cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Association between parasitic infections and tuberculin skin test results in refugees.

Abstract Background Parasitic infections are known to modulate the immune response necessary for controlling Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection. We sought to investigate species-specific effects of parasite infection on M. tuberculosis infection. Methods As part of the Refugee Health Assessment Program, stool examinations and tuberculin skin testing were performed on refugees seen at Boston Medical Center between 1995 and 2012. Tuberculin skin test (TST) and stool examination data were collected for 6669 refugees; 3349 (50.2%) were TST positive (≥10 mm). Results Among TST-positive subjects, 176 (5.3%) had helminth infections and 1149 (34.3%) protozoa. After adjusting for sex, age, and country of origin, helminth and protozoan infections were not associated with TST-positivity. When species-specific effects were examined, subjects infected with Trichuris trichiura and Giardia lamblia had reduced odds of TST-positivity (adjusted OR [aOR] 0.65 [95%CI 0.44–0.96; p = 0.03] and aOR 0.79 [95%CI 0.65–0.95, p = 0.01], respectively). Conclusions Our findings suggest that T. trichiura and G. lamblia may provide protection against M. tuberculosis infection. This study adds to a growing body of literature suggesting that immune response modulation and susceptibility to M. tuberculosis infection is parasite species-dependent.
Management of Direct Oral Anticoagulants with Mixed P-gp/3A4 Drug-Drug Interactions

Direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) interact with mixed P-gp/3A4 inhibitors and inducers to varying degrees. The degree of inhibition or induction of the interacting medication, as well as a patient’s renal function, are important to assess when selecting a DOAC and an appropriate dose.
Rethinking the Virtual University

This paper explores why the virtual university movement may be entering a new phase of development. This phase is characterized by inter-university coalitions that share information and communication technology (ICT) platforms to develop and deliver web-based courses. This collaborative movement is the result of a number of forces driven primarily by the need to address escalating ICT costs and overcome resistance of faculty to distance education initiatives. Complementary resources such as national library databases; Internet-based course materials; low cost, broadband communications; Internet2; and state legislative initiatives are additional drivers facilitating the move toward a collaborative virtual university (CVU) model. This model is examined as a change agent for universities to reexamine their individual roles in leveraging Internet resources to enhance the quality of higher education programs. Leading edge initiatives are also described.
Reconciling DLVO and non-DLVO Forces and Their Implications for Ion Rejection by a Polyamide Membrane

Recognizing the significance of surface interactions for ion rejection and membrane fouling in nanofiltration, we revise the theories of DLVO (named after Derjaguin, Landau, Verwey, and Overbeek) and non-DLVO forces in the context of polyamide active layers. Using an atomic force microscope, surface forces between polyamide active layers and a micrometer-large and smooth silica colloid were measured in electrolyte solutions of representative monovalent and divalent ions. While the analysis of DLVO forces, accounting for surface roughness, provides how surface charge of the active layer changes with electrolyte concentration, scrutiny of non-DLVO hydration forces gives molecular insight into the composition of the membrane-solution interface. Importantly, we report an expansion of the diffuse layer at high ionic strength, consistent with the recent development of the electrical double layer theory, but in contrast to the widely accepted phenomenon of aggregation in the secondary minimum. Further, the enhanced repulsion acting on modified membranes via polyelectrolyte adsorption can be quantitatively predicted by DLVO and non-DLVO forces. This work serves to solve past misunderstandings about the interaction forces acting on nanofiltration membranes, and it provides guidance for future work on the relation between surface properties and rejection mechanisms and fouling.
A unified aging model with recovery effect and its impact on circuit design

In this paper we not only discuss how to implement the recovery effect with TMI but also give various examples to show that without considering the recovery effect, the design margin of a system can be either under- or over-estimated. To validate our modeling methodology, the simulation results are benchmarked with measurement data.
Psychological factors moderate the link between SES and inflammatory markers in pregnant women

Elevated pro-inflammatory cytokines and decreased anti-inflammatory cytokines are linked with adverse perinatal health outcomes. One key contributor to inflammation is socioeconomic status (SES). Data examining psychological factors that modify the relationship between SES and inflammation in pregnancy are lacking. This study examined the roles of repetitive negative thinking (RNT) and presence of meaning in life on the SES-inflammation link among 67 pregnant women. A cumulative SES index defined as income, education, perceived social class, and receipt of governmental support was calculated. Measures included the Perseverative Thinking Questionnaire, Meaning in Life Questionnaire, IL-6, and IL-4. Relationships between SES with IL-6 (p = 0.08) and IL-4 (p = 0.47) were not significant. Using PROCESS, moderation analyses showed significant interactions between SES and psychological factors on inflammation. Greater SES was associated with (a) lower IL-6 levels among women reporting low RNT (p = 0.03) and (b) higher IL-4 levels among women reporting high presence of meaning in life (p = 0.02). These effects only emerged in women with high SES. Findings remained after adjustment for race, pre-pregnancy body mass index, exercise, gestational age at visit, and medical conditions. In sum, in pregnant women, greater SES was beneficial for inflammatory markers among women exhibiting enhanced psychological functioning. Future examinations should identify targets of psychological intervention that mitigate the effects of financial stress on inflammation in women with low SES.
Exploiting convolutional representations for multiscale human settlement detection: Preliminary results

