cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Detection of Immunophenotypic Abnormalities in Paraffin-embedded B-lineage Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphomas

The authors analyzed the frequency of immunophenotypic abnormalities in 1,474 cases of routinely fixed, paraffin-embedded B-lineage non-Hodgkin's lymphomas. B-lineage was determined by immunoreactivity for CD20 (L26, 92%); CD45RA (4KB5, an additional 3%) or immunoglobulin (Ig) light chain restriction (remaining 5%). CD45RA was found to be especially helpful on Bouin's-fixed or decalcified tissue and Ig staining was most helpful in plasmacytoid lesions. Coexpression of the T-cell marker CD43 (Leu-22) was the most common immunophenotypic abnormality, seen in 60% of mantle cell lymphomas (MCL), 39% of CLL/small lymphocytic lymphomas, 16% of diffuse large cell lymphomas (DLCL), but only 5% of follicular lymphomas (FL). Antibodies to CD45RO (A6 and UCHL1) and CD3 (polyclonal) were useful in distinguishing infiltrating T cells from B cells coexpressing CD43. Ig light chain restriction was the next commonest immunophenotypic abnormality, which was identified in 67% of plasmacytoid diffuse small cell lymphomas, 43% of MCLs, 35% of monocytoid B-cell lymphomas and 28% of FLs. Overexpression of bcl-2 oncogenic protein was observed in 71% of FLs (n = 96), but not in a control group of reactive follicular hyperplasias (n = 34). Combining two criteria increased the sensitivity of immunodiagnosis in certain circumstances.
Phylogenetic analyses of the ITS region of ribosomal DNA reveal that Septoria passerinii from barley is closely related to the wheat pathogen Mycosphaerella graminicola

Septoria passerinii, a mitosporic ascomy- cete, causes speckled leaf blotch of barley. Although this fungus has been known to science for more than 120 yr, no teleomorph has been found and its phy- logenetic relationships are not known. On the basis of spore morphology and growth characteristics in culture, S. passerinii appears similar to Septoria tritici, the anamorph of the wheat pathogen Mycosphaerella graminicola. To test the hypothesis that S. passerinii and M. graminicola are closely related, the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region (ITS1, ITS2 and the intervening 5.8S rRNA gene) of both species was se- quenced and compared to those of many other fungi in the Dothideales and Pleosporales of the Loculoas- comycetes. Two ITS sequences were identified among seven isolates of S. passerinii. Six isolates from cultivated barley (Hordeum vulgare) shared the same 569 base-pair sequence. One isolate from the wild barley H. jubatum had a 569 base-pair sequence that differed from the first sequence by seven nucleotides. The ITS sequence of M. graminicola differed from those of both forms of S. passerinii by 10 nucleotides. These differences were large enough that all three ITS sequences could be distinguished by restriction enzyme digestion of polymerase chain reaction-am- plified products. Cluster analyses revealed that both forms of S. passerinii were closely related to M. gra- minicola and were contained within a large, mono- phyletic group of Mycosphaerella species. This con- firms that the teleomorph of S. passerinii, if it exists, must be a Mycosphaerella. Furthermore, the isolate from H. jubatum probably represents a new, undes- cribed species that is separated from S. passerinii by
Supersonic Cavity Control Using Plasma Actuators

Cavity flows are present in a wide range of aerodynamic applications. A cavity could potentially be used in a scramjet isolator as a shock trap to increase the back-pressure margin of the inlet/isolator. In order to avoid a significant drag penalty while maintaining shock-trapping ability, fastresponse resonance suppression is required. Localized Arc Filament Plasma Actuators (LAFPAs) have demonstrated the ability to control a high subsonic cavity flow. 1 This work investigates the control authority of the LAFPAs in a supersonic (M = 2.24) cavity flow. The LAFPAs significantly suppress the primary cavity resonance. Additionally, the trend in effectiveness suggests that inducing mode competition through the excitation of the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability, and thus shear-layer structure formation at the excitation frequency, is likely the control mechanism. The effects of 2-D and 3-D excitation were explored. While 2D excitation achieved the greatest resonance suppression, 3-D excitation showed similar suppression with much less sensitivity to excitation frequency. This likely makes it more suitable for applications such as a shock trap.
The mark of key words in nursing article

The key words is the enter of using computer check languge,also a medium of collect,polishing,store and retrieval for literatures,there is very important for teaching,medical and scientific reserach.In order to improve the standardize of nursing article,the article expound the characteristis,action and marks of principles and methods of key words.
Damage identification of oil derrick based on stress and equivalent damage coefficients

Damage is the most important factor that influences the load-carrying capacity of oil derricks.To correctly diagnose the damage,a novel identification approach to oil derricks is proposed based on two indices,stress and equivalent damage coefficient.Firstly,equivalent damage coefficient is taken as the synthetical index to identify the existence and degree of damage,based on which,the damaged stiffness matrix is established.Secondly,the functional relationship between stress and equivalent damage coefficients is determined,and the sensitivity expression of stress residual matrix to equivalent damage coefficients is built.After that,the objective function based on stress is constructed,the direct derivation and optimization method are applied to identify the equivalent damage coefficients.Finally,the method is demonstrated with some oil derrick.Results show that single,two-damage and symmetry damage can be identified accurately.Compared with other static identification methods,it is more efficient and needs less working capacity.
Enhancement of iron chelation by desferrioxamine entrapped in red blood cell ghosts

