cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
mTORC1-independent Raptor prevents hepatic steatosis by stabilizing PHLPP2

Mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1), defined by the presence of Raptor, is an evolutionarily conserved and nutrient-sensitive regulator of cellular growth and other metabolic processes. To date, all known functions of Raptor involve its scaffolding mTOR kinase with substrate. Here we report that mTORC1-independent ('free') Raptor negatively regulates hepatic Akt activity and lipogenesis. Free Raptor levels in liver decline with age and in obesity; restoration of free Raptor levels reduces liver triglyceride content, through reduced β-TrCP-mediated degradation of the Akt phosphatase, PHLPP2. Commensurately, forced PHLPP2 expression ameliorates hepatic steatosis in diet-induced obese mice. These data suggest that the balance of free and mTORC1-associated Raptor governs hepatic lipid accumulation, and uncover the potentially therapeutic role of PHLPP2 activators in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
Framing Social Movement Identity with Cyber-Artifacts: A Case Study of the International Falun Gong Movement

Framing a collective identity is an essential process in a social movement. The identity defines the orientation of public actions to take and establishes an informal interaction network for circulating important information and material resources. While domestic social movements emphasize the coherence of identity in alliance, global or cyber-activism is now flexible in its collective identity given the rise of the Internet. A campaign may include diverse social movement organizations (SMOs) with different social agendas. This flexible identity framing encourages personal involvement in direct action. On the other hand, it may damage solidarity within SMOs and make campaigns difficult to control. To assess the sustainability of an SMO, it is important to understand its collective identity and the social codes embedded within its associated cyber-societies and cyber-artifacts. In this study, we took a cyber-archeology approach and used the international Falun Gong (FLG) movement as a case study to investigate this identity-framing issue. We employed social network analysis and Writeprint to analyze FLG’s cyber-artifacts from the perspectives of links, web content, and forum content. In the link analysis, FLG’s websites linked closely to Chinese democracy and human rights SMOs, reflecting FLG’s historical conflicts with the Chinese government after the official ban in 1999. In the web content analysis, we used Writeprint to analyze the writings of Hongzhi Li and of his editors, and found that Hongzhi Li’s writings center around the ideological teaching of Falun Dafa while the editors post specific programs to realize Li’s teaching. In the forum content analysis, FLG comprehensively organizes several different concepts on a continuum: from FLG ideology to life philosophy and mysterious phenomena, and from mysterious phenomena to anti-Chinese Communist Party and persecution by conceptualizing the Chinese government as the Evil. By deploying those cyber-artifacts, FLG seamlessly connects different ideologies and establishes its identity as a Qi-Gong, religious, and activist group.
Separating Traveltimes and Amplitudes in Waveform Inversion

One difficulty in full waveform inversion is the requirement for an accurate initial model, which if not satisfied, can result in cycle skipping and convergence to local minima. Similarly, in least-squares migration, errors in the background model can lead to an incoherent, defocused image. These difficulties can be attributed in part to the fact that the data residual, the difference between simulated and observed data, contains error in both the smooth background model that affects traveltimes, as well as the rough reflectivity model that affects amplitudes. These two types of error are not treated equally in either full waveform inversion or in least-squares migration. To address this issue, we use an approximation of the data residual to separate traveltime and amplitude errors, and we show that the use of this approximation results in more accurate inversions for velocity and better focused migration images.
Carcinoma associated with regional enteritis. Report of 2 cases.

Despite an increasing incidence of carcinoma associated with ulcerative colitis, carcinoma accompanying regional enteritis of the small intestine and/or colon is rare. We have found that only 17 cases of carcinoma of the small intestine associated with regional enteritis have been reported previously; we have reported 2 cases seen at the Cleveland Clinic. Each patient had a relatively long history of regional enteritis with symptoms referable to intermittent, incomplete obstruction of the small intestine. Both patients underwent operation because of increasing intestinal obstruction. The rarity of carcinomas of the small intestine makes it appear that the association is more than simple coincidence.
Chaotic motion of a Kelvin type gyrostat in a circular orbit

The present paper deals with the following question: How does the inclusion of a symmetrical rotor affect the stability of an orbiting rigid axisymmetric body? To answer this question, the full nonlinear equations of motion of a rigid gyrostat in a gravitational field are obtained in a Hamiltonian formalism. Various dynamic behaviors of the spinning gyrostat satellite, e.g. periodic, quasiperiodic, and chaotic, are studied via the Poincare map technique. The results show that some beneficial effects can be produced easily, e.g. by increasing the rotor speed, chaotic motion of the satellite will become regular.
Realistically Fake: Self-Reflexive Consciousness, Ironic (Dis)Engagement with Hybrid Reality Television, and their Impact on Consumption

