cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Market Funds and Trust-Investment Law

investment funds that have abandoned the traditional attempt to "beat the market" by picking and choosing among securities-buying stocks or bonds that they believe to be undervalued and selling those they believe to be overvalued. Instead, they create and hold essentially unchanged a portfolio of securities that is designed to approximate some index of market performance such as the Standard & Poor's 500. The S&P 500 is a hypothetical portfolio consisting of 500 major nonfinancial companies on the New York Stock Exchange weighted by the market value of each company's total outstanding shares. Batterymarch Financial Management Corporation in its Market Portfolio holds a 250-stock selection from the S&P 500 designed to track the performance of the S&P 500 very closely. Two major banks, American National Bank and Trust Company of Chicago and Wells Fargo Bank, have created market funds in their trust departments. And several large pension funds, including those of several Bell Telephone Companies and of Exxon, have recently placed a portion of their assets in such funds. The rise of the market fund reflects growing dissatisfaction with the performance of conventional investment funds, which sacrifice diversification and incur heavy research and transaction costs in an apparently
Shared Resource Monitoring and Throughput Optimization in Cloud-Computing Datacenters

Many data centers employ server consolidation to maximize the efficiency of platform resource usage. As a result, multiple virtual machines (VMs) simultaneously run on each data center platform. Contention for shared resources between these virtual machines has an undesirable and non-deterministic impact on their performance behavior in such platforms. This paper proposes the use of shared resource monitoring to (a) understand the resource usage of each virtual machine on each platform, (b) collect resource usage and performance across different platforms to correlate implications of usage to performance, and (c) migrate VMs that are resource-constrained to improve overall data center throughput and improve Quality of Service (QoS). We focus our efforts on monitoring and addressing shared cache contention and propose a new optimization metric that captures the priority of the VM and the overall weighted throughput of the data center. We conduct detailed experiments emulating data center scenarios including on-line transaction processing workloads (based on TPC-C) middle-tier workloads (based on SPECjbb and SPECjAppServer) and financial workloads (based on PARSEC). We show that monitoring shared resource contention (such as shared cache) is highly beneficial to better manage throughput and QoS in a cloud-computing data center environment.
Back to the future for higher education: Medieval universities

Most universities and colleges do not resemble medieval universities in their faculty, students, organization, curriculum, and physical campus. However, there is increasing evidence that higher education is in a process of transformation. Institutions of higher learning, including public colleges, are becoming more business-like, more like virtual and corporate universities, and are heavily engaged in retooling their products. Global universities, virtual universities, and corporate universities are together adapting new technologies to academic needs. Higher education is becoming more affordable, is moving away from buildings and campuses, is focusing on developing the critical thinking skills of students, and is developing superstar faculty. These changes have their roots in medieval Paris and Bologna. In short, higher education is becoming more medieval.
A Hybrid Electrode Array With Built-In Position Sensors for an Implantable MEMS-Based Cochlear Prosthesis

A hybrid electrode array has been developed for use in an implantable MEMS-based cochlear prosthesis intended to restore hearing to the profoundly deaf. The array provides high-density stimulation and embedded position sensing to improve sound perception, minimize insertion damage, and optimize implant placement. Interfacing with a hermetically-packaged microcontroller and a bidirectional wireless interface over an eight-lead polymeric cable, the array integrates custom signal-processing electronics with thin-film lithographically defined IrO electrodes and polysilicon position sensors. The signal-processing chip (2.4 mm times 2.4 mm) operates from plusmn2.5 V, accepts 16-b commands, and performs command validation, stimulus current generation, site/sensor selection, offset compensation, and output-signal conditioning. The array contains nine polysilicon strain gauges to detect array position and tip contact. These strain sensors have gauge factors of 15-20, allowing the array tip position to be determined within 50 mum while providing tip-contact signals of more than 100 mV. The on-chip signal processing allows the use of a standard bus interface, reduces the parasitic capacitance and noise coupling on the connecting cables, allows the array shape to be imaged at a rate up to 10 times per second, and suppresses the output noise down to 3 mV.
Experimental Characterization of an Aluminum-Based Minichannel Solar Water Heater

Water heating accounts for a significant fraction of the energy consumption in the residential and commercial sectors. A wide variety of water heater configurations are available some of which have higher operating costs than others. The use of solar water heaters is becoming more widespread in many countries usually due to the low operating costs associated with the technology. This paper describes the first implementation of an aluminum-base minichannel solar water heater currently being tested at the University of California Merced
p19Ink4d is a tumor suppressor and controls pituitary anterior lobe cell proliferation

