measurement Uncertainty turned off, an effective %Diff criterion was defined for each field/arc corresponding to the pass rate achieved with Measurement Uncertainty turned on. On average, the Measurement Uncertainty function increases the user-defined %Diff criterion by 0.8%-1.1% for 3%/3 mm analysis, depending on plan type and calculation technique (corresponding to an average change in pass rate of 1.0%-3.5%, and a maximum change of 8.7%). At the 2%/2 mm level, the Measurement Uncertainty function increases the user-defined %Diff criterion by 0.7%-1.2% on average, again depending on plan type and calculation technique (corresponding to an average change in pass rate of 3.5%-8.1%, and a maximum change of 14.2%). The largest increases in pass rate due to the Measurement Uncertainty function are generally seen with poorly matched planar dose comparisons, while the function has a notably smaller effect as pass rates approach 100%. The Measurement Uncertainty function, then, may substantially increase the pass rates for planar dose comparisons. Meanwhile, the types of uncertainties incorporated into the function (and their associated quantitative estimates, as described in the software user's manual) may not be an accurate estimation of actual measurement uncertainty, depending on the user's measurement conditions. Pass rates listed in published reports, comparisons between institutions or simply separate workstations, or comparisons with the calculation methods of other vendors, should clearly indicate whether or not the Measurement Uncertainty function is used, since it has the potential to substantially inflate pass rates for typical IMRT and VMAT dose planes.
Simplifying software-defined network optimization using SOL

Realizing the benefits of SDN for many network management applications (e.g., traffic engineering, service chaining, topology reconfiguration) involves addressing complex optimizations that are central to these problems. Unfortunately, such optimization problems require (a) significant manual effort and expertise to express and (b) non-trivial computation and/or carefully crafted heuristics to solve. Our goal is to simplify the deployment of SDN applications using general high-level abstractions for capturing optimization requirements from which we can efficiently generate optimal solutions. To this end, we present SOL, a framework that demonstrates that it is possible to simultaneously achieve generality and efficiency. The insight underlying SOL is that many SDN applications can be recast within a unifying path-based optimization abstraction. Using this, SOL can efficiently generate near-optimal solutions and device configurations to implement them. We show that SOL provides comparable or better scalability than custom optimization solutions for diverse applications, allows a balancing of optimality and route churn per reconfiguration, and interfaces with modern SDN controllers.
Design and manufacture of mini-beam collimators for macromolecular crystallography at the GM/CA-CAT at APS

Since 2007, we have offered single collimators for mini beams of sizes 5, 10 and 20 µm as well as a 300 µm scatter-guard to accommodate the fully focused beam. The advantages of varying the beam size were obvious, better signal/background ratio and the capability to raster with a coarse, larger beam, then fine tune with one of the mini-beam options. The mini beams proved to be a technical and popular success; however, the switching of the single collimators often involved staff intervention. The single mini-beam collimators were the precursors to the development of a triple collimator. This implementation incorporated two mini-beam collimators and a 300 µm scatter-guard on one post. The design was improved by consolidation of fabrication from a single piece of molybdenum block. It significantly improved the robustness, ease of initial alignment, reduction of background and increased automation. However, experimenters were still left with a choice of either a (5, 10 and 300 µm)- or a (10, 20 and 300 µm)-triple collimator. Recently, a quad collimator was developed and fabricated to provide a selection of mini beams of 5, 10 and 20 µm and a 300 µm scatter-guard, on a single post. We will present the mechanical design of multi-collimators, results of measured beam flux through the collimator pinholes.
Flow Boiling Experiments of R-134A Refrigerant in a Pressurized System

This paper reports an experimental investigation of the effect of heat flux and system pressure on bubble nucleation of a refrigerant in a flow boiling environment. A high pressure test loop was built with easy physical and optical access to the test section. The test section is vertical with thermochromic liquid crystal (TLC) applied to the back of the heater for high resolution and accurate surface temperature measurement. Refrigerant R-134 is used as the test fluid at different pressures ranging from 690 to 827 kPa and different heat fluxes to quantify the nucleation process. Two synchronized high resolution and high speed cameras are used to simultaneously capture TLC images as well as bubbling events such as bubble nucleation, growth and departure at high frame rates (up to 1200 fps). In order to use TLC for temperature measurement, hue versus temperature relationship was first established through in-situ calibration. By varying flow rate and inlet temperature, TLC and bubble images were captured and analyzed. Results show that the bubble generation frequency and size increase with heat flux. An increase in pressure of 137 kPa (from 690 to 827 kPa) increased the bubble frequency and size by about 32 Hz and 20 μm respectively.© 2009 ASME
Utility of Brain MRI in Infective Endocarditis (S46.004)

