cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Histidine regulatory mutants in Salmonella typhimurium: V. Two new classes of histidine regulatory mutants

Abstract Two new genetic classes of histidine regulatory mutants have been identified among mutants of Salmonella typhimurium resistant to the histidine analog 1,2,4 triazole-3-alanine. They bring to six the number of known histidine regulatory genes. One of the new classes, hisU , maps between ilvC and pyrE genes in conjugation crosses, and the other, hisW , is located between ( purF-aroD ) and metG loci. Their function in the control of the histidine operon is still unknown.
Utility of electronic medical record for recruitment in clinical research: from rare to common disease.

BACKGROUND Recruitment for clinical trials is a major challenge. Movement disorders, which do not have associated diagnostic laboratory tests, may be especially prone to inaccuracy in coding. Our objective was to evaluate the accuracy of diagnostic codes such as cervical dystonia (CD) and PD in an electronic medical record. METHODS Retrospective chart review was performed to confirm the ICD-9 diagnoses of PD, CD and diabetes mellitus type 2 (DM-2), using published clinical diagnostic criteria (PD, CD) and hemoglobin A1c ≥ 6.5 (DM-2). RESULTS 421 charts (n=129, n=142, n=150 for PD, CD and DM-2, respectively) were reviewed. The accuracy rate was different between all diseases examined with an overall p<0.001. In post hoc pairwise comparisons, the accuracy of DM-2 diagnosis by ICD-9 (96.6%) was greater than CD (88.0%) and both greater than PD (55.0%) (p≤0.003). CONCLUSIONS Using an electronic medical record based screening of clinically diagnosed diseases such as CD may be more accurate than previously thought and may identify potential clinical trial participants even without confirmatory lab tests available.
Over 400 Gbit/s digital coherent channels for optical transport network

This paper reviews the recent R&D challenges of digital coherent optical channel transmission with channel rates over 400 Gbit/s. The promising DSP and preprocessing technologies for 1-Tbit/s channel long-haul transmission are addressed.
The Prevalence of Anemia and Moderate-Severe Anemia in the US Population (NHANES 2003-2012)

Since anemia is associated with poor health outcomes, the prevalence of anemia is a significant public health indicator. Even though anemia is primarily caused by iron deficiency, low oxygen-carrying capacity may result from other conditions such as chronic diseases, which remain a relevant health concern in the United States. However, studies examining current rates of anemia in the total US population and in more specific subgroups are limited. Data from five National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES) from 2003 to 2012 were analyzed to assess two outcomes: anemia and moderate-severe anemia, which were based upon serum hemoglobin levels (Hb) as per World Health Organization (WHO) definitions. Statistical analysis using SAS examined temporal trends and the prevalence of anemia among sexes, age groups, and races/ethnicities. The study estimated that an average of 5.6% of the U.S. population met the criteria for anemia and 1.5% for moderate-severe anemia during this 10-year period. High-risk groups such as pregnant women, elderly persons, women of reproductive age, non-Hispanic blacks, and Hispanics were identified, and relationships between multiple risk factors were examined. Rates of anemia in men increased monotonically with age, while that of women increased bimodally with peaks in age group 40–49 years and 80–85 years. The effect of risk factors was observed to compound. For instance, the prevalence of anemia in black women aged 80–85 years was 35.6%, 6.4 times higher than the population average. Moreover, anemia is a growing problem because of the increased prevalence of anemia (4.0% to 7.1%) and moderate-severe anemia (1.0% to 1.9%), which nearly doubled from 2003–2004 to 2011–2012. Thus, these results augment the current knowledge on anemia prevalence, severity, and distribution among subgroups in the US and raised anemia as an issue that requires urgent public health intervention.
Resource utilization (RU) and toxicities after carboplatin/etoposide/melphalan (CEM) and busulfan/melphalan (BuMel) for autologous stem cell rescue (ASCR) in high-risk neuroblastoma (HRNB).

e21009 Background: High dose chemotherapy with ASCR is a key component of therapy for patients (pts) with HRNB, but the optimal ASCR regimen is not defined. CEM is the current US standard; however, European data suggest that BuMel may improve outcomes with less toxicity. Published data regarding toxicities associated with CEM and BuMel within current-era HRNB therapy are limited. Methods: Pts with HRNB who underwent single ASCR with CEM or BuMel from 6/1/10-6/30/13 were identified in the Pediatric Health Information System (PHIS) database. RU data for 60 days (d) from the start of BuMel or CEM were compared using a Wilcoxon 2-sample test. A retrospective chart review of contemporaneously treated pts was conducted at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) to evaluate toxicities that could not be identified in PHIS, such as sinusoidal obstruction syndrome (SOS). Data were analyzed using Fisher’s exact test. Results: Total inpatient days were greater in the PHIS BuMel group (n=59) than in the CEM group (...
Unintended Consequences Of External Recognition In Teams With Status Multiplicity

Status has been referred to as the single most important dimension in social interaction. Yet less explored is that status hierarchies in groups evolve with needs of changing roles, group contexts,...
Association Between Socioeconomic Status and Tumor Grade Among Black Men with Prostate Cancer.