Pituitary tumors develop in about one-quarter of the population, and most arise from the anterior lobe (AL). The pituitary gland is particularly sensitive to genetic alteration of genes involved in the cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) inhibitor (CKI)-CDK-retinoblastoma protein (Rb) pathway. Mice heterozygous for the Rb mutation develop pituitary tumors, with about 20% arising from the AL. Perplexingly, none of the CKI-deficient mice reported thus far develop pituitary AL tumors. In this study, we show that deletion of p19(Ink4d) (p19), a CKI gene, in mice results in spontaneous development of tumors in multiple organs and tissues. Specifically, more than one-half of the mutant mice developed pituitary hyperplasia or tumors predominantly in the AL. Tumor development is associated with increased cell proliferation and enhanced activity of Cdk4 and Cdk6 and phosphorylation of Rb protein. Though Cdk4 is indispensable for postnatal pituitary cell proliferation, it is not required for the hyperproliferative pituitary phenotype caused by p19 loss. Loss of p19 phosphorylates Rb in Cdk4(-/-) pituitary AL cells and mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) and rescues their proliferation defects, at least partially, through the activation of Cdk6. These results provide the first genetic evidence that p19 is a tumor suppressor and the major CKI gene that controls pituitary AL cell proliferation.
A Rhetoric of Remnants: Idiots, Half-Wits, and Other State-Sponsored Inventions, Zosha Stuckey: New York: SUNY Press, 2014. 176 pages. $80.00 hardcover.

This book argues that education is fundamentally rhetorical, that rhetoric is key to social justice, and that doing rhetorical history is methodologically complicated. To make these arguments, Zosh...
Are Autistic Traits in Youth Meaningful? A Replication study in Non-referred Siblings of Youth with and without Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

Background: We previously described the high prevalence and burden of significant autistic traits (ATs) in youth with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). These traits are associated with significantly greater impairment in psychopathological, interpersonal, educational, and neuropsychological functioning. Because the sample consisted of referred ADHD youth, uncertainty remained regarding whether these findings are generalizable to non-referred populations of youths with and without ADHD. Objective: The aim of the current study was to assess the prevalence and implications of ATs in a non-referred population of siblings of probands with and without ADHD. Method: Participants were non-referred siblings of probands with ADHD (N = 257) and control probands (N = 234) of longitudinal, case-control family studies conducted at Massachusetts General Hospital. Assessments included measures of psychiatric, psychosocial, educational, and cognitive functioning. The presence of significant ATs was operationalized using the Child Behavior Checklist AT profile, which consists of combined aggregate T-scores of ≥ 195 on the Withdrawn, Social, and Thought Problems subscales. Results: ATs were significantly more prevalent among the siblings of probands with ADHD as compared with siblings of control probands (6% vs. 1%; P = .02). Siblings of probands with ADHD with a positive AT profile (N = 15) were significantly more impaired than those without an AT profile (N = 242) with regard to psychopathological, interpersonal, educational, and neuropsychological functioning. Conclusions: The current study reports a higher-than-expected prevalence of ATs in a non-referred sample of siblings of youth with ADHD, which is consistent with previous findings regarding ATs in a referred sample of youth with ADHD. The presence of ATs is associated with higher levels of morbidity and dysfunction.
Emergence of Evolutionary Medicine: Publication Trends from 1991???2010

Background. Evolutionary medicine, the inter- section of evolutionary biology and medical sciences, has grown in the last two decades. However, this new scientific discipline continues to have a limited impact in clinical medicine and medical education. As this field undergoes its own evolution, it has become necessary to better define this area of scientific inquiry by characterizing trends in publica- tion, terminology, and the research focus of its practitioners. Methods. In order to identify publication trends in evolution- ary medicine, the author performed a bibliometric analysis of citations related to evolution and medicine using PubMed, the ISI Web of Knowledge, Google Scholar, and the Google database of digitized books. Results. Usage patterns suggest that "evolutionary medicine" is supplanting its predecessor synonym "Darwinian medicine" in the scientific literature. In addition, the explosion in genomics and proteomics has resulted in a recent increase in medical research using phylogenetic techniques. Publications identified by searches for natural selection and adaptation are fewer in number and show linear growth in the literature. Keyword searches show that the terms "Darwinian medicine" and "evolutionary medicine" appeared more frequently than for the related terms "evolutionary psychiatry," "evolutionary epidemiology" or "evolutionary immunology." Conclusions. These results support the view that evolutionary medicine is a well-grounded concept that has emerged as a distinct area of scientific inquiry.
Active Cooling of Turbine Blades using Horse-Shoe Plasma Actuator

We numerically test two novel concepts for film cooling enhancement in gas turbines and other engineering applications. The first concept utilizes electric force to induce attachment of cold jet to the work surface by actively altering the body force in the vicinity using a horse-shoe shaped plasma actuator. Two different force models have been utilized: (1) spatially distributed electric force based on phenomenological model, and (2) time averaged reduced order model. For the other concept, we propose three geometric modifications of the cooling hole exit for enhancing lateral tripping of the cold jet. We have shown that a combination of plasma and geometric change can significantly improve the film cooling performance. Numerical predictions with finite volume based simulation are performed using standard turbulence models. Detailed computation of a single row of 35 degree round holes on a flat plate has been obtained for a unit blowing ratio. Results are compared with the published experimental data and other numerical predictions for the latest film cooling technology to identify effectiveness improvement. The numerical results show an improvement of effectiveness well above 100% over the standard baseline design.
Life span of mouse blood platelets.