We test this premise and explore representation spaces from a single deep convolutional network and their visualization to argue for a novel unified feature extraction framework. The objective is to utilize and re-purpose trained feature extractors without the need for network retraining on three remote sensing tasks i.e. superpixel mapping, pixel-level segmentation and semantic based image visualization. By leveraging the same convolutional feature extractors and viewing them as visual information extractors that encode different settlement representation spaces, we demonstrate a preliminary inductive transfer learning potential on multiscale experiments that incorporate edge-level details up to semantic-level information.
Staphylococcus aureus, a Food Pathogen: Virulence Factors and Antibiotic Resistance

Abstract Staphylococcus aureus is an extraordinarily versatile pathogen responsible for staphylococcal food poisoning, hospital and community infections, as well as toxic shock syndrome. S . aureus is considered the most effective food-borne bacterial pathogen that has ever evolved. The S . aureus metagenome contains 10s of genes encoding staphylococcal enterotoxins, which are responsible for the clinical symptoms associated with staphylococcal food poisoning. S. aureus may be present in food products, being a potential vehicle for transmission. Antibiotics are widely used not only in humans but also in animal husbandry and other agricultural activities. The occurrence of multiresistant strains in food(s) has been increasing; contaminated food is considered an important vehicle for antimicrobial resistance. Methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) was first recognized in animal infections in 1972 in milk from mastitic cows in Belgium. Animal-associated MRSA infections in humans were first reported during 2003–05 in the Netherlands. Presently, it was reported that livestock-associated MRSA CC398 in pork identifies a potential pathway from farms to the wider population through retail pork. MRSA commonly carry enterotoxin genes but there has been only one report of food intoxication due to MRSA. Antibiotic resistance associated to enterotoxins genes made S. aureus an evolving threat.
1639d Preclinical model of chlorpyrifos exposures and effects documented in egyptian pesticide applicators

Introduction Organophosphorus pesticide (OP)-induced neurotoxicity remains a significant occupational health concern, management of which is complicated by the lack of biomarkers that reliably identify at-risk individuals. To address this issue, we used a preclinical model of occupational OP exposure to evaluate the relationship between OP-induced cognitive deficits and expression of conventional and novel biomarkers of exposure and effect. Methods Adult male Long Evans rats were exposed to CPF (3 or 10 mg/kg/d, s.c.) or an equal volume of vehicle for up to 21 days. Previous PBPK modelling studies confirmed that this exposure paradigm resulted in urinary TCPy levels and blood cholinesterase activity within the range of those observed in exposed Egyptian pesticide applicators. Learning and memory were assessed using appetitive Pavlovian discrimination between two tones and by Pavlovian fear conditioning. Tissues were collected for quantification of peripheral and central biomarkers of CPF exposure, inflammation and oxidative stress. Results Subchronic CPF exposure for 21 d interfered with the maintenance and reversal of appetitive behaviour, but these effects were not reliable. In contrast, CPF caused robust and reproducible dose-dependent deficits in Pavlovian fear conditioning at 21 but not 4, 10 or 15 days of exposure. CPF also increased urinary TCPy levels, caused a delayed decrease in blood and brain cholinesterase activity, increased urinary and brain F2-isoprostanes and upregulated expression of multiple oxidative stress biomarkers in brain and in the periphery. Of these biomarkers, only oxidative stress biomarkers correlated with cognitive deficits. Moreover, CPF-induced cognitive deficits were prevented by co-administration of the antioxidant Trolox (1 mg/kg, i.p.). Conclusion These findings demonstrate that subchronic exposures to CPF at levels that do not cause systemic cholinergic toxicity impair learning and memory via effects on the amygdala and hippocampus. Biomarker analyses suggest that oxidative stress, but not cholinesterase inhibition, contribute to CPF-induced cognitive deficits. Funding: R01 ES016308
Fetal Growth Restriction (FGR)

The detection and management of the growth-restricted fetus is an on going issue in obstetrics. Fetal growth restriction is a common problem and may be associated with a number of adverse perinatal outcomes. There are confusions regarding the terminology and the cross over between small for gestational age and growth-restricted babies. The management of these babies will depend on the underlying diagnosis whether there is a placentally mediated aetiology or a non-placentally mediated origin. It is important to distinguish between the baby that is small, but achieving its growth potential and the small baby who has an underlying pathological process. The importance of early detection with continued fetal surveillance and monitoring in the pregnancy is imperative as well as the timing and mode of delivery in these cases.
Glucose transport in skeletal muscle membrane vesicles from control and exercised rats.

