cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Model Based Biomass System Design of Feedstock Supply Systems for Bioenergy Production

Engineering feedstock supply systems that deliver affordable, high-quality biomass remains a challenge for the emerging bioenergy industry. Cellulosic biomass is geographically distributed and has diverse physical and chemical properties. Because of this feedstock supply systems that deliver cellulosic biomass resources to biorefineries require integration of a broad set of engineered unit operations. These unit operations include harvest and collection, storage, preprocessing, and transportation processes. Design decisions for each feedstock supply system unit operation impact the engineering design and performance of the other system elements. These interdependencies are further complicated by spatial and temporal variances such as climate conditions and biomass characteristics. This paper develops an integrated model that couples a SQL-based data management engine and systems dynamics models to design and evaluate biomass feedstock supply systems. The integrated model, called the Biomass Logistics Model (BLM), includes a suite of databases that provide 1) engineering performance data for hundreds of equipment systems, 2) spatially explicit labor cost datasets, and 3) local tax and regulation data. The BLM analytic engine is built in the systems dynamics software package PowersimTM. The BLM is designed to work with thermochemical and biochemical based biofuel conversion platforms and accommodates a range of cellulosic biomass types (i.e.,more » herbaceous residues, short- rotation woody and herbaceous energy crops, woody residues, algae, etc.). The BLM simulates the flow of biomass through the entire supply chain, tracking changes in feedstock characteristics (i.e., moisture content, dry matter, ash content, and dry bulk density) as influenced by the various operations in the supply chain. By accounting for all of the equipment that comes into contact with biomass from the point of harvest to the throat of the conversion facility and the change in characteristics, the BLM evaluates economic performance of the engineered system, as well as determining energy consumption and green house gas performance of the design. This paper presents a BLM case study delivering corn stover to produce cellulosic ethanol. The case study utilizes the BLM to model the performance of several feedstock supply system designs. The case study also explores the impact of temporal variations in climate conditions to test the sensitivity of the engineering designs. Results from the case study show that under certain conditions corn stover can be delivered to the cellulosic ethanol biorefinery for $35/dry ton.« less
Risk and Resistance: The Ethical Education of Psychoanalysis

Agonistic theories of democratic practice lack an explicit model for ethical cultivation. Even as these theorists advocate sensibilities of “ethical open-ness and receptivity,” so as to engage in the political work of “maintenance, repair, and amendment,” they lack an account of how individuals ought be motivated to this task or how it should unfold. Toward theorizing such a model, I turn to Freud and clinical psychoanalytic practice. I argue that Freud’s “second-education” (Nacherziehung) offers an ethical cultivation framed around a “combative collaboration” between analyst and patient that teaches tolerance of discomfort; endurance of uncertainty; and narrative capacity. This second-education suggests two lessons for politics. First, that we might do well to reproduce its relational form more broadly across politics. And second, that we cultivate those “sacral spaces” capable of challenging the conditions for symbolic meaning as it stretches between personal and collective practices.
Redox control of the DNA damage-inducible protein DinG helicase activity via its iron-sulfur cluster.

The Escherichia coli DNA damage-inducible protein DinG, a member of the superfamily 2 DNA helicases, has been implicated in the nucleotide excision repair and recombinational DNA repair pathways. Combining UV-visible absorption, EPR, and enzyme activity measurements, we demonstrate here that E. coli DinG contains a redox-active [4Fe-4S] cluster with a midpoint redox potential (Em) of –390 ± 23 mV (pH 8.0) and that reduction of the [4Fe-4S] cluster reversibly switches off the DinG helicase activity. Unlike the [4Fe-4S] cluster in E. coli dihydroxyacid dehydratase, the DinG [4Fe-4S] cluster is stable, and the enzyme remains fully active after exposure to 100-fold excess of hydrogen peroxide, indicating that DinG could be functional under oxidative stress conditions. However, the DinG [4Fe-4S] cluster can be efficiently modified by nitric oxide (NO), forming the DinG-bound dinitrosyl iron complex with the concomitant inactivation of helicase activity in vitro and in vivo. Reassembly of the [4Fe-4S] cluster in NO-modified DinG restores helicase activity, indicating that the iron-sulfur cluster in DinG is the primary target of NO cytotoxicity. The results led us to propose that the iron-sulfur cluster in DinG may act as a sensor of intracellular redox potential to modulate its helicase activity and that modification of the iron-sulfur cluster in DinG and likely in other DNA repair enzymes by NO may contribute to NO-mediated genomic instability.
The Effect of Early Craniocervical Decompression on Functional Outcome in Neonates and Young Infants With Myelodysplasia and Symptomatic Chiari II Malformations: Results From a Prospective Series

