cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
SU-F-T-595: Pitfalls of the Radiosurgery Conformity Index Reported by the BrainLab Treatment Planning System

Purpose: To propose a new method to more accurately compute the conformity index (CI) for stereotactic radiosurgery patients with multiple lesions planned with the BrainLab iPlan treatment planning system. Methods: The dose files of the patients being studied were exported from the BrainLab iPlan system to VelocityAI, an imaging informatics software tool that provides an independent method of assessing the quality of treatment plans. An independent method of calculating CI is necessary as BrainLab incorrectly reports CI for multiple lesions. BrainLab recommends deleting the other treatment isocenters to account for this inaccuracy. In VelocityAI, a dose object of the isodose line in question was obtained. The CI was then calculated using the volume of the dose object, the PTV, and the percentage dose coverage. The method was tested for patients with single lesions and then applied to patients with multiple lesions. For multiple lesions, a Boolean operator was used to separate the isodose line in question from the isodose lines of the other lesions. The results of the new method were compared to those obtained following BrainLab's recommendations. Results: The absolute relative CI discrepancy between Brainlab and VelocityAI for single lesions averaged 1.63±0.9% for lesions >1cc. This discrepancy should be the same for multiple lesions. The results obtained using BrainLab's recommendations differed from our method by 8.27±8% for multiple lesions >1cc. Conclusion: BrainLab's recommendation for obtaining CI for multiple lesions is not accurate. Exporting isodose lines from Brainlab into VelocityAI is one method of obtaining conformity indices for multiple targets. However, the accuracy of the result depends strongly on the size of the lesion. Although Brainlab does not directly report a correct CI for multiple lesions, it does rely on user feedback. The reader is encouraged to request CI calculation capabilities in Brainlab for multiple targets lesions.
From ‘Avenue de France’ to ‘Boulevard Hassan II’: Toponymic Inscription and the Construction of Nationhood in Fes, Morocco

Using four maps of the city of Fes (1908, 1933, 1953, and 1986) this chapter examines the evolution of the toponymy of Fes, a post-colonial city, across three historical eras: the pre-colonial period, the French occupation, and 30 years after the end of the French protectorate. Fes is split into two well-marked districts: The Ville Nouvelle or ‘New City’, built by the French; and the Medina, the old town, with its Muslim traditions and Arab urban architecture. While the toponymy of the Medina did not change, the Ville Nouvelle underwent changes in street naming that reflect changing political and social conditions. The 1933 map shows many street names honouring French military heroes, while the 1953 map shows more street names commemorating French intellectuals and an increase in Arabic street names, suggesting that the colonial French power was fading. In contrast, the 1986 map indicates that the toponymy gradually switched from French to Arabic in the Ville Nouvelle as result of the Moroccan nationalist movement. These changes of denomination are a symbolic reclamation of the previously colonised space and an affirmation of Moroccan-Muslim identity.
Winchester-Banana platform for high-temperature and high-voltage reliability testing with voltage monitoring capability

High Temperature Reverse Bias Test (HTRB) is one of the most common reliability stresses done in the ON Semiconductor Reliability Lab. With the development of high voltage devices, there arose a need to perform reliability stress tests at high voltage as well as high temperature. Previous equipment types were not capable of supporting these high voltage requirements due to limitations in existing chamber, motherboards and load cards. It was also critical to be able to measure the voltages across the biasing resistors, which is necessary to determine abnormally high leakage current flowing through the semiconductor devices, which in turn could damage not only the devices themselves but also the supporting hardware. Another challenge is to support high volume qualifications, which made it crucial to develop new hardware to support high voltage/high current devices using high-density hardware. The Reliability Lab addressed these needs by developing a platform that is suitable to run at 1500V and 175°C and also high density. The platform includes a chamber that is equipped with both Winchester and Banana type connectors; support for 8 high voltage motherboards; voltage probing panel; connections for 720 channels for real-time voltage monitoring system; and high voltage motherboards and load cards. The chamber was designed by installing resistor banks at the back of the chamber, with the actual resistors cards located outside the interior test space with sufficient insulation between the resistor bank area and inner chamber, in order to overcome the power derating limitations at high temperatures. The motherboards were designed using stacking PCBs with high-voltage headers, which made it possible to support 1500V and still maintain 84 TO-220 sockets in the motherboard. The resistor cards were designed by creating several lower-power resistors in series which made in possible to maximize the space in the resistor bank area. The chamber was also designed to be connected to a voltage monitoring system with customized software. The software allows the user to monitor the current flowing through each resistor and is capable of sounding an audible alarm or sending an email for out-of-spec conditions.
A Case Study: Triumph Charter School Provider: Inefficient or Incompetent Leadership?

