cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Seeing new light: recent insights into the occurrence and regulation of chromatic acclimation in cyanobacteria

Cyanobacteria exhibit a form of photomorphogenesis termed chromatic acclimation (CA), which involves tuning metabolism and physiology to external light cues, with the most readily recognized acclimation being the alteration of pigmentation. Historically, CA has been represented by three types that occur in organisms which synthesize green-light-absorbing phycoerythrin (PE) and red-light-absorbing phycocyanin (PC). The distinct CA types depend upon whether organisms adjust levels of PE (type II), both PE and PC (type III, also complementary chromatic acclimation), or neither (type I) in response to red or green wavelengths. Recently new forms of CA have been described which include responses to blue and green light (type IV) or far-red light (FaRLiP). Here, the molecular bases of distinct forms of CA are discussed.
Uncovering novel roles for matrix metalloproteinases in preeclampsia.

one of the main risk factors for the development of cardiovascular disease (CVD) is hypertension. According to the American Heart Association, CVD is the leading cause of death in the United States, with almost one in three deaths attributable to it. Remodeling of the vasculature is one of the first
How to Decide When to Abandon a Project

(1980). How to Decide When to Abandon a Project. Research Management: Vol. 23, No. 4, pp. 24-29.
Seven Cool Number Patterns

Inspired by a number pattern found while reading an online newspaper seven number patterns are created. Behind each pattern there is a distinct algorithm. Some of these patterns are a sequence of a single or double digit, and the rest are packing ups of one or two digits either one or both sides of a particular number. An interpretation of the inspiring number pattern is also provided.
Impact of Spatial Scales on the Intercomparison of Climate Scenarios

Scenario analysis has been widely applied in climate science to understand the impact of climate change on the future human environment, but intercomparison and similarity analysis of different climate scenarios based on multiple simulation runs remain challenging. Although spatial heterogeneity plays a key role in modeling climate and human systems, little research has been performed to understand the impact of spatial variations and scales on similarity analysis of climate scenarios. To address this issue, the authors developed a geovisual analytics framework that lets users perform similarity analysis of climate scenarios from the Global Change Assessment Model (GCAM) using a hierarchical clustering approach.
Rest and Stress Longitudinal Systolic Left Ventricular Mechanics in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy: Implications for Prognostication

Background Exercise intolerance is the most common symptom in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). We examined whether inability to augment myocardial mechanics during exercise would influence functional performance and clinical outcomes in HCM. Methods Ninety-five HCM patients (32 nonobstructive, 32 labile-obstructive, 31 obstructive) and 26 controls of similar age and gender distribution were recruited prospectively. They underwent rest and treadmill stress strain echocardiography, and 61 of them underwent magnetic resonance imaging. Mechanical reserve (MRES) was defined as percent change in systolic strain rate (SR) immediately postexercise. Results Global strain and SR were significantly lower in HCM patients at rest (strain: nonobstructive, −15.6 ± 3.0; labile-obstructive, −15.9 ± 3.0; obstructive, −13.8 ± 2.9; control, −17.7% ± 2.1%, P −1 , P = .002); and immediately postexercise (strain: nonobstructive, −15.6 ± 3.0; labile-obstructive, −17.6 ± 3.6; obstructive, −15.6 ± 3.6; control, −19.2 ± 3.1%; P = .001; SR: nonobstructive, −1.41 ± 0.37; labile-obstructive, −1.64 ± 0.38; obstructive, −1.32 ± 0.29; control, −1.82 ± 0.29 s −1 , P P = .001, respectively). Postexercise SR and MRES were associated with exercise capacity ( r = 0.47 and 0.42, P r = 0.74, P = .003). Postexercise SR was correlated with extent of late gadolinium enhancement ( r = 0.34, P = .03). By Cox regression, exercise SR and MRES predicted ventricular tachycardia/ventricular fibrillation (VT/VF) even after adjustment for age, gender, family history of sudden cardiac death, septum ≥ 3 cm and abnormal blood pressure response ( P = .04 and P = .046, respectively). Conclusions Nonobstructive and obstructive patients have reduced MRES compared with labile-obstructive and controls. Postexercise SR correlates with LGE and exercise capacity. Exercise SR and MRES predict VT/VF.
Location of poles using mittag-leffler expansion method for single layer, grounded substrate

In this paper, a new method is introduced to locate the surface wave poles. The Mittag-Leffler expansion method is applied to the TM characteristic equation of single dielectric layer backed by a perfect electric conductor (PEC). Initially, the characteristic equation is reduced to suitable algebraic form, from which a polynomial equation is obtained. The initial roots of this polynomial equation are refined using available root finding techniques. Later, these results are compared against established methods to validate our method. The major advantage using Mittag-Leffler expansion method is that, it can be applied to the cases of lossless and lossy substrates without any constraints.
Android STAR: An Efficient Interaction-Preserving Record-Replay System For Messenger App Usage Surveillance

