cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Evolution of Vertebrate Eyes

Ever since Darwin, scientists have wondered about the evolution of eyes. The apparent perfect adaptation of distinct eye types to the large variety of organisms belies some interesting common principles that constrain evolution. Morphological comparisons suggested eyes were polyphyletic, evolving 40–60 different times. In contrast, comparison of development at the molecular level identified commonalities among molecules used to build eyes across many species, suggesting a monophyletic origin. Most of this work compared eyes based on ciliary photoreceptors found primarily in vertebrates with eyes based on microvillar photoreceptors found primarily in invertebrates. Both these eye types rely on rhodopsin (type 2) but have different transduction cascades. Recently, this controversy has been resolved with evidence that both primary eye types existed in ancestral bilaterians and are present in extant vertebrates and invertebrates. This means that at least these two eye types were present in the urbilateria, prior to the Cambrian explosive speciation. Moreover, this ancient origin is also true for an additional functional photodetection system, the cryptochromes that exist widely in both plants and animals. So the eyes we know are certainly phylophyletic in origin. In addition, there is a second family of photodetection found in archaea and eukaryotic microbes based on a family of rhodopsin molecules (rhodopsin 1) that arose through convergent evolution. The range of rhodopsin use in these organisms is just now being discovered but will likely yield more surprises about how to detect light. Finally, several additional families of opsin molecules have been identified though none are yet known to play any specific function.
Established and Emerging Strategies in the Treatment of Chronic Kidney Disease

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a common condition that has become a significant public health concern. The mainstay therapeutic approach to CKD is based on renin-angiotensin system blockade as well as blood pressure and glycemic control. Despite these interventions, the management of CKD remains suboptimal, with a large proportion of the CKD population progressing to end-stage renal disease. Newer strategies for the treatment of CKD have emerged over the past years focusing on decreasing inflammation and delaying the development of fibrosis. Despite promising results in experimental models and small randomized studies, adequately powered randomized trials are required to evaluate the benefits and risks of these therapies in the CKD population. In this review, we discuss the evidence behind, and gaps in our knowledge of, established therapies as well as newer potential strategies for managing CKD, concentrating on interventions that currently are being evaluated in randomized studies.
A Qualitative Study of the Perceptions of Special Education Personnel about Inclusive Practices of Students with Disabilities

Students with disabilities in the State of Texas are now required to participate in state wide academic assessments with passing rates tied to federal funding. This qualitative research studied the perceptions of district personnel regarding instructional practices for students with disabilities utilizing open-ended, semi-structured interviews of a principal, special education director, diagnostician, and special education teacher from each of two districts. District 1 exclusively used the inclusion model while District 2 used a combination of inclusive and pull-out programs to provide special education services. The interviews were analyzed utilizing coding which generated the following themes: the importance of positive relationships between general and special education educators and between students and teachers, individualization of the needs of each student, and the importance of the availability of resources such as appropriate staff and dedicated time on the successful implementation of inclusion.
Abstract 3665: Reconstructing the itraconazole scaffold towards improved specificity for hedeghog signaling inhibition

Inappropriate regulation of the hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway contributes to the development and progression of a number of human cancers; most notably, basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and medulloblastoma (MB). Clinical validation of small molecule mediated silencing of the Hh pathway was recently demonstrated by the FDA approval of vismodegib for the treatment of locally advanced BCC, representing a first-in-class inhibitor of the Hh signaling pathway. Vismodegib antagonizes Hh signaling by directly binding smoothened (SMO), a critical regulator of the pathway and target of numerous small molecule preclinical and clinical drug candidates. Vismodegib treatments in MB patients revealed novel SMO mutants that demonstrated resistance to vismodegib therapy, which underscores the need for continued development of novel Hh pathway inhibitors. Recently, itraconazole (ITZ) was identified as an inhibitor of Hh signaling in vitro and in vivo. Characterization indicated ITZ, a clinically used antifungal agent, maintains Hh inhibition against vismodegib-resistant SMO mutants. Ongoing structure-activity analysis for the ITZ scaffold is currently being investigated to identify analogues with improved potency and reduced non-specific toxicity. Results from these studies to identify candidates with improved pharmacological profiles and selectivity for Hh signaling modulation will be described herein. Citation Format: Albert M. DeBerardinis, M. Kyle Hadden. Reconstructing the itraconazole scaffold towards improved specificity for hedeghog signaling inhibition. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 106th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2015 Apr 18-22; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(15 Suppl):Abstract nr 3665. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2015-3665
Manometry and radiology. Complementary studies in the assessment of esophageal motility disorders.