Purpose – Hybrid reality television, a burgeoning subgenre spawning from the reality television genre, distinguishes itself from its parent genre through dramatizations that have been described as presenting a “quasi-reality” that is disorientating for the viewer (Caramanica, 2010). In addition to blurring the lines between fact and fiction, hybrid reality programs blur the lines between product placement and entertainment as products are seamlessly blended into the depicted lifestyles. This research explores how consumers negotiate hybrid reality television programs and how this process transpires in viewers' reactions to the consumption portrayals within the programs. Methodology/approach – Insights were sought from qualitative in-depth interviews with avid viewers of an archetype of the hybrid reality subgenre, the MTV program The Hills. Findings – The findings reveal varying degrees of self-reflexive consciousness, reflecting viewers' critical awareness of the rhetoric of the program, the artifices of the hybrid reality genre, and their role as an audience. Self-reflexive consciousness facilitates a critical response toward the text in which viewers recognize the artifices of the genre and thus regard the program as “real” and “not real” and simultaneously worth and worthless viewing at the same time, in a textual strategy, we refer to as ironic (dis)engagement. Originality/value of the chapter – On the basis of this body of data, a typology of viewer responses to hybrid reality programs emerges with corresponding consumption strategies as viewers negotiate the consumption portrayals within The Hills. These findings suggest that viewers embrace product placement within the subgenre and that the program has pioneered and opened up new horizons for lifestyle branding practices within television programming.
Effects of Interphase Modification and Biaxial Orientation on Dielectric Properties of Poly(ethylene terephthalate)/Poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) Multilayer Films

Recently, poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF)-based multilayer films have demonstrated enhanced dielectric properties, combining high energy density and high dielectric breakdown strength from the component polymers. In this work, further enhanced dielectric properties were achieved through interface/interphase modulation and biaxial orientation for the poly(ethylene terephthalate)/poly(methyl methacrylate)/poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) [PET/PMMA/P(VDF-HFP)] three-component multilayer films. Because PMMA is miscible with P(VDF-HFP) and compatible with PET, the interfacial adhesion between PET and P(VDF-HFP) layers should be improved. Biaxial stretching of the as-extruded multilayer films induced formation of highly oriented fibrillar crystals in both P(VDF-HFP) and PET, resulting in improved dielectric properties with respect to the unstretched films. First, the parallel orientation of PVDF crystals reduced the dielectric loss from the αc relaxation in α crystals. Second, biaxial stretchin...
Vascular injury by endotoxin: changes in macromolecular transport parameters in rat aortas in vivo

Vascular injury can lead to enhanced macromolecular transport into the arterial wall. We previously demonstrated that lipopolysaccharide (LPS) -induced injury to rat aorta in vivo caused increases in intimal and medial horseradish peroxidase (HRP) accumulation. In the present study, we quantitatively interpret these LPS-induced changes in HRP transport parameters. The parameters of interest are the permeability (PL) of the luminal blood-tissue boundary (combination of endothelium and internal elastic lamina, IEL), the effective diffusivity (D), and the convective velocity (V) across the media. The parameter values that yield the best fit of the model to the data provide a basis for understanding the tissue changes. The time of peak transmural (medial) accumulation (24 h after LPS injection) correlated with increases in PL (peak, 12-48 h) and preceded the maximum increase in V (peak, 36 h). The monotonic increase in the intimal accumulation during the 5 days after the injury has a time course distinct from the transient increases in PL and from the changes in D, which implies that endothelial permeability has only limited influence on transport beyond the intima. These data implicate the IEL as a barrier to macromolecular transport in the normal aorta and demonstrate that the endothelium and IEL work in concert to determine intimal macromolecular accumulation.
The Utility of SPECT-CT in Differentiated Thyroid Cancer

Single-photon emission computerized tomography (SPECT) in combination with computerized tomography (CT) allows integration of functional and anatomic information, and SPECT-CT is playing an increasingly important role in imaging of differentiated thyroid cancer. This chapter reviews the relevant literature supporting the utility of radioiodine SPECT-CT and its impact on management of patients with differentiated thyroid cancer. Selected images demonstrating the utility of SPECT-CT are presented.
Does Keeping Adolescent Girls in School Protect Against Sexual Violence? Quasi-Experimental Evidence From East and Southern Africa

Abstract Purpose We examine the relationship between educational attainment in adolescence on young women's lifetime experience of sexual violence in Malawi and Uganda. Methods Exposure to Universal Primary Education policies in the mid-1990s serves as a natural experiment to estimate the causal effect of schooling on women's subsequent experience of sexual violence using an instrumented regression discontinuity design and Demographic and Health Survey data. Results We find a one-year increase in grade attainment leads to a nine-percentage point reduction ( p Conclusions Keeping girls in school results in a number of benefits for young women; however, protects against lifetime experience of sexual violence only in Uganda. It is possible that overall higher grade attainment, particularly at secondary school levels is driving this effect in Uganda. More research on this relationship is needed, as well as on effective interventions, particularly those which can be taken to scale related to enhancing the quality and quantity of education.
Designing Management Curriculum for Workplace Readiness: Developing Students’ Soft Skills:

The increased complexity of today’s work environment has made the need for soft skills, such as teamwork, communication, leadership, and problem solving, more salient than ever. Employers hire for ...
Vasopressors in obstetrics. II. Fetal hazards of methoxamine administration during obstetric spinal anesthesia.