We have exploited the physiologic mechanism for removal of red cells from the circulation to target the iron chelator desferrioxamine to reticuloendothelial iron stores. Compared with free desferrioxamine injected intravenously, the same dose of desferrioxamine entrapped in resealed red blood cell ghosts resulted in a fourfold to fivefold increase in excretion of radioiron in rats with a selective 59Fe radiolabel of reticuloendothelial iron stores. Desferrioxamine in red cell ghosts did not enhance excretion in rats with selective radiolabeling of parenchymal iron stores. In rats with uniformly radiolabeled iron stores, desferrioxamine in red cell ghosts produced an eightfold to ninefold greater loss of iron in the urine free desferrioxamine intravenously or by slow subcutaneous infusion. Desferrioxamine in red cell ghosts resulted in significantly greater fecal excretion of iron than intravenous desferrioxamine, but desferrioxamine in red cell ghosts and subcutaneous desferrioxamine infusion resulted in similar fecal iron excretion. Clinical application of the red cell ghost method for administration of desferrioxamine and other iron chelators may ber useful for improvement of iron chelation efficiency.
Choanal stenosis: an unusual late complication of radiation therapy for nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

BACKGROUND Choanal stenosis, usually a congenital anomaly in children, recently has been recognized as a late complication of radiation therapy (RT) for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). METHODS We described the clinical history, preoperative evaluation, surgical management, and postoperative course of a case of acquired choanal stenosis after RT. RESULTS The patient, a 39-year-old woman, presented with a history of NPC 16 years before presentation that had been successfully treated with RT On presentation, the patient complained of decreased nasal airflow. Bilateral choanal stenosis was confirmed per rigid nasal endoscopy. Transnasal endoscopic repair with mitomycin application was performed, and nasal stents were left in place for 6 weeks. Postoperative endoscopic examination showed patent choanae and a patent nasopharynx without stenosis. The patient continues to have good airflow 20 months postoperatively. CONCLUSION Choanal stenosis can occur as an unusual complication of RT for NPC secondary to postradiation fibrosis. This is the first report of such a complication in the West.
Effects of performance improvement programs on preparedness capacities.

Objective In response to public health systems and services research priorities, we examined the extent to which participation in accreditation and performance improvement programs can be expected to enhance preparedness capacities. Methods Using data collected by the Local Health Department Preparedness Capacities Assessment Survey, we applied a series of weighted least-squares models to examine the effect of program participation on each of the eight preparedness domain scores. Participation was differentiated across four groups: North Carolina (NC) accredited local health departments (LHDs), NC non-accredited LHDs, national comparison LHDs that participated in performance or preparedness programs, and national comparison LHDs that did not participate in any program. Results Domain scores varied among the four groups. Statistically significant positive participation effects were observed on six of eight preparedness domains for NC accreditation programs, on seven domains for national comparison group LHDs that participated in performance programs, and on four domains for NC non-accredited LHDs. Conclusions Overall, accreditation and other performance improvement programs have a significant and positive effect on preparedness capacities. While we found no differences among accredited and non-accredited NC LHDs, this lack of significant difference in preparedness scores among NC LHDs is attributed to NC's robust statewide preparedness program, as well as a likely exposure effect among non-accredited NC LHDs to the accreditation program.
Reading and Producing Research across Boundaries that So Often Divide

My grandparents were Jewish immigrants amidst vacillating borders and boundaries that comprised Russia/Poland. Moving separately to the United States with nothing but the metaphoric clothes on their back, they met and married in the Midwest. Being defined as “White” in the context of U.S. racial binaries (Brodkin-Sachs, 1998) enabled my paternal grandparents to live in neighborhoods that offered a particular kind of public education to their children. They came speaking no English and had no monetary resources.
Platelet-Rich Plasma Injections With Needle Tenotomy for Gluteus Medius Tendinopathy: A Registry Study With Prospective Follow-up.

Background:Gluteal tendinopathy is a prevalent condition that can be associated with significant pain and disability. To date, no studies have prospectively assessed the efficacy of intratendinous ...
In vitro microfluidic models of tumor microenvironment to screen transport of drugs and nanoparticles