Since the inception of charter school programs, the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) has invested more than $3 billion while political leaders and special interest groups continue to express concerns about public charter school providers lacking accountability and delivering poor quality education for our disadvantaged students (2015). In recent years, the DOE continue to offer guidance, revise policies, and federal resources concerning the oversight of public charter schools; however, the harsh criticism surrounding charter school failures across the United States has not diminished (2015). The essence of this journal paper is to present a case study about the female owner's lawsuits and challenges while operating Triumph Management Company and its Duke, Duchess Technology Centers that are located in Midwest Region of the United States.. The author will provide a historical overview and discuss the management structure, leadership styles and other related topics. Discussion questions appear at the end of article.
Outcomes of Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy for T1-T2N0 Small Cell Carcinoma According to Addition of Chemotherapy and Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation: A Multicenter Analysis

Abstract Background Although T1-T2N0 non–small cell lung cancer can be managed with stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) alone, this management has often been extrapolated to T1-T2N0 small cell lung cancer (SCLC). This secondary analysis of a multi-institutional cohort study investigated whether the addition of chemotherapy and prophylactic cranial irradiation (PCI) improved the outcomes for these patients. Materials and Methods All cases of histologically confirmed T1-T2N0M0 SCLC were obtained from 24 institutions' prospectively collected SBRT databases. The clinical and treatment characteristics, toxicities, outcomes, and patterns of failure were assessed. We used Kaplan-Meier analysis to evaluate the survival outcomes. Univariate and multivariate analyses identified the predictors of outcomes. Results From 24 institutions, 76 lesions were treated in 74 patients (median follow-up, 18 months). Chemotherapy and PCI were delivered in 56% and 23% of cases, respectively. The median SBRT dose per fraction was 50 Gy/5 fractions. Patients receiving chemotherapy experienced increased median disease-free survival (61.3 vs. 9.0 months; P = .02) and overall survival (31.4 vs. 14.3 months; P = .02). Chemotherapy independently predicted for better outcomes for disease-free survival and overall survival on multivariate analysis ( P = .01). Toxicities were uncommon; 5.2% experienced grade ≥ 2 pneumonitis. Post-treatment failures were most commonly distant (45.8% of recurrences), followed by nodal (25.0%), and elsewhere in the lung (20.8%). The median time to each was 5 to 7 months. Conclusion Patients undergoing primary SBRT for T1-T2N0 SCLC should also undergo additional chemotherapy. No established role was found for PCI in this population.
Clinical phenotypes of US level I trauma centers: use of clustering methodology.

Abstract Background American College of Surgeons Level I Trauma Centers (ACSL1TCs) meet the same personnel and structural requirements but serve different populations. We hypothesized that these nuanced differences may amenable to description through mathematical clustering methodology. Methods The National Trauma Data Bank 2014 was used to derive information on ACSL1TCs. Explorative cluster hypothesis generation was performed using Ward's linkage to determine expected number of clusters based on patient and injury characteristics. Subsequent k -means clustering was applied for analysis. Comparison between clusters was performed using the Kruskal-Wallis or chi-square test. Results In 2014, 113 ACSL1TCs admitted 267,808 patients (median = 2220 patients, range: 928-6643 patients). Three clusters emerged. Cluster I centers ( n = 53, 47%) were more likely to admit older, Caucasian patients who suffered from falls ( P P = 0.001). Cluster II centers ( n = 18, 16%) were more likely to admit younger, minority males who suffered from penetrating trauma ( P P = 0.001). Cluster III centers ( n = 42, 37%) were similar to cluster I with respect to racial demographic and payer status but resembled cluster II centers with respect to injury patterns ( P Conclusions Our analysis identified three unique, mathematically definable clusters of ACSL1TCs serving three broadly different patient populations. Understanding these mathematically definable clusters should have utility when assessing an institution's financial risk profile, directing prevention and outreach programs, and performing needs and resource assessments. Ultimately, clustering allows for more meaningful direct comparisons between phenotypically similar trauma centers.
Regulated Intron Removal Integrates Motivational State and Experience

Myriad experiences produce transient memory, yet, contingent on the internal state of the organism and the saliency of the experience, only some memories persist over time. How experience and internal state influence the duration of memory at the molecular level remains unknown. A self-assembled aggregated state of Drosophila Orb2A protein is required specifically for long-lasting memory. We report that in the adult fly brain the mRNA encoding Orb2A protein exists in an unspliced non-protein-coding form. The convergence of experience and internal drive transiently increases the spliced protein-coding Orb2A mRNA. A screen identified pasilla, the fly ortholog of mammalian Nova-1/2, as a mediator of Orb2A mRNA processing. A single-nucleotide substitution in the intronic region that reduces Pasilla binding and intron removal selectively impairs long-term memory. We posit that pasilla-mediated processing of unspliced Orb2A mRNA integrates experience and internal state to control Orb2A protein abundance and long-term memory formation.
Investigation of incorporating cinnamaldehyde into Lightweight Aggregate for potential corrosion reduction in cementitious materials

Abstract Each year, corrosion of concrete results in billions of dollars' worth in damage. Cinnamaldehyde, a bioactive agent, can mitigate the corrosion of metals and potentially protect rebar within concrete. However, it cannot be incorporated into concrete during mixing since it negatively effects the hydration reaction between cement and water. To avoid these undesirable effects while keeping anti-corrosive properties in a cementitious mixture, an innovative approach through the use of Lightweight Aggregate (LWA) was taken. The experimental cinnamaldehyde-LWA mortar showed reduced compressive strength, heat evolution, and rebar pullout bond stress, but promising results regarding chloride threshold level and sorptivity.
Implementing a Testing Strategy within a Training Program

Earlier in this book, Patricia Monteau discussed the premise that training will generally be accounted for as a productivity improvement or capital investment. Either way, the desire to describe the impact of training in terms of demonstrated performance is intuitively appealing.
Comparative evaluation of practical functionality of rapid test format kits for detection of Escherichia coli O157:H7 on lettuce and leafy greens.

