cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Multi-Objective Optimized Fuzzy Clustering for Detecting Cell Clusters from Single-Cell Expression Profiles

Rapid advance in single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) allows measurement of the expression of genes at single-cell resolution in complex disease or tissue. While many methods have been developed to detect cell clusters from the scRNA-seq data, this task currently remains a main challenge. We proposed a multi-objective optimization-based fuzzy clustering approach for detecting cell clusters from scRNA-seq data. First, we conducted initial filtering and SCnorm normalization. We considered various case studies by selecting different cluster numbers ( c l = 2 to a user-defined number), and applied fuzzy c-means clustering algorithm individually. From each case, we evaluated the scores of four cluster validity index measures, Partition Entropy ( P E ), Partition Coefficient ( P C ), Modified Partition Coefficient ( M P C ), and Fuzzy Silhouette Index ( F S I ). Next, we set the first measure as minimization objective (↓) and the remaining three as maximization objectives (↑), and then applied a multi-objective decision-making technique, TOPSIS, to identify the best optimal solution. The best optimal solution (case study) that had the highest TOPSIS score was selected as the final optimal clustering. Finally, we obtained differentially expressed genes (DEGs) using Limma through the comparison of expression of the samples between each resultant cluster and the remaining clusters. We applied our approach to a scRNA-seq dataset for the rare intestinal cell type in mice [GEO ID: GSE62270, 23,630 features (genes) and 288 cells]. The optimal cluster result (TOPSIS optimal score= 0.858) comprised two clusters, one with 115 cells and the other 91 cells. The evaluated scores of the four cluster validity indices, F S I , P E , P C , and M P C for the optimized fuzzy clustering were 0.482, 0.578, 0.607, and 0.215, respectively. The Limma analysis identified 1240 DEGs (cluster 1 vs. cluster 2). The top ten gene markers were Rps21, Slc5a1, Crip1, Rpl15, Rpl3, Rpl27a, Khk, Rps3a1, Aldob and Rps17. In this list, Khk (encoding ketohexokinase) is a novel marker for the rare intestinal cell type. In summary, this method is useful to detect cell clusters from scRNA-seq data.
Regular exercise potentiates energetically expensive hepatic de novo lipogenesis during early weight regain.

Exercise is a potent facilitator of long-term weight loss maintenance (WLM), whereby it decreases appetite and increases energy expenditure beyond the cost of the exercise bout. We have previously ...
Operative Applications of Placental Tissue Matrix in Orthopaedic Sports Injuries: A Review of the Literature.

Introduction Placental and amniotic membrane-based tissues have gained widespread popularity for their ability to promote healing and tissue regeneration and have manifested multiple applications in wound care, burn treatment, and management of various ocular conditions. Recently, there have been multiple studies that investigated the nonoperative uses of placental tissue-based products in orthopaedic sports injuries. However, there is a relative paucity of studies that have attempted to evaluate their adjuvant operative uses. Therefore, the aim of this review was to evaluate the use of placental and amniotic tissue-based products as an adjuvant treatment to the operative management of orthopaedic sports injuries. Materials and methods A comprehensive literature search was performed on PubMed, EBSCO Host, EMBASE, and SCOPUS. Studies published between January 1, 2000 and June 1, 2018 were reviewed. Inclusion criteria were that studies should have reported on: 1) operative uses of placental tissue matrix therapy in tendons and ligaments injuries; and 2) clinical outcomes; in 3) human subjects. In addition, the following studies were excluded: 1) animal studies; 2) basic science studies; 3) non-English language studies; 4) review studies; and 5) duplicate studies across databases. Additionally, to determine the various product compositions and indications for use, we searched publicly available manufacturer's website content, marketing literature, FDA registration documents, and Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services submissions to assess the key differences for each of the products. Results Current evidence has led to investigation of various placental and amniotic membrane products used as an adjuvant treatment to surgical reconstruction of various types of tendon injuries, with a demonstrated effectiveness found mostly in the short-term, with follow up ranging between five weeks and two years. In addition, their safety and minimal complication profile have been demonstrated. Marked differences exist among the currently available products due to variations in their formulations, tissue source, processing methodology, sterilization method, preservation and storage methods, indications for use, and FDA regulation. Conclusion Operative uses of placental and amniotic membrane-derived tissues appear to be safe when utilized as an adjuvant or augmentation option along with surgical reconstruction. However, several factors may come into play when considering the diversity of commercially available products. Future clinical trials will need to confirm the safety and demonstrate clearer indications and specific guidelines for use in each clinical scenario involving operative management of tendon injuries. Nevertheless, this review will serve as an up-to-date reference and provide an impetus for future investigations.
Targeting the polyamine pathway—“a means” to overcome chemoresistance in triple-negative breast cancer

