cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Remote Sensing of Tamarisk Biomass, Insect Herbivory, and Defoliation: Novel Methods in the Grand Canyon Region, Arizona

Abstract Tamarisk is an invasive, riparian shrub species in the southwestern USA. The northern tamarisk beetle (Diorhabda carinulata) has been introduced to several states to control tamarisk. We classified tamarisk distribution in the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona using 0.2 m resolution, airborne multispectral data and estimated tamarisk beetle effects (overall accuracy of 86 percent) leading to leaf defoliation in a 49,408 m 2 area. We also estimated individual tamarisk tree biomass and their uncertainties using airborne lidar data (100 points/m 2 ). On average, total aboveground tamarisk biomass was 8.68 kg/m2 (SD = 17.6). The tamarisk beetle defoliation resulted in a mean leaf biomass loss of 0.52 kg/m 2 and an equivalent of 25,692 kg across the entire study area. Our defoliated tamarisk map and biomass estimates can help inform restoration treatments to reduce tamarisk. Continued monitoring of tamarisk and tamarisk beetle effects are recommended to understand the currently-unknown eventual equilibrium between the two species and the cascading effects on ecosystem processes.
Analysis and prediction of food donation behavior for a domestic hunger relief organization

Abstract Non-profit hunger relief organizations strive to counteract the negative effects of food insecurity by providing food and services to individuals in need. These organizations rely on the goodwill of donors, that provide cash or in-kind food donations, to help them meet their objectives. Food donations vary considerably over time in terms of their quantity and frequency, thus presenting a challenge as organizations strive to satisfy the needs of the population being served. Using data from a domestic hunger relief organization, we analyze the uncertainty associated with in-kind food donations. A comprehensive numerical study is performed to quantify the extent of uncertainty in terms of the donor, product, and supply chain structure. In addition, several predictive models are developed to estimate the quantity of in-kind donations. Based on our numerical study, we show the relationship between forecast accuracy, donation behavior, and data uncertainty. Additionally, implications on operational efficiency and service delivery are discussed.
Decisions with Multiple Objectives: TRADEOFFS UNDER CERTAINTY

Many complex decision problems involve multiple conflicting objectives. It is often true that no dominant alternative will exist that is better than all other alternatives in terms of all of these objectives. Perhaps some of the original alternatives can be eliminated from further consideration because they are dominated, but generally you simply cannot maximize several objectives simultaneously. You cannot maximize benefits and at the same time minimize costs; you cannot necessarily maximize yield and minimize risk; nor can you share a pie by giving the maximum amount to each child. The literature is replete with high-sounding rhetoric where an advocate cries out for doing “best” for everybody, in every possible way, in the shortest time, with the least inconvenience, and with the maximum security for all. Ah, for the simplicity of the romanticist's dream world! THE MULTIATTRIBUTE VALUE PROBLEM Our problem is one of value tradeoffs. In this chapter we see what can be done about systematically structuring such tradeoffs. In essence, the decision maker is faced with a problem of trading off the achievement of one objective against another objective. If there is no uncertainty in the problem, if we know the multiattribute consequence of each alternative, the essence of the issue is, “How much achievement on objective 1 is the decision maker willing to give up in order to improve achievement on objective 2 by some fixed amount?” If there is uncertainty in the problem, the tradeoff issue remains, but difficulties are compounded because it is not clear what the consequences of each of the alternatives will be.
The Functions of Primate Paternalism: A Cross-Species Review

Intrauterine gestation and the physiological adaptations of females that have allowed them to nourish neonates characterize the class Mammalia, and these characteristics have had revolutionary consequences on the evolution of social organization and mating patterns (Trivers, 1972; Brown, 1975; Maynard Smith, 1977; Wittenberger and Tilson, 1980; Williams, 1966; Gubernick and Klopfer, 1981). This physiological mechanism that allowed a female to solely and direcdy support her offspring also had dramatic effects on parent/offspring bonds (Trivers, 1972), such that the relationships between mother and child are cardinal to all mammalian social systems. An evolutionary consequence of this female capacity has been the diminution of the role of males in parental duties; indeed, so pervasive is the bond between mammalian mother and child that the term “parental behavior” has become equated with mothering. So reduced has been the role of males that the term “biparental” care has been coined to denote explicitly some parenting role for them. For example, in more than 90% of bird species, the male plays an equal role to the female in offspring nurturing, but only a very small percentage of mammals show analogous parenting behavior (Brown, 1985). However maternocentric investigations of mammalian social structure may have been historically, a new focus on the male’s role was inaugurated with the publication of Trivers’s (1972) provocative analysis of parental investment and sexual selection.
Religious Views of the Afterlife

In any discussion of end-of-life care, the cultural and religious beliefs of the individual who is dying must always be a consideration. This chapter will present, in the most general terms, a brief overview of some of the afterlife beliefs found in several of the world’s major religious traditions – Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism. Of course, individuals within any tradition will present a range of adherence to any of the beliefs described, but the following material will at least provide a base for further understanding of afterlife beliefs.
Boreal bog Sphagnum refixes soil-produced and respired 14CO2