Advances in nanotechnology have enabled numerous types of nanoparticles (NPs) to improve drug delivery to tumors. While many NP systems have been proposed, their clinical translation has been less than anticipated primarily due to failure of current preclinical evaluation techniques to adequately model the complex interactions between the NP and physiological barriers of tumor microenvironment. This review focuses on microfluidic tumor models for characterization of delivery efficacy and toxicity of cancer nanomedicine. Microfluidics offer significant advantages over traditional macroscale cell cultures by enabling recapitulation of tumor microenvironment through precise control of physiological cues such as hydrostatic pressure, shear stress, oxygen, and nutrient gradients. Microfluidic systems have recently started to be adapted for screening of drugs and NPs under physiologically relevant settings. So far the two primary application areas of microfluidics in this area have been high-throughput screening using traditional culture settings such as single cells or multicellular tumor spheroids, and mimicry of tumor microenvironment for study of cancer-related cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions. These microfluidic technologies are also useful in modeling specific steps in NP delivery to tumor and characterize NP transport properties and outcomes by systematic variation of physiological conditions. Ultimately, it will be possible to design drug-screening platforms uniquely tailored for individual patient physiology using microfluidics. These in vitro models can contribute to development of precision medicine by enabling rapid and patient-specific evaluation of cancer nanomedicine. WIREs Nanomed Nanobiotechnol 2017, 9:e1460. doi: 10.1002/wnan.1460 For further resources related to this article, please visit the WIREs website.
On the Concept of Fair Competition Prevalent in Today’s European Soccer Leagues

AbstractThe notion of competition depicted in sport literature appears to be inconsistent with the goals of current European soccer competitions. This paper examines two misconceptions of fair competition which are prevalent in these competitions. First, it aims at refuting the view that professional soccer only requires some basic equality of chances beyond the differences in players’ skills and managers’ knowledge of game strategy. In other words, it refutes the view that professional soccer only demands a notion of fair competition understood as fair play. Second, the paper also aims at refuting the view that fair competition, in professional soccer, is simply a matter of financial viability. Hence, it calls for both genuine legal and ethical reforms, since professional soccer competition requires a notion of equality as both a goal and a right. Such a notion, we argue, must conceive of the differences in players’ skills and managers’ knowledge of game strategy as one of the primary factors in establis...
Microbial survival strategies in ancient permafrost: insights from metagenomics

In permafrost (perennially frozen ground) microbes survive oligotrophic conditions, sub-zero temperatures, low water availability and high salinity over millennia. Viable life exists in permafrost tens of thousands of years old but we know little about the metabolic and physiological adaptations to the challenges presented by life in frozen ground over geologic time. In this study we asked whether increasing age and the associated stressors drive adaptive changes in community composition and function. We conducted deep metagenomic and 16 S rRNA gene sequencing across a Pleistocene permafrost chronosequence from 19 000 to 33 000 years before present (kyr). We found that age markedly affected community composition and reduced diversity. Reconstruction of paleovegetation from metagenomic sequence suggests vegetation differences in the paleo record are not responsible for shifts in community composition and function. Rather, we observed shifts consistent with long-term survival strategies in extreme cryogenic environments. These include increased reliance on scavenging detrital biomass, horizontal gene transfer, chemotaxis, dormancy, environmental sensing and stress response. Our results identify traits that may enable survival in ancient cryoenvironments with no influx of energy or new materials.
Improvement in sexual function after ovarian cancer: Effects of sexual therapy and rehabilitation after treatment for ovarian cancer.

BACKGROUND Sexual dysfunction is a distressing long-term effect after gynecological cancer and affects the majority of survivors for years after the completion of therapy. Despite its prevalence, treatment-related sexual dysfunction is underrecognized and undertreated for survivors. Thus, the aim of this study was to develop and test a brief psychoeducational intervention for managing sexual dysfunction for women who have undergone treatment for ovarian cancer (OC). METHODS Forty-six OC survivors with documented, treatment-related sexual dysfunction received a single half-day group intervention that included sexual health education and rehabilitation training, relaxation and cognitive behavioral therapy skills to address sexual symptoms, and a single tailored booster telephone call 4 weeks after the group. Assessment measures were completed at the baseline (baseline 1), after an 8-week no-treatment run-in period (baseline 2), and then again 2 and 6 months after the intervention. The Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) was used to assess sexual functioning, and the Brief Symptom Inventory 18 (BSI-18) was used to capture psychological distress. RESULTS Between baseline 1 and baseline 2, there were no significant changes in the study measures, and this indicated no natural improvement during the run-in period. In contrast, the total FSFI scores improved significantly from baseline 1 to the 2- (n = 45; P < .0005) and 6-month time points (n = 42; P < .05). The BSI-18 scores were also significantly improved at the 2- (P < .005) and 6-month time points (P < .01) in comparison with baseline 1. CONCLUSIONS This brief behavioral intervention led to significant improvements in overall sexual functioning and psychological distress that were maintained at the 6-month follow-up. The results demonstrate the feasibility of this brief, low-intensity behavioral intervention and support the development of a larger randomized controlled trial. Cancer 2018;124:176-82. © 2017 American Cancer Society.
Diabetes Alert Dogs (DADs): An assessment of accuracy and implications