Abstract The relationship between radiological and manometric findings in esophageal motility disorders is poorly understood. Therefore, 20 subjects (4 normal; 13 diffuse spasm; 3 other motility disorders) were studied using synchronous manometry and videofluoroscopy with alternate 5-ml and 10-ml barium swallows. A total of 181 swallows were analyzed. Concordance between manometry and fluoroscopy was excellent for individual swallows (98%), groups of 5 swallows (97%), and final diagnoses (90%). Contraction onset intervals 6.25 cm/s) were critical in determining abnormal bolus transit (98% sensitivity and positive predictive value). Radiologically, segmental tertiary activity (complete luminal obliteration) was always associated with disrupted primary peristalsis, but nonsegmental tertiary activity was often seen with normal bolus transit and did not have a specific manometric correlate. Four patterns of interrupted peristalsis radioiogically were found—segmental tertiary contractions, a generalized esophageal contraction, absence of motor activity, or discoordinated "to-and-fro" movement. Surprisingly, nearly complete barium clearance occurred by the first two mechanisms in two thirds of swallows. Thus, the authors believe radiology and manometry are both excellent studies for identifying abnormal esophageal peristalsis. In difficult cases, these tests give complementary information because radiology assesses bolus movement while manometry provides quantitative pressure data.
Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy in Liver Transplantation Patients.

Abstract Background Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is an autosomal dominant disorder that presents with a hypertrophied nondilated left ventricle. In the absence of other known causes of cardiomyopathy, it is often associated with left ventricular outflow tract obstruction during systole, systolic anterior motion of the mitral valve, mitral regurgitation, and increased risk of sudden cardiac death. When HCM coexists with end-stage liver disease, it can be further complicated by cirrhosis-associated cardiovascular abnormalities, including hyperdynamic circulation, systolic and diastolic dysfunction, and electrophysiologic abnormalities. Methods We retrospectively examined patient characteristics, comorbidities, preoperative echocardiogram results, sudden cardiac death risk prediction model score, and 1-year postoperative mortality of patients with HCM who underwent liver transplantation at our institution from January 1, 2000, through January 1, 2015. Results Of the 2,812 liver transplantations performed during the study period, we identified 15 patients with a preoperative diagnosis of HCM. When comparing the patients who did vs did not survive the first year after orthotopic liver transplantation, we identified significant differences in maximal left ventricular wall thickness (P = .004) and resting left ventricular outflow tract gradient (P = .004). Preoperative left atrium size (measured by echocardiography; P = .66) and the sudden cardiac death risk prediction model score (P = .32) were not significantly associated with 1-year survival. Conclusions Preoperative left ventricular outflow tract gradient exceeding 60 mm Hg was strongly associated with death during the first year after transplant. These results suggest that the severity of HCM influences patient outcomes.
The (in)disputable ‘power’ of images of outrage: public acknowledgement, emotional reaction, and image recognition:

A recent news image – that of a drowned 3-year-old Syrian boy washed ashore on the Turkish coast as a result of refugees fleeing the ongoing war in Syria – resonated with international audiences an...
Mini-open Lateral Retropleural Approach for Symptomatic Thoracic Disk Herniations.

Background Surgeries for symptomatic thoracic disk herniations (TDH) remain challenging. Objective A mini-open lateral retropleural approach is described and the clinical outcomes are reported. Materials and methods A total of 23 patients underwent mini-open lateral retropleural diskectomy. Patients were placed in a lateral position. A 5-cm lateral incision was made followed by resection of the rib after careful dissection of its undersurface from the endothoracic fascia. The fascia was incised and separated from parietal pleura to widen the retropleural space. The rib head was removed followed by a pedicle resection below the TDH to expose the dura. A posterior partial corpectomy above and below the disk was performed to create a space ventral to the TDH, which was later dissected away from the dura and removed. Results Fourteen males and 9 females comprised the clinical cohort. Five presented with axial back pain, 7 with radicular pain and 11 with myelopathy. All but 2 disks were successfully removed. The mean blood loss was 214cc and the mean hospital stay was 5.3 days. There was no mortality or new neurological deficits. The mean follow-up was 15.4 months. Conclusions Mini-open lateral retropleural approach is safe and effective to remove symptomatic TDH with minimal morbidities and fast patient recovery.
Lactic Acid Bacteria: Genomics, Genetic Engineering

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) consist of a phylogenetically related group of bacteria that share a common reliance on fermentation with lactic acid as the major end product. Bifidobacteria are phylogenetically distinct, but share many phenotypic characteristics, including a reliance on fermentation with lactic acid as the major end product, and are therefore often included with the LAB. The economic significance of this group of bacteria in the food fermentation and probiotic (ingesting microbes for intestinal and overall health) industries has prompted extensive research. Numerous genetic tools for manipulating these bacteria have been developed, including cloning vectors, vectors for heterologous gene expression, and strategies for site-directed mutagenesis and gene replacement. Representatives of most of the species comprising this group of organisms have also been sequenced completely and their genomes reflect their evolutionary background. It is evident from a comparative genome analysis of the LAB that their evolution involved significant genome reduction during adaptation to their nutrient habitats and involved acquiring a large array of transporters to facilitate utilizing the varied nutrients from their environments. This genome analysis is furthering the understanding of this very intriguing group of organisms that impact the lives of every person on the planet.
Some Recent Advances in Neutrino Physics