Abstract Background Prostate cancer affects black men disproportionately. Black men have an increased incidence of prostate cancer diagnoses at earlier ages and higher grade as indicated by Gleason score, compared to other races. This study investigates the impact of socioeconomic status (SES) on prostate cancer tumor grade among black men. Methods Black men with a prostate cancer diagnosis during 1973–2011 were examined using individual-level data from the SEER NLMS database. Logistic regression model estimated the likelihood of receiving a diagnosis of high versus low grade prostate cancer based on self-reported SES status at the time of diagnosis. Results Men who completed high school only were statistically significantly more likely to have a higher prostate cancer grade than those with a bachelor's degree or higher. However, there was no dose-response effect across educational strata. Retirees were 30% less likely to have higher grade tumors compared to those who were employed. Conclusions SES differences among black men did not fully explain the high grade of prostate cancer. Further research is needed on the biology of the disease and to assess access to medical care and prostate health education, discrimination, stress exposures, and social norms that might contribute to the aggressiveness of prostate cancer among black men.
Chapter 9 – Extinctions

There have been five major mass extinctions in the history of the Earth, and most are linked to climate in one way or another. Many scientists believe that we are in the midst of the sixth great extinction event, driven by destruction of natural habitat by people. Whether the sixth extinction event will be made worse by human-induced climate change is one of the major questions of climate change biology. The timing and causes of these extinction events are explored, with emphasis on evidence linking them to climate change.
An agent-based simulation model for distributed vehicle sharing operations

Vehicle sharing can increase the efficiency of transportation infrastructures and improve environmental sustainability. A distributed operation model is needed to improve a vehicle's intelligence and autonomy. In this research, we develop an agent-based simulation model for a linear transportation system to evaluate three different vehicle sharing operations that include: 1) an independent operation where vehicles are isolate, 2) a centralized operation which assumes a central supervisor agent controls all the vehicles, and 3) a distributed operation where vehicles can communicate with others and make decisions by themselves. Our simulation results demonstrate that: 1) the centralized and distributed models are significantly better than the independent model for large car capacity, 2) centralized model performs significantly better than the distributed model for large car capacity and small communication range, and 3) the distributed model can perform better than the centralized model for large car capacity and communication range.
Engineered Charge Redistribution of Gp2 Proteins through Guided Diversity for Improved PET Imaging of Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor.

The Gp2 domain is a protein scaffold for synthetic ligand engineering. However, the native protein function results in a heterogeneous distribution of charge on the conserved surface, which may hinder further development and utility. We aim to modulate charge, without diminishing function, which is challenging in small proteins where each mutation is a significant fraction of protein structure. We constructed rationally guided combinatorial libraries with charge-neutralizing or charge-flipping mutations and sorted them, via yeast display and flow cytometry, for stability and target binding. Deep sequencing of functional variants revealed effective mutations both in clone-dependent contexts and broadly across binders to epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), insulin receptor, and immunoglobulin G. Functional mutants averaged 4.3 charge neutralizing mutations per domain while maintaining net negative charge. We evolved an EGFR-targeted Gp2 mutant that reduced charge density by 33%, maintained net charge, ...
Stress and Psoriasis: Review of Pathophysiology with New Data on Immunological Mechanisms:

There is a well-known association between psychosocial stress and psoriasis. However, the underlying mechanism of stress-induced exacerbation of psoriasis is not well understood. Until recently, th...
Reassessing the Effect of Public Policy on Family Functioning

The primacy of the family must be reflected in both policy and practice if families with socially dependent members are to be served effectively
Opto-Thermophoretic Trapping in Simple Polar Liquids

We experimentally demonstrate opto-thermophoretic trapping of particles in several simple polar liquids with a dominant interfacial-entropy-driven force, which is determined by the surface chemistry of the particles and physical properties of the solvents.
Justice Forged on the Bodies of Children of Color: Lessons of Compassion From the Trayvon Martin Case:

There are many reactions parents can have to the loss of children by gun violence. Of course, grief and disbelief are perhaps the most common. Seeking explanations for the loss is also an essential...
Development of a simple coarse-grained DNA model for analysis of oligonucleotide complex formation

In this paper, we develop a coarse-grained nucleotide model for the purpose of simulating large-scale aptamer-based hydrogel network formation in future research. In the model, each nucleotide is r...
Efficient, but immoral?: Assessing market attitudes as multidimensional

Abstract Much of the research on market attitudes to date has employed a one-dimensional scale through which individuals are described as being either pro-market or anti-market. We speculate that the use of a one-dimensional scale obscures important underlying variation in individuals’ attitudes toward market systems. Factor analysis of responses from nearly 2000 participants across three studies is used to create and validate a multidimensional scale consisting of five distinct components of market attitudes. We assert that understanding within-subject variation in attitudes towards markets better informs analyses that relate market attitudes with economic behavior.
Greenwashing 2.0: Identifying a New Paradigm Through B-to-B Threat Matrices