Abstract Aims To test the accuracy of Diabetes Alert Dogs (DADs) by comparing recorded alerts to continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) device readings during waking and sleeping hours. Methods 14 individuals (7 adults with type 1 diabetes and 7 youth with type 1 diabetes/parents) who owned DADs for ≥6 mos wore masked CGM devices over a several-week period while recording DAD alerts electronically and in paper diaries. Results During waking hours, sensitivity scores across participants were 35.9% for low BG events and 26.2% for high BG events. DAD accuracy was highly variable with 3/14 individual dogs performing statistically higher than chance. Sensitivity scores were lower during sleep hours of the person with diabetes (22.2% for low BG events and 8.4% for high BG events). DAD accuracy during sleeping hours was also highly variable, with 1/11 individual dogs performing statistically better than chance. Rate of change analyses indicated that DADs were responding to absolute BG level, rather than rapid shifts in glucose levels. Conclusions In this study the majority of DADs did not demonstrate accurate detection of low and high BG events. However, performance varied greatly across DADs and additional studies are needed to examine factors contributing to this variability. Additionally, more research is needed to investigate the significant gap between the positive experiences and clinical outcomes reported by DAD owners and the mixed research findings on DAD accuracy.
Printed organic TFT sensor tags

Organic thin film transistor (OTFT) circuits for sensor tags were implemented by all-additive solution processes. The effect of device variations on the yield was evaluated, to account for the constraints of existing OTFT processes. The opportunities and challenges of additive printing fabrication are presented in the context of integrated sensor tags that monitor temperature dose in smart packaging.
The somatic marker hypothesis: revisiting the role of the ‘body-loop’ in decision-making

The somatic marker hypothesis is one of the most influential neurocognitive theories of emotion and decision-making. A key aspect of the somatic marker hypothesis is the ‘body-loop’, which is the claim that emotive events that are expressed in the body can influence decision-making via afferent feedback to the brain. The body-loop has often been the subject of debate. However, evidence for the neural and peripheral mechanisms that support interactions between bodily states and cognitive functions has consistently emerged. The purpose of this article is to outline an updated neurophysiological account of how somatic states may be triggered, and how they bias decisions through afferent feedback. We largely focus on vagus nerve-dependent feedback mechanisms, which demonstrate how interoceptive signals can shape high order cognition and goal-directed behavior.
Insider Trading's Legality Problem

In late 2016, in its highly-watched decision in Salman v. United States, the Supreme Court attempted once again to clarify the crime of insider trading, this time regarding the secondary and tertiary recipients of information commonly referred to as “remote tippees.” In doing so, the Court seemed to put to rest any question that a person who “gifts” a friend or family member with material non-public information for the purposes of trading on such information does in fact trigger a violation of law. As cases go, Salman is relatively straightforward. Nevertheless, it demonstrates several of the drawbacks that arise when criminal laws become the product primarily of cases and not statutes. Ordinarily, proponents of legislative law-making cast their arguments in fairness terms, as written statutes provide advance warning of what is and is not forbidden. This Essay contends that legislatively enacted statutes go further than that. Under the best circumstances, they can improve the content of criminal law precisely because they permit the legislature to differentiate similar yet morally distinct conduct. With this benefit in mind, the Essay imagines what insider trading law might look like were Congress to both define and subdivide the crime of insider trading into the kind of tiered or degreed crimes more routinely featured in state codes.
What Does the Research Tell Us about Prevailing Wage Laws

This paper reviews the research on prevailing wage laws. These policies establish location and job-specific minimum compensation rates for construction workers and apply to projects funded by the f...
Millimeter-wave phased array circuits and systems for 5G

•Largest phased-array chips ever produced (8×8 and 16×16 –complete wafer-scale design). •Highest EIRP achieved to-date from both chips. •Continuing Work: Improve yield, DC power and antenna efficiency.
We Are Still Fighting

Two years ago, I pointed out that the issues behind the Far Eastern conflict were: (1) the clash of Japanese imperialism with the legitimate aspirations of Chinese nationalism, and (2) the conflict of Japanese militarism with the moral restrictions of a new world order. I still believe that these are the real issues. But I now see they are closely related to each other.
Basic Equations of Differential Geodesy

In this chapter we will apply the leg calculus as developed in Chapters IV and V to the geometry of the geopotential field of the Earth. This will yield the basic equations of differential geodesy. Our discussion is essentially a major reworking of the material contained in Hotine’s treatise, i.e. [Chapters 12 and 20], however, we make no use of the (ω,ϕ; N) coordinate system which he employed in his analysis. Consequently, our approach is more general and many of his derivations may be recast in a more lucid and less restrictive form, and our results are applicable to any choice of a local coordinate system involved in the local isometric imbedding of the family of equipotential surfaces Σ:= {S,S′,S″, …} in E3 in which S:= S3, and Γ:=Γ3 is a normal congruence of curves, Γ ⊥ Σ, having the third leg vector v as its unit tangent.
Red muscle function and thermal acclimation to cold in rainbow smelt, Osmerus mordax, and rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss.