Multistate outbreaks of Escherichia coli O157:H7 infection in 2005 and 2006 associated with fresh and especially minimally processed produce greatly escalated the application of rapid pathogen detection systems to safety management in this food category. Pathogen testing was rapidly integrated into preharvest qualification for field lots, incoming raw produce, or final product. The raw produce and final product were incorporated into test-and-hold programs, typically within a 10-h time frame. To enhance consumer safety and provide guidance for the industry, an assessment of selected kits in comparison to a culture-based method was undertaken. Four primary kits were compared: the Neogen Reveal, SDI RapidChek, BioControl GDS O157, and Qualicon BAX O157 MP. Nine different leafy greens were freshly harvested and inoculated with a five-isolate mixture of E. coli O157:H7 at 10 CFU/25 g of sample, and cultures were enriched following the specified protocol. The PCR method was most consistent for identifying the ...
Cellular Automata DEVS: A Modeling, Simulation, and Visualization Environment

Cellular Automata (CA) models are represented as a collection of independent dynamical cells having some specific spatial relationship to each other. These tessellation automata can have simple to complex behaviors due to both individual cell behaviors as well as their interactions. Code debugging, supported by advanced software development tools, is needed for developing CAs owing their complex dynamics to cells that have non-trivial event handling and timing. As such, it is useful to debug models during simulation through step-by-step examination of any number of cells using rich control and visualization means. In this paper, we show the CA-DEVS framework where cell and Cellular Automata models are derived from atomic and coupled Parallel DEVS models. This framework uniquely supports visualizations using run-time generation of input, output, and state linear and superdense time trajectories as well as run-time spatial animation with playback. Multimodal visualization capabilities allow examining behavior of any number of cells independent of any other cell. We describe some key parts of the architectural design of the CA-DEVS and highlight some ongoing and future research.
Dopaminergic neurons are preferentially responsive to advertisement calls and co-active with social behavior network nuclei in sneaker male midshipman fish

Vocal species use acoustic signals to facilitate diverse behaviors such as mate attraction and territorial defense. However, little is known regarding the neural substrates that interpret such divergent conspecific signals. Using the plainfin midshipman fish model, we tested whether specific catecholaminergic (i.e., dopaminergic and noradrenergic) nuclei and nodes of the social behavior network (SBN) are differentially responsive following exposure to playbacks of divergent social signals in sneaker males. We chose sneaker (type II) males since they attempt to steal fertilizations from territorial type I males who use an advertisement call (hum) to attract females yet are also subjected to vocal agonistic behavior (grunts) by type I males. We demonstrate that induction of cFos (an immediate early gene product and proxy for neural activation) in two forebrain dopaminergic nuclei is greater in sneaker males exposed to hums but not grunts compared to ambient noise, suggesting hums preferentially activate these nuclei, further asserting dopamine as an important regulator of social-acoustic behaviors. Moreover, acoustic exposure to social signals with divergent salience engendered contrasting shifts in functional connectivity between dopaminergic nuclei and nodes of the SBN, supporting the idea that interactions between these two circuits may underlie adaptive decision-making related to intraspecific male competition.
Osmoregulation of the grass shrimp Palaemonetes pugio Exposed to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).

Glycine was the most abundant free amino acid (FAA) in abdominal muscle of grass shrimp Palaemonetes pugio, accounting for over 50% of the total pool. Arginine, alanine, proline, taurine and serine were also present at relatively high concentrations. Following transfer from 17%. to 2 and 32%. S, new steady-state levels of total FAA were observed at 72 h. Total FAA and the sum of glycine, alanine and proline exhibited a positive correlation with salinity. Exposure to Aroclor 1254 did not have appreciable effects on total FAA levels, indicating that disruption of intracellular osmoregulation was not a major consequence of PCB toxicity. However, changes in individual amino acid concentrations in exposed shrimp were reflective of an altered metabolic state. Glycine, which did not show changes immediately following exposure, underwent large decreases after transfer to PCB-free water and indicated a delayed effect of PCB exposure. A correlation between salinity and the sum of glycine, alanine and proline did not exist in exposed shrimp.
A Comparison of Computer Aided Instruction Versus Traditional Instruction in an Elementary Algebra Course