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is characterized by its aggressive biology, early metastatic spread, and poor survival outcomes. TNBC lacks expression of the targetable receptors found in other breast cancer subtypes, mandating use of cytotoxic chemotherapy. However, resistance to chemotherapy is a significant problem, encountered in about two-thirds of TNBC patients, and new strategies are needed to mitigate resistance. In this issue of the Journal of Biological Chemistry, Geck et al. report that TNBC cells are highly sensitive to inhibition of the de novo polyamine synthesis pathway and that inhibition of this pathway sensitizes cells to TNBC-relevant chemotherapy, uncovering new opportunities for addressing chemoresistance.
Robust and Stochastic Optimization With a Hybrid Coherent Risk Measure With an Application to Supervised Learning

This letter considers a hybrid risk measure for decision-making under uncertainties that tradeoffs between the solutions obtained from the robust optimization and the stochastic optimization techniques. In the proposed framework, the risk measure is shown to satisfy the properties of coherent risk measures. We can control the level of guaranteed robustness using a parameter. We formulate the stochastic and robust optimization problem under the proposed risk measure and show its equivalent formulation and sensitivity result. We introduce the sample approximation of our technique by combining scenario program and sample average approximation, making our framework amenable for practical usage. We present a supervised learning problem as a case study to corroborate our results and show the implications of the proposed method in machine learning.
An Integrated Programmable Gate Timing Control and Gate Driver Chip for A 48V-to-0.75V Active-Clamp Forward Converter Power Block

This paper presents an integrated programmable gate timing control and primary gate driver chip for an active-clamp forward converter (ACFC) Power Block for data center applications. The ACFC Power Block converts 48 V intermediate bus voltage to processor core voltage on a motherboard with high power density. To improve the overall efficiency and reduce the system form factor, the gate timing control function and gate driver with a high voltage level shifter are integrated on a gate driver chip. These features in the gate driver chip enable the Power Block to optimize the timing of switching transistors and therefore achieve optimum efficiency. The silicon chip is fabricated in a 0.13 μm BCD process. Initial hardware operates at 48 V input and 0.75 V output voltages. Full gate timing control functions have been verified by measurement. An electrical model of this converter shows over 90% efficiency at 130 A.
A novel mechanism of regulation of the transcription factor GLI3 by toll-like receptor signaling

The transcription factor GLI3 is a member of the GLI family and has been shown to be regulated by canonical hedgehog (HH) signaling through smoothened (SMO). Little is known about SMO-independent regulation of GLI3. Here, we identify TLR signaling as a novel pathway regulating GLI3 expression. We show that GLI3 expression is induced by LPS/TLR4 in human monocyte cell lines and peripheral blood CD14+ cells. Further analysis identified TRIF, but not MyD88, signaling as the adapter used by TLR4 to regulate GLI3. Using pharmacological and genetic tools, we identified IRF3 as the transcription factor regulating GLI3 downstream of TRIF. Furthermore, using additional TLR ligands that signal exclusively through TRIF such as the TLR4 ligand, MPLA and the TLR3 ligand, Poly(I:C), we confirm the role of TRIF-IRF3 in the regulation of GLI3. We found that IRF3 directly binds to the GLI3 promoter region and this binding was increased upon stimulation of TRIF-IRF3 with Poly(I:C). Furthermore, using IRF3-/- MEFs, we found that Poly(I:C) stimulation no longer induced GLI3 expression. Finally, using macrophages from mice lacking Gli3 expression in myeloid cells (M-Gli3-/-), we found that in the absence of Gli3, LPS stimulated macrophages secrete less CCL2 and TNF-a; compared with macrophages from wild-type (WT) mice. Taken together, these results identify a novel TLR-TRIF-IRF3 pathway that regulates the expression of GLI3 that regulates inflammatory cytokines and expands our understanding of the non-canonical signaling pathways involved in the regulation of GLI transcription factors.
They Can Do What!? Limitations on the Use of Change-of-Terms Clauses

Almost every contract that calls for ongoing services to consumers contains a provision that authorizes the provider of those services to modify the contract at any time, without any constraint on the modification. With some exceptions, the courts have not been very responsive to arguments that seek to enforce constraints on the provider’s discretion. In the recently enacted Credit CARD Act, Congress has declared that there are indeed some limits on the changes that may be made to one kind of ongoing consumer contract, viz., a contract to provide open-end credit. In this article, to be published in a forthcoming symposium issue of the Georgia State Law Review, we review several statutory rules and common-law doctrines that suggest limits, applicable to all kinds of consumer contracts, on the freedom of service providers to change the terms of the contract.
Inverted central auditory hierarchies for encoding local intervals and global temporal patterns.