Climate change affects the thermal environment of aquatic organisms. Changes in the thermal environment may affect muscle function in the eurythermal rainbow smelt, Osmerus mordax, and relatively more stenothermal rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss. Literature suggests that the trout will be more sensitive to changes in environmental temperature, as they experience a more limited range of environmental temperatures. To examine the effects of thermal environment on red muscle function, both the smelt and trout were thermally acclimated to either a warm (12-15°C) or cold (4-5°C) temperature, after which studies of swimming performance and muscle mechanics were performed. The data on swimming performance and maximum muscle shortening velocity in rainbow smelt were previously published. In both species, cold-acclimated (CA) fish swam with a significantly faster maximum aerobic swimming speed than warm-acclimated fish, when tested at a common temperature of 10°C. Similarly, CA smelt and trout had faster red muscle contraction kinetics. However, smelt displayed a greater shift in contractile properties, such as having a significant shift in maximum muscle shortening velocity that was not observed in trout. The smelt red muscle outperformed trout, with twitch and tetanic times of relaxation being significantly faster for CA smelt compared with CA trout, especially when contraction kinetics were tested at 2°C. The smelt shows a greater thermal acclimation response compared with trout, with more robust increases in maximum swimming speed and faster muscle contractile properties. These differences in acclimation response may contribute to understanding how smelt and trout cope with climate change.
NMM3D Full Wave Simulations of Vegetation and Forest Effects in Microwave Remote Sensing

In this paper, we develop a hybrid method combining T matrix of single objects and Fold-Lax multiple scattering theory (FL), for full wave simulations of vegetation/trees. The hybrid method of solving the Maxwell equations consist of off-the-shelf technique for single objects (e.g. HFSS) and newly developed techniques. The newly developed techniques are the three key steps of the hybrid method: (1) extracting the T matrix of each single object, (2) numerical wave transformations and (3) solving the coupled wave interaction equations (i.e. FL) for all the objects. For step (1), we extract the T matrix of a single object by numerical integration with the use of HFSS which is a 3D full-wave electromagnetic field simulation tool. The method of T matrix extraction from HFSS is verified by comparison with the analytical solution of a sphere. The method is applicable to find the T matrix for complicated object where the analytical solution is not available. Then, the wave transformations are performed based on the translation addition theorem. Numerical methods of calculating the transformation coefficients are developed. Finally, the wave interactions among the single objects are accounted for by FL. The results of the hybrid method agree with those of the HFSS brute force method. In comparison, the hybrid method is much more efficient than HFSS for vegetation scattering and applicable to large problems such as full wave simulations of a tree.
Prophylactic cranial irradiation is associated with improved survival following resection for limited stage small cell lung cancer.

Background: Brain metastases are a major cause of mortality in patients with small cell lung cancer (SCLC). Prophylactic cranial irradiation (PCI) may improve survival among patients that respond to chemotherapy. Less is known about the outcomes of PCI following surgical resection of SCLC. The purpose of this study was to determine if patients who underwent initial surgical resection of SCLC benefit from PCI. Methods: Adult patients in the National Cancer Database (NCDB) who underwent complete resection for primary, non-metastatic SCLC between 2004 and 2015 were identified. Patients that received preoperative chemotherapy or who did not receive appropriate adjuvant chemotherapy were excluded. Patients were grouped by treatment with or without cranial radiation within 8 months of resection. Survival was estimated using Kaplan-Meier and Cox multivariable analysis, adjusting for patient and tumor characteristics. Results: A total of 859 patients met inclusion criteria (202 received PCI and 657 did not). Kaplan-Meier analysis demonstrated that patients treated with PCI had significantly improved survival compared to no PCI (5-year survival 59% vs. 50%, logrank P=0.0038). Multivariable cox models confirmed a significantly decreased hazard of death for patients receiving PCI (HR: 0.70, 95% CI: 0.55–0.89, P=0.003). In subset analyses, PCI was associated with significantly improved survival for node positive patients, but not node negative patients. Conclusions: PCI is associated with increased survival for patients following surgical resection of SCLC. Patients with positive lymph nodes appear to benefit the most, while it remains unclear if patients with negative lymph nodes derive a benefit. Further study is warranted to clarify which subsets of patients should be treated with PCI.
Free-electron effects on the optical absorption of the hybrid perovskite CH 3 NH 3 PbI 3 from first principles

Hybrid organic-inorganic perovskites, such as methylammonium lead tri-iodide (${\mathrm{MAPbI}}_{3}$), are interesting candidates for efficient absorber materials in next-generation solar cells, partly due to an unusual combination of low exciton-binding energy and strong optical absorption. Excitonic effects in this material have been subject to debate both for experiment and theory, indicating a need for better understanding of the screening mechanisms that act upon the electron-hole interaction. Here, we use cutting-edge first-principles theoretical spectroscopy, based on density-functional and many-body perturbation theory, to study atomic geometries, electronic structure, and optical properties of three ${\mathrm{MAPbI}}_{3}$ polymorphs and find good agreement with earlier results and experiment. We then study the influence of free electrons on the electron-hole interaction and show that this explains consistently smaller exciton-binding energies, compared to those in the material without free electrons. Interestingly, we also find that the absorption line shape strongly resembles that of the spectrum without free electrons up to high free-electron concentrations. We explain this unexpected behavior by formation of Mahan excitons that dominate the absorption edge, making ${\mathrm{MAPbI}}_{3}$ robust against free-electron-induced changes observed in other semiconductors.
Surface anchored self-assembled reaction centre mimics as photoanodes consisting of a secondary electron donor, aluminium(III) porphyrin and TiO2 semiconductor