One answer to questions concerning the subject matter of elementary particle physics and its position within the physical sciences is that particle physics is the study of creation. To justify this idea, at least in part, consider the “big bang” model of creation of the universe. In that model the primeval fireball involved very high temperatures, estimated to be greater than 1011 degrees Kelvin (°K), which is to be compared with the interior temperature of the sun at about 107 degrees Kelvin. We believe the sun to be a nuclear furnace, generating its energy by individual nuclear interactions in the million electron volt (MeV) energy range. In the “big bang” the energies involved in the individual particle interactions would have been more than 104 times larger than in the sun, and thus in the tens of giga-electron volts (GeV). This is precisely the energy region of present-day high energy or elementary particle physics laboratory experiments. In this sense, then, laboratory experiments that study, even indirectly, lepton-lepton scattering or quark-quark interactions are revisiting creation.
Universal, Unequal Suffrage: Authoritarian Vote-Seat Malapportionment in the 1907 Austrian Electoral Reform

Leaders of undemocratic regimes allow elections in order to co-opt powerful groups in society and secure their own grip on power. However, they do not allow fair elections. They manipulate the electoral system in order to over-represent the geographic areas, and the groups within them, to whom they wish to allocate political power. This is done via the mechanism of malapportionment, by which electoral districts in the privileged areas are assigned a greater share of legislative seats than their share of the population. Analyzing the introduction of universal male suffrage in Austria in 1907, I show that this reform did not lead to universal, equal suffrage and that malapportionment under authoritarian regimes does not run exclusively along an urban-rural cleavage. Instead, reform resulted in an electoral system which perpetuated the under-representation of ethnic minorities in the lower house of the Reichsrat and the over-representation of the rural German-speaking population and urban Polish elites. This solved the regime’s problem of controlling urban unrest by satisfying demands for electoral reform, while at the same time maintaining the predominant political position of German and Polish groups in Cislethania via more subtle manipulation of the electoral system.
Advanced Polymers for Reduced Energy Consumption in Architecture

In an effort to slow the progress of climate change, the current scientific community has focused on the reduction of greenhouse gases in order to limit the global average temperature inflation to less than 2 °C. The improvement of thermally controlled construction materials can potentially result in lower energy homes/reduced emissions, and lowering the thermal conductivity of insulation materials improves home energy efficiency. Nanoporous insulation foams impart a drastic decrease in thermal conductivity but many polymer properties must be assessed to produce these materials. Passive phase-change materials also represent another key energy-saving device to control heat flux within a living space. Research into unique polymeric systems provides a novel means of encapsulation or creating polymeric cross-linked matrices to prevent leakage and improve mechanical robustness. These two areas of polymer research in architecture represent key advancements for construction materials aimed toward energy savings and energy-related emissions control.
How Will State-Run Auto-IRAs Affect Workers?

In order to encourage savings among workers without access to employer-sponsored retirement plans, several states have proposed defaulting workers into state-run individual retirement accounts known as Auto-IRAs. Plans such as OregonSaves automatically enroll workers and, by default, increase their contributions over time. Given low opt-out rates, these policies have the potential to increase retirement savings for workers without access to employer-sponsored plans. Using survey data, we find that over 24 million workers could automatically be enrolled in an Auto-IRA, if enacted on a national scale. Nonetheless, these policies have the potential to adversely affect individuals with debt and current financial difficulties who do not actively opt-out. One-third of potentially affected workers hold credit card debt with an average balance exceeding $5,000. Furthermore, approximately 15% of potentially affected workers have difficulty meeting basic needs.
The Problem of Evil

Chapter 1 addresses some preliminary issues that it is important to think about in formulating arguments from evil. Chapter 2 is then concerned with the question of how an incompatibility argument from evil is best formulated, and with possible responses to such arguments. Chapter 3 then focuses on skeptical theism, and on the work that skeptical theists need to do if they are to defend their claim of having defeated incompatibility versions of the argument from evil. Finally, Chapter 4 discusses evidential arguments from evil, and four different kinds of evidential argument are set out and critically examined.
Writing on the wall: Mathieu Tremblin’s ‘Tag Clouds’ and the politics of cultural assimilation:

This article explores how French street artist Mathieu Tremblin’s Tag Clouds satirises mainstream French media’s and right-wing politicians’ representations of the French banlieue. As Tag Clouds er...
1434. Risk Factors for Community-Acquired Urinary Tract Infections Caused by Extended-Spectrum β-Lactamase (ESBL) Producing Escherichia coli in Children: A Case–Control Study

Background In recent years, there has been an increasing incidence of community-acquired urinary tract infections (UTI) caused by extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL) producing Escherichia coli. However, the risk factors of ESBL-producing bacteria in community-acquired (CA)-UTI in children in the USA remain unclear.
CLINICOPATHOLOGICAL IMPLICATIONS OF PRKAR1A MUTATION IN PATIENTS WITH CARDIAC MYXOMA: POOLED DATA ANALYSIS FROM 101 MYXOMA CASES

PRKAR1A is a novel genetic mutation traditionally linked to Carney Complex (CNC) and cardiac myxoma. We hypothesized that presence of PRKAR1A mutation (Mut+) identifies a subset of cardiac myxoma patients with distinct clinicopathologic features from those without the mutation (Mut-). We searched
Activated Protein C Attenuates Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis Progression by Enhancing Vascular Integrity and Suppressing Microglial Activation.

