cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Parallel Versus Distributed Data Access for Gigapixel-Resolution Histology Images: Challenges and Opportunities

Recent advances in digital pathology technology have led to significant improvements in terms of both the quality and resolution of the resulting images, which now often exceed several gigabytes each. Today, several leading institutions across the country utilize whole-slide imaging (WSI) as part of their routine workflow. WSIs have utility in a wide range of diagnostic and investigative pathology applications. The fact that these images are both large in size (about 30 GB when uncompressed) and are generated in nonstandard proprietary formats has limited wider adoption of these technologies and makes the task of accessing, processing, and analyzing them in high-throughput fashion extremely challenging. The common approach for such data analytic applications is to preprocess the large whole-slide images into smaller size files and store them in a generic format. However, this approach limits the advantages that might be realized if different scalability levels and data unit sizes could be dynamically changed based on the specifications of the task at hand and the architectural limits of the infrastructure (e.g., node memory size). Such strategies also introduce extra processing time to the workflow. To address these challenges, we present, in this paper, novel scalable access methods for parallel file systems and distributed file/object storage systems. Experimental results gathered during the course of our studies show that these methods provide opportunities not realizable using traditional approaches. We demonstrate tangible, scalability, and high-throughput advantages using a Lustre parallel file system and AWS S3 distributed storage system.
The History and Physical Examination of the Allergic Patient

The allergy history and physical examination remain the basis for diagnosis and treatment. Allergy testing tends to give a number of false positives and negatives, so a detailed history followed by history-driven testing cannot be omitted. Costs will be minimized, and patient satisfaction will be maximized.
A Statistical Analysis of Santa Barbara Ambulance Response in 2006: Performance Under Load

Ambulance response times in Santa Barbara County for 2006 are analyzed using point process techniques, including kernel intensity estimates and K-functions. Clusters of calls result in significantly higher response times, and this effect is quantified. In particular, calls preceded by other calls within 20 km and within the previous hour are significantly more likely to result in violations. This effect appears to be especially pronounced within semi-rural neighborhoods.
Surprising Events and Surprising Opinions: The Importance of Attitude Strength and Source Credibility

The academic debate concerning public opinion about war focuses upon two explanations: cost/benefits and partisan cues. Both sides of this debate use laboratory experiments to estimate the influence of events and cues, but Gelpi is notable for using a well-designed experiment to compare the theories simultaneously. He argues that his results support the cost/benefits explanation as “surprising events” that counter individuals’ prior attitudes have significantly more effect than “surprising opinions” upon people’s attitudes toward the Iraq War. His analysis, however, considers only the direction, but not the strength, of people’s attitudes toward the war. Additionally, the measure of source credibility for determining the influence of cues is not optimal. When the analysis accounts for attitude strength and uses a better measure of source credibility, the results show little support for the effect of surprising events and markedly greater support for the influence of partisan cues.
VIRUS-INDUCED CELL-MEDIATED IMMUNOPATHOLOGICAL DISEASE

Publisher Summary This chapter explains virus-induced cell-mediated immunopathological disease. There are several important observations that provide a foundation for understanding virus-induced cell-mediated immunopathology. Several classes of viruses mature by budding through cellular membranes, thereby, acquiring their outer envelope. The principal antigens of such envelopes are virus-specified proteins and are therefore foreign to the host. Many enveloped RNA viruses are relatively or absolutely noncytocidal, so that infected cells may function and divide in an apparently normal manner while persistently carrying virus-coded neoantigens on their membranes. The immune response to enveloped viruses can result in the production of antibodies which, with complement, can lyse either intact virus or viable virus-infected cells. T cell-mediated cytolysis can be used as the basis for an in vitro assay of cell-mediated immunity. The occurrence of virus-induced immunopathological disease is rendered plausible by these considerations. However, the interaction of virus and immune response in vivo introduces a variety of additional complexities that are at present only partially understood.
Numerical Modeling and Simulation of Coupled Processes of Mineral Dissolution and Fluid Flow in Fractured Carbonate Formations

Carbonate formations usually contain multi-scale fractures, cavities, and even caves within the carbonate rocks. Carbonate rocks undergo various chemical reactions with the injecting fluids during waterflooding, which may lead to the evolution of a fracture system induced by dissolution processes. This development of a natural fracture system may eventually lead to the formation of large-scale well-connected void space features, resulting in early breakthrough, unwanted production, and small increases in bottom-hole pressure. Consequently, a numerical model that accurately describes the dynamic behavior of natural fracture evolution is essential for better forecasting and optimization of production during waterflooding processes. In this paper, we have developed a mathematical model that combines the Stokes–Brinkman and reactive-transport equations to describe the coupled processes of fluid flow, solute transport, and chemical reaction. Application of the Stokes–Brinkman equation as the momentum balance model in the coupled process allows accurate modeling of the evolution process of a natural fracture system. The proposed mathematical model involves a coupled system of highly nonlinear partial differential equations. We have developed and implemented a numerical procedure that solves the Stokes–Brinkman equation by the mixed finite element method and solves the reactive-transport equation using the control volume finite difference method in a sequential fashion. Numerical validation and sensitivity studies have been performed using the proposed numerical solution procedure. The preliminary numerical results demonstrate that the fracture connectivity, flow velocity, and reaction rate are the dominant factors in fracture evolution.
The Kyorin Diplomacy of Early Chosŏn