A series of vertically assembled photoanodes, consisting of 5,10,15,20-tetrakis(3,4,5-trifluorophenyl)aluminum(III) porphyrin (AlPorF3), a pyridine appended electron donor (PTZ-Py, PTZ = phenothiazine; TTF-Py, TTF = tetrathiafulvalene), and semiconductor TiO2, have been fabricated by exploiting the unique axial properties of AlPorF3. The new photoanodes were characterized by steady-state and transient spectroscopic techniques. Transient-absorption studies show that in the absence of a donor, both the photoanodes (AlPorF3–TiO2 and AlPorF3-Ph–TiO2) exhibit electron injection from AlPorF3 into the conduction band of TiO2 and the injection efficiencies are strongly dependent on the linker. Faster electron injection and recombination is revealed when AlPorF3 is directly bound to TiO2. Although a secondary electron donor is coordinated to AlPorF3 (viz., Donor-Py-AlPorF3–TiO2 and Donor-Py-AlPorF3-Ph–TiO2), the primary charge separation occurs in the form of electron injection from AlPorF3 to TiO2 followed by a secondary process involving photooxidation of the donor (PTZ and TTF) with AlPorF3˙+. The estimated electron injection lifetimes and the AlPorF3˙+ decay lifetimes strongly depend on the electron richness of the donor; the higher the electron density of the donor, the faster the electron injection and photooxidation witnessed. The photoanodes with TTF (TTF-Py-AlPorF3–TiO2 and TTF-Py-AlPorF3-Ph–TiO2) show faster injection and shorter decay lifetimes of AlPorF3˙+ over their PTZ counterparts (PTZ-Py-AlPorF3–TiO2 and PTZ-Py-AlPorF3-Ph–TiO2). The observed trends suggest that the strong secondary electron donor enhances the injection and the subsequent photooxidation processes in the investigated photoanodes. The successful mimicking of a sequential charge-separation process makes aluminum(III) porphyrins potential sensitizers for the construction of photoanodes, especially for photocatalytic and dye-sensitized solar cells for conversion and storage of solar energy.
Channel width optimized neural networks for liver and vessel segmentation in liver iron quantification.

Abstract Introduction MRI T2* relaxometry protocols are often used for Liver Iron Quantification in patients with hemochromatosis. Several methods exist to semi-automatically segment parenchyma and exclude vessels for this calculation. Purpose To determine if inclusion of multiple echoes inputs to Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) improves automated liver and vessel segmentation in MRI T2* relaxometry protocols and to determine if the resultant segmentations agree with manual segmentations for liver iron quantification analysis. Methods Multi echo Gradient Recalled Echo (GRE) MRI sequence for T2* relaxometry was performed for 79 exams on 31 patients with hemochromatosis for iron quantification analysis. 275 axial liver slices were manually segmented as ground truth masks. A batch normalized U-Net with variable input width to incorporate multiple echoes is used for segmentation, using DICE as the accuracy metric. ANOVA is used to evaluate significance of channel width changes in segmentation accuracy. Linear regression is used to model the relationship of channel width on segmentation accuracy. Liver segmentations are applied to relaxometry data to calculate liver T2* yielding liver iron concentration(LIC) derived from literature based calibration curves. Manual and CNN based LIC values are compared with Pearson correlation. Bland altman plots are used to visualize differences between manual and CNN based LIC values. Results Performance metrics are tested on 55 hold out slices. Linear regression indicates that there is a monotonic increase of DICE with increasing channel depth (p = 0.001) with a slope of 3.61e-3. ANOVA indicates a significant increase segmentation accuracy over single channel starting at 3 channels. Incorporation of all channels results in an average DICE of 0.86, an average increase of 0.07 over single channel. The calculated LIC from CNN segmented livers agrees well with manual segmentation (R = 0.998, slope = 0.914, p«0.001), with an average absolute difference 0.27 ± 0.99 mg Fe/g or 1.34 ± 4.3%. Conclusion More input echoes yields higher model accuracy until the noise floor. Echos beyond the first three echo times in GRE based T2* relaxometry do not contribute significant information for segmentation of liver for LIC calculation. Deep learning models with three channel width allow for generalization of model to protocols of more than three echoes, effectively a universal requirement for relaxometry. Deep learning segmentations achieve a good accuracy compared with manual segmentations with minimal preprocessing. Liver iron values calculated from hand segmented liver and Neural network segmented liver were not statistically different from each other.
Stabilizing Long-period Orbits in Chaotic Oscillators with Open-source Hardware

We show the stabilization of a chaotic oscillator circuit to an unstable, period-77 orbit using open-source hardware. Period-34 orbits have been stabilized previously in a demonstration that serves as a valuable educational resource for studying nonlinear dynamics. This experiment instructs students on the underlying nature of chaos, however, computers with relatively expensive data acquisition systems limit the experiment's accessibility. We impose upon the prevalence of open-source hardware paired with the general advancement of electronics to give a broader platform for experimentation with chaotic systems in an undergraduate laboratory setting. We aim to remove expense and add convenience to an edifying experiment that shows the inner structure of chaotic attractors as unstable, period orbits.
Thirty-Day Re-observation, Chronic Re-observation, and Neighborhood Disadvantage.