Background: Activated protein C (APC), a serine protease with antithrombotic effects, protects in animal models of ischemic stroke by suppressing inflammation and enhancing vascular integrity, angiogenesis, neurogenesis and neuroprotection. A small number of animal studies suggest it might also have therapeutic potential in multiple sclerosis (MS), though results have been mixed. Based on these conflicting data, the goals of this study were to clarify the therapeutic potential of APC in the experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) model of MS and to determine mechanistically how APC mediates this protective effect. Methods: The protective potential of APC was examined in a chronic progressive model of EAE. Vascular breakdown, tight junction protein expression and vascular expression of fibronectin andintegrin as well as vascularity and glial activation were analyzed using immunofluorescence (IF) of spinal cord sections taken from mice with established EAE. The direct influence of APC on microglial activation was evaluated in vitro by a combination of morphology and MMP-9 expression Results: APC attenuated the severity of chronic progressive EAE, and this was strongly associated at the histopathological level with reduced levels of leukocyte infiltration and concomitant demyelination. Further analysis revealed that APC reduced vascular breakdown which was associated with maintained endothelial expression of the tight junction protein zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1). In addition, APC suppressed microglial activation in this EAE model and in vitro studies revealed that APC strongly inhibited microglial activation at both the morphological level and by the expression of the pro-inflammatory protease MMP-9. Conclusions: These findings build on the work of others in demonstrating strong therapeutic potential for APC in the treatment of inflammatory demyelinating disease and suggest that enhancement of vascular integrity and suppression of microglial activation may be important mediators of this protection.
CHAPTER 4 – Aromatic Hydroxylations

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the aromatic hydroxylations. Most of the intermediary metabolism is concerned with the transformations of chemically reactive compounds. The amino acids, fatty acids, and sugars that are derived from dietary proteins, fats, and carbohydrates, contain at least one functional group per molecule. Because amino, hydroxyl, and carboxylate groups lead to an activation of adjacent hydrogen atoms, the metabolism of these substances begins with an attack at or near the functional group. All the metabolites that are encountered in the cell are not provided with such convenient reactive handles. The carbocyclic compounds, aromatic and nonaromatic, and the paraffin side chains of some compounds cannot be handled by the usual hydrolysis or dehydrogenation reactions. For the metabolism of some of the stable molecules, a reaction is employed by the cell-aerobic hydroxylation. No intermediate been identified in any aerobic hydroxylation reaction. However, there is some evidence that an epoxide may be an intermediate in the conversion of kynurenic acid to dihydroxykynurenic acid.
Mining transcriptomics and clinical data reveals ACE2 expression modulators and identifies cardiomyopathy as a risk factor for mortality in COVID-19 patients

Abstract Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is the cell-entry receptor for SARS-CoV-2. It plays critical roles in both the transmission and the pathogenesis of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Comprehensive profiling of ACE2 expression patterns will help researchers to reveal risk factors of severe COVID-19 illness. While the expression of ACE2 in healthy human tissues has been well characterized, it is not known which diseases and drugs might modulate the ACE2 expression. In this study, we developed GENEVA (GENe Expression Variance Analysis), a semi-automated framework for exploring massive amounts of RNA-seq datasets. We applied GENEVA to 28,6650 publicly available RNA-seq samples to identify any previously studied experimental conditions that could directly or indirectly modulate ACE2 expression. We identified multiple drugs, genetic perturbations, and diseases that modulate the expression of ACE2, including cardiomyopathy, HNF1A overexpression, and drug treatments with RAD140 and Itraconazole. Our unbiased meta-analysis of seven datasets confirms ACE2 up-regulation in all cardiomyopathy categories. Using electronic health records data from 3936 COVID19 patients, we demonstrate that patients with pre-existing cardiomyopathy have an increased mortality risk than age-matched patients with other cardiovascular conditions. GENEVA is applicable to any genes of interest and is freely accessible at http://genevatool.org.
Transformation of Ferrihydrite to Goethite and the Fate of Plutonium

Understanding the interactions between plutonium and iron (oxy)hydroxide minerals is necessary to gain a predictive understanding of plutonium environmental mobility and to evaluate long-term perfo...
Dynamic Focusing of Large Arrays for Wireless Power Transfer and Beyond