Abstract Maternal and fetal cardiovascular and acid-base changes resulting from spinal hypotension and methoxamine administration were observed in 7 pregnant ewes near term. Spinal hypotension resulted in fetal signs of placental hypoperfusion. Administration of methoxamine corrected hypotension while the fetal condition further deteriorated with increasing hypoxia, hypercarbia, and metabolic acidosis.
Nocturnal hypoglycemic alarm based on near-infrared spectroscopy: In vitro simulation studies

Abstract An alarm algorithm for detecting episodes of nocturnal hypoglycemia is demonstrated in simulation studies that incorporate the use of a tissue phantom. Based on transmission spectra collected in the near-infrared combination region of 4000–5000 cm −1 , pattern recognition methods are used to classify spectra into alarm and non-alarm data classes on the basis of whether or not they signify a glucose excursion below a user-defined hypoglycemic alarm threshold. A reference spectrum and corresponding glucose concentration are acquired at the start of the monitoring period, and absorbance values of subsequent spectra are computed relative to this reference. The resulting differential spectra reflect differential glucose concentrations that correspond to the differences in concentration between each spectrum and the reference. Given the alarm threshold, a database of calibration differential spectra are partitioned into those above and below the threshold. Piecewise linear discriminant analysis is then used to compute a classification model that can be applied to differential spectra collected during the monitoring period in order to identify spectra that signal glucose concentrations in the hypoglycemic range. This alarm algorithm is demonstrated in two multiple-day dynamic studies that incorporate a tissue phantom composed of films of keratin and collagen that approximate the thicknesses of the corresponding proteins found in human tissue.
Measuring young children’s word knowledge: A conceptual review:

The importance of early vocabulary development to later reading comprehension has been well-established. However, there have been a number of criticisms that the assessments typically used to measu...
Relationship Between Energy Drink Consumption and Daily Hassles Among College Students

Background: College students report high levels of stress, which may be exacerbated by the psychoactive ingredients in energy drinks. Little is understood about the relationship between daily hassl...
Disparities in Nursing Home Use and Quality Among African American, Hispanic, and White Medicare Residents With Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias

Objective: This article examines differences in nursing home use and quality among Medicare beneficiaries, in both Medicare Advantage and fee-for-service, newly admitted to nursing homes with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD). Method: Retrospective, national, population-based study of Medicare residents newly admitted to nursing homes with ADRD by race and ethnic group. Our analytic sample included 1,302,099 nursing home residents—268,181 with a diagnosis of ADRD—in 13,532 nursing homes from 2014. Results: We found that a larger share of Hispanic Medicare residents that are admitted to nursing homes have ADRD compared with African American and White beneficiaries. Both Hispanics and African Americans with ADRD received care in segregated nursing homes with fewer resources and lower quality of care compared with White residents. Discussion: These results have implications for targeted efforts to achieve health care equity and quality improvement efforts among nursing homes that serve minorit...
Pediatric refractory and super-refractory status epilepticus.

Abstract Purpose To summarize the available evidence related to pediatric refractory status epilepticus (RSE) and super-refractory status epilepticus (SRSE), with emphasis on epidemiology, etiologies, therapeutic approaches, and clinical outcomes. Methods Narrative review of the medical literature using MEDLINE database. Results RSE is defined as status epilepticus (SE) that fails to respond to adequately used first- and second-line antiepileptic drugs. SRSE occurs when SE persist for 24 h or more after administration of anesthesia, or recurs after its withdrawal. RSE and SRSE represent complex neurological emergencies associated with long-term neurological dysfunction and high mortality. Challenges in management arise as the underlying etiology is not always promptly recognized and therapeutic options become limited with prolonged seizures. Treatment decisions mainly rely on case series or experts’ opinions. The comparative effectiveness of different treatment strategies has not been evaluated in large prospective series or randomized clinical trials. Continuous infusion of anesthetic agents is the most common treatment for RSE and SRSE, although many questions on optimal dosing and rate of administration remain unanswered. The use of non-pharmacological therapies is documented in case series or reports with low level of evidence. In addition to neurological complications resulting from prolonged seizures, children with RSE/SRSE often develop systemic complications associated with polypharmacy and prolonged hospital stay. Conclusion RSE and SRSE are neurological emergencies with limited therapeutic options. Multi-national collaborative efforts are desirable to evaluate the safety and efficacy of current RSE/SRSE therapies, and potentially impact patients’ outcomes.
Of clefts, commissures, and things