Messenger apps on smart phones are widely used for easy communication in a collaborative workplace. However, the use of messengers increases risks to both the organization and the collaborators. For example, an employee may receive proprietary information from one app and then accidentally leak it with another app, but neither the employer nor the employee can effectively prove or disprove what has happened inside messengers. To prove mental elements in a lawsuit, the capability of inspecting the use of messengers in a workplace is desirable to both parties: one can prove misconduct and the other can prove innocence. Yet, guilty intention is subtle if not literally described, and how to prove whether there was a guilty intention has not yet been resolved. To provide new kind of evidence, we propose Android STAR, an inspection-purposed record-and-replay service that replays conversation histories and user interactions with apps. We assume that the employer has obtained consents of employees, and the employees have installed Android STAR in their company devices. The challenge to app-usage inspection includes app variety and evidence veracity. We evaluate STAR with 10 popular messenger apps (including Telegram, LINE, and WeChat). Our results show that while STAR can replay in high-fidelity, it only introduces small performance overhead.
A multi-modal mapping unit for autonomous exploration and mapping of underground tunnels

The ability of autonomous exploration and mapping using aerial robots in GPS-denied dark visually-degraded environments is critical in multiple applications including those of inspection, exploration, search and rescue in tunnel environments, monitoring of mines, and mapping underground voids. This paper presents the design of a multi-modal mapping unit tailored to such missions. When combined with our previous work of the receding horizon volumetric exploration path planner, the unit enables robotic autonomy in such environments without any prior knowledge of the environment. The multi-modal mapping unit detailed in this work tightly synchronizes visible light cameras with inertial sensors as well as LEDs that flash only when the cameras' shutters are open. When used in conjunction with a visual-inertial odometry pipeline, the multi-modal mapping unit enables reliable robot navigation in darkness. With the further support of multiple miniature Time-of-Flight 3D depth sensors, dense and accurate maps are derived. The proposed system was evaluated using field experiments involving exploration and mapping of a railroad tunnel in conditions of darkness. Results show that a consistent and dense mapping of such challenging degraded visual environments was achieved.
Physical Implications of Homogenization

Francois MURAT and myself were led to Theorem 6.5 and to the div–curl lemma 7.2 for purely mathematical reasons, but we learned from the work of Evariste SANCHEZ-PALENCIA that our work was related to an interesting question of continuum mechanics or physics, that of describing the relations between a “microscopic” level and a macroscopic level.
Relativistic Radiation Hydrodynamics: Introducing the Landau Number

The effect of radiation transport on momentum flow in relativistic fluid dynamics is discussed. It is shown that in certain extreme relativistic situations the radiation itself can be treated as a viscous fluid.
e-mission: An Open-Source, Smartphone Platform for Collecting Human Travel Data:

GPS-equipped smartphones provide new methods to collect data about travel behavior, including travel survey apps that incorporate automated location sensing. Previous approaches to this have involv...
A New SCAP Information and Data Model for Content Authors

The Security Content Automation Protocol (SCAP) data model for source data stream collections standardizes the packagnt. However, no single data model can satisfy all requirements. The source data stream collection data model does not adequately meet the needs of SCAP content authors, and its implementation-specific syntax lacks the ability to express packaging subtleties critical to software developers and content authors. This chapter defines a new implementation-neutral information model that is easier to understand and does a better job at expressing relationships between objects comprising a source data stream collection. A new authoring data model for facilitating the implementation of SCAP content development software applications is derived from the information model. Also described is an application implementing the authoring data model that enables SCAP content developers to create source data stream collections using a friendly and intuitive syntax, which is then transformed into SCAP-standard-conforming content.
High-resolution elemental mapping of the root-rhizosphere-soil continuum using laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS)

Abstract Understanding the complex chemical nature of root-soil interactions is essential for building the next generation of sustainable agricultural systems and facilitating long-term environmental remediation strategies. Techniques currently suited to investigate spatial controls on nutrient exchange in plant rhizospheres, however, are hindered by limitations in throughput, cost, analytical scope, and sample preparation needs. We describe here a method for rapid, high-resolution (∼100 μm), multi-element imaging of both organic content and inorganic constituents in root-rhizosphere-soil systems using laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS). A switchgrass assemblage (Panicum virgatum) was grown in compact rhizotrons containing a sandy loam Alfisol from the Kellogg Biological Station (KBS), Michigan, USA. Root-soil samples were extracted using custom plastic coring devices for live root sampling and a modified drill press for sectioning frozen stabilized soil. A 266 nm, Nd:YAG laser was rastered over ∼10 mm2 sample surfaces and broadband spectra from single-pulse ablations were collected and mapped to discrete XY spatial coordinates for simultaneous imaging of 17 macronutrients, micronutrients and matrix elements. In order to rapidly process LIBS raster data and investigate chemical trends in the rhizosphere, an open-source Python module was developed, in which we used a novel calibration-free masking algorithm (based on principal components analysis (PCA) of normalized spectral intensities) to discriminate soil mineral grains, root fragments, and associated rhizosphere regions. We observed fine-scale chemical gradients within only a millimeter of switchgrass roots, consistent with rhizodeposition of organic compounds and proximal uptake of inorganic nutrients. Detection of trace element and carbon accumulations with diagnostic spectral signatures in the rhizosphere suggested the presence of residues (detritusphere) that could serve as sites of preferential microbial accumulation. These results highlight potential applications of LIBS within the growing field of spatially-resolved plant-soil analysis and extend its versatile imaging capabilities to the complex root-rhizosphere-soil network.
Take Them to the Woods: Melding Forensic Science Education with Real Case Experience