Since the foundation of Chosŏn in 1392, Korea adhered to its sadae (serving the great) diplomacy as regards Ming China and kyorin (neighbourly relations) diplomacy as regards Japan and the Jurchens. However, the Ming emperor did not allow Chosŏn immediately to become a tributary state due to his suspicion of the insubordination of the former Koryŏ King Kongmin Wang (thirty-first king of the Koryŏ dynasty, r. 1351–1374). Moreover, the complex reasons for the demise of Koryŏ Korea and the confusion about the legitimacy of the Yi dynasty line caused the delay for granting a full tributary status on the part of the Ming. Finally in 1401, at the time of the third king T’aejong (r. 1400–1418), Korea was allowed to become a tributary state by the Ming and in the fourth month of 1403 T’aejong was granted a gold seal and patent by the third emperor Yung-lo.1
Efficient Anytime Anywhere Algorithms for Closeness Centrality in Large and Dynamic Graphs

Recent advances in social network analysis methodologies for large (millions of nodes and billions of edges) and dynamic (evolving at different rates) networks have focused on leveraging new high performance architectures, parallel/distributed tools and novel data structures. However, there has been less focus on designing scalable and efficient algorithms to handle the challenges of dynamism in large-scale networks. In our previous work, we presented an overarching anytime anywhere framework for designing parallel and distributed social network analysis algorithms that are scalable to large network sizes and can handle dynamism. A key contribution of our work is to leverage the anytime and anywhere properties of graph analysis problems to design algorithms that can efficiently handle network dynamism by reusing partial results, and by reducing re-computations. In this paper, we present an algorithm for closeness centrality analysis that can handle changes in the network in the form of edge deletions. Using both theoretical analysis and experimental evaluations, we examine the performance of our algorithm with different network sizes and dynamism rates.
Social Anxiety and Socioemotional Functioning during Early Adolescence: The Mediating Role of Best Friend Emotion Socialization.

Best friend expected emotion socialization responses were examined as a potential explanation for the link between social anxiety and youths’ friendship quality and dysfunctional emotion regulation (ER). A community sample of 202 young adolescents (X¯age = 12.66; 52.5% girls, 75.7% White) within 101 same-sex, reciprocated best friend dyads completed measures of social anxiety, friendship quality, dysfunctional ER, and how they expected their friend to respond to their negative emotions. Social anxiety was related to lower expectations of support (i.e., reward, override) responses from friends, and for boys, to greater expectations of unsupportive (i.e., neglect, aggression) responses from friends. Lower expected support responses mediated the relation between social anxiety and socioemotional functioning for girls. For boys, greater expectations of unsupportive responses mediated the relation between social anxiety and socioemotional functioning. Findings indicate that social anxiety may disrupt emotion s...
ERCP through a gastrojejunal lumen-apposing stent

Figure 2. Fluoroscopic view showing passage of guidewire into the distal duodenum. We present a case of an 84-year-old man who had received a diagnosis of pancreatic head adenocarcinoma 2 years earlier. At that time, he had received bile and pancreatic duct stents with resolution of jaundice and improvement in diarrhea. Over the past month, the patient started experiencing epigastric pain, nausea, and vomiting. Cross-sectional imaging demonstrated no significant change in pancreatic mass size, with intact stents and stable pneumobilia. An upper endoscopy was then performed, demonstrating narrowing of the second portion of the duodenum with inability of the endoscope to traverse this segment. Contrast medium was injected into the duodenal bulb and showed evidence of severe narrowing of the second portion of the duodenum (Fig. 1). A long ERCP guidewire was advanced through the upper endoscope past the duodenal narrowing and looped in the distal duodenum (Fig. 2). The endoscope was then withdrawn while the guidewire was maintained in place. A dilation balloon was advanced over the guidewire into the distal duodenum and inflated to 18 mm (Fig. 3). A linear echoendoscope was then advanced into the stomach. The dilated balloon was identified and punctured with a 19-gauge needle and immediate dissipation of contrast medium into the small intestine was observed (Fig. 4). Another guidewire was advanced through the 19-gauge needle into the small intestine. A Boston-Scientific (Marlborough, Mass) electrocautery-enhanced Axios stent was then deployed over the guidewire into the lumen of the small intestine (Fig. 5). The stent was then dilated with a 13.5-mm dilation balloon (Fig. 6). The final endoscopic and fluoroscopic appearance appeared satisfactory. The patient did well after the procedure, with resolution of symptoms, and was discharged the next day after tolerating a regular diet. However, the patient presented about 2 weeks later with right upper-quadrant pain, fever, and an increase in bilirubin from 0.4 to 2.6 mg/dL. A transabdominal US showed worsening intrahepatic biliary dilatation. Intravenous antibiotics were started, with improvement in symptoms but persistence of laboratory abnormalities. We then discussed with the patient the options of percutaneous drainage, EUS-guided hepaticogastrostomy, or an attempt at exchanging the stent through the newly placed Axios stent. The patient opted for an endoscopic
The effects of temporal decorrelation and topographic slope on forest height retrieval using airborne repeat-pass L-band polarimetric SAR interferometry