A full understanding of the morphology of atrioventricular septal defects ("endocardial cushion defects," "atrioventricular canal malformations") demands knowledge of the exact nature of three specific breaches in the skirt of valve leaflet tissue guarding the atrioventricular junction. One of these is the space between the left ventricular components of the two leaflets that are enclosed in both the right and left ventricles (the bridging leaflets). Traditionally described as a cleft, it has been suggested more recently that this gap functions as a commissure. The second space is that which is found anteriorly and superiorly in the so-called Rastelli type A malformation. This is also called a cleft in a common anterior leaflet, but it has been suggested that it too is a commissure. The final breach is that produced by the surgeon when he divides the free-floating superior bridging leaflet if repairing the so-called Rastelli type C malformation with a one-patch technique. It is generally agreed that this breach be considered a division. To adjudicate the nature of the other breaches, it is necessary to compare them with commissures in atrioventricular and arterial valves and with the isolated cleft that exists in the aortic leaflet of a normal mitral valve. These considerations show that the gap between the left ventricular components of the bridging leaflets functions as a commissure even though it is not supported by a papillary muscle. This would not be expected, since the commissural attachments of the leaflets are in the left and right ventricle, respectively. The gap seen anteriorly in the Rastelli type A malformation is also a commissure, being supported in typical fashion by the medial papillary muscle of the right ventricle.
Electromagnetic properties of 181 Ir: evidence of β-stretching

We have calculated the B(Ml)/B(E2) ratios in {sup 18l}Ir within a shape-fixed particle + rotor model, in order to investigate how sensitive these may be to the nuclear shapes under consideration, and whether or not there is evidence of shape coexistence in the electromagnetic data alone. The model calculations employed the same Woods-Saxon potential that has been used previously for TRS and bandhead calculations and all parameters have been taken at their standard values, without any adjustments. To the extent possible with present models, these calculations should represent predictions for the B(M1)/B(E2) ratios at the deformations expected from the TRS and bandhead calculations. A comparison with the {sup 181}Ir data is stimulated by the fact that this is the lightest-mass Ir nucleus for which the spins and parities am firmly established experimentally; we find that the electromagnetic transition rates in this nucleus are well reproduced under the assumption of a single, fixed shape.
Parallel Grid-Based Colocation Mining Algorithms on GPUs for Big Spatial Event Data

Colocation patterns refer to subsets of spatial features whose instances are frequently located together. Mining colocation patterns is important in many applications such as identifying relationships between diseases and environmental factors, but is computationally challenging due to the large number of instances and candidate patterns. Existing algorithms are mostly sequential, and thus can be insufficient for big spatial event data. Recently, parallel colocation mining algorithms have been developed based on the Map-reduce framework, which is economically expensive. Another work proposed a GPU algorithm based on iCPI tree, but assumes that the number of neighbors for each instance is within a small constant, and thus cannot be used when instances are dense and unevenly distributed. To address these limitations, we recently proposed grid-based GPU colocation mining algorithms that include a novel cell-aggregate-based upper bound filter, and two refinement algorithms. In this paper, we provide theoretical analysis of running time. Furthermore using GPU profiling, we identify our recent GPU implementation, GPU-grid-join, as a memory bound problem and to address its bottlenecks, we proposes GPU-grid-join+, an optimized GPU algorithm. Our experimental results on real world data shows that GPU-grid-join+ achieves 4 to 12-fold speedup over GPU-grid-join both running on Nvidia P100 GPU as well as 56 to 126-fold speedup over OpenMP implementation over Intel(R) Xeon(R) CPU with 12 cores. Also for synthetic data, the speedup is in ranges 3 to 7-fold and 9 to 42-fold respectively.
CHAPTER 327 – Nonclassical Pathways of Protein Export

One of the earliest studies of nonclassical protein release was devoted to secretory transglutaminase (TO), an enzyme that cross-links extracellular polypeptides and is released into the extracellular space by cells of the prostate. The majority of proteins that are destined to be secreted are usually translated with an NH2-terminal cleavable signal peptide sequence. This structure is rich in hydrophobic amino acid residues that enable the polypeptide to dock and insert into the lumen of the endoplasmic reticulum for its further transport to the Golgi apparatus and eventual secretion as an intravesicular polypeptide. However, there are groups of extracellular proteins that neither display a signal peptide sequence in their primary structure nor utilize the classical endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-Golgi pathway for their release. This chapter focuses on the mechanisms of stress-induced release of two signaling proteins belonging to this group, fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF-1) and interleukin 1ɑ (IL-lɑ). However, before discussing the export of these polypeptides, the literature concerning the nonclassical release of other signal peptide-less proteins is briefly reviewed.
Facile single-molecule pull-down assay for analysis of endogenous proteins