We present architectures, circuits, and algorithms for dynamic 3-D lensing and focusing of electromagnetic power in radiative near- and far-field regions by arrays that can be arbitrary and nonuniform. They can benefit applications such as wireless power transfer at a distance (WPT-AD), volumetric sensing and imaging, high-throughput communications, and optical phased arrays. Theoretical limits on system performance are calculated. An adaptive algorithm focuses the power at the receiver(s) without prior knowledge of its location(s). It uses orthogonal bases to change the phases of multiple elements simultaneously to enhance the dynamic range. One class of such 2-D orthogonal and pseudo-orthogonal masks is constructed using the Hadamard and pseudo-Hadamard matrices. Generation and recovery units (GU and RU) work collaboratively to focus energy quickly and reliably with no need for factory calibration. Orthogonality enables batch processing in high-latency and low-rate communication settings. Secondary vector-based calculations allow instantaneous refocusing at different locations using element-wise calculations. An emulator enables further evaluation of the system. We demonstrate modular WPT-AD GUs of up to 400 elements utilizing arrays of 65-nm CMOS ICs to focus power on RUs that convert the RF power to dc. Each RFIC synthesizes 16 independently phase-controlled RF outputs around 10 GHz from a common single low-frequency reference. Detailed measurements demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of RF lensing techniques presented in this article. More than 2 W of dc power can be recovered through a wireless transfer at distances greater than 1 m. The system can dynamically project power at various angles and at distances greater than 10 m. These developments are another step toward unified wireless power, sensing, and communication solutions in the future.
Topology optimization of lattices with anisotropic struts

This work presents a topology optimization method for design of architected truss lattices made of anisotropic struts. Employing anisotropic materials for the lattice struts can result in better effective properties than those that can be obtained for a lattice in which each strut is made of a single isotropic material, but different struts may be made of different materials. This work focuses on lattice struts that are either hollow or fiber-reinforced, which effectively result in transverse isotropy. The proposed method simultaneously optimizes the spatial configuration of the struts and the volume fraction of the reinforcing fibers or the holes in each strut to extremize the lattice effective properties. A parametric description of the lattice struts is projected onto a density field for analysis via the geometry projection technique. The proposed method accommodates any number of specified material symmetries by performing appropriate reflections of the projected density with respect to the symmetry planes. To ensure the size variables converge to 0 or 1, we employ an explicit penalization by imposing a discreteness constraint. To improve manufacturability, a no-cut constraint is imposed to ensure that struts are not partially cut upon reflection by the symmetry planes or by the faces of the unit cell. The smallest angle at which two struts can intersect is also constrained to avoid overlaps that are difficult to manufacture. Examples of maximization of the effective bulk modulus and minimization of the effective Poisson’s ratio of the lattice demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.
Tribute to the Legacy of Renato Chiarizia (1942-2019)

Since the death of Renato Chiarizia (23 May 2019), his legacy looms large in the thoughts and the science of researchers throughout the world of chemical separations, especially for practitioners o...
Collateral Damage? Consequences of Radically Transparent Reviews in Health Care.

Abstract Over the past few years, over 40 hospitals and health systems have begun to share patient reviews and ratings of physicians and other health care professionals on their own public websites or patient portals. Most proponents of this “radical transparency” movement contend that the disclosure of information on patient satisfaction is inevitable, and we are past the stage of debating whether reviews and ratings should be made publicly available. I agree that consumers are demanding greater transparency from the organizations that they interact with, and I acknowledge that patient input can benefit providers by providing essential feedback about their performance. The open question is whether hospitals and health care systems should be the ones sharing this information publicly with potential patients (e.g., on their websites) rather than leaving this task to third-party providers such as Yelp. Notwithstanding the potential benefits to patients, my perspective—based on my own research and on empirical findings across a number of disciplines—is that the aggregate impact on providers may be net negative.
Blasting the myth of predictive INR changes related to plasma transfusion: an academic institution's experience.

Abstract Introduction Plasma transfusion is a common therapeutic strategy used to lower international normalized ratio (INR) values in the non-emergent setting. However, due to lack of evidence of its efficacy, standardized guidelines for this practice have not been well established. Methods This retrospective observational cohort study analyzed 276 inpatient encounters that involved plasma transfusions focusing on change in INR values from pre- to post-transfusion, with respect to the following predictor variables: vitamin K co-administration, number of plasma units transfused, order indication and body mass index (BMI). Results The overall average change in the INR was 1.35. Patients who received vitamin K showed an average change of 2.51, while patients that did not receive vitamin K demonstrated an average change of 0.70. Increased numbers of plasma units transfused showed benefit up to three-unit orders. Greater decreases in the INR were observed for patients requiring plasma for anticoagulation reversal or active bleeding. There was no significant difference in the change in INR based on the BMI. By multivariate and regression analyses, the stepwise addition of each successive predictor variable demonstrated an increase in the shared variance in the outcome of the post-transfusion INR: the pre-transfusion INR and vitamin K co-administration alone was not significant (p = 0.45); the additional number of plasma units transfused was significant (R² = 0.13, p Conclusion Taking into consideration the combination of multiple predictive factors may aid in a more efficient use of plasma products.
COVID-19 risk: Adult Medicaid beneficiaries with autism, intellectual disability, and mental health conditions.