Many students eager to begin a career in the forensic sciences have never been on a crime scene, and it is even more unlikely that they have ever had the opportunity to process one. This paper details the unusual circumstances that enabled Towson University students to participate in a search for and recovery of human remains and associated evidence on an active forensic case. Due to their efforts, new light was shed on the case of an individual that had been missing for over 4 years.
In their own words: Analyzing the extents and origins of absolute pitch:

Although tests of absolute pitch (AP) possessors’ abilities have been studied extensively in the laboratory, few researchers have focused their study on the experiences of AP possessors engaging in...
Migratory Neural Crest Cells Phagocytose Cellular Debris in the Developing Nervous System

During neural tube closure and subsequent spinal cord development, a vast number of cells undergo programmed cell death in both the central and peripheral nervous systems (CNS and PNS, respectively). However, myeloid-derived professional phagocytes have not yet colonized the trunk region during early neurogenesis. How apoptotic cells are removed from this region during early development remains largely unknown. Using live imaging in zebrafish, we demonstrate that multipotent neural crest cells (NCC) respond rapidly to dying cells and phagocytose cellular debris around the neural tube. Furthermore, migratory NCCs have the ability to enter the CNS through motor exit point transition zones and clear debris in the spinal cord. Surprisingly, NCC phagocytosis mechanistically resembles macrophage phagocytosis and their recruitment towards cellular debris is mediated by interleukin-1β signaling. Taken together, our results reveal an unexpected role of NCCs in phagocytosis of debris in the developing nervous system before the presence of professional phagocytes.
Monochromatic paths and cycles in $2$-edge-colored graphs with large minimum degree

A graph $G$ arrows a graph $H$ if in every $2$-edge-coloring of $G$ there exists a monochromatic copy of $H$. Schelp had the idea that if the complete graph $K_n$ arrows a small graph $H$, then every "dense" subgraph of $K_n$ also arrows $H$, and he outlined some problems in this direction. Our main result is in this spirit. We prove that for every sufficiently large $n$, if $n = 3t+r$ where $r \in \{0,1,2\}$ and $G$ is an $n$-vertex graph with $\delta(G) \ge (3n-1)/4$, then for every $2$-edge-coloring of $G$, either there are cycles of every length $\{3, 4, 5, \dots, 2t+r\}$ of the same color, or there are cycles of every even length $\{4, 6, 8, \dots, 2t+2\}$ of the same color. Our result is tight in the sense that no longer cycles (of length $>2t+r$) can be guaranteed and the minimum degree condition cannot be reduced. It also implies the conjecture of Schelp that for every sufficiently large $n$, every $(3t-1)$-vertex graph $G$ with minimum degree larger than $3|V(G)|/4$ arrows the path $P_{2n}$ with $2n$ vertices. Moreover, it implies for sufficiently large $n$ the conjecture by Benevides, Łuczak, Scott, Skokan and White that for $n=3t+r$ where $r \in \{0,1,2\}$ and every $n$-vertex graph $G$ with $\delta(G) \ge 3n/4$, in each $2$-edge-coloring of $G$ there exists a monochromatic cycle of length at least $2t+r$.
Creating Equity in Academia for Latinx Art History

I write this essay for my family, who taught me how to thrive under difficult conditions, and for my mentors, who supported me throughout my many years as a student. Most importantly, I write this in solidarity with those who are working toward their graduate degrees. After spending nearly all of my
Piecemeal or combined? Assessing greenhouse gas mitigation spillovers in US forest and agriculture policy portfolios

