cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The aberrant fusion proteins PML-RARα and PLZF-RARα contribute to the overexpression of cyclin A1 in acute promyelocytic leukemia

Cyclin A1 is a newly discovered cyclin that is overexpressed in certain myeloid leukemias. Previously, the authors found that the frequency of cyclin A1 overexpression is especially high in acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL). In this study, the authors investigated the mechanism of cyclin A1 overexpression in APL cells and showed that the APL-associated aberrant fusion proteins (PML-retinoic acid receptor alpha [PML-RAR alpha] or PLZF-RAR alpha) caused the increased levels of cyclin A1 in these cells. The ectopic expression of either PML-RAR alpha or PLZF-RAR alpha in U937 cells, a non-APL myeloid cell line, led to a dramatic increase of cyclin A1 messenger RNA and protein. This elevation of cyclin A1 was reversed by treatment with all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) in cells expressing PML-RAR alpha but not PLZF-RAR alpha. ATRA also greatly reduced the high levels of cyclin A1 in the APL cell lines NB4 and UF-1. No effect of ATRA on cyclin A1 levels was found in the ATRA-resistant NB4-R2 cells. Further studies using ligands selective for various retinoic acid receptors suggested that cyclin A1 expression is negatively regulated by activated RAR alpha. Reporter assays showed that PML-RAR alpha led to activation of the cyclin A1 promoter. Addition of ATRA inhibited PML-RAR alpha-induced cyclin A1 promoter activity. Taken together, our data suggest that PML-RAR alpha and PLZF-RAR alpha cause the high-level expression of cyclin A1 seen in acute promyelocytic leukemia. (Blood. 2000;96:3894-3899)
Abstract 14691: Chronic Kidney Disease is Associated with Abnormal Cardiac Mechanics and Adverse Outcomes in Patients with Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction

Introduction: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) are becoming more prevalent in the population and often coincide. CKD has been associated with ...
The Symbolism of the Perlesvaus

The Perlesvaus, even the most casual reader perceives, is intended to have serious religious significance. Certain of its symbolical adventures have been carefully studied as expressions of Christian doctrine, but no one has yet demonstrated the completeness of its religious symbolism.
Paleocollapse Structures: Longview Region, Kansas City, Missouri

Paleocollapse structures represent a major obstacle to be overcome by organizations engaged in site evaluations for the location of large surface structures and underground facilities in the midcontinent of North America. Paleocollapse structures range in size from a few acres to over a mile and are places where large blocks of bedrock have moved downward many feet along high angle, normal faults. They are believed to have formed by the collapse of the cavern-roof and the overlying column of Pennsylvanian age strata into caverns formed by dissolution in thick Mississippian age limestone and dolomite beds that underlie the region at a depth of several hundred feet. Paleocollapse structures were formed during an earlier interval of geologic time and are covered by the regolith. Consequently, they are commonly unnoticed until the intensely folded and faulted bedrock units are uncovered in excavations. Paleocollapse structures are best located by a systematic program of core test drilling but the presence of a paleocollapse structure can be anticipated in reconnaissance mapping from the steep dip of bedrock units exposed by stream erosion, and the modification of stream drainage patterns as seen on topographic maps. Three paleocollapse structures are described from the Longview region near Kansas City, Missouri.
Phase Dependent EIT

We study the EIT of Rb vapor under the condition when a microwave field resonant to the hyperfine transition has been applied. Developed theory and applications will be discussed.
The application of n-butyl 2-cyanoacrylate to repair CSF fistulas for 221 patients who underwent transsphenoidal surgery.

BACKGROUND: The adequate repair of intraoperative CSF leaks during transsphenoidal surgery remains a challenge. The authors describe the application of N-butyl 2-cyanoacrylate (cyanoacrylate) tissue glue for repair of CSF fistulas during transsphenoidal surgery. METHODS: The authors retrospectively reviewed the records of 221 consecutive patients who underwent transsphenoidal surgery during 1998–2007. Among these patients, 52 (24%) experienced detectable intraoperative CSF leakage. The CSF fistulas were graded on a scale of 1–3, according to the amount of CSF loss and extent of diaphragmatic disruption. 39 patients who had an average leak scale of 1.28 received cyanoacrylate glue to seal the floor. The remaining 13 patients who were not part of this report received other dura sealant substitutes, including Tisseel and Dura Seal, or fat/cartilage grafts without any additional glue material. RESULTS: 4 of 221 patients (2%) who underwent surgery had postoperative CSF fistula. Of the 39 patients who underwent repair of their fistula using fat graft, cartilage/bone buttress and cyanoacrylate reconstruction, 2 (5.13%) developed postoperative CSF fistulas without any other side effects. The average intraoperative leak grade in these 2 patients was 2.00. CONCLUSIONS: The authors used cyanoacrylate glue for intraoperative repair of higher grade CSF fistulas. As an adjunct to careful sellar reconstruction, cyanoacrylate glue appears to be effective and safe in preventing postoperative CSF leakage after transsphenoidal surgery.
Seasonality and Dependence in Daily Mean USCRN Temperature

