cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Stable Oxygen Reduction Electrocatalysts from Presynthesized PdPt Nanoparticles on Carbon

We have synthesized an oxygen reduction catalyst composed of pre-synthesized Pd3Pt2 alloy nanoparticles dispersed on Vulcan carbon. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) indicate the alloy particles are 4.0nm. The catalyst loses 20% of its activity after potential cycling from 0.5 V to 1.2 V (NHE) in HClO4 compared to 70% for commercial Pt/VC. Even after 20% loss, the final activity of the Pd3Pt2/VC catalyst is 0.095 A/mgPt, equal to that of the fresh commercial Pt/VC. After cycling TEM shows only a small increase in particle size to 4.5nm, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy reveals no change in the oxidation states of the metals, indicating the stability may result from an increased dissolution resistance of the alloy relative to the base metals. The development of well-defined, stable, and active alloy catalysts facilitates a better understanding of structure-activity relationships and is encouraging for the application of commercially viable fuel cells.
A codesign virtual machine for hierarchical, balanced hardware/software system modeling

The Codesign Virtual Machine (CVM) is introduced as a next generation system modeling semantic. The CVM permits unrestricted system-wide software and hardware behaviors to be designed to a single scheduling semantic by resolving time-based (resource) and time-independent (state-interleaved) models of computation. CVM hierarchical relationships of bus and clock state domains provide a means of exploring hardware/software scheduling trade-offs to a consistent semantic model using top-down, bottom-up and iterative design approaches from a high system level to the machine implementation. State domain partitionings permit run-time software schedulers to be resolved with design time physical scheduling as peer- and hierarchically-related architectural abstractions which cut across functional boundaries. The resultant abstraction provides “component-less” paths to physical design with greater accommodation of shared resource modeling. A simulation example is included.
Recent studies that influence the chemotherapeutic paradigm in the management of advanced ovarian cancer

Several recently reported evidence-based phase 3 trials that focus on the role of cytotoxic chemotherapy have the potential to strongly influence the care of women with advanced epithelial ovarian cancer. Particular areas of interest include: (a) neoadjuvant chemotherapy; (b) chemotherapy of recurrent platinum-sensitive ovarian cancer; and (c) the relevance of paclitaxel scheduling in the primary chemotherapeutic management of the malignancy. This report will briefly discuss the results of these studies and the potential implications of the findings for routine care of patients in these clinical settings.
The effect of angular light intensity distribution on the performance of tubular flow photoreactors

The angular light intensity distribution (ALID) at the surface of several elliptical reflector-photoreactors was determined experimentally using the optically dense potassium ferrioxalate actinometer. The distributions were well correlated by the model The correlating parameter β was a function of the ratio of the light source and photoreactor tube diameters. The theoretical effect of ALID on reactor performance was determined for a reaction which proceeded via direct absorption by the reactant. The ALID effect on performance was most pronounced under conditions of high optical densities and low radial mixing rates of reactant.
Fate of bilateral renal lesions missed on preoperative imaging: a report from the National Wilms Tumor Study Group.

Purpose: In children undergoing nephrectomy for Wilms tumor exploration of the contralateral kidney has been recommended to detect occult tumors missed on preoperative evaluation. In this review of the National Wilms Tumor Study (NWTS) 4 cases of bilateral Wilms tumors (BWT) we evaluate incidence and outcome of missed bilateral lesions. Materials and Methods: NWTS-4 enrolled 3,335 patients from August 1986 through September 1994. There were 188 patients with BWT or 5.6% of the total registered. The operative records, pathology and imaging reports were reviewed. Results: In 11 cases synchronous BWT was diagnosed at surgical exploration, which represents 5.9% of the bilateral cases but only 0.3% of all NWTS-4 cases. Two patients did not undergo preoperative imaging and were excluded from analysis. The size of the missed lesions was less than 1 cm in 6 patients and 1 to 2 cm in 3. Computerized tomography was performed in all patients except one who entered early in the study. Management of missed lesions included enucleation in 2 cases, biopsy in 6 and no surgery in 1. No patient underwent irradiation. The postoperative chemotherapy regimen consisted of doxorubicin, dactinomycin and vincristine in 6 children, and dactinomycin and vincristine in 3. Median followup was 9 years. There were no recurrences in any kidney with a missed lesion. All 9 patients were alive and disease-free at last followup. Conclusions: Routine contralateral renal exploration will identify few occult tumors not detected on preoperative imaging. Omission of routine exploration will not likely affect the outcome or management of newly diagnosed Wilms tumor provided preoperative computerized tomography or magnetic resonance imaging is performed. The outcome in these patients was excellent.
Coupling perception and simulation: steps towards conversational robotics

Human cognition makes extensive use of visualization and imagination. As a first step towards giving a robot similar abilities, we have built a robotic system that uses a perceptually-coupled physical simulator to produce an internal world model of the robot's environment. Real-time perceptual coupling ensures that the model is constantly kept in synchronization with the physical environment as the robot moves and obtains new sense data. This model allows the robot to be aware of objects no longer in its field of view (a form of "object permanence"), as well as to visualize its environment through the eyes of the user by enabling virtual shifts in point of view using synthetic vision operating within the simulator. This architecture provides a basis for our long term goals of developing conversational robots that can ground the meaning of spoken language in terms of sensorimotor representations.
Individually and socially-based understandings in researching professional discourse

