cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Trust in Government and Subsidy Reform: Evidence from a Survey of Indian Farmers

What accounts for the persistence of inefficient subsidies? What are the obstacles to their reform? We examine the role of trust in government among farmers in explaining support for reforming India’s energy subsidies. The subsidies under study hold back efforts to provide a reliable supply of agricultural power and contribute to the unsustainable extraction of groundwater. This water-energy nexus in rural India represents both a poverty-perpetuating policy equilibrium and a crisis in environmental governance. Informed by interviews and focus groups, we conduct an original survey of 2010 farmers in Bihar, Gujarat, and Rajasthan and analyze this data on the preferences of “vested interests”—those most affected by potential reform—to demonstrate the crucial role of political trust, especially trust in the national government, in predicting farmers’ political support for reforms. Our findings have practical implications for environmental governance and rural development and contribute to understanding the political economy of social policy reform in a developing democracy.
The relation between religiosity and private bank outcomes

Abstract We examine the effect of headquarters’ local religiosity on private bank outcomes. Religiosity is associated with lower risk-taking for public banks, but the unique features of private banks may result in a different effect for private banks. We find religiosity is associated with greater asset risk-taking. At the same time, however, religiosity, is negatively associated with solvency risk and return on asset (ROA) volatility and is associated with higher ROAs and fewer failures. We reconcile these results by finding banks in areas with higher religiosity recognize larger fees from providing additional banking services, likely due to relationships formed from more risky lending. As a result, these banks are more (less) likely to realize extreme positive (negative) performance. We also find religiosity is associated with lower earnings management and increased conservatism. Collectively, our results confirm private banks are unique and religiosity can have a significant, and nuanced, effect on bank outcomes.
Designing Auditory Feedback from Wearable Weightlifting Devices

While wearable devices for fitness have gained broad popularity, most are focused on tracking general activity types rather than correcting exercise forms, which is extremely important for weightlifters. We interviewed 7 frequent gym-goers about their opinions and expectations for feedback from wearable devices for weightlifting. We describe their desired feedback, and how their expectations and concerns could be balanced in future wearable fitness technologies.
Deception strategies and threats for online discussions

Communication plays a major role in social systems. Effective communications, which requires the transmission of messages between individuals without disruptions or noise, can be a powerful tool to deliver intended impact. Language and style of content can be leveraged to deceive and manipulate recipients. These deception and persuasion strategies can be applied to exert power and amass capital in politics and business. In this work, we provide a modest review of how such deception and persuasion strategies were applied to different communication channels over time. We provide examples of campaigns that occurred over the last century, together with their corresponding dissemination media. In the Internet age, we enjoy access to a vast amount of information and an ability to communicate without borders. However, malicious actors work toward abusing online systems to disseminate disinformation, disrupt communication, and manipulate individuals, with automated tools such as social bots. It is important to study traditional practices of persuasion in order to investigate modern procedures and tools. We provide a discussion of current threats against society while drawing parallels with historical practices and recent research on systems of detection and prevention.
Foreign-born physicians' perceptions of discrimination and stress in Finland: a cross-sectional questionnaire study.

Foreign-born physicians fill in the shortage of physicians in many developed countries. Labour market theory and previous studies suggest that foreign-born physicians may be a disadvantaged group with a higher likelihood of discrimination and less prestigious jobs. The present study examines foreign-born physicians’ experiences of discrimination (coming from management, colleagues and patients separately) and patient-related stress and integration-related stress, and it examines how gender, age, employment sector, country of birth, years from getting a practicing license in Finland, language problems, cross-cultural training, cross-cultural empathy, team climate and skill discretion were associated with these factors. The present study was a cross-sectional questionnaire study among 371 foreign-born physicians in Finland, aged between 26 and 65 (65% women). Analyses of covariance and logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine the associations. A good team climate and high cross-cultural empathy were associated with lower likelihoods of discrimination from all sources, patient-related stress and integration-related stress. Skill discretion was associated with lower levels of integration-related stress and discrimination from management and colleagues. Language problems were associated with higher levels of integration-related stress. The biggest sources of discrimination were patients and their relatives. The present study showed the importance of a good team climate, cross-cultural empathy and patience, skill discretion and language skills in regard to the proper integration of foreign-born health care employees into the workplace. Good job resources, such as a good team climate and the possibility to use one’s skills, may help foreign-born employees, for instance by giving them support when needed and offering flexibility. Health care organizations should invest in continuous language training for foreign-born employees and also offer support when there are language problems. Moreover, it seems that training increasing cross-cultural empathy and patience might be beneficial.
NASA’s Earth Observing Data and Information System – Near-Term Challenges