Summary In sensory systems, representational features of increasing complexity emerge at successive stages of processing. In the mammalian auditory pathway, the clearest change from brainstem to cortex is defined by what is lost, not by what is gained, in that high-fidelity temporal coding becomes increasingly restricted to slower acoustic modulation rates. 1 , 2 Here, we explore the idea that sluggish temporal processing is more than just an inability for fast processing, but instead reflects an emergent specialization for encoding sound features that unfold on very slow timescales. 3 , 4 We performed simultaneous single unit ensemble recordings from three hierarchical stages of auditory processing in awake mice – the inferior colliculus (IC), medial geniculate body of the thalamus (MGB) and primary auditory cortex (A1). As expected, temporal coding of brief local intervals (0.001 – 0.1 s) separating consecutive noise bursts was robust in the IC and declined across MGB and A1. By contrast, slowly developing (∼1 s period) global rhythmic patterns of inter-burst interval sequences strongly modulated A1 spiking, were weakly captured by MGB neurons, and not at all by IC neurons. Shifts in stimulus regularity were not represented by changes in A1 spike rates, but rather in how the spikes were arranged in time. These findings show that low-level auditory neurons with fast timescales encode isolated sound features but not the longer gestalt, while the extended timescales in higher-level areas can facilitate sensitivity to slower contextual changes in the sensory environment.
Posterior paresis resulting from a vertebral body fracture in a bull

A 2.5-year-old, mixed-breed rodeo bull was examined with a four-month history of ataxia and weakness in the pelvic limbs. The neurologic signs were noted while the bull was on pasture breeding cows. Spinal radiographs revealed a compression fracture of the 13th thoracic vertebrae, and myelography showed impingement of the spinal cord due to the fracture. Necropsy examination confirmed the diagnosis of a compression fracture of T13 with secondary damage to the spinal cord. Vertebral fractures are uncommon in adult cattle, yet this case appears to be unrelated to any previously published causes. Furthermore, myelography can be an effective diagnostic test in the evaluation of spinal cord disease in adult cattle.
Limited Shared Variance among Measures of Cognitive Performance Used in Nutrition Research: The Need to Prioritize Construct Validity and Biological Mechanisms in Choice of Measures.

Background The literature on correlates of nutrition has seen an increase in studies focused on functional consequences at the levels of neural, perceptual, and cognitive functioning. A range of measurement methodologies have been used in these studies, and investigators and funding agencies have raised the questions of how and if these various methodologies are at all comparable. Objective The aim was to determine the extent to which 3 different sets of cognitive measures provide comparable information across 2 subsamples that shared culture and language but differed in terms of socioeconomic status (SES) and academic preparation. Methods A total of 216 participants were recruited at 2 US universities. Each participant completed 3 sets of cognitive measures: 1 custom-designed set based on well-understood laboratory measures of cognition [cognitive task battery (COGTASKS)] and 2 normed batteries [Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB), Weschler Adult Intelligence Scale, fourth edition (WAIS-IV)] designed for assessing general cognitive function. Results The 3 sets differed with respect to the extent to which SES and educational preparation affected the results, with COGTASKS showing no differences due to testing location and WAIS-IV showing substantial differences. There were, at best, weak correlations among tasks sharing the same name or claiming to measure the same construct. Conclusions Comparability of measures of cognition cannot be assumed, even if measures have the same name or claim to assess the same construct. In selecting and evaluating different measures, construct validity and underlying biological mechanisms need to be at least as important as population norms and the ability to connect with existing literatures.
Access Control Policy Generation from User Stories Using Machine Learning

Agile software development methodology involves developing code incrementally and iteratively from a set of evolving user stories. Since software developers use user stories to write code, these user stories are better representations of the actual code than that of the high-level product documentation. In this paper, we develop an automated approach using machine learning to generate access control information from a set of user stories that describe the behavior of the software product in question. This is an initial step to automatically produce access control specifications and perform automated security review of a system with minimal human involvement. Our approach takes a set of user stories as input to a transformers-based deep learning model, which classifies if each user story contains access control information. It then identifies the actors, data objects, and operations the user story contains in a named entity recognition task. Finally, it determines the type of access between the identified actors, data objects, and operations through a classification prediction. This information can then be used to construct access control documentation and information useful to stakeholders for assistance during access control engineering, development, and review.
The Effects of Brand Involvement and Messaging Strategy on User Responses

Through examination has been conducted on the effects of messaging strategies on consumers’ online engagement, yet has neglected to assess the additional role brand characteristics play. This study...
The Dream of Power and the Power of Dreams: Ursula K. Le Guin and the X-Men

Ursula K. Le Guin’s evolving concepts of power, technology, and responsibility find echoes and interpretations in several stories about the X-Men. The 1980s X-Men storyline called The Asgardian Wars explicitly rewrites The Lathe of Heaven, distinguishing—in Ursula Franklin’s terms—prescriptive and controlling from holistic and craft-like technology, and recommending that users of technological or magical power consider their roles within the systems that they attempt to change. Le Guin’s later consideration of powers and superpowers in the trilogy Annals of the Western Shore parallels the later superhero storyline Age of X-Man in its refusal of human perfectibility. Finally, Le Guin’s story “The Flyers of Gy” replicates the mutant metaphor at the heart of X-stories: mutants do not and cannot refuse the powers that set them apart.
Platinum-Group Element (PGE) Deposits