Abstract Objective To determine whether neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage, as determined by the Area Deprivation Index, increases 30-day hospital re-observation risk. Participants and Methods This retrospective study of 20% Medicare fee-for-service beneficiary observation stays from January 1, 2014, to November 30, 2014, included 319,980 stays among 273,308 beneficiaries. We evaluated risk for a 30-day re-observation following an index observation stay for those living in the 15% most disadvantaged compared with the 85% least disadvantaged neighborhoods. Results Overall, 4.5% (270,600 of 6,080,664) of beneficiaries had index observation stays, which varied by disadvantage (4.3% [232,568 of 5,398,311] in the least disadvantaged 85% compared with 5.6% [38,032 of 682,353] in the most disadvantaged 15%). Patients in the most disadvantaged neighborhoods had a higher 30-day re-observation rate (2857 of 41,975; 6.8%) compared with least disadvantaged neighborhoods (13,543 of 278,005; 4.9%); a 43% increased risk (unadjusted odds ratio [OR], 1.43; 95% CI, 1.31 to 1.55). After adjustment, this risk remained (adjusted OR, 1.13; 95% CI, 1.04 to 1.22). Discharge to a skilled nursing facility reduced 30-day re-observation risk (OR, 0.63; 95% CI, 0.57 to 0.69), whereas index observation length of stay of 4 or more days (3 midnights) conferred increased risk (OR, 1.29; 95% CI, 1.09 to 1.52); those living in disadvantaged neighborhoods were less likely to discharge to skilled nursing facilities and more likely to have long index stays. Beneficiaries with more than one 30-day re-observation (chronic re-observation) had progressively greater disadvantage by number of stays (adjusted incident rate ratio, 1.08; 95% CI, 1.02 to 1.14). Observation prevalence varied nationally. Conclusion Thirty-day re-observation, especially chronic re-observation, is highly associated with socioeconomic neighborhood disadvantage, even after accounting for factors such as race, disability, and Medicaid eligibility. Beneficiaries least able to pay are potentially most vulnerable to costs from serial re-observations and challenges of Medicare observation policy, which may discourage patients from seeking necessary care.
Means, Motive, & Opportunity in Becoming Informed About Politics: A Deliberative Field Experiment with Members of Congress and Their Constituents

Survey research on political knowledge typically measures citizens' ability to recall political information on the spot, and in these surveys most citizens appear appallingly ignorant. Deliberative theorists emphasize, however, that citizens' capacity to become informed when given a motive and opportunity to participate in politics is equally important for democratic accountability. We assess this capacity among citizens using two deliberative field experiments. In the summer of 2006 we conducted a field experiment in which we recruited twelve current members of the U.S. Congress to discuss immigration policy with randomly drawn small groups of their constituents. In the summer of 2008, we conducted a similar experiment using a large group of constituents interacting with Senator Carl Levin of Michigan on detainee policy. Using an innovative statistical method to identify average treatment effects from field experiments, we find that constituents demonstrate a strong capacity to become informed in response to this opportunity. The primary mechanism for knowledge gains is subjects' increased attention to policy outside the context of the experiment. This capacity to become informed seems to be spread widely throughout the population, in that it is unrelated to prior political knowledge.
Patients Older 65 Years With Early Breast Cancer Prefer Intraoperative Radiation as a Locoregional Treatment Choice

Patients 65 years old or older with early endocrine-responsive breast cancer have many treatment options, including no radiation. This study aimed to evaluate treatment preference when intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT) is offered in this population. The study reviewed patients 65 years old or older with a diagnosis of early-stage endocrine-responsive breast cancer in 2016–2019 at a single hospital in a large integrated health care system. Electronic medical records of multidisciplinary breast tumor board discussion, treatment options documented by the treatment team, and final treatment offered were reviewed. Variables including age at biopsy, language, endocrine treatment, and comorbidities were collected. Regression analysis was used to evaluate for variables associated with patients’ choice regarding radiation treatment. The institutional IORT guidelines were met by 63 patients in the described age group who had a documented offer of all radiation treatment options. The median age of the patients was 70 years (interquartile range 63–77 years). Overall, 74.6% of the patients chose IORT, and 14.3% opted for whole-breast irradiation. Only 4.8% chose to omit radiation after breast-conserving surgery, and 6.3% chose mastectomy. The patients who chose IORT were more likely to receive endocrine treatment (odds ratio 3.70; p = 0.03). Age, race, language, and comorbidities were not associated with preference for IORT (p < 0.05). Patients 65 years old or older with early-stage endocrine-responsive breast cancer preferred to have IORT despite counsel about the lack of survival benefit. This study suggests that local cancer control with the convenient radiation delivery method is important to the described patient population.
Relationship Between Sluggish Cognitive Tempo and Sleep, Psychological, Somatic, and Cognitive Problems in Elementary School Children