OBJECTIVE: In this study we aimed to evaluate the impact, if any, of brain MRI findings on the clinical management and functional outcomes of infectious endocarditis (IE). BACKGROUND: Brain MRI is frequently obtained in patients with IE, yet its ability to predict outcomes in these patients is unknown. DESIGN/METHODS: Patients with definite or possible IE according to the modified Duke criteria hospitalized at Mayo Clinic Rochester, MN between 2007 and 2014 were retrospectively reviewed. Demographics, clinical characteristics, radiological studies, and functional outcomes were recorded. RESULTS: There were 364 patients included and 133 (36.5[percnt]) underwent brain MRI, which revealed ischemic stroke (n=90, 67.7[percnt]), microbleeds (n=48, 36.1[percnt]), intracranial hemorrhage (ICH, n=24, 18.0[percnt]), and sulcal subarachnoid hemorrhage (n=15, 11.3[percnt]). Cardiac valve replacement surgery was performed in 195 (53.6[percnt]) patients and 43 (22.1[percnt]) underwent preoperative MRI. Median times to surgery for those with and without preoperative MRI were 25 and 15 days, respectively (p=0.220). Postoperative neurological complications occurred in 24 (10.6[percnt]) patients, including new ischemic stroke in 7 (3.6[percnt]) and ICH in 3 (1.5[percnt]). The presence of microbleeds on MRI was not associated with development of postoperative ICH (p=1.000). No significant differences existed in rates of postoperative complications or clinical outcomes between patients with and without preoperative MRI. Postoperative neurological complications were associated with unfavorable functional outcomes at discharge and at last follow-up. Of the entire cohort, ICH was associated with unfavorable functional outcomes at discharge (p=0.013) and at last clinical follow-up (p=0.046). CONCLUSIONS: In hospitalized patients with IE, ICH was associated with unfavorable clinical outcomes. However, in patients undergoing valve surgery, microbleeds on MRI were not associated with development of postoperative ICH. Preoperative brain MRI may result in a delay to surgery and did not have an impact on outcome. Thus, the clinical utility of brain MRI in patients with IE remains uncertain. Disclosure: Dr. Chakraborty has nothing to disclose. Dr. Scharf has nothing to disclose. Dr. DeSimone has nothing to disclose. Dr. Abdelghani has nothing to disclose. Dr. Rabinstein has received royalty payments from Elsevier and Oxford University Press. Dr. Rabinstein has received research support from DJO Global. Dr. Wijdicks has received personal compensation in an editorial capacity for Neurocritical Care. Dr. Baddour has nothing to disclose. Dr. Fugate has nothing to disclose.
Marriage, Cohabitation and the Welfare of Children

The United States divorce rate is high, and non-marital cohabitation is more and more prevalent. An increasing number of children are being raised in nontraditional homes. Many commentators are sounding alarms about these developments. This article addresses why it is more difficult than many seem to realize to establish that marriage provides the benefits claimed, although the article also discusses why some of the possible benefits of marriage may not be captured by some of the current approaches to assessing its worth. The article also addresses why marriage proponents should be arguing in favor of, rather than against, same-sex marriage.
Measuring individual carbon nanotubes and single graphene sheets using atomic force microscope infrared spectroscopy.

Atomic force microscope infrared spectroscopy (AFM-IR) combines the spatial resolution of AFM with the chemical specificity of IR spectroscopy. In AFM-IR, sample absorption of pulsed IR light causes rapid thermomechanical expansion, which excites resonance in an AFM cantilever in contact with the sample. The cantilever resonant amplitude is proportional to the local sample IR absorption coefficient. It is difficult to detect thermomechanical expansion in the smallest samples such as 1D and 2D nanomaterials. In this work, we overcome this limitation and use AFM-IR to measure nanometer-scale IR absorption in individual single walled carbon nanotubes and monolayer graphene. By placing a thin layer of polymer beneath the sample, the AFM-IR signal may be increased by up to two orders of magnitude. The polymer beneath the sample thermally insulates the sample and amplifies thermomechanical expansion. Finite element simulations agree with the measurements and provide a general framework for applying this approach to arbitrary samples, including other 1D and 2D materials and thin biological samples.
4-1BB agonist focuses CD8+ tumor-infiltrating T-Cell growth into a distinct repertoire capable of tumor recognition in pancreatic cancer