The indications for hindbrain decompression in neonates and young infants with spinal dysraphism who experience brain stem dysfunction in association with Chiari II malformations have remained controversial. This largely reflects the fact that the postoperative outcome in such patients has often been poor, which has supported the belief that much of the brain stem compromise in these patients is congenital and inherently irreversible. However, in a previous retrospective review of our operative results between 1975 and 1989, we noted that a significant component of the brain stem dysfunction in these children was an acquired phenomenon that potentially was reversible with prompt operative intervention. Accordingly, we hypothesized that with early craniocervical decompression, excellent functional outcome could be achieved in a majority of neonates and young infants with symptomatic Chiari II malformations. On the basis of this premise, we prospectively treated all such patients since 1989 with urgent brain stem decompression after other potential causes for brain stem dysfunction, such as progressive hydrocephalus, had been ruled out. All children underwent limited suboccipital craniectomies, cervical laminectomies extending beneath the inferior extent of the cerebellar tissue, and dural decompressions. The outcome in these patients has been favorable in comparison with previous studies. Ten of the 13 children treated according to this protocol recovered normal or nearly normal brain stem function shortly after decompression; 1 child had mild residual unilateral lower cranial nerve paresis. None of these children required a tracheostomy for ventilatory support, and only one required a temporary gastrostomy. The other three children all exhibited bilateral vocal cord paralysis and severe central hypoventilation by the time decompression was performed and failed to have any meaningful recovery of function. We conclude that early recognition of the symptoms of brain stem compromise in neonates and young infants with spinal dysraphism coupled with urgent evaluation and decompression are effective in producing prompt resolution of the brain stem dysfunction in most affected patients. Conversely, the prognosis for recovery is poor in children who exhibit bilateral vocal cord paralysis by the time of decompression.
Outcome After Diagnosis of Psychogenic Nonepileptic Seizures

Information regarding outcome in patients with psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES) is limited. We attempted to contact 72 consecutive patients with PNES confirmed by video-EEG monitoring: 51 of 72 (71%) were reached a mean of 15 months (range 12-27 months) after diagnosis and agreed to answer a structured telephone questionnaire. The questionnaire assessed the number of PNES in the last 6 months, antiepileptic drug (AED) use, occupational status, global self-rating, and extent of psychotherapeutic treatments. PNES had ceased in 18 of 51 (35%), decreased > 80% in 21 of 51 (41%), and decreased < 80% in 12 of 51 (24%). Thirty-three of 51 (65%) were not taking AEDs. Occupational status improved in 20% and did not change in 75%. Overall, 29 of 51 (57%) rated themselves markedly improved and 15 of 51 (29%) rated themselves unchanged or worse. Persisting PNES were associated with longer duration of PNES before diagnosis (p < 0.02) and presence of additional psychiatric disease (p < 0.01). Persisting PNES were not associated with gender, presence of epileptic seizures, or extent of psychotherapeutic treatments after diagnosis. Placebo saline infusion had been administered in some patients to help precipitate PNES. This did not affect the number of psychotherapy visits or outcome. We conclude that PNES cease or significantly decrease in most patients, but occupational status does not improve as often. Earlier diagnosis may improve outcome.
Managing Revenue Across Retail Channels: The Interplay of Service Performance and Direct Marketing

Increased internal pressure to make marketing accountable, combined with market pressure from the proliferation of new service delivery channels, requires retailers to better understand the differential impacts of marketing efforts across channels now more than ever. In this article, the authors (1) develop and test a theoretically grounded framework for the interplay of objective service performance and direct marketing in shaping retail revenue over time through two distinct service delivery channels (on-site and remote) and (2) conceptualize service delivery channel–specific servicescapes as facilitative mechanisms for the effectiveness of objective service performance and direct marketing. The authors test the conceptual framework with multisource data from a major national pizza retailer comprising a field study based on a time series of 223 weeks across five stores of objective marketing and performance data (delivery time) and a cross-sectional survey of the retailer's customers. They find that obj...
Secure self-adaptive mission-critical communication for distributed smart home sensor network

The inexpensive tiny wireless sensor can be embedded in devices to enable any commercial application, but are prone to intruder attacks. Due to the limited resource constraint in wireless sensor network, security in protocols is sacrificed or kept minimal. The distributive and self-organizing nature of sensor based on environment requires protocol to be adaptive, energy efficient and secure. In this paper, we analyze the different encryption schemes and their shortcoming in providing an energy efficient solution for sensor network. Secondly, we propose a communication protocol that balances resources while achieving mission critical solution using bio-inspired multi-objective algorithm. Thirdly, the accuracy of threat detection is analyzed using threshold approach based on sensor characteristics.
Parallel algorithms for hypercube allocation

Parallel algorithms of the hypercube allocation strategies are considered. Although the sequential algorithms of various hypercube allocation strategies are easier to implement, their worst case time complexities exponentially increase as the dimension of the hypercube increases. The authors show that the free processors can be utilized to perform the allocation jobs in parallel to improve the efficiency of the hypercube allocation algorithms. A modified parallel algorithm for the single Gray-Code (GC) strategy is proposed and is shown to be able to recognize more subcubes than the single GC strategy by using the binary reflected Gray code and inverse binary reflected Gray code, without increasing the execution time. Two algorithms for a complete subcube recognition system are also presented and shown to be more efficient and attractive than the sequential one currently used in the hypercube multiprocessor. >
A Review of Buyer Behavior