NASA’s Earth Observing System Data and Information System (EOSDIS) has been a central component of the NASA Earth observation program since the 1990’s. EOSDIS manages data covering a wide range of Earth science disciplines including cryosphere, land cover change, polar processes, field campaigns, ocean surface, digital elevation, atmospheric dynamics and composition, and inter-disciplinary research, and many others. One of the key components of EOSDIS is a set of twelve discipline-based Distributed Active Archive Centers (DAACs) distributed across the United States. Managed by NASA’s Earth Science Data and Information System (ESDIS) Project at the Goddard Space Flight Center, these DAACs serve over 4 million users globally. The ESDIS Project provides the infrastructure support for EOSDIS, which includes other components such as common metadata and metrics management systems, specialized network systems, standards management, and centralized support for use of commercial cloud capabilities. Given the long-term requirements, and the rapid pace of information technology and changing expectations of the user community, EOSDIS has evolved continually over the past three decades. However, many challenges remain. Challenges in three key areas are addressed in this paper: managing volume and variety, enabling data discovery and access, and incorporating user feedback and concerns.
CANAL: a cache timing analysis framework via LLVM transformation

A unified modeling framework for non-functional properties of a program is essential for research in software analysis and verification, since it reduces burdens on individual researchers to implement new approaches and compare existing approaches. We present CANAL, a framework that models the cache behaviors of a program by transforming its intermediate representation in the LLVM compiler. CANAL inserts auxiliary variables and instructions over these variables, to allow standard verification tools to handle a new class of cache related properties, e.g., for computing the worst-case execution time and detecting side-channel leaks. We demonstrate the effectiveness of using three verification tools: KLEE, SMACK and Crab-llvm. We confirm the accuracy of our cache model by comparing with CPU cycle-accurate simulation results of GEM5. CANAL is available on GitHub(https://github.com/canalcache/canal) and YouTube(https://youtu.be/JDou3F1j2nY).
Is a $200 Nordstrom Gift Card Worth More or Less Than a $200 Gap Gift Card? The Asymmetric Valuations of Luxury Gift Cards

Abstract Gift cards account for a $200 billion market in the US, yet little is known about consumers’ preferences and valuations of different gift cards. We examine how average US consumers feel about exchanging luxury brand gift cards (LGCs) versus non-luxury brand gift cards (NLGCs). Using secondary data analyses, surveys, and experiments, we demonstrate two asymmetries: between valuations of LGCs versus NLGCs and between valuations of gift cards by givers versus recipients. We show that LGCs are valued less than NLGCs with identical price tags. LGCs are more likely to be swapped or sold. Resellers demand and buyers pay lower prices for LGCs. These effects are mediated by the perceived utility of the gift cards as gifts and moderated by a person’s role in the gifting process. Gift givers value and prefer to give LGCs more, whereas recipients prefer and value NLGCs more.
Effect of baseline menstrual bleeding pattern on copper intrauterine device continuation

Background Heavy menstrual bleeding is a leading cause of copper intrauterine device discontinuation. Thus, girls and women with heavy baseline menstrual bleeding may be at increased risk for early copper intrauterine device discontinuation. Objective Our objective was to assess if there was an association between baseline menstrual bleeding pattern prior to intrauterine device insertion and discontinuation rate at 12 months among study participants who chose copper intrauterine device at baseline. Study Design We performed a secondary analysis of the Contraceptive CHOICE Project, a prospective observational cohort study of 9256 girls and women offered no-cost contraception for 2–3 years. Included in our study were participants who chose copper intrauterine device for contraception and for whom method continuation data at 12 months were available. Prior to contraception initiation, participants were asked to qualify their menstrual bleeding over the past year as: light, moderate, moderately heavy, or heavy. Light bleeding corresponded to using ≤10 pads/tampons per period. Moderate, moderately heavy, and heavy bleeding corresponded to 11–20 pads/tampons, 21–30 pads/tampons, and >30 pads/tampons per period, respectively. Subjects were then categorized into either a “heavy” baseline group (those reporting moderately heavy or heavy bleeding at baseline), or a “not heavy” group (those reporting light or moderate bleeding). The 12-month continuation rate for each group was then calculated using Kaplan-Meier survival function, and hazard ratio for risk of discontinuation was evaluated using a Cox proportional hazard model to determine if moderately heavy or heavy bleeding at baseline was associated with early discontinuation. Results Of the 918 girls and women meeting the inclusion criteria for this analysis, 165 were in the heavy baseline bleeding group, while 753 were in the not heavy bleeding group. The 12-month continuation rates for groups were similar: 80.2% (heavy) and 85.0% (not heavy; P = .24). Patients reporting either moderately heavy or heavy baseline bleeding were not at increased risk for early discontinuation of copper intrauterine device (hazard ratio, 1.21; 95% confidence interval, 0.88–1.66). Our sample size provided >90% power to detect a clinically important difference of 15% (assuming 20% discontinuation rate in not heavy bleeding group and a 35% discontinuation rate in the heavy bleeding group). Conclusion We did not find that girls and women who reported baseline moderately heavy or heavy menstrual bleeding were at increased risk for early discontinuation. Thus, we do not believe that girls and women with heavy menstrual bleeding should be discouraged from using this safe and highly effective form of contraception.
Optimal Distributed Control for Leader-Follower Networks: A Scalable Design