AbstractResearch on peatland C cycling has generally ignored refixation, i.e., the photosynthetic fixation of soil-produced or respired CO2. We quantified refixation in a boreal bog by transplantin...
Towards Building an Automated Fact-Checking System

Fact-checking has become a prominent issue in today's society, yet a system that can fact-check automatically has yet to surface. In this paper I explore the hurdles of implementing such a system and assess the limitations of currently available technologies. The results of this research show that there is still much work to be done in parsing natural language inputs and mapping them to queries that can be used to extract information from knowledge bases. In particular I explore the use of a question generation tool as a means of mapping claims to natural language queries. I observe that, while moderately successfully, current tools still require substantial improvements to be useful as part of an end-to-end fact-checking system. However, the scaffolding for tackling this problem exists, and ultimately I worked to understand where the shortcomings lie and their nature.
Data from an intervention study point to a promising procedure for teaching discriminated use of a speech-generating device to children with autism spectrum disorder1

Lorah, E. R. (2016). Evaluating the iPad mini® as a speech-generating device in the acquisition of a discriminative mand repertoire for young children with autism. Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities, doi: 1088357616673624.Source of funding and disclosure of interest: The authors did not report any financial support for this study. The authors did not report any conflicts of interest.
A simple approximation to the average effect of the treatment on the treated in panel settings with selective enrolment

This article shows that, in panel settings when the probability of receiving a treatment is low, simple comparisons of outcomes between those who are treated in a given period and those who are unt...
O poder legislativo nas democracias contemporâneas

O artigo busca refletir sobre a relacao entre os Poderes Legislativo e Executivo nos regimes democraticos. O argumento e desenvolvido em tres partes: (i) discute-se a diferenca entre parlamentarismo e presidencialismo, um tema sobre o qual ha muita literatura; (ii) argumenta-se que se deve abandonar a visao baseada na maxima de que a expansao dos poderes do Executivo nas democracias contemporâneas se da as custas do poder do Legislativo; e (iii) mostra-se que a diferenca entre as formas de governos democraticos e menor do que se pensa e que, na verdade, existe uma convergencia entre elas na maneira como distribuem poderes especi­ficos entre o Executivo e o Legislativo. Utilizando o metodo argumentativo, verifica-se que, empiricamente, nao e verdade que o Legislativo esteja perdendo poder para o Executivo. A tendencia e a expansao simultânea dos dois poderes. O que importa, portanto, e como sao interpretados os poderes a disposicao do Legislativo.
Characterizing the Limits of Autonomous Systems

This note answers two central question in the intersection of decision-making and causal inference -- when human input is needed and, if so, how it should be incorporated into an AI system. We introduce the counterfactual agent who proactively considers human input in its decision-making process. We prove that a counterfactual agent dominates the standard autonomous agent who does not consider any human input (i.e., the experimental agent) in terms of performance. These results suggest a trade-off between autonomy and optimality -- while the full autonomy is often preferred, using human input could potentially improve the efficiency of the system. We further characterize under what conditions experimental and counterfactual agents can reach the same level of performance, which elicits the settings where full autonomy can be achieved.
The Impact of Job Advertising on Hospitality Graduates’ Job Pursuit Intention

This study uses signaling theory to investigate the influence of recruitment signals, including compensation, firm reputation, and advancement prospects, on hospitality undergraduates’ job pursuit intention. By including career self-efficacy as a moderator and anticipated organizational support as a mediator, this study provides insight into the psychological process that applicants use to interpret signals received from recruitment advertisements. Two experiments are reported that used hospitality college students close to graduation as subjects. The results show that applicants’ career self-efficacy influences signal interpretation and that anticipated organizational support is a conditional mediator between job characteristics and applicants’ job pursuit intention. The results suggest that when applicants review multiple recruitment advertisements, compensation becomes less important in their job pursuit intentions. The findings have implications for effective recruitment strategies and suggest that recruitment advertisements should be tailored to the type of applicant desired for the position.
IMPACT OF POISONOUS PLANTS ON WESTERN U.S. GRAZING SYSTEMS AND LIVESTOCK OPERATIONS

I. ABSTRACT The history of range livestock production is replete with documentation of animals lost to poisonous plants. Death loss is easy to measure. The insidious economic losses of physical malformations, abortions, and simply reduced growth and production from otherwise healthy animals is not so easy to quantify, Today, more than a century since the first published reports of livestock losses from plant poisoning, ranchers are little better off than they were then as far as management recommendations to deal with poisonous plants on rangelands. The many complex physiological interactions occurring between the poisonous plants and the animals that graze them make it a very difficult problem to understand, except that animals die, get very sick, abort, or produce obviously deformed offspring as a result of consuming poisonous plants. Researchers must seek more answers to basic questions regarding the synergism that exists among the animal, the poisonous plant, and the environmental conditions surrounding the twOr This research should include studies on aspects of animal behavior and how it relates to plant selection during grazing.
Texture – An Overview