The traditional paradigm for investigating, studying, and combating greenwashing has been to focus on claims by companies engaged in marketing consumer products or services to individual consumers (i.e., business-to-consumer, or B-to-C, communications) and the effects of those claims on consumers. But the current clean tech revolution has greatly increased commerce in green technologies, much of which is business-to-business (“B-to-B”). This shift calls for a new paradigm in understanding greenwashing. Rather than limiting the focus to deceptive marketing of consumer products to individual consumers, we must contemplate a wider variety of cases that include representations made to green commercial consumers (B-to-B communications) and legal actions brought by and on behalf of commercial consumers. This chapter builds on the author’s previous arguments for this broader view of greenwashing by providing threat matrices that can be used as identification tools. They can help eliminate a current blind spot and provide the broader vantage point necessary to identify and understand new instances of greenwashing.
Remanent Magnetism of Volcanic Rocks

SUMMARY Palaeomagnetic measurements on volcanic rocks have formed the framework for the study of the ancient geomagnetic field. The mode of formation of volcanic rocks involves the most stable and reliable mechanism of remanent magnetization — thermoremanent magnetization — a magnetization acquired as a ferromagnetic mineral cools through its Curie temperature. The theoretical basis for single-domain remanent magnetization has recently been extended to the multi-domain case of natural materials. The factors involved in the magnetization process include original composition, temperature, cooling rate and the availability of oxygen. A particular combination of these things may result in a highly oxidized mineral and a stable magnetization or the formation of an unstable mineral such as maghemite. If the latter is the case, other influences in the history of the volcanic rock may then reduce the ferromagnetic grain size and develop a stable remanence — a record of the geomagnetic field at an unknown point in time. Because of its sensitivity to the rock's cooling history, the titanomagnetite grain studied under reflected light in combination with its measured magnetic properties serves as a potentially useful geologic tool. If palaeomagnetic data determined from volcanic rocks are known to be stable and reliable, the vector directions become a reference system which may be used in geometric reconstructions.
Same Sex but Not the Same: Same-Sex Marriage in the United States and France and the Universalist Narrative

Jurisdictions around the world are increasingly adopting, or considering the adoption of, legislation to legalize same-sex marriage. The dominant approach in analyzing these reforms has been universalist. According to this view, same-sex marriage represents a legal trend at the global level and will eventually become a global norm. This description lumps together different family law reforms and depicts them as contributing to a broader convergionist global dynamic. This Article argues that universalism has theoretical and practical shortcomings, since it tends to downplay the diversity of processes of legal change by isolating law from local cultural and political dynamics, and, in so doing, obscures arguments and social dynamics that perpetuate the marginalization of gays and lesbians and their families. Using the pluralist socio-legal framework that sees law as a cultural and political artifact, this Article compares two such legal reforms, one in the United States and one in France. It argues that four aspects distinguish these two reforms: First, the different roles played by rights and equality-based arguments, the divergent understandings of law in relation to gay and lesbian historical marginalization and social change, the focus of the debates (on the definition of marriage in the United States and on filiation in France), and finally, the type of expertise underpinning the legal arguments. Pointing to these differences allows us to better appreciate the political, legal, and cultural processes that drive legal change and the obstacles to achieving equality for gays, lesbians, and their families.
Effect of Workplace Incivility on OCB Through Burnout: the Moderating Role of Affective Commitment

In the current study, we used a time-lagged design to examine burnout as a potential mediator in the relationship between workplace incivility and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB), and affective commitment as a moderator on the relationship between workplace incivility and burnout. Results based on data from 168 full-time employees in North America showed that workplace incivility had a significant indirect effect on OCB through burnout. In addition, the positive effect of workplace incivility on burnout was stronger for individuals with higher affective commitment, suggesting that workplace incivility could be more detrimental to individuals who are more committed to their organizations. Our findings contribute to the literature by demonstrating the mediating role of burnout and the moderating role of affective commitment in the relationship between workplace incivility and OCB.
FTC v. Qualcomm: New Frontiers in the Antitrust-IP Interface

The Federal Trade Commission recently scored a substantial victory in its antitrust suit against Qualcomm. The case represents a novel confluence of standard-setting and IP licensing issues with bedrock antitrust subjects: tying and exclusive dealing. It also takes a surprising turn in resuscitating the long-dormant doctrine of the antitrust “duty to deal.” In this short essay, I review and evaluate the court’s decision in FTC v. Qualcomm. The analysis of Qualcomm’s exclusive dealing is sound and very likely correct. However, the court’s duty-to-deal analysis sits on shakier ground, omitting consideration of potential immunity under the Patent Act and sidestepping thorny questions on the appropriate source of law.
Buffalo's West Side Story: Migration, Gentrification, and Neighborhood Change:

Using a multi–methods approach, we examine socioeconomic and demographic change in Buffalo, New York's, West Side neighborhood. We do this by performing a systematic case study of the neighborhood ...
The Biologizing of Cognition, Development, and Education: Approach with Cautious Enthusiasm