We have explored the effects of temporal baseline and terrain slope on forest height estimation using L-band repeat-pass polarimetric synthetic aperture radar interferometry. Data were collected using NASA's Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar instrument over a study area exhibiting high slope topography in the Laurentides Wildlife Reserve of Quebec, Canada. We used lidar-derived canopy height and terrain slope maps to quantify the decorrelation effects that distort the observed coherences compared to the random volume over ground forest model. We derived forest height maps for a number of different temporal baselines using both fixed model parameters and model parameters that varied with slope, and compared the results. Use of a look-up table for the terrain slope effects improved the estimated forest heights, but further work is necessary to see if slope corrections derived from lidar data for this study area can be applied to other study areas, or generalized to a theoretical model.
Learning Symbolic Automata

Symbolic automata allow transitions to carry predicates over rich alphabet theories, such as linear arithmetic, and therefore extend classic automata to operate over infinite alphabets, such as the set of rational numbers. In this paper, we study the foundational problem of learning symbolic automata. We first present \(\mathrm {\Lambda }^*\), a symbolic automata extension of Angluin’s L\(^*\) algorithm for learning regular languages. Then, we define notions of learnability that are parametric in the alphabet theories of the symbolic automata and show how these notions nicely compose. Specifically, we show that if two alphabet theories are learnable, then the theory accepting the Cartesian product or disjoint union of their alphabets is also learnable. Using these properties, we show how existing algorithms for learning automata over large alphabets nicely fall in our framework. Finally, we implement our algorithm in an open-source library and evaluate it on existing automata learning benchmarks.
Molecular barriers to direct cardiac reprogramming

Myocardial infarction afflicts close to three quarters of a million Americans annually, resulting in reduced heart function, arrhythmia, and frequently death. Cardiomyocyte death reduces the heart's pump capacity while the deposition of a non-conductive scar incurs the risk of arrhythmia. Direct cardiac reprogramming emerged as a novel technology to simultaneously reduce scar tissue and generate new cardiomyocytes to restore cardiac function. This technology converts endogenous cardiac fibroblasts directly into induced cardiomyocyte-like cells using a variety of cocktails including transcription factors, microRNAs, and small molecules. Although promising, direct cardiac reprogramming is still in its fledging phase, and numerous barriers have to be overcome prior to its clinical application. This review discusses current findings to optimize reprogramming efficiency, including reprogramming factor cocktails and stoichiometry, epigenetic barriers to cell fate reprogramming, incomplete conversion and residual fibroblast identity, requisite growth factors, and environmental cues. Finally, we address the current challenges and future directions for the field.
An Unscented Kalman-Particle Hybrid Filter for Space Object Tracking

Optimal and consistent estimation of the state of space objects is pivotal to surveillance and tracking applications. However, probabilistic estimation of space objects is made difficult by the non-Gaussianity and nonlinearity associated with orbital mechanics. In this paper, we present an unscented Kalman-particle hybrid filtering framework for recursive Bayesian estimation of space objects. The hybrid filtering scheme is designed to provide accurate and consistent estimates when measurements are sparse without incurring a large computational cost. It employs an unscented Kalman filter (UKF) for estimation when measurements are available. When the target is outside the field of view (FOV) of the sensor, it updates the state probability density function (PDF) via a sequential Monte Carlo method. The hybrid filter addresses the problem of particle depletion through a suitably designed filter transition scheme. To assess the performance of the hybrid filtering approach, we consider two test cases of space objects that are assumed to undergo full three dimensional orbital motion under the effects of J 2 and atmospheric drag perturbations. It is demonstrated that the hybrid filters can furnish fast, accurate and consistent estimates outperforming standard UKF and particle filter (PF) implementations.
Electrochemical Energy Storage with a Reversible Nonaqueous Room-Temperature Aluminum–Sulfur Chemistry