The single-molecule pull-down (SiMPull) assay analyzes molecular complexes in physiological conditions from cell or tissue lysates. Currently the approach requires a lengthy sample preparation process, which has largely prevented the widespread adoption of this technique in bioanalysis. Here, we present a simplified SiMPull assay based upon dichlorodimethylsilane-Tween-20 passivation and F(ab) fragment labeling. Our passivation is a much shorter process than the standard polyethylene glycol passivation used in most single-molecule studies. The use of F(ab) fragments for indirect fluorescent labeling rather than divalent F(ab')2 or whole IgG antibodies allows for the pre-incubation of the detection antibodies, reducing the sample preparation time for single-molecule immunoprecipitation samples. We examine the applicability of our approach to recombinant proteins and endogenous proteins from mammalian cell lysates.
Bias in Physical Educators’ Grading Practices With ELA Literacy

As accountability initiatives in public education such as the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) begin to gain traction, it is apparent that physical educators must integrate English Language Arts (ELA) literacy tasks into their daily instruction. This study tested whether physical education (PE) teachers have less experience and exhibit bias when grading ELA literacy tasks, compared to non-PE teachers. Participants from this study included 201 teachers from 77 schools in a local region of New York State. Results revealed that approximately 90% of PE teachers reported having little to no experience with grading ELA literacy assignments. In addition, physical educators were significantly more critical than their non-PE counterparts; ELA assignments were judged as being lower quality, being less neat, having poorer sentence structure, and showing less effort. The lack of consistency between PE teachers and non-PE teachers raises questions about validity and whether there is a need for more professional training should the CCSS mandate continue in PE. Subscribe to TPE
Improved control structure for extractive divided-wall column with vapor recompression

Abstract A novel process for ethanol dehydration using extractive distillation in a modified divided-wall column has been proposed and its control studied. A single vessel is used to perform the tasks of pre-concentrating the dilute feed, producing high-purity water and ethanol products and recovering the ethylene glycol solvent. Feed is introduced on one side of the wall that receives no liquid from the rectifying section. Water is removed from bottom of this side that has an intermediate reboiler, which is heated by compressed overhead vapor. Ethanol is the distillate product and solvent comes out the bottom of the column to be fed near the top of the column. A complex control structure has been proposed that appears to lack robustness since it can only handle slow ramp disturbances. This paper demonstrates that a more simple control structure can provide effective regulatory control for large step changes in throughput and feed composition.
A survey of some plant waxes of southern arizona

The yield and characteristics of the waxes from 42 species of plants native to southern Arizona were determined. Although a few have high yields of wax when expressed on the basis of amount of wax per unit area of plant surface, the majority of species contains only a small amount of wax. It was concluded that the often quoted statement, “plants indigenous to arid and hot regions have waxy cuticles,” is untenable and should be modified to read “... waxlike cuticles.” Some taxonomic relationships and some effects of sex on plant waxes were discussed.
IM ketorolac vs diclofenac potassium powder for oral solution for the acute treatment of severe migraine: a randomized controlled trial.

Diclofenac potassium for oral solution (CAMBIA®) may be an alternative for patients who would otherwise need to be seen in a healthcare setting for parenteral ketorolac. CAMBIA® is FDA-approved for the abortive treatment of migraine and has demonstrated superiority over generic diclofenac tablets with rapid migraine reduction. This study assessed for efficacy of CAMBIA® as an alternative outpatient treatment for refractory migraine to parenteral ketorolac. We performed an exploratory, single-center, double-blind, double-dummy randomized controlled trial comparing CAMBIA® with IM ketorolac. Participants were randomized to receive either ketorolac 60 mg IM with dummy oral solution or CAMBIA® 50 mg, together with IM injection of normal saline. The primary endpoint was headache severity, self-rated on a scale 0–3. Secondary endpoints included self-rated nausea, disability, and photo- or phonophobia, as well as presence of side effects and need for additional rescue therapy. A total of 23 patients were enrolled. Ten patients received the study drug and 13 patients received IM ketorolac as the control. There were no major differences observed with respect to the primary outcome of mean headache severity at successive time points over a 24-h follow-up period. No major differences were found with respect to average disability, nausea, and photo- or phonophobia ratings. No major adverse events were reported. In treatment of refractory migraine headache, CAMBIA® may provide similar benefits as IM ketorolac without increasing the risk of treatment failure, major bleeding, or cardiovascular events. However, larger studies are needed to confirm this finding. Clinicaltrials.gov : NCT # 02664116, Titled “IM Ketorolac vs Diclofenac Potassium Powder for Oral Solution (CAMBIA®) for the Acute Treatment of Severe Migraine”. Registered 26 January 2016, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02664116?term=02664116&rank=1
OH-Initiated Reactions of para-Coumaryl Alcohol Relevant to the Lignin Pyrolysis. Part III. Kinetics of H-Abstraction by H, OH, and CH3 Radicals

Lignin, is a most complex component of biomass, and development of a detailed chemical-kinetic model for biomass pyrolysis mainly relies on the understanding of the lignin decomposition kinetics. p...
Big data training data for artificial intelligence-based Li-ion diagnosis and prognosis

