cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Caloric restriction, gene expression, and aging.

Abstract Caloric restriction (CR) increases maximum life span in many species. In laboratory rodents, CR started either early in life or in middle-age opposes the development of age-associated biological and pathological changes. Three main questions are being asked by CR investigators. How does CR retard aging and disease processes? There is evidence that CR lowers oxidative stress generated by mitochondrial oxidative energy (i.e., calorie) metabolism. This lowering is most profound in post-mitotic tissues. Using microarrays, we have described the gene expression profile of aging skeletal muscle, heart and brain in mice and its alteration by CR. We observed that CR opposes the development of many age-associated changes while shifting the level of expression for many genes which are stable in expression with aging in normally fed mice. Does CR retard aging in primates? Two ongoing studies in rhesus monkeys on CR plus epidemiological data support the idea of human translatability. Whether CR extends life span in monkeys should become known in ∼15 years. Studies in humans on CR were launched by the NIA in 2002. Can substances be found which mimic the beneficial actions of CR? The search for “CR mimetics” should benefit from genomic and proteomic approaches.
Thermally Driven In-Situ Removal of Native Oxide Using Anhydrous Hydrogen Fluoride

In-situ native-oxide removal is critical for epitaxial single-crystal silicon deposition, for polysilicon emitters and contacts and for ultrathin gate dielectric films in integrated circuit (IC) fabrication. We have developed an in-situ, thermally-driven, anhydrous hydrogen fluoride (AHF)-based native-oxide removal technique in which the wafer is treated by AHF at low temperatures (300–400°C) and a short (10 sec) 950°C ‘spike’ in AHF-H2 immediately prior to Si deposition. This process removes native oxides formed by standard wet cleans such as HCl:H2O2 and NH4OH:H2O2, as well as native oxides formed by the clean-room ambient. Further, the technique is an effective pre-clean for both polysilicon and epitaxial silicon deposition. This flexibility, combined with other salient features such as simplicity and a low thermal budget, make the process eminently suited for IC fabrication.
Mixed Confidence Estimation for Iterative CT Reconstruction

Dynamic (4D) CT imaging is used in a variety of applications, but the two major drawbacks of the technique are its increased radiation dose and longer reconstruction time. Here we present a statistical analysis of our previously proposed Mixed Confidence Estimation (MCE) method that addresses both these issues. This method, where framed iterative reconstruction is only performed on the dynamic regions of each frame while static regions are fixed across frames to a composite image, was proposed to reduce computation time. In this work, we generalize the previous method to describe any application where a portion of the image is known with higher confidence (static, composite, lower-frequency content, etc.) and a portion of the image is known with lower confidence (dynamic, targeted, etc). We show that by splitting the image space into higher and lower confidence components, MCE can lower the estimator variance in both regions compared to conventional reconstruction. We present a theoretical argument for this reduction in estimator variance and verify this argument with proof-of-principle simulations. We also propose a fast approximation of the variance of images reconstructed with MCE and confirm that this approximation is accurate compared to analytic calculations of and multi-realization image variance. This MCE method requires less computation time and provides reduced image variance for imaging scenarios where portions of the image are known with more certainty than others allowing for potentially reduced radiation dose and/or improved dynamic imaging.
Chemical analysis of racing fuels using total vaporization and gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC/MS)

The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) is the governing body of North American drag racing. As a supervisory agency, NHRA monitors racing fuels for regulatory purposes and quality control. In this paper, total vaporization and mass spectrometry based methods were developed to analyze nitromethane-based and racing gasoline fuels. Total Vaporization Headspace gas chromatography mass spectrometry (TV-HS-GC/MS) was used to quatitate the amount of methanol in nitromethane fuels to verify that the methanol content was at least 10% (v/v). Total vaporization solid phase microextraction gas chromatography mass spectrometry (TV-SPME-GC/MS) was used to qualitatively identify racing gasoline components, which included isopentane, isooctane, toluene, and tetraethyllead.
Mullins Effect and Rubber-Filler Interaction

Abstract A previously-reported theory for the Mullins softening effect has been used to interpret various new data for the behavior of filled SBR, rubber under tensile load. The strength of the fil...
Echogenic Periventricular Halo: Normal Sonographic Finding or Neonatal Cerebral Hemorrhage

Intracranial sonographic evaluation of the normal neonate frequently reveals an echogenic halo about the lateral ventricles. This periventricular halo is seen to varying degrees when scanning in both semiaxial and parasagittal planes in almost all normal infants. Among 180 consecutive premature neonates scanned serially with real-time sonography, two were prospectively diagnosed as having a form of periventricular echogenicity that was abnormal and represented periventricular hemorrhage. This hemorrhage completely surrounded the lateral ventricles and was intensely echogenic, as echogenic as the choroid plexus. This abnormal periventricular echogenicity was reproducible from multiple scan planes and hemorrhage was confirmed by computed tomography (CT). By contrast, CT scans obtained on another 53 of the 180 premature infants failed to reveal evidence of any abnormality corresponding to the periventricular echogenicity. Both neonates with periventricular hemorrhage developed bilateral multiseptate areas of porencephaly as sequelae to their hemorrhages. The differentiation between normal periventricular echogenicity and periventricular hemorrhage therefore attains great significance to the sonographer.
Chemoselective Ketone Synthesis by the Addition of Organometallics to N-Acylazetidines