A study of daily mean temperature data from five USCRN stations in the sample period 1/1/2005-3/31/2016 shows that the seasonal cycle can be captured with significantly greater precision by dividing the year into smaller parts than calendar months. The enhanced precision greatly reduces vestigial patterns in the deseasonalized and detrended residuals. Rescaled Range analysis of the residuals indicates a violation of the independence assumption of OLS regression. The existence of dependence, memory, and persistence in the data is indicated by high values of the Hurst exponent. The results imply that decadal and even multi-decadal OLS trends in USCRN daily mean temperature may be spurious.
Long-term survival and late development of bladder cancer in renal transplant patient with progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy

AbstractWe describe a renal transplant recipient in whom progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy and transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder developed. Despite these potentially fatal sequelae of chronic immunosuppression the patient remains free of recurrent disease.
Diagnostic Yield and Safety of Brain Biopsy for Suspected Primary Central Nervous System Angiitis

Background and Purpose— The utility and safety of brain biopsy for suspected primary angiitis of the central nervous system (PACNS) are uncertain. Factors predictive of a positive biopsy have not been well described. Our aim was to evaluate the diagnostic yield and safety of brain biopsy in suspected PACNS and determine whether any prebiopsy variables are associated with a positive biopsy. Methods— This is a retrospective study of consecutive patients who underwent diagnostic brain biopsy for PACNS at a single institution. The relationship between biopsy yield and patient demographics, surgical technique, laboratory testing, neuroimaging, biopsy characteristics, and prebiopsy immunosuppressive therapy were examined. Results— PACNS was confirmed in 9 of 79 patients (11%). Biopsy identified alternative diagnoses in 24 patients (30%), with cerebral amyloid angiopathy (8 patients), encephalitis (5 patients), demyelination (3 patients), and CNS lymphoma (3 patients) most commonly found. There was no correlation between a positive biopsy and cerebrospinal fluid results, neuroimaging, surgical technique, biopsy characteristics, or preoperative immunosuppressive therapy. Smaller biopsies ( P =0.02) and closed procedures ( P =0.013) were less likely to yield a diagnosis. Postoperative complications occurred in 13 patients (16%), 3 (4%) of which were serious. Conclusions— Brain biopsy leads to pathological confirmation of vasculitis in a minority of suspected PACNS cases but alternative diagnoses are often identified. Importantly, rare but meaningful complications may occur.
PCR methodology and applications for the detection of human fungal pathogens.

ABSTRACTIntroduction: Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) has emerged as a promising technology for the rapid and reliable detection and identification of medical mycoses. Recent technological advancements – including microarray, multiplex PCR with magnetic resonance, and beacon probes – have mitigated the technical difficulties of performing nucleic amplification in fungi, thereby improving the sensitivity and specificity of PCR-based assays. In this paper, we examine current applications of PCR in the diagnosis of human fungal infections and look ahead to emerging techniques that may play a larger role in molecular diagnostics in the future.Areas covered: This review includes a brief overview of the advantages and disadvantages of PCR using various clinical specimens, manual versus automated DNA extraction procedures, panfungal versus specific targets, and spectrum of pathogens detected. This is followed by a brief synopsis of species-specific PCR approaches and a more in-depth look at the obstacles to wide...
Occurrence and host specificity of a neogregarine protozoan in four milkweed butterfly hosts (Danaus spp.)

Throughout their global range, wild monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) are infected with the protozoan Ophryocystis elektroscirrha (OE). In monarchs, OE infection reduces pupal eclosion, adult lifespan, adult body size and flight ability. Infection of other butterfly hosts with OE is rare or unknown, and the only previously published records of OE infection were on monarch and queen butterflies (D. gilippus). Here we explored the occurrence and specificity of OE and OE-like parasites in four Danaus butterfly species. We surveyed wild D. eresimus (soldier), D. gilippus (queen), D. petilia (lesser wanderer), and D. plexippus (monarch) from five countries to determine the presence of infection. We conducted five cross-infection experiments, on monarchs and queen butterflies and their OE and OE-like parasites, to determine infection probability and the impact of infection on their hosts. Our field survey showed that OE-like parasites were present in D. gilippus, D. petilia, and D. plexippus, but were absent in D. eresimus. Infection probability varied geographically such that D. gilippus and D. plexippus populations in Puerto Rico and Trinidad were not infected or had low prevalence of infection, whereas D. plexippus from S. Florida and Australia had high prevalence. Cross-infection experiments showed evidence for host specificity, in that OE strains from monarchs were more effective at infecting monarchs than queens, and monarchs were less likely to be infected by OE-like strains from queens and lesser wanderers relative to their own natal strains. Our study showed that queens are less susceptible to OE and OE-like infection than monarchs, and that the reduction in adult lifespan following infection is more severe in monarchs than in queens.
Vaccine Development in Special Populations