Purpose: Survival for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) patients is extremely poor and improved therapies are urgently needed. Tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) adoptive cell therapy (ACT) has shown great promise in other tumor types, such as metastatic melanoma where overall response rates of 50% have been seen. Given this success and the evidence showing that T-cell presence positively correlates with overall survival in PDAC, we sought to enrich for CD8+ TILs capable of autologous tumor recognition. In addition, we explored the phenotype and T-cell receptor repertoire of the CD8+ TILs in the tumor microenvironment.Experimental Design: We used an agonistic 4-1BB mAb during the initial tumor fragment culture to provide 4-1BB costimulation and assessed changes in TIL growth, phenotype, repertoire, and antitumor function.Results: Increased CD8+ TIL growth from PDAC tumors was achieved with the aid of an agonistic 4-1BB mAb. Expanded TILs were characterized by an activated but not terminally differentiated phenotype. Moreover, 4-1BB stimulation expanded a more clonal and distinct CD8+ TIL repertoire than IL2 alone. TILs from both culture conditions displayed MHC class I-restricted recognition of autologous tumor targets.Conclusions: Costimulation with an anti-4-1BB mAb increases the feasibility of TIL therapy by producing greater numbers of these tumor-reactive T cells. These results suggest that TIL ACT for PDAC is a potential treatment avenue worth further investigation for a patient population in dire need of improved therapy. Clin Cancer Res; 23(23); 7263-75. ©2017 AACR.
Educating the Elite: A Social Justice Education for the Privileged Class

America is witnessing a new gilded age. Since the 1970’s, inequality in wealth and income has soared within the United States—and globally (Sayer, 2016; Therborn, 2013). Such inequalities affect human flourishing because they allow the privileged class to convert their wealth into different, and unequal, lifestyles and life chances. In addition, such inequalities provide the privileged class with greater opportunity to convert their wealth, income, and social capital into influence within the political system that undermines democracy. Considering the vast class-based inequities, then, how can social justice educators help the students born into the world of class privilege understand their civic obligations to deepen democracy—particularly economic democracy? And, how can they do so without engaging in morally reprehensible teaching practices? This paper takes a ‘critical approach’ in attempting answer this question. First by analyzing the cultural and structural causes of behind the world of class privilege—what I term the pathology of privilege. As well as, explaining how the pathology of privileges undermines democracy. Then I analyze four possible social justice approaches for the class privilege—class suicide; political apathy; civic volunteerism; and activist ally. I concluded by explaining why the activist ally approach is both a more crucial and morally appropriate approach for educating the elite about their responsibility to deepen democracy and advance justice.
Percutaneous Catheter Interventions Followed by Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting: Primum Non Nocere.

The results of the SYNTAX trial (The Synergy Between Percutaneous Coronary Intervention With Taxus and Cardiac Surgery),1 the FREEDOM trial (Future Revascularization Evaluation in Patients With Diabetes Mellitus: Optimal Management of Multivessel Disease),2 and other studies are providing clarity and even growing consensus among cardiologists and surgeons about the relative roles of percutaneous catheter interventions (PCI) versus coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) for coronary revascularization. However, there remains a concern, especially among cardiac surgeons, that some patients with prior PCI may be at increased risk of poor outcomes when undergoing subsequent CABG surgery.3,4 In a report in this issue of Circulation: Cardiovascular Interventions from the E-CABG (European Multicenter Study on Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting), Mariscalco et al5 acknowledge that the clinical impact of prior PCI in patients who subsequently require CABG remains unsettled. The authors queried the recently established voluntary registry of CABG procedures undertaken at 16 European centers, designated as E-CABG, hoping to answer this persisting concern about possible risks associated with prior PCI at subsequent CABG operations. In addition, they undertook a meta-analysis of publications reporting on outcomes after CABG in patients with prior PCI. See Article by Mariscalco et al This E-CABG registry was posted on ClinicalTrials.gov site in December 2014 (URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT02319083), and the study protocol was described by Biancari et al6 in 2015. The 16 participating centers represent university and community hospitals in 6 European countries. E-CABG processes are described as involving thorough prospective data collection on all patients with CABG including presenting clinical status and immediate postoperative adverse events. This current report seems to be the first published analysis of CABG outcomes based on a review of more than 3700 …
Techniques of Preparative Density Gradient Centrifugation

This chapter discusses the techniques used in preparative density gradient centrifugation. The choice of gradient shape depends on the kind of separation and the relative quantity of sample. Linear gradients are easily the simplest shapes for isopycnic separations and have no obvious disadvantages. The slope of the gradient determines the resolution in part. Small quantities of particles can be safely managed on those gradient shapes designed for high resolution. Hyperbolic gradients in zonal rotors should be used for larger quantities. In an isopycnic separation, the sample volume may occupy 80% of the rotor volume or more. The final position of the particles within the gradient is usually quite indifferent to the route or distance they might have to travel.
A NUMERICAL STUDY OF LOW-GRAVITY FLOATING ZONE CRYSTAL GROWTH