Samples that are polycrystalline solids produced by some mechanical process frequently possess a non-random orientation of the crystallites due to deformation of the material during the forming operation. The resulting crystallite orientations (“texture”) can be more complex that those obtained from simple packing of powders. In the course of crystal structure analysis from powder diffraction data, changes in the Bragg intensities resulting from texture / preferred orientation can strongly degrade the quality of a Rietveld refinement or prevent a structure solution. Here, we consider models for describing texture in polycrystalline samples and examine their application to real world examples.
Material Analysis by Nuclear Backscattering

Historically, the first use of ion backscattering for material analysis was by Geiger and Marsden1 (1909), whose effects were explained by the Rutherford2 atomic model (1911). This was followed immediately by suggestions of ion channeling in single crystals by Stark and Wendt (1912). Recently, the most widely publicized example of nuclear backscattering was the first atomic compositional analysis of the moon by Surveyor 5 (1967). This first soft-landing package contained a radioactive source of 5MeV α-particles which were backscattered from the moon’s surface and provided information on the elemental composition of the moon’s surface.4,5
Role of Bone Disease in the Pathogenesis of Multiple Myeloma

MM cells produce factors which stimulate bone resorption and suppress new bone formation. In addition, MMBD has a major role in pathogenesis of MM. OCL can both stimulate MM cell growth and tumor-associated angiogenesis which both enhance growth of tumor cells and chemoresistance. Further, OCL release growth factors from the bone marrow microenvironment, which amplify the growth effects of other growth factors produced by cells in the marrow microenvironment. OCL can also produce growth factors that directly stimulate MM cell growth. The recent results showing that mature OB can suppress MM cell growth suggests that suppression of OB differentiation in MM plays a key role in tumor progression, and if it can be reversed, and OB differentiation induced in patients, this would further suppress tumor growth and improve both bone quality and the quality of life of the patients. The availability of new anabolic agents that are safe for use on MM patients and stimulate new bone formation while not stimulating MM cell growth may reverse the devastating effects of MMBD. Thus, identification of agents that target both MM cells and the microenvironment should provide new therapeutic modalities that suppress or eradicate the tumor and restore bone health in patients with MM.
Barriers to Healthcare Access and to Improvements in Health-Related Quality of Life After an Acute Coronary Syndrome (From TRACE-CORE)

Little is known about how barriers to healthcare access affect health-related quality of life (HRQOL) after an acute coronary syndrome (ACS). In a large cohort of ACS survivors from 6 medical centers in Massachusetts and Georgia enrolled from 2011 to 2013, patients were classified as having any financial barriers, no usual source of care (USOC), or transportation barriers to healthcare based on their questionnaire survey responses. The principal study outcomes included clinically meaningful declines in generic physical and mental HRQOL and in disease-specific HRQOL from 1 to 6 months posthospital discharge. Adjusted relative risks (aRRs) for declines in HRQOL were calculated using Poisson regression models, controlling for several sociodemographic and clinical factors of prognostic importance. In 1,053 ACS survivors, 29.0% had a financial barrier, 14.2% had no USOC, and 8.7% had a transportation barrier. Patients with a financial barrier had greater risks of experiencing a decline in generic physical (aRR 1.48, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.17, 1.86) and mental (aRR 1.36, 95% CI 1.07, 1.75) HRQOL at 6 months. Patients with 2 or more access barriers had greater risks of decline in generic physical (aRR 1.53, 95% CI 1.20, 1.93) and mental (aRR 1.50, 95% CI 1.17, 1.93) HRQOL compared with those without any healthcare barriers. There was a modest association between lacking a USOC and experiencing a decline in disease-specific HRQOL (aRR 1.46, 95% CI 0.96, 2.22). Financial and other barriers to healthcare access may be associated with clinically meaningful declines in HRQOL after hospital discharge for an ACS.
Postoperative complications in adult spinal deformity patients with a mental illness undergoing reconstructive thoracic or thoracolumbar spine surgery.