As new vaccines are introduced and existing vaccines are targeted for new populations, it is important to understand the unique aspects of “special populations.” The goal of this chapter is to identify these special populations, discuss their burden of vaccine preventable disease and evaluate their impact on vaccine policy. This chapter will also present the specific challenges and concerns with respect to vaccine immunogenicity, efficacy, and safety within these populations. It will also propose new areas of investigation into the optimization of these immunization parameters. The special populations to be considered include infants, pregnant women, and immunocompromised individuals and older adults. Each of these groups will be discussed separately in the context of representative vaccines.
Ethics & Big Data

Abstract Big Data is a digital phenomenon that enables the collection and use of massive amounts of data derived from both man and machine. This data is characterized in terms of its volume, variety, velocity, veracity, variability, and its complexity. While Big Data allows firms to rapidly capture, analyze, and exploit information, it can also enable access to data that compromises an individual's privacy. And this can happen either deliberately or inadvertently. Either way, Big Data fosters a discussion of ethical issues relative to the sharing and usage of data. Ethical debates are typically articulated within the context of ethical theories. These theories help to frame our understanding of moral issues. Their use affords insight into the context and the logic of the moral arguments being presented, thereby providing us with a rational mechanism by which to better evaluate whether an intended action or actual outcome is morally right or wrong. Four ethical theories are briefly reviewed in this paper: Kantianism, Utilitarianism, Social Contract Theory, and Virtue Theory. Each theory is than examined to show how it might be employed to examine Big Data issues.
Testing the Efficacy of a Scholarship Program for Single Parent, Post-Freshmen, Full Time Undergraduates

This study examines the efficacy of a scholarship program designed to assist single parent, post-freshmen, full time undergraduate students and predictors of success among a sample of said students, where success is defined as progress toward completion, academic achievement, and degree completion. Results of fixed effects regression and hierarchical linear modeling indicated that single parents who participated in the scholarship program had higher levels of academic achievement, degree completion rates, and greater progress toward completion than non-participants. Consistent significant predictors of success included participation in a scholarship program, full-time status, and whether someone already held a Bachelor’s degree. The findings suggest that the structure of a single parent program that includes requirements for GPA, full-time status, and credit accumulation, as well as personal, professional, and financial resources for participants may be an efficacious model for other colleges to implement in order assist in the success of single parent undergraduate students.
The Impact of Reading and Spelling Interventions on Students with Learning Disabilities: An Article Review & Analysis

The manuscript has delved into a very specific solution in education; that is improving the spelling of students suffering from learning disability by employing reading and spelling interventions. The researchers themselves admitted that their article primarily focused on improving spelling capacity and not any other aspect of learning disability. It is therefore imperative to state that the primary source of knowledge and learning is reading. Reading interventions often bear remarkable results on children that are underperforming or have a learning disability (LD). For instance, a storybook reading intervention exercise remarkably improved vocabularies of underperforming students (Hargrave et al., 2000). The research (2000) is backed by various intervention studies, and is known to bring improvements. The authors of the article hence completely sidelined, except in one case, a very promising avenue of improving spelling ability by using reading intervention. The authors of this article ignored the importance of emotional stability. Emotionally instable students are known to have learning deficiencies. Most of them do not exhibit reading, spelling or writing disabilities per se, but their emotional instability is often complicit in obstructing their learning process. Autistic children, who are otherwise considered special, were not covered in the article. With very little ground breaking research on the topic, this article too kept itself aloof from the crucial issue of autistic children. The article did not give any procedural advice to parents on how to teach or perform the above mentioned procedures at home, where a significant part of learning occurs. Bullying is another contemporary issue which, in worst cases, results in learning disability, but the paper did not mention it. The authors focused mainly on improving spelling capability, ignoring contemporary issues in education administration and leadership associated with learning disability. The article was altogether silent on implications of the research done on educationist and administrators. It did not provide a formal procedure to reap benefits from the findings. Although the research did achieve breakthroughs in overcoming certain disabilities, like spelling improved considerably, it did not present a procedural and refined way for educationist to implement in their institutions. Moreover, the research did not identify a reliable criterion of selecting disabled students; merely accessing schools databases did not elucidate comprehensive segregating measures for educationists.
ATF4-Induced Metabolic Reprograming Is a Synthetic Vulnerability of the p62-Deficient Tumor Stroma