The focus of this paper is directed towards optimal control of multi-agent systems consisting of one leader and a number of followers in the presence of noise. The dynamics of every agent is assumed to be linear, and the performance index is a quadratic function of the states and actions of the leader and followers. The leader and followers are coupled in both dynamics and cost. The state of the leader and the average of the states of all followers (called mean-field) are common information and known to all agents; however, the local state of the followers are private information and unknown to other agents. It is shown that the optimal distributed control strategy is linear time-varying, and its computational complexity is independent of the number of followers. This strategy can be computed in a distributed manner, where the leader needs to solve one Riccati equation to determine its optimal strategy while each follower needs to solve two Riccati equations to obtain its optimal strategy. This result is subsequently extended to the case of the infinite horizon discounted and undiscounted cost functions, where the optimal distributed strategy is shown to be stationary. A numerical example with 100 followers is provided to demonstrate the efficacy of the results.
VoxelMorph: A Learning Framework for Deformable Medical Image Registration

We present VoxelMorph, a fast learning-based framework for deformable, pairwise medical image registration. Traditional registration methods optimize an objective function for each pair of images, which can be time-consuming for large datasets or rich deformation models. In contrast to this approach and building on recent learning-based methods, we formulate registration as a function that maps an input image pair to a deformation field that aligns these images. We parameterize the function via a convolutional neural network and optimize the parameters of the neural network on a set of images. Given a new pair of scans, VoxelMorph rapidly computes a deformation field by directly evaluating the function. In this paper, we explore two different training strategies. In the first (unsupervised) setting, we train the model to maximize standard image matching objective functions that are based on the image intensities. In the second setting, we leverage auxiliary segmentations available in the training data. We demonstrate that the unsupervised model’s accuracy is comparable to the state-of-the-art methods while operating orders of magnitude faster. We also show that VoxelMorph trained with auxiliary data improves registration accuracy at test time and evaluate the effect of training set size on registration. Our method promises to speed up medical image analysis and processing pipelines while facilitating novel directions in learning-based registration and its applications. Our code is freely available at https://github.com/voxelmorph/voxelmorph .
On the Variance of Internode Distance Under the Multispecies Coalescent

We consider the problem of estimating species trees from unrooted gene tree topologies in the presence of incomplete lineage sorting, a common phenomenon that creates gene tree heterogeneity in multilocus datasets. One popular class of reconstruction methods in this setting is based on internode distances, i.e. the average graph distance between pairs of species across gene trees. While statistical consistency in the limit of large numbers of loci has been established in some cases, little is known about the sample complexity of such methods. Here we make progress on this question by deriving a lower bound on the worst-case variance of internode distance which depends linearly on the corresponding graph distance in the species tree. We also discuss some algorithmic implications.
Hydrodynamic Phonon Transport Perpendicular to Diffuse-Gray Boundaries

ABSTRACTIn this paper, we examine the application of an ideal phonon-hydrodynamic material as the heat transfer medium between two diffuse-gray boundaries with a finite temperature difference. We u...
Central and Peripheral Cues to Difficulty in a Dynamic Task

Objective:We used this experiment to determine the degree to which cues to difficulty are used to make judgments of difficulty (JODs).Background:Traditional approaches involve seeking to standardiz...
Near optimal finite time identification of arbitrary linear dynamical systems.

We derive finite time error bounds for estimating general linear time-invariant (LTI) systems from a single observed trajectory using the method of least squares. We provide the first analysis of the general case when eigenvalues of the LTI system are arbitrarily distributed in three regimes: stable, marginally stable, and explosive. Our analysis yields sharp upper bounds for each of these cases separately. We observe that although the underlying process behaves quite differently in each of these three regimes, the systematic analysis of a self--normalized martingale difference term helps bound identification error up to logarithmic factors of the lower bound. On the other hand, we demonstrate that the least squares solution may be statistically inconsistent under certain conditions even when the signal-to-noise ratio is high.
AppScale: Scalable and Open AppEngine Application Development and Deployment

We present the design and implementation of AppScale, an open source extension to the Google AppEngine (GAE) Platform-as- a-Service (PaaS) cloud technology. Our extensions build upon the GAE SDK to facilitate distributed execution of GAE applications over virtualized cluster resources, including Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) cloud systems such as Amazon’s AWS/EC2 and Epucalyptus. AppScale provides a framework with which researchers can investigate the interaction between PaaS and IaaS systems as well as the inner workings of, and new technologies for, PaaS cloud technologies using real GAE applications.
Risk factors for admission after shoulder arthroscopy.

Background Shoulder arthroscopy is a common orthopedic procedure typically performed on an outpatient basis. Occasionally, patients require an unplanned hospital admission. An understanding of the incidence and risk factors for admission after shoulder arthroscopy may assist surgeons in determining which patients may be susceptible to unplanned admission after surgery. Methods All consecutive shoulder arthroscopy procedures performed during a 10-year period were reviewed. A 2:1 control-case matching technique was used. Univariate analysis was performed to identify differences between patients admitted after surgery and the control group. Multivariate analysis was performed to identify variables associated with admission. Results There were 5598 arthroscopic shoulder procedures performed, with 233 patients (4.2%) requiring admission. The most common reason for admission was respiratory monitoring. Risk factors for admission by multivariate analysis were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (odds ratio [OR], 2.73; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.51-4.95), diabetes (OR, 2.11; 95% CI, 1.28-3.48), obstructive sleep apnea (OR, 1.90; 95% CI, 1.13-3.21), age (OR, 1.02; 95% CI, 1.01-1.04), body mass index (OR, 1.04; 95% CI, 1.01-1.07), and operative time (OR, 1.01; 95% CI, 1.00-1.01). Regional with monitored anesthesia care decreased risk compared with general anesthesia and regional with general anesthesia (OR, 0.44; 95% CI, 0.30-0.63). Conclusion Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, obstructive sleep apnea, diabetes, increasing age, increasing body mas index, and increasing operative time were all risk factors for admission after shoulder arthroscopy. The absence of general anesthesia was found to decrease the risk of admission.
An elementary method to compute the algebra generated by some given matrices and its dimension

