cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Computers in the CS1 Classroom

There are two basic approaches to flipping an introduction to programming class (CS1). One involves requiring all students to bring computers to class and to work alone or in groups to solve programming problems. The other approach is to ban computers from the classroom and to require students to solve programming problems on paper. In both approaches the studentsâ attempts are shared with the class and discussed. In this work, we describe an experiment in which we compared these two approaches for a large programming class. We found that the use of computers had no statistically significant effect on the studentsâ learning outcomes, enjoyment of the material, self-assessment of their understanding, use of teaching assistant resources, or self-estimate of how many hours they invested outside of the classroom. We did find that a statistically significant number of students preferred problem solving with friends using computers rather than on paper. We also found that the instructor had much more detailed information about individual studentâs interaction in class when computers were used, since all student interaction with the coding tools could be logged and analysed. We conclude that, although many faculty are wary of requiring computer use in large classes, there is evidence that students prefer it, it does not negatively affect learning outcomes, and with appropriate tools and pedagogy, it gives the instructor a much deeper and more nuanced view of student performance in the class.
Brokerage and Closure in Emergency Management Networks

Research into emergency management has made clear that collaboration is a common strategy to prepare for and respond to disasters. The Department of Homeland Security has embraced a "whole-of-government" approach within its most recent quadrennial report. At times, it has broadened this approach to include non-governmental organizations in a "whole-of-society" approach - particularly within public health preparedness efforts. It has become clear that the future of emergency management will require extensive collaboration between government and nongovernmental organizations.Attitudes among practicing emergency managers towards collaboration, however, are quite mixed. While the official training material from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) emphasizes that emergency managers are facilitators who must rely on collaboration to accomplish key mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery operations, many emergency managers are skeptical of the value of broad and diverse emergency management networks. Skeptics fear that efforts at collaboration trade-off with time dealing with internal administrative needs and further developing relationships with organizations already a part of an organization's network.Relying on theories of social networking, this paper introduces alternative strategies for emergency management collaborations based on bridging and bonding approaches to building collaborative capacity. The bridging approach, popular among the promoters of broad collaboration in emergency management, emphasizes the use of diverse collaborative partners to provide access to a wide range of resources and information. The bonding approach, common among skeptics of broad collaboration in emergency management, emphasizes collaboration with only those organizations that are similar to ones own in order to reduce communication problems and other symptoms of cultural conflict.This article illustrates these two strategies using semi-structured interview data from emergency management organizations that exemplify each approach. The interview data serve as the foundation for a typology of collaborative strategies based on the bridging/bonding trade-off within the specific context of emergency management. The article concludes with a discussion of the costs and benefits of each strategy.
A giant pancreatic pseudocyst treated by cystogastrostomy

We report a case of a giant pancreatic pseudocyst in a 65-year-old man presenting with abdominal pain, loss of appetite and abdominal distension. CT scans demonstrated a giant pancreatic pseudocyst measuring 25.7 cm×15.3 cm×10.9 cm anteroposteriorly, with significant compression of surrounding organs. An open cystogastrostomy was performed through a midline incision, and 3 L of fluid was drained from the giant pseudocyst. Recovery has been uneventful.
Single Particle Cryo-EM of Calcium Release Channels

Ca2+ Release Channels (CRCs) are intracellular ligand-gated Ca2+ channels that are responsible for an increase of cytosolic Ca2+ levels in response to diverse stimuli. Two closely related families, ryanodine receptors (RyRs) and inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptors (IP3Rs), constitute this class of the tetrameric ion channels localized in SR/ER membranes of all eukaryotic cells. Despite long-established efforts of multiple groups, structural analysis of CRCs have proven difficult due to their inherent dynamic nature and their enormous size (1.3 MDa for IP3Rs and 2.3 MDa for RyRs), making X-ray or NMR techniques poorly suited for structural studies of these membrane proteins. The best current structures of complete CRC, determined by single particle electron cryo-EM at intermediate resolutions of 10-15 A, reveal some secondary structure elements in both the cytoplasmic and transmembrane regions of channels. Recent advances in cryo-EM field, including the use of the direct electron detection cameras and improved image-processing software, have, in some favorable cases, allowed for the determination of near-atomic resolution structures of integral membrane proteins. Our strategies and recent progress toward high-resolution structure determination of the entire CRC will be discussed in the context of breakthrough developments in single-particle cryo-EM.This research is supported by grants from the NIH (R01GM072804, R21AR063255, P41RR002250 and S10OD016279), the AHA (14RNT1980029) and the MDA (295138)
Therapeutic Effectiveness of Certain Sulfonamides on Infection by an Intracellular Protozoon (Toxoplasma)

SummarySulfathiazole and sulfapyridine, although without effect on toxoplasma in vitro, have been found to have a complete inhibitory and under certain conditions, curative action on toxoplasmic in...
Use of perchloric acid filtrate and stabilized anthrone for determination of serum glucose.

