cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Unknowable worlds: solving the problem of natural evil

This paper draws attention to the way free choice participates in the occurrence of what is usually called natural evil. While earthquakes are natural phenomena, they injure only those who have chosen to live in places where they occur. But if God could not foresee these choices, then God could not foresee much about the amount and distribution of natural evil. Combining a libertarian notion of freedom with a denial of middle knowledge allows God to be much less implicated in the occurrence of natural evil. This gives some of the familiar theistic replies to the problem, such as Hick's soul-making theodicy, enhanced plausibility.
Late-time vacuum phase transitions: Connecting sub-eV scale physics with cosmological structure formation

We show that a particular class of postrecombination phase transitions in the vacuum can lead to localized overdense regions on relatively small scales, roughly ${10}^{6}$ to ${10}^{10}{M}_{\ensuremath{\bigodot}}$, potentially interesting for the origin of large black hole seeds and for dwarf galaxy evolution. Our study suggests that this mechanism could operate over a range of conditions which are consistent with current cosmological and laboratory bounds. One byproduct of phase transition bubble-wall decay may be extra radiation energy density. This could provide an avenue for constraint, but it could also help reconcile the discordant values of the present Hubble parameter (${H}_{0}$) and ${\ensuremath{\sigma}}_{8}$ obtained by cosmic microwave background (CMB) fits and direct observational estimates. We also suggest ways in which future probes, including CMB considerations (e.g., early dark energy limits), 21-cm observations, and gravitational radiation limits, could provide more stringent constraints on this mechanism and the sub-eV scale beyond-standard-model physics, perhaps in the neutrino sector, on which it could be based. Late phase transitions associated with sterile neutrino mass and mixing may provide a way to reconcile cosmological limits and laboratory data, should a future disagreement arise.
HOW MANY INFANTS LIKELY DIED IN AFRICA AS A RESULT OF THE 2008–2009 GLOBAL FINANCIAL CRISIS?

The human consequences of the recent global financial crisis for the developing world are presumed to be severe but few studies have quantified them. This letter estimates the human cost of the 2008-2009 global financial crisis in one critical dimension-infant mortality-for countries in sub-Saharan Africa. The analysis pools birth-level data as reported in female adult retrospective birth histories from all Demographic and Health Surveys collected in sub-Saharan Africa. This results in a data set of 639000 births to 264000 women in 30 countries. We use regression models with flexible controls for temporal trends to assess an infants likelihood of death as a function of fluctuations in national income. We then calculate the expected number of excess deaths by combining these estimates with growth shortfalls as a result of the crisis. The results suggest 28000-50000 excess infant deaths in sub-Saharan Africa in the crisis-affected year of 2009. Notably most of these additional deaths were concentrated among girls. Policies that protect the income of poor households and that maintain critical health services during times of economic contraction may reduce the expected increase in mortality. Interventions targeted at female infants and young girls can be particularly beneficial. Copyright (c) 2012 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Efficient optically pumped CF4 laser system

Optical pumping of 12CF4 with a high brightness CO2 laser system has produced energy conversion efficiencies over 10%. The CF4 laser output will be discussed in terms of pump laser parameters such as frequency and energy and CF4 laser parameters such as pressure.
Internet Performance to Africa

We report the first results ever for real-time Internet performance to Africa using the PingER methodology. Multiple monitoring hosts were used to enable comparisons with performance from different parts of the world. From these preliminary measurements, we have found that Internet packet losses to some African sites in recent months range from very poor to bad (> 12%), some getting better, others are holding steady or getting worse. This, together with the average monthly Round Trip Times, imply end-to-end maximum TCP throughputs that are order of magnitudes different between countries in the region. Africa is shown to be far from the Internet performance in industrialized nations due to the poor infrastructure in place today. These monitoring efforts can provide valuable information to analyze the relative rates of future improvement and today they help us to quantify the digital divide and can provide quantitative information to policy makers.
Commentary on Endsley’s “Situation Awareness Misconceptions and Misunderstandings”:

Over the past 25 years the construct of SA [situation awareness] has moved from revolutionary newcomer to the mainstream. Numerous articles have been written on what it is and how it works cognitively, based primarily on research in ecologically valid settings with experts. The SA construct evolved in real world environments where pilots struggled to keep up with the rapidly changing information provided by a myriad of sensors, displays and new technologies and the complexity and challenges of the flight environment, and has spread to a wide variety of domains that struggle with many of the same challenges. (Endsley, 2015, p. 28)
Complications of Elongating Intramedullary Rods in the Treatment of Osteogenesis Imperfecta

Five patients with osteogenesis imperfecta underwent multiple osteotomies and intramedullary rodding with 18 Bailey rods for lower extremity deformities. The average age at insertion of the first rod was 6.2 years and average follow-up was 6.1 years. Only one fracture had occured in a bone after correct placement of a rod, causing the rod components to disarticulate. There were a total of 18 complications following insertion of the Bailey rods, for an overall complication rate of 61%. Tibial rods were more prone to complications than femoral. 14 of the 18 complications required reoperations, during which five tibial rods required one or two rod reinsertions. Although the Bailey rods appear to be effective for preventing fractures and deformities of lower limbe in skeletally immature osteogenesis imperfecta patients, a new intramedullary rod system is necessary to overcome many of the problems assosciated with Bailey rods.
An internal state variable mapping approach for Li-plating diagnosis