Adults on the autism spectrum and those with intellectual disability or mental health conditions may be at increased risk of contracting COVID-19 or experiencing more severe illness if infected. We...
MC1732: Pilot/Phase II Trial of Hypofractionated Radiotherapy to the Whole Breast Alone Before Breast Conserving Surgery.

Purpose/Objective(s) To report the results of our phase II trial of breast cancer patients treated with hypofractionated whole breast radiation therapy (RT) prior to breast conserving surgery (BCS). Materials/Methods Between 2019 and 2020, patients with cT0-T2, N0, M0 breast cancer were enrolled. Patients were treated with hypofractionated whole breast RT, 25 Gy in 5 fractions, 4-8 weeks prior to BCS. RT was delivered with proton beam therapy or photons and no RT boost or regional nodal irradiation was allowed. Pathologic assessment was performed using the Residual Cancer Burden (RCB). Toxicities were assessed according to Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE, Version 4). Quality of life (QOL) was assessed with Patient-Reported Outcomes version of the CTCAE (PRO-CTCAE), The Breast Cancer Treatment Outcome Scale (BCTOS), Linear Analogue Self-Assessment (LASA), and patient-reported outcomes measurement information system (PROMIS). Deterioration of cosmesis was defined as going from excellent/good to fair/poor or from fair to poor according to the Harvard Cosmesis Scale. Results Twenty-two patients were enrolled. Median follow-up was 7.1 months (range, 0.2-16.8). Median age at RT was 64.1 years (range, 44.3-76.7). Tumor characteristics included: IDC 68%, ILC 14%, DCIS 5%, other 14%; grade 1 55%, grade 2 36%, 5%; ER+HER2- 95%, ER+HER2+ 5%; right-sided 68%, left-sided 32%. The DCIS were all ER+. Pre-treatment tumor size include Tis 5% and T1 95%. Median time from RT to BCS was 8 weeks. Seven (32%) patients and 3 (14%) patients experienced grade 2+ or 3 toxicity, respectively. Overall QOL LASA and PROMIS did not change significantly from baseline (P = 0.21 and P = 0.72, respectively). There was no clinically significant change (≥1 point) in any of the BCTOS domains. Patient satisfaction with treatment was high with over 90% of patients saying they would do RT again. Only 1 (5%) patient experienced a clinical deterioration that corresponded to a ‘Fair’ outcome on the Harvard Cosmesis Scale. At pathologic evaluation, 14 (64%) patients had RCB-0 or RCB-1 including 3 (14%) patients with a pathologic complete response (RCB-0). No local or distant recurrences have been observed. Conclusion Hypofractionated whole breast RT prior to BCS yielded excellent pathologic responses. There were low rates of toxicities and good cosmesis. Further investigation into this approach with RT before BCS is warranted.
Corporate culture and performance: relating concepts and outcomes

Corporate culture is a collectively internalized deeply embedded set of beliefs, expectations and assumptions that influence and guide thinking and behavior among an organization's members. A corporation's culture, because of its pervasive influence, can destroy or promote it's ability to compete and succeed. This study investigated the relationship between culture corporate and financial performance. Specifically, the study compared culture data from a cross section of organizations with past financial performance. Previous work examined the relationship between culture, measured at a point in time, and future performance. This work took a different perspective comparing culture data with financial performance the year an organization assessed its culture and five years prior. The intent of the study was to determine if past financial performance suggested future culture ratings. Culture data were collected via the Organizational Culture Inventory (OCX) which measures three types of cultural norms: Constructive, Passive/Defensive, and Aggressive/Defensive. Four financial performance measures. Market Value Added, Economic Value Added, Cost of Capital and Return on Capital, were gathered from the Stem Stewart Performance 1000 Index. In total 33 firms comprised the population categorized in three industry types: Manufacturing, Service, Telecommunications/Computer. The study revealed a negative significant correlation between organizations with Passive/Defensive culture tyjjes and their Market Value Added ratings across each of the six years examined. Another significant financial outcome was a negative correlation between Cost of Capital and the Constructive culture style the year the CXZ!I was administered.
ISO Usability Standards and Enterprise Software: A Management Perspective

The introduction and manifestation of software quality according to ISO 9241 series in the enterprise ecosystem depends on many factors. Most of them are not technical ones but merely organizational and process-dependent. They become therefore hard to assess for an enterprise organization. It is essential to unveil these uncertainties, to address them and to solve them in a most constructive way that replaces the “angst” inside an organization seeking compliance with ISO 9241 series standards where applicable.
V(CO)7+: A capped octahedral structure completes the 18-electron rule