A reversible room-temperature aluminum–sulfur (Al-S) battery is demonstrated with a strategically designed cathode structure and an ionic liquid electrolyte. Discharge–charge mechanism of the Al-S battery is proposed based on a sequence of electrochemical, microscopic, and spectroscopic analyses. The electrochemical process of the Al-S battery involves the formation of a series of polysulfides and sulfide. The high-order polysulfides (Sx2−, x ≥ 6) are soluble in the ionic liquid electrolyte. Electrochemical transitions between S62− and the insoluble low-order polysulfides or sulfide (Sx2−, 1 ≤ x < 6) are reversible. A single-wall carbon nanotube coating applied to the battery separator helps alleviate the diffusion of the polysulfide species and reduces the polarization behavior of the Al-S batteries.
The HCl scheduler: going all-in on heterogeneity

Heterogeneity is a growing concern for scheduling on the cloud. Hardware is increasingly heterogeneous (e.g., GPUs, FPGAs, diverse I/O devices), emphasizing the need to build schedulers that identify the internal structure of applications and utilize available hardware resources to their full potential. In this paper we present our initial efforts to build a scheduler that tackles heterogeneity (in hardware and in software) as a primary concern. Our scheduler, HCl (Heterogeneous Cluster), models applications as annotated directed acyclic graphs (DAGs), where each node represents a task. It maps tasks onto hardware nodes, also organized in DAGs. Initial results using application models based on TPC-DS queries running on Apache Spark show that HCl can improve significantly upon approaches that do not consider heterogeneity and generate schedules that approach the critical path in length.
Product Space Decompositions for Continuous Representations of Brain Connectivity

We develop a method for the decomposition of structural brain connectivity estimates into locally coherent components, leveraging a non-parametric Bayesian hierarchical mixture model with tangent Gaussian components. This model provides a mechanism to share information across subjects while still including explicit mixture distributions of connections for each subject. It further uses mixture components defined directly on the surface of the brain, eschewing the usual graph-theoretic framework of structural connectivity in favor of a continuous model that avoids a priori assumptions of parcellation configuration. The results of two experiments on a test-retest dataset are presented, to validate the method. We also provide an example analysis of the components.
Understanding Weight Regain and the Need for Life-Long Follow-up After Bariatric Surgery

Currently, 15.4% of the population has severe obesity. For adults with severe obesity, bariatric surgery is the most effective and cost-effective treatment available for mortality reduction, weight loss, and comorbidity resolution. Although most surgical patients experience significant weight loss in the year following surgery, a subset of patients experience weight regain thereafter. Weight regain can result in recurrence of comorbidities and reduction in the long-term cost-effectiveness of surgery. Weight regain prompts providers to consider additional interventions. We summarize illustrative studies from the past 5 years on the effectiveness of bariatric surgery; the prevalence of weight regain following surgery; anatomic and behavioral factors contributing to weight regain; and behavioral, surgical, and pharmacological interventions to reduce weight regain. We conclude with recommendations for increasing the evidence base regarding effective methods for maximizing long-term weight loss and associated health and economic outcomes.
Optimizing peer review: the JNIS approach

As JNIS approaches its 10 year anniversary, there has been consistent yearly growth in the number of manuscript submissions both nationally and internationally. As such, there is a corresponding need to grow and develop the peer review process. As stated by Proto: “The quality of a scientific journal is, in a major way, a reflection of the quality and dedication of its reviewers”.1 The purpose of this editorial commentary is to reinforce critical concepts that define the peer review process, particularly for younger physician scientists in our field. A sustainable, constructive, and robust peer review process affirms the integrity and rigor that our authors deserve. A literature exists that defines components of an outstanding review of scholarly articles.2–5 The present commentary highlights process elements that are unique to JNIS . The ScholarOne manuscripts system is the peer review tool used by JNIS and serves as one resource for reviewer selection. Initially, the Editor in Chief (EIC) receives all manuscripts and assigns submissions to individual Associate Editors (AEs). The AE is tasked with selecting and inviting reviewers to a particular manuscript. Thomson Reuters Reviewer Locater works by comparing new manuscript submissions against Web of ScienceTM Core Collection content to generate a list of experts as potential reviewers. This helps widen the reviewer pool beyond those contacts already known to the AE. This program displays reviewers with a known publication record in Web of Science. The Reviewer Locator uses a proprietary platform called ATLAS to parse and extract research metadata such as author names, title, abstract, keywords, and journal of publication from the Web of Science Core Collection. The actual database covers 12 000 high impact journals with 7.3 million potential reviewers with email addresses, institutional affiliations and ORCID ID records. Reviewer requests are automatically generated on each manuscript submission and …
1-(2-Amino-4,5-di­methyl­phen­yl)ethanone