Post-war advances in technology have changed the concept of marketing management considerably. The core of this change is the shift of emphasis from the firm to the buyer. In this survey article, the author reviews all the important approaches to understanding buying behavior and provides an up-to-date bibliography. Two important issues emerge from the review. First, the existing variety of formulations resembles the variety of responses of seven blind men touching different parts of an elephant and making inferences about the animal which necessarily differ from, and occasionally contradict, one another. Second, the theory which attempts to explain the observed phenomenon of buying behavior and the quantitative techniques which provide adequate definitions and measurements have been developed independently of each other to the detriment of the maturity of the discipline.
On Mattering: A Coal Ash Flood and the Limits of Environmental Knowledge

This paper investigates the largest flood of coal ash in United States history as an event at once monumental and insignificant. It traces affective forces generative of both the ash, and its invisibility. In the moment of rupture, the ash flowed out of a large holding pond in a spill of layered sediments - each layer of particulate a temporary resting place for a forceful trajectory of matter spurned into motion elsewhere in space and time. This paper takes up the atemporal matter of this coal ash flood to ask: out of what movements and connections was the ash formed? How did this particular landscape change to accommodate its accumulation? What trajectories flowed into the pond, and what hidden memories sat buried in its mass? Drawing on ethnographic and archival research, this paper weaves together juxtaposed scenes that form (some of) the backstory of this event, and invites a reconsideration of the practices of knowledge that helped condition it.
Pediatric Inpatient Readmissions in an Accountable Care Organization

Objective To assess the association between the length of consistent primary care as part of an accountable care organization (attribution length) and population-level and same-hospital readmissions. Readmission studies are generally focused on same-hospital readmissions rather than readmissions to any hospital (population-level readmissions). Study design A retrospective study of Medicaid claims data for 28 794 unique pediatric patients attributed to a single children's hospital between September 2013 and May 2015. Study used logistic regression to estimate the impact of attribution length on readmissions and a zero-inflated Poisson model to assess the impact of attribution length on readmission cost and readmission days. Results The study showed attribution length was associated with a significant reduction in the population-level 30-day readmission rate from 8.9%-6.2% ( P = .010) primarily by reducing readmissions that occurred at hospitals other than the discharging hospital. There was no significant reduction in the same-hospital readmission rate. Readmissions to a different hospital occurred in 37% of readmissions. Although not significant at the P = .05 level, attribution length was associated with a 44% reduction ( P = .100) in 30-day readmission costs or a 5.0% reduction in the cost of an inpatient episode of care and a 53% reduction ( P = .019) in readmission days. Conclusions Consistent primary care (attribution length) may be able to reduce 30-day, pediatric Medicaid patients' readmissions at the population level. The decrease occurred primarily in readmissions to hospitals other than the discharging hospital. There was no decrease in the rate of same-hospital readmissions.
The clinical relevance of cerebral microbleeds in patients with cerebral ischemia and atrial fibrillation

The clinical significance of cerebral microbleeds (CMB) in patients hospitalized with atrial fibrillation (AF) and cerebral ischemia is unclear. We aimed to determine the prevalence of CMB in this population and determine the future risk of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) and cerebral infarction (CI). The medical records and brain imaging of patients hospitalized with cerebral ischemia due to AF between 2008 and 2011 were reviewed. Followup was obtained through medical record review, mailed survey, and acquisition of death certificates. Prevalence was calculated from those patients with a hemosiderin-sensitive MRI sequence. Recurrent CI and ICH were calculated using Kaplan-Meier curves censored at 3 years. Among 426 patients hospitalized with cerebral ischemia due to AF, 134 had an MRI with hemosiderin-sensitive sequences. The prevalence of CMB was 27.6%. At 3 years, 90.6% of CMB-negative patients were overall stroke free (ICH and CI) compared to 78.6% CMB-positive patients (p = 0.0591). Only one patient in the CMB-positive group had an ICH distant to the CMB. There was a nonsignificant trend toward higher recurrent CI, recurrent overall stroke rate, and mortality in patients with 5 or more CMB compared to 0-4 CMB. The rate of prospective CI in patients with prior cerebral ischemia due to AF is higher than the rate of ICH in patients with CMB. Further study is warranted to assess larger numbers of patients to determine appropriate antithrombotic use in this high-risk population.
Reining in the State: Civil Society and Congress in the Vietnam and Watergate Eras

Lynn Abrams ( Oral History Theory [New York: Routledge, 2010]) includes the practice of conducting interviews in her definition of oral history; Valerie Janesick ( Oral History for the Qualitative ...
Genie: a longitudinal study comparing physical and software thermostats in office buildings