ABSTRACT BACKGROUND CONTEXT Previous studies have found an association between mental illness and poor outcomes in spine surgery, but little is known about the effects of depression and/or anxiety on the adult spinal deformity population. In addition, most relevant studies exclusively focused on the lumbar spine and had relatively small patient sizes. PURPOSE The aim of this study was to investigate whether adult spinal deformity patients with depression and/or anxiety have an increased risk of postoperative complications and reoperation following posterior thoracolumbar spinal surgery. STUDY DESIGN/SETTING Retrospective database study. METHODS Adult patients (over 18 years of age) with a diagnosis of spinal deformity undergoing any reconstructive thoracic or thoracolumbar spinal procedure with a posterior approach between 2007 and 2015 Q2 were identified using Current Procedural Terminology codes to query the Pearl Diver patient record database (Pearl Diver Technologies, West Conshohocken, PA, USA). The database includes records of approximately 18 million patients across the United States having Humana insurance. Further selection of patients with depression and/or anxiety and their associated postoperative complications were identified using ICD-9 and ICD-10 diagnosis codes (International Classification of Diseases 9th-10th edition). The mental illness cohort was matched to a control group according to age, sex, and Charlson Comorbidity Index. Patient data was analyzed for reoperation rates and incidence of common postoperative complications. RESULTS Multilevel posterolateral fusion was the most common included posterior thoracic reconstructive surgery. The mental illness cohort (n = 327) had significantly increased rates of infection (odds ratio [OR] = 1.743, p = .022) and respiratory complications (OR = 1.492, p = .02) at the 90-day postoperative period. The rates of incision and drainage (OR = 1.379, p = .475) and pneumonia (OR = 1.22, p = .573) were increased in the mental illness cohort at the 90-day postoperative period, but not significantly. There were no significant differences in complication and reoperation rates at 1-year postoperatively. CONCLUSIONS Patients with spinal deformity and pre-existing depression and/or anxiety treated with a posterior thoracolumbar reconstructive spinal surgery had significantly elevated risk of postoperative infections and respiratory complications when compared with the control group.
Evaluation of a Clinical Pharmacist-Led Automated Dispensing Cabinet Stewardship Program at a Tertiary Academic Medical Center.

Background:There is little guidance regarding the best methodology or frequency to optimize automated dispensing cabinets. Clinical pharmacists are in the unique position to make decisions regardin...
Association of electronic cigarette vaping and subsequent smoking relapse among former smokers.

Abstract Background Former combustible cigarette smokers who vape e-cigarettes after quitting smoking may experience health benefits if post-quit vaping prevents smoking relapse. Methods Former combustible cigarette smokers aged >18 that were recent (quit ≤ 12 months) or long-term (quit > 12 months) quitters at baseline were re-surveyed at 1-year follow-up in the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) U.S. nationally-representative longitudinal study. Associations of baseline e-cigarette vaping status (never use, prior use, current occasional use, and current regular use) and smoking relapse (vs. abstinence) at follow-up were estimated. Results Among recent quitters (N = 884), the prevalence of follow-up smoking relapse was 31.6%, 39.0%, 51.6%, and 31.9% among never (N = 233), prior (N = 399), current occasional (N = 56), and current regular (N = 196) baseline e-cigarette users, respectively. Baseline e-cigarette use was not associated with smoking relapse at follow-up after covariate adjustment. In long-term quitters (n = 3210), follow-up smoking relapse was 1.8%, 10.4%, 9.6%, and 15.0% among never (N = 2479), prior (N = 588), current occasional (N = 45), and current regular (N = 98) baseline e-cigarette users, respectively. Both prior use (AOR = 2.00, CI [1.25–3.20]) and current regular use of e-cigarettes (AOR = 3.77, CI [1.48–9.65]) had higher odds of subsequent smoking relapse as compared to never e-cigarette users after covariate adjustment. Among relapsers, baseline e-cigarette vaping was not associated with smoking frequency or intensity at follow-up. Conclusions Vaping more than one year after quitting smoking was associated with smoking relapse at 12-month follow-up in a nationally-representative sample. Further studies are needed to evaluate whether this association is causal.
Option Embedded Bonds: The Convertible Puttable Bond

We derive analytics of duration and convexity for the convertible puttable bond, which offers investors a significant upside potential embedded in the long call as well as downside protection of a long put. The inclusion of a long put in this bond makes the bond relatively more convex than a conventional pure bond, therefore, increasing both duration as well as convexity of this bond. We find that convexity of the convertible puttable bond is the highest when compared to other classes of convertibles as money managers pay a premium to acquire the convexity embedded in this hybrid financial instrument
Cognitive Rehabilitation for Individuals With Parkinson's Disease: Developing and Piloting an External Aids Treatment Program.

Purpose Cognitive deficits are common in Parkinson's disease (PD) and can have a detrimental effect on daily activities. To date, most cognitive treatments have had an impairment-based focus with p...
Creating a Multidisciplinary Pregnancy Heart Team

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of maternal death and cases of cardiovascular death are often associated with failure to provide timely risk-appropriate care. This review outlines considerations for creation of a team focused on the care of women with CVD during pregnancy and beyond. Improved outcomes for women with complex medical or obstetric conditions managed by a multidisciplinary care team inspired national guidelines advising the creation of a Pregnancy Heart Team for women with CVD in pregnancy. The recommendations from the European Society of Cardiology provide general guidance for risk-appropriate care without elaborating on the details of these specialized care teams. A Pregnancy Heart Team led by providers from cardiology, maternal-fetal medicine, obstetrics, obstetric anesthesia, pharmacy, and nursing support a holistic approach to patient care while facilitating opportunities for cross-disciplinary education. This team should focus on frequent antepartum risk stratification, multidisciplinary delivery planning, and comprehensive preconception and postpartum care. Available evidence suggests that a consistent and integrated approach to care for women with CVD in pregnancy has the potential to decrease severe maternal morbidity and mortality. The cost-effectiveness of this approach and the impact of this comprehensive care model on a woman’s long-term cardiovascular health warrant future study.
Development of DNA-based microsatellite marker technology for studies of genetic diversity in stressor impacted populations.