The mol­ecule of the title compound, C10H13NO, also referred to as 2-amino-4,5-di­methyl­aceto­phenone, lies on a crystallographic mirror plane with four mol­ecules in the orthorhombic unit cell and features an intra­molecular N—H⋯O hydrogen bond. In the crystal, the molecules are linked by N—H⋯O hydrogen bonds, forming ribbons along the a axis that pack to form sheets lying in the (010) plane.
Dual and Single-Process Perspectives on the Role of Threat Detection in Evaluation

We applaud March, Gaertner, and Olson for their efforts to integrate the literature on threat detection and evaluation—two literatures that have been surprisingly and perhaps unjustifiably disconne...
Mutant Best1 Expression and Impaired Phagocytosis in an iPSC Model of Autosomal Recessive Bestrophinopathy

Autosomal recessive bestrophinopathy (ARB) is caused by mutations in the gene BEST1 which encodes bestrophin 1 (Best1), an anion channel expressed in retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells. It has been hypothesized that ARB represents the human null phenotype for BEST1 and that this occurs due to nonsense mediated decay (NMD). To test this hypothesis, we generated induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from a patient with ARB and her parents. After differentiation to retinal pigment epithelial (iPSC-RPE) cells, both BEST1 mRNA and Best1 protein expression were compared to controls. BEST1 mRNA expression levels, determined by quantitative PCR, were similar in ARB iPSC-RPE, parental cells, and genetically unrelated controls. Western blotting revealed that CRALBP and RPE65 were expressed within the range delineated by unrelated controls in iPSC-RPE from the ARB donor and her parents. Best1 protein was detected in different clones of ARB iPSC-RPE, but at reduced levels compared to all controls. When tested for the ability to phagocytose photoreceptor outer segments, ARB iPSC-RPE exhibited impaired internalization. These data suggest that impaired phagocytosis is a trait common to the bestrophinopathies. Furthermore, ARB is not universally the result of NMD and ARB, in this patient, is not due to the absence of Best1.
Molecular Engineering of Polyphosphazenes and SWNT Hybrids with Potential Applications as Electronic Materials

Polymer/single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) hybrids are promising candidates in applications such as flexible and stretchable electronics. In this contribution, we have examined structure–property relationships for constructing new polyphosphazene–SWNT hybrids. UV–vis and Raman spectroscopy studies revealed that the unique P═N backbone enables strong intermolecular donor–acceptor interactions between the polymer and SNWTs. Furthermore, the polymeric backbone and the environment at the P-centers collectively play important roles in the formation of the hybrids. For polymers with shorter alkoxy substituents, the donor–acceptor interactions between the P═N backbone and SWNTs play a crucial role in stabilizing the hybrid complexes, but for polymers with longer alkoxy substituents, the CH−π interactions and steric hindrance between the alkyl side chains and SWNTs counterbalance each other and control the stability of the hybrid complexes. Furthermore, the presence of fluorine and oxygen atoms is detrimental t...
Blind Man’s Method

Finding a maximum point of a function is like climbing a mountain. When a blind man climbs a mountain, how does he do it? He is unable to see the global direction and may collect only local information with his stick. A naive way for him is to choose the steepest ascent direction at his current point (Figure 3.1) and along this direction climbs to a new point. In this chapter, we discuss this method of a blind man.
The Tat—TAR RNP, a Master Switch That Regulates HIV-1 Gene Expression

Publisher Summary This chapter focuses on Tat-TAR RNP that acts as a master switch in regulation of Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1) gene expression. The HIV-1 viral protein Tat increases HIV-1 transcription more than 100-fold and is absolutely required for viral replication. Tat is a protein of 86 amino acids that functions by binding to a Ribonucleic acid (RNA) element designated for trans-activation response element (TAR). TAR is a highly structured RNA element located at the 5′ end of all HIV-1 transcripts and is composed of double-stranded stems, a four-nucleotide bulge, and a six-nucleotide loop. Tat binds specifically to the TAR bulge in vitro and on binding alters the structure of the TAR RNA. The chapter discusses about the synthesis and purification of recombinant HIV-1 TAT protein. The chapter also explains concepts related to in vitro transcription system and HIV-1 TAT Trans-Activation. TAT as an affinity reagent to purify novel HIV-1 cofactors is also discussed. The chapter also presents an overview of TAR RNA as an affinity reagent for characterizing the Tat-TAR RNP. A solid-phase based system to study TAT trans-activation is elaborated in depth. The chapter also discusses about preinitiation complex formations.
Project the wiki way: using wiki for computer science course project management

Project-based assignments are widely used in Computer Science courses to give students hands-on experience in using the learned knowledge to solve problems. However, despite its importance, management on student projects is usually done in an ad-hoc fashion, with varying degrees of interaction and guidance to students. This paper presents a general, Wiki-based project management framework: project activities are centralized and captured by a dedicated Wiki site, consisting of Wiki pages created by both the instructor and students. The Project Wiki framework supports all types of project activities, and enables flexible and multi-dimension interaction patterns for instructor, individual student and the whole class.
Inscriptive energetics: climate change, energy, inscription