Abstract Accurate lithium battery diagnosis and prognosis are critical to increase penetration of electric vehicles and grid-tied storage systems. They are both complex due to the intricate, nonlinear, and path-dependent nature of battery degradation. Data-driven models are anticipated to play a significant role in the behavioral prediction of dynamical systems such as batteries. However, they are often limited by the amount of training data available. In this work, we generated the first big data comprehensive synthetic datasets to train diagnosis and prognosis algorithms. The proof-of-concept datasets are over three orders of magnitude larger than what is currently available in the literature. With benchmark datasets, results from different studies could be easily equated, and the performance of different algorithms can be compared, enhanced, and analyzed extensively. This will expend critical capabilities of current AI algorithms, tools, and techniques to predict scientific data.
Assessment of Seismic Demand Due to Torsional Ground Motions on Symmetric Skew Bridges

Potential effects of torsional components of ground motions (TGM) on the overall seismic response of symmetric skew highway bridges have been investigated. Analyses were conducted for various skew ...
A Meta-Analysis of Group-Based Pain Management Programs: Overall Effect on Quality of Life and Other Chronic Pain Outcome Measures, with an Exploration into Moderator Variables that Influence the Efficacy of Such Interventions

OBJECTIVES Group-based pain management programs (GPMPs) have been found to significantly improve quality of life and other pain outcome measures in patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain. The aims of this meta-analysis were to reevaluate the overall effect of GPMPs on various pain outcomes for individuals experiencing chronic musculoskeletal conditions and to explore moderator variables that potentially contribute to the overall efficacy of GPMPs. METHODS Using the R package called metaphor and RevMan, we estimated the overall effectiveness of GPMPs on various pain outcome measures. The differential effectiveness of GPMPs was examined by conducting a mixed-effects meta-analytic model using various study-level characteristics. Moderator analyses included three content moderator variables and seven format moderator variables. Receiver operating characteristic curves investigated optimal points in some of the moderator variable analysis results. RESULTS Significant overall main effects of GPMPs were found on all the explored outcome measures in this study (P < 0.05). In moderator analyses, it was found that the structure of GPMPs, rather than the content, significantly improved outcomes (P < 0.05). Receiver operating characteristic curve analyses identified the optimal number of GPMP sessions and number of participants per group. DISCUSSION AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE GPMPs have a statistically significant overall effect on all explored pain outcome measures. The investigation into content and structural moderators suggests that certain GPMP design factors have a greater effect on pain outcomes than do content factors. Therefore, GPMP structural designs appear to be important in reducing pain and improving quality of life for patients with chronic pain and warrant further investigation.
Tutorial: best practices and considerations for mass-spectrometry-based protein biomarker discovery and validation.

Mass-spectrometry-based proteomic analysis is a powerful approach for discovering new disease biomarkers. However, certain critical steps of study design such as cohort selection, evaluation of statistical power, sample blinding and randomization, and sample/data quality control are often neglected or underappreciated during experimental design and execution. This tutorial discusses important steps for designing and implementing a liquid-chromatography–mass-spectrometry-based biomarker discovery study. We describe the rationale, considerations and possible failures in each step of such studies, including experimental design, sample collection and processing, and data collection. We also provide guidance for major steps of data processing and final statistical analysis for meaningful biological interpretations along with highlights of several successful biomarker studies. The provided guidelines from study design to implementation to data interpretation serve as a reference for improving rigor and reproducibility of biomarker development studies. Mass-spectrometry-based proteomics is a powerful approach for discovering disease biomarkers. This tutorial provides advice on the study design, including cohort selection, evaluating statistical power, blinding and randomization, and quality control.
El surgimiento, el fin y la sustitución del experimento de reglamentación laboral transnacional en Bangladesh

Cinco anos despues del derrumbe del Rana Plaza en 2013 -en el que murieron 1.133 trabajadores-, el Acuerdo sobre Incendios y Seguridad de los Edificios en Bangladesh, programa multipartito para la reglamentacion laboral de la industria de la confeccion, fue suspendido por la Corte Superior del pais. El Acuerdo, considerado un prometedor ejemplo de regulacion transnacional, nunca se institucionalizo localmente. De su investigacion archivistica y etnografica la autora deduce que lo que condujo a su terminacion y sustitucion fue la falta de apoyo generalizado de los empleadores y trabajadores locales, asi como del Gobierno, a pesar de que mejoro las condiciones de seguridad en las fabricas.
Serum Level of Polyubiquitinated PTEN and Loss of Kidney Function in American Indians With Type 2 Diabetes