A general and highly chemoselective method for the synthesis of ketones by the addition of organometallics to N-acylazetidines via stable tetrahedral intermediates is reported for the first time. The transformation is characterized by its wide substrate scope and exquisite selectivity for the ketone products even when a large excess of nucleophilic reagents is used. Even of broader interest is the use of N-acylazetidines as bench-stable, readily available amide acylating reagents, in which the reactivity is controlled by amide pyramidalization and strain of the four-membered ring to afford synthetically valuable building blocks.
RESULTS OF THRA WITH 36MM-METALLIC FEMORAL HEAD COUPLED WITH 1ST GENERATION HXLPE AS A BEARING SURFACE IN LESS THAN OR EQUAL TO 50 YEARS OLD. - MINIMUM 5-YEAR RESULTS -

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the Mid-term results (minimum 5 year) of the use of 36 mm metallic femoral head coupled with 1st generation HXLPE in patients with the age of less than or equal to 50 years-old. This retrospective study included 31 cases sustained hip pain needed Total Hip Replace Arthroplasty. We used cementless stem(FMT, Zimmer, Warsaw, Indiana) at 28 cases and cement stem(Versys, Zimmer, Warsaw, Indiana) at 3 cases. We used Trilogy (Zimmer, Warsaw, Indiana) in all cases as an acetabular cup and Longevity (Zimmer, Warsaw, Indiana) in all cases as a HXLPE. Mean acetabular cup size was 52.88mm. Mean HXLPE liner thickness at 45o was 6.18mm [Fig.1]. Mean Harris hip score was 91(86–96) and all cases obtained more than 15 scores in Merle d9Aubigne and postel method at recent follow ups. All femoral stem showed stable fixation status. Mean acetabular cup Inclination was 50.6o and Anteversion was 23.1o. During follow ups, there was no complication including dislocation, osteolysis, infection and plastic fracture. Bedding-in wear rate was 0.079±0.034mm/yr. And Steady- state was 0.043±0.016mm/yr. In vitro study, 1stgeneration HXLPE showed negative mechanical property changes due to high dose radiation and remelting. So, concerns remained in using HXLPE to active patients. But we checked a good results in terms of functional scores and wear rates. And, there was no major complication during minimal 5 years check ups. So, the authors thought THRA with 36mm- metallic heads on 1st-Generation Highly Cross-linked Polyethylene as a bearing surface could be a good option in less than or equal to 50 years patients.
Planning in domains with cost function dependent actions

In a number of graph search-based planning problems, the value of the cost function that is being minimized also affects the set of possible actions at some or all the states in the graph. For example, in path planning for a robot with a limited battery power, a common cost function is energy consumption, whereas the level of remaining energy affects the navigational capabilities of the robot. Similarly, in path planning for a robot navigating dynamic environments, a total traversal time is a common cost function whereas the timestep affects whether a particular transition is valid. In such planning problems, the cost function typically becomes one of the state variables thereby increasing the dimensionality of the planning problem, and consequently the size of the graph that represents the problem. In this paper, we show how to avoid this increase in the dimensionality for the planning problems whenever the availability of the actions is monotonically non-increasing with the increase in the cost function. We present three variants of A* search for dealing with such planning problems: a provably optimal version, a suboptimal version that scales to larger problems while maintaining a bound on suboptimality, and finally a version that relaxes our assumption on the relationship between the cost function and action space. Our experimental analysis on several domains shows that the presented algorithms achieve up to several orders of magnitude speed up over the alternative approaches to planning.
Total Synthesis of Δ12-Prostaglandin J3: Evolution of Synthetic Strategies to a Streamlined Process

The total synthesis of Δ(12) -prostaglandin J3 (Δ(12) -PGJ3 , 1), a reported leukemia stem cell ablator, through a number of strategies and tactics is described. The signature cross-conjugated dienone structural motif of 1 was forged by an aldol reaction/dehydration sequence from key building blocks enone 13 and aldehyde 14, whose lone stereocenters were generated by an asymmetric Tsuji-Trost reaction and an asymmetric Mukaiyama aldol reaction, respectively. During this program, a substituent-governed regioselectivity pattern for the Rh-catalyzed C-H functionalization of cyclopentenes and related olefins was discovered. The evolution of the synthesis of 1 from the original strategy to the final streamlined process proceeded through improvements in the construction of both fragments 13 and 14, exploration of the chemistry of the hitherto underutilized chiral lactone synthon 57, and a diastereoselective alkylation of a cyclopentenone intermediate. The described chemistry sets the stage for large-scale production of Δ(12) -PGJ3 and designed analogues for further biological and pharmacological studies.
Uranium isotope fractionation during coprecipitation with aragonite and calcite