Abstract Li-ion battery failure becomes one of major challenges for reliable battery applications, as it could cause catastrophic consequences. Compared with capacity fading resulted from calendar effects, Li-plating induced battery failures are more difficult to identify, as they causes sudden capacity loss leaving limited time for failure diagnosis. This paper presents a new internal state variable (ISV) mapping approach to identify values of immeasurable battery ISVs considering changes of inherent parameters of battery system dynamics for Li-plating diagnosis. Employing the developed ISV mapping approach, an explicit functional relationship model between measurable battery signals and immeasurable battery ISVs can be developed. The developed model can then be used to identify ISVs from an online battery system for the occurrence identification of Li-plating. Employing multiphysics based simulation of Li-plating using COMSOL, the proposed Li-plating diagnosis approach is implemented under different conditions in the case studies to demonstrate its efficacy in diagnosis of Li-plating onset timings.
Ventricular tachycardia at will.

An unusual case of ventricular tachycardia, produced at will, due to positional migration of the central venous catheter tip is reported. Implications of this in the genesis of atrial and ventricular arrhythmias are discussed.
Thoracic Aortic Graft Infections Secondary to Propionibacterium Species: Two Cases and Review of the Literature

Aortic graft infections are a rare occurrence, most commonly secondary to gram-positive organisms (Staphylococcus and Streptococcus species). We present 2 cases of thoracic aortic graft infections secondary to anaerobic bacteria, Propionibacterium species. The first case, a 40-year-old male, was found to have an anastomotic aneurysm at the distal anastomosis of a previous thoracoabdominal aneurysm repair. During the open repair of his anastomotic aneurysm, the original graft was not incorporated and cultures later speciated Propionibacterium acnes The second case is a 44-year-old male with a history of abdominal aortic coarctation that was repaired with a thoracic aorta to aortic bifurcation graft as a child who presented with flank pain and was found on imaging to have fluid around his bypass graft. His operating room (OR) cultures also grew out Propionibacterium species. Both patients were treated with graft excision, revascularization, and long-term antibiotics. Anaerobic bacteria are a rare cause of aortic graft infections. Upon review of the literature, these are the first 2 cases of thoracic aortic graft infections secondary to Propionibacterium species. The cultures for both patients took almost a week to speciate, highlighting the importance of following cultures long term. Anaerobic bacteria should be recognized as a cause of latent graft infections.
Fine-needle aspiration of cervical lymph nodes yields adequate materials for accurate HPV testing in metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinomas.

Background High-risk Human papillomavirus (HR-HPV)-associated head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is a distinct epidemiologic and pathologic disease. The data of HR-HPV testing on fine-needle aspiration (FNA) materials of cervical lymph nodes in patients with metastatic HNSCC are limited. Methods We retrospectively reviewed metastatic HNSCC cases with cervical lymph node FNAs which were tested for p16 immunohistochemistry (IHC) and HR-HPV DNA in situ hybridization (ISH). Results Of the 87 cases studied, the overall adequacy rate of cell block material was 86% for HR-HPV ISH, 93% for p16 IHC, 84% for both and 95% for either one. Pathologist-performed FNAs showed significantly higher percentage of satisfactory specimens for p16 and HR-HPV tests than clinician-performed FNAs. Of the 73 cases adequate for both p16 IHC and HR-HPV ISH, the concordant rate between p16 and HR-HPV results was 78%. P16 positivity had sensitivity of 90% and specificity of 75% to predict primary oropharyngeal HNSCC, while HR-HPV test showed a similar high sensitivity (91%) but a better specificity (94%). Conclusion FNAs of cervical lymph nodes yield adequate materials for reliable HR-HPV testing in metastatic HNSCCs and should be incorporated into routine pathologic evaluation for these patients. The high concordance between p16 IHC and HR-HPV ISH suggests p16 IHC may serve as a surrogate for HR-HPV ISH in metastatic HNSCC cases with oropharyngeal origin and is helpful to pinpoint primary tumor site. Diagn. Cytopathol. 2016;44:792–798. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The Leviathan, Old and New

Both Rawls (in his well known book, A Theory of Justice) and Harsanyi (in a series of articles and a book, Essays on Ethics) have shown that theories of morality may be looked at, very profitably, as theories of rational behavior (or theories of rational choice in the sense employed by economists in so-called game theory and decision theory).1 Rawls, taking traditional contract theory as affording a model for rational choice, develops a deontological theory in contrast to Classical Utilitarianism, the main modern teleological theory of moral principles. Harsanyi, employing a very similar model of rational choice, works out a very plausible kind of Utilitarianism. It is Rule Utilitarianism as contrasted with Act Utilitarianism and it employs the principle of average utility, which requires us, if we are to act morally, to act so as to maximize not the total, but the average utility per capita of our society. In nontechnical terms, the ‘utility function’ of each member of society expresses the value he attaches to his various objectives, or ends.2
Elevation of Alanine Aminotransferase Activity Occurs after Activation of the Cell-Death Signaling Initiated by Pattern-Recognition Receptors but before Activation of Cytolytic Effectors in NK or CD8+ T Cells in the Liver During Acute HCV Infection.