Abstract Rationale & Objective Fibrosis is a major driver of chronic kidney disease and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) may contribute to its development. A polyubiquitinated form of phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN K27polyub) promotes EMT in vitro. Thus, it is a potentially useful biomarker of progressive kidney fibrosis and may predict loss of kidney function. Study Design Observational cohort study. Setting & Participants Southwest USA. American Indians (154 women, 80 men) with or at high risk for diabetic kidney disease (DKD). Predictors Serum PTEN K27polyub. Outcomes ≥40% loss of glomerular filtration rate (GFR) or onset of kidney failure. Kidney structural measures in a sub-set of study participants who underwent research kidney biopsies (n=77). Analytical approach Cox proportional hazards models adjusted for age, sex, diabetes duration, HbA1c, blood pressure, use of renin angiotensin system (RAS) blockers, measured GFR and albuminuria. Spearman correlations for associations with structural measures. Results At baseline, mean age was 42.8 ± 10.5 (SD) years, diabetes duration 11.5 ± 7.1years, mean arterial pressure 90.5 ± 9.5 mmHg, HbA1c 9.3 ± 2.4%, GFR 152 ± 45 ml/min and median albumin:creatinine ratio 38 mg/g (interquartile range 14-215). 64 (27.4%) participants were using RAS blockers. Higher PTENK27polyUb was associated with greater risk of ≥40% loss of GFR during a median follow-up of 6.3 years (Hazard ratio [HR] for the 4th vs. 1st quartile = 3.95, 95% CI 2.23-6.98, p Limitations Small study in single population. Conclusion Higher serum PTENK27polyUb is associated with increased risk for GFR decline and kidney failure in American Indians with type 2 diabetes.
Tangled: A Conventional Processor Integrating A Quantum-Inspired Coprocessor

Quantum computers use quantum physics phenomena to create specialized hardware that can efficiently execute algorithms operating on entangled superposed data. That hardware must be attached to and controlled by a conventional host computer. However, it can be argued that the main benefit thus far has been from reformulating problems to make use of entangled superpositions rather than from use of exotic physics mechanisms to perform the computation – such reformulations often have produced more efficient algorithms for conventional computers. Parallel bit pattern computing does not simulate quantum computing, but provides a way to use non-quantum, bit-level, massively-parallel, SIMD hardware to efficiently execute a broad class of algorithms leveraging superposition and entanglement. Just as quantum hardware needs a conventional host, so to does parallel bit pattern hardware. Thus, the current work presents Tangled: a simple proof-of-concept conventional processor design incorporating a tightly-coupled interface to an integrated parallel bit pattern co-processor (Qat). The feasibility of this type of interface between conventional and quantum-inspired computation was investigated by construction of an instruction set, building complete Verilog designs for pipelined implementations, and by observing the effectiveness of the interface in executing simple quantum-inspired algorithms involving operations on entangled, superposed, values.
Analyzing Second Screen Based Social Soundtrack of TV Viewers from Diverse Cultural Settings

The presence of social networks and computing device in form of secondary screens used in conjunction with television plays a significant role in the shift from traditional television to social television (sTV). In this research, we explore the overall secondary screen usage in terms of four conversation patterns each over different cultural social soundtrack related to different TV shows. We process more than 469,000 tweets from second screens for four popular TV shows from four different countries. The ANOVA test results identify significant differences in overall usage of conversational patterns among viewers for TV broadcast across diverse cultures using second screens.
Gallium nitride optoelectronic substrates for biological sensing

Features of III-nitride materials that suggest that they can be applied in integrating bio-photonic and bio-electronic devices are enumerated in the paper.
In God’s House

By naming the ways silence and taboo structure the documentary, In God’s House, the article traces the ways personal narratives are deployed as: (1) a cultural practice to consolidate an “Asian” ethnicity; and as (2) a pedagogical strategy to address the silence of sexual discourse—particularly around LGBTQ issues—in Asian American contexts. As cultural practices, silence and taboo undergird the framework of community—protecting individual honor, securing public face and fortifying webs of relationships that sustain individual and social flourishing. More than a facade for the “inscrutable Asian,” silence illuminates a practice of communal relationality that reconfigures “American” significations of community, sexuality, race and identity.
Analyzing student gaming with bayesian networks

This paper examines the problem of modeling when students are engaged in “gaming the system.” We propose and partially validate an approach that uses a hidden Markov model, as is used in knowledge tracing, to estimate whether the student is gaming on the basis of observable actions By doing so, we provide a common modeling approach that is applicable to gaming, or other constructs such as off task behavior We find that our initial approach gave promising results, with parameter estimates that are plausible, and also exposed some weaknesses in our initial attempt Specifically, that relying solely on response time is probably insufficient to construct a strong model of gaming.
Determination of protease cleavage site motifs using mixture-based oriented peptide libraries

The number of known proteases is increasing at a tremendous rate as a consequence of genome sequencing projects. Although one can guess at the functions of these novel enzymes by considering sequence homology to known proteases, there is a need for new tools to rapidly provide functional information on large numbers of proteins. We describe a method for determining the cleavage site specificity of proteolytic enzymes that involves pooled sequencing of peptide library mixtures. The method was used to determine cleavage site motifs for six enzymes in the matrix metalloprotease (MMP) family. The results were validated by comparison with previous literature and by analyzing the cleavage of individually synthesized peptide substrates. The library data led us to identify the proteoglycan neurocan as a novel MMP-2 substrate. Our results indicate that a small set of libraries can be used to quickly profile an expanding protease family, providing information applicable to the design of inhibitors and to the identification of protein substrates.
An Adaptive Recommendation System without Explicit Acquisition of User Relevance Feedback