Skeletal muscle responds to exercise by increasing the rate of glucose uptake. Recent studies have indicated that these changes occur via mechanisms modulating the number of transporters in the pla...
Tweeting the Author: Tao Lin’s Performance of Authorial Identity on Twitter

This article takes a closer look at how the American author Tao Lin uses Twitter to perform his authorial identity. Twitter serves as a primary platform for Lin to shape and reshape the public images of him as an author. Lin’s Twitter presence operates as 140-character bursts of authorial self-presentation. The tweets he chooses to post combined with his views on Twitter as a presentational platform show that Lin is conscious of his identity performance, especially online. With this knowledge, he uses the language of Twitter to enact his authorial identity and influence the representations that circulate in the literary world, but he fell short because of the dominant role print media play in images of authorship. To counteract this and gain cultural legitimacy for his online identity in the literary world, Lin resorts to remediating his Twitter profiles into a fetishized print book. Lin’s coquettish relationship with Twitter shows his audience that the platform is more than a place to generate attention for oneself; it is a site for the continual reshaping of identity on a mass scale.
Connecting Key Concepts with Student Experience: Introducing Small-Molecule Crystallography to Chemistry Undergraduates Using a Flexible Laboratory Module

A strategy for incorporating crystallography laboratory practice into various experimental chemistry courses for undergraduates is described. The flexible approach that relates key concepts to hands-on activities allows students to draw an immediate connection between crystallography theory and their own lab experiences, leading to a deeper understanding of crystallography content and making their brief laboratory visit a memorable experience.
Participation in Social Policy: Public Health in Comparative Perspective

Health is a defining feature of life and its politics vital. Governments and international organizations have promoted community participation in public health since the late 1970s. However, we lack comparative studies of these participatory institutions in public health. This Element proposes a conceptualization of programmatic participation and distinguishes between two types, monitoring and policy-making. Falleti and Cunial review the origins of state-sanctioned institutions that mandate community participation in health in the two world regions with most advanced social welfare systems, Western Europe and Latin America, implying a comparative analysis of eleven health care systems. They argue that the origins of participatory institutions help account for the resulting types of programmatic participation. They delve deeper into the study of the experience of participation for policy making and analyze two hundred local participatory projects in public health. Falleti and Cunial focus their attention on the characteristics of participants, the role of health care professionals, and the role of local politics in the execution of community projects.
Health Optimization Program for Elders: Improving the Transition From Hospital to Skilled Nursing Facility.

BACKGROUND Individuals discharged from the hospital to skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) experience high rates of unplanned hospital readmission, indicating opportunity for improvement in transitional care. LOCAL PROBLEM Local physicians providing care in SNFs were not associated with the discharging hospital health care system. As a result, substantive real-time communication between hospital and SNF physicians was not occurring. METHODS A multidisciplinary team developed and monitored implementation of the Health Optimization Program for Elders (HOPE) to improve patient transitions from acute hospital stay to SNFs. INTERVENTIONS The HOPE used a nurse practitioner (NP) to identify geriatric syndromes, set patient/caregiver expectations, assess rehabilitation potential, clarify goals of care, and communicate information directly to SNF providers. RESULTS The intervention was feasible, addressed unmet needs and errors in the SNF transition process, and was associated with lower 30-day readmission rates compared with concurrent patients not enrolled in the HOPE. CONCLUSIONS An NP-led hospital to SNF transitional care program is a promising means of improving hospital to SNF transitions.
Knockdown of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) gene in rice yellow stem borer, Scirpophaga incertulas (Walker) through RNA interference

Abstract Yellow stem borer (YSB), Scirpophaga incertulas, (Walker) is one the most destructive pests in rice causing severe yield loss. Of the many approaches for managing insect pests, RNA interference (RNAi) is a viable option which can be employed by targeting the key insect genes that are involved in host-pest interactions. In this study, Acetylcholinesterase (AChE), a key gene of YSB was targeted for silencing through a RNAi approach. Specifically designed dsRNA from the alpha/beta hydrolase fold of YSB AChE was labeled with 5’ FAM (Fluorescent dye) and used in this study. The efficacy of dsRNA was evaluated through a systematic insect bioassay. Larval growth and mortality were observed for a period of 15 days after the treatment through the cut stem assays. The reduced larval length and weight were observed in the dsRNA treated samples which were correlated with the low gene expression compared to the untreated controls. These results suggest that AChE is a potential target for RNAi approach in insects.
Deformation of stratified rock masses : a laminated model