In our commentary, we propose the current research from the field of developmental neuroscience can be incorporated within the theoretical perspectives advocated by evolutionary psychologists and advocates of the developmental systems approach. We then describe research on memory and the relationship between spatial-temporal reasoning and mathematical abilities as examples of literatures that have benefitted from the neuroscience approach. We conclude by expressing enthusiasm for the recent neuroscience findings, but caution that developmental neuroscience's focus on infancy and preschool children should not result in an overemphasis on early development and education at the expense of later development and education.
Chronic progressive lymphoedema in Friesian horses: suggestive phenotype of affected horses and genome‐wide association study

BACKGROUND Chronic progressive lymphoedema (CPL) is a disabling condition affecting various draft horse breeds, including Friesian horses. HYPOTHESIS The high incidence of CPL in Friesian horses suggests a genetic component and a predisposing phenotype. ANIMALS For the genomic study, 26 affected and 19 control horses were evaluated. Body measurements were taken from 28 affected and nine control Friesian horses. METHODS AND MATERIALS Axiom® Equine Genotyping Array with a total of 307,474 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) was used for the case/control genome-wide association study (GWAS). Height, weight and leg measurements (seven different body measurements) were obtained and compared between groups. RESULTS No significant associations were identified with the GWAS. There were significant differences (P < 0.05) in gaskin length measurements between CPL-affected horses and controls. CONCLUSION The current study suggests that the potential genetic contribution to CPL in Friesian horses is complex and may include other SNP-associated factors. Significantly increased gaskin length of affected horses suggests a phenotype prone to developing CPL.
Hot Electron Cooling in Silicon Nanoclusters via Landau–Zener Nonadiabatic Molecular Dynamics: Size Dependence and Role of Surface Termination

We develop a new express methodology for modeling excited-state dynamics occurring in dense manifolds of electronic states in atomistic systems. The approach leverages a modified Landau–Zener formula, the neglect of a back-reaction approximation, and the highly efficient density functional tight-binding method. We study the hot electron dynamics in a series of H- and F-terminated silicon nanocrystals (NCs) containing up to several hundred atoms. We explain the slower electron cooling dynamics in F-terminated NCs by the larger energy gaps between the adjacent electronic states in these systems as well as their slower fluctuations. We conclude that both the mass and chemical identity of the surface termination groups equally influence the electron dynamics, on average. However, the mass effect becomes dominant for higher-energy excitations. We find that the electron decay dynamics in F-terminated NCs has a greater sensitivity to the mass of the surface ligands than do the H-terminated NCs and explain this o...
Educational outcomes for homeless young adults with and without a history in foster care

Abstract Homeless young adults (HYA) with and without a history in foster care in the United States experience lower high school graduation rates than young adults in the general population. Few studies examine the risk and resilience factors that promote positive educational outcomes for these subpopulations. This study explores the factors that are associated with positive educational outcomes for HYA with and without a foster care history. This study uses data from a 3-city cross-sectional study of HYA, which included quantitative interviews of HYA between the ages of 18 and 24 (N = 601) in Austin, TX (n = 200), Los Angeles, CA (n = 200), and Denver, CO (n = 201). Positive educational outcomes consisted of HYAs being currently enrolled in or previously attaining a degree from a secondary, postsecondary or technical education program. This study uses two logistic regression models to identify the risk and resilience factors associated with positive educational outcomes for HYA with and without a history in foster care. For HYA with a history in foster care, city was a significant predictor of positive educational outcomes as well as being an older age, formal employment, not having an arrest record, having a lower score of emotional neglect, and having a higher score of physical abuse. For HYA without a history in foster care, significant predictors included not having an arrest record and having a higher score of emotional abuse. Findings highlight the need for an expansion of federal and state postsecondary education financial aid programs for HYA with and without a history in foster care.
The Creative Tripod: The Stitching and the Unstitching Revisited

There are no undebated definitions of “creativity,” and any definition will reflect how this rich topic is treated. Nearly 20 years ago I discussed how behavior analysis might contribute—or not—to an understanding of creativity. I revisit this topic, expanding on some issues and reconsidering others. As before, my focus is on scientific and mathematical accomplishments, which, though tied closely to Weisberg’s placement of creative achievements in the domains of problem posing and problem solving, places emphasis on the extraordinary and productive giftedness of certain individuals. From the massive empirical, theoretical, and historical literature at least three essential and dynamically interlocking dimensions of their creative achievements emerge: talent, expertise, and motivation. I emphasize “interlocking” because the productive expression of each of these elements depends on the others. The role of behavior analysis in these elements is modest at best. It has nothing to say about talent—and even in some cases might deny its role altogether. As for expertise, with some notable exceptions, behavior analysis has had little to say about the acquisition of truly complex performances; this has been left to other fields. As for motivation, one must go well beyond naive “pleasure and pain” accounts to more elusive, yet more powerful behavior–consequence relations. Many challenges to understanding remain for all behavioral scientists.
Materialism, Idealism, Semiotics, the Subconscious, the Object