Thermostats are the primary interface for occupants of office buildings to express their thermal comfort preferences. However, traditional thermostats are often ineffective due to physical inaccessibility, lack of information or limited responsiveness, which lead to occupant discomfort. Modern thermostat designs do overcome some of these limitations, but retrofitting them to existing buildings is prohibitively expensive. Software thermostats based on web or smartphone apps provide an alternate interaction mechanism with minimal deployment cost. However, their usage and effectiveness have not been studied extensively in real settings. We present Genie, a novel software thermostat that we designed and deployed in our university for over 21 months. We compare the use of Genie to traditional thermostats. Our data and user study show that due to the clarity of information and wider thermal control provided by Genie, users feel more comfortable in their offices. Furthermore, the improved comfort did not affect the overall energy consumption or lead to misuse of HVAC controls.
Technical communique: On decentralized stabilization and structure of linear large scale systems

Connective stabilizability of large-scale systems, which are composed of interconnected subsystems, is considered using decentralized feedback. Both analytical and graph-theoretic conditions are derived directly in terms of the interconnection structure, which ensure that stability of the overall closed-loop system is invariant under the structural perturbations caused by disconnections and reconnections of links among the subsystems. The conditions characterize a large class of decentrally stabilizable systems, which includes all classes of connectively stabilizable interconnected systems considered so far.
Estimation of water transfer from amniotic fluid to fetus.

SummaryDeuterium oxide was injected into the amniotic sac of pregnant women one hour or less before delivery by Cesarean section. The tracer concentration in cord blood invariably exceeded the calculated equilibrium value. This observation led to the conclusion that time activity curves for the fetal compartment must pass through a maximum. On the basis of experiments with hy-drodynamic models this was interpreted to mean that at least 25%, probably more than 50% of the water transfer from the amniotic fluid to mother is accomplished through the intermedium of the fetus.
Cotrimoxazole is associated with sudden death in older patients receiving inhibitors of renin-angiotensin system.

Commentary on : Fralick M, Macdonald EM, Gomes T, et al. Canadian Drug Safety and Effectiveness Research Network. Co-trimoxazole and sudden death in patients receiving inhibitors of renin-angiotensin system: population based study. BMJ 2014;349:g6196[OpenUrl][1][Abstract/FREE Full Text][2]. ACE inhibitors (ACEIs) and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) are commonly prescribed to older patients with hypertension, heart failure (HF) and chronic kidney disease (CKD) and may increase serum potassium (K) levels. Cotrimoxazole, a common antibiotic used to treat urinary tract infections, may also raise serum K levels, especially in patients also taking other drugs that raise serum K … [1]: {openurl}?query=rft.jtitle%253DBMJ%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Adoi%252F10.1136%252Fbmj.g6196%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Apmid%252F25359996%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx [2]: /lookup/ijlink?linkType=ABST&journalCode=bmj&resid=349/oct28_8/g6196&atom=%2Febmed%2F20%2F3%2F113.atom
Search for methane isotope fractionation due to Rayleigh distillation on Titan

Abstract We search for meridional variation in the abundance of CH 3 D relative to CH 4 on Titan using near-IR spectra obtained with NIRSPAO at Keck, which have a photon-limited signal-to-noise ratio of ∼50. Our observations can rule out a larger than 10% variation in the column of CH 3 D below 50 km. The preferential condensation of the heavy isotopologues will fractionate methane by reducing CH 3 D in the remaining vapor, and therefore these observations place limits on the amount of condensation that occurs in the troposphere. While previous estimates of CH 3 D fractionation on Titan have estimated an upper limit of − 6‰, assuming a solid condensate, we consider more recent laboratory data for the equilibrium fractionation over liquid methane, and use a Rayleigh distillation model to calculate fractionation in an ascending parcel of air that is following a moist adiabat. We find that deep, precipitating convection can enhance the fractionation of the remaining methane vapor by − 10 to − 40‰, depending on the final temperature of the rising parcel. By relating fractionation of our reference parcel model to the pressure level where the moist adiabat achieves the required temperature, we argue that the measured methane fractionation constrains the outflow level for a deep convective event. Observations with a factor of at least 4–6 times larger signal-to-noise are required to detect this amount of fractionation, depending on the altitude range over which the outflow from deep convection occurs.
PACS Integration with Hospital Information Structures: Requirements, Problems and Possible Solutions

In the hospital information structure, the management of the images can be provided by a PACS (Picture Archival and Communications System). The realization of such a system is bounded to some requirements and application constraints. The most crucial ones are the availability of a large storage space and a low response time. Other problems regard the possibility of managing images acquired by different modalities. This last aspect implies the availability of data structures that describe the image characteristics. On the other hand, the management of significant image description data supports the integration with the clinical information managed by the departmental databases.
Laser magnetic resonance spectra of HOCO