Pattern-recognition receptors (PRRs) promote host defenses against HCV infection by binding to their corresponding adapter molecules leading to the initiation of innate immune responses including cell death. We investigated the expression of PRR genes, biomarkers of liver cell-death, and T cell and NK cell activation/inhibition-related genes in liver and serum obtained from three experimentally infected chimpanzees with acute HCV infection, and analyzed the correlation between gene expression levels and clinical profiles. Our results showed that expression of hepatic RIG-I, TLR3, TLR7, 2OAS1, and CXCL10 mRNAs was upregulated as early as 7 days post-inoculation and peaked 12 to 83 days post-inoculation. All of the three HCV infected chimpanzees exhibited significant elevations of serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) activity between 70 and 95 days after inoculation. Elevated levels of serum cytokeratin 18 (CK-18) and caspases 3 and 7 activity coincided closely with the rise of ALT activity, and were preceded by significant increases in levels of caspase 3 and caspase 7 mRNAs in the liver. Particularly we found that significant positive auto-correlations were observed between RIG-I, TLR3, CXCL10, 2OAS1, and PD-L1 mRNA and ALT activity at 3 to 12 days before the peak of ALT activity. However, we observed substantial negative auto-correlations between T cell and NK cell activation/inhibition-related genes and ALT activity at 5 to 32 days after the peak of ALT activity. Our results indicated cell death signaling is preceded by early induction of RIG-I, TLR3, 2OAS1, and CXCL10 mRNAs which leads to elevation of ALT activity and this signaling pathway occurs before the activation of NK and T cells during acute HCV infection. Our study suggests that PRRs and type I IFN response may play a critical role in development of liver cell injury related to viral clearance during acute HCV infection.
The Nigerian judiciary and the travails of rule of law

Nigerians are increasingly losing hope and confidence in the nation’s judicial system because of the unethical conduct of some judicial rascals. Some judgements have brought embarrassment to the nation. Verdicts are no longer based on facts of law. Through indirect observation: reading newspapers, listening to news on TV, It is established that a large number of judgements delivered were based on rule of men, and status differentials instead of rule of law. It is recommended that the judiciary be urgently overhauled with a view to flushing out the bad eggs or the judicial rascals.
Silicon carbide promises longer memories for the future

Modern microelectronics, whether in television sets or space shuttles, is over-whelmingly constructed using elemental, single crystal silicon. Although other semiconductors exhibit physical properties that provide advantage in terms of circuit speed and operation at high temperatures, silicon remains the material of choice. Two reasons for the continuing dominance of silicon are the extremely high quality of the material itself, and the capability of growing an insulator on silicon, called a native oxide, simply by heating this semiconductor under an oxygen atmosphere.
Effects of low and elevated CO2 on C3 and C4 annuals : II. Photosynthesis and leaf biochemistry.

Abutilon theophrasti (C3) and Amaranthus retroflexus (C4), were grown from seed at four partial pressures of CO2: 15 Pa (below Pleistocene minimum), 27 Pa (pre-industrial), 35 Pa (current), and 70 Pa (future) in the Duke Phytotron under high light, high nutrient, and wellwatered conditions to evaluate their photosynthetic response to historic and future levels of CO2. Net photosynthesis at growth CO2 partial pressures increased with increasing CO2 for C3 plants, but not C4 plants. Net photosynthesis of Abutilon at 15 Pa CO2 was 70% less than that of plants grown at 35 Pa CO2, due to greater stomatal and biochemical limitations at 15 Pa CO2. Relative stomatal limitation (RSL) of Abutilon at 15 Pa CO2 was nearly 3 times greater than at 35 Pa CO2. A photosynthesis model was used to estimate ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase (rubisco) activity (Vcmax), electron transport mediated RuBP regeneration capacity (J max), and phosphate regeneration capacity (PiRC) in Abutilon from net photosynthesis versus intercellular CO2 (A-C i) curves. All three component processes decreased by approximately 25% in Abutilon grown at 15 Pa compared with 35 Pa CO2. Abutilon grown at 15 Pa CO2 had significant reductions in total rubisco activity (25%), rubisco content (30%), activation state (29%), chlorophyll content (39%), N content (32%), and starch content (68%) compared with plants grown at 35 Pa CO2. Greater allocation to rubisco relative to light reaction components and concomitant decreases in J max and PiRC suggest co-regulation of biochemical processes occurred in Abutilon grown at 15 Pa CO2. There were no significant differences in photosynthesis or leaf properties in Abutilon grown at 27 Pa CO2 compared with 35 Pa CO2, suggesting that the rise in CO2 since the beginning of the industrial age has had little effect on the photosynthetic performance of Abutilon. For Amaranthus, limitations of photosynthesis were balanced between stomatal and biochemical factors such that net photosynthesis was similar in all CO2 treatments. Differences in photosynthetic response to growth over a wide range of CO2 partial pressures suggest changes in the relative performance of C3 and C4 annuals as atmospheric CO2 has fluctuated over geologic time.
Search for New Physics with Atoms and Molecules

Advances in atomic physics, such as cooling and trapping of atoms and molecules and developments in frequency metrology, have added orders of magnitude to the precision of atom-based clocks and sensors. Applications extend beyond atomic physics and this article reviews using these new techniques to address important challenges in physics and to look for variations in the fundamental constants, search for interactions beyond the standard model of particle physics, and test the principles of general relativity.
OPTIMAL practice conditions enhance the benefits of gradually increasing error opportunities on retention of a stepping sequence task.