Tumors undergo nutrient stress and need to reprogram their metabolism to survive. The stroma may play a critical role in this process by providing nutrients to support the epithelial compartment of the tumor. Here we show that p62 deficiency in stromal fibroblasts promotes resistance to glutamine deprivation by the direct control of ATF4 stability through its p62-mediated polyubiquitination. ATF4 upregulation by p62 deficiency in the stroma activates glucose carbon flux through a pyruvate carboxylase-asparagine synthase cascade that results in asparagine generation as a source of nitrogen for stroma and tumor epithelial proliferation. Thus, p62 directly targets nuclear transcription factors to control metabolic reprogramming in the microenvironment and repress tumorigenesis, and identifies ATF4 as a synthetic vulnerability in p62-deficient tumor stroma.
Pulsed Laser Deposition and Characterization of Heteroepitaxial LiMn2O4/La0.5Sr0.5CoO3 Bilayer Thin Films as Model Lithium Ion Battery Cathodes

Epitaxial LiMn2O4 (LMO)/La0.5Sr0.5CoO3 (LSCO) bilayer thin films were grown on single crystalline SrTiO3 (STO) (111) substrates as model lithium ion battery cathodes. The LSCO layer was used as an electrically conducting buffer layer for electrochemical testing. The LMO and LSCO layers were both epitaxial, with sub-nano flat LMO/LSCO interfaces as seen by X-ray diffraction, synchrotron X-ray scattering, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), but with a large LMO surface roughness due to the relatively large lattice mismatch with LSCO. Three-dimensional islands and depressions were formed on the strain-relaxed LMO layer, and misfit dislocations at the LMO/LSCO interface were discerned through HRTEM imaging, suggesting a Stranski–Krastanov (SK) mode thin-film growth. A crystalline structural change from cubic spinel at the LMO surface and interior to tetragonal oxygen-deficient LMO at the LMO/LSCO interface was examined. Electrochemical tests along with in situ synchrotron X-ray scatt...
KEEPING GOLIATH ON HIS TOES: A CASE-DISCUSSION METHOD FOR INCREASING ENGAGEMENT AND INDIVIDUAL ACCOUNTABILITY IN LARGE CLASSES

Application-based assignments are often forgone in large marketing classes because of the daunting implementation and assessment challenges they present. One solution is to divide large classes into groups, but groups present their own challenges—of note, the potential for students to free-ride on the efforts of others. The 4Ps method of case discussion was developed to keep students in large classes engaged and accountable while minimizing the grading burden on instructors. Indeed, the 4Ps method not only enables students to apply marketing concepts through stimulating case-based discussions, it also improves perceived and actual learning outcomes while keeping grading manageable.
In situ identification of azo dye inhibition effects on nitrifying biofilms using microelectrodes

In this study, the inhibitory effects of acid orange 7 (AO7), a common azo dye, on nitrification in biofilms were investigated in situ using microelectrodes. Biofilms were obtained from laboratory rotating drum biofilm reactor after the nitrification process reached a pseudo-steady state. Dissolved oxygen, pH, NH 4 +, NO 3 -, and redox potential microelectrodes, with tip diameters ranging from 3-15 µm, were used to monitor the spatial distribution and change of microbial activities within nitrifying biofilms. It was found that at lower concentration (1 mg/L), AO7 had only a slight impact on the NH4 + -N concentration profiles. The ammonium consumption rate decreased as higher AO7 concentrations (15 mg/L and 25 mg/L) were exposed to the biofilms. A similar trend was observed for the NO 3 --N microprofiles. The nitrate production rate decreased as the AO7 concentration in the bulk solution increased. The dissolved oxygen and pH microprofiles also showed oxygen and alkalinity utilization, but at lower rates throughout the biofilms when the nitrification process was inhibited. No significant redox potential differences were observed in the biofilms after AO7 was applied. Keywords Azo dye; biofilm; inhibition; microelectrode; nitrification
Being a Leader: Organizing a Basic Science Research Program

Success as an academic surgeon-scientist traditionally requires balance of patient care, teaching, research, and administration, further requiring balance of one’s time, money, and environmental resources. A career focusing on basic science research requires a diverse skill set that critically requires similarly diverse training and is dependent on dedicated time and mentorship. Long-term academic success typically depends on success during one’s early faculty years to ensure academic survival and is similarly dependent on the environment of the section, department, and university to control clinical volume and maintain time for research. Management of one’s time and personnel remains a challenge throughout one’s career but provides the environment to keep pushing the boundaries of research and academics.
Beyond Rights: Religion Offsets Self-Interest in the Lockean State