Forest and agricultural sector response to comprehensive climate policy is well represented in the literature. Less analysis has been devoted to piecemeal solutions. We use the Forest and Agriculture Sector Optimization Model with Greenhouse Gases (FASOMGHG) to project the individual and combined effect of three existing U.S. Department of Agriculture programmes with potential to increase greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation. We find that a combined policy scenario may achieve greater mitigation than individual constituent programmes, suggesting the possibility of complementary spillover effects in some periods. Mitigation varies over time, however, and some periods experience net emissions as markets and management practices respond to initial policy shocks. The regional distribution of GHG mitigation also varies between policy scenario. Differences in the magnitude and imputed cost of mitigation under each scenario, generating negative values for some programmes and time periods, reinforces the need to evaluate portfolio design to cost-effectively achieve near-term GHG mitigation. Key policy insights Increased near-term GHG mitigation in the forest and agriculture sectors in the US may be possible by expanding or refocusing the emphasis of existing programmes. Implementing several such forest and agricultural programmes simultaneously may lead to greater GHG mitigation than when implemented separately, indicating the possibility of positive spillover effects. Programmes targeted to agricultural management may hold outsized potential to achieve near-term GHG mitigation; Policies aimed at influencing land use conversion appear to be more vulnerable to reversion and subject to larger inter-annual swings. The staged implementation of programmes could also be useful, helping to encourage increased mitigation (or the retention of already achieved mitigation) over time as markets re-equilibrate to initial shocks. Though the particular scenarios assessed here are unique to the US, our findings may be applicable to other locations outside the US where land management is influenced by individual market actors and there is competition between forest and agricultural land uses.
Human Radiation Dosimetry for Orally and Intravenously Administered 18F-FDG.

Intravenous access is difficult in some patients referred for 18F-FDG PET imaging. Extravasation at the injection site and accumulation in central catheters can lead to limited tumor 18F-FDG uptake, erroneous quantitation, and significant image artifacts. In this study, we compared the human biodistribution and dosimetry for 18F-FDG after oral and intravenous administrations sequentially in the same subjects to ascertain the dosimetry and potential suitability of orally administered 18F-FDG as an alternative to intravenous administration. We also compared our detailed intravenous 18F-FDG dosimetry with older dosimetry data. Methods: Nine healthy volunteers (6 male and 3 female; aged 19–32 y) underwent PET/CT imaging after oral and intravenous administration of 18F-FDG. Identical preparation and imaging protocols (except administration route) were used for oral and intravenous studies. During each imaging session, 9 whole-body PET scans were obtained at 5, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 120, and 240 min after 18F-FDG administration (370 ± 16 MBq). Source organ contours drawn using CT were overlaid onto registered PET images to extract time–activity curves. Time-integrated activity coefficients derived from time–activity curves were given as input to OLINDA/EXM for dose calculations. Results: Blood uptake after orally administered 18F-FDG peaked at 45–50 min after ingestion. The oral-to-intravenous ratios of 18F-FDG uptake for major organs at 45 min were 1.07 ± 0.24 for blood, 0.94 ± 0.39 for heart wall, 0.47 ± 0.12 for brain, 1.25 ± 0.18 for liver, and 0.84 ± 0.24 for kidneys. The highest organ-absorbed doses (μGy/MBq) after oral 18F-FDG administration were observed for urinary bladder (75.9 ± 17.2), stomach (48.4 ± 14.3), and brain (29.4 ± 5.1), and the effective dose was significantly higher (20%) than after intravenous administration (P = 0.002). Conclusion:18F-FDG has excellent bioavailability after oral administration, but peak organ activities occur later than after intravenous injection. These data suggest PET at 2 h after oral 18F-FDG administration should yield images that are comparable in biodistribution to conventional clinical images acquired 1 h after injection. Oral 18F-FDG is a palatable alternative to intravenous 18F-FDG when venous access is problematic.
Determination of acoustic nonlinearity parameters using thermal modulation of ultrasonic waves

This study presents a test method and its theoretical framework to determine the acoustic nonlinearity parameters ( α , β , δ) of material using thermal modulation of ultrasonic waves. Temperature change-induced thermal strain excites the nonlinear response of the material and modulates the ultrasonic wave propagating in it. Experimental results showed a strong correlation between the relative wave velocity change and the temperature change. With a quadratic polynomial model, the acoustic nonlinearity parameters were obtained from the polynomial coefficients by curve fitting the experimental data. Their effects on thermal-induced velocity change were discussed. The parameters α , β , and δ govern the hysteretic gap, average slope, and curvature of the correlation curve, respectively. The proposed theory was validated on aluminum, steel, intact and damaged concrete samples. The obtained nonlinear parameters show reasonable agreement with values reported in the literature. Compared to other nonlinear acoustic methods using vibration or acoustic excitation, the thermal modulation method generates more uniform, slow changing, and larger strain field in the test sample. Employing the thermal effect as the driving force for nonlinearity instead of an undesired influencing factor, this method can measure the absolute values of α , β , and δ with good accuracy using a simple ultrasonic test setup.
Disk-Shaped Random Scatterers With Application to Model-Based PolSAR Decomposition

Polarimetric SAR (PolSAR) imagery offers an enhanced capability to reveal the salient scattering properties of scene content. PolSAR-based target decomposition has been widely used to show different apparent scattering mechanisms for various target classes, empowering a direct yet powerful technique for SAR imagery analysis. Among those common targets, modeling the random volume scattering from vegetation is one of the most important. Generally, one models vegetation as a cloud of randomly oriented thin cylinders, mainly intended for twigs and branches. At high radar frequencies, PolSAR imagery shows a strong response from leaves in the vegetation canopy. In this letter, we derive the polarimetric scattering theory for general random volume scatterers, including both thin cylinders and thin disks as limiting cases for leaf response. Adding the proposed random thin disk model explains the observed scattering difference between deciduous forest and coniferous forest, which we then incorporate into a new model-based PolSAR target decomposition scheme.
The decline of a hidden and expansive microhabitat: the subnivium