In view of an urgent need for a simple means of simulating the behaviour of stratified rock masses, a long-dormant linear model is revived, generalized, and discussed in some depth. The model is piece-wise homogeneous, consisting of a pile of homogeneous isotropic laminae in which the interfaces between beds are parallel and free of shear stresses and cohesion. The continuity of stresses and normal displacements is assured across the bedding planes and, to maintain simplicity, the theory of thin plates is used as the kernel of the model. The paper covers the case where the rock mass consists of discrete beds in which the layers are arranged either heterogeneously or systematically. The stratification is regarded as uniform when all the layers are of the same thickness and their Young's modulus changes exponentially with depth; and as homogeneous when all the laminae have identical thickness and properties. The case of uniform stratification is also treated on the basis of an equivalent quasi-continuum derived from the basic model. Attention is focused on the derivation of influence functions. It is demonstrated that the quasi-continuous models, when they are available, can replace their distinct-layer counterparts. The homogeneous quasi-continuum, which permits the derivation of its influence functions in closed form, facilitates the determination of the roof and floor convergence. In the case of a significant class of problems, the convergence distribution is defined by a second-order differential equation in the xy plane, which simplifies to a Poisson's equation if the mining excavations are unsupported. With this result, the paper prepares for the solution of a host of practical problems. These solutions are presented in a series of papers that are in the course of publication.
Additive Manufacturing of Ductile, Ultrastrong Polymer-Derived Nanoceramics

Summary Ceramics would be ideal engineering materials if their brittleness and scattered fracture strength could be overcome. While ductility and extraordinary strength have been reported at the nanoscale, they both rapidly disappear when samples reach micrometer dimensions; furthermore, manufacturing is limited to elaborate approaches, which are purely scientific in nature. Here, we present a robust route to additively manufacture ductile, ultrastrong silicon oxycarbide (SiOC) via two-photon polymerization direct laser writing (TPP-DLW) of a preceramic resin and subsequent pyrolysis. We 3D-print micrometer-size pillars and architected materials with feature sizes down to ∼200 nm and characterize them under uniaxial compression. Independent of size, SiOC micropillars consistently deform plastically with strains up to 25% and strengths >7 GPa, across the entire range of examined diameters (1–20 μm). Our findings demonstrate straightforward fabrication of ductile, ultrastrong ceramics at previously unprecedented scales, potentially enabling manufacturing of engineering systems up to tens of millimeters in size.
How the number of options affects prosocial choice

Abstract Are potential contributors more likely to support a prosocial cause when presented with few contribution options or with many options? Across four studies—an analysis of archival contribution data from the crowdfunding site Kickstarter, a field experiment conducted in cooperation with a grocery store and a snack bar company, and two controlled laboratory experiments—we consistently find that when a fundraiser offers more options to potential contributors, the likelihood of contribution initially decreases and then increases. The result is a U-shaped relationship between the number of contribution options and contribution likelihood. We do not find such an effect for non-prosocial choices. With a fifth study, we offer a preliminary and tentative theoretical explanation for the U-shaped relationship, suggesting that the type of information processing by the decision maker (intuitive rather than deliberate) underlies this effect.
Dealing with Dome Impaction and Quadrilateral Plate Comminution in Older Patients Treated with Open Reduction and Internal Fixation

Geriatric acetabular fractures tend to occur more frequently in elderly population as a result of low-energy mechanisms than are observed in younger patients, due to an increasing incidence of osteopenia and osteoporosis within this population. In the senior population, acetabular fractures tend to be associated with anterior column disruption, quadrilateral plate involvement, and dome impaction. Superomedial impaction or dome impaction occurs as a result of medialization of the femoral head into the acetabulum and has been associated with poor outcomes in elderly patients. Fractures of the quadrilateral plate result from similar mechanisms and are relatively common among elderly patients who sustain fractures involving the anterior column or wall. This chapter focuses on the operative management of two technically challenging fracture components that occur more frequently in geriatric acetabular fractures: dome impaction and quadrilateral plate comminution.
Unbiased, Reliable, and Valid Student Evaluations Can Still Be Unfair.

Scholarly debate about student evaluations of teaching (SETs) often focuses on whether SETs are valid, reliable and unbiased. In this article, we assume the most optimistic conditions for SETs that...
Efficiency of American states after implementation of the patient protection and affordable care act (PPACA) from 2014 to 2017

We assess the impact of healthcare efficiency among U.S. states after implementation of the PPACA. A Malmquist Index decomposes productivity changes of state healthcare systems since 2014. Results ...
The role of body temperature in regulating brain and body sizes in hominin evolution

Abstract A number of models have posited that the concomitant evolution of large brains and increased body sizes in hominins was constrained by metabolic costs. In such studies, the impact of body temperature has not been sufficiently addressed despite the well-established fact that the rates of most physiological processes are manifestly temperature-dependent. Hence, the role of body temperature in modulating the number of neurons and body size is investigated in this work by means of a simple quantitative model. It is determined that modest deviations in the body temperature (i.e., by a few degrees Celsius) might bring about substantive changes in brain and body parameters. In particular, a higher body temperature might prove amenable to an increase in the number of neurons, a higher brain-to-body mass ratio and fewer hours expended on feeding activities, while the converse applies when the temperature is lowered. It is therefore argued that future studies must endeavour to explore and incorporate the effects of body temperature in metabolic theories of hominin evolution, while also accounting for other factors such as foraging efficiency, diet and fire control in tandem.
On the Development of Parametrical Water Quenching Heat Transfer Model Using Cooling Curves by ASTM D6200 Quenchometer