Abstract Introduction Physical therapists should implement practice conditions that promote motor skill learning after neurological injury. Errorful and errorless practice conditions are effective for different populations and tasks. Errorful learning provides opportunities for learners to make task-relevant choices. Enhancing learner autonomy through choice opportunities is a key component of the Optimizing Performance through Intrinsic Motivation and Attention for Learning (OPTIMAL) theory of motor learning. The objective of this study was to evaluate the interaction between error opportunity frequency and OPTIMAL (autonomy-supportive) practice conditions during stepping sequence acquisition in a virtual environment. Methods Forty healthy young adults were randomized to autonomy-supportive or autonomy-controlling practice conditions, which differed in instructional language, focus of attention (external vs internal) and positive versus negative nature of verbal and visual feedback. All participants practiced 40 trials of 4, six-step stepping sequences in a random order. Each of the 4 sequences offered different amounts of choice opportunities about the next step via visual cue presentation (4 choices; 1 choice; gradually increasing [1-2-3-4] choices, and gradually decreasing [4-3-2-1] choices). Motivation and engagement were measured by the Intrinsic Motivation Inventory (IMI) and the User Engagement Scale (UES). Participants returned 1–3 days later for retention tests, where learning was measured by time to complete each sequence. No choice cues were offered on retention. Results Participants in the autonomy-supportive group outperformed the autonomy-controlling group at retention on all sequences (mean difference 2.88s, p Conclusion Individual benefits of errorless learning and autonomy-supportive practice conditions, with an interaction effect for practice that begins errorless but adds increasing error opportunities over time, suggest that participants relied on implicit learning strategies for this full body task and that feedback about successes minimized errors and reduced their potential information-processing benefits. Subsequent work will continue to examine how assigning a positive versus a negative quality to error provision influences the benefits of errorful learning in a variety of tasks.
Tuning the dynamic range of bacterial promoters regulated by ligand-inducible transcription factors

One challenge for synthetic biologists is the predictable tuning of genetic circuit regulatory components to elicit desired outputs. Gene expression driven by ligand-inducible transcription factor systems must exhibit the correct ON and OFF characteristics: appropriate activation and leakiness in the presence and absence of inducer, respectively. However, the dynamic range of a promoter (i.e., absolute difference between ON and OFF states) is difficult to control. We report a method that tunes the dynamic range of ligand-inducible promoters to achieve desired ON and OFF characteristics. We build combinatorial sets of AraC-and LasR-regulated promoters containing -10 and -35 sites from synthetic and Escherichia coli promoters. Four sequence combinations with diverse dynamic ranges were chosen to build multi-input transcriptional logic gates regulated by two and three ligand-inducible transcription factors (LacI, TetR, AraC, XylS, RhlR, LasR, and LuxR). This work enables predictable control over the dynamic range of regulatory components.
Short-term heat stress results in increased apoptotic signaling and autophagy in oxidative skeletal muscle in Sus scrofa.

Abstract Prolonged environment-induced hyperthermia causes morbidities and mortality in humans and animals and appears to cause organ-specific injury and dysfunction. We have previously determined autophagic dysfunction and apoptotic signaling in oxidative skeletal muscle following prolonged hyperthermia. The aim of this investigation was to extend our knowledge regarding the early chronology of heat stress-mediated apoptotic and autophagic signaling in oxidative skeletal muscle. We hypothesized that 2, 4, and 6 h of hyperthermia would increase apoptosis and autophagy in oxidative skeletal muscle compared to thermoneutral (TN) conditions. Pigs were assigned to four groups (n = 8/group) and exposed to environmental heat stress (37 °C) for 0, 2, 4, or 6 h. Immediately following environmental exposure animals were euthanized and the red portion of the semitendinosus was collected. Markers of apoptotic signaling were increased following 2 h of heating but returned to baseline thereafter, while caspase 3 activity remained elevated 2–3 fold (p
Ligand and electronic effects on copper–arylnitroso self-assembly

A series of complexes were prepared by self-assembly of copper(I) precursors and arylnitroso species. The nature of the copper(I) supporting ligand (bi-, tri- or tetradentate as well as secondary vs. tertiary amine donors) and the electronic nature of the arylnitroso species (electron-donating or withdrawing substituents) were varied. The stoichiometry of the reaction, the topology and the electronic properties of the adducts were characterized by means of UV-vis spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and DFT methods. The more electron-rich ligands and the more electron-poor arylnitroso species lead to an inner-sphere electron-transfer and formation of copper(II)–(arylnitrosyl radical) complexes, with a linkage topology that depends on the denticity of the supporting ligand. These results provide a canvas by which the products of similar self-assembled redox reactions can be predicted.
Informal Place-Making: Mosques, Muslims, and Urban Innovation in Germany