Liberal political thought embodies a tension between the citizen and the community. The liberal state is based on principles of individual rights and appeals to self-interest. Conversely, the political society created out of the liberal social contract must transcend the self-interest guiding independent individuals; the contract creates something greater than the aggregate individuals - a community, whose interest is greater than the interest of each individual separately. The irony of liberalism is that this encompassing community, the purpose of which is to diminish conflicts over self-interest, is itself a product of individual self-interest. This overarching community, then, requires something additional to bind citizens to one another. What is it that can at once appeal to and transcend self-interest? This irony of liberalism was foreseen by John Locke, who took great care to mitigate the extreme focus on individual rights that would likely result in the liberal state. I argue that, while Locke ultimately builds his argument on non-religious grounds, religion ends up being an integral component of the Lockean state, countering human nature’s tendency toward self-interest. Since human nature is self-interested and desires power and dominion over others, appealing to self-interest, while the only proper foundation of government, results in an unstable and uncertain bond to one’s duties to fellow citizens and the community. Individual rights become the primary focus, to the detriment of the political order. With the political order weakened, the rights which give rise to the state cannot be adequately protected. Locke maintains balance in the state and ultimately protects individual rights through religion. Participation in a religious community is a requirement for citizenship in the Lockean state, not because of the truth of religion or to reduce religious conflict, but because it fosters the bond of friendship among the citizens, which is a vital component in creating a community and maintaining the individual’s commitment to their duties.
Two two and one-half? thirty months? Chronometrical childhood in early twentieth century America

Child-rearing books and manuals from the early twentieth century indicate that pediatricians and developmental psychologists were prone to divide the life course of children into increasingly precise chronometrical “stages,” e.g., focusing on changes from one month to the next rather than one year to another. Little is known, however, of whether parents also chronometricalized their children's lives. Working with 206 advice-seeking letters written by fathers and mothers in the 1920s and 1930s to nationally known educator and author Angelo Patri (1876–1965), we develop a text-based measure of “chronometrical childhood,” employ it in a multivariate analysis, and find that an urban environment heightened parents' tendencies toward chronometricity, while the financial strain of the Great Depression did just the opposite. Our results show how age can be viewed as a social construction, subject to the influence of ideology and economics, and that the scheduling of children's lives can vary in different locales and at different historical moments.
West’s Words, Ho! Law Books by the Million, Plus a Few

This essay introduces an interesting but nearly invisible artifact of American law: a promotional pamphlet titled Law Books by the Million: An Account of the Largest Law-Book House in the World, - the Home Establishment of the National Reporter System and the American Digest System. It was produced by the West Publishing Company in 1901 and is reprinted in its entirety below at pages 311 to 339 of this issue of the Green Bag. Professor Robert Jarvis has quite rightly bemoaned the meager public information about John West, founder of the West Publishing Company and an important figure in American legal history. A similar, albeit less severe, paucity of information plagues the West Publishing Company itself (now owned by Thomson Reuters). There isn’t much out there about the company’s early years, and what little there is can be strangely difficult to get hold of. For example, the biggest single source of West history – William Marvin’s 1969 book, West Publishing Company: Origin, Growth, Leadership – is out of print, rare, and not available on the Internet. The same goes for The Publications of West Publishing Company and The Romance of Law Reporting: Serving the Bench and Bar, pamphlets published by West in 1901 and 1934 respectively. Law Books by the Million is nearly as hard to find, but at least it is in the library and in the public domain, and therefore susceptible to reproduction here. And it is worth the trouble and expense. Law Books by the Million provides a readable, richly illustrated narrative of the processes West used to create and disseminate its products in the early years (that is, the late 19th and early 20th centuries) of those simultaneously democratizing and costly, mutually reinforcing revolutions in American law: the expansion of the bar and the legal information explosion.
SU (2) and SO(3)

The special unitary group SU(2) and its alter ego Sp(1) have figured prominently in our story and we have, at several points (e.g., Sections 0.5 and 6.3), intimated that the reasons lie in physics. To understand something of this one must be made aware of a remarkable relationship between SU(2) and the rotation group SO(3). It is this service that we hope to perform for our reader here.
Wildcat Women: Narratives of Women Breaking Ground in Alaska’s Oil and Gas Industry. By Carla Williams. (Fairbanks, AK: University of Alaska Press, 2018. Pp. 230. $21.95.)