Rotational spectra of the gaseous free radical HOCO were first observed at 1.1-mm wavelength in a Faraday rotation absorption spectrometer.1 These radicals were generated by hydrogen abstraction from formic acid by chlorine atoms produced in a microwave discharge. Further exploration of this radical was done at wavelengths between 0.3 and 0.7 mm in a far-in feared laser magnetic resonance (LMR) spectrometer. The LMR spectra consist of a moderate number of very narrow lines. This suggests that they arise from b-type transitions of the “avoided crossing” type.2 In a few cases the spectra consist of a single giant line at low magnetic fields; these fields probably result from a piling up of magnetic components. HOCO is very reactive toward molecular oxygen and forms HO2 as one of the reaction products.
Provocation and the plot of anger

I was angry with my friend; I told my wrath, my wrath did end I was angry with my foe: I told it not, my wrath did grow. – Blake, “A Poison Tree” William Blake's “A Poison Tree” suggests that acting upon anger puts an end to plot; whether we tell or wreak our wrath, its expression is antithetical to calculated narratives. As Philip Fisher says, anger is a fundamentally rash emotion precisely at odds with the “world of plots.” On the other hand, the same poem presents the cultivation of angry passions as dependent upon the secret plotting of the speaker, whose hunger for vengeance grows in proportion to the narrative's deferral of satisfaction. In other words, in Blake's poem, anger both requires plots and disables them. This double vision is symptomatic of a broader, historically specific oscillation in British conceptions of anger during the 1790s, due primarily to the influence of the French Revolution and the ways it was discussed. In English political, medical, and legal discourse of the period, we find a remarkable alignment of changing attitudes towards rage in the wake of the Revolution, as a fear of popular anger permeated the culture. As revolutionary anger was being demonized as irrational, destructive rage in conservative political discourse, inflammation (of the body and body politic) was being reconceptualized as a dangerous disease in metaphorical and medical terms.
Retailing in the 1980’s: A Buyer’s Perspective

This research is an attempt to apply strategic market planning in a retail environment. As used in the re-search, strategic market planning is the planning process which begins with formal evaluation of the organization's mission and its goals, continues with analyses of the internal situation and external or macroenvironmental forces, competition, opportunities, and selection of strategies from alternatives corresponding to different business situation scenarios (Channon and Jalland, 1978). The process concludes with development of specific strategies, tactics for accomplishing the objectives, budgeting, implementation and"procedures for monitoring and control. Plans are prepared under a strategic framework which views the firm's offerings as a balanced portfolio, with each offering in its own life cycle stage.
Robot-assisted versus conventional laparoscopic surgery for endometrial cancer staging: A meta-analysis.

Abstract This meta-analysis broadly compared the safety and efficacy of robot-assisted laparoscopy (RAL) with that of conventional laparoscopy (CL) for endometrial cancer staging. The advantages of RAL were evaluated through the outcomes in terms of conversion rates, complications, length of operation, blood loss, number of lymph nodes harvested, and length of hospitalization. Three electronic databases (PubMed, MEDLINE, and EmBASE) were searched to identify eligible studies. We selected all retrospective studies documenting a comparison between RAL and CL for endometrial cancer staging between 2005 and 2015, and tallied with meta-analyses criteria. Only studies published in English were included in this analysis. The outcomes of the extracted data were pooled and estimated by the Review Manager version 5.1 software. Seventeen studies met the eligibility criteria. Among the 2105 patients reported, 912 underwent RAL and the other 1193 underwent CL for endometrial cancer staging. Compared with CL, RAL had lower conversion rates [risk ratio, 0.4; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.25–0.64; p = 0.0002]. Its complications were also less than that of CL (risk ratio, 0.72; 95% CI, 0.56–0.94; p = 0.02). RAL was associated with significantly less intraoperative blood loss (weighted mean difference, −79.2 mL; 95% CI, from −103.43 to −54.97; p p = 0.0003). We found no significant differences in the length of operation and number of lymph nodes harvested between the two groups. From our meta-analysis results, RAL is a safe and effective alternative to CL for endometrial cancer staging. Further studies are required to determine potential advantages or disadvantages of RAL.
The Twice and Future President Revisited: Of Three-Term Presidents and Constitutional End Runs

This updated essay reexamines the basic claims in the Twice and Future President (Minnesota Law Review 1999) article, drawing on subsequent scholarship and criticism, some of which has explicitly engaged the original argument. This update highlights important fault lines in the ongoing debate about the scope and application of the Twenty-Second Amendment, considers the most serious challenges to the view that a President can serve in three (or more) terms, and discusses the wider significance of these ideas. First, I review the most important claims in the original article which identified different scenarios through which a twice elected President might again serve as President. Next, I examine some of the most important scholarly counter-arguments that the 1999 piece anticipated, especially critical claims against the position that a person could indeed serve as President in more than two terms. In the third part of this essay, I consider substantial, new, unanticipated arguments that have been advanced in recent years. In part four, I reflect on the broader significance of this debate, contending that the prospect of a “twice and future president” is more than an academic abstraction or “parlor game,” but instead has important political and policy implications. In the fifth and final part, I conclude this essay by reflecting on whether the U.S. Constitution might simply be amended to address the problems raised by three term Presidents, and introduce the related concept of “constitutional end runs.”
Pathophysiology of Hypertension in Chronic Kidney Disease and Dialysis