Islam, Muslims, and mosques are controversial topics in European public debates. Less attention is given to what Muslims and their communities have contributed to European cities as they have introduced new spaces and spatial practices and have reshaped urban spaces. This chapter examines the largely unplanned and informal spatial and cultural creativity of a mosque complex in Stuttgart, Germany. It analyzes how this complex evolved over two decades into a uniquely vibrant social, cultural, and economic center. Informal transformations quickly transcended the boundaries of the complex as more businesses were attracted by its vibrant spaces and successful businesses. Introducing exemplary spaces, this chapter explores the informal creation of popular urban spaces centered on a mosque as an instance of faith-based urban innovation. Islam as a religion is situated in the realm of urban creativity.
The Hardy—Littlewood asymptotic formula

For any positive integers k and s, let r k,s (N) denote the number of representations of N as the sum of s positive kth powers, that is, the number of s-tuples (x 1,...,x s ) of positive integers such that
Understanding the unique sorption of alkane-α, ω-diols in silicalite-1.

Adsorption equilibria of alkane-α, ω-diols (propane-1,3-diol, butane-1,4-diol, pentane-1,5-diol, and hexane-1,6-diol) from aqueous solution onto an all-silica zeolite of the type mordenite framework inverted (MFI, also known as silicalite-1) are obtained by simulations and experiments at T = 323 K and also for pentane-1,5-diol (C5) at 348 and 383 K. After an initial slow rise, isotherms at T = 323 K exhibit steep changes in loading, reaching saturation at 10, 9, 8, and 7 molec/uc as the number of carbon atoms of the diols increases from 3 to 6. The abrupt change in loading corresponds to a minimum in the free energy of adsorption (from vapor to zeolite) that is associated with a rapid rise in the number of hydrogen bonds per sorbate molecule due to the formation of large clusters. For C5 at low loading, the centers-of-mass primarily occupy the channel intersections with oxygens oriented along the straight channels where intermolecular hydrogen bonds are formed. At saturation loading, the C5 centers-of-mass instead occupy the straight and zig-zag channels, and nearly all C5 molecules are involved in a percolating hydrogen-bonding network (this also occurs for C6). With increasing temperature, the C5 isotherm decreases in steepness as the minimum in free energy of adsorption decreases in depth and a less-ordered structure of the adsorbed molecules results in a lower number of diol–diol hydrogen bonds. However, the C5 isotherm does not shift significantly in concentration of the adsorption onset, as the free energies of solvation and adsorption increase by similar and compensating amounts. At T = 323 and 348 K, the steep change for the C5 adsorption isotherm is found to be a phase transition (as indicated by a bimodal distribution of unit cell occupancies at intermediate loading) from a less-dense phase with only small hydrogen-bonded clusters to an ordered solid phase with loadings of 8 molec/uc. At T = 383 K, the sorbates are less ordered, the distribution of occupancies becomes unimodal at intermediate loading, and the loading rises more gradually with concentration. Several different enhanced sampling methods are utilized for these simulations.
Transoral laryngeal microsurgery for supraglottic airway obstruction in thyroid goiter

Abstract Objectives (1) Review essential elements of the pre-operative evaluation prior to thyroid surgery with an illustrative case highlighting the importance of in-office laryngoscopy. (2) Describe the first known use of transoral laryngeal microsurgery (TLM) concurrently with thyroidectomy to address supraglottic airway obstruction due to thyroid goiter. Methods Case report and literature review. Case presentation A 73-year-old patient presented with symptomatic large thyroid goiter. Pre-operative evaluation of the airway, thyroid bed, neck, and neurologic function was undertaken to guide effective and safe surgical intervention. Flexible laryngoscopy, sleep polysomnogram study, and dynamic chest computed tomography led to identification of severe laryngeal mucosal changes and upper airway obstruction. The patient was successfully managed with staged thyroidectomy and concurrent TLM resection of redundant arytenoid mucosa – the first known report of this technique applied in this setting. Near complete resolution of her symptoms was achieved with no complications or long-term side effects. Conclusions We recommend that patients with symptomatic cervical thyroid goiter undergo flexible laryngoscopy to evaluate for upper airway obstruction and propose that concurrent TLM can be considered to address laryngeal mucosal changes resulting from thyroid goiter.
Concise Approach to Cyclohexyne and 1,2-Cyclohexadiene Precursors

Silyl triflate precursors to cyclic alkynes and allenes serve as valuable synthetic building blocks. We report a concise and scalable synthetic approach to prepare the silyl triflate precursors to cyclohexyne and 1,2-cyclohexadiene. The strategy involves a retro-Brook rearrangement of an easily accessible cyclohexanone derivative, followed by triflation protocols. This simple, yet controlled, method should enable the further study of strained alkynes and allenes in chemical synthesis.
A vision-based marker-less pose estimation system for articulated construction robots