SummaryIn male BDF1 mice injected daily with Na2S35O4; radioactivity of the circulating platelets increased at a rate of 26% per day, reaching a plateau in 4 days. From the time required to attain maximum labeling of the circulating platelet population, the life span of mouse platelets is estimated to be approximately 4 days.We thank Dr. M. Asano for examining the bone marrow sections.
Digestibility of feed ingredients in Florida pompano, Trachinotus carolinus adapted to either sea water or low salinity

Seven potential feed ingredients were evaluated for digestibility with Florida pompano Trachinotus carolinus using extruded diets. Ingredients included Special Select™ menhaden meal, fishery processing by-product (Montlake meal), NuPro® yeast extract, canola protein concentrate, corn protein concentrate, barley protein concentrate and Spirulina. Digestibility values were determined when fish were held at 3 and 28 g L−1 salinity to determine the effect of salinity on digestibility. With the exception of the canola protein concentrate, the coefficients were numerically higher in pompano held at 28 g L−1. No significant differences were detected for apparent crude protein or apparent energy digestibility between the two salinities. Amino acids were highly available from the two marine-based ingredients and the barley and canola concentrates. The availability of alanine, leucine, isoleucine and phenylalanine was significantly higher (P < 0.05) from the barley protein concentrate at 28 g L−1 than 3 g L−1 salinity. Methionine and phenylalanine were highly available from all the ingredients except the yeast protein. Conversely, glycine was not well utilised from any of the ingredients. The apparent digestibility coefficients provided here allow for more precise formulation of diets for Florida pompano reared in both seawater and low-salinity environments.
Exploring buyer-seller dyadic perceptions of technology and relationships: Implications for Sales 2.0

Purpose – This paper aims to understand an emerging paradigm for business-to-business selling, Sales 2.0, which connects various enabling technologies within leading sales processes to drive improved business and relational outcomes. In the context of Sales 2.0, this paper addresses the need for buyer–seller dyadic sales research in the literature and highlights the importance of understanding buyer and seller perspectives regarding technology expectations and relationship-building performance. Design/methodology/approach – This research utilizes a dyadic (salesperson–customer) data collection methodology, involving 74 matched salesperson and customer responses (37 dyads) to an online survey. Existing salesperson (self-report) measures of customer technology expectations and relationship-building performance with customers were utilized and adapted to provide dyadic measures to test for buyer–seller perceptual differences. Findings – The dyadic data analysis supports the presence of significant perceptual...
Interprofessional Collaboration and Its Impact on “Climate Change”

In recent years, the number of Black and Latino/a students enrolling in institutions of higher education have increased significantly. However, when compared to their White counterparts, persistence rates are much lower. Past research has documented both the historical and contemporary issues that Students of Color face at Predominantly White Institutions (PWI). Now more than ever this body of literature has focused on campus climate and the role race has on the educational experience. The current study examines the impact of stereotype threat and racial microaggressions on African American students attending a large mid-western PWI. This study also examines how students cope with and respond to a climate filled with threats, assaults and microaggressions in academic and social spaces.
Methods for Improving the Curvature of Steerable Needles in Biological Tissue

Objective: Robotic needle steering systems have the potential to improve percutaneous interventions such as radiofrequency ablation of liver tumors, but steering techniques described to date have not achieved sufficiently small radius of curvature in biological tissue to be relevant to this application. In this study, the impact of tip geometry on steerable needle curvature was examined. Methods: Finite-element simulations and experiments with bent-tip needles in ex vivo liver tissue were performed. Motivated by the results of this analysis, a new articulated-tip steerable needle was designed, in which a distal section is actively switched by a robotic system between a straight tip (resulting in a straight path) and a bent tip (resulting in a curved path). Results: Selection of tip length and angle can greatly improve curvature, with radius of curvature below 5 cm in liver tissue possible through judicious selection of these parameters. An articulated-tip mechanism allows the tip length and angle to be increased, while the straight configuration allows the needle tip to still pass through an introducer sheath and rotate inside the body. Conclusion: Validation testing in liver tissue shows that the new articulated-tip steerable needle achieves smaller radius of curvature compared to bent-tip needles described in previous work. Significance: Steerable needles with optimized tip parameters, which can generate tight curves in liver tissue, increase the clinical relevance of needle steering to percutaneous interventions.
Chemical preconditioning with 3-nitropropionic acid in hearts: role of mitochondrial KATP channel