Scholars often observe that climate change is difficult to engage with and theorize. Rather than admit theoretical defeat, this article proposes that examining climate disruption through the framework of energy offers a way of thinking through, with, and against anthropogenic climate change. As I argue, climate change is an assemblage of shifting energies that includes pressure systems, temperature gradients, and storms. Climate change-as-energy inscribes itself onto material bodies, writing itself into the geologic record, leaving its imprint in plants, and stamping its presence in the flesh of the human and more-than-human. I call this ability of climate energetics to inscribe earthly bodies inscriptive energetics. The material traces of climate change, or inscriptive energetics, can be read on, in, and through bodies. Writers and artists have considered the inscriptive energetics imprinted upon forms—but implicitly, without identifying their own theorization of climate change as a problem of energy. Lynda Mapes’ Witness Tree: Seasons of Change with a Century-Old Oak is a nodal point through which to explore how climate change itself acts as a form of energy that re-writes the world. Her book becomes a touchstone for a larger theory of inscriptive energetics, which expands out to consider examples of literary, artistic, and scientific discourse. As such, this article makes two primary contributions. First, it introduces the concept of inscriptive energetics, offering a theory of climate change based upon the interrelated study of energy and materiality. Second, it provides a way to conceptualize and understand the material impacts of climate change.
A multi-sensor system for measuring bovine embryo metabolism.

This paper presents the development of a multi-sensor platform capable of simultaneous measurement of dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration, glucose and lactate concentrations in a micro-chamber for real-time evaluation of metabolic flux in bovine embryos. A micro-chamber containing all three sensors (DO, glucose, and lactate) was made to evaluate metabolic flux of single oocytes or embryos at different stages of development in ≤ 120 µL of respiration buffer. The ability of the sensor to detect a metabolic shift from oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) to glycolysis was demonstrated in embryos by an ablation of oxygen consumption and an increase in lactate production following addition of oligomycin, an inhibitor of mitochondrial adenosine triphosphate (ATP) synthesis. An increased reliance upon glycolysis relative to OXPHOS was demonstrated in embryos as they developed from morula to hatched blastocysts by a progressive increase in the lactate/oxygen flux ratio, consistent with isolated metabolic assessments reported previously. These studies highlight the utility of a metabolic multi-sensor for integrative real-time monitoring of aerobic and anaerobic energy metabolism in bovine embryos, with potential applications in the study of metabolic processes in oocyte and early embryonic development.
100 Years Ago in the American Ornithologists’ Union

There were 126 General Notes published in The Auk in 1921. Of those, only 23% dealt with something other than distribution. Natural history notes with personal stories often accompanied distributional lists of birds. Otherwise, there were reports of behavior (17), including subjects of song, foraging, nesting, and nest parasitism. There were mentions of elements of natural and anthropogenically driven mortality (3). A few reports concerned nomenclature and systematics (8), and less than a handful directly concerned plumage (4). Overall, reports from East of the Mississippi predominated (83). Twenty-four were from the West, 12 from Canada, and 7 either pertained to or came from overseas.
Nonnative plants reduce population growth of an insectivorous bird

Human-dominated landscapes represent one of the most rapidly expanding and least-understood ecosystems on earth. Yet, we know little about which features in these landscapes promote sustainable wildlife populations. Historically, in urban areas, landowners have converted native plant communities into habitats dominated by nonnative species that are not susceptible to pest damage and require little maintenance. However, nonnative plants are also poor at supporting insects that are critical food resources for higher order consumers. Despite the logical connection, no study has examined the impact of nonnative plants on subsequent population responses of vertebrate consumers. Here, we demonstrate that residential yards dominated by nonnative plants have lower arthropod abundance, forcing resident Carolina chickadees (Poecile carolinensis) to switch diets to less preferred prey and produce fewer young, or forgo reproduction in nonnative sites altogether. This leads to lower reproductive success and unsustainable population growth in these yards compared with those with >70% native plant biomass. Our results reveal that properties landscaped with nonnative plants function as population sinks for insectivorous birds. To promote sustainable food webs, urban planners and private landowners should prioritize native plant species.
Limitations of the TCLP fluid determination step for hazardous waste characterization of US municipal waste incineration ash.