Scholars both in the West and in Asia have repeatedly observed that much theorizing on discourse phenomena by Western scholars has privileged explanations in terms of humans as individual beings, rather than in terms of humans as social beings. Key examples in the study of professional discourse are theories explaining face and politeness, with theories of human communication, leadership, and management similarly focused. Face, as one particular example, is a concept drawn from Asian discourse regarding how persons relate to one another, but which in the hands of Western scholars has been re-conceptualized as an attribute of a singular individual, rather than as a social property of persons-in-relationship-to-other-persons. Scholars both in the West and in Asia employ these Western theories in research on professional discourse (Bargiella-Chiappini et al., 2007), there being at present no prominent explanation that privileges explanations in terms of humans as social beings, or more productively, in terms of humans as dialectically both individual beings and social beings. Employing an individually-based account at the expense of a socially-based account is consequential in examining discourse because the way in which a scholar conceptualizes a phenomenon constrains the questions he or she addresses in research, the explanations he or she creates, and the applications of his or her findings.
Estimating Stormwater Runoff for Community Gardens in New York City

Community gardens are critical ecological infrastructure in cities providing an important link between people and urban nature. The documented benefits of community gardens include food production, recreational opportunities, and a wide number of social benefits such as improving community stability, reducing crime, and physical and mental health benefits. While much of the literature cites community gardens as providing environmental benefits for cities, there is little empirical evidence of these benefits. Here we examine the stormwater runoff benefits of community gardens by comparing two methods to estimate absorption rates of stormwater runoff in urban community gardens of New York City. The first method uses general land cover classes as determined by a land cover dataset; the second methods adds a land cover specific to community gardens — raised beds, typically used for food production. We find that in addition to the stormwater mitigation performed by pervious surfaces within a garden site, community gardens in New York City may be retaining an additional 12 million gallons (~45 million liters) of stormwater annually due to the widespread use of raised beds with compost as a soil amendment.
Standards for Hybrid Clouds

Cloud standards are uniquely suited to crossing boundaries that occur in hybrid cloud deployments. This column presents several new efforts in this area and discusses their history and current state, along with related software projects.
Chemical analysis of the scent fluid of Dicaelus purpuratus (Coleoptera: Carabidae).

Recently in Goliad, Tex., I acquired 1 specimen of aground beetle which at first glance seemed to be Dicaelus splendidus (Say). Since Goliad is more than 100 miles south of Austin, where D. splendidus are commonly found, the scent fluid of this single specimen was subjected to chemical analysis to see if the different geographic location would effect any changes in the properties already reported for Austin specimens (McCullough 1967). The 2 large bladders from the specimen, a male weighing 0.67 g, provided sufficient material for 2 specific gravity determinations, an acid content analysis by simple titration, and two 2-dimensional paper chromatograms for investigating the carbohydrate constituents. Tables 1 and 2 summarize the results of these analyses.
Control of a Pinyon Stunt Needle Midge in Colorado

Insecticidal tests to control a pinyon stunt needle midge, Janetiella sp. near coloradensis Felt, were conducted in a landscape planting in Fort Collins, Colorado. Acceptable control was obtained with the systemics carbofuran G and oxydemetonmethyl (foliar spray). Oxydemetonmethyl gave the better control. Dimethoate, as a foliar spray did not give acceptable control. Oxydemetonmethyl and carbofuran also killed an important larval parasite, Platygaster pini Fouts which acts as a natural control agent.
Modal Motivations for Noumenal Ignorance: Knowledge, Cognition, and Coherence

My goal in this paper is to show that Kant’s prohibition on certain kinds of knowledge of things-in-themselves is motivated less by his anti-soporific encounter with Hume than by his new view of the distinction between “real” and “logical” modality, a view that developed out of his reflection on the rationalist tradition in which he was trained. In brief: at some point in the 1770’s, Kant came to hold that a necessary condition on knowing a proposition is that one be able to prove that all the items it refers to are either really possible or really impossible. Most propositions about things-in-themselves, in turns out, cannot meet this condition. I conclude by suggesting that the best interpretation of this modal condition is as a kind of coherentist constraint.
Contemporary Profile of Seizures in Neonates: A Prospective Cohort Study.