We investigated the cardioprotective effect of 3-nitropropionic acid (3-NPA), an inhibitior of mitochondrial succinate dehydrogenase, and we wanted to show whether this protection is mediated by of opening mitochondrial ATP-sensitive potassium (K(ATP)) channels. Adult rabbits were treated with either 3-NPA (3 mg/kg iv) or saline (n = 6 rabbits/group). After 30 min (for early phase) or 24 h (for late phase) of the treatment, the animals were subjected to 30 min of ischemia and 3 h of reperfusion (ischemia-reperfusion). 5-Hydroxydecanoate (5-HD, 5 mg/kg iv),the mitochondrial K(ATP) channel blocker, was administered 10 min before ischemia-reperfusion in the saline- and 3-NPA-treated rabbits. 3-NPA caused a decrease in the infarct size from 27.8 +/- 4.2% in the saline group to 16.5 +/- 1.0% in the 3-NPA-treated rabbits during early phase and from 30.4 +/- 4.2% in the saline group to 17.6 +/- 1.05 in the 3-NPA group during delayed phase (P < 0.05, % of risk area). The anti-infarct effect of 3-NPA was blocked by 5-HD as shown by an increase in infarct size to 33 +/- 2.7% (early phase) and 31 +/- 2.4% (delayed phase) (P < 0.05 vs. 3-NPA groups). 5-HD had no proischemic effect in control animals. Also, 3-NPA had no effect on systemic hemodynamics. We conclude that 3-NPA induces long-lasting anti-ischemic effects via opening of mitochondrial K(ATP) channels.
Correction: Risk Factors Associated With Epidural Use.

Corrections to article “Risk Factors Associated With Epidural Use”, by Lancaster et al, published in Vol. 4, No. 2, 2012, p119-126, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.4021/jocmr810w.
Individual Psychology: The Adlerian Point of View

A concern with Social Interest, with a person's social orientation, and with his social problems, is characteristic of Adlerian Psychology. Social Interest is an innate potentiality which each human being has to develop. Most people have sufficient Social Interest to function satisfactorily in most areas of their lives, at least outwardly. The quality which enables man to function reasonably well within his social setting has been described by D. L. Adler as "Gemeinschaftsge-fuehl," which, in literal translation, means feeling of communion, of imbeddedness in the community of man. He provided just a yardstick to measure the normality of an individual and of a society with its norms and regulations. Adler's contention of freedom of choice was—and still is—incomprehensible to most students of psychology. In the sense, then, Adlerian psychology represents a social rehabilitation therapy, a behavioral therapy, as H. Eysenck calls it.
Symbolic Systems: Correspondences in the Tales

The distance between Stephen Dedalus, reconstituting an aesthetics based on Aquinas for an indifferent Lynch, and Gabriel Conroy, experiencing an aesthetic moment confused with sexual adoration of the entranced Gretta, is allied to the distance between literature and the market-place, both of which Stephen is aware of and Gabriel involved with. Stephen concedes that his definitions are in the realm of “literary talk”, and differentiates “beauty” (“in the sense which the word has in literary tradition”) from that of “the marketplace”, where “it has another sense” (AP 213). For Gabriel the apprehension of beauty leads also into the aesthetic realm, positing a symbolic painting of that which he immediately perceives, but a work of art that he has no intention of undertaking, never having adequately interpreted the symbolic significance. In giving the painting a title, “Distant Music”, he translates the experience into a potential commodity that would have relevance within the market-place. Although a teacher of literature and a reviewer of books, Gabriel has moved his aesthetics outside the area of language, whereas Stephen is especially specific in establishing the distance between words “used according to the literary tradition” and “according to the tradition of the marketplace” (AP 188).
Relative Equilibria in the Full N-Body Problem with Applications to the Equal Mass Problem

General conditions for the existence of stable, minimum energy configurations in the full N-body problem are derived and investigated. Then the minimum energy and stable configurations for the spherical, equal mass full body problem are investigated for \(N = 2, 3, 4\). This problem is defined as the dynamics of finite density spheres which interact gravitationally and through surface forces. This is a variation of the gravitational N-body problem in which the bodies are not allowed to come arbitrarily close to each other (due to their finite density), enabling the existence of resting configurations in addition to orbital motion. Previous work on this problem has outlined an efficient and simple way in which the stability of configurations in this problem can be defined. This methodology is reviewed and derived in a new approach and then applied to multiple body problems. In addition to this, new results on the Hill stability of these configurations are examined and derived. The study of these configurations is important for understanding the mechanics and morphological properties of small rubble pile asteroids. These results can also be generalized to other configurations of bodies that interact via field potentials and surface contact forces.
Using the {delta}{sub 3} statistic to test for missed levels in mixed sequence neutron resonance data