For steels and aluminum alloys, liquid quenching is the most effective method to achieve fast cooling rates. In the example of water quenching an aluminum 319 cylinder head, the temperature drops rapidly within 30 seconds from solutionizing temperatures at 495 °C to water pool temperature below 100 °C. In this temperature range, the water boiling in the quenching process goes through three boiling regimes, film boiling, transition boiling and nucleate boiling, before reducing to convection heat transfer. Since each boiling regime has unique heat transfer characteristics that are governed by different physics, modeling the water quenching processes by computer simulation requires a heat transfer framework, instead of just a few equations, that can describe all the boiling regimes. Among several heat transfer frameworks found in the literature, we had successes in developing a CFD methodology to simulate the boiling process by adapting a heat transfer framework based on Leidenfrost point (LFP), minimum heat flux (MHF) and critical heat flux (CHF). This CFD methodology, when integrated with FEA structural analysis, is the key enabler for virtual process verification. This is achieved by first calculating temperature histories and profiles in CFD and then applying the temperature data as thermal load to FEA to predict thermal residual stress and distortion. Although the LFP, MHF and CHF framework have been proven useful to model the water quenching process, these parameters are not constants and they have to be calibrated through experiments for each quenching condition. The objective of this paper is to develop a consistent method to calibrate the boiling heat transfer framework using cooling curves obtained by the ASTM D6200 quenchometer. Also included in this paper is a preliminary discussion on broadening the standard in order to support: (1) generic cooling curve characteristics for any quenchant, (2) the analytical cooling curve for computation model calibration.
Resection of Spinal Meningioma Using Ultrasonic BoneScalpel Microshaver: Cases, Technique, and Review of the Literature.

Background Meningiomas of the spinal canal comprise up to 40% of all spinal tumors. The standard management of these tumors is gross total resection. The outcome and extent of resection depends on location, size, patient's neurologic status, and experience of the surgeon. Heavily calcified spinal meningiomas often pose a challenge for achieving gross total resection without cord injury. Objective Here, we report our experience with the BoneScalpel Micro-shaver to resect heavily calcified areas of spinal meningiomas adherent to the spinal cord without significant cord manipulation, achieving gross total resection and outstanding clinical results. Methods 79 and 82-yr-old females presented with progressive leg weakness, paresthesias, and gait instability. Magnetic resonance imaging of the thoracic spine showed a homogenous enhancing intradural extramedullary mass with mass effect on the spinal cord. Midline bilateral laminectomy was performed, and the dura was open in midline. The lateral portion of the tumor away from the spinal cord was resected with Cavitron Ultrasonic Surgical Aspirator while the BoneScalpel Micro-shaver (power level 5 and 30% irrigation) was brought into the field for the calcified portion of the tumor adherent to the spinal cord. Results Gross total resection was achieved for both cases. At the 2-wk postoperative visit, both patients reported complete recovery of their leg weakness with significant improvement in paresthesias and ataxia. Conclusion The ultrasonic osteotome equipped with a microhook tip appears to be a safe surgical instrument allowing for effective resection of spinal meningiomas or other heavily calcified spinal masses not easily removed by usual surgical instrumentation.
Reversible Myocardial Injury Associated with SARS-CoV-2 in an Infant.

Abstract Coronavirus disease-2019 is caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) and has been associated with myocardial dysfunction and heart failure in adult patien...
Theory and Application of Analytical Models for Thin-Wire Nanoloop Antennas

Full-wave modeling of plasmonic structures is a computationally expensive process since the electric field penetrates into the material. This modeling often requires volumetric meshing to fully resolve the electromagnetic interactions. As a result, analytical models are highly desirable in lieu of full-wave simulations. Though analytical models cannot be derived for all complex structures, an exact analytical model for nanoloop antennas has been recently developed. In addition to providing insight into the governing physics, this model enables rapid parametric studies and optimization capabilities greatly improving the design-cycle process. This paper presents a demonstration of the theory in the design of directive and reconfigurable loaded nanoloop antennas.
Employee energy benefits: what are they and what effects do they have on employees?