Objective To determine the contemporary etiology, burden, and short-term outcomes of seizures in neonates monitored with continuous video-electroencephalogram (cEEG). Study design We prospectively collected data from 426 consecutive neonates (56% male, 88% term) ≤44 weeks' postmenstrual age with clinically suspected seizures and/or electrographic seizures. Subjects were assessed between January 2013 and April 2015 at 7 US tertiary care pediatric centers following the guidelines of the American Clinical Neurophysiology Society for cEEG for at-risk neonates. Seizure etiology, burden, management, and outcome were determined by chart review by the use of a case report form designed at study onset. Results The most common seizure etiologies were hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (38%), ischemic stroke (18%), and intracranial hemorrhage (11%). Seizure burden was high, with 59% having ≥7 electrographic seizures and 16% having status epilepticus; 52% received ≥2 antiseizure medications. During the neonatal admission, 17% died; 49% of survivors had abnormal neurologic examination at hospital discharge. In an adjusted analysis, high seizure burden was a significant risk factor for mortality, length of hospital stay, and abnormal neurological examination at discharge. Conclusions In this large contemporary profile of consecutively enrolled newborns with seizures treated at centers that use cEEG per the guidelines of the American Clinical Neurophysiology Society, about one-half had high seizure burden, received ≥2 antiseizure medications, and/or died or had abnormal examination at discharge. Greater seizure burden was associated with increased morbidity and mortality. These findings underscore the importance of accurate determination of neonatal seizure frequency and etiology and a potential for improved outcome if seizure burden is reduced.
Transfer of the human glucocerebrosidase gene into hematopoietic stem cells of nonablated recipients: successful engraftment and long-term expression of the transgene

In trying to develop methods of gene therapy for Gaucher disease that will avoid the morbidity and mortality associated with bone marrow (BM) ablation, we transplanted BM stem cells transduced with a retroviral vector containing the human glucocerebrosidase cDNA into normal, nonablated, syngeneic mice. Donor BM from untreated male mice or treated with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) was transduced ex vivo using a standard 4-day transduction protocol. Recipient female mice were injected one time only or once daily for 5 consecutive days or once a week for 5 consecutive weeks using 2 x 10(7) (untreated BM) or 2 x 10(6) (5-FU-treated BM) cells per injection. Initial transduction efficiency into colony-forming unit-spleen (CFU-S) was 80% to 100%. Recipient analysis was performed at least 6 months after the last transplantation. The best engraftment of donor stem cells, up to 5% by secondary CFU-S analysis, was obtained with multiple injections of transduced BM not previously treated with 5-FU. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification for both the transgene and the Y chromosome identified the progeny of transduced stem cells in various hematopoietic and non-hematopoietic organs. The copy number of the transgene in stem cells was 0.13 to 2.8. Transgene expression was shown by reverse transcriptase-PCR, in situ hybridization, and immunohistochemistry. No serious side effects of the procedure were noted. We conclude that multiple transplants of retrovirally transduced BM cells into nonablated recipients may be a safe and effective therapeutic modality for a number of genetic hematopoietic disorders.
Jealousy, Infidelity, and the Difficulty of Diagnosing Pathology: A CBT Approach to Coping with Sexual Betrayal and the Green-Eyed Monster

Intense jealousy can be emotional acid that corrodes marriages, undermines self-esteem, triggers battering, and is a key motive in the murder of mates and ex-mates (Buss, 2000a, 2000b; Buss & Duntley, 2011; Daly & Wilson, 1988; Daly, Wilson, & Weghorst, 1982). Extreme jealousy has been given many names in the clinical and psychiatric literature—The Othello Syndrome, Morbid Jealousy, Psychotic Jealousy, Pathological Jealousy, Conjugal Paranoia, and Erotic Jealousy Syndrome. Jealousy, of course, can be pathological. It can destroy previously harmonious relationships, rendering them hellish nightmares of daily existence. Trust slowly built from years of mutual reliance can be torn asunder. Jealousy causes more women to flee in terror to shelters for battered women than any other cause (Wilson & Daly, 1996).
Transliteration Mining with Phonetic Conflation and Iterative Training

This paper presents transliteration mining on the ACL 2010 NEWS workshop shared transliteration mining task data. Transliteration mining was done using a generative transliteration model applied on the source language and whose output was constrained on the words in the target language. A total of 30 runs were performed on 5 language pairs, with 6 runs for each language pair. In the presence of limited resources, the runs explored the use of phonetic conflation and iterative training of the transliteration model to improve recall. Using letter conflation improved recall by as much as 48%, with improvements in recall dwarfing drops in precision. Using iterative training improved recall, but often at the cost of significant drops in precision. The best runs typically used both letter conflation and iterative learning.
Return to Golf After Lumbar Fusion

Background:Spinal fusion surgery is being increasingly performed, yet few studies have focused on return to recreational sports after lumbar fusion and none have specifically analyzed return to golf.Hypothesis:Most golfers successfully return to sport after lumbar fusion surgery.Study Design:Case series.Level of Evidence:Level 4.Methods:All patients who underwent 1- or 2-level primary lumbar fusion surgery for degenerative pathologies performed by a single surgeon between January 2008 and October 2012 and had at least 1-year follow-up were included. Patients completed a specifically designed golf survey. Surveys were mailed, given during follow-up clinic, or answered during telephone contact.Results:A total of 353 patients met the inclusion and exclusion criteria, with 200 responses (57%) to the questionnaire producing 34 golfers. The average age of golfers was 57 years (range, 32-79 years). In 79% of golfers, preoperative back and/or leg pain significantly affected their ability to play golf. Within 1 ye...
Upper limit for fourth harmonic of cosmic ray solar daily variation: 1963-2015