Abstract Natural variations in 238U/235U of marine calcium carbonates might provide a useful way of constraining redox conditions of ancient environments. In order to evaluate the reliability of this proxy, we conducted aragonite and calcite coprecipitation experiments at pH ∼7.5 and ∼8.5 to study possible U isotope fractionation during incorporation into these minerals. Small but significant U isotope fractionation was observed in aragonite experiments at pH ∼8.5, with heavier U isotopes preferentially enriched in the solid phase. 238U/235U of dissolved U in these experiments can be fit by Rayleigh fractionation curves with fractionation factors of 1.00007 + 0.00002/−0.00003, 1.00005 ± 0.00001, and 1.00003 ± 0.00001. In contrast, no resolvable U isotope fractionation was observed in an aragonite experiment at pH ∼7.5 or in calcite experiments at either pH. Equilibrium isotope fractionation among different aqueous U species is the most likely explanation for these findings. Certain charged U species are preferentially incorporated into calcium carbonate relative to the uncharged U species Ca2UO2(CO3)3(aq), which we hypothesize has a lighter equilibrium U isotope composition than most of the charged species. According to this hypothesis, the magnitude of U isotope fractionation should scale with the fraction of dissolved U that is present as Ca2UO2(CO3)3(aq). This expectation is confirmed by equilibrium speciation modeling of our experiments. Theoretical calculation of the U isotope fractionation factors between different U species could further test this hypothesis and our proposed fractionation mechanism. These findings suggest that U isotope variations in ancient carbonates could be controlled by changes in the aqueous speciation of seawater U, particularly changes in seawater pH, P CO 2 , Ca2+, or Mg2+ concentrations. In general, these effects are likely to be small (
Recruiting and Supporting Low-Income, High-Achieving Students at Flagship Universities

Abstract We study an intervention designed to overcome multiple hurdles faced by low-income, high-ability college students to determine if and how it affects students’ long-term outcomes. UT-Austin’s Longhorn Opportunity Scholars (LOS) program recruited at impoverished high schools and provided scholarships and enhanced support services to students who enrolled. We use administrative records for Texas public college students and find that LOS had large, positive effects on enrollment in and graduation from UT-Austin, masters’ degree enrollment, and earnings. In particular, our results suggest that high achieving college attendees who went to a targeted high school saw UT-Austin enrollment increase by 71% and earnings 12 years after high school increase by 4.6% (an 82% increase among attendees). A somewhat similar program at Texas A&M called the Century Scholars Program had no effect on enrollment, but other contemporaneous enrollment shifts limit our analysis of other outcomes. The LOS results suggest that well designed, targeted recruitment programs with adequate supports can improve long-run outcomes for low-income students.
Providing feedback on computer-based algebra homework in middle-school classrooms

Homework is transforming at a rapid rate with continuous advances in educational technology. Computer-based homework, in particular, is gaining popularity across a range of schools, with little empirical evidence on how to optimize student learning. The current aim was to test the effects of different types of feedback on computer-based homework. In the study, middle school students completed a computer-based pretest, homework assignment, and posttest containing challenging algebraic problems. On the homework assignment, students were assigned to different feedback conditions. In Experiment 1 (Nź=ź103), students received no feedback or correct-answer feedback after each problem. In Experiment 2 (Nź=ź143), students received (1) no feedback, (2) correct-answer feedback, (3) try-again feedback, or (4) explanation feedback after each problem. For students with low prior knowledge, feedback resulted in better posttest performance than no feedback. However, students with high prior knowledge learned just as much whether they received feedback or not. Results suggest the provision of basic feedback on computer-based homework can benefit novice students' mathematics learning. The effects of feedback on computer-based algebra homework were examined.Students with low prior knowledge benefitted from feedback.Students with higher prior knowledge did not benefit from feedback.Different feedback types produced similar results.
Kinetic Resolution of Benzylamines via Palladium(II)-Catalyzed C–H Cross-Coupling

A Pd(II)-catalyzed enantioselective C–H cross-coupling of benzylamines via kinetic resolution has been achieved using chiral mono-N-protected α-amino-O-methylhydroxamic acid (MPAHA) ligands. Both chiral benzylamines and ortho-arylated benzylamines are obtained in high enantiomeric purity. The use of a readily removable nosyl (Ns) protected amino group as the directing group is a crucial practical advantage. Moreover, the ortho-arylated benzylamine products could be further transformed into chiral 6-substituted 5,6-dihydrophenanthridines as important structural motifs in natural products and bioactive molecules.
The effects of combining norethindrone with a gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist in the treatment of symptomatic endometriosis

Treatment of endometriosis with gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonists (GnRH-a) is associated with side effects secondary to the induced hypoestrogenic state. In an effort to ameliorate these symptoms, 10 patients with symptomatic endometriosis self-administered the GnRH-a [D-His 6 (Imbzl)-Pro 9 -NET]-GnRH in combination with norethindrone daily for 24 weeks. Painful symptoms were significantly suppressed after therapy ( P P
Brief Review on Black Hole Loop Quantization