In recent years microsatellite marker applications in various disciplines increased rapidly. Microsatellites are characterized as independent and highly variable markers most noted for their usefulness and popularity among researchers. Microsatellites can be constructed in-house from a partial genomic library, ordered from a vendor, or ‘borrowed’ from a species that is closely related to the target species. Microsatellite application in natural populations can reveal present as well as historical impacts of stressors to particular population.
Searching for Competitive Advantage in the HRM-Firm Performance Relationship

Although the strategic human resource management (SHRM) stream of research has made impressive progress in recent years, the majority of it has become centered on the “universalistic” relationship ...
Abstract MP74: Association of Albuminuria With Incident Atrial Fibrillation: The Multi-ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA)

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) shares risk factors with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (CVD). Albuminuria (AU) is an established risk factor for renal failure and CVD. Endothelial dys...
Understanding the Schrodinger equation as a kinematic statement: A probability-first approach to quantum

Quantum technology is seeing a remarkable explosion in interest due to a wave of successful commercial technology. As a wider array of engineers and scientists are needed, it is time we rethink quantum educational paradigms. Current approaches often start from classical physics, linear algebra, or differential equations. This chapter advocates for beginning with probability theory. In the approach outlined in this chapter, there is less in the way of explicit axioms of quantum mechanics. Instead the historically problematic measurement axiom is inherited from probability theory where many philosophical debates remain. Although not a typical route in introductory material, this route is nonetheless a standard vantage on quantum mechanics. This chapter outlines an elementary route to arrive at the Schrodinger equation by considering allowable transformations of quantum probability functions (density matrices). The central tenet of this chapter is that probability theory provides the best conceptual and mathematical foundations for introducing the quantum sciences.
Cash value life insurance ownership among young adults: The role of self-discipline and risk tolerance

Abstract Cash value life insurance (CVLI) is a risk management tool that provides not only a life cycle protection but also a cash value accumulation potential. This study used the behavioral life cycle hypothesis as a theoretical framework and investigated the role of self-discipline and risk tolerance on CVLI ownership of young adult households aged 26–30. A logistic regression model was used to analyze the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 (NLSY97) that surveyed Americans born between 1980 and 1984. The results showed that the likelihood of owning CVLI increased with self-discipline and decreased with risk tolerance.
Trends in the use of computerized physician order entry by health-system affiliated ambulatory clinics in the United States, 2014–2016

Computerized provider order entry (CPOE) can help providers deliver better quality care. We aimed to understand recent trends in use of CPOE by health system-affiliated ambulatory clinics. We analyzed longitudinal data (2014–2016) for 19,109 ambulatory clinics that participated in all 3 years of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society Analytics survey to assess use of CPOE and identify characteristics of clinics associated with CPOE use. We calculated descriptive statistics to examine overall trends in use, location of order entry (bedside vs. clinical station), and system-level use CPOE across all clinics. We used linear probability models to explore the association between clinic characteristics (practice size, practice type, and health system type) and two outcomes of interest: CPOE use at any point between 2014 and 2016, and CPOE use beginning in 2015 or 2016. Between 2014 and 2016, use of CPOE increased more than 9 percentage points from 58 to 67%. Larger clinics and those affiliated with multi-hospital health systems were more likely to have reported use of CPOE. We found no difference in CPOE use by primary care versus specialty care clinics. When used, most clinics reported using CPOE for most or all of their orders. Health systems that used CPOE usually did so for all system-affiliated clinics. Small practice size or not being part of a multi-hospital system are associated with lower use of CPOE between 2014 and 2016. Less than optimal use in these environments may be harming patient outcomes.
Nucleic acid delivery with α-tocopherol-polyethyleneimine-polyethylene glycol nanocarrier system

Purpose Nucleic acid-based therapies are a promising therapeutic tool. The major obstacle in their clinical translation is their efficient delivery to the desired tissue. We developed a novel nanosized delivery system composed of conjugates of α-tocopherol, polyethyleneimine, and polyethylene glycol (TPP) to deliver nucleic acids. Methods We synthesized a panel of TPP molecules using different molecular weights of PEG and PEI and analyzed with various analytical approaches. The optimized version of TPP (TPP111 - the 1:1:1 molecular ratio) was self-assembled in water to produce nanostructures and then evaluated in diversified in vitro and in vivo studies. Results Through a panel of synthesized molecules, TPP111 conjugate components self-assembled in water, forming globular shaped nanostructures of ~90 nm, with high nucleic acid entrapment efficiency. The polymer had low cytotoxicity in vitro and protected nucleic acids from nucleases. Using a luciferase-expressing plasmid, TPP111-plasmid nano-complexes were rapidly up-taken by cancer cells in vitro and induced strong transfection, comparable to PEI. Colocalization of the nano-complexes and endosomes/lysosomes suggested an endosome-mediated uptake. Using a subcutaneous tumor model, intravenously injected nano-complexes preferentially accumulated to the tumor area over 24 h. Conclusion These results indicate that we successfully synthesized the TPP111 nanocarrier system, which can deliver nucleic acids in vitro and in vivo and merits further evaluation.
Accelerating self-gravitating hydrodynamics simulations with adaptive force updates