Abstract In 1970s we analyzed the neutron monitor (NM) and muon telescope (MT) data from the global network for 1966–1970 to determine the amplitude and phase of the significant harmonics constituting the galactic cosmic ray (GCR) daily anisotropy in solar time. The median rigidity of response (Rm) of detectors to GCR spectrum covered a wide range (16–134 GV). The results were reported at the international cosmic ray conferences (ICRCs) held at Denver [1973], Munich [1975] and Paris [1981]. It was inferred that GCR solar daily anisotropy consists of only three harmonics, namely the diurnal (1 cpd, first harmonic), the semidiurnal (2 cpd, second harmonic) and the tridiurnal (3 cpd, third harmonic), with power spectral densities in the ratio 800:20:1 for the Deep River NM data (Rm = 16 GV) for 1962–1971. The fourth harmonic (4 cpd) was absent in these analyses. Since then the volume of data from the global network of NMs and MTs has increased significantly; particularly the multidirectional MT network, with larger Rm values. This motivates us to ascertain whether 4 cpd peak is absent in the cosmic ray solar daily variation data at the global sites, over a longer time period (1963–2015). Our informed conjecture is that 4 cpd peak is insignificant at 2σ-level of experimental error for a range of Rm values (11–60 GV). The discovery of a physically significant fourth harmonic would challenge the theorists to come up with a model for GCR transport in the heliosphere revealing hitherto unknown feature(s) of solar modulation.
Nut Intake and Incidence of Type 2 Diabetes in the Adventist Health Study-2

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the potential link between nut intake and risk of type 2 diabetes in a North American cohort. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS58,594 participants (64.7% female) from the Adventist H...
Abstract 4788: Abraxane eliminates cancer stem cells in triple-negative breast cancers

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) represents about 20 percent of all breast cancers, with a poorer survival rate and being associated with high-grade tumors and the least favorable prognosis. Due to the absence of hormone receptors and Her2 receptor, no targeted therapy is available and chemotherapy is the standard treatment for TNBC patient. Paclitaxel is a widely used chemotherapy drug for various cancers with severe side effects due to its solvent. Abraxane is an albumin-bound nanoparticle of paclitaxel with less severe side effects. Here we investigated whether cancer stem cells (CSCs) in TNBC response differentially to abraxane and paclitaxel both in cell culture and xenograft mouse models. Using a series of human TNBC cell lines, we showed that there is no difference between solvent-based paclitaxel and abraxane in vitro in term of efficacy and eliminating cancer stem cells using MTS assay, mammosphere formation assay, and flow analysis of cancer stem cells. Interestingly, we demonstrated that abraxane shows superior efficacy than solvent-based paclitaxel in human SUM149 xenograft NOD SCID mouse model in adjuvant treatment. More important, we demonstrated that abraxane eliminates cancer stem cells in xenograft NOD SCID mouse model in advanced treatment, while solvent-based paclitaxel increases cancer stem cells. Cell uptake assay indicated that TNBC cells take more abraxane than solvent-based paclitaxel, which partially attributes to its superior efficacy in xenograft mouse models. Taken together, our data confirmed that abraxane is superior to solvent-based paclitaxel and may be a better option for TNBC patients in adjuvant or metastatic treatment. Citation Format: Hebao Yuan, Hongwei Guo, Feng Li, Joseph Burnett, Miao He, Nathan Truchan, Ila Myers, Duxin Sun. Abraxane eliminates cancer stem cells in triple-negative breast cancers [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2017; 2017 Apr 1-5; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 4788. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2017-4788
Diet predicts milk composition in primates

Mammalian mothers pay heavy energetic costs to fuel the growth of their offspring. These costs are highest during lactation. Energy transmitted to offspring in the form of milk must ultimately come from the maternal diet, but there have been few comparative studies of the relationship between milk properties and mammalian diets. We used interspecific data on primate milk composition and wild diets to establish that concentrations of milk protein and sugar are predicted by diet independent of maternal mass, litter mass, and infant parking behavior such that increasing folivory or faunivory increases protein concentration but decreases sugar concentration. Milk energy density is unrelated to diet, though infant parking species do produce more energy-dense milk. While parking effects have been previously explained as a result of mother-infant separation, the mechanisms causing the relationship between nutrient packaging in milk and maternal diet are currently unclear. However, they likely reflect evolved differences in maternal energetics related to maternal foraging ecology, infant growth patterns, or the relative dietary abundance of nutrients costly to synthesize in milk among primate species.
Electrical Impedance Myography and Its Application in Pediatric Neuromuscular Disorders

Electrical impedance myography is a promising painless, non-invasive technique for the evaluation of muscle health in children. The procedure relies on the application and measurement of a very weak electrical current that is applied to a given muscle. Alterations in the measured impedance signal occur in any condition that impacts muscle structure or composition. It is currently being studied as a drug-effect biomarker in several neuromuscular therapeutic clinical trials and holds promise as a convenient bedside tool for quantifying muscle condition.
Hidden Smile Correlation Discovery Across Subjects Using Random Walk with Restart