Abstract The Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP) requires the use of one of two acid-based extraction fluids: fluid #1 or fluid #2, determined by the fluid determination step (FDS). Fluid #1 is a buffered solution of acetic acid and sodium hydroxide while fluid #2 is an unbuffered acetic acid solution. Motivated by divergent fluid determination results among different laboratories, the limitations of the FDS in the TCLP used for characterizing municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) ash were investigated by varying three test parameters: solution cooling rate, degree of particle size reduction, and sub-sample selection. A faster cooling rate decreases the needed cooling time and has the potential to alter the fluid outcome to fluid #1. Excessive size reduction of particles forces all the fluid outcomes to fluid #2, possibly due to increased surface area and reaction rate of MSWI particles with the FDS media. Selecting larger particles increases the likelihood of obtaining fluid #1 while selecting smaller particles increases the possibility of requiring fluid #2, possibly due to the lower alkalinity of larger particles and higher alkalinity of smaller particles. These findings suggest that FDS can be conducted using different allowable approaches, based on the interpretation of the users who have the potential to alter the fluid outcomes to achieve a favorable extraction fluid. These limitations may allow MSWI ash to consistently “pass” the TCLP. These phenomena highlight a major flaw in the existing hazardous waste testing protocols for MSWI ash.
Beta Living through Alpha Cells.

Recently in Nature, Furuyama et al. (2019) provide evidence for lineage plasticity in the human endocrine pancreas, demonstrating that α cells derived from adult human pancreatic islets can be reprogrammed to become glucose-responsive, insulin-secreting β-like cells that are capable of reversing diabetes in mouse models.
Interactive visualization of metabolic networks using virtual reality

A combination of graph layouts in 3D space, interactive computer graphics, and virtual reality (VR) can increase the size of understandable networks for metabolic network visualization. Two models, the directed graph and the compound graph, were used to represent a metabolic network. The directed graph, or nonhierarchical visualization, considers the adjacency relationships. For the nonhierarchical visualization, the weighted GEM-3D layout was adopted to emphasize the reactions among metabolite nodes. The compound graph, or hierarchical visualization, explicitly takes the hierarchical relationships like the pathway-molecule hierarchy or the compartment-molecule hierarchy into consideration to improve the performance and perception. An algorithm was designed, which combines the hierarchical force model with the simulated annealing method, to efficiently generate an effective layout for the compound graph. A detail-on-demand method improved the rendering performance and perception of the hierarchical visualization. The directed graph was also used to represent a sub-network composed of reactions of interest (ROIs), which reveal reactions involving a specific node. The fan layout was proposed for ROIs focusing on a metabolite node. The radial layout was adopted for ROIs focusing on a gene node. Graphics scenes were constructed for the network. The shapes and material properties of geometric objects, such as colors, transparencies, and textures, can encode biological properties, such as node names, reaction edge types, etc. Graphics animations like color morph, shape morph, and edge vibration were used to superimpose gene expression profiling data to the network. Interactions for an effective visualization were defined and implemented using VR interfaces. A pilot usability study and some qualitative comparisons were conducted to show potential advantages of stereoscopic VR for metabolic network visualization.
Preventing Postoperative Crohn’s Disease Recurrence

Although the advent of novel medical therapies has broadened the management options for Crohn’s disease, many patients still undergo surgical resection. Management of postoperative Crohn’s disease poses a difficult dilemma as disease recurrence is often clinically silent yet progressive and can lead to future complications requiring additional surgery. Off medical therapy, endoscopic disease recurrence approaches 90% at one year and symptomatic recurrence may reach 60% at 3 years. Several medical treatments for the prevention of postoperative recurrence have been studied, including antibiotics, mesalamine, budesonide, thiopurines, and anti-TNF therapies. The data suggests a benefit of early pharmacological prophylaxis over endoscopy-guided pharmacological treatment, particularly in those who are at moderate- to high-risk for disease recurrence. Regardless of treatment, all patients who have undergone surgically induced remission of Crohn’s disease should undergo postoperative endoscopic surveillance at 6 to 12 months. Further comparative studies are warranted to help define the optimal patient characteristics for recurrence and the optimal timing to introduce postoperative treatment.
Implementing a depression screening algorithm in a memory clinic.

Abstract Purpose and rationale Improved and appropriate utilization of depression screening will increase the quality of life for those individuals with dementia who may have undetected or untreated depression. Synthesis of evidence Depressive symptoms may be an early sign of dementia or occur at any stage. Proposed change and implementation strategies An algorithm was piloted in which initial cognitive screenings were administered prior to using either the Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia (CSDD) screen or Geriatric Depression Scale Short Form (GDS-SF) screen. Evaluation Findings included an increase in depression screening and an improvement of clinician knowledge of screening tools. Conclusions and implications for practice This project enhanced knowledge among the clinicians, however, only one provider improved practices.
The Specter of Authoritarianism among Criminal Justice Majors at Outreach Centers: Do University Outreach Efforts Breed Right-Wing Authoritarianism?