The history of oil field workers has often been told through collections of oral histories. Historians such as Mody Boatright and Bobby Weaver spent hours interviewing roughnecks and tool pushers t...
Going with the floe: Tracking CESM Large Ensemble sea ice in the Arctic provides context for ship-based observations

Abstract. In recent decades, Arctic sea ice has shifted toward a younger, thinner, seasonal ice regime. Studying and understanding this “new” Arctic will be the focus of a year-long ship campaign beginning in autumn 2019. Lagrangian tracking of sea ice floes in the Community Earth System Model Large Ensemble (CESM-LE) during representative “perennial” and “seasonal” time periods allows for understanding of the conditions that a floe could experience throughout the calendar year. These model tracks, put into context a single year of observations, provide guidance on how observations can optimally shape model development, and how climate models could be used in future campaign planning. The modeled floe tracks show a range of possible trajectories, though a Transpolar Drift trajectory is most likely. There is also a small but emerging possibility of high-risk tracks, including possible melt of the floe before the end of a calendar year. We find that a Lagrangian approach is essential in order to correctly compare the seasonal cycle of sea ice conditions between point-based observations and a model. Because of high variability in the melt season sea ice conditions, we recommend in situ sampling over a large range of ice conditions for a more complete understanding of how ice type and surface conditions affect the observed processes. We find that sea ice predictability emerges rapidly during the autumn freeze-up and anticipate that process-based observations during this period may help elucidate the processes leading to this change in predictability.
Occlusion and Its Relation to Peri-Implant Diseases

Occlusal “overload” on implants is poorly defined. Occlusal stress on implants has been related to both early and late implant failure. Occlusal stress can cause materials and, possibly, biologic failure. Occlusal forces should be placed on the long axis of the implant to minimize stress on the bone-implants integrated surface.
The role of the anti-regular graph in the spectral analysis of threshold graphs

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to highlight the role played by the anti-regular graph within the class of threshold graphs. Using the fact that every threshold graph contains a maximal anti-regular graph, we show that some known results, and new ones, on the spectral properties of threshold graphs can be deduced from (i) the known results on the eigenvalues of anti-regular graphs, (ii) the subgraph structure of threshold graphs, and (iii) eigenvalue interlacing. In particular, we prove a strengthened version of the recently proved fact that no threshold graph contains an eigenvalue in the interval Ω = [ − 1 − 2 2 , − 1 + 2 2 ] , except possibly the trivial eigenvalues −1 and/or 0, determine the inertia of a threshold graph, and give partial results on a conjecture regarding the optimality of the non-trivial eigenvalues of an anti-regular graph within the class of threshold graphs.
Stable factorization from a fibred algebraic weak factorization system.

We present a construction of stable diagonal factorizations, used to define categorical models of type theory with identity types, from a family of algebraic weak factorization systems on the slices of a category. Inspired by a computational interpretation of indexed inductive types in cubical type theory due to Cavallo and Harper, it can be read as a refactoring of a construction of van den Berg and Garner, and is a new alternative among a variety of approaches to modeling identity types in the literature.
Nanomaterial Patterning in 3D Printing

The synergistic integration of nanomaterials with 3D printing technologies can enable the creation of architecture and devices with an unprecedented level of functional integration. In particular, a multiscale 3D printing approach can seamlessly interweave nanomaterials with diverse classes of materials to impart, program, or modulate a wide range of functional properties in an otherwise passive 3D printed object. However, achieving such multiscale integration is challenging as it requires the ability to pattern, organize, or assemble nanomaterials in a 3D printing process. This review highlights the latest advances in the integration of nanomaterials with 3D printing, achieved by leveraging mechanical, electrical, magnetic, optical, or thermal phenomena. Ultimately, it is envisioned that such approaches can enable the creation of multifunctional constructs and devices that cannot be fabricated with conventional manufacturing approaches.
A fundamental structure-function mapping in the ocean microbiome

Recent work on microbial communities from various environments has shown that coexisting microorganisms with similar metabolic functions can be combined into high level functional groups, independently of their taxonomy. In the case of the ocean microbiome, functional groups inferred from taxonomic annotations have been found to display strong correlations with environmental parameters such as nutrient availability or temperature, cementing the notion that such groups represent the true functional units of microbiomes. However, the general rules by which taxa should be aggregated into functional groups remains elusive, largely because the statistical properties of multi-taxa assemblages are poorly understood. Here, we show that two conditions are required for such assemblages to explain a higher percentage of variance in environmental parameters than single taxa. 1) the taxa - environmental parameter correlations should be of the same sign, and 2) taxa should be weakly or negatively correlated with each other. We call these conditions consistency and complementarity, respectively. Applying this framework to the ocean microbiome we found that the best grouping of taxa is one that partitions it into only two groups, a core and a flexible assemblage. The core assemblage is enriched in taxa commonly found in the surface ocean, such as cyanobacteria and oligotrophic heterotrophs, and was found to be almost perfectly correlated to the first principal component (PC1) of the taxa-sample matrix. The flexible assemblage instead was enriched in particle-associated taxa, which are more diverse and abundant at higher depths. We found that this core / flexible partitioning is the simplest and most robust structure-function pattern present in the global ocean microbiome data and that it outperforms more fine-grained functional groupings based on metabolic annotations.
Open Inginual Hernia Repair – Lichtenstein Repair