Fine-grained smile analysis is a complicated and challenging process. Understanding other party’s smiles is one of the key tasks associated with realizing the implicit messages transmitted by the human. Considering this kind of message transmission is a major feature of human communication, understanding smiling has great potential value to promote the development of humanoid robots and animated software agents. Therefore, a fine-grained smile analysis system is proposed to uncover the hidden smile correlation across subjects. The system incorporates head pose as prior knowledge and employs conditional random forest to detect fiducial points on face. After that, a steady-state probability defined by a succession of Markov random steps is used to indicate the relevance score between smiles across subjects. We demonstrate performance of the proposed system on both constrained and unconstrained face datasets. The experimental results show that the proposed system is able to classify 4 smile levels and uncover hidden smile correlations across subjects successfully.
Combining battery-like and pseudocapacitive charge storage in 3D MnOx@carbon electrode architectures for zinc-ion cells

We demonstrate that electrodes comprising nanoscale, birnessite-type manganese oxide affixed to carbon nanofoam paper (MnOx@CNF) exhibit two distinct charge-storage mechanisms—battery-like Zn2+ insertion/de-insertion and pseudocapacitance—when electrochemically cycled in aqueous electrolytes that include both Na+ and Zn2+ salts. When the mixed-electrolyte composition is 0.75 M Na2SO4 + 0.25 M ZnSO4 (i.e., “6[Na+] : 1[Zn2+]”), the MnOx@CNF electrode delivers high specific capacity at low rates, approaching theoretical capacity for Zn2+ insertion/de-insertion at MnOx. At high rates (>10C) the Na+-supported pseudocapacitance mechanism maintains charge-storage capacity well above that observed with electrolytes that contain only ZnSO4. Impedance analysis was performed to discriminate between these distinct charge-storage mechanisms by visualizing the frequency- and potential-dependent capacitance as 3D Bode plots. In the 6[Na+] : 1[Zn2+] electrolyte, the potential-independent pseudocapacitance is augmented by reversible Zn2+-based redox processes between 1.4 and 1.8 V vs. Zn/Zn2+. Galvanostatic testing with two-electrode zinc-ion cells that pair MnOx@CNF with a zinc foil negative electrode proves the practical performance advantages of combining pseudocapacitance and Zn2+-insertion mechanisms: higher energy efficiency and greater specific power in the 6[Na+] : 1[Zn2+] electrolyte compared to 1 M ZnSO4.
Future of technology — Are we ready?

In this highly interactive presentation, we will explore how technology is rapidly changing around us. We will examine velocity of change and its impact on new and innovative technologies. As our world moves toward hyper-connectivity powered by Internet of things (IOT), we need to explore the question, “are we ready”? If not, how do we get ready? We will discuss how IOT is impacting data generation and creating interesting entrepreneurial opportunities. We will learn from history to investigate current and future technologies that will be impactful in the 21st century. We will also consider the moral and ethical implications of products and technologies that are being developed. With hyper-connectivity, we must address security challenges and privacy concerns. Key takeaways will include a set of questions that we should collectively work to answer.
An ultrasonically controlled switching system for power management in implantable devices

In this paper, we present an ultrasonically controlled switching system that can save the battery power for implantable devices by turning the system on and off, on-demand. Ultrasonic control is employed to reduce the device size, increase the penetration depth, and reduce misalignment sensitivity associated with alternative techniques using permanent magnet and RF signal. As a proof-of-concept demonstration, a 665 kHz ultrasonic signal is used to activate a piezoelectric receiver which in turn switches a battery-powered RF system on-and-off. In-vitro tests show a reliable switching functionality at distances of up to 8 cm while consuming 43.5 nW (14.5 nA current consumption with 3 V power supply) when the system is in off-state, a factor of 10–100 times lower than the sleep-mode power consumption of typical RF SoC systems. The dimension of fabricated prototype is 6.3 × 16.7 × 2‍ mm3 allowing it to be easily incorporated into many existing implantable devices.
Segmentation of the Aortic Valve Apparatus in 3D Echocardiographic Images: Deformable Modeling of a Branching Medial Structure

3D echocardiographic (3DE) imaging is a useful tool for assessing the complex geometry of the aortic valve apparatus. Segmentation of this structure in 3DE images is a challenging task that benefits from shape-guided deformable modeling methods, which enable inter-subject statistical shape comparison. Prior work demonstrates the efficacy of using continuous medial representation (cm-rep) as a shape descriptor for valve leaflets. However, its application to the entire aortic valve apparatus is limited since the structure has a branching medial geometry that cannot be explicitly parameterized in the original cm-rep framework. In this work, we show that the aortic valve apparatus can be accurately segmented using a new branching medial modeling paradigm. The segmentation method achieves a mean boundary displacement of 0.6 ± 0.1 mm (approximately one voxel) relative to manual segmentation on 11 3DE images of normal open aortic valves. This study demonstrates a promising approach for quantitative 3DE analysis of aortic valve morphology.
The effect of foreign protein on the blood and reticuloendothelial system of the hamster.