Abstract We give an efficient solution to the following problem: Given X 1 , … X d and Y some n by n matrices can we determine if Y is in the unital algebra generated by X 1 , … , X d as a subalgebra of all n by n matrices? The solution also gives an easy method for computing the dimension of this algebra.
Signed Ranks Test

The Signed Rank test is a nonparametric alternative to the one-sample or paired samples parametric t Test. Keywords: paired samples; ranks; test
Optically tunable topological photonic crystal

Topological photonic insulators can enable the development of efficient integrated photonic devices with minimized scattering losses. The optical properties of the majority of topological structures proposed to date are fixed by designs such that no changes to their performance can be made once the device has been fabricated. However, tunability is important for many applications, including modulators, switches, and optical buffers. We therefore propose a straightforward way to dynamically control transmission in a silicon-based topological photonic crystal using all-optical free-carrier excitation that allows for fast refractive index modulation. The changes in both the real and imaginary parts of the refractive index cause a blue shift of the transmission spectrum by up to 20 nm and a reduction in transmission by approximately 85% . With the control mechanism used here, we can achieve switching times of the order of nanoseconds. The structures proposed here are compatible with the standard semiconductor industry fabrication process and operate at telecommunication wavelengths.
Scaling properties of noise-induced switching in a bistable tunnel diode circuit

Noise-induced switching between coexisting metastable states occurs in a wide range of far-from-equilibrium systems including micro-mechanical oscillators, epidemiological and climate change models, and nonlinear electronic transport in tunneling structures such as semiconductor superlattices and tunnel diodes. In the case of tunnel diode circuits, noise-induced switching behavior is associated with negative differential resistance in the static current–voltage characteristics and bistability, i.e., the existence of two macroscopic current states for a given applied voltage. Noise effects are particularly strong near the onset and offset of bistable current behavior, corresponding to bifurcation points in the associated dynamical system. In this paper, we show that the tunnel diode system provides an excellent experimental platform for the precision measurement of scaling properties of mean switching times versus applied voltage near bifurcation points. More specifically, experimental data confirm that the mean switching time scales logarithmically as the 3/2 power of voltage difference over an exceptionally wide range of time scales and noise intensities.
Axisymmetric Constraints on Cross-Equatorial Hadley Cell Extent

AbstractWe consider the relevance of known constraints from each of Hide’s theorem, the angular momentum–conserving (AMC) model, and the equal-area model on the extent of cross-equatorial Hadley ce...
Hepatocyte Nuclear Factor 4 Alpha Activation Is Essential for Termination of Liver Regeneration in Mice

Hepatocyte nuclear factor 4 alpha (HNF4α) is critical for hepatic differentiation. Recent studies have highlighted its role in inhibition of hepatocyte proliferation and tumor suppression. However, the role of HNF4α in liver regeneration (LR) is not known. We hypothesized that hepatocytes modulate HNF4α activity when navigating between differentiated and proliferative states during LR. Western blotting analysis revealed a rapid decline in nuclear and cytoplasmic HNF4α protein levels, accompanied with decreased target gene expression, within 1 hour after two-thirds partial hepatectomy (post-PH) in C57BL/6J mice. HNF4α protein expression did not recover to pre-PH levels until day 3. Hepatocyte-specific deletion of HNF4α (HNF4α-KO [knockout]) in mice resulted in 100% mortality post-PH, despite increased proliferative marker expression throughout regeneration. Sustained loss of HNF4α target gene expression throughout regeneration indicated that HNF4α-KO mice were unable to compensate for loss of HNF4α transcriptional activity. Deletion of HNF4α resulted in sustained proliferation accompanied by c-Myc and cyclin D1 overexpression and a complete deficiency of hepatocyte function after PH. Interestingly, overexpression of degradation-resistant HNF4α in hepatocytes delayed, but did not prevent, initiation of regeneration after PH. Finally, adeno-associated virus serotype 8 (AAV8)-mediated reexpression of HNF4α in hepatocytes of HNF4α-KO mice post-PH restored HNF4α protein levels, induced target gene expression, and improved survival of HNF4α-KO mice post-PH. Conclusion: In conclusion, these data indicate that HNF4α reexpression following initial decrease is critical for hepatocytes to exit from cell cycle and resume function during the termination phase of LR. These results indicate the role of HNF4α in LR and have implications for therapy of liver failure.
A Structural‐Factor Approach to Modeling High‐Dimensional Time Series and Space‐Time Data