An asymptomatic inguinal hernia may be observed. Symptomatic hernias should be repaired. There is a wide variety of techniques for repairing an inguinal hernia. When performing an open hernia repair, the standard of care involves placement of a mesh to avoid recurrence. The present chapter describes a Lichtenstein or mesh repair of an inguinal hernia.
pySCATMECH: a Python interface to the SCATMECH library of scattering codes

The first version of the SCATMECH polarized light scattering C++ class library was released in 2000. This software provides a large number of models for Mueller matrix bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF), models for free-space scatterers, rigorous coupled wave (RCW) analysis of diffraction gratings, reflectance and transmittance of thin film coatings, and manipulation of polarimetric and optical properties. In 2004, the Modeled Integrated Scatter Tool (MIST) was developed to provide a front-end application for calculating integrated reflectance. While SCATMECH provides efficient codes for modeling, it requires experience with C++ to use, and MIST has limited functionality for many applications. As a result, we have developed a Python interface that provides an intermediate level of access to the SCATMECH library, allowing faster development of applications and test simulations. In this paper, we demonstrate the functionality and use of pySCATMECH using the example of an interference bandpass filter and calculations of scattering by roughness, particles, and volume scattering within that filter.
On the Economics of Restructuring World Railways, with a Focus on Russia

The lecture opens with a discussion of the modern history of economists’ treatment of network industries: from cost-of-service regulation through incentive regulation to vertical restructuring. This history is then applied to the freight railways sector, followed by a discussion of the current state of the rail restructuring debate – what we term the European versus the American model, or vertical versus horizontal separation – first generally and then in the Russian Federation. Finally, we seek to derive lessons relevant to Russia from both the empirical literature and the results of recent reform policies implemented in the United States and the European Union.
Currency Warfare in the Middle East: Currency Counterfeiting in the 1953 Iranian Coup, the 1990–1991 Gulf War, and Yemen’s Current Civil War

When and why do policymakers engage in currency warfare by counterfeiting their enemy’s currency during Middle Eastern conflicts? Currency warfare, defined as the application of weaponized monetary...
Role of the androgen, estrogen, and progesterone receptors in adherent perinephric fat in robotic partial nephrectomy

To determine whether androgen, estrogen, and/or progesterone signaling play a role in the pathophysiology of adherent perinephric fat (APF). We prospectively recruited patients undergoing robotic assisted partial nephrectomy during 2015–2017. The operating surgeon documented the presence or absence of APF. For those with clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC), representative sections of tumor and perinephric fat were immunohistochemically stained with monoclonal antibody to estrogen α, progesterone, and androgen receptors. Patient characteristics, operative data, and hormone receptor presence were compared between those with and without APF. Of 51 patients total, 18 (35.3%) and 33 (64.7%) patients did and did not have APF, respectively. APF was associated with history of diabetes mellitus (61.1% vs 24.2%, p = 0.009) and larger tumors (4.0 cm vs 3.0 cm, p = 0.017) but not with age, gender, BMI, Charleston comorbidity index, smoking, or preoperative estimated glomerular filtration rate. APF was not significantly associated with length of operation, positive margins, or 30-day postoperative complications but incurred higher estimated blood loss (236.5 mL vs 209.2 mL, p = 0.049). Thirty-two had ccRCC and completed hormone receptor staining. The majority of tumors and perinephric fat were negative for estrogen and progesterone while positive for androgen receptor expression. There was no difference in hormone receptor expression in either tumor or perinephric fat when classified by presence or absence of APF (p > 0.05). APF is more commonly present in patients with diabetes or larger tumors but was not associated with differential sex hormone receptor expression in ccRCC.
Efficacy of alternatives to zinc naphthenate for dip treatment of wood packaging materials

Abstract Research is being conducted to evaluate potential preservatives to replace zinc naphthenate (ZnN) for use in dip-treatment of wooden packaging materials. In this study, laboratory tests evaluated the efficacy of preservatives in protecting Southern pine and yellow poplar against decay fungi and termites. Nine preservatives were evaluated at one or two concentrations, and in some cases with two dip times. The results of this study indicate that higher concentrations of most of the preservatives evaluated will provide protection similar to or greater than that of ZnN. Four of the formulations provided protection equivalent to or greater than that of ZnN across all of the test organisms. Lower concentrations of some of the copper-based preservatives were less effective than ZnN in preventing colonization of Southern pine by the copper tolerant fungus Postia placenta , but most formulations were more effective than ZnN in protecting yellow poplar against white-rot fungi. The test formulations tended to be more effective than ZnN in preventing termite feeding on southern pine, but some were less effective than ZnN in protecting yellow poplar from termites. Efficacy was found to increase with preservative concentration in several cases, but did not increase with a longer dip time.
Chemistry, Radiochemistry and Applications of Potassium Isotopes