The injection of human plasma into hamsters over a period of 14 to 68 days induced splenomegaly, accompanied histologically by reticuloendothelial hyperplasia, plasmacytosis, increased erythropoiesis and hemosiderosis. These findings suggest both an antigen-antibody response and an abnormal increase in splenic hemolysis. The demonstration of positive erythroagglutination reactions when red cells from plasma-injected hamsters are tested also suggests an immunologic response by these animals. Mild anemia was present in some animals during the course of this study but at the termination of the experiment anemia was not present and the animals were apparently in a compensated state. It is clear that the reticuloendothelial system of the hamster is capable of responding to foreign protein. Apparent immunologic tolerance in this animal should not be attributed to inactivity of the reticuloendothelial system.
Mortgage recourse provisions and housing prices

Abstract In light of the large swings in housing prices in the United States in recent years, there has been considerable interest in trying to understand the various factors which led to the boom and bust of the housing market. In this paper, we explore the impact of the legal environment from provisions for mortgage default across U.S. states. To do so, we develop a rigorous framework with microeconomic foundations for financial intermediaries. To be specific, we introduce a housing market and a residential mortgage market in the Diamond and Dybvig framework which emphasizes the role of depository institutions to help depositors manage idiosyncratic liquidity risk. Notably, we think of non-recourse provisions as a legal arrangement to protect risk-averse homeowners from the loss of housing value. While housing demand should be higher in markets where mortgage borrowers have full insurance, lenders also adjust the amount of mortgage credit provided to protect their risk-averse depositors. Thus, a priori, there is not an obvious connection between mortgage recourse provisions and housing prices. To draw further insights into the issue, we proceed to look at empirical evidence on housing prices at the MSA-level using the Case-Shiller Home Price Index. Once one controls for regional level unobservables, the evidence suggests that the demand side factors dominate in which prices are higher in non-recourse states, following the prediction from the model that the demand for mortgages would be higher. We next move to obtain more concrete predictions from our theoretical framework with calibration exercises to study the effects of mortgage recourse. Upon calibrating the model to match some stylized evidence on housing market conditions, the theoretical predictions are consistent with the regression analysis. In this manner, our work sheds numerous insights into the implications of the legal landscape regarding mortgage default for housing market activity.
Advanced basal cell cancer: concise review of molecular characteristics and novel targeted and immune therapeutics

Metastatic basal cell carcinoma is an ultra-rare manifestation of a common disease, appearing in 0.0028%-0.5% of basal cell carcinomas. Initial therapeutic efforts focused on cytotoxic chemotherapy administration. However, it is now known that the Hedgehog signaling pathway is crucial for basal cell proliferation and Hedgehog pathway mutations may lead to tumorigenesis; thus, small-molecule inhibitors of alterations in the components of this pathway, including smoothened (SMO) and GLI, have been the focus of recent therapeutic developments. Indeed, the European Medicines Agency and the Food and Drug Administration have approved the SMO inhibitors, vismodegib and sonidegib, with additional GLI inhibitors currently in clinical trials. Molecular profiling of these tumors has revealed other potential targets for therapy, including high tumor mutational burden and PD-L1 amplification, which predict response to immune checkpoint blockade (PD-1 and PD-L1 inhibitors). An illustrative patient with a giant, advanced, unresectable basal cell carcinoma who obtained an ongoing complete remission after treatment with a combination of an immune checkpoint inhibitor (due to the tumor's high mutational burden) and the Hedgehog inhibitor vismodegib is described. A fuller understanding of the genomic portfolio of these patients can assist in developing novel, rational therapeutic approaches that should continue to improve responses and outcomes.
End of life care for oncology patients in a community academic setting.

e22010Background: Multicenter quality studies have shown that earlier end of life discussions and palliative care can lead to better outcomes for oncology patients including improved quality of lif...
Intraobserver and interobserver reliability of the modified Walch classification using radiographs and computed tomography.

Background The Walch classification was introduced to classify glenoid morphology in primary glenohumeral osteoarthritis. A modified Walch classification was recently proposed, with 2 additional categories, B3 (monoconcave glenoid with posterior bone loss leading to retroversion > 15° or subluxation > 70%) and D (excessive anterior subluxation), as well as a more precise definition of subtypes A2 and C. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the intraobserver and interobserver agreement of the modified Walch classification system using both plain radiographs and computed tomography (CT). Methods Three fellowship-trained shoulder surgeons blindly and independently evaluated radiographs and CT scans of 100 consecutive shoulders (98 patients) with primary glenohumeral osteoarthritis and classified all shoulders according to the modified Walch classification in 4 separate sessions, each 4 weeks apart. Statistical analysis with the κ coefficient was used to evaluate reliability. Results The first reading by the most senior observer on the basis of CT scans was used as the gold standard (distribution: A1, 18; A2, 12; B1, 20; B2, 25; B3, 22; C, 1; and D, 2). The average intraobserver agreement for radiographs and CT scans was 0.73 (substantial; 0.72, 0.74, and 0.72) and 0.73 (substantial; 0.77, 0.69, and 0.72), respectively. The average interobserver agreement was 0.55 (moderate; 0.61, 0.51, and 0.53) for radiographs and 0.52 (moderate; 0.63, 0.50, and 0.43) for CT scans. Conclusion Intraobserver agreement of the modified Walch classification was substantial both for axillary radiographs and for CT scans. Interobserver agreement was fair. Although the modified Walch classification represents an improvement over the original classification, automated computer-based analysis of CT scans may be needed to further improve the value of this classification.
Three-dimensional analytical poromechanical solutions for an arbitrarily inclined borehole subjected to fluid injection.