While research has examined criminal justice students in traditional university settings, a predominately Black college, and a military college, no one has looked at CJ students in outreach centers...
Deceived by a CT Scan: The Case of the Misrepresented Stone Size

Background: CT has become the gold standard for radiographic evaluation of urolithiasis. CT is highly sensitive for detecting kidney stones and provides valuable information regarding stone size, c...
Roots tourism: a second wave of Double Consciousness for African Americans

The African diaspora’s ‘re‐migration’ to presumed homelands in Africa has been steadily gaining popularity. In fact, with the recent emergence of the Black Travel Movement, including organizations ...
Disciplining Role of Short Sellers: Evidence From M&A Activity

Prior research has focused on the influence of long investors (e.g., institutional investors) on merger-and-acquisition (M&A) decisions. This study investigates the role of short sellers in shaping...
An In-Depth Analysis of Ride-Hailing Travel Using a Large-scale Trip-Based Dataset.

With the rapid increase in ride-hailing (RH) use, a need to better understand and regulate the industry arises. This paper analyzes a year's worth of RH trip data from the Greater Chicago Area to study RH trip patterns. More than 104 million trips were analyzed. For trip rates, the results show that the total number of trips remained stable over the year, with pooled trips steadily decreasing from 20 to 9 percent. People tend to use RH more on weekends compared to weekdays. Specifically, weekend RH trip counts (per day) are, on average, 20 percent higher than weekday trip counts. The results of this work will help policy makers and transportation administrators better understand the nature of RH trips, which in turn allows for the design of a better regulation and guidance system for the ride-hailing industry.
Language Problems and ADHD Behaviors: Unique and Interactive Associations with School Readiness in a Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Preschool Sample

This study examined the unique and interactive effects of receptive language ability and ADHD behaviors on six school readiness outcomes, over and above the effects of socioeconomic status, in 49 preschoolers (Mage = 3.98, SDage = .58; 53.06% female) recruited from Head Start-affiliated classrooms. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed unique positive associations between receptive language ability and cognitive and mathematics readiness, and unique negative associations between ADHD behaviors and social-emotional, physical, cognitive, and literacy readiness. Moderation analyses indicated that at higher, but not lower, levels of ADHD behaviors, lower receptive language ability was associated with lower social-emotional readiness. Results highlight that, when considered together, children’s receptive language ability and ADHD behaviors vary in how they predict school readiness. Further, results provide preliminary evidence for ADHD behaviors as a risk factor in the association between receptive language deficits and social-emotional school readiness. Educational and clinical practice implications are discussed.
Operation of semiconductor junction diodes at very high frequencies

The objective of this research was to investigate the a-c electrical characteristics of semiconductor junction diodes at very high and ultra high frequencies for various d-c biasing conditions. An investigation of the electrical characteristics of gas diffused semiconductor junctions under the influence of impinging electromagnetic radiation was performed. As a result of these investigations applications of junction diodes at high frequencies became apparent and were developed. The procedure followed was to perform an analysis resulting in the small signal high frequency a-c equivalent circuits for alloy, grown and PIN junction diodes. Then the effect of large signals on the equivalent circuits was studied, followed by experimental verification of the theo­ retical results using commercially available diodes. The reflection charac­ teristics of large area gas diffused PN junction diodes were analyzed. Applications of these semiconductor junction diodes at very high frequencies were invented, and operating systems were tested. It was predicted that an ideal semiconductor junction diode small signal a-c equivalent circuit was a current sensitive conductance when the diode was forward biased and an open circuit when reverse biased. A volt­ age dependent depletion layer capacitor placed in shunt with the ideal diode conductance and a shunt leakage conductance as well as a series ohmic body resistance are added to obtain the equivalent circuits of alloy, grown and PIN junction diodes. For alloy junction diodes the depletion layer capaci­ tance varies inversely as the square root of the applied voltage, while the series ohmic body resistance and the shunt conductance are negligible. The The grown junction depletion layer capacitance varies inversely as the cube
Definition and analysis of election processes

This paper shows that process definition and analysis technologies can be used to reason about the vulnerability of election processes with respect to incorrect or fraudulent behaviors by election officials. The Little-JIL language is used to model example election processes, and various election worker fraudulent behaviors. The FLAVERS finite-state verification system is then used to determine whether different combinations of election worker behaviors cause the process to produce incorrect election results or whether protective actions can be used to thwart these threats.
RECA: a ring-structured energy-efficient cluster architecture for wireless sensor networks

Clustering schemes have been proposed to prolong the lifetime of a Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs). It is also desired that the energy consumption be evenly dispersed throughout the network. This paper presents RECA: a Ring-structured Energy-efficient Clustering Architecture. In RECA, nodes take turns to be the cluster-head and make local decisions on the fair-share length of their duty cycle according to their remaining energy and those of the rest of the nodes within the same cluster, consequently they deplete their energy supply at approximately the same time regardless of the initial amount of energy in their battery. RECA avoids the tight synchronization problem in LEACH and our primary results show that our scheme can achieve 50% – 150% longer network lifetime than LEACH depending on the initial energy level.