The {delta}{sub 3}(L) statistic is studied as a tool to detect missing levels in the neutron resonance data where two sequences are present. These systems are problematic because there is no level repulsion, and the resonances can be too close to resolve. {delta}{sub 3}(L) is a measure of the fluctuations in the number of levels in an interval of length L on the energy axis. The method used is tested on ensembles of mixed Gaussian orthogonal ensemble spectra, with a known fraction of levels (x%) randomly depleted, and can accurately return x. The accuracy of the method as a function of spectrum size is established. The method is used on neutron resonance data for 11 isotopes with either s-wave neutrons on odd-A isotopes, or p-wave neutrons on even-A isotopes. The method compares favorably with a maximum likelihood method applied to the level spacing distribution. Nuclear data ensembles were made from 20 isotopes in total, and their {delta}{sub 3}(L) statistics are discussed in the context of random matrix theory.
Effects of Pivot Location and Reduced Pitch Rate on Pitching Rectangular Flat Plates

This paper presents the results of an experimental investigation of the unsteady flow about pitching flat plates. Hydrodynamic force and two-dimensional particle image velocimetry measurements are reported for three pivot locations (leading edge, midchord, and trailing edge), reduced pitch rates from 0.022 to 0.39, and in still water, which corresponds to infinite reduced pitch rate. The wing has rectangular planform with effective aspect ratio 4, and the wing pitching motion is from 0 to 45 deg angle of attack. The relation between hydrodynamic force and vortical flow development as a function of pivot location and reduced pitch rate is discussed. Reasonable agreement is found between measured hydrodynamic force and quasi-steady potential flow theoretical results. Several vortical flow features are identified and discussed, including 1) the effect of pivot location and pitch acceleration on formation and evolution of vortical structures, 2) the impact of interaction between vortical flow structures on hy...
Auger Up-Conversion of Low-Intensity Infrared Light in Engineered Quantum Dots

One source of efficiency losses in photovoltaic cells is their transparency toward solar photons with energies below the band gap of the absorbing layer. This loss can be reduced using a process of up-conversion whereby two or more sub-band-gap photons generate a single above-gap exciton. Traditional approaches to up-conversion, such as nonlinear two-photon absorption (2PA) or triplet fusion, suffer from low efficiency at solar light intensities, a narrow absorption bandwidth, nonoptimal absorption energies, and difficulties for implementing in practical devices. Here we show that these deficiencies can be alleviated using the effect of Auger up-conversion in thick-shell PbSe/CdSe quantum dots. This process relies on Auger recombination whereby two low-energy, core-based excitons are converted into a single higher-energy, shell-based exciton. Compared to their monocomponent counterparts, the tailored PbSe/CdSe heterostructures feature enhanced absorption cross-sections, a higher efficiency of the “product...
Interfacial Au nanoparticle decoration of a disulfide modified G-wire.

Abstract Background The guanine-rich oligonucleotide (GRO), dGGGGTTGGGG (G 4 T 2 G 4 ), has the capacity to form a linear supramolecular polymer known as a G-wire. Individual nucleotides of the component GROs can be functionally modified to serve as site-specific attachment points in the G-wire while not interfering with its self-assembling properties. An amine linker modification to an internal thymine base of the GRO, denoted G 4 TT*G 4 , serves as a chemically versatile attachment site. Methods In this work, addition of an alkyl disulfide to G 4 TT*G 4 produces the GRO G 4 TT d G 4 enabling binding to gold nanoparticles via place exchange chemistry. G-wires assembled by combining G 4 T 2 G 4 and G 4 TT d G 4 were stably maintained in an aqueous environment. Disulfide modified G-wires (DS_G-wire) were then covered with dodecanethiol capped gold nanoparticles in an organic solvent via an interfacial place exchange reaction. Tapping Mode AFM and TEM were used to image G-wires decorated with gold nanoparticles. The specificity of the interfacial place exchange reaction was measured using a fluorometric dye displacement from the gold nanoparticles. Results The results show that a two component DS_G-wire with an amphipathic tether readily self-assemble as shown by PAGE and TM-AFM. The amphipathic disulfide moiety of DS_G-wires facilitates place exchange chemistry with alkylthiol protected Au nanoparticles across an aqueous-organic interface. Conclusion Interfacial place exchange is an effective strategy for decorating DS_G-wires with Au nanoparticles. General significance The use of modified G-wire self-assembly combined with a high degree of nanoparticle binding specificity presents another strategy for the use of G-wires as a rigid one-dimensional molecular scaffold with potential applications in nanoscale device construction. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled “G-quadruplex” Guest Editor: Dr. Concetta Giancola and Dr. Daniela Montesarchio.
Cool Down Before Initiation of Phototherapy

It is critical for every phototherapy provider to know that extremely intense erythema, such as in the case of erythroderma, is a contraindication to any type of phototherapy. Phototherapy, in reality, is a “double-edged sword” as it can either help or aggravate inflammation. If an intensely inflamed patient were to receive phototherapy by error, the intensity of inflammation can become so severe to the point that the patient may have to be hospitalized with whole body edema, pain, and other complications. Therefore, in such a case, a “cool down” procedure is required. Liberal amounts of topical corticosteroids under plastic occlusion can be effective in reducing inflammation. Phototherapy should then be initiated at very low dose and the dose increased very carefully.
Complex Regulation of the Homeobox Transcription Factor TGIF: Differential Expression of Multiple 5′ Isoforms.