The purpose of this study was to compare and evaluate the effectiveness of computer assisted instruction versus traditional laboratory instruction for educating freshman college students (n=174) about elementary algebra. The study treated computer testing and tutorial simulated instruction and traditional instruction as independent variables and learning outcome and attitude, based on posttest scores, as the dependent variables. The findings indicated that sequence of the both methods of instructions was a significant factor. Students learned more mathematical concepts when they utilized the traditional method of instruction and then used computer laboratory instruction (MyMthLab).
Distinctive Reproductive Phenotypes in Peripubertal Girls at Risk for Polycystic Ovary Syndrome

CONTEXT Increased testosterone (T) levels are a cardinal feature of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Female relatives of affected women, including premenarchal daughters, have elevated T levels supporting a genetic susceptibility to this phenotype. Girls with obesity (OB-g) also have increased T levels throughout puberty, which may indicate risk for PCOS. OBJECTIVE We tested the hypothesis that premenarchal daughters of women affected with PCOS (PCOS-d) have distinctive phenotypic features compared with OB-g. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Forty-eight PCOS-d, 30 OB-g, and 22 normal weight (NW-g) premenarchal girls were studied. Mothers of OB-g and NW-g had no evidence for PCOS. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Reproductive hormones were measured. RESULTS Body mass index differed by design, was highest in OB-g, followed by PCOS-d (P > 0.001). PCOS-d and OB-g had similar increases in free T levels compared with NW-g (PCOS-d vs NW-g, P = 0.01; OB-g vs NW-g, P = 0.0001). Sex hormone binding globulin levels were lowest in OB-g and lower in PCOS-d than in NW-g (PCOS-d vs NW-g, P = 0.005; OB-g vs NW-g, P < 0.0001; PCOS-d vs OB-g, P < 0.0001). Anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH) levels in PCOS-d were significantly increased compared with OB-g, who tended to have lower AMH levels than NW-g (PCOS-d vs OB-g, P < 0.0001; PCOS-d vs NW-g, P = 0.10). CONCLUSIONS Despite similarly elevated free T levels, PCOS-d had increased AMH levels compared with OB-g. This finding suggests that OB-g lack alterations in ovarian folliculogenesis, a key reproductive feature of PCOS. Causal mechanisms may differ in PCOS-d or OB-g, or elevated T in OB-g may not be an early marker for PCOS.
Readiness to Visit University Counseling Centers: Social Support, Stigma, and Communication Efficacy

Using the transtheoretical model (TTM), this study examined relationships between three potential barriers (social support, mental health-related stigma, and mental health-related communication eff...
An exploration of neural dynamics of motor imagery for people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

OBJECTIVE Studies of the neuropathological effects of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) on the underlying motor system have investigated abnormalities in the magnitude and timing of the event-related desynchronization (ERD) and synchronization (ERS) during motor execution (ME). However, the spatio-spectral-temporal dynamics of these sensorimotor oscillations during motor imagery (MI) have not been fully explored for these patients. This study explores the neural dynamics of sensorimotor oscillations for ALS patients during MI by quantifying ERD/ERS features in frequency, time, and space. APPROACH Electroencephalogram (EEG) data were recorded from six patients with ALS and 11 age-matched healthy controls (HC) while performing a MI task. ERD/ERS features were extracted using wavelet-based time-frequency analysis and compared between the two groups to quantify the abnormal neural dynamics of ALS in terms of both time and frequency. Topographic correlation analysis was conducted to compare the localization of MI activity between groups and to identify subject-specific frequencies in the µ and β frequency bands. MAIN RESULTS Overall, reduced and delayed ERD was observed for ALS patients, particularly during right-hand MI. ERD features were also correlated with ALS clinical scores, specifically disease duration, bulbar, and cognitive functions. SIGNIFICANCE The analyses in this study quantify abnormalities in the magnitude and timing of sensorimotor oscillations for ALS patients during MI tasks. Our findings reveal notable differences between MI and existing results on ME in ALS. The observed alterations are speculated to reflect disruptions in the underlying cortical networks involved in MI functions. Quantifying the neural dynamics of MI plays an important role in the study of EEG-based cortical markers for ALS.
On Language and Content: The Stakes of Curricular Transformation in Collegiate Foreign Language Education

This introduction situates the individual contributions of this volume within the context of foreign language programs at universities and colleges in the United States. To do so, the case is made that this volume, rather than making suggestions for specific curricular innovations, presents a compendium of offerings that explore the mechanisms of language, literacy and content acquisition. These new insights necessitate a broader vision of foreign language education that reaches beyond second language acquisition. It acknowledges that content and student perceptions of content should not be merely regarded as vehicles for the delivery of linguistic training, but rather that they must be the center of the collegiate foreign language curriculum. The introduction concludes by addressing how, together, the individual chapters constitute a proposal for rethinking the roles of students, the pedagogical tasks of teachers, and the objectives of foreign language education in the twenty-first century’s technologically driven communication and readily available social media.
Determining the impact of an interprofessional simulation focused on social determinants of health among pharmacy students.