The subnivium is the seasonal microhabitat at the snow–ground interface and serves as a refuge for a diversity of species. Increasingly warmer winters are disrupting the continuity of snow cover, and likely the stability of the subnivium. To examine how the extent and duration of this sensitive and widespread below‐snow habitat will shift under warming winters, we deployed fully automated winter greenhouses across latitudinal and land‐cover gradients to monitor subnivium conditions under different climate‐change scenarios and predicted subnivium occurrence across the Great Lakes region. In a +3°C warming scenario, we found little change in subnivium extent or duration, whereas a +5°C scenario produced widespread and marked reductions in both extent (loss of 200,000 km², a 45% decline) and duration (>1 month decline). Although the subnivium appears resilient to moderate future warming, we predict abrupt and extensive changes in response to increased winter warming, which will have sweeping ecological and environmental consequences in high‐latitude ecosystems.
Post-fire effects of soil heating intensity and pyrogenic organic matter on microbial anabolism

Wildfires cause direct and indirect CO2 emissions due to combustion and post-fire decomposition. Approximately half of temperate forest carbon (C) is stored in soil, so post-fire soil C cycling likely impacts forest C sink strength. Soil C sink strength is partly determined by soil microbial anabolism versus catabolism, which dictates the amount of C respired versus stored in microbial biomass. Fires affect soil C availability and composition, changes that could alter carbon use efficiency (CUE) and microbial biomass production, potentially influencing C sink recovery. Wildfire intensity is forecast to increase in forests of the western United States, and understanding the impacts of fire intensity on microbial anabolism is necessary for predicting fire-climate feedbacks. Our objective was to determine the influence of soil heating intensity and pyrogenic organic matter (PyOM) on microbial anabolism. We simulated the effects of fire intensity by heating soils to 100 or 200 °C for 30 min in a muffle furnace, and we amended the soils with charred or uncharred organic matter. Higher intensity soil heating (200 °C) led to lower microbial biomass carbon (MBC) accumulation, greater C respiration, and lower CUE proxies compared to unheated soils. Conversely, lower intensity heating (100 °C) yielded MBC accumulation and estimated CUE that was similar to unheated soils. Soils amended with PyOM exhibited similar MBC accumulation compared to uncharred organic matter, but lower CO2 emissions. These results indicate that high intensity soil heating decreases soil C-sink strength over the short-term by decreasing the amount of microbial anabolism relative to catabolism.
Hotel Room Rate Discounting During Recessionary Times: Effects by Hotel Class:

Previous research regarding the costs and benefits of hotel room rate discounting during recessionary times has produced mixed results and recommendations. However, it has become clear that virtual...
Not all smokers are alike: The hidden cost of sustained attention during nicotine abstinence

Background: Nicotine Withdrawal Syndrome (NWS)-associated cognitive deficits are heterogeneous, suggesting underlying endophenotypic subgroups. We identified smoker subgroups based on response accuracy during a cognitively demanding Parametric Flanker Task (PFT) and characterized their distinct neuroimaging endophenotypes using a nicotine state manipulation (sated, abstinent). Methods: Forty-five smokers completed the 25-min PFT in two fMRI sessions (nicotine sated, abstinent). Task-evoked NWS-associated errors of omission (EOm), brain activity, underlying functional connectivity (FC), and brain-behavior correlations between subgroups were assessed. Results: Based on their response accuracy in the high demand PFT condition, smokers split into high (HTP, n=21) and low task performer (LTP, n=24) subgroups. Behaviorally, HTPs showed greater response accuracy independent of nicotine state and greater vulnerability to abstinence-induced EOm. HTPs showed greater BOLD responses in attentional control brain regions for the [correct responses minus errors of commission] PFT contrast across states. A whole-brain FC analysis with these subgroup-derived regions as seeds revealed two circuits: L Precentral : R Insula and L Insula : R Occipital, with abstinence-induced FC strength increases only in HTPs. Finally, abstinence-induced brain (FC) and behavior (EOm) differences were positively correlated for HTPs in a L Precentral : R Orbitofrontal cortical circuit. Conclusion: We used a cognitive stressor (PFT) to fractionate smokers into two subgroups (HTP/LTP). Only the HTPs demonstrated sustained attention deficits during nicotine abstinence, a stressor in dependent smokers. Unpacking underlying smoker heterogeneity with this dual stressor approach revealed distinct smoker subgroups with differential attention deficit responses to withdrawal that could be novel targets for therapeutic interventions to improve cessation outcomes.
COVID-19 severity and outcome in multiple sclerosis: Results of a national, registry-based, matched cohort study.