Hydraulic fracturing is the primary method of stimulation in unconventional reservoirs, playing a significant role in oil and gas production enhancement. A key issue for the analysis of hydraulic f...
Elephant in the Classroom: Do Information Systems Professors Need to be More Techno-Savvy than Students?

Rapid advances in information and computer technologies are a challenge for information systems professors. Not only do these advances frequently make course materials out-of-date, professors may struggles to stay current with popular technology applications. These forces lead to a situation in which students may be more technologically savvy than their professors. This panel offers a variety of perspectives on this issue and its impacts on information systems education.
ABCG2- and ABCB1 Inhibition Using Supratherapeutic Doses of Erlotinib: Clinical Implications in the Treatment of Central Nervous System Metastases

TO THE EDITOR: We read with great interest the article by Bauer et al. titled “A Proof-of-Concept Study to Inhibit ABCG2- and ABCB1-Mediated Efflux Transport at the Human Blood–Brain Barrier.” They concluded that ABCB1 inhibition by tariquidar (an ABCB1 inhibitor) was not able to enhance 11C-
Clostridium difficile (Clostridioides difficile) Infection Surveillance in Long-Term Care Facilities

Surveillance of Clostridium (Clostridioides) difficile infection (CDI) in long-term care facilities (LTCFs) will help determine CDI burden in LTCFs, evaluate infection trends, and detect outbreaks. Surveillance will also help determine the efficacy of infection control and antibiotic stewardship programs implemented to prevent the occurrence of CDI. This chapter describes the various methods used for CDI surveillance in LTCFs and the strengths and drawbacks of each of these methods.
Business’s Commitment to Sustainable Development Goals: An analysis using the Five Ps framework

There has been a long-standing demand on businesses to play an increasingly larger role in sustainable development. This demand is for issues that contribute to the creation of a sustainable world; ranging from poverty alleviation to climate change. The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were unanimously adopted by 193 UN member states in September 2015 and calls upon the central and diverse role that the private sector can play to deliver on the SDGs during the 15-year period, 2016-2030. This paper has two major contributions: First, it analyzes member companies of Business Call to Action (BCtA), an international initiative launched at the United Nations in 2008, to identify SDGs that are most impacted by the private sector. Second, the global analysis draws attention to the role of the private sector in addressing the sustainability challenges in five geographical regions of the world, through their contributions to the SDGs. Using the ‘five Ps’ framework, the results show that some SDGs are more impacted than others, thereby implying that these SDGs will substantially benefit from the success of the private sector while others could be left behind. The findings provide practical recommendations for businesses and stakeholders to use BCtA members as role models to integrate specific SDGs into their business activities and thereby contribute to the achievement of the SDGs.
Considerations for Safety in the Use of Systemic Medications for Psoriasis and Atopic Dermatitis during the COVID-19 pandemic

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is responsible for at least 2 546 527 cases and 175 812 deaths as of April 21, 2020. Psoriasis and atopic dermatitis (AD) are common, chronic, inflammatory skin conditions, with immune dysregulation as a shared mechanism; therefore, mainstays of treatment include systemic immunomodulating therapies. It is unknown whether these therapies are associated with increased COVID-19 susceptibility or worse outcomes in infected patients. In this review, we discuss overall infection risks of nonbiologic and biologic systemic medications for psoriasis and AD and provide therapeutic recommendations. In summary, in patients with active infection, systemic conventional medications, the Janus kinase inhibitor tofacitinib, and biologics for psoriasis should be temporarily held until there is more data; in uninfected patients switching to safer alternatives should be considered. Interleukin (IL)-17, IL-12/23, and IL-23 inhibitors are associated with low infection risk, with IL-17 and IL-23 favored over IL-12/23 inhibitors. Pivotal trials and postmarketing data also suggest that IL-17 and IL-23 blockers are safer than tumor necrosis factor alpha blockers. Apremilast, acitretin, and dupilumab have favorable safety data and may be safely initiated and continued in uninfected patients. Without definitive COVID-19 data, these recommendations may be useful in guiding treatment of psoriasis and AD patients during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Utilizing hydrogen underpotential deposition in CO reduction for highly selective formaldehyde production under ambient conditions