The platinum-group elements (PGE) comprise a geochemically coherent group of siderophile to chalcophile metals that includes osmium (Os), iridium (Ir), ruthenium (Ru), rhodium (Rh), platinum (Pt), and palladium (Pd). Based on association, the PGE may be divided into two subgroups: the Ir-subgroup (IPGE) consisting of Os, Ir, and Ru and the Pd-subgroup (PPGE) consisting of Rh, Pt, and Pd.
Multilevel vector autoregressive prediction of sea surface temperature in the North Tropical Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea

We use a multilevel vector autoregressive model (VAR-L), to forecast sea surface temperature anomalies (SSTAs) in the Atlantic hurricane Main Development Region (MDR). VAR-L is a linear regression model using global SSTA data from L prior months as predictors. In hindcasts for the recent 30 years, the multilevel VAR-L outperforms a state-of-the-art dynamic forecast model, as well as the commonly used linear inverse model (LIM). The multilevel VAR-L model shows skill in 6–12 month forecasts, with its greatest skill in the months of the active hurricane season. The optimized model for the best long-range skill score in the MDR, chosen by a cross-validation procedure, has 12 time levels and 12 empirical orthogonal function modes. We investigate the optimal initial conditions for MDR SSTA prediction using a generalized singular vector decomposition of the propagation matrix. We find that the added temporal degrees of freedom for the predictands in VAR12 as compared with a LIM model, which allow the model to capture both the local wind–evaporation–SST feedback in the Tropical Atlantic and the impact on the Atlantic of an improved medium-range ENSO forecast, elevate the long-range forecast skill in the MDR.
Another proof of the alternating sign matrix conjecture

Author(s): Kuperberg, Greg | Abstract: Robbins conjectured, and Zeilberger recently proved, that there are 1!4!7!...(3n-2)!/n!/(n+1)!/.../(2n-1)! alternating sign matrices of order n. We give a new proof of this result using an analysis of the six-vertex state model (also called square ice) based on the Yang-Baxter equation.
Effects of intracellular trehalose content on Streptomyces griseus spores

The disaccharide trehalose is accumulated as a storage product by spores of Streptomyces griseus. Growth on media containing excess glucose yielded spores containing up to 25% of their dry weight as trehalose. Spores containing as little as 1% of their dry weight as trehalose were obtained during growth on media containing a limiting amount of glucose. Spores containing low levels of trehalose accumulated this sugar when incubated with glucose. The increase in trehalose content coincided with increases in spore refractility, heat resistance, desiccation resistance, and the time required for spore germination in complex media. Trehalose is accumulated by a wide variety of actinomycetes and related bacteria and may be partially responsible for their resistance properties.
Choosing and Using Climate‐Change Scenarios for Ecological‐Impact Assessments and Conservation Decisions

Increased concern over climate change is demonstrated by the many efforts to assess climate effects and develop adaptation strategies. Scientists, resource managers, and decision makers are increasingly expected to use climate information, but they struggle with its uncertainty. With the current proliferation of climate simulations and downscaling methods, scientifically credible strategies for selecting a subset for analysis and decision making are needed. Drawing on a rich literature in climate science and impact assessment and on experience working with natural resource scientists and decision makers, we devised guidelines for choosing climate-change scenarios for ecological impact assessment that recognize irreducible uncertainty in climate projections and address common misconceptions about this uncertainty. This approach involves identifying primary local climate drivers by climate sensitivity of the biological system of interest; determining appropriate sources of information for future changes in those drivers; considering how well processes controlling local climate are spatially resolved; and selecting scenarios based on considering observed emission trends, relative importance of natural climate variability, and risk tolerance and time horizon of the associated decision. The most appropriate scenarios for a particular analysis will not necessarily be the most appropriate for another due to differences in local climate drivers, biophysical linkages to climate, decision characteristics, and how well a model simulates the climate parameters and processes of interest. Given these complexities, we recommend interaction among climate scientists, natural and physical scientists, and decision makers throughout the process of choosing and using climate-change scenarios for ecological impact assessment. Seleccion y Uso de Escenarios de Cambio Climatico para Estudios de Impacto Ecologico y Decisiones de Conservacion.
A Fresh Look at Electron Hydration

Hydrated electrons form when excess electrons are injected into water. In his Perspective, Jordan discusses the properties of these unusual species. He highlights the reports of Paik et al ., Bragg et al ., and Hammer et al ., who use negatively charged water clusters containing 4 to 50 water molecules to elucidate the arrangement of water molecules in the vicinity of a hydrated electron and to study its dynamics. Such cluster studies provide a much higher level of detail than most studies of bulk water and serve as important benchmarks for theoretical studies. Whether they can be extrapolated to bulk water depends, however, on whether the electron resides on the surface or in the interior of the clusters.
Molecular genetics of neuronal adhesion

Cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions are believed to play crucial roles in neural development. Cell adhesion molecules of the immunoglobulin and cadherin families, as well as integrin heterodimers and extracellular matrix glycoproteins, are widely expressed in the nervous system. The advent of gene targeting technology has heralded a new era for study of their function. Initial observations in 'knockout' mice have yielded some surprising results.
The Cambridge Introduction to Eighteenth-Century Poetry: Blank verse and stanzaic poetry

Blank verse It has often been observed that a lot of bad blank verse was written during the eighteenth century, and Milton’s influence is usually blamed. It is not often enough observed that a lot of bad blank verse has been written in every period from the Renaissance on, with and without Milton’s help. Milton’s originality and particular influence lay in having appropriated blank verse for non-dramatic poetry and having written a great epic. His success no doubt influenced many would-be epic poets to flap toward the heavens when they had better stayed at home. But for the reader new to the period, who is in little danger of wading into its failed epics or long poems on agriculture, the question is what to listen for in the major achievements in blank verse by accomplished poets such as James Thomson, Anna Laetitia Barbauld, and William Cowper. The story of blank verse through much of the eighteenth century is one of growing flexibility, until by the 1780s and 1790s it has grown quiet enough to become a supple and subtle medium for conversational meditation. Although early in the century both the heroic couplet and blank verse were associated with lofty speeches – in epic, heroic drama, and tragedy – the couplet was adapted for conversation much more quickly. It was to couplets, as we have seen, that many writers throughout the century turned for colloquial discourse and couplets that Finch, Parnell, Tollett, Johnson, and Goldsmith adopted for rumination. The best explanation may be Pope’s own. Speaking with Joseph Spence in June of 1739, Pope remarked, “I have nothing to say for rhyme, but that I doubt whether a poem can support itself without it in our language, unless it be stiffened with such strange words as are like to destroy our language itself.” In other words, blank verse encourages exotic diction and a grandeur at odds with a middle style: “The high style,” Pope continues, “that is affected so much in blank verse would not have been borne even in Milton, had not his subject turned so much on strange out-of-the-world things as it does.”
Concurrent Diabetes Mellitus may Negatively Influence Clinical Progression and Response to Androgen Deprivation Therapy in Patients with Advanced Prostate Cancer.

Objective: To determine if a concurrent diagnosis of diabetes mellitus is associated with worse outcomes in advanced prostate cancer. The effect diabetes may have on the progression of advanced prostate cancer is poorly understood. Methods: Data on 148 advanced prostate cancer patients (35 with concurrent diabetes) were collected from an institutional database to obtain diabetic status, data on treatment types and durations, and PSA values before, during and after treatment. Time to castration resistance following the onset of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) and overall survival in patients with and without diabetes were compared using univariate Cox regression analyses as the primary endpoints. Differences in PSA response to treatments were compared using chi-squared tests as a secondary endpoint. Results: With a median follow-up of 29 months, time to castration resistance did not differ significantly between patients with and without diabetes who underwent ADT. However, in a subset of patients who received ADT without radiographic evidence of metastases (N=47), those with diabetes progressed to castration-resistant disease more quickly than those without diabetes (Hazard Ratio for progression with diabetes = 4.58; 95% CI: 1.92-10.94; p = 0.0006). Also, a lower percentage of patients with diabetes undergoing ADT had PSA declines of at least 50% (p=0.17) and reached a nadir PSA <0.2 ng/mL (p=0.06). Overall survival did not differ based on diabetic status. No differences were seen in response to first-line therapy for castration-resistant prostate cancer. Conclusions: Diabetes mellitus may have a detrimental effect on progression of advanced prostate cancer, particularly in those patients without radiographic evidence of metastases. Further study is necessary to fully elucidate the effect of diabetes on prostate cancer outcomes.
Epidemiology and Control of Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Infections in the Intensive Care Unit

Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) are infections that are not present or incubating at the time of healthcare (e.g., hospital, long-term care, etc.) admission or encounter (1,2). Although HAIs can become clinically apparent during or after hospitalization, the majority become manifest during hospitalization. This is particularly true of HAIs in intensive care unit (ICU) patients, the population in the healthcare delivery system with the highest rates of HAIs. ICU patients are the most severely ill and have the highest rate of use of invasive devices or procedures. Most HAIs are associated with invasive devices, e.g., central venous catheters (CVCs), mechanical ventilation, or urinary catheterization, or procedures, particularly surgical procedures.
Brief Annotated Bibliography on Point Processes

Three topics from mathematics and statistics arose repeatedly in the astronomical papers at the Statistical Challenges in Modern Astronomy II conference, namely, wavelets (not intrinsically statistical), time series, and point processes, in particular, the Poisson process and its many variants.
Multiplicative updates for L 1 -regularized linear and logistic regression