The extremely high prevalence of hypertension in CKD is an expected consequence of the central role played by the kidneys in the regulation of body fluid volumes and BP homeostasis. Kidney disease, regardless of etiology, tends to impair the efficiency of the salt excretory mechanisms albeit to a variable degree. This results in an increased BP salt sensitivity with a general potentiation of the prohypertensive mechanisms and a blunting of the effectiveness of the antihypertensive mechanisms. Therefore, hypertension in CKD patients also tends to be more resistant and difficult to control. Nevertheless, although there is variability in the contribution of individual hypertensive pathways and the severity of resulting hypertension in different disease states associated with CKD, the pathways usually converge in Na retention and/or an inadequate suppression of RAS. Accordingly, regardless of the nature and complexity of the underlying pathogenesis of hypertension in CKD states, most such individuals are more responsive to therapeutic agents targeted to these pathways. Although difficult to achieve, effective BP control is necessary in these individuals to not only slow the further progression of CKD, but to also reduce the very high cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in these individuals.
Interacting TCP and NLP transcription factors control plant responses to nitrate availability

Plants have evolved adaptive strategies that involve transcriptional networks to cope with and survive environmental challenges. Key transcriptional regulators that mediate responses to environmental fluctuations in nitrate have been identified; however, little is known about how these regulators interact to orchestrate nitrogen (N) responses and cell-cycle regulation. Here we report that teosinte branched1/cycloidea/proliferating cell factor1-20 (TCP20) and NIN-like protein (NLP) transcription factors NLP6 and NLP7, which act as activators of nitrate assimilatory genes, bind to adjacent sites in the upstream promoter region of the nitrate reductase gene, NIA1, and physically interact under continuous nitrate and N-starvation conditions. Regions of these proteins necessary for these interactions were found to include the type I/II Phox and Bem1p (PB1) domains of NLP6&7, a protein-interaction module conserved in animals for nutrient signaling, and the histidine- and glutamine-rich domain of TCP20, which is conserved across plant species. Under N starvation, TCP20-NLP6&7 heterodimers accumulate in the nucleus, and this coincides with TCP20 and NLP6&7-dependent up-regulation of nitrate assimilation and signaling genes and down-regulation of the G2/M cell-cycle marker gene, CYCB1;1. TCP20 and NLP6&7 also support root meristem growth under N starvation. These findings provide insights into how plants coordinate responses to nitrate availability, linking nitrate assimilation and signaling with cell-cycle progression.
Abstract NTOC-111: TARGETING COMPONENTS OF THE STAT3 SIGNALING PATHWAY FOR OVARIAN CANCER THERAPY: IMPLICATIONS FROM 3D CULTURE SYSTEMS

High grade serous ovarian cancer remains deadly for countless women; therefore, better treatment options are necessary. To identify new targeted therapies for this disease, it is necessary to delineate critical signaling pathways that are driving the pathogenesis of ovarian cancer. Since ovarian cancer in patients grows as three dimensional clusters, particularly within the peritoneum, we examined signaling pathways that were activated with 3D culture in vitro . Comparing the growth of ovarian cancer cell lines in 2D and 3D, we found that the transcription factor STAT3 consistently becomes activated in 3D culture systems. Ovarian cancer cells that lack STAT3 activation when grown in 2D acquire STAT3 activation when grown in 3D. Additionally, ovarian cancer cell lines that have constitutively active STAT3 when grown in 2D display enhanced STAT3 activation when these cells are grown in 3D. STAT3 is often activated through autocrine or paracrine mechanisms via cytokine receptors interacting with the transmembrane signal transducing molecule GP130 and intracellular Jak kinases. Once activated, these kinases tyrosine phosphorylate STAT3, which then translocates to the nucleus, binds to cognate DNA binding sites, and regulates genes that are involved in migration, invasion, and survival. We have found that not only is STAT3 tyrosine phosphorylated in cells grown in 3D, but that STAT3 is functionally active such that STAT3 DNA binding and target gene expression is enhanced in ovarian cancer cells grown in 3D versus 2D. We next determined if STAT3 signaling was necessary for ovarian cancer cell growth in 3D. Using RNA interference directed to STAT3 or GP130, we found that both proteins are necessary for the 3D growth of ovarian cancer cells. In addition, we have found that cells grown in 3D are more resistant to cytotoxic drugs; therefore, we wanted to determine if inhibiting STAT3 would enhance the response to conventional chemotherapy. Using both chemical biology and computational approaches, we have identified small molecule inhibitors of STAT3 that target a number of distinct points in the STAT3 activation pathway. We have found that a subset of these compounds disrupt the morphology of ovarian cancer spheroids. Furthermore, combination of these inhibitors with paclitaxel leads to enhanced loss of viability of cells grown in 3D, raising the possibility of using STAT3 inhibitors alone or in combination with chemotherapeutic drugs for the treatment of ovarian cancer. Citation Format: Sarah R. Walker, Yixi Zhang, Suhu Liu, Zachary T. Giaccone, and David A. Frank. TARGETING COMPONENTS OF THE STAT3 SIGNALING PATHWAY FOR OVARIAN CANCER THERAPY: IMPLICATIONS FROM 3D CULTURE SYSTEMS [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 11th Biennial Ovarian Cancer Research Symposium; Sep 12-13, 2016; Seattle, WA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Clin Cancer Res 2017;23(11 Suppl):Abstract nr NTOC-111.
To Walk a Mile in Someone Else's Shoes: How Narratives Can Change Causal Attribution Through Story Exploration and Character Customization