A numerical scheme for floating zone crystal growth under microgravity is developed which integrates the heating, the transport phenomena in the melt and solids and the interfaces in the growth system. The thermocapillary flow in the melt is simulated. The interface shapes and positions are determined as part of the numerical solutions. The effects of operating conditions and material properties are investigated. The importance of applied thermal signatures is demonstrated. The results from the convection dominant cases (Ma » 1) are compared with those from the conduction dominant cases (Ma » 1). A body-fitted curvilinear coordinate system is applied to accommodate the curved moving interfaces. The finite difference method is employed to discretize the analytical equations and numerical solutions are obtained using SOR-Newton iteration method. The calculation is performed for floating zone growth of CdTe which has important applications to radiation detectors and infra-red sensors and is difficult to grow on the ground.
Additive Inhibitory Effects of Tart Cherry Anthocyanins and Atorvastatin on Interleukin-6 Production in Adipose Stem Cells

Studies have shown positive correlations between inflammatory cytokines interleukin-6 (IL-6) and the development of chronic diseases including cardiovascular disease. The objective of our study was...
Applied epidemiology competencies: perspectives of a state health officer.

Epidemiology is a fundamental discipline within the field of public health. The very nature of our work in public health, as described by the 10 Essential Public Health Services, is deeply rooted in the science of epidemiology.1 Whether it is monitoring health risks, investigating diseases, responding to emergencies, educating the public, developing health policies, or evaluating the effectiveness of our efforts, epidemiology is woven into our daily work. As State Health Officials, we are charged with safeguarding the health of the state's citizens. To make informed decisions to accomplish that mission, we rely heavily on the expertise of senior management who, in turn, rely on the expert knowledge of their staff. Epidemiologists are critical to this process, providing vital input that affects decision-making on a wide range of health issues, from stopping the spread of infectious diseases to preventing cancer and heart disease. Furthermore, as the chief investigators and problem solvers for unusual health events, epidemiologists are critical to our nation's emergency readiness. To be effective in achieving public health goals, it is essential that public health agencies recruit, develop, and maintain a highly functioning epidemiology workforce. Unfortunately, recent assessments reveal that we are falling short in these efforts. A 2003 Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) survey2 identified a significant shortage of epidemiologists in state health agencies, and a 2004 report from the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE)3 revealed that only 52% of the epidemiology workforce received formal training in epidemiology. These findings provided the foundation for the agenda laid out in the first CSTE Workforce Summit in January 2004. As a result of this summit, CSTE, together with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, initiated the development of the Competencies for Applied Epidemiologists in Governmental Public Health Agencies (AECs), with the goal of improving the practice of epidemiology in public health agencies.4
Bioethics and Philosophy of Bioethics: A New Orientation

Bioethics must emerge from biological findings. Without biological findings or without a basic biological understanding of the human person there can be no bioethics. Here I take the view that even though biological findings are scientific discoveries, the reason why they can become the basis for biomedical technology or simply bio-genetic engineering skills is that, relative to a deeper understanding of humanity, they generate values for human pursuit, and values generate norms of human action. The present state of bio-medical technological development and bio-genetic engineering research is so full of miraculous achievements and results that we are under pressure to ascertain their values, and also to formulate or decide what norms and rules of action can be formulated, adopted and justified.
Finding face: building collections to support indigenous identity

Purpose This paper aims to review content provided in an article published in 1993 to determine if there is still a need to provide information services to American Indians living away from their homeland areas. Design/methodology/approach The design involved reviewing the content and recommendations provided in the 1993 article and then to update this content by reviewing updated US Census data, a literature review and observed examples based on personal observations and experiences. Findings The paper found that there is still a need for services due to increased American Indian population. While more American Indian librarians are employed, there is still a need for all librarians to learn how to serve this population. Originality/value While the article reviews content from 1993, it provides original perspectives and adds additional evaluation criteria.
Cochlear Implant Users’ Vocal Control CorrelatesAcross Tasks