In this chapter Johns argues that our initial day-to-day experience of reality is based on our consideration of things as objects with functions. Already this shows Johns’ allegiance to a form of ontological pragmatism. However, these functions are not always produced on the ‘object’ side but rather placed upon the object by the subject (what Johns will later call ‘tautology’). He then goes on to show that ostensibly counter-theories such as materialism and Idealism in-fact utilise this tautological function whilst simultaneously refuting it.
On the edge dimension and fractional edge dimension of graphs

Let $G$ be a graph with vertex set $V(G)$ and edge set $E(G)$, and let $d(u,w)$ denote the length of a $u-w$ geodesic in $G$. For any $v\in V(G)$ and $e=xy\in E(G)$, let $d(e,v)=\min\{d(x,v),d(y,v)\}$. For distinct $e_1, e_2\in E(G)$, let $R\{e_1,e_2\}=\{z\in V(G):d(z,e_1)\neq d(z,e_2)\}$. Kelenc et al. [Discrete Appl. Math. 251 (2018) 204-220] introduced the edge dimension of a graph: A vertex subset $S\subseteq V(G)$ is an edge resolving set of $G$ if $|S\cap R\{e_1,e_2\}|\ge 1$ for any distinct $e_1, e_2\in E(G)$, and the edge dimension $edim(G)$ of $G$ is the minimum cardinality among all edge resolving sets of $G$. For a real-valued function $g$ defined on $V(G)$ and for $U\subseteq V(G)$, let $g(U)=\sum_{s\in U}g(s)$. Then $g:V(G)\rightarrow[0,1]$ is an edge resolving function of $G$ if $g(R\{e_1,e_2\})\ge1$ for any distinct $e_1,e_2\in E(G)$. The fractional edge dimension $edim_f(G)$ of $G$ is $\min\{g(V(G)):g\mbox{ is an edge resolving function of }G\}$. Note that $edim_f(G)$ reduces to $edim(G)$ if the codomain of edge resolving functions is restricted to $\{0,1\}$. We introduce and study fractional edge dimension and obtain some general results on the edge dimension of graphs. We show that there exist two non-isomorphic graphs on the same vertex set with the same edge metric coordinates. We construct two graphs $G$ and $H$ such that $H \subset G$ and both $edim(H)-edim(G)$ and $edim_f(H)-edim_f(G)$ can be arbitrarily large. We show that a graph $G$ with $edim(G)=2$ cannot have $K_5$ or $K_{3,3}$ as a subgraph, and we construct a non-planar graph $H$ satisfying $edim(H)=2$. It is easy to see that, for any connected graph $G$ of order $n\ge3$, $1\le edim_f(G) \le \frac{n}{2}$; we characterize graphs $G$ satisfying $edim_f(G)=1$ and examine some graph classes satisfying $edim_f(G)=\frac{n}{2}$. We also determine the fractional edge dimension for some classes of graphs.
Zero Knowledge for Everything and Everyone: Fast ZK Processor with Cached ORAM for ANSI C Programs

We build a complete and efficient ZK toolchain that handles proof statements encoded as arbitrary ANSI C programs.Zero-Knowledge (ZK) proofs are foundational in cryptography. Recent ZK research has focused intensely on non-interactive proofs of small statements, useful in blockchain scenarios. We instead target large statements that are useful, e.g., in proving properties of programs.Recent work (Heath and Kolesnikov, CCS 2020 [HK20a]) designed an efficient proof-of-concept ZK machine (ZKM). Their machine executes arbitrary programs over a minimal instruction set, authenticating in ZK the program execution. In this work, we significantly extend this research thrust, both in terms of efficiency and generality. Our contributions include:• A rich and performance-oriented architecture for representing arbitrary ZK proofs as programs.• A complete compiler toolchain providing full support for ANSI C95 programs. We ran off-the-shelf buggy versions of the Linux programs sed and gzip, proving in ZK that each program has a bug. To our knowledge, this is the first ZK system capable of executing standard Linux programs.• Improved ZK oblivious RAM (ORAM). [HK20a] introduced an efficient ZK-specific ORAM BubbleRAM that consumes O(log2 n) communication per access. We extend BubbleRAM with multi-level caching, decreasing communication to O(log n) per access. This introduces the possibility of a cache miss, which we handle cheaply. Our experiments show that cache misses are rare; in isolation, i.e., ignoring other processor costs, BubbleCache improves communication over BubbleRAM by more than 8×. Using BubbleCache improves our processor’s total communication (including costs of cache misses) by ≈ 25-30%.• Numerous low-level optimizations, resulting in a CPU that is both more expressive and ≈ 5.5× faster than [HK20a]’s.• Attention to user experience. Our engineer-facing ZK instrumentation and extensions are minimal and easy to use.Put together, our system is efficient and general, and can run many standard Linux programs. The resultant machine runs at up to 11KHz on a 1Gbps LAN and supports MBs of RAM.
Predictive decision support platform and its application in crowding prediction and passenger information generation