This article considers a structural‐factor approach to modeling high‐dimensional time series and space‐time data by decomposing individual series into trend, seasonal, and irregular components. For ease in analyzing many time series, we employ a time polynomial for the trend, a linear combination of trigonometric series for the seasonal component, and a new factor model for the irregular components. The new factor model simplifies the modeling process and achieves parsimony in parameterization. We propose a Bayesian information criterion to consistently select the order of the polynomial trend and the number of trigonometric functions, and use a test statistic to determine the number of common factors. The convergence rates for the estimators of the trend and seasonal components and the limiting distribution of the test statistic are established under the setting that the number of time series tends to infinity with the sample size, but at a slower rate. We study the finite‐sample performance of the proposed analysis via simulation, and analyze two real examples. The first example considers modeling weekly PM2.5 data of 15 monitoring stations in the southern region of Taiwan and the second example consists of monthly value‐weighted returns of 12 industrial portfolios.
Taiji: System-level identification of key transcription factors reveals transcriptional waves in mouse embryonic development

Transcriptional regulation is pivotal to the specification of distinct cell types during embryonic development. However, it still lacks a systematic way to identify key transcription factors (TFs) orchestrating the temporal and tissue specificity of gene expression. Here, we integrated epigenomic and transcriptomic data to reveal key regulators from two cells to postnatal day 0 in mouse embryogenesis. We predicted three-dimensional chromatin interactions in 12 tissues across eight developmental stages, which facilitates linking TFs to their target genes for constructing transcriptional regulatory networks. To identify driver TFs, we developed a new algorithm, dubbed Taiji, to assess the global influence of each TF and systematically uncovered TFs critical for lineage-specific and stage-dependent tissue specification. We have also identified TF combinations that function in spatiotemporal order to form transcriptional waves regulating developmental progress. Furthermore, lacking stage-specific TF combinations suggests a distributed timing strategy to orchestrate the coordination between tissues during embryonic development.
Hanging in, Stopping out, Dropping out: Community College Students in an Era of Precarity.

Background/ContextSociologists of education have documented community college students’ high postsecondary aspirations and low persistence and college completion rates. Recent research suggests tha...
Closed-loop field development with multipoint geostatistics and statistical performance assessment

Abstract Closed-loop field development (CLFD) optimization is a comprehensive framework for optimal development of subsurface resources. CLFD involves three major steps: 1) optimization of full development plan based on current set of models, 2) drilling new wells and collecting new spatial and temporal (production) data, 3) model calibration based on all data. This process is repeated until the optimal number of wells is drilled. This work introduces a new CLFD implementation for complex systems described by multipoint geostatistics (MPS). Model calibration is accomplished in two steps: conditioning to spatial data by a geostatistical simulation method, and conditioning to production data by optimization-based PCA. A statistical procedure (TruMAP) is presented to assess the performance of CLFD. For performance assessment by TruMAP, the methodology is applied to an oil reservoir example for 25 different true-model cases. Application of a single-step of CLFD, improved the true NPV in 64%–80% of cases. The full CLFD procedure (with three steps) improved the true NPV in 96% of cases, with an average improvement of 37%. These results indicate that probability of improving true NPV increases with closed-loop step. This massive computational experiment involved about 9.5 million reservoir simulation runs that took about 320,000 CPU hours.
Efficient integration of heterogeneous single-cell transcriptomes using Scanorama.

Integration of single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) data from multiple experiments, laboratories and technologies can uncover biological insights, but current methods for scRNA-seq data integration are limited by a requirement for datasets to derive from functionally similar cells. We present Scanorama, an algorithm that identifies and merges the shared cell types among all pairs of datasets and accurately integrates heterogeneous collections of scRNA-seq data. We applied Scanorama to integrate and remove batch effects across 105,476 cells from 26 diverse scRNA-seq experiments representing 9 different technologies. Scanorama is sensitive to subtle temporal changes within the same cell lineage, successfully integrating functionally similar cells across time series data of CD14+ monocytes at different stages of differentiation into macrophages. Finally, we show that Scanorama is orders of magnitude faster than existing techniques and can integrate a collection of 1,095,538 cells in just ~9 h. Scanorama integrates single-cell RNA-seq datasets from different tissues, different labs, different experiments or different technologies.
Combination therapy for severe portopulmonary hypertension in a child allows for liver transplantation.