Employee energy benefits (EEBs), such as subsidies for employee home energy audits and financial incentives for carpooling to work, aim to influence employees’ environmental behaviors outside of work. Exploring these understudied benefits would offer new insights that can enrich theories of employer and employee motivations for engaging in environmental behavior, as well as reveal new strategies for making significant progress on environment goals. By drawing upon employer reports and conducting a survey of 482 US adults employed full-time, we found that there are a wide range of types of EEBs currently offered by employers, and furthermore, they were more likely to be offered in certain industries, such as state and local governments but not others such as retail. These benefits were offered to 17% of employees and included a vast array of strategies and approaches. Guided by theorizing on employer and employee motivation, open-ended responses suggested employers were perceived to offer EEBs to maximize competiveness and because of social responsibility concerns, and employees tended to enroll because they wanted to save money and time or because they cared about the environment. Finally, EEBs were linked to employee environmental behavior and morale. The findings reveal new information about the types of EEBs being offered, motivations for offering and enrolling in EEBs, and their relationship to employee behavior and morale. This work suggests numerous lines of promising new research.
Quality control and crop characterization framework for multi-temporal UAV LiDAR data over mechanized agricultural fields

Abstract Recent developments in remote sensing are enabling automatic, high resolution, and non-destructive survey of agriculture fields, providing the key basis for advancing plant breeding. Among the used remote sensing modalities, LiDAR has attracted wide attention for its ability to directly provide accurate 3D information. Despite the increasing utilization of LiDAR technology in phenotyping, there is still a lack of effective quality control strategies, in particular, quality control of LiDAR data collected on a multi-temporal basis. This study proposes a targetless framework for multi-temporal LiDAR data quality control and crop characterization in mechanized agricultural fields. Features extracted from the fields – terrain patches and row/alley locations – are utilized for evaluating the vertical and planimetric relative accuracy of the point clouds. Row/alley locations in the field are automatically identified from the point clouds based on the assumption that higher point density and/or higher elevation correspond to plant locations. The performance of the proposed quality control strategies is evaluated using multi-temporal datasets collected in agricultural fields of different sizes, orientation, crops, and growth stages. The result shows that the net vertical and planimetric discrepancies between multi-temporal point clouds are ±3 cm and ±8 cm, respectively. While the former reflects the actual accuracy of the point clouds, the latter is a combined effect of the LiDAR point cloud accuracy, rasterization artifacts, crop type, growth pattern, and wind condition during data acquisition. In terms of row and alley detection, the result shows that the proposed strategy achieves high performance and can deal with different planting orientation, crop types, growth stages, canopy cover, and planting density. In conclusion, this study presents a quality control framework for multi-temporal LiDAR data. Moreover, the row and alley detection leads to automated extraction of plots, and hence facilitates the use of remotely sensed data for automated phenotyping.
A Whole Virion Vaccine for COVID-19 Produced via a Novel Inactivation Method and Preliminary Demonstration of Efficacy in an Animal Challenge Model

The COVID-19 pandemic has generated intense interest in the rapid development and evaluation of vaccine candidates for this disease and other emerging diseases. Several novel methods for preparing vaccine candidates are currently undergoing clinical evaluation in response to the urgent need to prevent the spread of COVID-19. In many cases, these methods rely on new approaches for vaccine production and immune stimulation. We report on the use of a novel method (SolaVAX) for production of an inactivated vaccine candidate and the testing of that candidate in a hamster animal model for its ability to prevent infection upon challenge with SARS-CoV-2 virus. The studies employed in this work included an evaluation of the levels of neutralizing antibody produced post-vaccination, levels of specific antibody sub-types to RBD and spike protein that were generated, evaluation of viral shedding post-challenge, flow cytometric and single cell sequencing data on cellular fractions and histopathological evaluation of tissues post-challenge. The results from this preliminary evaluation provide insight into the immunological responses occurring as a result of vaccination with the proposed vaccine candidate and the impact that adjuvant formulations, specifically developed to promote Th1 type immune responses, have on vaccine efficacy and protection against infection following challenge with live SARS-CoV-2. This data may have utility in the development of effective vaccine candidates broadly. Furthermore, the results of this preliminary evaluation suggest that preparation of a whole virion vaccine for COVID-19 using this specific photochemical method may have potential utility in the preparation of one such vaccine candidate.
Is Dislocation Risk due to Posterior Pelvic Tilt Reduced With Direct Anterior Approach Total Hip Arthroplasty

Abstract Background Pelvic tilt affects acetabular anteversion, and thus total hip arthroplasty (THA) dislocation risk. The pubic symphysis-sacrococcygeal distance (PSCD) is an indicator of pelvic tilt, and a PSCD Methods Standing anteroposterior radiographs were reviewed for 510 consecutive DA THAs to determine PSCD. Patients were separated into 2 groups: (1) PSCD > 0 mm (PSCD[+]) and (2) PSCD Results Three hundred fifty-eight hips (70.2%) were PSCD[+], while 152 hips (29.8%) were PSCD[−]. Three dislocations (3/510 hips, 0.6%) occurred. Two dislocators were in the PSCD[−] group (2/152 hips, 1.3%) and 1 dislocator was in the PSCD[+] group (1/358 hips, 0.3%) (P = .21). Twenty-four patients had degenerative scoliosis (24/510, 4.7%), of which 1 had a dislocation (1/24, 4.2%); 2 dislocations occurred in nonscoliosis patients (2/486, 0.4%) (P = .134). Twenty-seven patients had lumbar spinal fusion (27/510, 5.3%), of which there were no dislocations (0/27, 0.0%); all dislocations were in nonfusion patients (3/483, 0.6%) (P = 1.0). Conclusion We demonstrate no increased risk for THA dislocation in patients with a PSCD
Analysis of a System Controlled by a Relay with Dead Zone, Hysteresis and Integral Feedback