This is the first study exploring relationships between sluggish cognitive tempo (SCT) and sleep, internalizing, externalizing, somatic, and cognitive problems in elementary school children using subjective and objective sleep measures. From a population-based sample, 665 children (6–12 years of age) were rated by their mothers on the Pediatric Behavior Scale (PBS) and underwent an overnight polysomnography (PSG) in a sleep laboratory to assess physiologic sleep and its stages. The strongest independent predictors of SCT were maternal ratings of cognitive problems, sleeping more than normal, and somatic complaints, which were more powerful predictors than ratings of reduced sleep, disturbed/fragmented sleep, inattention, impulsivity, hyperactivity, depression, anxiety, oppositional defiant disorder, and conduct disorder. PSG scores were not associated with SCT. The strong predictive power of cognitive problems supports the notion that SCT is related to cognitive deficits, although SCT was also associated with diverse noncognitive problems. The finding that sleeping more than normal was the second strongest predictor of SCT suggests that physiological hypoarousal may help explain the connection between SCT and excessive sleep. The third most powerful predictor of SCT was somatic complaints, which is a critical finding because the association between SCT and somatic problems is under-studied. Results strongly support the SCT construct, including its convergent and divergent validity, internal consistency, and consistent factor composition across diagnostic groups and research samples.
Can Losing Leads to Winning

Can losing during a competitive task motivate individuals and teams to exert greater effort and perform better overall? Analysis of over 45,000 collegiate and 18,000 professional basketball games illustrates that being slightly behind at halftime leads to a discontinuous increase in winning percentage. Teams that are losing by a small amount win approximately 2 (NCAA) and 6 (NBA) percentage points more often than expected. In the NBA, this psychological effect is roughly half the size of the proverbial home-team advantage. Additional experimental evidence corroborates the field test and casts doubt on alternative explanations.
Beyond the Actual: Exploring Constructs of Reality, Knowledge and Culture in Virtual Environments

In this essay I address two issues that emerged during use of the virtual world, Second Life ® , as a tool for interaction for meeting participants that were not able to attend the actual site of a research meeting: the nature of reality in the virtual and the actual and the role of culture. I find notion of ontological-epistemological engines (Ihde D, Bodies in technology. Electronic mediations, vol 5. University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, 2002) offers a way of thinking about how humans engage with technology and technology engages back in ways that enrich our appreciation and understanding of the world in which we live. I also explore the cultural nature of human stance on embodiment as possibly irrational or as indicative of our cultural relationship with technology.
An algorithm for generating transfer functions uniformly distributed over H/sub /spl infin// balls

Probabilistic methods have recently been the subject of considerable attention in the context of robust performance assessment. However, in spite of their potential, these methods have been limited to the case of parametric uncertainty; the problem of sampling causal bounded operators is largely open. In this paper, we take steps towards removing this limitation by providing a computationally efficient algorithm aimed at uniform sampling over balls contained in suitably chosen proper subspaces of H/sub /spl infin//. As shown in the paper, samples generated from these balls can be used, for instance, by Monte Carlo methods to assess robust performance for uncertainty models involving the H/sub /spl infin// norm.
Effects of shade on morphology, chlorophyll concentration, and chlorophyll fluorescence of four Pacific Northwest conifer species

Four species of Pacific Northwestconifer seedlings (ponderosa pine [Pinusponderosa Dougl. ex Laws.], Douglas-fir [Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco], westernredcedar [Thuja plicata Donn ex D. Donn], andwestern hemlock [Tsuga heterophylla (Raf.)Sarg.]) were planted in individual pots and grownunder shade-cloth shelters that provided four levelsof shade (0% [full sunlight], 35%, 55%, and 75%)for approximately 30 weeks. Height growth wasrecorded every 2 weeks. Initial and final seedlingmorphology and chlorophyll concentrations weremeasured. Chlorophyll fluorescence was measuredmonthly. All species responded similarly to shade. Although height growth was greatest under 75% shadeand least in 0% shade, total biomass production wassignificantly lower and shoot:root ratio significantlyhigher in 75% shade than in 0% shade. As thetreatment shade level increased from 0% to 75%,Fv/Fm was significantly lower whilechlorophyll concentrations were significantly higher. These results indicate that photochemical efficiencyof all four species was lower under higher shade. Morphological and physiological responses differedgreatly among species and corresponded with theirdegree of shade tolerance.
Peer and Leadership Effects in Academic and Athletic Performance

Abstract : Many previous peer effects in higher education studies have assumed that peer groups form at the roommate, dorm floor, or dorm-level. Random assignment of students into squadrons at the US Air Force Academy allows us to identify the peer group with which students spend a majority of their time interacting. Using the squadron as the peer group, we find peer effects of much larger magnitude than those found in the previous literature. In separate estimations, we find for freshman students, a 100-point increase in the peer group average SAT verbal score increases individual GPA by 0.45 grade points and a 1-point increase in peer group GPA increases individual GPA by 0.65 grade points. Our results demonstrate the critical importance of properly identifying the relevant peer group when estimating peer effects. As evidence of this, we find that geographic proximity of students in dorm halls alone, as in Foster \201forthcoming\202, does not generate measurable peer effects. We also find smaller peer effects at the roommate level, which virtually disappear once we control for the squadron-level peer effects. Our models correct for the endogeneity of individual and peer outcomes and rule out common shocks as the mechanism driving the peer effects.