Abstract Demand for public transport has witnessed a steady growth over the last decade in many densely populated cities around the world. However, capacity has not always matched this increased demand. As such, passengers experience long waiting times and are denied boarding during the peak hours. Crowded platforms and the subsequent customer dissatisfaction and safety issues have become a serious concern. The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically reduced passengers’ willingness to board crowded trains, causing a surge in demand for real-time crowding information. In this paper, we propose a real-time predictive decision support platform which addresses both, operations control and customer information needs. The system provides crowding predictions on trains and platforms, communicates this information to passengers, and takes into account their response to it. It is demonstrated through a case study that providing predictive information to passengers can potentially reduce denied boarding and lead to better utilization of train capacity.
Beyond Multiple Choice Conference in review

This review analyzes ideas and themes that emerged from Beyond Multiple Choice 2020 (BMC2020), the third iteration of an annual conference exploring the future of assessment. Taking place online due to restrictions surrounding COVID-19, BMC2020 attracted speakers and delegates from across the globe, representing various facets of the assessment industry. Altogether, the presentations compiled a bird's-eye snapshot of challenges and opportunities for advancing assessment to better meet 21st-century training and education needs.
Perverting the Course of Justice: When Police Pursue Rape Complainants for ‘False’ Reporting

Rape is a terrifying ordeal, and the vast majority of rapes in the western world are still not reported to the police. A number of recent reports have documented the abysmal failure to effectively prosecute rape in the United States, the United Kingdom, and even in the Scandinavian countries. Throughout the western world, only about 3% of rapists ever do prison time for their crimes, most rapes are carried out by serial rapists, and serial rapists, when not caught and prosecuted, continue to rape. Against this backdrop, perhaps it is not surprising that rape victims who do report frequently find that the police do not believe them. In some of these cases, rape victims have actually been prosecuted for falsely reporting a crime. In the UK, where this problem is particularly acute, numerous rape complainants have served prison time for the offense of “perverting the course of justice” when they were disbelieved. This paper argues that the true perversion of justice in these cases is the targeting of rape complainants for prosecution – an action that occurs more often than the public realizes and that is the product of two structural problems. The first is a perverse incentive structure that rewards police officers who attempt to “improve” crime statistics not by investigating reported rapes and arresting the perpetrators, but by failing to record reported rapes, downgrading reported rapes to lesser crimes, and pressuring victims to retract allegations. The second is a widespread and systematic police failure to implement and abide by robust sexual assault investigation guidelines. The combined effect of these problems is the perpetuation of systemic, institutionalized discrimination against women and the breach of rape victims’ human rights. The paper argues that as a matter of public policy, the targeting of rape complainants for prosecution is a woefully misguided practice that deflects resources from investigating and solving rape crimes and has a chilling effect, preventing other rape victims from coming forward. Effectively addressing these problems must involve raising public awareness and reforming how the police do business. In particular, the perverse incentive structure must be changed so that police are rewarded for investigating and prosecuting rape rather than punishing victims for reporting rape. In addition, governments should require that all police forces adopt robust rape investigation guidelines as well as mechanisms for ensuring compliance. The paper concludes by analyzing what impact these changes will have on rape investigation in the UK and US.
Does a customer by any other name tip the same?: The effect of forms of address and customers' age on gratuities given to food servers in the United States

This study examined whether different forms of address used by food servers were related to customers' tipping behavior. Food servers addressed diners who paid with credit cards by their first names, titles plus last names, sir/ma'am, or no address. Results indicated that when food servers personalized their service by addressing their customers by name, they earned significantly higher tips than when they used less immediate forms of address, although customers' estimated age mediated these results.
Differences in patterns of alcohol consumption among Hispanics in the United States, by survey language preference, Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2005.

INTRODUCTION: Alcohol consumption is pervasive in the United States, and extent of alcohol consumption for the growing US Hispanic population needs further study. We examined the association between language chosen for a national health survey and alcohol use among Hispanic adults. METHODS: Hispanic participants aged 18 years and older (N = 20,234) from the 2005 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System were stratified by choice of language (English, n = 13,035; Spanish, n = 7,199) for completing the survey. Differences for these 2 groups in current alcohol use, heavy alcohol use, and binge drinking were determined by using chi2 analyses and logistic regression models. RESULTS: In bivariate associations, current drinking (P Language: en
After Grutter V. Bollinger - Revisiting the Desegregation Era from the Perspective of the Post-Desegregation Era

Part of the "Symposium from Brown to Bakke to Grutter: Constitutionalizing and defining racial equality"
Creating a homogeneous avifauna