Abstract Introduction The purpose of this study was to determine the impact on pharmacy students' self-perception of knowledge, skills, collaborative behavior, and satisfaction after participating in an interprofessional (IP) simulation focused on social determinants of health (SDOH) and substance use. Methods Pharmacy students completed a voluntary questionnaire after participating in an IP simulation focused on SDOH and substance use where they collaborated with social work (SW) students. Questions assessed the students' understanding and knowledge of SDOH and students' confidence in asking patients about their substance use, willingness to refer patients to SW, and satisfaction with the simulation. The data were analyzed using a Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Results Results of pharmacy students' (N = 68) self-reported knowledge of SDOH and skills addressing and counseling on SDOH were improved following an IP simulation. No statistically significant change was observed in students' confidence when asking about or advising a patient on their substance use. There was a positive, significant change in how likely pharmacy students would refer patients to SW (P Conclusions This simulation proved to be an effective way to improve pharmacy students' self-reported knowledge of SDOH and skills for assessing and counseling on resources for SDOH. The simulation was effective in exposing pharmacy students to the role of social workers on the team and how they address SDOH and substance use issues.
Genetically Proxied Diurnal Preference, Sleep Timing, and Risk of Major Depressive Disorder.

Importance Morning diurnal preference is associated with reduced risk of major depressive disorder (MDD); however, causality in this association is uncertain. Objective To examine the association of genetically proxied morning diurnal preference with depression risk using mendelian randomization. Design, Setting, and Participants This 2-sample mendelian randomization study used summary-level genetic associations with diurnal preference and MDD. Up to 340 genetic loci associated with diurnal preference in a meta-analysis of the UK Biobank and 23andMe cohorts were considered as genetic proxies for diurnal preference. The effect size of these variants was scaled using genetic associations with accelerometer-based measurement of sleep midpoint. Genetic associations with MDD were obtained from a meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies data from the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium and UK Biobank. The inverse-variance weighted method was used to estimate the association of genetically proxied morning diurnal preference, corresponding to a 1-hour earlier sleep midpoint, with MDD risk. Exposures Morning diurnal preference scaled to a 1-hour earlier, objectively measured sleep midpoint. Main Outcomes and Measures Risk of MDD, including self-reported and clinically diagnosed cases, as ascertained in meta-analyses of genome-wide association studies. Results A total of 697 828 individuals (all of European ancestry) were in the UK Biobank and 23andMe cohorts; 85 502 in the UK Biobank had measurements of the sleep midpoint. A further 170 756 individuals with MDD and 329 443 control participants (all of European ancestry) were in the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium and UK Biobank data. Genetically proxied earlier diurnal preference was associated with a 23% lower risk of depression (odds ratio [OR] per 1-hour earlier sleep midpoint, 0.77 [95% CI, 0.63-0.94];P = .01). This association was similar when restricting analysis to individuals with MDD as stringently defined by the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium (OR, 0.73 [95% CI, 0.54-1.00];P = .05) but not statistically significant when defined by hospital-based billing codes in the UK Biobank (OR, 0.64 [95% CI, 0.39-1.06];P = .08). Sensitivity analyses examining potential bias due to pleiotropy or reverse causality showed similar findings (eg, intercept [SE], 0.00 [0.001];P = .66 by Egger intercept test). Conclusions and Relevance The results of this mendelian randomization study support a protective association of earlier diurnal preference with risk of MDD and provide estimates contextualized to an objective sleep timing measure. Further investigation in the form of randomized clinical trials may be warranted.
Stop! Hammer time: rethinking our approach to rowhammer mitigations

Rowhammer attacks exploit electromagnetic interference among nearby DRAM cells to flip bits, corrupting data and altering system behavior. Unfortunately, DRAM vendors have opted for a blackbox approach to preventing these bit flips, exposing little information about in-DRAM mitigations. Despite vendor claims that their mitigations prevent Rowhammer, recent work bypasses these defenses to corrupt data. Further work shows that the Rowhammer problem is actually worsening in emerging DRAM and posits that system-level support is needed to produce adaptable and scalable defenses. Accordingly, we argue that the systems community can and must drive a fundamental change in Rowhammer mitigation techniques. In the short term, cloud providers and CPU vendors must work together to supplement limited in-DRAM mitigations---ill-equipped to handle rising susceptibility---with their own mitigations. We propose novel hardware primitives in the CPU's integrated memory controller that would enable a variety of efficient software defenses, offering flexible safeguards against future attacks. In the long term, we assert that major consumers of DRAM must persuade DRAM vendors to provide precise information on their defenses, limitations, and necessary supplemental solutions.
DRD3-dependent plasticity within the VP drives subcircuit activity critical for cocaine seeking

The ventral pallidum (VP) is a key hub within the reward system that mediates drug-seeking behaviors. However, molecular and cellular adaptations within the VP following drug use are not fully elucidated. In this issue of Neuron, Pribiag et al. (2021) demonstrate how cocaine induces circuit-specific changes within the VP via dopamine-receptor-D3-dependent processes to promote cocaine seeking.
QSAR-Based Computational Approaches to Accelerate the Discovery of Sigma-2 Receptor (S2R) Ligands as Therapeutic Drugs.