This study provides evidence for the independent and additive effects of story exploration and character customization induced by fictional narratives on causal attribution and support for marginalized groups. In Study 1 (N = 163), participants read a story about a transgender teenager. Story exploration influenced identification and narrative engagement, increasing external attribution for the character's negative actions, as well as engendering more positive attitudes toward transgender individuals. Study 2 (N = 116) replicated these results in the context of undocumented immigration. Study 3 (N = 230) focused on a story about a Muslim teenager. Analysis suggested that the strongest impact on causal attribution is achieved by allowing readers to design the main character (i.e., customization) and control the narrative (i.e., exploration).
“Oneness through the sharpening of contradictions”: Theosophical Polarity in Scriabin’s Late Harmonic Practice

ABSTRACTScriabin used the term “polarity” to describe harmonic relationships based on the tritone. While modern readers may interpret polarity as simple opposition, the Theosophical literature Scriabin read emphasized an older conception of polarity as a mystical paradox in which unity arises out of opposition and vice versa. The esoteric definition of polarity corresponds to recurring concepts in Scriabin’s creative philosophy as well as the idiosyncratic behavior of dominant-type sonorities related by tritone in Scriabin’s late style.
Higher-Order Total Variation Classes on Grids: Minimax Theory and Trend Filtering Methods.

We consider the problem of estimating the values of a function over $n$ nodes of a $d$-dimensional grid graph (having equal side lengths $n^{1/d}$) from noisy observations. The function is assumed to be smooth, but is allowed to exhibit different amounts of smoothness at different regions in the grid. Such heterogeneity eludes classical measures of smoothness from nonparametric statistics, such as Holder smoothness. Meanwhile, total variation (TV) smoothness classes allow for heterogeneity, but are restrictive in another sense: only constant functions count as perfectly smooth (achieve zero TV). To move past this, we define two new higher-order TV classes, based on two ways of compiling the discrete derivatives of a parameter across the nodes. We relate these two new classes to Holder classes, and derive lower bounds on their minimax errors. We also analyze two naturally associated trend filtering methods; when $d=2$, each is seen to be rate optimal over the appropriate class.
Being and Becoming Men of Character: Exploring Latino and Black Males' Brotherhood and Masculinity through Leadership in College.

This article advances knowledge on the significance of engagement and leadership for five Latino and Black male student leaders at a Hispanic-serving institution. By exploring their experiences in ...
Comparative Analysis of Designing Solar and Geothermal Power Plants: A Case Study

Geothermal and solar thermal are renewable, clean energy sources with immense potential for electricity generation. Concentrating Solar Power can achieve very high temperatures and high efficiencies compared to geothermal power plants. However, it is intermittent and must be coupled with thermal storage or another source for continuous power generation. Geothermal resources exist in varying temperatures but are too small for economic power production; however, it is not intermittent. This paper briefly summarizes the location-specific design considerations for geothermal and solar thermal plants. The performance of both these types of power plants is analysed in terms of capacity factor, thermal energy storage hours, solar multiple, area requirement, and levelized cost of energy for a given set of environmental conditions at two separate locations, Las Cruces, US and Aydin, Turkey. Electricity consumption for an example airport at Aydin is provided by DHMI Airport authority administration, which was used as load profile for Aydin. This analysis is performed using the System Advisor Model. Simulation of parabolic trough, power tower, linear Fresnel, dish Stirling, and geothermal energy conversion systems are performed and the results are compared.
Time, gender, and regional trends in the application for service-related post-traumatic stress disorder disability benefits, 1980-1998.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to describe time trends in the application and approval rates for Veterans Affairs post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) disability benefits and identify gender or regional differences in such rates after controlling for other available predictors. Methods: This was an administrative, historical cohort study of all 180,039 veterans who filed PTSD disability claims between 1980 and 1998. Results: Applications for PTSD disability benefits increased geometrically between 1985 and 1998. Observed claim approval rates for PTSD disability benefits were twice as high for combat-injured men and women than for uninjured men and women. Among uninjured veterans, women serving after the Vietnam conflict had higher estimated claim approval rates than did comparable men, and estimated claim approval rates varied twofold across regions. Conclusions: Instead of a gender bias in claim approval rates for PTSD disability benefits, there may be a "combat injury bias" that disproportionately affects women. Research is needed to understand why claim approval rates vary by region.
Physiology and management of bladder and bowel continence following spinal cord injury.