Multiplicative update rules have proven useful in many areas of machine learning. Simple to implement, guaranteed to converge, they account in part for the widespread popularity of algorithms such as nonnegative matrix factorization and Expectation-Maximization. In this paper, we show how to derive multiplicative updates for problems in L1-regularized linear and logistic regression. For L1-regularized linear regression, the updates are derived by reformulating the required optimization as a problem in nonnegative quadratic programming (NQP). The dual of this problem, itself an instance of NQP, can also be solved using multiplicative updates; moreover, the observed duality gap can be used to bound the error of intermediate solutions. For L1-regularized logistic regression, we derive similar updates using an iteratively reweighted least squares approach. We present illustrative experimental results and describe efficient implementations for large-scale problems of interest (e.g., with tens of thousands of examples and over one million features).
Rewrite Closure for Ground and Cancellative AC Theories

Given a binary relation E ∪ R on the set of ground terms over some signature, we define an abstract rewrite closure for E ∪ R. An abstract rewrite closure can be interpreted as a specialized ground tree transducer (pair of bottom-up tree automata) and can be used to efficiently decide the reachability relation →E ∪ E- ∪ R*. It is constructed using a completion like procedure. Correctness is established using proof ordering techniques. The procedure is extended, in a modular way, to deal with signatures containing cancellative associative commutative function symbols.
Expression of brain-specific hyaluronectin (BHN), a hyaluronate-binding protein, in dog postnatal development.

Abstract Monoclonal antibodies reacting with the brain-specific form of hyaluronectin, a hyaluronate-binding protein, were used in conjuction with antibodies to the glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), the subunit of astrocyte-specific intermediate filaments, to study the postnatal development of spinal cord and cerebral white matter in the dog. As previously reported, the distributions of brain-specific hyaluronectin (BHN) and GFAP in adult dog spinal cord white matter were similar. Both antigens formed a mesh surrounding individual myelinated axons. Furthermore, the glia limitans on the surface of the spinal cord and the glial septa were stained by both antibodies. In newborn dog spinal cord, hyaluronectin immunoreactivity was confined to the glia limitans on the surface. At this time GFAP-positive fibers formed a dense mesh throughout the myelinated white matter. Staining of spinal cord white matter with BHN antibodies first appeared on day 15 and reached its mature appearance in the fully myelinated spinal cord on day 21. In cerebral white matter BHN immunoreactivity was first observed on day 21. With GFAP antibodies astrocytes were extremely few in the nonmyelinated cerebral white matter of 1- and 3-day-old dogs. GFAP-positive astrocytes in cerebral white matter had markedly increased on day 9 before the onset of myelination on day 15. On day 21, myelination was confined to deep cerebral white matter and myelin sheaths were still very few in subcortical white matter. We conclude that BHN expression by white matter astrocytes is an extremely late event in brain development, first occuring after the onset of myelination.
STATE TRANSITIONS IN LOW-MASS X-RAY BINARIES

We investigate the model of disk/coronal accretion into a black hole. We show that the inner regions of an accretion disk in X-ray binaries can transform from a cool standard disk to an advection-dominated flow through the known properties of Coulomb interaction in a two-temperature plasma, viscous heating, radiative processes, and thermal conduction. A hot, diffuse corona covering the disk is powered by accretion, but it exchanges mass with the underlying cold disk. If the accretion rate in the system is low enough, we show that the corona evaporates the disk away, leaving an advective flow to continue toward the hole. In the soft/hard transition commonly seen in X-ray binaries, we show that this advective flow can recondense back onto the underlying disk if the change in the system's accretion rate is slow enough due to thermal conduction. Unabsorbed spectra are produced to test against observations as well as prediction of the location of truncation radii of the accretion disk.
Bisphenol A Exposure Disrupts Metabolic Health Across Multiple Generations in the Mouse

Accumulating evidence has suggested that a suboptimal early life environment produces multigenerational developmental defects. A proposed mechanism is stable inheritance of DNA methylation. Here we show that maternal bisphenol A (BPA) exposure in C57BL/6 mice produces multigenerational metabolic phenotypes in their offspring. Using various methods including dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry analyses, glucose tolerance tests, and perifusion islet studies, we showed that exposure to 10 μg/kg/d and 10 mg/kg/d BPA in pregnant F0 mice was associated with higher body fat and perturbed glucose homeostasis in F1 and F2 male offspring but not female offspring. To provide insight into the mechanism of the multigenerational metabolic abnormalities, we investigated the maternal metabolic milieu and inheritance of DNA methylation across generations. We showed that maternal glucose homeostasis during pregnancy was altered in the F0 but not F1 female mice. The results suggested that a compromised maternal metabolic milieu may play a role in the health of the F1 offspring but cannot account for all of the observed multigenerational phenotypes. We further demonstrated that the metabolic phenotypes in the F1 and F2 BPA male offspring were linked to fetal overexpression of the imprinted Igf2 gene and increased DNA methylation at the Igf2 differentially methylated region 1. Studies in H19(Δ3.8/+) mouse mutants supported the role of fetal Igf2 overexpression in altered adult glucose homeostasis. We conclude that early life BPA exposure at representative human exposure levels can perturb metabolic health across multiple generations in the mouse through stable inheritance of DNA methylation changes at the Igf2 locus.
Occupied Electronic States of CaSi2 and CaSi: Soft X-Ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy

The Ca {ital L}{sub 2,3} and Si {ital L}{sub 2,3} fluorescence spectra for CaSi{sub 2} and CaSi are studied. These spectra provide {ital s} and {ital d} partial density-of-states (PDOS) information for the Ca and Si atoms. The measured PDOS`s are in good agreement with available calculations. Using monochromatized x rays to excite core electrons to localized Ca {ital d} states near threshold produces resonant recombination fluorescence peaks for the {ital L}{sub 3} and {ital L}{sub 2} edges of Ca in both compounds. In CaSi, with resonant excitation, inelastic Raman peaks are also observed. The energy position of the inelastic peaks indicates that the creation of the core hole shifts the Ca {ital d} states by several eV. The intensity of the resonance peaks indicates the degree of localization of the Ca {ital d} states, which is reduced by their participation in the bonding of the silicides. The empty Ca {ital d} states are found to be quite localized in CaSi, and less so in CaSi{sub 2}.
A fast method for obtaining a “continuous” sample of the inversion-recovery curve using spatially swept adiabatic inversion

The measure of the longitudinal, or T, , relaxation time in nuclear magnetic resonance experiments is a common diagnostic tool. There have been several methods proposed for measuring this parameter. Most of these methods measure the recovery of longitudinal magnetization after inversion or saturation. Conventional ( 180”-Ti90”) experiments measure the signal strength for a single temporal point Ti on the recovery curve. These protocols are typically long, due to the necessarily long times between NMR experiments (TR), which must be on the order of five times the T, constant or more. Many new techniques require only one experiment to obtain several points on the relaxation curve (Z-3). These are based on a technique proposed by Look and Locker (4) and later by Kaptein et al. (5) in which each data-collection experiment involves one inversion followed by N small-tip-angle RF pulses which “probe” the signal strength over time. The change in signal strength for each of the N acquisitions is correlated with the difference in Ti , allowing the relaxation rate to be sampled at N points in one data-collection period. Another group of T, methods is based on the equilibration of magnetization under rapid excitation (6, 7). These methods are also much faster than conventional inversion-recovery methods. A common quality of all of the above techniques is that they give a limited number of discrete measures of longitudinal relaxation. The method described in this Note is able to give a much greater sampling of the relaxation curve in a single experiment. It correlates Ti with a spatial dimension by adiabatically inverting spins in the presence of a magnetic-field gradient. An example of the pulse sequences used is shown in Fig. 1. The change in frequency of the inverting RF is constant (and adiabatic) over time, thus causing an inversion of spins which is temporally linear with distance in the spatial dimension. If the region of the sample which is inverted by this pulse is homogeneous in T,, then the inversion-recovery curve over time will be represented as a continuous inversion-recovery curve over space. The amount of the relaxation curve visible in the experiment is equal to the sweep time. A simple spin-echo (or gradient-echo) experiment with a readout gradient in the same direction as the inversion will allow one to discriminate points along the inversion-recovery curve at high resolution. The choice of adiabatic inversion parameters is governed by three major equations. These equations are given with respect to the effective field shown in Fig. 2, where H,
STD and HIV risk factors among U.S. young adults: variations by gender, race, ethnicity and sexual orientation.

CONTEXT: STDs, including HIV, disproportionately affect individuals who have multiple minority identities. Understanding differences in STD risk factors across racial, ethnic and sexual minority groups, as well as genders, is important for tailoring public health interventions. METHODS: Data from Waves 3 (2001–2002) and 4 (2007–2008) of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health were used to develop population-based estimates of STD and HIV risk factors among 11,045 young adults (mean age, 29 at Wave 4), by gender, race and ethnicity, and sexual orientation (heterosexual, mixed-oriented, gay). Regression analyses were conducted to examine associations between risk factors and young adults’ characteristics. RESULTS: Overall, sexual-minority women in each racial or ethnic group had a higher prevalence of sexual risk behaviors—including a history of multiple partners, forced sex and incarceration—than their heterosexual counterparts. Mixed-oriented women in each racial or ethnic group were more likely than heterosexual white women to have received an STD diagnosis (odds ratios, 1.8–6.4). Black men and sexual-minority men also appeared to be at heightened risk. Gay men in all racial and ethnic groups were significantly more likely than heterosexual white men to report having received an STD diagnosis (2.3–8.3); compared with heterosexual white men, mixed-oriented black men had the highest odds of having received such a diagnosis (15.2). CONCLUSIONS: Taking account of multiple minority identities should be an important part of future research and intervention efforts for STD and HIV prevention.
Mechanisms of ciliary motility: An update