S2R overexpression is associated with various forms of cancer as well as both neuropsychiatric disorders (e.g., schizophrenia) and neurodegenerative diseases (Alzheimer’s disease: AD). In the present study, three ligand-based methods (QSAR modeling, pharmacophore mapping, and shape-based screening) were implemented to select putative S2R ligands from the DrugBank library comprising 2000+ entries. Four separate optimization algorithms (i.e., stepwise regression, Lasso, genetic algorithm (GA), and a customized extension of GA called GreedGene) were adapted to select descriptors for the QSAR models. The subsequent biological evaluation of selected compounds revealed that three FDA-approved drugs for unrelated therapeutic indications exhibited sub-1 uM binding affinity for S2R. In particular, the antidepressant drug nefazodone elicited a S2R binding affinity Ki = 140 nM. A total of 159 unique S2R ligands were retrieved from 16 publications for model building, validation, and testing. To our best knowledge, the present report represents the first case to develop comprehensive QSAR models sourced by pooling and curating a large assemblage of structurally diverse S2R ligands, which should prove useful for identifying new drug leads and predicting their S2R binding affinity prior to the resource-demanding tasks of chemical synthesis and biological evaluation.
Effects of automated fiber placement defects on high strain rate compressive response in advanced thermosetting composites

The effects of fiber tow gaps, overlaps, and folds on the compressive strength of a fiber-placed composite laminate under dynamic loading conditions are investigated in this work. These layup defec...
Butch Woman: A Meditation

Sue Ellen Case offers a mediation on two terms that mark her gender and sexuality: “butch” and “woman (feminist understood).” Focusing on meditation as a practice that poses a contemplative encounter with one’s memories and an approach to the set of principles that guide one, Case’s creative piece also draws attention to theater’s capacity to offer strategies for including the visual and the sonic into writing, which can serve as important markers in the associative wandering of meditation. Case argues that meditation could be regarded as a kind of friendly break with as well as memory of the theatrical and the discursive, in which the personal and persons may enter as known, but also as the froth of some storm in the unconscious sea, in which identity floats like the detritus of a former wreck and logical, empirical, and historical knowledge are fashioned as life preservers.
THE WHISTLE IS NOT A DECORATION: ADMONISHMENT IN INTERTRIBAL DISCOURSE

Restraint and indirectness in the macro-speech act of admonishment, in the context of American Indian intertribal gatherings called powwows, are assessed as to their strategies of inclusiveness, dissociation, and reaffirmation of conservative social structures. Article visualizations:
Automated preprocessing and phase-amplitude coupling analysis of scalp EEG discriminates infantile spasms from controls during wakefulness.

Abstract Objective Delta-gamma phase-amplitude coupling in EEG is useful for localizing epileptic sources and evaluate severity in children with infantile spasms. We (1) develop an automated EEG preprocessing pipeline to clean data using artifact subspace reconstruction (ASR) and independent component (IC) analysis (ICA) and (2) evaluate delta-gamma modulation index (MI) as a method to distinguish children with epileptic spasms (cases) from normal controls during sleep and awake. Methods Using 400 scalp EEG datasets (200 sleep, 200 awake) from 100 subjects, we calculated MI after applying high-pass and line-noise filters (Clean 0), and after ASR followed by either conservative (Clean 1) or stringent (Clean 2) artifactual IC rejection. Classification of cases and controls using MI was evaluated with Receiver Operating Characteristics (ROC) to obtain area under curve (AUC). Results The artifact rejection algorithm reduced raw signal variance by 29-45% and 38-60% for Clean 1 and Clean 2, respectively. MI derived from sleep data, with or without preprocessing, robustly classified the groups (all AUC > 0.98). In contrast, group classification using MI derived from awake data was successful only after Clean 2 (AUC = 0.85). Conclusions We have developed an automated EEG preprocessing pipeline to perform artifact rejection and quantify delta-gamma modulation index.
Telomere-Based Protective Responses to DNA Damage.

Genomic integrity is essential for life. Accordingly, all organisms have robust DNA repair systems. Conservation of energy is also critical; however, and not surprisingly, cells and organisms in a low-stress environment have been found to have a lower DNA repair capacity than when subjected to greater but sublethal DNA insults.
Individual metatarsal and forefoot kinematics during walking in people with diabetes mellitus and peripheral neuropathy

The purpose of this study was to compare in-vivo kinematic angular excursions of individual metatarsal segments and a unified forefoot segment in people with Diabetes Mellitus and peripheral neuropathy (DMPN) without deformity or ulceration to a healthy matched control group. Thirty subjects were recruited. A five- segment foot model (1st, 3rd, and 5th metatarsals, calcaneus, tibia) was used to examine relative 3D angular excursions during the terminal stance phase of walking. Student t-tests were used to assess group differences in kinematics. Pearson correlations and cross-correlations were used to assess relationships between the motion of the individual metatarsals and the unified forefoot. Significant reductions of DMPN group sagittal plane angular excursions were detected in all individual metatarsals and the unified forefoot (p < 0.01). Frontal plane 3rd metatarsal excursion was reduced (p = 0.04) in the DMPN group. The 3rd and 5th metatarsal and the unified forefoot excursions were reduced (p ≤ 0.02) in the DMPN group in the transverse plane. In both groups, coupling of individual metatarsal and unified forefoot motion was strongest in the sagittal plane. This study illustrates that multiple individual metatarsals have reduced motion in people with DMPN. Differences in the magnitude and coupling between individual metatarsal motion and unified forefoot motion supports the use of a two segment forefoot modeling approach in future kinematic analyses. Further study is recommended to determine if the observed kinematic profile is related to the development and location of deformity and tissue breakdown in people with DMPN.
Research Methods in Psychology: Investigating Human Behavior