I compared birds on urban gradients in two ecoregions of the United States by censusing summer resident bird populations at six sites in central California’s coastal chaparral and southwest Ohio’s eastern broadleaf forest. These sites represented comparable gradients of urban land-use which ranged from relatively undisturbed to highly developed and included biological preserves, recreational areas, golf courses, residential neighborhoods, office parks (or apartment complexes), and business districts. Species richness and Shannon diversity peaked at moderately disturbed sites and were significantly correlated between comparable land-use types in the two ecoregions. Bird abundance and biomass peaked at moderately disturbed sites as well but were not significantly correlated between ecoregions. The pre-development bird species (assumed to be those found at the most undisturbed sites) dropped out gradually as the sites became more urban and the number of remaining species was significantly correlated between ecoregions with only three (CA) and one (OH) species remaining in the most urban sites. Taxonomically, the bird communities at the least urbanized sites (the preserves and recreational areas) were very different with an average Jaccard’s index of species similarity of 0.065 while the most disturbed sites (the business district, apartment complexes/office park, residential areas and golf courses) had an average similarity of 0.185. The species assemblages along the gradient shifted gradually, demonstrating local extinction of and local invasion by different species as the sites become more urban.
Development of a multiphasic screening examination for medical care patients--II. Sensitivity and specificity of the multiphasic screening examination.

Abstract The multiphasic screening examination employed in the Medical Care Clinic of the Johns Hopkins Hospital consists of a battery of clinical tests, laboratory tests, a selfadministered questionnaire, and a physician interview. Its validity has been measured by a study of 139 persons who had both screening examinations and complete examinations within a few weeks of each other. The study revealed: 1. (1) The sensitivity of the screening examinations was 85.5 per cent, i.e., out of 100 individuals with one or more significant organic abnormalities, 85.5 were classified as positive, and hence were referred for further investigations by the screening examination. 2. (2) The specificity of the screening examination was 93.2 per cent, i.e., out of 100 individuals without significant organic abnormalities, 93.2 were classified as negative and thus were not referred for further investigations by the screening examination. 3. (3) The omission of the physician interview as a part of the screening examination decreased its sensitivity from 85.5 to 76.9 per cent, while increasing its specificity from 93.2 to 98.1 per cent.
The Sino-Soviet Split: Cold War in the Communist World – By Lorenz M. Lüthi

It was only after the Chinese Revolution was a fait accompli that Stalin threw his support behind the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Mao remained resentful both of this hesitation and of the fact t...
Modification of Immunogenicity in Experimental Immunotherapy and Prophylaxis

Sialic acid residues are the principal constituents on the surface of plasma membranes [5] and make the chief contribution to the negative charge of the cell surface [1]. A number of functional alterations of the cell can be induced by removal of the sialic acid from the surface membrane by neuraminidase [7, 8, 10, 23]. These include enhanced phagocytosis [15, 31], inhibition of viral [4] or mycoplasma [11] induced hemagglutination, inhibition of cell aggregation [14], increased cell deformability [30], alterations in the patterns of cellular migration [32] and interference with amino acid transport across treated cell membranes [6]. Currie and Bagshawe [8] postulated that, because of their negative charges, the sialomucins on cells interfered with detection of cellular immunogens by lymphocytes. Apffel and Peters [2] have broadened this concept by suggesting that masking of antigens is one of the normal natural biological roles of glycoproteins, and that sialoglycoprotein on the cell surface may be a distinct system of immunoregulation. These hypotheses are supported by the finding of Sanford [23] that TA-3 tumor, which has lost strain specificity, would not kill recipient mice if the cells were treated in vitro with neuraminidase before i. p. inoculation. Independently, Currie and Bagsuawe [8] showed that neuraminidase-treated Landschutz ascites tumor cells, L 1210 leukemia cells [3], and methylcholanthrene-induced sarcoma cells [9] grew less well in normally susceptible mice. Recipients were subsequently shown to be immune to the tumor. Ehrlich’s ascites tumor was found [16] to be rendered more immunogenic when treated with neuraminidase before inoculation, and Currie et al. [10] also claimed that mouse trophoblast could be made to express histocompatibility antigens by treatment with neuraminidase. They suggested that these changes in immunogenicity were more likely to be attributable to an “unmasking” of antigens on cell surfaces than to changes in surface charge.
The development of numerical understanding.

Publisher Summary This chapter explores the ways in which people's understandings of concepts can be characterized. In particular, it attempts to characterize very young children's understandings of numbers by examining a variety of their numerical skills, by inferring representations and processes that might give rise to each of these skills, and by integrating the models arising from each task domain to build a general model of preschoolers' knowledge of numbers. Several aspects of young children's knowledge of numbers are examined to devise models of their knowledge within each task domain and eventually to formulate one or more comprehensive models, including the information within each of the specific ones. The goal of formulation of models that stretch across task domains, has been given considerable homage in the abstract by developmental psychologists, but few such accounts have been stated at a sufficiently precise level to be meaningfully evaluated. It is believe that the formulation of detailed but encompassing models is crucial to understanding cognitive growth.
Hemoglobinopathy screening during early pregnancy.