Severe PPHTN is a contraindication to liver transplantation and predicts an abysmal 5-year outcome. It is defined as a resting mPAP >45 mm Hg with a mean pulmonary artery wedge pressure of 3 wood units in the setting of portal hypertension. There have been limited reports of successful treatment of PPHTN leading to successful liver transplantation in adults, and one reported use of monotherapy as a bridge to successful liver transplant in pediatrics. To our knowledge, we describe the first use of combination therapy as a successful bridge to liver transplantation in a pediatric patient with severe PPHTN. This report adds to the paucity of data in pediatrics on the use of pulmonary vasodilator therapy in patients with severe PPHTN as a bridge to successful liver transplantation. Early diagnosis in order to mitigate or avoid the development of irreversible pulmonary vasculopathy that would preclude candidacy for liver transplantation is crucial, but our report demonstrates that combination therapy can be administered safely, quickly, and may allow for successful liver transplantation in patients with severe PPHTN.
Broadband dual linear polarized (DLP) antenna array for energy harvesting system

A broadband linear polarized antenna is designed for radio frequency energy harvesting. The antenna covers the frequency range from 1 up to 6 GHz with relative impedance bandwidth of 126% at −6 dB reflection coefficient |S11| and extended from 1.1 to 3.3 GHz and from 4.2 to 5.6 GHz at |S11| ≤ −10 dB. A 2 × 2 dual linear polarized (DLP) antenna array is designed based on the antenna element by using equal phase and equal power divider 1-to-4 Wilkinson power divider with 180° phase shifter. The DLP antenna array covers the frequency band from 1.8 to 2.9 GHz. This frequency band covers a wide range of modern wireless communication standards, including GSM 1800, UMTS 2100, Wi-Fi 2.4, and most of LTE bands. The developed array prototype was then used to experimentally validate the simulation results. The horizontally and vertically polarized gain of the designed array were found to be quite similar across the 1.8–2.9 frequency band with an average gain value of 5.5 dBi.
Enantioselective synthesis of 2-alkyl-2-aryl cyclopentanones by asymmetric epoxidation of tetrasubstituted cyclobutylidene olefins and epoxide rearrangement

Abstract This letter describes a highly enantioselective epoxidation of tetrasubstituted benzylidenecyclobutanes using glucose-derived ketone as catalyst and oxone as oxidant. The Et2AlCl promoted rearrangement of the resulting epoxides provides 2-alkyl-2-aryl cyclopentanones with high ees.
Message Authentication on 64-bit Architectures.

This paper takes UMAC — a message authentication algorithm (MAC) optimized for performance on 32-bit architectures — as its starting point, and adapts its strategies for optimum performance on 64-bit architectures. The resulting MAC, called UMAC8, achieves per message forgery probabilities of about 2−60 and 2−120 for tags of length 64 and 128 bits. The UMAC strategies are discussed at length and adapted for 64-bit environments, but are also modified to address several UMAC shortcomings, particularly key-agility and susceptibility to timing attacks. UMAC achieved peak throughput rates, when generating 64-bit tags, of 1.0 CPU cycle per byte of message authenticated, while UMAC8 achieves 0.5 cycles per byte. I personally believe there are two main architectures out there: Power and x86-64. — Linus Torvalds, 2005.
New Ternary Group-IV Tellurides with Extensive Te-Te Bonding: The Low-Dimensional Compounds Cs3Ti3Te11 and Cs5Hf5Te26

The new compounds Cs3Ti3Te11 and Cs5Hf5Te26 have been synthesized from a Cs2Ten reactive flux. Cs3Ti3Te11 crystallizes in the monoclinic space group −P21/n with four formula units in a cell of dimensions a = 10.776(4) A, b = 15.281(5) A, c = 14.843(5) A, β = 92.29(1)°, V = 2442(2) A3 (T = 115 K). The structure has been refined to an agreement index of Rw(F2) of 0.084 for 154 variables and 4812 observations; the value of R1 (on F for Fo2 > 2σ(Fo2)) is 0.034. Cs5Hf5Te26 crystallizes in the monoclinic space group −P21/c with four formula units in a cell of dimensions a = 19.256(10) A, b = 9.487(6) A, c = 27.94 (2) A, β = 98.40(8)°, V = 5049(5) A3 (T = 115 K). This structure has been refined to an agreement index of Rw(F2) of 0.171 for 145 variables and 3496 observations; the value of R1 (on F for Fo2 > 2σ(Fo2)) is 0.084. Both structures comprise chains of Te-bridged group-IV metals and both feature extensive Te−Te bonding within the chains. In Cs3Ti3Te11 individual [Ti3Te113-] chains are separated by Cs+ cat...
Synthesis of a New Lipophilic Bilirubin. Conformation, Transhepatic Transport and Glucuronidation

Abstract Analogs of symmetrical bilirubin isomers with vinyl groups replaced by n-butyls (1 and 2) were synthesized and found to be much more soluble in nonpolar solvents than either bilirubin itself or its analogs with ethyls in place of vinyls (3 and 4). The increased lipophilicity of 1 and 2 allowed, for the first time, vapor pressure osmometric molecular wt. determinations of a bilirubin acid, showing in CHCl3 solvent: MWobs=632±10 for 1, and 637±10 for 2 (both formula weight 644)—data that clearly indicate monomers and no dimers. The induced circular dichroism (ICD) spectra of 1 and 2, with negative exciton chirality Cotton effects, are quite like those of 3 and 4 in chloroform containing quinine, but the ICDs in aqueous buffer containing human serum albumin differ considerably. Rubins 1, 3 and 4 exhibit dissimilar but positive exciton chirality Cotton effects, while 2 shows a negative exciton chirality Cotton effect. The metabolism of the n-butyl rubins in the rat is highly dependent on the specific endo or exo location of the n-butyl groups. Rubin 2, with two endo n-butyl groups was metabolized rather like the corresponding mesobilirubin (4) or natural bilirubin itself, being converted to a mono and diglucuronide that were excreted promptly in bile. The presence of the bulky endo-n-butyl groups and the high lipophilicity of the compound seemed to interfere with glucuronidation in the liver only slightly. In contrast, the similar, yet even more lipophilic n-butyl rubin 1, which has two exo n-butyl groups, was glucuronidated and excreted in bile in the rat rather poorly.
Diarylthiopyrimidines and pyridines: Synthesis and biological activity