Abstract The prospect of human-robot collaborative work on construction sites introduces new workplace hazards that must be mitigated to ensure safety. Human workers working on tasks alongside construction robots must perceive the interaction to be safe in order to ensure team identification and trust. Detecting the robot pose in real-time is thus an essential requirement to inform the workers and to enable autonomous operation. Vision-based (marker-based, marker-less) and sensor-based are two of the primary methods for estimating robot pose. The marker-based and sensor-based methods require some additional preinstalled sensors or markers, whereas the marker-less method only requires an on-site camera system, which is common on today's construction sites. This research developed a marker-less pose estimation system for on-site articulated construction robots, which is based on a deep convolutional network human pose estimation algorithm: stacked hourglass network. Both 2D and 3D pose are estimated. The system is trained with image datasets collected from a robotic excavator and annotations of excavator pose, as well as conventional excavators working on construction sites. A KUKA robot arm with a bucket mounted on the end-effector was used to represent the robotic excavator in the experiments. The marker-less 3D method was evaluated, and the results were compared with the sensor-based results and the robot's ground truth pose. The results demonstrated that the marker-less 2D and 3D pose estimation methods are capable of performing proximity detection and object tracking on construction sites and can overcome the missing data issues encountered in the sensor-based method. However, the lower accuracy of the bucket pose estimation due to occlusion highlights the need for modifying the network and collecting additional datasets for training in future work.
A novel diversity method for smartphone camera-based heart rhythm signals in the presence of motion and noise artifacts

The advent of smartphones has advanced the use of embedded sensors to acquire various physiological information. For example, smartphone camera sensors and accelerometers can provide heart rhythm signals to the subjects, while microphones can give respiratory signals. However, the acquired smartphone-based physiological signals are more vulnerable to motion and noise artifacts (MNAs) compared to using medical devices, since subjects need to hold the smartphone with proper contact to the smartphone camera and lens stably and tightly for a duration of time without any movement in the hand or finger. This results in more MNA than traditional methods, such as placing a finger inside a tightly enclosed pulse oximeter to get PPG signals, which provides stable contact between the sensor and the subject's finger. Moreover, a smartphone lens does not block ambient light in an effective way, while pulse oximeters are designed to block the ambient light effectively. In this paper, we propose a novel diversity method for smartphone signals that reduces the effect of MNAs during heart rhythm signal detection by 1) acquiring two heterogeneous signals from a color intensity signal and a fingertip movement signal, and 2) selecting the less MNA-corrupted signal of the two signals. The proposed method has advantages in that 1) diversity gain can be obtained from the two heterogeneous signals when one signal is clean while the other signal is corrupted, and 2) acquisition of the two heterogeneous signals does not double the acquisition procedure but maintains a single acquisition procedure, since two heterogeneous signals can be obtained from a single smartphone camera recording. In our diversity method, we propose to choose the better signal based on the signal quality indices (SQIs), i.e., standard deviation of instantaneous heart rate (STD-HR), root mean square of the successive differences of peak-to-peak time intervals (RMSSD-T), and standard deviation of peak values (STD-PV). As a performance metric evaluating the proposed diversity method, the ratio of usable period is considered. Experimental results show that our diversity method increases the usable period 19.53% and 6.25% compared to the color intensity or the fingertip movement signals only, respectively.
Techniques for Assessing and Mitigating Longwall Subsidence Effects on Highway Bridges

Surface subsidence events induced by underground longwall coal mining operations can cause various disturbances to surface structures ranging from integrity and stability to functionality problems. Highway bridges, as a kind of special road construction that can only tolerate smaller movements and deformations than road pavements, are particularly susceptible to severe influence caused by subsidence-induced ground movements and deformations. However, based on accurate subsidence prediction and correct influence assessments, efficient and effective mitigation and remediation measures can be designed and implemented to ensure the continuous service of bridges, safety of the travelers and smooth mining operations. In this paper, based on the predicted final and dynamic surface movements and deformations, the techniques to assess subsidence influence on the integrity, stability and functionality of bridge structures (e.g., decks, beams, abutments, etc.) are presented. A number of mitigation measures to protect the bridge structures are recommended along with an actual application case.
Ionizing Radiation induction of cholesterol biosynthesis in Lung tissue.