Here, we present a review about the quantization of spherically-symmetric spacetimes adopting loop quantum gravity techniques. Several models that have been studied so far share similar properties: the resolution of the classical singularity and some of them an intrinsic discretization of the geometry. We also explain the extension to Reissner–Nordstrom black holes. Besides, we review how quantum test fields on these quantum geometries allow us to study phenomena, like the Casimir effect or Hawking radiation. Finally, we briefly describe a recent proposal that incorporates spherically-symmetric matter, discussing its relevance for the understanding of black hole evolution.
Nonequilibrium and equilibrium shock front radiation measurements

The intensities of the radiation emitted behind a normal shock wave in N were measured in an electric-arc driven shock tube at a shock velocity of 6.2 km/sec. Both a time-resolved broad-band radiation intensity measurement and a time-frozen spectral measurement were conducted. The rotational and vibrational temperatures are determined in both the equilibrium and the nonequilibrium regions. The results are compared with the similar data obtained by Allen et al. (1961). The measured rotational temperature seems to be in nonequilibrium, contradicting the two-temperature assumption of Park (1988), but the measured vibrational temperature agrees with Park's model.
Thermal Cycloisomerization of Putative Allenylpyridines for the Synthesis of Isoquinoline Derivatives.

A cascade (cyclo)isomerization/elimination process produces novel isoquinoline derivatives of potential interest for pharmaceutical, biomedical, and energy-related research. Mechanistic experiments support a putative allenylpyridine (reminiscent of the Garratt–Braverman cyclization) as a key intermediate in the cascade process.
Verifying quantitative reliability for programs that execute on unreliable hardware

Emerging high-performance architectures are anticipated to contain unreliable components that may exhibit soft errors, which silently corrupt the results of computations. Full detection and masking of soft errors is challenging, expensive, and, for some applications, unnecessary. For example, approximate computing applications (such as multimedia processing, machine learning, and big data analytics) can often naturally tolerate soft errors.We present Rely a programming language that enables developers to reason about the quantitative reliability of an application -- namely, the probability that it produces the correct result when executed on unreliable hardware. Rely allows developers to specify the reliability requirements for each value that a function produces.We present a static quantitative reliability analysis that verifies quantitative requirements on the reliability of an application, enabling a developer to perform sound and verified reliability engineering. The analysis takes a Rely program with a reliability specification and a hardware specification that characterizes the reliability of the underlying hardware components and verifies that the program satisfies its reliability specification when executed on the underlying unreliable hardware platform. We demonstrate the application of quantitative reliability analysis on six computations implemented in Rely.
THE ALL POLY TIBIA: CHEAPER AND BETTER – OPPOSES

There is no question that excellent long-term results have been demonstrated with all-polyethylene tibial components. Moreover, improvements in polyethylene to increase wear resistance, maintain mechanical strength, and improve oxidative resistance lend even greater credence to the use of an all-polyethylene tibial component. There are several issues of concern. In revision knee replacement for reasons such as patellofemoral problems where the components are otherwise ideal, the arthrotomy performed during the revision usually creates a slight laxity requiring a thicker polyethylene or even a different tibial conformity. With an all-polyethylene tibia, this would require full component revision. It is also true that, even after careful trial reduction, the surgeon occasionally will find that the final construct is slightly lax requiring a thicker final insert. This again is difficult in the situation of all-polyethylene tibia. One of the advantages of an all-polyethylene tibia is to avoid back-side wear that posed a substantial problem in the past. Most component systems have successfully dealt with the problem of back-side wear making the advantage of a nonmodular all-polyethylene tibia moot. Finally, in a modular system, the surgeon has the advantage of cementing all components with the tibial trial and then having the ability to remove the trial component, clear the back of the knee and insert the final insert.
Amphetamine-Positive Urine Drug Screens in the Setting of Mexiletine Use: A Case Series

declined rapidly after a sharp peak. After transplant, the flow-volume loop shows a normal pattern. (B) Post-transplant bronchoscopic view of main bronchi during end expiration showing end expiratory dynamic collapse of right main bronchus and left main bronchus. (Reprinted with permission of the American Thoracic Society. Copyright © 2016 American Thoracic Society. The Annals of the American Thoracic Society is an official journal of the American Thoracic Society.) Case Anecdotes, Comments and Opinions 1045
Which leading journal leads? Idea diffusion in economics research journals

Do general interest journals set the trends in research attention to particular topics, or is it field journals that have greater initial influence? In this paper, we focus on the subfield of environmental economics and attempt to empirically identify whether it has been the leading general interest journals or the top environmental economics field journal that has set the research trends on climate change, air pollution, water pollution, and other topics. We use textual analysis and Granger causality tests to investigate the question of which journals lead in publication of papers related to these topics in environmental economics. Our results indicate that leadership depends on the topic; however, there is some evidence that the top field journal in environmental economics generally took the lead in more controversial topics.
Physician understanding and application of surrogate decision-making laws in clinical practice.