Many astrophysical hydrodynamics simulations must account for gravity, and evaluating the gravitational field at the positions of all resolution elements can incur significant cost. Typical algorithms update the gravitational field at the position of each resolution element every time the element is updated hydrodynamically, but the actual required update frequencies for hydrodynamics and gravity can be different in general. We show that the gravity calculation in hydrodynamics simulations can be optimised by only updating gravity on a timescale dictated by the already-determined maximum timestep for accurate gravity integration $\Delta t_{\rm grav}$, while staying well within the typical error budget of hydro schemes and gravity solvers. Our implementation in the GIZMO code uses the tidal timescale introduced in Grudic & Hopkins 2020 to determine $\Delta t_{\rm grav}$ and the force update frequency in turn, and uses the jerk evaluated by the gravity solver to construct a predictor of the acceleration for use between updates. We test the scheme on standard self-gravitating hydrodynamics test problems, finding solutions very close to the naive scheme while evaluating far fewer gravity forces, optimising the simulations. We also demonstrate a $\sim 70\%$ speedup in a STARFORGE MHD GMC simulation, with larger gains likely in higher-resolution runs. In general, this scheme introduces a new tunable parameter for obtaining an optimal compromise between accuracy and computational cost, in conjunction with e.g. time-step tolerance, numerical resolution, and gravity solver tolerance.
Why It's OK to Enjoy the Work of Immoral Artists

The #metoo movement has forced many fans to consider what they should do when they learn that a beloved artist has acted immorally. One natural thought is that fans ought to give up the artworks of immoral artists. In Why It’s OK to Enjoy the Work of Immoral Artists, Mary Beth Willard argues for a more nuanced view. Enjoying art is part of a well-lived life, so we need good reasons to give it up. And it turns out good reasons are hard to find. Willard shows that it’s reasonable to believe that most boycotts of artists won’t succeed, so most of the time there’s no ethical reason to join in. Someone who manages to separate the art from the artist isn’t making an ethical mistake by buying and enjoying their art. She then considers the ethical dimensions of canceling artists and the so-called "cancel culture," arguing that canceling is ethically risky because it encourages moral grandstanding. Willard concludes by arguing that the popular debate has overlooked the power of art to change our lives for the good. It’s of course OK to decide to give up the artwork of immoral artists, but – as Willard shows in this provocative little volume – it’s OK to continue to enjoy their art as well. Key Features Offers accessible discussions of complicated philosophical topics like aesthetic value, collective action problems, and epistemic justice Provides a unique perspective and underexplored argument on the popular issue of cancellation Explores the role of aesthetic value in our lives, including its relation to our ethical decisions and our well being
Cancer Prevention in Patients with GERD and Barrett’s Esophagus: Surgery:

Barrett’s esophagus (BE) is an acquired pre-malignant condition that is the result of chronic damage to the esophagus mucosa caused by reflux. Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and BE are majo...
Mice Expressing Regulators of G protein Signaling-insensitive Gαo Define Roles of μ Opioid Receptor Gαo and Gαi Subunit Coupling in Inhibition of Presynaptic GABA Release.

Regulators of G protein signaling (RGS) proteins modulate signaling by G protein–coupled receptors. Using a knock-in transgenic mouse model with a mutation in Gαo that does not bind RGS proteins (RGS-insensitive), we determined the effect of RGS proteins on presynaptic μ opioid receptor (MOR)-mediated inhibition of GABA release in the ventrolateral periaqueductal gray (vlPAG). The MOR agonists [d-Ala2, N-MePhe4, Gly-ol]-enkephalin (DAMGO) and met-enkephalin (ME) inhibited evoked inhibitory postsynaptic currents (eIPSCs) in the RGS-insensitive mice compared with wild-type (WT) littermates, respectively. Fentanyl inhibited eIPSCs similarly in both WT and RGS-insensitive mice. There were no differences in opioid agonist inhibition of spontaneous GABA release between the genotypes. To further probe the mechanism underlying these differences between opioid inhibition of evoked and spontaneous GABA release, specific myristoylated Gα peptide inhibitors for Gαo1 and Gαi1-3 that block receptor–G protein interactions were used to test the preference of agonists for MOR-Gα complexes. The Gαo1 inhibitor reduced DAMGO inhibition of eIPSCs, but Gαi1-3 inhibitors had no effect. Both Gαo1 and Gαi1-3 inhibitors separately reduced fentanyl inhibition of eIPSCs but had no effects on ME inhibition. Gαi1-3 inhibitors blocked the inhibitory effects of ME and fentanyl on miniature postsynaptic current (mIPSC) frequency, but both Gαo1 and Gαi1-3 inhibitors were needed to block the effects of DAMGO. Finally, baclofen-mediated inhibition of GABA release is unaffected in the RGS-insensitive mice and in the presence of Gαo1 and Gαi1-3 inhibitor peptides, suggesting that GABAB receptor coupling to G proteins in vlPAG presynaptic terminals is different than MOR coupling. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Presynaptic μ opioid receptors (MORs) in the ventrolateral periaqueductal gray are critical for opioid analgesia and are negatively regulated by RGS proteins. These data in RGS-insensitive mice provide evidence that MOR agonists differ in preference for Gαo versus Gαi and regulation by RGS proteins in presynaptic terminals, providing a mechanism for functional selectivity between agonists. The results further define important differences in MOR and GABAB receptor coupling to G proteins that could be exploited for new pain therapies.
Protease-controlled secretion and display of intercellular signals