TG-interacting factor (TGIF) is a transcriptional repressor belonging to the TALE (three amino acid loop extension) class of homeobox proteins. In addition to its involvement by mutation or deletion in the inherited craniofacial disorder holoprosencephaly, we have shown that expression of TGIF is highly predictive of relapse and survival in acute myelogenous leukemia (AML). To better understand how TGIF expression is regulated, we characterized its genomic structure using expressed sequence tag analysis, reverse transcriptase-coupled PCR, and rapid amplification of cDNA ends. These studies revealed a complex pattern of gene expression, with 15 splice isoforms and 11 alternative 5′ exons spread over 40 kb of DNA, suggesting the presence of multiple promoters. Real-time and semi-quantitative PCR analysis showed these isoforms were differentially expressed in various adult tissues, leukemic cell lines, and AML blasts. Further, isoform C was found to be the major RNA product in hematopoietic cells, contributing significantly to total TGIF expression in leukemic cell lines TF1a, U937, AML-193, KG-1a, Kasumi-1, K562, GDM-1, HL-60 and AML blasts. This analysis suggests that altered splicing and/or expression of specific isoforms could be responsible for the reduced levels of TGIF message observed in AML blasts and cell lines. The unusually complex structure of the TGIF gene may enable its precise regulation during normal hematopoiesis and may be relevant to its reduced expression in myeloid leukemias.
Investigating clustering algorithm DBSCAN to self select locations for power based malicious code detection on smartphones

There is a growing number of viruses, malware, and other threats designed to gain access to system resources and information stored on smartphones. Previous work has shown that combining naive location identification with power-based malicious code detection can successfully detect certain kinds of power-hungry malware. This paper will discuss the effectiveness of using clustering, a more sophisticated manner to identify locations, compared to the previous naive approach. The paper will also discuss the methodology used to collect more accurate location data while avoiding a noticeable impact on the phone's battery life.
Native Mass Spectrometry from Common Buffers with Salts That Mimic the Extracellular Environment

Nonvolatile salts are essential for the structures and functions of many proteins and protein complexes but can severely degrade performance of native mass spectrometry by adducting to protein and protein complex ions, thereby reducing sensitivity and mass measuring accuracy. Small nanoelectrospray emitters are used to form protein and protein complex ions directly from high-ionic-strength (>150 mm) nonvolatile buffers with salts that mimic the extracellular environment. Charge-state distributions are not obtained for proteins and protein complexes from six commonly used nonvolatile buffers and ≥150 mm Na+ with conventionally sized nanoelectrospray emitter tips but are resolved with 0.5 μm tips. This method enables mass measurements of proteins and protein complexes directly from a variety of commonly used buffers with high concentrations of nonvolatile salts and eliminates the need to buffer exchange into volatile ammonium buffers traditionally used in native mass spectrometry.
Synthesis and characterisation of asymmetrical mesogenic materials based on 2,5-disubstituted-1,3,4-oxadiazole

ABSTRACTNew mesogenic homologous series bearing 1,3,4-oxadiazole ring with a nitro terminal group, 4-(5-(4-nitrophenyl)-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl)phenyl 4-((4-methoxybenzylidene)amino)benzoate (G1–G11), were synthesised. Their chemical structures are identified by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H-NMR) and elemental analysis. The liquid crystalline properties of the series Gn and their precursory Fn were screened by differential scanning calorimetry and optical polarising microscopy (OPM). The compounds of the series Gn were screened by thermogravimetric analysis to observe their thermal stability. The target compounds (Gn) in this study, were displayed different liquid crystalline mesophase, the first two homologous (G1 and G2) did not show any liquid crystalline behaviour, the homologous (G3–G10) which have an alkoxy terminal group (n = 3–10) exhibited nematic phase, whilst the last derivative of the series (G11), n = 12, displayed SmA phase. The mesomorph...
Splitting of Ferromagnetic Resonance Spectra in Periodically Modulated 1-D Magnonic Crystal

In this paper, we present a systematic study of a series of 1-D magnonic crystals defined as periodic arrays of grooves in a Permalloy thin film. Thin films of Ni80Fe20 with dimensions $350~\mu \text{m}$ by $10~\mu \text{m}$ and thickness 40 nm were prepared on the top of signal line of coplanar waveguides by a combination of photolithography, e-beam lithography and lift-off processing. Starting from thin films, stripe-type periodic structures (grooves) with a depth of 4 nm were created in a controlled manner by focused ion beam. By changing the dimensions of the distance between the grooves, it was possible to systematically tune single, double, triple, and quadruple ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) absorption modes. Broadband FMR experiments were carried out to collect the frequency and field-dependent FMR spectra. The experimental results are corroborated with micromagnetic simulations.
Towards Emotionally Aware AI Smart Classroom: Current Issues and Directions for Engineering and Education