Abstract Molecular structures, relative energies, vibrational spectra and bond dissociation energies of the seven-coordinate, 18-valence-electron vanadium carbonyl complex, V ( CO ) 7 + , are predicted theoretically. A C3v symmetry capped octahedral structure is found to be the global minimum and predicted CO vibrational frequencies range from 2023 to 2122 cm−1, generally consistent with experiment for known cationic carbonyl complexes. The lowest energy structure of V ( CO ) 6 + is also determined, a triplet D3d structure. The resulting bond dissociation energy, De, for CO ligand loss is predicted to be 11 kcal mol−1 with B3LYP, in good agreement with experiment, while BP86 and MP2 predict much higher values of 30 and 39 kcal mol−1.
Lumisomes, the Cellular Site of Bioluminescence in Coelenterates

Abstract From ten species of bioluminescent coelenterates we have isolated a membrane-enclosed subcellular particle that is apparently responsible for the bioluminescence in these animals. The animals investigated were species of Obelia and Clytia (from the class Hydrozoa) and species of Renilla, Ptilosarcus, Stylatula, Acanthoptilum, and Parazoanthus (from the class Anthozoa). By electron microscopy the purified particle preparations appear quite homogeneous in size and shape, have a diameter of approximately 0.2 µm, and are enclosed by a unit membrane. The particles contain all of the proteins necessary for producing the typical green bioluminescence (λmax 509 nm) observed in vivo in these animals. These include luciferase, a calcium-triggered photoprotein and a green fluorescent protein. Bioluminescence is evoked from the particles when they are placed in hypotonic solutions of calcium ion. Oxygen is also required for light emission. The color of the light is green, typical of the observed in vivo emissions. The widespread occurrence of these bioluminescent particles among the coelenterates suggest that they represent the cellular site of bioluminescence in these animals. We propose that these subcellular bioluminescent particles or organelles be referred to as lumisomes.
Relating Admissibility Standards for Digital Evidence to Attack Scenario Reconstruction

Attackers tend to use complex techniques such as combining multi-step, multi-stage attack with anti-forensic tools to make it difficult to find incriminating evidence and reconstruct attack scenarios that can stand up to the expected level of evidence admissibility in a court of law. As a solution, we propose to integrate the legal aspects of evidence correlation into a Prolog based reasoner to address the admissibility requirements by creating most probable attack scenarios that satisfy admissibility standards for substantiating evidence. Using a prototype implementation, we show how evidence extracted by using forensic tools can be integrated with legal reasoning to reconstruct network attack scenarios. Our experiment shows this implemented reasoner can provide pre-estimate of admissibility on a digital crime towards an attacked network.
Expressing the Field Operator in Terms of Currents and Densities

A formula is written down for the annhilation operator(bose or fermi) in terms of the corresponding observable bilinears namely currents and densities. The Fock space representation of these formulas is clarified. A conjecture is written down that shows that such a correspondence is unique.
Dermal fibroblasts from venous ulcers are unresponsive to the action of transforming growth factor-beta 1.

Failure to reepithelialize is the major clinical problem in venous ulcers. It is not clear whether the problem resides with keratinocytes or with inadequate and improper formation of extracellular matrix. In this study, we characterized the biosynthetic activity and response to transforming growth factor-β 1 (TGF-β) of dermal fibroblast cultures isolated from biopsies of venous ulcers and from normal thigh skin (controls) of seven patients. We found that baseline 3H-proline incorporation was similar in fibroblasts from venous ulcers and control skin (p=0.1716). No difference was detected by ELISA between ulcer and control fibroblasts in the synthesis of total TGF-β (p=0.2309), and the mRNA levels for α1(I) procollagen and TGF-β were comparable in both groups. However, TGF-β (0.1–5 ng/ml) enhanced collagen protein synthesis by more than 60% and in a dose-dependent manner (r=0.997) in control fibroblast cultures, while failing to stimulate collagen production by venous ulcer fibroblasts (p=0.0001). This unresponsiveness to TGF-β was associated with up to a fourfold decrease in TGF-β Type II receptors. We conclude that fibroblasts from the edge of non-healing venous ulcers are unresponsive to the action of TGF-β, and that this blunted response may cause faulty deposition of the extracellular matrix needed for reepithelialization and wound healing.
Logic Synthesis for Low Power VLSI Designs

Preface. I: Background, Terminology, and Power Modeling. 1. Introduction. 2. Technology Independent Power Analysis and Modeling. II: Two-Level Function Optimization for Low Power. 3. Two-Level Logic Minimization in CMOS Circuits. 4. Two-Level Logic Minimization in PLAs. III: Multi-Level Network Optimization for Low Power. 5. Logic Restructuring for Low Power. 6. Logic Minimization for Low Power. 7. Technology Dependent Optimization for Low Power Chi-ying Tsui. 8. Post Mapping Structural Optimization for Low Power. IV: Power Optimization Methodology. 9. POSE: Power Optimization and Synthesis Environment: (http://atrak.usc.edu/~pose) V: Conclusion. 10. Concluding Remarks. Index.
Speech motor planning and execution deficits in early childhood stuttering