Recommendation systems are widely adopted in e-commerce businesses for helping customers locate products they would like to purchase. In an earlier work, we introduced a recommendation system, termed Yoda, which employs a hybrid approach that combines collaborative filtering (CF) and content-based querying to achieve higher accuracy for large-scale Web-based applications. To reduce the complexity of the hybrid approach, Yoda is structured as a tunable model that is trained off-line and employed for real-time recommendation on-line. The on-line process benefits from an optimized aggregation function with low complexity that allows the real-time aggregation based on confidence values of an active user to pre-defined sets of recommendations. In this paper, we extend Yoda to include more recommendation sets. The recommendation sets can be obtained from different sources, such as human experts, web navigation patterns, and clusters of user evaluations. Moreover, the extended Yoda can learn the confidence values automatically by utilizing implicit users' relevance feedback through web navigations using genetic algorithms (GA). Our end-to-end experiments show while Yoda's complexity is low and remains constant as the number of users and/or items grow, its accuracy surpasses that of the basic nearest-neighbor method by a wide margin (in most cases more than 100%). The experimental results also indicate that the retrieval accuracy is significantly increased by using the GA-based learning mechanism.
Accurate Finite Difference Algorithms

Clear examples of the difficulties associated with applying CFD techniques to apparently simple problems are provided by computational aeroacoustics and computational electromagnetics. These applications require accurate wave propagation over long distances for a wide range of frequencies, placing a severe demand on numerical algorithms, and raising issues related to efficiency, accuracy, compatible space and time treatments, high frequency data, propagation along characteristic surfaces, isotropy, stable and accurate artificial boundary treatments, and nonrestrictive stability bounds. This paper briefly presents two methods for the development of finite difference algorithms which are intended to address these issues. High order single step explicit algorithms are possible, and examples with up to eleventh order accuracy will be shown. High resolution algorithms in the sense of (Lele, 1992) are also possible, with amplification factor and relative phase change per time step which are virtually 1 for normal mode frequencies in [0, π] and CFL numbers in [0, 1]. If our most accurate algorithm is used to propagate an initial periodic sine wave, then after five periods with four grid points per wavelength, the maximum error is O[10-6], and after five hundred thousand periods with eight grid points per wavelength, the maximum error is O[10-4]. High order algorithms are relatively more efficient (Kreiss & Oliger, 1972), and their relative efficiency tends to increase as the error bound decreases, as the simulation time increases, and as the spatial dimension increases.
The T Cell Receptor β Locus of the Channel Catfish, Ictalurus punctatus, Reveals Unique Features

Previously, a series of clonal alloantigen-dependent T cell lines established from the channel catfish revealed distinctly different TCRβ rearrangements. Here, a follow-up study of the junctional diversity of these TCR gene rearrangements focuses on characterization of the genomic organization of the TCRB locus. Surprisingly, a total of 29 JB genes and two substantially different CB genes were identified downstream of a single DB gene. This is in contrast to the situation in mammals, where two clusters of a DB gene, six or seven JB genes, and a CB gene are found in tandem. The catfish CB genes are ∼36% identical at the amino acid level. All 29 catfish JB gene segments appear functional. Thirteen were used in the 19 cDNAs analyzed, of these eight were used by the 11 catfish clonal alloantigen-dependent T cell lines. As might be expected, CDR3 diversity is enhanced by N-nucleotide additions as well as nucleotide deletions at the V-D and D-J junctions. Taken together, compared with that in mammals, genomic sequencing of the catfish TCR DB-JB-CB region reveals a unique locus containing a greater number of JB genes and two distinct CB genes.
Theory of the Blue Phases of Chiral Nematic Liquid Crystals

In the condensed matter physics community there has been much recent interest in materials with competing interactions. Because these materials are frustrated (the different terms in the free energy demand incompatible configurations of molecules), these materials form complicated, intricate crystalline phases as compromise structures; also, they often form amorphous, glassy states. Chiral nematic liquid crystals are frustrated, and form up to three blue phases in a small temperature range between the isotropic “melted” phase and the helical phase [1] two exotic crystalline phases and an amorphous phase. The lattice constant in these phases is the wavelength of blue light (hence their brilliant blue colors); because it is large compared to the molecular lengths, the material can be described within a continuum elastic theory. The elastic theory is frustrated, and the ground states contain networks of defect lines to relieve the frustration [2]. The frustration is geometrically described as a curvature in the natural form of parallel transport [3]; indeed, chiral nematics are not frustrated in the unphysical space formed by the surface of a sphere of appropriate radius in four dimensions [4]. (The defect lines are the cuts needed to flatten this sphere.) A total divergence term in the free energy plays a crucial role in keeping the energy of the defect lines finite in the continuum limit, and in stabilizing the blue phases.