Prior work with diarylethers of pyrimidine, pyridine, and benzene showed encouraging antitumor results. As an extension of that work the synthesis of diarylthio derivatives of pyrimidine and pyridine has been accomplished. The synthetic scheme employed the nucleophilic displacement of chlorines from trichloropyrimidine, 1, dichloropyrimidines 4 and 6, and 2,6-dichloropyridine 8 using the anion of thiophe-nols 2. Antitumor evaluation by the National Cancer Institute showed no useful activity.
The preparation of acyl phosphonates by the heterogeneous oxidation of 1-hydroxy phosphonates

Abstract The oxidation of hydroxy phosphonates to acyl phosphonates using three heterogeneous systems, MnO2, KMnO4 and CrO2 was investigated. The best results were obtained with CrO2 in refluxing acetonitrile.
Total Synthesis of Bastadins 2, 3, and 6

A chemoenzymatic strategy has been developed for the synthesis of bastadins 2, 3, and 6. The requisite dimeric dityrosine and isodityrosine building blocks were successfully prepared by oxidative C−C and C−O phenolic coupling of mono- and dihalogenated derivatives of tyrosine and tyramine using horseradish and soybean peroxidases. By carefully controlling the experimental parameters, the requisite synthons may now be prepared in synthetically useful yields without the exhaustive protection and deprotection of the sensitive functional groups.
Towards a statistical mechanics of cities

Abstract Cities are some of the most complex dynamical systems in human societies and in nature. There is growing interest in producing more comprehensive quantitative theory, capable of describing many of the features now observable in urban environments, especially those that show empirical regularities across cities of different sizes, geographies, and levels of development. The principal challenge of achieving such a goal is our ability to build frameworks that include realistic but simple accounts of agents' choices and strategic behavior, beyond current approaches in statistical physics or economics. Here, I propose a general framework that integrates agents' behavior with their resource and information management towards seizing opportunities in their environment. I show how this approach integrates urban scaling theory with a statistical mechanics of open-ended (economic) growth. The framework is general and, with appropriate modifications and elaborations, can account for the statistical dynamics of other complex systems.
Mice use robust and common strategies to discriminate natural scenes

Mice use vision to navigate and avoid predators in natural environments. However, their visual systems are compact compared to other mammals, and it is unclear how well mice can discriminate ethologically relevant scenes. Here, we examined natural scene discrimination in mice using an automated touch-screen system. We estimated the discrimination difficulty using the computational metric structural similarity (SSIM), and constructed psychometric curves. However, the performance of each mouse was better predicted by the mean performance of other mice than SSIM. This high inter-mouse agreement indicates that mice use common and robust strategies to discriminate natural scenes. We tested several other image metrics to find an alternative to SSIM for predicting discrimination performance. We found that a simple, primary visual cortex (V1)-inspired model predicted mouse performance with fidelity approaching the inter-mouse agreement. The model involved convolving the images with Gabor filters, and its performance varied with the orientation of the Gabor filter. This orientation dependence was driven by the stimuli, rather than an innate biological feature. Together, these results indicate that mice are adept at discriminating natural scenes, and their performance is well predicted by simple models of V1 processing.
An annual cycle of gene regulation in the red-legged salamander mental gland: from hypertrophy to expression of rapidly evolving pheromones

Cell differentiation is mediated by synchronized waves of coordinated expression for hundreds to thousands of genes, and must be regulated to produce complex tissues and phenotypes. For many animal species, sexual selection has driven the development of elaborate male ornaments, requiring sex-specific differentiation pathways. One such male ornament is the pheromone-producing mental gland of the red-legged salamander (Plethodon shermani). Mental gland development follows an annual cycle of extreme hypertrophy, production of pheromones for the ~ 2 month mating season, and then complete resorption before repeating the process in the following year. At the peak of the mating season, the transcriptional and translational machinery of the mental gland are almost exclusively redirected to the synthesis of rapidly evolving pheromones. Of these pheromones, Plethodontid Modulating Factor (PMF) has experienced an unusual history: following gene duplication, the protein coding sequence diversified from positive sexual selection while the untranslated regions have been conserved by purifying selection. The molecular underpinnings that bridge the processes of gland hypertrophy, pheromone synthesis, and conservation of the untranslated regions remain to be determined. Using Illumina sequencing, we prepared a de novo transcriptome of the mental gland at six stages of development. Differential expression analysis and immunohistochemistry revealed that the mental gland initially adopts a highly proliferative, almost tumor-like phenotype, followed by a rapid increase in pheromone mRNA and protein. One likely player in this transition is Cold Inducible RNA Binding Protein (CIRBP), which selectively and cooperatively binds the highly conserved PMF 3′ UTR. CIRBP, along with other proteins associated with stress response, have seemingly been co-opted to aid in mental gland development by helping to regulate pheromone synthesis. The P. shermani mental gland utilizes a complex system of transcriptional and post-transcriptional gene regulation to facilitate its hypertrophication and pheromone synthesis. The data support the evolutionary interplay of coding and noncoding segments in rapid gene evolution, and necessitate the study of co-evolution between pheromone gene products and their transcriptional/translational regulators. Additionally, the mental gland could be a powerful emerging model of regulated tissue proliferation and subsequent resorption within the dermis and share molecular links to skin cancer biology.
Borylation of aryldiazonium ions with N-heterocyclic carbene-palladium catalysts formed without added base.