The applicability of the describing function method of analysis to a plant/controller system containing a nonlinear relay with feedback is investigated. A second order plant model is employed, with system parameters based on a ship steering system application. Analytical predictions of limit-cycle behavior are made and are found to be in disagreement with time-domain results. It is hypothesized that the theory fails due to insufficient filtering of harmonics in the relay feedback loop. The system is theoretically modified to include additional filtering in the feedback loop to test this hypothesis, and good correlation between theory and time-domain results is observed. Implications for plant/controller design and the ship steering problem are discussed.
Source water impact model (SWIM) - a watershed guided approach as a new planing tool for indirect potable water reuse

The scope of this study was to develop a model to assess the impact of source water quality on reclaimed water used for indirect potable reuse. The source water impact model (SWIM) considered source water qualities, water supply distribution data, water use and the impact of wastewater treatment to calculate reclaimed water quality. It was applied for sulfate, chloride, and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) at four water reuse sites in Arizona and California. SWIM was able to differentiate between the amount of salts derived by drinking water sources and the amount added by consumers. At all sites, the magnitude of organic residuals in reclaimed water was strongly effected by the concentration of organics in corresponding water sources and effluent-derived organic matter. SWIM can be used as a tool to predict reclaimed water quality in existing or planned water reuse systems.
Changes in luminal fluid protein composition in the rat cauda epididymidis following partial sympathetic denervation.

Sympathetic denervation of the rat cauda epididymidis by surgical removal of the inferior mesenteric ganglion (1MG) results in an excessive accumulation of sperm in the cauda epididymidis as well as significant changes in cauda sperm motility and cauda epi- didymal gross histology. The objective of the present study was to determine if the cauda-specific changes in sperm storage, sperm motility, and epididymal histology following the loss of sympathetic innervation were accompanied by changes in the protein composition of epididymal fluid. One and 4 weeks after surgical 1MG removal or sham operations, luminal fluid obtained from the caput and cauda epididymidis and cauda epididymal sperm-associated proteins were subjected to two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electroptioresis (2-0 PAGE) and silver-stained proteins were quantitated. One week after 1MG removal, two cauda epididymal fluid (CEF) proteins (2 and 13) had increased 43% and 49%, respectively, whereas four CEF pro- teins (5, 8, 9, and 19) had decreased between 30% and 73% com- pared to controls. Four weeks after 1MG removal, changes in CEF proteins observed 1 week following surgery were no longer present, but the staining intensities of three additional CEF proteins (11, 12, and 18) were reduced an average of 70% compared to control CEF proteins. By obstructing the cauda epididymidis, we confirmed that the changes in CEF protein composition observed following 1MG removal were not the result of sperm accumulation but were due directly to the loss of innervation; the staining intensity of CEF protein 2 increased as a result of excessive sperm accumulation in the cauda epididymidis both in the presence and absence of innervation from the 1MG. No significant changes in caput epididymal fluid proteins or cauda epididymal sperm-associated proteins were detected fol- lowing 1MGremoval. These data show that the protein composition of rat CEF is significantly affected by the loss of sympathetic inner- vation and suggest that neuronal input may play an important role in the maintenance of epididymal function.
The 'Boston' School-Choice Mechanism

The Boston mechanism is a popular student-placement mechanism in school-choice programs around the world. We provide two characterizations of the Boston mechanism. We introduce a new axiom, respect of preference rankings. A mechanism is the Boston mechanism for some priority if and only if it respects preference rankings and satisfies consistency, resource monotonicity, and an auxiliary invariance property. In environments where each type of object has exactly one unit, as in house allocation, a characterization is given by respect of preference rankings, individual rationality, population monotonicity, and the auxiliary invariance property.
Molecular Mechanisms of Acid Denaturation: The Role of Histidine Residues in the Partial Unfolding of Apomyoglobin