Formaldehyde is an essential building block for hundreds of chemicals and a promising liquid organic hydrogen carrier (LOHC), yet its indirect energy-intensive synthesis process prohibits it from playing a more significant role. Here we report a direct CO reduction to formaldehyde (CORTF) process that utilizes hydrogen underpotential deposition to overcome the thermodynamic barrier and the scaling relationship restriction. This is the first time that this reaction has been realized under ambient conditions. Using molybdenum phosphide as a catalyst, formaldehyde was produced with nearly a 100% faradaic efficiency in aqueous KOH solution, with its formation rate being one order of magnitude higher compared with the state-of-the-art thermal catalysis approach. Simultaneous tuning of the current density and reaction temperature led to a more selective and productive formaldehyde synthesis, indicating the electrochemical and thermal duality of this reaction. DFT calculations revealed that the desorption of the *H2CO intermediate likely served as the rate-limiting step, and the participation of H2O made the reaction thermodynamically favorable. Furthermore, a full-cell reaction set-up was demonstrated with CO hydrogenation to HCHO achieved without any energy input, which fully realized the spontaneous potential of the reaction. Our study shows the feasibility of combining thermal and electrochemical approaches for realizing the thermodynamics and for scaling relationship-confined reactions, which could serve as a new strategy in future reaction design.
CoNES: Convex Natural Evolutionary Strategies

We present a novel algorithm -- convex natural evolutionary strategies (CoNES) -- for optimizing high-dimensional blackbox functions by leveraging tools from convex optimization and information geometry. CoNES is formulated as an efficiently-solvable convex program that adapts the evolutionary strategies (ES) gradient estimate to promote rapid convergence. The resulting algorithm is invariant to the parameterization of the belief distribution. Our numerical results demonstrate that CoNES vastly outperforms conventional blackbox optimization methods on a suite of functions used for benchmarking blackbox optimizers. Furthermore, CoNES demonstrates the ability to converge faster than conventional blackbox methods on a selection of OpenAI's MuJoCo reinforcement learning tasks for locomotion.
Spin coating method improved the performance characteristics of films obtained from poly(lactic acid) and cellulose nanocrystals

Abstract For the last few decades, the application of biopolymers such as poly(lactic acid, PLA) as an alternative to synthetic polymers in the packaging industry is in great demand. However, to rival the traditional polymers, the barrier properties and antimicrobial activities of PLA need to be adapted to the food packaging requirements. The purpose of this research was to compare the impact of thin-film fabrication techniques in combination with different contents of cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) (1–5 wt%) on the barrier and antimicrobial properties of PLA films. The nanocomposite thin films were manufactured via solvent casting and spin-coating techniques. The spin-coating method has been employed for the first time in this work to prepare nanocomposite thin films with a thickness of ˂ 0.2 mm. The nanocomposite films were tested for surface morphology, degree of crystallinity, water vapor permeability, contact angle, and antimicrobial properties. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) micrographs revealed the strong tendency of CNCs to establish microscale aggregates, however, a high drying rate in the spin-coating method decreases the self-assembly in CNCs. Thus, a significantly higher degree of crystallinity and glass transition temperature were observed in spin-coated films due to a more uniform dispersion of CNCs in PLA. Higher contact angle and lower water vapor transfer rate in spin-coated samples confirmed the lower hydrophilicity character of spin-coated thin films. Two separate assays were employed for evaluating the anti-microbial activity of PLA on the foodborne pathogens. The results showed that the film manufacturing technique and CNC concentration have a strong influence on microbial reduction.
Rapid recovery of At-211 by extraction chromatography

Abstract The near quantitative separation, purification, and recovery of 211At has been demonstrated through an extraction chromatography process which utilizes porous beads impregnated with 3-octanone, resulting in an elution yield of 92–95%. Moreover, the rapid nature of this process,
Combinatorial Approaches to Enhance DNA Damage following Enzyme-Mediated Depletion of L-Cys for Treatment of Pancreatic Cancer.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) represents one of the deadliest forms of cancer with very few available therapeutic options. We previously reported that an engineered human enzyme, cyst(e)inase, which degrades L-cysteine (L-Cys) and cystine, inhibits growth of multiple cancer cells, including PDAC both in vitro and in vivo. Here, we show that cyst(e)inase treatment leads to increased clustered oxidative DNA damage, DNA single-strand breaks, apurinic/apyrimidinic sites, and DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) in PDAC cells sensitive to intracellular depletion of L-Cys that is associated with reduced survival. BRCA2-deficient PDAC cells exhibited increased DSBs and enhanced sensitivity to cyst(e)inase. The blocking of a second antioxidant pathway (thioredoxin/thioredoxin reductase) using auranofin or inhibiting DNA repair using the poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitor, olaparib, led to significant increases in DSBs following cyst(e)inase treatment in all PDAC cells examined. Cyst(e)inase plus olaparib also synergistically inhibited growth of sensitive and resistant PDAC cells in both xenograft and allograft tumor models. Collectively, these results demonstrate an important role for oxidative DNA damage and ultimately DNA DSBs in the anticancer action of cyst(e)inase. The data further show the potential for combining agents that target alternate antioxidant pathways or by targeting DNA repair pathways or genetic liabilities in DNA repair pathways to enhance the therapeutic action of cyst(e)inase for PDAC.