Abstract Cochlear implants (CIs) provide access to auditory information that can affect vocal control. For example, previous research shows that, when producing a sustained vowel, CI users will alter the pitch of their voice when the feedback of their own voice is perceived to shift. Although these results can be informative as to how perception and production are linked for CI users, the artificial nature of the task raises questions as to the applicability of the results to real-world vocal productions. To examine how vocal control, when producing sustained vowels, relates to vocal control for more ecologically valid tasks, 10 CI users’ vocal control was measured across two tasks: (1) sustained vowel production, and (2) singing. The results found that vocal control, as measured by the variability of the participants’ fundamental frequency, was significantly correlated when producing sustained vowels and when singing, although variability was significantly greater when singing. This suggests that, despite the artificial nature of sustained vowel production, vocal control on such tasks is related to vocal control for more ecologically valid tasks. However, the results also suggest that vocal control may be overestimated with sustained vowel production tasks.
Scale effects of velocity dispersion and attenuation (Q−1) in layered viscoelastic medium

ABSTRACTWe have used numerical modeling of normal incidence P-waves in periodic and nonperiodic viscoelastic layered media to help improve understanding of the scale effects of heterogeneity on vel...
Agent Transparency and Reliability in Human–Robot Interaction: The Influence on User Confidence and Perceived Reliability

Agent transparency is an important contributor to human performance, situation awareness (SA), and trust in human–agent teaming. However, agent transparency's effects on human performance when the agent is unreliable have yet to be examined. This paper examined how the transparency and reliability of an autonomous robotic squad member (ASM) affected a human observer's task performance, workload, SA, trust in the robot, and perceptions of the robot. In a 2 (ASM transparency) × 2 (ASM reliability) within-subject design experiment, participants monitored a simulated soldier squad that included an ASM as it traversed a simulated training environment, while concurrently monitoring the environment for targets. There was no difference in participants’ performance on the target detection task, workload, or SA due to either ASM transparency or reliability. ASM reliability influenced participant trust and perceptions of the robot. Results suggest that reliability may be a stronger influence on the human's perceptions of the robot than transparency. Robot errors had a profound and lasting effect on the participants' perception of the robot's future reliability and resulted in reduced confidence in their assessments of the robot's reliability. These findings could have important implications for the continued use of automated systems when the user is aware of system errors.
Novel 3D-Printed Reconfigurable Origami Frequency Selective Surfaces With Flexible Inkjet-Printed Conductor Traces

This work outlines the first-of-its-kind integration of 3D and inkjet printing additive manufacturing processes for the realization of tunable origami structures. The outcome of this process demonstrated a tremendous structural strength improvement over paper-based origami structures, also featuring very good potential for more complicated origami-inspired designs. A mm-wave 4D tunable Miura-shaped frequency selective surface (FSS) is demonstrated using this process. This FSS shows both frequency and bandwidth tunability, and has excellent angle of incidence rejection.
Abstract B015: Targeting histone demethylase KDM4 for cancers driven by chimeric transcription factors

Chimeric transcription factors drive lineage-specific oncogenesis but are notoriously difficult to target for cancer therapy as they usually do not bear druggable pockets. Alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma (aRMS) is an aggressive childhood soft tissue sarcoma, mainly driven by the pathognomonic PAX3-FOXO1 or its variant PAX7-FOXO1 fusion oncoprotein. Even with intensive chemotherapy and radiotherapy, the 5-year survival for fusion positive aRMS is poor with no significant improvement in over recent decades. Here we show that PAX3-FOXO1 function is dependent on histone demethylase KDM4B, a potential therapeutic vulnerability for aRMS. KDM4B is highly expressed in PAX3-FOXO1-positive aRMS and is associated with late stage disease. KDM4B physically interacts with PAX3-FOXO1 via its JmjN and TUDOR domains. Genetic depletion and pharmacologic inhibition of KDM4B with a novel inhibitor QC6352 significantly delay tumor growth, impact the expression of FAX3-FOXO1 targets such as MYOD1 and FGFR4, and reduce chromatin accessibility of PAX3-FOXO1 target genes in accordance with the changes of KDM4B substrates such as H3K9me3. Combination of QC6352 with chemotherapy lead to significant xenograft regression and extended mouse survival in cell line- and PDX- based preclinical aRMS models. In summary, we have identified a targetable epigenetic modifier required for the functions of PAX3-FOXO-driven aRMS, providing pre-clinical data for a clinal trial combining the KDM4 inhibitor with standard chemotherapy for high-risk aRMS. Citation Format: Jun Yang, Shivendra Singh, Ahmed Abu-Zaid, Jie Fang, Andrew Davidoff. Targeting histone demethylase KDM4 for cancers driven by chimeric transcription factors [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics; 2019 Oct 26-30; Boston, MA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Mol Cancer Ther 2019;18(12 Suppl):Abstract nr B015. doi:10.1158/1535-7163.TARG-19-B015