Background: Although state surrogate laws are the most common way surrogate decision makers are identified, no studies have been conducted to determine physician understanding of these laws or how ...
YinYang bipolar dynamic organizational modeling for equilibrium-based decision analysis: Logical transformation of an indigenous philosophy to a global science

While it is recognized that indigenous research on China is helpful if not essential, the essence of YinYang has never been made clear in logical forms. While indigenous research should be guided by a philosophy, it was widely believed that without a unique logical system China only had culture but no philosophy. Now, worldwide indigenous research on China is faced with tremendous difficulties due to the lack of principles, academic disciplines, and a scientific common ground even though the Chinese YinYang has been widely influential. Consequently, a unique formal logical foundation is imperative for a logical reincarnation of Chinese philosophy. It is shown in this work that a formal equilibrium-based and harmony-centered YinYang bipolar dynamic logic (BDL) can fill the gap. Based on BDL, bipolar dynamic organizational modeling (BDOM) is proposed for equilibrium-based decision analysis (EBDA). It is shown that BDOM/EBDA methodologies can integrate case study methods and grounded theory together into a holistic and dynamic management paradigm for global regulation. The three philosophies of metaphysics, dialectics and the Dao of YinYang are formally classified and distinguished. It is argued that with BDL YinYang is elevated to a formal logical system, and indigenous research on China is positioned in the context of a global science with a common philosophical ground of equilibrium, complementarity, and harmony. It is concluded that, with YinYang as a philosophical guiding light, not only is bipolar dynamic equilibrium-based indigenous research helpful but also fundamental and essential.
Hadamard-type formulas via the Maslov form

Given a star-shaped bounded Lipschitz domain \({\Omega\subset{\mathbb{R}}^d}\), we consider the Schrodinger operator \({L_{\mathcal{G}}=-\Delta+V}\) on \({\Omega}\) and its restrictions \({L^{\Omega_t}_{\mathcal{G}}}\) on the subdomains \({\Omega_t}\), \({t\in[0,1]}\), obtained by shrinking \({\Omega}\) toward its center. We impose either the Dirichlet or quite general Robin-type boundary conditions determined by a subspace \({{\mathcal{G}}}\) of the boundary space \({H^{1/2}(\partial\Omega)\times H^{-1/2}(\partial\Omega)}\), and assume that the potential is smooth and takes values in the set of symmetric \({(N\times N)}\) matrices. Two main results are proved: First, for any \({t_0\in(0,1]}\) we give an asymptotic formula for the eigenvalues \({\lambda(t)}\) of the operator \({L^{\Omega_t}_{\mathcal{G}}}\) as \({t\to t_0}\) up to quadratic terms, that is, we explicitly compute the first and second \({t}\)-derivatives of the eigenvalues. This includes the case of the eigenvalues with arbitrary multiplicities. Second, we compute the first derivative of the eigenvalues via the (Maslov) crossing form utilized in symplectic topology to define the Arnold–Maslov–Keller index of a path in the set of Lagrangian subspaces of the boundary space. The path is obtained by taking the Dirichlet and Neumann traces of the weak solutions of the eigenvalue problems for \({L^{\Omega_t}_{\mathcal{G}}}\).
NEWS: the near-infrared Echelle for wideband spectroscopy

We present an updated optical and mechanical design of NEWS: the Near-infrared Echelle for Wide-band Spectroscopy (formerly called HiJaK: the High-resolution J, H and K spectrometer), a compact, high-resolution, near-infrared spectrometer for 5-meter class telescopes. NEWS provides a spectral resolution of 60,000 and covers the full 0.8-2.5 μm range in 5 modes. We adopt a compact, lightweight, monolithic design and have developed NEWS to be mounted to the instrument cube at the Cassegrain focus of the new 4.3-meter Discovery Channel Telescope.
Phylogenetic Evidence for Ancient and Persistent Environmental Symbiont Reacquisition in Largidae (Hemiptera: Heteroptera).