Abstract Background Risk factors associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) severity in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) have been described. Recent improvements in supportive care measures and increased testing capacity may modify the risk of severe COVID-19 outcome in MS patients. This retrospective study evaluates the severity and outcome of COVID-19 in MS and characterizes temporal trends over the course of the pandemic in the United States. Methods We conducted a comparative cohort study using de-identified electronic health record (EHR) claims-based data. MS patients diagnosed with COVID-19 between February 2, 2020 and October 13, 2020 were matched (1:2) to a control group using propensity score analysis. The primary outcome was a composite of intensive care unit (ICU) admission, mechanical ventilation, and/or death. Results A total of 2,529 patients (843 MS and 1,686 matched controls) were included. Non-ambulatory and pre-existing comorbidities were independent risk factors for COVID-19 severity. The risk for the severe composite outcome was lower in the late cohorts compared with the early cohorts. Conclusions The majority of MS patients actively treated with a disease-modifying therapy (DMT) had mild disease. The observed trend toward a reduction in severity risk in recent months suggests an improvement in COVID-19 outcome.
Non-diffractive Acoustic Radiation Force Push Sequence for Shear Wave Viscoelastography

Accoustic in-homogeneities within biological tissues are known to degrade image quality in elastography. Previous work has demonstrated the potential of Bessel apodized acoustic radiation force (ARF) beams in elasticity reconstructions. Bessel offers advantages, such as enlarged depth-of-field (DOF) and high diffractive immunity over conventionally focused pushes. In this study, we demonstrate Bessel ARF's ability to generate broader bandwidths for phase velocity recovery. Performance was evaluated against matched supersonic shear imaging (SSI) experiments on commercial and custom viscous phantoms. Bessel's ability to “heal”, after being disrupted by an obstacle makes it a potential candidate for developing better phase reconstruction in the presence of heterogeneity.
Advertising: Strong Force or Weak Force? Two Views an Ocean Apart

This article reviews the conventional view of advertising—the Strong Theory—which is all but universally believed in the United States and which sees advertising as a dynamic force operating as an engine for brand innovation and other types of change in the market-place. In contrast, there is the theory developed over the years with increasing persuasiveness by Andrew Ehrenberg of the London Business School, that sees advertising as a weak force, one that cannot act as a prime mover in the capitalist system, but which is used defensively by most advertisers as a means of protecting the status quo. This essay argues that a good deal of mischief has been caused by an uncritical belief that the Strong Theory operates in all circumstances. As a result, advertising has been associated too much with over-promise and under-delivery. The article's focus is then directed to education for advertising as it is carried out in American universities. It is argued that much of the research carried out in these universit...
Automatic Data Layout for Distributed-Memory Machines in the D Programming Environment

Although distributed-memory message-passing parallel computers are among the most cost-effective high performance machines available, scientists find them extremely difficult to program. Most programmers feel uncomfortable working with a distributed-memoryprogramming model that requires explicit management of local name spaces. To address this problem, researchers have proposed using languages based on a global name space annotated with directives specifying how the data should be mapped onto a distributed memory machine. Using these annotations, a sophisticated compiler can automatically transform a code into a message-passing program suitable for execution on a distributed-memory machine. The Fortran77D and Fortran9OD languages support this programming style. Given a Fortran D program, the compiler uses data layout directives to automatically generate a single-program, multiple data (SPMD) node program for a given distributed-memory target machine.
Structure of poly‐1.3‐pentadiene prepared with lithium initiators

The microstructure of poly-1.3-pentadiene prepared with lithium metal or lithiumalkyles in hydrocarbon solution has been studied by NMR spectroscopy (60 MHz and 100 MHz) and by IR spectroscopy. It was found that the chemical shifts (CHCl3 solution) of methyl protons in 1.4 units were δ(ppm) = 0.94 and 0.91, corresponding to cis and trans configurations of the double bonds in the polymer backbone, respectively, and that the chemical shifts of the methyl protons in 1.2 units were δ(ppm) = 1.66 and 1.60 corresponding to cis and trans configurations, respectively. As a result, the method of analysis for microstructure was established. Furthermore, the sequence of units in 1.4 structure of these polymers has been measured by IR studies on the hydrogenated polymers. According to this result, the ratio of the head-to-head/head-to-tail sequences among 1.4 units in poly-1.3-pentadiene was found to be 0.05 to 0.06.
Palatal burn due to bottle warming in a microwave oven.