Patients with spinal cord injury commonly develop bladder and bowel symptoms that can affect their quality of life. The level of spinal cord injury is an important factor in considering bladder and bowel management strategy options to facilitate re-establishment of some level of elimination control. Bladder management involves choosing a drainage method appropriate to individual capabilities; options include clean intermittent or indwelling catheterization, Crede's method, reflex voiding, and surgical options. Bowel management strategies incorporate schedule, nutrition, stimulation, and surgical approaches. Bladder and bowel management regimens must include a thorough physical evaluation, patient/caregiver education, follow-up care, and a multidisciplinary team approach. Additional research to help clinicians recommend safe, effective, and evidence-based elimination management strategies to patients with spinal cord injuries is needed.
Have a Cake and Eat it Too: Identifying a Missing Link in the Skeptical Puzzle

The skeptical puzzle consists of three allegedly incompatible claims: S knows that O, S doesn’t know that ~U, and the claim that knowledge is closed under the known entailment. I consider several famous instances of the puzzle and conclude that in all of those cases the presupposition that O entails ~U is false. I also consider two possible ways for trying to make it true and argue that both strategies ultimate fail. I conclude that this result at least completely discredits any solution that denies the principle of epistemic closure. At most, denying that O entails ~U can itself be seen as a novel solution to the puzzle, preferred to any other solution: it accommodates both non-skeptical and skeptical intuitions but does not require us to give up the principle of closure, embrace contextualism or subject-sensitive invariantism, or deny any commonly accepted principle of epistemology or logic.
Understanding the causes of mortality post-transplantation - there is more than meets the eye.

Death with a functioning graft is the leading cause of late graft loss. The underlying cause of death post-transplantation varies in different populations. Therefore, it is an essential task of any individual transplant program to understand those causes in order to improve long-term outcomes. In the US, the three leading causes of death after transplantation are cardiovascular disease, malignancy, and infections. Cosio et al. reported that while cardiovascular mortality is higher in diabetics post-transplantation, cancer is the most common cause [...]
Ghost Riders in the Sky: 2019, Various Artists, CD, Jasmine JASMCD 2651; 2014, Various Artists, CD, Bear Family BCD 17128 AH; 2012, Various Artists, CD, Acrobat ACMCD 4365; 2004, Various Artists, CD, Bear Family BCD 16718 AR; 1994, Various Artists, CD, K-tel International 3271-2

Composers dream of crafting memorable, top-selling tunes. Hit songs reap immediate financial rewards upon initial release – and then generate additional royalties when they are re-recorded by other...
The Angiographic Anatomy of the Sphenoidal Segment of the Middle Cerebral Artery and Its Relevance in Mechanical Thrombectomy.

Objective The middle cerebral artery (MCA) is the most commonly treated artery in mechanical thrombectomy stroke trials; however, there is no pragmatic agreement about the segmental anatomy and nomenclature utilized. It results in significant clinical-radiological dissociation and introduces bias in research trials. The purpose of the study is to review and compare angiographic anatomy with microsurgical anatomy literature of the MCA with emphasis on the discrepancy. Methodology Consecutive cerebral angiograms between January 2011 and March 2014 were retrospectively reviewed by endovascular surgical neuroradiologists. Information about the anatomy of the sphenoidal segment of the MCA classified as classic and non-classic pattern, the lenticulostriate artery takeoff pattern, and the course angulation of the sphenoidal segment were studied. Results A total of 500 patients, 886 cerebral angiograms, were reviewed. We found the classic pattern of the main trunk MCA bifurcation and a straight angulation course in less than half of the cases. The lenticulostriate arteries arose not only from the main trunk but also from its divisions in more than half of the cases. Conclusion It is important to corroborate our findings and to develop a pragmatic classification to accurately assess MCA occlusions from the radiological and clinical perspective.
The Case for a Network Fast Path to the CPU

For the past two decades, the communication channel between the NIC and CPU has largely remained the same---issuing memory requests across a slow PCIe peripheral interconnect. Today, with application service times and network fabric delays measuring hundreds of nanoseconds, the NIC--CPU interface can account for most of the overhead when programming modern warehouse-scale computers.In this paper, we tackle this issue head-on by proposing a design for a fast path between the NIC and CPU, called Lightning NIC (L-NIC), which deviates from the established norms of offloading computation onto the NIC (inflating latency), or using centralized dispatcher cores for packet scheduling (limiting throughput). L-NIC adds support for a fast path from the network to the core of the CPU by writing and reading packets directly to/from the CPU register file. This approach minimizes network IO latency, providing significant performance improvements over traditional NIC--CPU interfaces.