ABSTRACT The insect order Hemiptera, one of the best-studied insect lineages with respect to bacterial symbioses, still contains major branches that lack comprehensive characterization of associated bacterial symbionts. The Pyrrhocoroidea (Largidae [220 species] and Pyrrhocoridae [∼300 species]) is a clade of the hemipteran infraorder Pentatomomorpha. Studies on bacterial symbionts of this group have focused on members of Pyrrhocoridae, but recent examination of species of two genera of Largidae demonstrated divergent symbiotic complexes in these putative sister families. We surveyed the associated bacterial diversity of this group using paired-end Illumina sequencing and targeted Sanger sequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA amplicons of 30 pyrrhocoroid taxa, including 17 species of Largidae, in order to determine bacterial associates and the similarity of associated microbial communities among species. We also used molecular data (4,800 bp in 5 loci, for 57 ingroup and 12 outgroup taxa) to infer a phylogeny of the host superfamily, in order to trace the evolution of symbiotic complexes among Pentatomomorpha species. We undertook multiple lines of investigation (i.e., experimental rearing, fluorescence in situ hybridization microscopy, and phylogenetic and coevolutionary analyses) to elucidate potential transmission routes for largid symbionts. We found a prevalent and specific association of Largidae with Burkholderia strains of the plant-associated beneficial and environmental clade, housed in midgut tubules. As in other distantly related Heteroptera, symbiotic bacteria seem to be acquired from the environment every generation. We review the current understanding of symbiotic complexes within Pentatomomorpha and discuss means to further investigate the evolution and function of these symbioses. IMPORTANCE Obligate symbioses with bacteria are common in insects, particularly Hemiptera, in which various forms of symbiosis occur. However, knowledge regarding symbionts remains incomplete for major hemipteran lineages. Thus, an accurate understanding of how these partnerships evolved and changed over millions of years is not yet achievable. We contribute to our understanding of the evolution of symbiotic complexes in Hemiptera by characterizing bacterial associates of Pyrrhocoroidea, focusing on the family Largidae. Members of Largidae are associated with specific symbiotic Burkholderia strains from a different clade than Burkholderia symbionts in other Burkholderia-associated Hemiptera. Evidence suggests that species of Largidae reacquire specific symbiotic bacteria from the environment every generation, which is a rare strategy for insects, with potentially volatile evolutionary ramifications, but one that must have persisted in Largidae and related lineages since their origin in the Cretaceous Period.
Assessing the dynamic impact of tourism, industrialization, urbanization, and globalization on growth and environment in Southeast Asia

The purpose of this article is to investigate the impact of growth and environment in Southeast Asia. Extending existing research, this research builds on variables such as tourism, industrializati...
Information environment and earnings management of dual class firms around the world

Abstract This study examines the information environment and earnings management of dual class firms. Motivated by the pronounced entrenchment phenomenon at dual class firms due to divergence between voting and cash flow rights, we are interested in whether dual class firms adopt corporate disclosure choices that imply greater opacity as well as employ judgment in financing reporting to misguide the outside shareholders about the firm’s true performance. Based on a sample of 12,672 firms from 19 countries during 1994–2010, we find that dual class status is associated with poorer information environment and increased accrual-based earnings management, consistent with the notion that managers of dual class firms exhibit incentives to conceal private control benefits from the outside shareholders. Results further suggest that dual class ownership structure weakens the mitigating impact of investor protection on earnings management. Following unification, firms experience an improvement in information environment and a decrease in earnings manipulation.
REMOVING WELL-FIXED COMPONENTS: JUST CALL OSCAR

Over a four year period of time, 142 consecutive hip revisions were performed with the use of an extended proximal femoral osteotomy. Twenty patients had insufficient follow-up or were followed elsewhere and were excluded from the review. The remaining 122 revisions included 83 women and 39 men. Average age at time of revision was 63.8 (26–84) years. Indications for revision were aseptic loosening (114), component failure (4), recurrent dislocation (2), femoral fracture (1) and second stage re-implantation for infection (1). The extended proximal femoral osteotomy gave easy access to the distal bone-cement or bone prosthesis interface in all cases. It allowed neutral reaming of the femoral canal and implantation of the revision component in proper alignment. Varus remodeling of the proximal femur secondary to loosening was handled with relative ease implementing the osteotomy. Average time from the beginning of the osteotomy procedure to the complete removal of prosthesis and cement was thirty-five minutes. There were no non-unions of the osteotomised fragments at an average post-op follow-up of 2.6 years with no cases of proximal migration of the greater trochanteric fragment greater than 2mm, there was evidence of radiographic union of the osteotomy site in all cases by 3 months. Stem fixation with bone ingrowth was noted in 112 (92%) of 122 hips, stable fibrous fixation was seen in 9 (7%) and 1 stem was unstable and was subsequently revised. However, there was an incidence of 7% perforation rate of the femoral canal distal to the osteotomy site during cement removal. This was most prevalent where there was greater than 2cm of cement plug present which was well bonded. When OSCAR was used instead of hand tools or power reamers, there were no perforations in 51 cases. There has been no failure of fixation with fully porous coated stems inserted in the canals where OSCAR had removed cement. Also, the use of OSCAR has allowed us to shorten the osteotomy, thus allowing a longer, intact isthmus to remain so that shorter stems can be used. We highly recommend the use of OSCAR in conjunction with the extended osteotomy for removal of well-fixed distal cement beyond the extended osteotomy site.
A secure data enclave and analytics platform for social scientists

Data-driven research is increasingly ubiquitous and data itself is a defining asset for researchers, particularly in the computational social sciences and humanities. Entire careers and research communities are built around valuable, proprietary or sensitive datasets. However, many existing computation resources fail to support secure and cost-effective storage of data while also enabling secure and flexible analysis of the data. To address these needs we present CLOUD KOTTA, a cloud-based architecture for the secure management and analysis of social science data. CLOUD KOTTA leverages reliable, secure, and scalable cloud resources to deliver capabilities to users, and removes the need for users to manage complicated infrastructure. CLOUD KOTTA implements automated, cost-aware models for efficiently provisioning tiered storage and automatically scaled compute resources. CLOUD KOTTA has been used in production for several months and currently manages approximately 10TB of data and has been used to process more than 5TB of data with over 75,000 CPU hours. It has been used for a broad variety of text analysis workflows, matrix factorization, and various machine learning algorithms, and more broadly, it supports fast, secure and cost-effective research.
Hydrogen Sulfide Donors Activated by Reactive Oxygen Species