Future smart classrooms that we envision will significantly enhance learning experience and seamless communication among students and teachers using real-time sensing and machine intelligence. Existing developments in engineering have brought the state-of-the-art to an inflection point, where they can be utilized as components of a smart classroom. In this paper, we propose a smart classroom system that consists of these components. Our proposed system is capable of making real-time suggestions to an in-class presenter to improve the quality and memorability of their presentation by allowing the presenter to make real-time adjustments/corrections to their non-verbal behavior, such as hand gestures, facial expressions, and body language. We base our suggested system components on existing research in affect sensing, deep learning-based emotion recognition, and real-time mobile-cloud computing. We provide a comprehensive study of these technologies and determine the computational requirements of a system that incorporates these technologies. Based on these requirements, we provide a feasibility study of the system. Although the state-of-the-art research in most of the components we propose in our system are advanced enough to realize the system, the main challenge lies in: 1) the integration of these technologies into a holistic system design; 2) their algorithmic adaptation to allow real-time execution; and 3) quantification of valid educational variables for use in algorithms. In this paper, we discuss current issues and provide future directions in engineering and education disciplines to deploy the proposed system.
Robust reliability-based optimization with a moment method for hydraulic pump sealing design

Reliability-based design (RBD) is widely applied to meet the reliability requirement at a reduced cost. Current RBD methods require complete distributions of basic random variables, but in real applications, such as the sealing design for hydraulic piston pumps, only statistical moments may be available. The reliability obtained from the RBD may also be sensitive to possible variations in distribution parameters or moments of basic random variables. To deal with these two challenges in the sealing design for hydraulic piston pumps, this study employs a robust reliability-based design methodology based on statistical moments. The optimization not only minimizes the sealing area of friction pairs, but also the sensitivity of the reliability. As a result, the reliability requirement is maintained with the increased robustness of the reliability. An improved higher moment (up to the forth moment) is also employed for higher accuracy with the associated analytical sensitivity indexes. The robust RBD methodology is successfully applied to the design of the seal of the slipper-swash plate friction pairs for a hydraulic piston pump. The application includes the reliability analysis, reliability sensitivity analysis, and robust RBD. The results demonstrate that robust RBD can produce more robust reliability than a traditional RBD methodology.
Normative Expectations for Calling the Police

The experimental findings indicated that victims are likely to be affected by social influence. However, knowing that social influence is important is only the starting point, because this influence occurs in a larger social context. The kind of information, advice, and support or nonsupport that victims receive depends on how crimes are defined and what responses are deemed appropriate.
The 15-year post-treatment response of a mixed-conifer understory plant community to thinning and burning treatments

Abstract Disturbance is central to maintaining diversity in forest ecosystems. In the dry forests of the western United States, over a century of fire exclusion has altered the fire regimes of these forests, resulting in high fuel loads and a loss of plant diversity. Mechanical thinning and prescribed fire are widely used to restore structural complexity and species diversity in many western U.S. forests. While studies have shown that the reintroduction of fire into these forests initially promotes plant diversity, there is limited information on the persistence of this effect. We evaluated the effects of thinning and burning treatments on the understory plant community fifteen years after treatment in an old-growth, Sierran mixed-conifer forest. Using a full-factorial design, including three levels of thinning and two levels of burning, we found mechanical thinning and prescribed fire reduced litter depths and increased the availability of bare ground, resulting in an initial increase in herb cover. However, fifteen years after treatment, litter depths and shrub cover increased, resulting in a more homogenous understory community and a loss of herb cover. Overall, our results suggest that while thinning and burning treatments initially promote herbaceous plant cover, these effects are short lived in the absence of a second disturbance.
From acceptance to graduation: Supporting students in recovery throughout their college experience

Students entering universities while in recovery from addiction face unique challenges, such as transitioning from a high school to a university, adapting to life after treatment, and/or transferring from a junior college or different university setting. Students in recovery also encounter challenges upon graduation including addressing gaps of employment on resumes, interviewing skills, and general professionalism. Cougars in Recovery offers support to students in recovery at the University of Houston in their academic journey through the use of programs including Source of Strength, offering peer to peer mentorship within the community and Career Ready Coogs, providing support for students approaching graduation with professional development resources. Longitudinal data is still being collected to demonstrate the influence of Source of Strength on Cougars in Recovery member retention and how Career Ready Coogs influences professional growth and preparation for graduation. Peer mentorship and professional development programs can help students in recovery navigate the challenges of the collegiate experience and entering the professional world.
Domestically Banned Products: For Export Only:

The sales abroad of products not permitted in the United States have become a matter of concern over the past few years as a result of incidents of widespread poisoning and severe environmental har...
Climate Assessment for 1997