Infections, tumors, nutshells, and foreign bodies may all be seen clinically as unusual lesions of the palate in children.1,2 We describe the case of an infant girl who had a palatal lesion, eventually determined to be secondary to a scald burn. We emphasize this case because the eventual diagnosis was not considered until almost 2 months after the patient was first seen, at which time additional history was elicited. CASE REPORT C.P. was a 4-month-old girl referred to our hospital for evaluation and treatment of poor weight gain with a palatal lesion. She was delivered by cesarean section for cephalopelvic disproportion after an uncomplicated fullterm pregnancy; her birth weight was 3,820 g (90th percentile).
The Gothic Ideology: Religious Hysteria and Anti-Catholicism in British Popular Fiction, 1780–1880; Ann Radcliffe, Romanticism and the Gothic

The panicked hostility aroused in the literate elite by the eighteenth-century public's sudden appetite for the new genre of Gothic fiction was speedily converted to an excited conversation in the ...
Estimation of Employee Stock Option Exercise Rates and Firm Cost

Options are a major component of corporate compensation and accounting methods significantly aspect allocations, yet valuation remains a challenge. We develop the first empirical model of employee exercise suitable for valuation, and estimate the exercise rate as a function of stock price and employee characteristics in the first sample of all employee exercises at over 100 firms. These characteristics significantly affect exercise behavior and cost, in ways that Black-Scholes-based approximations used in practice fail to capture. For example, exercises are slower, and option cost greater, at firms with higher market correlation; top-decile option holders within a firm exercise faster than lower-decile holders; and men exercise faster than women, resulting in 2 to 3% lower cost.
A direct role for C1 inhibitor in regulation of leukocyte adhesion.

Plasma C1 inhibitor (C1INH) is a natural inhibitor of complement and contact system proteases. Heterozygosity for C1INH deficiency results in hereditary angioedema, which is mediated by bradykinin. Treatment with plasma C1INH is effective not only in patients with hereditary angioedema, but also in a variety of other disease models, in which such therapy is accompanied by diminished neutrophil infiltration. The underlying mechanism has been explained primarily as a result of the inhibition of the complement and contact systems. We have shown that C1INH expresses the sialyl-Lewisx tetrasaccharide on its N -linked glycan, via which it binds to E- and P-selectins and interferes with leukocyte-endothelial adhesion in vitro. Here we show that both native C1INH and reactive center cleaved C1INH significantly inhibit selectin-mediated leukocyte adhesion in several in vitro and in vivo models, whereas N -deglycosylated C1INH loses such activities. The data support the hypothesis that C1INH plays a direct role in leukocyte-endothelial cell adhesion, that the activity is mediated by carbohydrate, and that it is independent of protease inhibitory activity. Direct involvement of C1INH in modulation of selectin-mediated cell adhesion may be an important mechanism in the physiologic suppression of inflammation, and may partially explain its utility in therapy of inflammatory diseases.
Laser-induced, plasma-based, non-contact electrical testing of functional hardware

In order to non-destructively test fine-pitch devices, a system has been developed that uses a laser-induced plasma to provide the conduction between an electronic component and monitoring equipment. This non-contact system has been shown to produce a 10-20- mu s non-loading electrical pathway that can transmit both DC and high-frequency signals to or from a printed wiring board. The non-contact electrical pathway is first expected to be used for probing and observation of electronic equipment. >
Torsion of rational elliptic curves over quartic Galois number fields

Abstract Let E be an elliptic curve defined over Q , and let K be a number field of degree four that is Galois over Q . The goal of this article is to classify the different isomorphism types of E ( K ) tors .
Eocene echinoids, the Suwannee Strait, and biogeographic taphonomy

Faunal similarity among regions is often used as a means of identifying regions of endemism in fossil faunas. At least two large-scale taphonomic effects can affect apparent faunal similarity: stratigraphic and facies mismatching. In stratigraphic mismatching, an unconformity represents removal of most or all of a complete assemblage zone in one region, and the constituent taxa are mistakenly interpreted as having never inhabited that region. In facies mismatching, environmental differences between two regions (possibly unrecognized) cause the inference of a barrier that never existed. The two types of mismatching can work in concert if a facies was originally represented in a single stratigraphic interval that has been completely removed from one region. Analysis of faunal similarity via multivariate analysis of individual localities, coupled with comparison of the regions as single samples, may indicate mismatching if the results differ significantly.We view these two problems as part of a suite of taphonomic effects that are not evident in paleobiological analyses of smaller geographic scope. First, there is ambiguity in the notion of “barrier,” even when a candidate is obvious. Second, barriers in paleobiogeography are often hidden and must be inferred from their effects rather than observed. Third, stratigraphic and facies mismatching produce effects on regional faunas similar to those produced by barriers. Anyone using barriers to explain faunal disruptions should address these three points.Upper Eocene faunas of central Florida seem taxonomically distinct from those of the remainder of the Gulf Coastal Plain. This has historically been attributed to a known paleogeographic feature, the Suwannee Strait, which acts as a barrier. The amount of dissimilarity of the echinoid faunas is greater than the amount predicted as a result of sampling problems. Comparison of the results of multivariate and whole-region analyses suggests that mismatching of the two faunas, rather than a true barrier, causes the distinction. Principally facies, but also strata are mismatched. Early Late Eocene faunas inhabited terrigenous sands to the north of the strait and carbonate sands to the south and show the highest distinctiveness. Middle Late Eocene faunas inhabited primarily carbonate sands to the south and both carbonate sands and muds to the north. Overall similarity is higher for both local and regional analyses, and the faunas of northern sands are more similar to those of the southern region than to the northern mud faunas. Overall similarity across the strait is highest in the late Late Eocene strata when both regions had carbonate mud and sand facies. The faunas exhibit greater similarity within facies than they do within regions. Upper Late Eocene strata are poorly preserved north of the strait because of post-Eocene erosion.
Prospective Evaluation of Office-Based Parotid Ultrasound