Hydrogen sulfide (H2 S) exhibits promising protective effects in many (patho)physiological processes, as evidenced by recent reports using synthetic H2 S donors in different biological models. Herein, we report the design and evaluation of compounds denoted PeroxyTCM, which are the first class of reactive oxygen species (ROS)-triggered H2 S donors. These donors are engineered to release carbonyl sulfide (COS) upon activation, which is quickly hydrolyzed to H2 S by the ubiquitous enzyme carbonic anhydrase (CA). The donors are stable in aqueous solution and do not release H2 S until triggered by ROS, such as hydrogen peroxide (H2 O2 ), superoxide (O2- ), and peroxynitrite (ONOO- ). We demonstrate ROS-triggered H2 S donation in live cells and also demonstrate that PeroxyTCM-1 provides protection against H2 O2 -induced oxidative damage, suggesting potential future applications of PeroxyTCM and similar scaffolds in H2 S-related therapies.
Negative Circles in Signed Graphs: A Problem Collection

Abstract I propose that most problems about circles (cycles, circuits) in ordinary graphs that have odd or even length find their proper setting in the theory of signed graphs, where each edge has a sign, + or −. Even-circle and odd-circle problems correspond to questions about positive and negative circles in signed graphs. (The sign of a circle is the product of its edge signs.) I outline questions about circles in signed graphs, that seem natural and potentially important.
Asset Pricing with Dynamic Margin Constraints

This paper provides a novel theoretical analysis of how endogenous time-varying margin requirements affect capital market equilibrium. I find that margin requirements, when there are no other market frictions, reduce the volatility and correlation of returns as well as the risk-free rate, but increase the market price of risk, the risk premium, and the price of risky assets. Furthermore, margin requirements generate a strong cross-sectional dispersion of stock return volatilities. The results emphasize that a general equilibrium analysis may reverse the conclusions of a partial equilibrium analysis often employed in the literature.
Characteristics of cardiothoracic surgeons practicing at the top-ranked US institutions

Background: We aimed to determine which factors distinguish cardiothoracic (CT) surgeons practicing at the top-ranked US institutions from their peers. Methods: Using online resources, we collected demographics, training information and academic metrics of 694 cardiac (n=489; 70%) and thoracic (n=205; 30%) surgeons practicing at 57 preeminent US institutions, including those with the highest US News & World Report ranking (“top CT centers”). Results: Two hundred and ninety-nine (43.1%) CT surgeons were practicing at the 18 “top CT centers” and had higher academic productivity (publications, citations) than their peers. While there was no difference in the proportion of international medical graduates (IMGs) (21.4% overall) or of surgeons with a PhD degree (9.4% overall) across institutions, the “top CT centers” had a higher proportion of faculty who received their entire CT training abroad (10.4% vs . 5.8%; P=0.038) or at highly-ranked US institutions. Those who published more during their early career years (residency, fellowship and first 5 years as faculty) were more likely to attain academic (professorship) and institutional leadership (division/department chair) positions and to practice at the “top CT centers”. Women represented a minority (7.3% overall; 5.1% of cardiac vs . 12.7% of thoracic surgeons, P Conclusions: CT surgeons of the best US centers have a more international background and received their training at highly-ranked institutions. Early academic productivity is associated with life-long career achievements, with special importance of the first 5 years as faculty. Women represent a growing proportion of the CT surgical workforce.
Differential Fault Analysis of SHA3-224 and SHA3-256

The security of SHA-3 against different kinds of attacks are of vital importance for crypto systems with SHA-3 as the security engine. In this paper, we look into the differential fault analysis of SHA-3, and this is the first work to conquer SHA3-224 and SHA3-256 using differential fault analysis. Comparing with one existing related work, we relax the fault models and make them realistic for different implementation architectures. We analyze fault propagation in SHA-3 under such single-byte fault models, and propose to use fault signatures at the observed output for analysis and secret retrieval. Results show that the proposed method can effectively identify the injected single-byte faults, and then recover the whole internal state of the input of last round χ operation (χ22i) for both SHA3-224 and SHA3-256.
A new system for human microRNA functional evaluation and network

MicroRNAs are functionally important non-coding RNAs that silence host genes via destabilizing the mRNAs or preventing the translation. Given the far-reaching implication of microRNA regulation in human health, novel bioinformatics tools are desired to facilitate the mechanistic understanding of microRNA mediated gene regulation and its regulatory roles in human disease development. Most state-of-the-art computational methods focus on the functional inference through identifying microRNA targets and none has comprehensively investigated the functional similarity among microRNAs. Here we present a new method to quantitatively measure the functional relevance among microRNAs that is solely based on the Gene Ontology and integrated functional annotation data from public pathways and PFam gene databases. In this study, we further demonstrated the use of the derived microRNA pairwise similarities to investigate the cooperative microRNA modules and construct the genome scale microRNA mediated gene network in human. The complete results and the similarity assessment system can be freely accessed at (http://sbbi.unl.edu/microRNASim)
Electrochemical Charging of CdSe Quantum Dots: Effects of Adsorption versus Intercalation