While evidence supporting the notion that exposures to heavy ion radiation increase the risk for cancer and other disease development is accumulating, the underlying biological mechanisms remain poorly understood. To identify novel phenotypes that persist over time that may be related to increased disease development risk, we performed a quantitative global proteome analysis of immortalized human bronchial epithelial cells (HBEC3-KT) at day 7 post exposure to 0.5 Gy Fe ion (600 MeV/nucleon, Linear Energy Transfer (LET) = 175 keV/μm). The analysis revealed a significant increase in the expression of 4 enzymes of the cholesterol biosynthesis pathway. Elevated expression of enzymes of the cholesterol pathway was associated with increased cholesterol levels in irradiated cells and in lung tissue measured by a biochemical method and by filipin staining of cell-bound cholesterol. While a 1 Gy dose of Fe ion was sufficient to induce a robust response, a dose of 5 Gy X-rays was necessary to induce a similar cholesterol accumulation in HBEC3-KT cells. Radiation-increased cholesterol levels were reduced by treatment with inhibitors affecting the activity of enzymes in the biosynthesis pathway. To examine the implications of this finding for radiotherapy exposures, we screened a panel of lung cancer cell lines for cholesterol levels following exposure to X-rays. We identified a subset of cell lines that increased cholesterol levels in response to 5 Gy X-rays. Survival studies revealed that statin treatment is radioprotective, suggesting that cholesterol increases are associated with cytotoxicity. In summary, our findings uncovered a novel radiation-induced response, which may modify radiation treatment outcomes and contribute to risk for radiation–induced cardiovascular disease and carcinogenesis.
The Effects of Prelinguistic Milieu Teaching Implemented in Classrooms for Preschoolers With or at Risk for Autism Spectrum Disorder

Much research exists supporting the efficacy of naturalistic behavioral interventions on increasing social communication skills for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD); however, these evid...
Ion desorption efficiency and internal energy transfer in polymeric electrospun nanofiber-based surface-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry

The understanding of the desorption mechanism in surface-assisted laser desorption/ionization (SALDI) remains incomplete because there are numerous types of SALDI materials with a broad range of physical and chemical properties, many of which impact the ultimate analytical performance in terms of signal generation. In this study, the chemical thermometer molecule, benzylpyridinium chloride, is applied to investigate the desorption process of SALDI using electrospun nanofibrous polymer and polymer composite substrates. The ion desorption efficiency was inversely related to the ion internal energy, which could not be fully explained by a thermal desorption mechanism. A competing non-thermal desorption (i.e., phase transition/explosion) was proposed to be involved in this SALDI process. The influence of the orientation and dimension of the nanofiber structure revealed that a cross-linked nanofiber network with a small diameter favored the nanofiber-assisted LDI to provide efficient ion desorption. Graphical abstract.
An Eulerian-Lagrangian discontinuous Galerkin method for transport problems and its application to nonlinear dynamics

Abstract We propose a new Eulerian-Lagrangian (EL) discontinuous Galerkin (DG) method formulated by introducing a modified adjoint problem for the test function and by performing the integration of PDE over a space-time region partitioned by time-dependent linear functions approximating characteristics. The error incurred in characteristics approximation in the modified adjoint problem can then be taken into account by a new flux term, and can be integrated by method-of-line Runge-Kutta (RK) methods. The ELDG framework is designed as a generalization of the semi-Lagrangian (SL) DG method and classical Eulerian RK DG method for linear advection problems. It takes advantages of both formulations. In the EL DG framework, characteristics are approximated by a linear function in time, thus shapes of upstream cells are quadrilaterals in general two-dimensional problems. No quadratic-curved quadrilaterals are needed to design higher than second order schemes as in the SL DG scheme. On the other hand, the time step constraint from a classical Eulerian RK DG method is greatly mitigated, as it is evident from our theoretical and numerical investigations. Connection of the proposed EL DG method with the arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian (ALE) DG is observed. Numerical results on linear transport problems, as well as the nonlinear Vlasov and incompressible Euler dynamics using the exponential RK time integrators, are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the ELDG method.
New capabilities for enhancement of RMCProfile: instrumental profiles with arbitrary peak shapes for structural refinements using the reverse Monte Carlo method

Reported here are the development and application of new capabilities in the RMCProfile software for structural refinements using the reverse Monte Carlo (RMC) method. An algorithm has been implemented to enable the use of arbitrary peak-shape functions in the modeling of Bragg diffraction patterns and instrumental resolution effects on total-scattering data. This capability eliminates the dependence of RMCProfile on preset functions, which are inadequate for data produced by some total-scattering instruments, e.g. NOMAD at the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) at Oak Ridge, Tennessee, USA. The recently developed procedure for the instrument-resolution correction has been modified to improve its accuracy, which is critical for recovering nanoscale structure. The ability to measure fine details of local and nanoscale structures with high fidelity is required because such features are increasingly exploited in the design of materials with enhanced functional properties. The new methodology has been tested via RMC refinements of large-scale atomic configurations (distances up to 8 nm) for SrTiO3 using neutron total-scattering data collected on the Polaris and NOMAD time-of-flight powder diffractometers at the ISIS facility (Didcot, Oxfordshire, UK) and SNS, respectively. While the Polaris instrument is known to provide the high-quality data needed for RMC analysis, the similar and sound atomic configurations obtained from both instruments confirmed that the NOMAD data are also suitable for RMC refinements over a broad distance range.
When to take it out? Optimal timing of interval appendectomy in 500 consecutive children.