Abstract To program intercellular communication for biomedicine, it is crucial to regulate the secretion and surface display of signaling proteins. If such regulations are at the protein level, there are additional advantages, including compact delivery and direct interactions with endogenous signalling pathways. We created a modular, generalizable design called Retained Endoplasmic Cleavable Secretion (RELEASE), with engineered proteins retained in the endoplasmic reticulum and displayed/secreted in response to specific proteases. The design allows functional regulation of multiple synthetic and natural proteins by synthetic protease circuits to realize diverse signal processing capabilities, including logic operation and threshold tuning. By linking RELEASE to additional novel sensing and processing circuits, we were able to achieve elevated protein secretion in response to “undruggable” oncogene KRAS mutants. RELEASE should enable the local, programmable delivery of intercellular cues for a broad variety of fields such as neurobiology, cancer immunotherapy and cell transplantation.
Evolution of Power Semiconductor Devices in the Modern Era and Trend of Converters

Power semiconductor devices are undergoing dynamic evolution in the recent years. Modern power electronics era started by the invention of thyristor (or silicon controlled rectifier) in Bell Telephone Laboratory in 1956, and it was then commercially introduced by General Electric Company in 1958. Since then, we have seen the advent of triac, gate turn-off thyristor (GTO), bipolar power transistor and power MOSFET. The power semiconductors that appeared in the 1980's are insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT), static induction transistor (SIT), static induction thyristor (SITH) and MOS-controlled thyristor (MCT). The characteristics of these modern power devices have been discussed and compared from the viewpoint of power electronics applications. For completeness of description, other devices, such as thyristor, triac, GTO, bipolar transistor and power MOSFET have also been briefly reviewed. Finally, the trend of power converters has been discussed.
Answering queries based on imprecision and uncertainty trade-offs in numeric databases

Considered in this paper are numeric databases, whose instances are vectors in Rn, queries involve their linear transformations, and imprecise query answers are intervals. Introduced for the first time is a security requirement function ρ for a query, to specify the maximum probability ρ(l) that the precise query answer is within any interval of size l. Developed are random disclosure algorithms that satisfy security requirement functions, and guarantee, under certain conditions, maximum data availability.
Minimal unitary representation of D(2,1;λ) and its SU(2) deformations and d=1, N=4 superconformal models

Abstract Quantization of the geometric quasiconformal realizations of noncompact groups and supergroups leads directly to their minimal unitary representations (minreps). Using quasiconformal methods massless unitary supermultiplets of superconformal groups SU ( 2 , 2 | N ) and OSp ( 8 ⁎ | 2 n ) in four and six dimensions were constructed as minreps and their U ( 1 ) and SU ( 2 ) deformations, respectively. In this paper we extend these results to SU ( 2 ) deformations of the minrep of N = 4 superconformal algebra D ( 2 , 1 ; λ ) in one dimension. We find that SU ( 2 ) deformations can be achieved using n pair of bosons and m pairs of fermions simultaneously. The generators of deformed minimal representations of D ( 2 , 1 ; λ ) commute with the generators of a dual superalgebra OSp ( 2 n ⁎ | 2 m ) realized in terms of these bosons and fermions. We show that there exists a precise mapping between symmetry generators of N = 4 superconformal models in harmonic superspace studied recently and minimal unitary supermultiplets of D ( 2 , 1 ; λ ) deformed by a pair of bosons. This can be understood as a particular case of a general mapping between the spectra of quantum mechanical quaternionic Kahler sigma models with eight super symmetries and minreps of their isometry groups that descends from the precise mapping established between the 4 d , N = 2 sigma models coupled to supergravity and minreps of their isometry groups.
Architectures and algorithms for internet-scale (p2p) data management

This chapter presents the architectures and algorithms for Internet-scale peer-to-peer (p2p) data management. In recent years, a new set of scalability challenges have arisen in the context of Internet-scale (p2p) systems, in which the scaling metric is the number of participating computers rather than the number of bytes stored. This is new and intriguing territory for the design of data management algorithms and systems. The best-known application of p2p technology is filesharing, which despite its sometimes unsavory use, has been a vibrant technology driver. Additionally, there are compelling new application agendas for p2p systems including Internet monitoring, content distribution, distributed storage, multi-user games, and next-generation Internet routing. The energy behind p2p technology has led to an academic renaissance in the distributed algorithms and distributed systems communities, much of which directly addresses issues in massively distributed data management.
EXTENSION OF A LIGHTWEIGHT FORMATION CONTROL METHODOLOGY TO GROUPS OF AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES

A simple yet robust formation control methodology can provide group cohesion and obstacle avoidance for teams of autonomous vehicles. We previously demonstrated a lightweight formation control methodology that uses conservative potential functions and a virtual leader for group control. This technique provides a robust and stable response with very modest communications and computational requirements for the individual vehicles. We have extended this methodology to provide better virtual leader advancement and also outline steps that should be taken to prevent inter-vehicle and obstacle collisions by modifying the eects of certain potential functions. These additions add little overhead to the methodology and have been proven eective in simulations with realistic kinematic vehicle models.
The associations between quadriceps muscle strength, power, and knee joint mechanics in knee osteoarthritis: A cross-sectional study.

Background Abnormal knee joint mechanics have been implicated in the pathogenesis and progression of knee osteoarthritis. Deficits in muscle function (i.e., strength and power) may contribute to abnormal knee joint loading. The associations between quadriceps strength, power and knee joint mechanics remain unclear in knee osteoarthritis. Methods Three-dimensional motion analysis was used to collect peak knee joint angles and moments during the first 50% of stance phase of gait in 33 participants with knee osteoarthritis. Quadriceps strength and power were assessed using a knee extension machine. Strength was quantified as the one repetition maximum. Power was quantified as the peak power produced at 40–90% of the one repetition maximum. Findings Quadriceps strength accounted for 15% of the variance in peak knee flexion angle (P = 0.016). Quadriceps power accounted for 20–29% of the variance in peak knee flexion angle (P < 0.05). Quadriceps power at 90% of one repetition maximum accounted for 9% of the variance in peak knee adduction moment (P = 0.05). Interpretation These data suggest that quadriceps power explains more variance in knee flexion angle and knee adduction moment during gait in knee osteoarthritis than quadriceps strength. Additionally, quadriceps power at multiple loads is associated with knee joint mechanics and therefore should be assessed at a variety of loads. Taken together, these results indicate that quadriceps power may be a potential target for interventions aimed at changing knee joint mechanics in knee osteoarthritis.
Simple Radioimmunoassay of Five Unconjugated Ovarian Steroids in a Single Sample of Serum or Plasma

A simplified radioimmunoassay procedure is described for determination of free ovarian steroids in plasma or serum. Ether extracts were chromatographed on a Sephadex LH-20 column equilibrated with benzene—methanol (85:15 by vol) and estrone, estradiol, estriol, progesterone, and 17α-hydroxyprogesterone were resolved from each other. With relatively specific antibodies, all five hormones were specifically assayed directly after the single chromatographic procedure. Procedures for additional purification are described when specific antibodies are not available. A mechanized chromatographic apparatus was used to purify 12 serum extracts simultaneously, permitting up to 120 determinations per day by a single worker. Assay reliability criteria were satisfactory for all assay systems, and steroid values obtained from subjects in different physiological states agreed with previously reported concentrations.
Structure of the Nucleosome Core Particle at 8 Å Resolution

The x-ray crystallographic structure of the nucleosome core particle has been determined using 8 A resolution diffraction data. The particle has a mean diameter of 106 A and a maximum thickness of 65 A in the superhelical axis direction. The longest chord through the histone core measures 85 A and is in a non-axial direction. The 1.87 turn superhelix consists of B-DNA with about 78 base pairs or 7.6 helical repeats per superhelical turn. The mean DNA helical repeat contains 10.2 +/- 0.05 base pairs and spans 35 A, slightly more than standard B-DNA. The superhelix varies several Angstroms in radius and pitch, and has three distinct domains of curvature (with radii of curvature of 60, 45 and 51 A). These regions are separated by localized sharper bends +/- 10 and +/- 40 base pairs from the center of the particle, resulting in an overall radius of curvature about 43 A. Compression of superhelical DNA grooves on the inner surface and expansion on the outer surface can be seen throughout the DNA electron density. This density has been fit with a double helical ribbon model providing groove width estimates of 12 +/- 1 A inside vs. 19 +/- 1 A outside for the major groove, and 8 +/- 1 A inside vs. 13 +/- 1 A outside for the minor groove. The histone core is primarily contained within the bounds defined by the superhelical DNA, contacting the DNA where the phosphate backbone faces in toward the core. Possible extensions of density between the gyres have been located, but these are below the significance level of the electron density map. In cross-section, a tripartite organization of the histone octamer is apparent, with the tetramer occupying the central region and the dimers at the extremes. Several extensions of histone density are present which form contacts between nucleosomes in the crystal, perhaps representing flexible or "tail" histone regions. The radius of gyration of the histone portion of the electron density is calculated to be 30.4 A (in reasonable agreement with solution scattering values), and the histone core volume in the map is 93% of its theoretical volume.