Preface Acknowledgments Chapter 1. Uncommon Sense and the Scientific Method Chapter 2. The Practice of Psychological Research Chapter 3. Ethics of Research Chapter 4. Conceptualization and Measurement Chapter 5. Sampling and Surveys Chapter 6. Causation and Research Design: Single-Factor Experiments Chapter 7. Complex Research Designs: Multifactorial Experiments Chapter 8. Quasiexperimental and Nonexperimental Designs Chapter 9. Small-N and Single-Subject Designs Chapter 10. Quantitative Data Analysis Chapter 11. Qualitative Methods Chapter 12. Writing a Research Paper Appendix A: Summaries of Frequently Cited Research Articles Appendix B: Questions to Ask About a Research Article Appendix C: How to Read a Research Article Appendix D: Proportions of Area Under Standard Normal Curve Appendix E: Critical Values for t Distribution Appendix F: Critical Values of F Appendix G: Critical Values of Chi-Square Appendix H: Critical Values of the Correlation Coefficient Appendix I: Table of Random Numbers Glossary References Exhibit Credits Index About the Authors
Hydrogen bonding: Part IX. Low temperature infrared spectra of H4O2F22− and H6O42− cluster anions in tetramethylammonium fluoride and hyd

Abstract At 10–20 K the broad room temperature IR bands of the hydrogen bonded cluster anions in tetramethylammonium fluoride and hydroxide monohydrates and monohydrates- d n are resolved into a number of components. The band patterns are consonant with distortion of formally tetrahedral H 4 F 2 O 2 2− and H 6 O 4 2− ions of T d point group to C2v and S 4 , respectively in a C 4h 5 unit cell isomorphous with tetramethylammonium hexafluorosilicate. A lattice mode has been identified for each monohydrate.
Selective Adaptation to Color Contrast in Human Primary Visual Cortex

How neural activity produces our experience of color is controversial, because key behavioral results remain at odds with existing physiological data. One important, unexplained property of perception is selective adaptation to color contrast. Prolonged viewing of colored patterns reduces the perceived intensity of similarly colored patterns but leaves other patterns relatively unaffected. We measured the neural basis of this effect using functional magnetic resonance imaging. Subjects viewed low-contrast test gratings that were either red–green (equal and opposite long- and middle-wavelength cone contrast, L-M) or light–dark (equal, same-sign, long- and middle-wavelength cone contrast, L+M). The two types of test gratings generated approximately equal amounts of neural activity in primary visual cortex (V1) before adaptation. After exposure to high-contrast L-M stimuli, the L-M test grating generated less activity in V1 than the L+M grating. Similarly, after adaptation to a high-contrast L+M grating, the L+M test grating generated less activity than the L-M test grating. Behavioral measures of adaptation using the same stimuli showed a similar pattern of results. Our data suggest that primary visual cortex contains large populations of color-selective neurons that can independently adjust their responsiveness after adaptation. The activity of these neural populations showed effects of adaptation that closely matched perceptual experience.
Concurrent design of unity-magnitude input shapers and proportional-derivative feedback controllers

Vibration continues to be a problem for many systems, resulting in reductions in safety and efficiency. Residual vibration in flexible structures can be suppressed by generating properly filtered or shaped commands. One type of command generation, called input shaping, is implemented by convolving a sequence of impulses with any desired command. This paper presents a concurrent controller design method that combines PD-feedback control and Unity Magnitude input shaping. Performance limits on allowable overshoot, residual vibration, and peak force from commanded motion are included in the design process. The proposed method also takes into account the effects of disturbances. Example responses are presented and compared to a Linear Quadratic Regulator. The results show that the proposed method leads to a faster response than the LQR method. However, the LQR method outperforms in rejection of disturbances.
Disturbed Choline Plasmalogen and Phospholipid Fatty Acid Concentrations in Alzheimer's Disease Prefrontal Cortex