Abstract Purpose : While interval appendectomy following nonoperative management of perforated appendicitis is delayed until several weeks after presentation, the optimal time from presentation to interval appendectomy is unknown. Methods : The data warehouse of a large children's hospital was queried for interval appendectomies from 2006 to 2019. Data extracted included demographics, initial and operative hospitalization details, and pathology findings. Student's t-test and logistic regression were used where appropriate. Results : 500 patients were identified with a mean age of 10 years, 53% male. Mean time to operation was 12.7 weeks. Operation prior to 12 weeks was associated with increased odds of acute inflammation on pathology (OR = 2, p Conclusion : Acute inflammation is found many weeks after perforation and is associated with increased operative time. Acute inflammation is more likely to be present in operations performed prior to 12 weeks.
Posterior Urethral Valves

The above scenario seems a bit futuristic, but is beginning to occur more frequently in institutions with fetal care centers. Posterior urethral valves (PUVs) are the most common cause of obstructive uropathy in males and previously had a progression rate to end-stage renal disease (ESRD) of 50 % [3]. That paradigm may be changing. Improvements in neonatal intensive care, dialysis, and transplantation have allowed some quaternary centers to become comfortable with neonatal ESRD management in these infants. These resource-intense patients require a multidisciplinary approach to management and pose many new ethical and medical dilemmas. The following chapter will serve as an overview of posterior urethral valves with a focus on the concerns of this growing new population of neonates.
Applying Administrative Data-Based Coding Algorithms for Frailty in Patients With Cirrhosis

Frailty is a powerful prognostic tool in cirrhosis. Claims-based frailty scores estimate the presence of frailty without the need for in-person evaluation. These algorithms have not been validated in cirrhosis. Whether they measure true frailty or perform as well as frailty in outcome prediction is unknown. We evaluated 2 claims-based frailty scores-Hospital Frailty Risk Score (HFRS) and Claims-Based Frailty Index (CFI)-in 3 prospective cohorts comprising 1100 patients with cirrhosis. We assessed differences in neuromuscular/neurocognitive capabilities in those classified as frail or nonfrail based on each score. We assessed the ability of the indexes to discriminate frailty based on the Fried Frailty Index (FFI), chair stands, activities of daily living (ADL), and falls. Finally, we compared the performance of claims-based frailty measures and physical frailty measures to predict transplant-free survival using competing risk regression and patient-reported outcomes. The CFI identified neuromuscular deficits (balance, chair stands, hip strength), whereas the HFRS only identified poor chair-stand performance. The CFI had areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROCs) for identifying frailty as measured by the FFI, ADL, and falls of 0.57, 0.60, and 0.68, respectively; similarly, the AUROCs were 0.66, 0.63, and 0.67, respectively, for the HFRS. Claims-based frailty scores were associated with poor quality of life and sleep but were outperformed by the FFI and chair stands. The HFRS, per 10-point increase (but not the CFI) predicted survival of patients in the liver transplantation (subdistribution hazard ratio [SHR], 1.08; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.03-1.12) and non-liver transplantation cohorts (SHR, 1.13; 95% CI, 1.05-1.22). Claims-based frailty scores do not adequately associate with physical frailty but are associated with important cirrhosis-related outcomes.
Population-scale identification of differential adverse events before and during a pandemic

Adverse patient safety events, unintended injuries resulting from medical therapy, were associated with 110,000 deaths in the United States in 2019. A nationwide pandemic (such as COVID-19) further challenges the ability of healthcare systems to ensure safe medication use and the pandemic’s effects on safety events remain poorly understood. Here, we investigate drug safety events across demographic groups before and during a pandemic using a dataset of 1,425,371 reports involving 2,821 drugs and 7,761 adverse events. Among 64 adverse events identified by our analyses, we find 54 increased in frequency during the pandemic, despite a 4.4% decrease in the total number of reports. Out of 53 adverse events with a pre-pandemic gender gap, 33 have seen their gap increase with the pandemic onset. We find that the number of adverse events with an increased reporting ratio is higher in adults (by 16.8%) than in older patients. Our findings have implications for safe medication use and preventable healthcare inequality in public health emergencies. An algorithmic approach is developed to analyze large-scale patient safety data and remove the confounders of reporting trajectory and drug inference. Such an approach can be effectively used to investigate demographic disparities of drug safety and to identify at-risk patients during a pandemic.
Structure and expression of the infA operon encoding translational initiation factor IF1. Transcriptional control by growth rate.

Abstract The cellular levels of the three translational initiation factors, IF1, IF2, and IF3, increase as a function of growth rate in parallel with those of ribosomes. Therefore both ribosomal and initiation factor gene expression is under metabolic control. To address how expression of the Escherichia coli gene for IF1, infA, is regulated, a 3-kilobase region of the genome surrounding infA was sequenced. The 5' and 3' termini of in vivo infA transcripts were defined by S1 nuclease mapping, and mRNA size was measured by Northern blot hybridization. The infA gene is transcribed by two promoters, P1 and P2, which generate transcripts of 525 and 330 nucleotides, apparently ending at the same rho-independent terminator. Analyses of operon and protein fusions to lacZ demonstrate that neither infA transcription nor translation is affected by high cellular levels of IF1. However, P2, but not P1, increases in activity as a function of the growth rate of the cell and is the dominant promoter in rich medium. Therefore, metabolic control of infA expression occurs exclusively at the level of transcription by the P2 promoter.