Five to eight percent of preschool children develop stuttering, a speech disorder with clearly observable, hallmark symptoms: sound repetitions, prolongations, and blocks. While the speech motor processes underlying stuttering have been widely documented in adults, few studies to date have assessed the speech motor dynamics of stuttering near its onset. We assessed fundamental characteristics of speech movements in preschool children who stutter and their fluent peers to determine if atypical speech motor characteristics described for adults are early features of the disorder or arise later in the development of chronic stuttering. Orofacial movement data were recorded from 58 children who stutter and 43 children who do not stutter aged 4;0 to 5;11 (years; months) in a sentence production task. For single speech movements and multiple speech movement sequences, we computed displacement amplitude, velocity, and duration. For the phrase level movement sequence, we computed an index of articulation coordination consistency for repeated productions of the sentence. Boys who stutter, but not girls, produced speech with reduced amplitudes and velocities of articulatory movement. All children produced speech with similar durations. Boys, particularly the boys who stuttered, had more variable patterns of articulatory coordination compared to girls. This study is the first to demonstrate sex-specific differences in speech motor control processes between preschool boys and girls who are stuttering. The sex-specific lag in speech motor development in many boys who stutter likely has significant implications for the dramatically different recovery rates between male and female preschoolers who stutter. Further, our findings document that atypical speech motor development is an early feature of stuttering.
Old School, New School, No School: Hip Hopâ€™s Dismantling of School and Prison Industrial Complexes

This article, rooted in hip hop studies and pedagogy, critically examines the representation of formal traditional schooling, teaching and educating in hip hop, arguing that through research of rap lyrics, the message is evident that schools, teachers, and the educational system oppress today’s urban youth and maintain the school-to-prison pipeline. Instead of educationally stimulating oppressed youth in urban communities, the system medicates or expels them from school, leading these children and teens to engage in street hustling that often ends in death or imprisonment. This flawed system disserves poor youth of color, making hip hop music one of the only forms of expression for the voices of this marginalized population. Hip hop, a Black urban identity culture in the U.S., started in the 1970s to lyrically articulate the experience of oppression and liberation. Hip hop’s philosophy was and is simple: to collaboratively and creatively make something from very little. Through the lyrics of Biggie Smalls, Tupac Shakur, Nas, Public Enemy, KRS-One, and other rappers emerges an argument in support of massive educational transformation of schools by administrators and teachers to address racism, classism, sexism, and homophobia. The rising field of critical urban education challenges educators to address systematic causes of oppression and no longer rely on reformist co-opted pedagogical methods such as using hip hop in the classroom, giving students free computers, and providing intermittent multicultural education workshops. With hip hop lyrics as a research foundation, this article demands a school system rooted in fun, stimulation, critical thinking, and collaborative, not competitive, approaches to learning. This new system should be organized and owned by the community and for the community, negating the need for outsiders who may unwittingly dictate and promote racist, sexist, homophobic and classist educational standards.
USING AN ONLINE PERSONALITY ASSESSMENT TOOL TO OPTIMIZE FIRST-YEAR ENGINEERING DESIGN TEAMS

This paper discusses a Canadian-made online cloud-based personality assessment tool, and its application in a first-year engineering design course at a large private US university. The motivation for this study is to develop an automated approach to maximizing diversity during team formation at the first-year level, while encouraging learning about differences in personality and their effect on teams. The study found that the CLUES software being used was a step towards greater understanding of differences, and that students who used the knowledge of personality during the team formation phase reported a greater sense of inclusivity.
Localized states in molecular auger spectra

Abstract The influence of the degree of localization of the two final holes on the Auger spectra of a simple diatomic molecule is analysed in detail and cases where such effects may be observed experimentally are discussed. The results are compared with studies of the valence band Auger spectra of solids.
Effects of watershed and estuarine characteristics on the abundance of submerged aquatic vegetation in Chesapeake Bay subestuaries

Watershed land use can affect submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) by elevating nutrient and sediment loading to estuaries. We analyzed the effects of watershed use and estuarine characteristics on the spatial variation of SAV abundance among 101 shallow subestuaries of Chesapeake Bay during 1984–2003. Areas of these subestuaries range from 0.1 to 101 km2, and their associated local watershed areas range from 6 to 1664 km2. Watershed land cover ranges from 6% to 81% forest, 1% to 64% cropland, 2% to 38% grassland, and 0.3% to 89% developed land. Landscape analyses were applied to develop a number of subestuary metrics (such as subestuary area, mouth width, elongation ratio, fractal dimension of shoreline, and the ratio of local watershed area to subestuary area) and watershed metrics (such as watershed area). Using mapped data from aerial SAV surveys, we calculated SAV coverage for each subestuary in each year during 1984–2003 as a proportion of potential SAV habitat (the area mixed-agricultural > agricultural > developed. Change-point analyses indicated strong threshold responses of SAV abundance to point source total nitrogen and phosphorus inputs, the ratio of local watershed area to subestuary area, and septic system density in the local watershed.