Effects of electrochemical charging of quantum dots (QDs) have been reported previously, wherein optical and electrical properties could be modulated through cation adsorption and electron injection into the quantum-confined 1Se states. In this work, we report two different modes of electrochemical double-layer charging in CdSe QDs and their effects on the electronic and optical properties. We show that the charging mechanism at the interface involves cation intercalation for smaller ions, such as Li+, Na+, or K+, and cation adsorption for larger bulky ions, such as tetrabutylammonium ions, where steric hindrance precludes intercalation. As a result, while cation adsorption leads to an increase in the absorbance in the mid-infrared spectral range, cation intercalation into the CdSe core results in an absorbance increase from the visible to infrared spectral range, an enhancement in radiative lifetime of e–, an increase of 158% in the intensity of band-edge photoluminescence, and strong emission in the nea...
Neural processing of information

A model is proposed in which the neuron serves as an information channel. An application of the Shannon information measures of entropy and mutual information taken together in the context of the proposed model lead to the Hopfield neuron model with a conditionalized Hebbian learning rule and sigmoidal transfer characteristic. >
Strategies for the visualization of geographic time-series data

Strategies for the visual display and analysis of geographic time-series data may be spatial or nonspatial, single-view or multiple-view, static or dynamic. Labels for place names or other geographic metaphors can describe symbols on aspatial time-series charts. Single-static-map strategies incorporate the temporal dimension through techniques ranging from complex point symbols, or temporal glyphs, to generalized trend-surface or flow-linkage maps focusing on movement. The multiple-static-maps strategy juxtaposes two or more maps for a simultaneous visual comparison of time units, whereas the single-dynamic-map strategy either presents maps in a temporal sequence or shows the evolution of a geographic pattern through a temporally sequenced accretion of symbols. In contrast, the multiple-dynamic-maps strategy provides programmed sequences of multiple views or allows the viewer to interact with maps and statistical diagrams representing different instants or periods of time. Electronic graphics systems have...
Experimental demonstration of an atomtronic battery

Operation of an atomtronic battery is demonstrated where a finite-temperature Bose–Einstein condensate stored in one half of a double-well potential is coupled to an initially empty load well that is impedance matched by a resonant terminator beam. The atom number and temperature of the condensate are monitored during the discharge cycle, and are used to calculate fundamental properties of the battery. The discharge behavior is analyzed according to a Thevenin equivalent circuit that contains a finite internal resistance to account for dissipation in the battery. Battery performance at multiple discharge rates is characterized by the peak power output, and the current and energy capacities of the system.
Techniques for measuring the composition of hydrogenated amorphous silicon–germanium alloys

Abstract We grow hydrogenated amorphous silicon–germanium alloys by the hot-wire chemical vapor deposition (HWCVD) technique at deposition rates between 0.5 and 1.4 nm per second. We prepared a set of these alloys to determine the concentrations of the alloying elements as measured by various techniques. This set consists of samples throughout the range of germanium alloying from 0% (a-Si:H) to 100% (a-Ge:H). We find that by making the appropriate calibrations and corrections, our compositional measurements agree between the various techniques. Nuclear reaction analysis (NRA), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR)and secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) all yield similar hydrogen contents, within ±20% for each sample. Electron probe micro-analysis (EPMA) and SIMS yield silicon and germanium contents within ±7% of each other with results being confirmed by Rutherford backscattering (RBS). EPMA oxygen measurements are affected by oxidized surface layers, thus these data show larger O concentrations than those measured by SIMS.
Developing Countries, Political Clientilism, and Weymouth’s “Tug of War” Model of Antitrust Reform:

Stephen Weymouth’s article, ‘‘Competition Politics: Interest Groups, Democracy, and Antitrust Reform in Developing Countries,’’ argues that the political determinants of competition policy reform, which includes both competition legislation and its enforcement, lie at the intersection of two competing forces: the insiders that comprise incumbent businesses and organized labor in these businesses; and the outsiders that comprise entrepreneurs, consumers, and unorganized labor. The main contention is that the insiders will deter competition reforms while outsiders will demand these changes. The underlying motivations for these competing groups to act in these ways are intuitive: the insiders, including the affiliated labor groups, gain by keeping their markets uncompetitive and extracting ‘‘monopoly rents’’; while the outsiders would want costless entry to these markets (entrepreneurs), competitive prices (consumers), and more firms and employment (unorganized labor). Very importantly, Weymouth introduces into the analyses the relevant political context within which these interactions take place. The a priori argument is that if the political system is characterized by more democracy rather than less, the probability of competition reform would be higher since the outsiders represent a bigger voting bloc that can effectively decide electoral outcomes in a democracy.