Background: Differentiation of parotid neoplasms from extraparotid upper cervical lesions is difficult by physical examination. The purpose of this report is to identify the role of office-based parotid ultrasound (US) in the evaluation of periauricular masses.
Orientation dependence of the resistive transition near Hc2 in high field superconductors

Abstract Microwave experiments on Nb-10%Zr and Nb-25%Zr wires indicate an isotropic critical field H c2 although resistive measurements indicate an anisotropic critical field. The anisotropy may be attributed to surface superconductivity which has nucleated at grain boundaries inside the wires.
Collision induced light scattering in gaseous CH4

Abstract Collision induced light scattering in gaseous CH 4 has been investigated up to 110 Amagats. The long-range induced polarizability appears to give the dominant contribution to the spectrum which extends up to 360 cm -1 .
On the translation of directional motor cortical commands to activation of muscles via spinal interneuronal systems

I discuss in this paper some of the neural mechanisms by which directional motor cortical commands could be potentially translated into multi-muscle activations to generate a directed force (and initial movement) in space. Specifically, I review the results of recent studies in the motor cortex of monkeys and the spinal cord of the frog, and propose a possible mechanism by which these results could be formally connected. It is suggested that spinal mechanisms of the kind described in the spinal frog could serve as substrates for the operation of directionally tuned motor cortical activity to produce an appropriately directed motor output by the limb.
Detecting and modeling spatial and temporal dependence in conservation biology

: Due to the structuring forces and large-scale physical processes that shape our biosphere, we often find that environmental and ecological data are either spatially or temporally—or both spatially and temporally—dependent. When these data are analyzed, statistical techniques and models are frequently applied that were developed for independent data. We describe some of the detrimental consequences, such as inefficient parameter estimators, biased hypothesis test results, and inaccurate predictions, of ignoring spatial and temporal data dependencies, and we cite an example of adverse statistical results occurring when spatial dependencies were disregarded. We also discuss and recommend available techniques used to detect and model spatial and temporal dependence, including variograms, covariograms, autocorrelation and partial autocorrelation plots, geostatistical techniques, Gaussian autoregressive models, K functions, and ARIMA models, in environmental and ecological research to avoid the aforementioned difficulties. Resumen: Debido a las fuerzas estructurales y a los procesos fisicos de gran escala que moldean nuestra biosfera, frecuentemente encontramos que los datos ambientales y ecologicos son espacial o temporalmente (o ambos) dependientes. Cuando se analizan estos datos, frecuentemente se aplican tecnicas estadisticas y modelos que han sido desarrollados para datos independientes. En este trabajo describimos algunas de las consecuencias negativas ( por ejemplo, estimadores de parametros ineficientes, resultados sesgados de pruebas de hipotesis, y predicciones incorrectas) causadas al ignorar dependencias espaciales y temporales en los datos y citamos un ejemplo ilustrativo donde los resultados estadisticos adversos resultan de ignorar dependencias espaciales. Adicionalmente, discutimos y recomendamos tecnicas viables usadas para detectar y modelar la dependencia espacial y temporal ( por ejemplo, variogramas, covariogramas, graficas de autocorrelacion y autocorrelacion parcial, tecnicas geoestadisticas, modelos autoregresivos Gausianos, funciones K, y modelos ARIMA) en la investigacion ambiental y ecologica, para evitar las dificultades antes mencionadas.
Humeral epicondylitis among gas- and waterworks employees.

Objectives In this cross-sectional study 290 male employees of the public gas- and waterworks of Hamburg, Germany, were examined for symptoms of epicondylitis. Forty-one workers were diagnosed with symptoms of lateral or medial epicondylitis. The effect of employment in different job categories on the prevalence of epicondylitis was explored. Methods The diagnosis of epicondylitis was based on the study's own criteria and compared with criteria used in former studies. Jobs were categorized into high, moderate, and no exposure groups according to tasks regarded as strenuous for the elbow. The data were analyzed with the help of multivariate logistic regression. Results With the study's diagnostic criteria, the prevalence odds ratio (OR) for 10 years of high exposure to elbow straining work was 1.7 [95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.04--2.68] for currently held jobs and 2.16 (95% CI 1.08--4.32) for formerly held jobs. For workers regarded as moderately exposed in current jobs the odds ratio for 10 years was 1.4 (95% CI 1.00--1.93). Very similar results were obtained for current exposure when stricter diagnostic criteria were employed. Conclusion The results suggest a cumulative exposure effect with length of employment. Workers with high exposure in former jobs compared with employees with high exposure in their current job exhibited more residual or slight epicondylitis symptoms upon examination.