Potassium (K) is a principal cation in the intracellular fluid and an important constituent of the extracellular fluid. It influences a number of physiological processes; specifically muscle activity (ie. cardiac muscle) by affecting the cellular resting potential and the cell excitability (1,2). All cellular activities involving electrical phenomena such as skeletal or cardiac muscle contraction and nerve impulse conduction are dependant on the gradients of K+ and Na+ across the cellular membrane (3). It affects the acid-balance and maintains cellular pH by interaction with H+, Na+, Ca++ ions via ion exchange mechanisms (4,5).
Inherited Ataxias: An Introduction

Publisher Summary This chapter deals with the inherited ataxias, which are at the forefront of the genetic revolution in neurology. Notwithstanding the importance of the genotype in classifying and understanding movement disorders, the ataxias provide a glimpse into the future where different genotypes are grouped together based on the effect of the mutation at the protein level. The term poly glutamine diseases was earlier possible only through gene discovery, but recent advancements point to a new mechanistic understanding to group diseases based on the effects on the transcriptome or proteome. Ataxias are characterized by variable degrees of dysfunction and degeneration of systems subserving motor coordination. Although many of these disorders lead to dysfunction of Purkinje cells, others involve the deep cerebellar nuclei, brainstem nuclei, and spinal sensory as well as spino cerebellar tracts. Prominent neuronopathy or neuropathy may further contribute to imbalance and in coordination.
Transport in finite graphene samples with a random gap

We study the DC transport of finite graphene samples with random gap. Using Dirac fermions to describe the low-energy physics near the Dirac point, we employ a generalized Drude form for the conductivity. The latter is constant for a vanishing average gap but always decreases with increasing sample size for a nonzero average gap. The asymptotic conductivity of the infinite sample is either nonzero if the average gap is smaller than a critical value or zero otherwise. Our results are in agreement with recent numerical calculations of Bardarson et al..
Cells Persistently Infected with Newcastle Disease Virus II. Ribonucleic Acid and Protein Synthesis in Cells Infected with Mutants Isolated from Persistently Infected L Cells

Abstract A comparison of the replication patterns in L cells and in chick embryo (CE) cell cultures was carried out with the Herts strain of Newcastle disease virus (NDVo) and with a mutant (NDVpi) isolated from persistently infected L cells. A significant amount of virus progeny, 11 plaque-forming units (PFU)/cell, was synthesized in L cells infected with NDVo, but the infectivity remained cell-associated and disappeared without being detectable in the medium. In contrast, in L cells infected with NDVpi, progeny virus (30 PFU/cell) was released efficiently upon maturation. It is suggested that the term “covert” rather than “abortive” be used to describe the infection of L cells with NDVo. In both L and CE cells, the latent period of NDVpi was 2 to 4 hr longer than for NDVo. The delay in synthesis of viral ribonucleic acid (RNA) in the case of NDVpi coincided with the delay in the inhibition of host RNA and protein synthesis. Although both NDVo and NDVpi produced more progeny and more severe cell damage in CE cells than in L cells, the shut-off of host functions was significantly less efficient in CE cells than in L cells. Paradoxically, no detectable interferon was produced in CE cells by either of the viruses, whereas in L cells most of the interferon appeared in the medium after more than 90% of host protein synthesis was inhibited. These results suggest that the absence of induction of interferon synthesis in CE cells infected with NDV is not related to the general shut-off of host cell synthetic mechanisms but rather to the failure of some more specific event to occur. In spite of the fact that NDVpi RNA synthesis commenced 2 to 4 hr later than that of NDVo, interferon was first detected in the medium 8 hr after infection with both viruses. This finding suggests that there is no relation between viral RNA synthesis and the induction of interferon synthesis.
Quasi-Copies: Efficient Data Sharing for Information Retrieval Systems

Currently, a variety of information retrieval systems are available to potential users. These services are provided by commercial enterprises (such as Dow Jones [Dunn 1984] and The Source [Edelhart 1983]), while others are research efforts (the Boston Community Information System [Gifford1985]). While in many cases these systems are accessed from personal computers, typically no advantage is taken of the computing resources of those machines (such as local processing and storage). In this paper we explore the possibility of using the user's local storage capabilities to cache data at the user's site. This would improve the response time of user queries albeit at the cost of incurring the the overhead required in maintaining multiple copies. In order to reduce this overhead it may be appropriate to allow copies to diverge in a controlled fashion. This would not only make caching less costly, but would also make it possible to propagate updates to the copies more efficiently, e.g., when the system is lightly loaded, when communication tariffs are lower, or by batching together updates. Just as importantly, it also makes it possible to access the copies even when the communication lines or the central site are down. Thus, we introduce the notion of quasi-copies which embodies the ideas sketched above. We also define the types of deviations that seem useful, and discuss the available implementation strategies.