Alzheimer disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by brain deposition of senile (neuritic) plaques containing β-amyloid, neurofibrillary tangles, synaptic loss, neuroinflammation, and overexpression of arachidonic acid (AA, 20:4n-6) metabolizing enzymes. Lipid concentration changes have been reported in different brain regions, but often partially and/or as a percent of the total concentration. In this study, we measured absolute concentrations (per gram wet weight) of a wide range of lipids in postmortem prefrontal cortex (Brodmann area 9) from 10 AD patients and 9 controls. Mean total brain lipid, phospholipid, cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations did not differ significantly between AD and controls. There was a significant 73% decrease in plasmalogen choline, but no difference in other measured phospholipids. Fatty acid concentrations in total phospholipid did not differ from control. However, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n-3) was reduced in ethanolamine glycerophospholipid and choline glycerophospholipid, but increased in phosphatidylinositol. AA was reduced in choline glycerophospholipid, but increased in phosphatidylinositol, while docosatetraenoic acid (22:4n-6), an AA elongation product, was reduced in total brain lipid, cholesteryl ester and triglyceride. These lipid changes may contribute to membrane instability and synaptic loss in AD, and reflect neuroinflammation and excitotoxicity.
Towards a three-phase time-multiplexed planar power transmission to distributed implants

A platform has been presented for wireless powering of receivers that are arbitrarily distributed over a large area. A potential application could be powering of small implants distributed over large areas of the brain. The transmitter (Tx) consists of three overlapping layers of hexagonal planar spiral coils (hex-PSC) that are horizontally shifted to provide the best electromagnetic flux coverage. The three-layer hex-PSC array is driven by a three-phase time-division multiplexed (TDM) power transmitter that takes advantage of the carrier phase shift, coil geometries, and Rx time constant to homogeneously power the arbitrarily distributed receivers regardless of their misalignments. The functionality of the proposed three-phase power transmission concept has been verified in a scaled up HFSS/ADS simulation and compared to a conventional transmitter. The new transmitter achieves, on average, 5.8% power transfer efficiency (PTE) to the Rx at 90° angular misalignment compared to 1.4% by the conventional method.1
POLO-parallel optical links for gigabyte data communications

A collaborative effort by the parallel optical link organization (POLO), a consortium of Hewlett-Packard, AMP, Du Pont, SDL, and the University of Southern California, to develop 10-20 Gb/s parallel optical links is described. The POLO consortium is supported by the advanced research projects agency (ARPA) and will operate between August 1994 and August 1997. Individual strengths of the consortium members are leveraged to develop affordable, high performance parallel optical interconnect modules for computer cluster, multimedia, and switching systems. The POLO consortium has also formed a User Group of seven leading computer and telecommunications companies to evaluate the POLO parallel optical link and provide feedback to the consortium.
Multi-dimensional locks with on-line allocation schemes

Synchronization is inherent to parallel computing and comprises many aspects. One aspect is the access control to shared data, especially important in MIMD shared-memory architectures. Several locking mechanisms have been proposed to perform this task. Most of these schemes rely on very little hardware support, such as atomic read-modify-write operations. Today, the amount of hardware required to implement a locking mechanism is not a major constraint and will be even less important in the future. This makes it interesting to investigate schemes with more flexibility, better performance, and improved ease of use, that rely more on hardware assisted circuits than previous suggestions. In this paper multi-dimensional locking schemes that allocate locks on-line are presented. A lock is assigned to the access control of a data structure only during the time this structure needs to be locked. Three specific schemes are proposed. Two offer the possibility of locking sub-structures within multi-dimensional arrays. All three schemes protect locked structures against accesses of misbehaving threads.
Class D converter with half-wave regulated synchronous rectifier

A Class D series resonant converter with a controllable PWM synchronous half-wave current-driven transformer rectifier is presented, including its analysis and experimental results. Replacing the diodes in a conventional current-driven half-wave rectifier with MOSFETs allows voltage regulation for line or load swings of greater than 70% at a minimum of 50% efficiency and a maximum above 80% for a 3.3 V supply producing 15 W of power. The operating frequency was held constant at 120 kHz. The rectifier is driven by a Class D ZVS series resonant inverter and a transformer, which provides a sinusoidal current source. >
Exogenous Oxytocin and Lactation in the Mouse

Abstract Twenty-four primiparous mice were divided into four equal groups. The four groups were randomly assigned to injections of .5, .25, and .125 IU of synthetic oxytocin or oxytocin solvent. Average daily body weights of mothers and pups were compared over 15 days postpartum. Mammary glands were removed and processed for histological examination. Average body weight gains of mothers were not significantly different among treatment groups. In general, there was no difference in average body weight gain of pups among treatment groups except that in the group nursing mothers injected with .5 IU oxytocin, average weights decreased slowly until by 12 days of age their weight gain adjusted for 4-day weights was less than the .25 and .125 oxytocin groups (P Milk production response to exogenous oxytocin injection is dependent both on amount of oxytocin administered and on duration and intensity of the suckling stimulus applied.
What is a System

A new definition and model of a system is presented utilizing graph theoretic concepts and introducing nested graphs. By a comprehensive search of the literature, this abstract formulation of a system is shown to incorporate extant theory. The approach of Emery and Trist using open and closed systems, the system-environment model of Cartwright and Harary, and the structural role system of Oeser and Harary are all subsumed as special cases. The value of such a theory is discussed in statistical terms by considering correlational problems and Simpson's paradox. A general problem-solving algorithm is presented, using this model of a system, suggested by a simultaneous generalization of the statistical procedures of cluster analysis and stagewise regression. An example is interpreted in the nested network framework, illustrating the applicability of the model to empirical situations.