Screening during early pregnancy is desirable for monitoring the mothers9 health and pregnancy. Newborn screening for hemoglobinopathy is desirable for early detection of infants with sickle cell disease and referral for care. Parents of infants with trait should also be tested and counseled. The resources required to set up a program that selectively screens babies of mothers with trait are enormous.
Design and implementation of a power-hardware-in-the-loop interface: a nonlinear load case study

Power-hardware-in-the-loop (PHIL) simulation enables the testing of an electrical load virtually exchanging power with a real-time simulator. PHIL extends the applicability of the traditional hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) simulation, which involves only signal exchange. The main challenge of this power exchange is the requirement for a highly dynamic power electronics interface. In this paper, PHIL simulation is used to test a nonlinear load to analyze its impact on existing electrical systems, A multiagent platform is also used to monitor the behavior of the system under study: the monitoring system is used to validate on-line the PHIL, verifying that the interface does not significantly affect the system behavior. Significant industrial applications of the procedure are also discussed
Imatinib-Sensitive Tyrosine Kinases Regulate Mycobacterial Pathogenesis and Represent Therapeutic Targets against Tuberculosis

The lengthy course of treatment with currently used antimycobacterial drugs and the resulting emergence of drug-resistant strains have intensified the need for alternative therapies against Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), the etiologic agent of tuberculosis. We show that Mtb and Mycobacterium marinum use ABL and related tyrosine kinases for entry and intracellular survival in macrophages. In mice, the ABL family tyrosine kinase inhibitor, imatinib (Gleevec), when administered prophylactically or therapeutically, reduced both the number of granulomatous lesions and bacterial load in infected organs and was also effective against a rifampicin-resistant strain. Further, when coadministered with current first-line drugs, rifampicin or rifabutin, imatinib acted synergistically. These data implicate host tyrosine kinases in entry and intracellular survival of mycobacteria and suggest that imatinib may have therapeutic efficacy against Mtb. Because imatinib targets host, it is less likely to engender resistance compared to conventional antibiotics and may decrease the development of resistance against coadministered drugs.
A novel laparoscopic technique for the repair of pediatric umbilical and epigastric hernias

Background/Purpose: The aim of this study was to determine whether a novel laparoscopic technique for pediatric umibilical and epigastric hernia repair is safe, quick, effective, durable, and cosmetically acceptable. Methods: Forty-one consecutive umbilical and 13 epigastric hernias were repaired laparoscopically. Six patients had concomitant epigastric and umbilical hernias repaired during one procedure. Two 3-mm ports were used via a lateral approach. Mean age was 4.2 years for those with an umbilical hernia and 2.0 years for those with an epigastric hernia. Results: All procedures were completed laparoscopically. The mean operative time was 27 minutes for umbilical hernia repair and 16 minutes for epigastric hernia repair. There were no intraoperative or postoperative complications. Follow-up was 100% and ranged from 6 to 35 months. There have been no recurrent hernias, and patient/parent satisfaction was subjectively excellent. Conclusion: This case series demonstrated that this novel technique of laparoscopic anterior abdominal wall hernia repair is safe, quick, effective, durable, and cosmetically acceptable. It requires few instruments and minimal advanced laparoscopic techniques.
Vallecular cyst as a cause of obstructive sleep apnea in an infant.

A 3-month-old baby was diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) on polysomnography (PSG) with a high apnea hypopnea index (AHI). On further investigations he was found to have a vallecular cyst...
Localized functionalization of single nanopores

We demonstrate the localization of chemical functionality at the entrance of single nanopores for the first time by using the controlled growth of an oxide ring. Nanopores were fabricated by Focused Ion Beam machining on silicon platforms, locally derivatized by ion beam assisted oxide deposition, and further functionalized with DNA probes via silane chemistry. Ionic current recorded through single nanopores at various stages of the fabrication process demonstrated that the apertures can be locally functionalized with DNA probes. Future applications for this functional platform include the selective detection of biological organisms and molecules by ionic current blockade measurements.
Mycoplasma genitalium among adolescent women and their partners.

Abstract Purpose Mycoplasma genitalium is a possible sexually transmitted pathogen and its study among the adolescent age group has been limited. In this longitudinal study, the epidemiology, natural history, and associated clinical findings of M. genitalium among adolescents in a primary care setting were explored. Methods A sample of 383 young women (14–17 years of age) and 117 male partners provided sexual behavior data and urogenital samples for polymerase chain reaction testing to detect M. genitalium , Chlamydia trachomatis , and other sexually transmitted infections. Women were tested quarterly for up to 27 months and, during every other quarter, tested weekly. The presence of any signs or symptoms of infection among the female subjects was also documented. Results Cumulatively, 13.6% (52/383) of women tested positive for M. genitalium . All women with M. genitalium , except one, were sexually experienced. M. genitalium was associated with number of sexual partners ( p C. trachomatis infection ( p M. genitalium was more likely among male partners of M. genitalium -positive women ( p M. genitalium cases had infection lasting over 8 weeks. M. genitalium was not associated with the presence of clinical signs or symptoms of infection. Conclusions Findings support sexual transmissibility of M. genitalium and add to understanding of M. genitalium natural history and clinical findings.