Abstract The global climate during 1997 was affected by both extremes of the El Nino–Southern Oscillation (ENSO), with weak Pacific cold episode conditions prevailing during January and February, and one of the strongest Pacific warm episodes (El Nino) in the historical record prevailing during the remainder of the year. This warm episode contributed to major regional rainfall and temperature anomalies over large portions of the Tropics and extratropics, which were generally consistent with those observed during past warm episodes. In many regions, these anomalies were opposite to those observed during 1996 and early 1997 in association with Pacific cold episode conditions. Some of the most dramatic El Nino impacts during 1997 were observed in the Tropics, where anomalous convection was evident across the entire Pacific and throughout most major monsoon regions of the world. Tropical regions most affected by excessive El Nino–related rainfall during the year included 1) the eastern half of the tropical Pa...
Phenylurethans of pyrazolidinols and piperidazinols as anticonvulsants

The synthesis of 1,2-diethyl-4-hydroxymethylpyrazolidine (II) was accomplished in two steps from 1,2-diethyl-4-ethoxycarbonylpyrazolidine (I). Also, 1,2-dimethyl-4-hydroxypiperidazine (VI) was prepared in three steps from 1,2-diethoxycarbonyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridazine (IV). The two alcohols were added to several aryl isocyanates and afforded fourteen new phenylurethan derivatives which showed moderate anticonvulsant activity in mice.
The Auschwitz Women’s Camp: An Overview and Reconsideration

While many know of Auschwitz and its genocidal sub-camp Birkenau, few are familiar with the women’s section. This chapter offers an overview of the women’s camp in Auschwitz-Birkenau: a place, its denizens—personnel and prisoners—and its social structures. It articulates a timeline for the women’s section and brings an approach that integrates analyses of women prisoners, prisoner functionaries, and guards. It adds to the work of others that challenge the notion of Auschwitz as a fixed site. It challenges previous scholarship that categorizes the responses of women and men prisoners as highly differentiated. It also counters two notions about prisoner functionaries: that they were primarily gentile and that they were complicit in genocide.
Evolution gets personal

Each December for decades now, I9ve spent a few days in Pacific Grove, California, attending the Asilomar Chromatin, Chromosomes, and Epigenetics Conference. Before reading Neil Shubin9s Some Assembly Required, however, I never knew that the city9s first female mayor, Julia Platt, was also an accomplished embryologist. Having been shut out of academic positions, which were, at the turn of the 20th century, seldom given to women, she pivoted instead to politics, where her legacy includes the establishment of a marine protected area in California9s Monterey Bay. This anecdote is one of many intimate and thoughtful stories tucked into the pages of this brief overview of Earth9s 4 billion years of evolution.
Metabolic regulation of sexual commitment in Plasmodium falciparum

For malaria parasites regulating sexual commitment, the frequency with which asexual bloodstream forms differentiate into non-replicative male and female gametocytes, is critical because asexual replication is required to maintain a persistent infection of the human host while gametocytes are essential for infection of the mosquito vector and transmission. Here, we describe recent advances in understanding of the regulatory mechanisms controlling this key developmental decision. These include new insights into the mechanistic roles of the transcriptional master switch AP2-G and the epigenetic modulator GDV1, as well as the identification of defined metabolic signals that modulate their activity. Many of these metabolites are linked to parasite phospholipid biogenesis and we propose a model linking this pathway to the epigenetic regulation underlying sexual commitment in P. falciparum.
Spatial Reconstruction of the Early Hepatic Transcriptomic Landscape After an Acetaminophen Overdose Using Single-Cell RNA-Sequencing

An acetaminophen (APAP) overdose is the most common cause of acute liver failure in the United States. A hallmark characteristic of APAP hepatotoxicity is centrilobular necrosis. General, innate mechanisms such as lower amounts of GSH and higher cytochrome P450 2e1 expression in pericentral (PC) hepatocytes are known to contribute to the differences in susceptibility to cell injury between periportal (PP) hepatocytes and PC hepatocytes. Although a sequence of molecular events involving formation of the reactive metabolite N-acetyl-p-benzoquinone imine, GSH depletion, oxidative stress, and c-Jun N-terminal kinase activation define the early cell stress trajectory following APAP exposure, their activation in PC versus PP hepatocytes is not well characterized. By using single-cell RNA-sequencing, we provide the first reconstruction of the early transcriptomic APAP liver lobule after validation of our methodology using human liver single-cell RNA-sequencing data. Two hours after APAP treatment, we find that PP hepatocytes progress along the APAP stress axis to oxidative stress, before resolving injury due to innate and adaptive mechanisms. However, PC hepatocytes continue along this stress axis as indicated by activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase genes, which is absent in PP hepatocytes. We also identify a population of glutamine synthetase enriched PC hepatocytes in close proximity to the central vein, where a stepwise induction of a stress program culminated in cell death. Collectively, these findings elucidate a molecular sequence of events distinguishing the differential response to APAP exposure between PP and PC hepatocytes and identify a subset of uniquely susceptible PC hepatocytes.