A highly efficient catalytic borylation process with aryldiazonium ions was developed using a carbene−palladium catalyst formed in situ to give arylpinacolatoborane products. An X-ray structure for the N-heterocyclic carbene−palladium complex, used as the catalyst formed from bis(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)-4,5-dihydroimidazolium chloride, was obtained without added base.
Synthesis of 1,2′- and 1,3′-bipyrroles from 2- and 3-nitropyrroles

Abstract 1,2′- and 1,3′-Bipyrroles, which are attractive precursors for the synthesis of bipyrrole-based natural products, are synthesized in one-pot from 2- and 3-nitropyrroles by a sequential nitro group reduction—Paal–Knorr pyrrole synthesis.
Nonracemic synthesis of GK-GKRP disruptor AMG-3969.

A nonracemic synthesis of the glucokinase–glucokinase regulatory protein disruptor AMG-3969 (5) is reported. Key features of the synthetic approach are an asymmetric synthesis of the 2-alkynyl piperazine core via a base-promoted isomerization and a revised approach to the synthesis of the aminopyridinesulfonamide with an improved safety profile.
Bayesian and likelihood phylogenetic reconstructions of morphological traits are not discordant when taking uncertainty into consideration: A comment on Puttick et al.

Puttick et al. (2017 Proc. R. Soc. B 284, 20162290 (doi:10.1098/rspb.2016.2290)) performed a simulation study to compare accuracy among methods of inferring phylogeny from discrete morphological ch...
Cadmium-Associated Differential Methylation throughout the Placental Genome: Epigenome-Wide Association Study of Two U.S. Birth Cohorts

Background: Cadmium (Cd) is a ubiquitous environmental toxicant that can accumulate in the placenta during pregnancy, where it may impair placental function and affect fetal development. Objectives...
Synthesis of 1,2,3-triarylpyrroles from 1-benzylbenzotriazoles via [1 + 2 + 2] annulation

1,2,3-Triarylpyrroles 7 have been synthesized by sequential lithiation and alkylation of 1-benzylbenzo-triazoles 1 with 2-bromoacetaldehyde diethyl acetal (2) and N-benzylideneaniline (4), followed by treatment with formic acid in ethanol.
Beyond Type 1 Regulatory T Cells: Co-expression of LAG3 and CD49b in IL-10-Producing T Cell Lineages

Type 1 regulatory CD4+ T (Tr1) cells express high levels of the immunosuppressive cytokine IL-10 but not the master transcription factor Foxp3, and can suppress inflammation and promote immune tolerance. In order to identify and obtain viable Tr1 cells for research and clinical applications, co-expression of CD49b and LAG3 has been proposed as a unique surface signature for both human and mouse Tr1 cells. However, recent studies have revealed that this pattern of co-expression is dependent on the stimulating conditions and the differentiation stage of the CD4+ T cells. Here, using an IL-10GFP/Foxp3RFP dual reporter transgenic murine model, we demonstrate that co-expression of CD49b and LAG3 is not restricted to the Foxp3- Tr1 cells, but is also observed in Foxp3+ T regulatory (Treg) cells and CD8+ T cells that produce IL-10. Our data indicate that IL-10-producing Tr1 cells, Treg cells and CD8+ T cells are all capable of co-expressing LAG3 and CD49b in vitro following differentiation under IL-10-inducing conditions, and in vivo following pathogenic insult or infection in the pulmonary mucosa. Our findings urge caution in the use of LAG3/CD49b co-expression as sole markers to identify Tr1 cells, since it may mark IL-10-producing T cell lineages more broadly, including the Foxp3- Tr1 cells, Foxp3+ Treg cells, and CD8+ T cells.
A Facile and Efficient Synthesis of (±)-Tropan-2-one

Abstract The facile and efficient multigram synthesis of (±)-tropan-2-one 1 was achieved in six steps (65% overall yield) from N-methyl-3-oxopyridyl hydroiodide 3.
Ruthenium-Catalyzed Alkylative Lactonization and Carbocyclization

The cationic ruthenium complex [CpRu(NCCH3)3]PF6 promotes the coupling of monosubstituted allene carboxylic acids and simple α,β-unsaturated olefins to form five- and six-membered lactones. The mild reaction conditions allow for the presence of various functional groups.