Apomyoglobin adopts a partly folded intermediate conformation (I), sometimes referred to as a molten globule intermediate, near pH 4. To determine which histidine residues trigger this partial unfolding reaction, we made mutants in which nine of the twelve histidine residues in the protein are substituted individually. We then measured acid and urea-induced unfolding curves for these substituted proteins. Two acid unfolding transitions are observed: native (N) to intermediate (I), and I to unfolded (U). These data were fitted using a simple three-state model which has been shown to give an adequate description of acid and urea-induced unfolding of wild-type apomyoglobin. The aim is to quantify changes in the apparent standard Gibbs energy differences between N, I and U, as well as the unfolding mechanism, that result from these substitutions, and to test how well the model fits data for substituted proteins. In most cases, the model fits the data reasonably well, and significant changes in fitted unfolding parameters of various mutants are also clearly visible in the primary data. The following conclusions are drawn. (1) Histidines 24 and 119 synergistically stabilize native apomyoglobin (N) at pH 8, but together destabilize N as pH is decreased below seven. (2) Histidine 36 stabilizes N when it is protonated. (3) Histidine substitutions in the heme-binding pocket (residues 64, 93 and 97) have little effect on the stability of N, suggesting that the heme-binding pocket is open. (4) Histidine substitutions affect the N to I transition but have little effect on the I to U transition. (5) The simple model we use to describe the unfolding of apomyoglobin cannot account for all the data, particularly the effects of the H36Q mutation. The effect of protonated histidine 36 on stabilizing N is not included in the model. We suggest that breaking the hydrogen bond between histidines 24 and 119 by protonation when the pH is decreased from 6 to 4 is an important part of triggering the partial unfolding of N to I, and likewise that formation of the hydrogen bond between histidines 24 and 119 may be a rate-determining step in the kinetic process of forming N from I during refolding.
Sedimentation in Floodplains of Selected Tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay

Coastal Plain floodplains in the Mid-Atlantic United States are the last place for sediment storage before reaching sensitive estuarine and marine environments. Field monitoring of sedimentation rates and patterns, suspended-sediment concentrations, substrate characteristics, and woody vegetation has been conducted in eight 1-ha floodplain sites during 2000–02 to describe the main controls on sedimentation and to determine the effects of channelization and urbanization on floodplain fluvial geomorphic processes and sedimentation patterns along three tributaries to the Chesapeake Bay. These tributaries include the Chickahominy River, the Pocomoke River, and Dragon Run. Site-scale deposition patterns are spatially highly variable. Multiple regression analyses were used to determine that inundation frequency and duration, and lateral distance from the channel and sloughs jointly explain most of this variation (between 65 and 85%). Channelized floodplain reaches are flooded less frequently, have lower sedimentation rates (0.19 mm/yr to 3.2 mm/yr), less storage (700 metric t-sediment/yr to 1,090 metric t-sediment/yr) and less diversity than the nonchannelized reaches. Inundation (from 27 days/yr to 97 days/yr), sedimentation rates (3 mm/yr to 7.2 mm/yr), and diversity (0.36 to 0.84 on the Shannon-Weiner diversity index) increase with distance from urbanization along the Chickahominy River. These results suggest that understanding floodplain sediment and community dynamics and geomorphic processes with respect to dominant watershed land-use patterns is critical for effective water-quality management and restoration efforts.
Hilbert Polynomial of a Certain Ladder-Determinantal Ideal

A ladder-shaped array is a subset of a rectangular array which looks like a Ferrers diagram corresponding to a partition of a positive integer. The ideals generated by the p-by-p minors of a ladder-type array of indeterminates in the corresponding polynomial ring have been shown to be hilbertian (i.e., their Hilbert functions coincide with Hilbert polynomials for all nonnegative integers) by Abhyankar and Kulkarni l3, p 53–76r. We exhibit here an explicit expression for the Hilbert polynomial of the ideal generated by the two-by-two minors of a ladder-type array of indeterminates in the corresponding polynomial ring. Counting the number of paths in the corresponding rectangular array having a fixed number of “turning points” above the path corresponding to the ladder is an essential ingredient of the combinatorial construction of the Hilbert polynomial. This gives a constructive proof of the hilbertianness of the ideal generated by the two-by-two minors of a ladder-type array of indeterminates.
Pathophysiology of cancer-associated hypercalcemia

During the past decade, specific mediators of bone destruction in hypercalcemia of malignancy have been identified and characterized. These humoral factors include parathyroid hormone-related protein, transforming growth factor alpha, and cytokines such as interleukin-1 and tumor necrosis factor. In metastatic hypercalcemia associated with breast cancer, prostaglandin secretion by tumor cells may be one of the important factors. Among the osteoclast activating factors associated with hypercalcemia in patients with myeloma, lymphotoxin plays a central but probably not exclusive role. Alterations of renal function in hematologic hypercalcemia may potentiate bone destruction that usually occurs in the presence of impaired rates of glomerular filtration. Further research is required to determine the relative contributions of bone and kidney to the pathogenesis of hypercalcemia of malignancy.
Actinometric measurement of j[O3‐O(1D)] using a luminol detector

The photolysis frequency of ozone to singlet D oxygen atoms has been measured by means of a chemical actinometer using a luminol based detector. The instrument measures j(O3-O(1D)) with a precision of 10 percent. The data collected in winter and spring of 1991 is in agreement with model predictions and previously measured values. Data from a global solar radiometer can be used to estimate the effects of local cloudiness on j(O3-O(1D)).