Summary Ciliary motility is dependent upon dynein-driven sliding of microtubules. Attention has been focussed on the molecular biology and mechanochemistry of dynein, via techniques involving mutant analysis and in vitro motility measurements. In Chlamydomonas, Tetrahymena and Paramecium, the best studied protistan genera, the outer dynein arm is a compacted three-headed heterotrimeric bouquet. Every bouquet is identical, while each ATPase head of the bouquet is coded by a different dynein heavy (H) chain gene. One H chain (Paramecium α) binds a 29 kDa regulatory light chain whose phosphorylation increases the velocity of sliding of the dynein, which in turn increases ciliary beat frequency. At least seven different H chains within a 96 nm spoke group repeat form the inner dynein arms. The structural organization of the inner arms is complex, and several models have been proposed. The inner dynein arms evidently control bend formation. Their activity also changes upon phosphorylation or dephosphorylation, the signal for which is transduced via the spoke-central sheath complex and a dynein-regulatory complex that lies adjacent to the arms on the doublet. How inner and outer arms operate coordinately is not understood. The outer dynein arms have a strong attachment and force-producing phase that is very short (1%) compared to their cycle time. Only a few dynein steps probably occur per doublet during an effective stroke, which suggests that arm activity on an active doublet is stochastic. The orientation of the central pair within the axoneme determines the plane of bending, probably by dividing the doublets into active and inactive half axonemes, according to a switch point model. Computer reconstructions and analytical techniques such as finite element analysis are useful tools of exploring this model. Although many aspects of the mechanism of bend production and propagation still remain either undefined or controversial, a general outline is beginning to emerge.
Bermudagrass and Buffalograss Drought Response and Recovery at Two Soil Depths

Drought responsive turfgrass cultivars are becoming increasingly important in water conservation. Eight cultivars of bermudagrass [Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers.], one cultivar of buffalograss [Buchloe dactyloides (Nutt.) Engelm.], and two root-zone depths were evaluated for drought response and recovery during consecutive 60-d drought and 60-d recovery periods over 2 yr. Individual cultivar responses to drought and post-drought recovery time were quantified through digital image analysis as the number of days to decrease to or increase to 50% green ground cover, respectively. No grass survived the 60-d drought when planted on the restricted 10-cm soil depth in 2006 or 2007, while all entries survived when planted on the unrestricted native soil depth. Both study years provided unique conditions for investigating drought response as the mean time to reach 50% green ground cover differed by 17 d between the 2 yr of study. Some cultivars lost 50% green ground cover in 20 d while other cultivars lasted the entire 60-d drought period without losing 50% green ground cover. Post-drought turfgrass recovery responses differed by as much as 45 d in achieving 50% green ground cover. Documenting individual cultivar responses to drought and recovery may provide perspective on individual grass cultivars that may initiate poor irrigation management behavior due to early leaf firing as well as refine consumer expectations following drought conditions.
A simplified form of Holland's equations in the solution of multicolumn distillation systems

When the Holland convergence acceleration scheme has been extended to multicolumn sustems as by Nartker, Srygley and Holland a second set of unknowns which they term “systemΘ's” is required. An alternate formulation is presented here in which the Holland equations for multicolumn systmes are expressed without the introduction of any unknowns beyond those previously used in formulating the Hollad equations for a single column. This formulation permits the existence and uniqueness of a positive solution to be established when and arbitrary number of units are arranged in a single recycle loop. Furthermore a numerical difficulty encountered with the procedure of Nartker, et al is discussed and a modification is presented which elimiates the difficulty. Quand Nartker, Srygley et Hollad etendent a des systemes a colonnes multiples le systeme d'acceleration de convergence de Holland, il est necessaire d'avoir recours a une seconde serie d'inconnus qu'ils designent par l'expression “systeme Θ's”. ON presente dans le present travail une formule de rechange dans laquelle on exprime les equations de Holland pour les systemes a colonnes multiples sans y intruduire d'autres inconnus que ceux qui ont deja ete employes pour formuler les equations de Holland dans le cas d'une colonne simple; la dite formulation permet l'existence unique d'une solution positive qu'on peut etablir lorsqu'un nombre arbitraire de colonnes sont arrangees en une seule boucle de recyclage. On discute egalement une difficulte numerique qu'one rencontre dans la methode de Nartker et al et presente une modification qui la surmonte.
Manuscript Publication by Urology Residents and Predictive Factors

Purpose: Many academic institutions have set expectations for peer reviewed publications, yet there is no objective guideline to gauge the performance of a urology resident or program. We quantified and determined predictive factors for resident manuscript production.Materials and Methods: Electronic surveys were sent to 255 chief residents and recent graduates of 83 accredited urological training programs in the United States and Canada. Survey questions pertained to manuscript submission and acceptance before and during residency, months of research incorporated into residency, PhD degree status and the pursuit of fellowship training.Results: Surveys were completed by 127 residents from 83 programs. The median number of manuscripts submitted and accepted during residency was 3 (range 0 to 32) and 2 (range 0 to 25), respectively. Months of protected research time and the number of publications before residency were significantly predictive of the number of manuscripts submitted during residency (p <0.001...