The mechanism of the reaction is understood to be the normal aldehyde condensation with a phenol. 14 ' 17 Enolization of anthrone can then occur, as illustrated in Figure 1(3), to give a compound that will condense with the alde­ hyde, 5-hydroxymethyl furfural which is present due to the dehydrating action on glucose by sulfuric acid. 17 This condensation gives a green-blue chromophore, which follows Beer's law and exhibits great sensitivity. The steps that appear to be necessary for the completion of this reaction are shown in Figure 1. Analogous reactions that appear in the literature are the thymol reaction with glucose, and the fructose and glucose conversions to 5-hydroxymethyl furfural by strong mineral acid before condensation with the various polyhydric phenols in the manner depicted in Figure 1. Spectrophotometric proof of the reaction of substituted furfural with the enol form of anthrone has recently been established. 17 REAGENT S 1. Anthrone-acetic acid. Dissolve 400 mg. of anthrone in 100 ml. of glacial acetic acid. This solution is stable when refrigerated. 2. Anthrone-sulfuric acid. Cool concentrated sulfuric acid to the temperature of an ice bath and then slowly and with constant cooling and stirring add the anthrone-acetic acid solution to it to obtain a ratio of 1 part of anthrone solution to 4 parts of sulfuric acid. This should be made up just prior to use. 3. Stock standard solution. Dissolve 100 mg. of dry glucose (C.P.) in 10 per cent HC104. Dilute to 100 ml. in a volumetric flask. 4. Diluted standard solutions. Pipet 2.5, 5.0, 10.0 and 15.0 ml. of stock standard solution into 100-ml. volumetric flasks and dilute to the mark with 10 per cent HCIO4. These repre­ sent filtrates for 50,100, 200 and 300 mg. of glucose per 100-ml., respectively; and when 2-ml. aliquots are treated, as under Procedure for serum, they will give a calibration curve having a straight line.
The trend of molecular biology study on eosinophils

Recently, many investigators have been interested in the study on eosinophil biology since genes association with eosinophils such as interleukin-5 or eosinophil granule proteins (EPO, ECP, EDN, MBP, and CLC), were isolated. However, the molecular basis for the commitment of progenitors to the eosinophil lineage has not been determined. The mechanism by which eosinophil-specific genes encoding primary and secondary granule proteins (e.g. ECP, EDN, EPO, MBP, and CLC) are expressed and regulated during eosinophilopoiesis is also unknown. In this paper, I described the characterization of genes encoding eosinophil granule proteins and the mRNA expression of GATA-1 binding transcription factor during eosinophil differentiation.
Interconnectivity, Self-Consciousness, Excess

A richly innervated binocular vision, erect posture (which may have encouraged the lengthening of the pharynx and the posterior location of the tongue and whose verticality suggests connections between language and religious sensibility), the invention of the master tool, a sense of the future, and so on — these and other factors contributed to a discontinuity in evolution that set man the language user on the path of his development. But what happened in the brain/mind itself? What was the threshold event?
Dynamics of Stellar Spin Driven by Planets Undergoing Lidov-Kozai Migration: Paths to Spin-Orbit Misalignment

Many exoplanetary systems containing hot Jupiters (HJs) exhibit significant misalignment between the spin axes of the host stars and the orbital angular momentum axes of the planets (‘spin–orbit misalignment’). High-eccentricity migration involving Lidov–Kozai oscillations of the planet's orbit induced by a distant perturber is a possible channel for producing such misaligned HJ systems. Previous works have shown that the dynamical evolution of the stellar spin axis during the high-e migration plays a dominant role in generating the observed spin–orbit misalignment. Numerical studies have also revealed various patterns of the evolution of the stellar spin axis leading to the final misalignment. Here, we develop an analytic theory to elucidate the evolution of spin–orbit misalignment during the Lidov–Kozai migration of planets in stellar binaries. Secular spin–orbit resonances play a key role in the misalignment evolution. We include the effects of short-range forces and tidal dissipation, and categorize the different possible paths to spin–orbit misalignment as a function of various physical parameters (e.g. planet mass and stellar rotation period). We identify five distinct spin–orbit evolution paths and outcomes, only two of which are capable of producing retrograde orbits. We show that these paths to misalignment and the outcomes depend only on two dimensionless parameters, which compare the stellar spin precession frequency with the rate of change of the planet's orbital axis, and the Lidov–Kozai oscillation frequency. Our analysis reveals a number of novel phenomena for the stellar spin evolution, ranging from bifurcation, adiabatic advection, to fully chaotic evolution of spin–orbit angles.
Solution techniques for magnetic flux evolution in Toroidal plasmas

The magnetic flux evolution problem in toroidal plasmas is formulated in a framework suitable for integrating externally imposed magnetic field components with internal components from bootstrap current and auxiliary current drive. The formulation is applicable to 3-dimensional (3-D) stellarator equilibria, and reduces to 2-D form for axisymmetric plasmas. Here the numerical implementation of this framework is described. Conservative integrations schemes, resolution close to the magnetic axis, and efficient methods for flux surface averaging are discussed. Results from the test code THRIFT (THRee dimensional Inductive Flux evolution in Toroidal plasmas) are used to illustrate numerical convergence properties for a low aspect ratio stellarator and the axisymmetric NSTX spherical torus.
Critical Care Epidemiology and Outcomes/Resource Use in the Elderly

Elderly patients (age ≥65 years) currently comprise 42–52 % of ICU admissions and account for almost 60 % of all ICU days in the United States. The “oldest old” (those age ≥85) are the most rapidly growing elderly age group. The aging of the population will lead to an increasing demand for critical care resources. In addition, 40 % of Medicare patients who die are admitted to the ICU during their terminal illness, accounting for 25 % of all Medicare expenditures. Increasing age is associated with a progressive increase in the risk of ICU death. Thus, a significant amount of critical care resources are used at the end of life in elderly patients. Studies are needed to determine which elderly patient will benefit most from ICU care.
174. Liver Fibrosis in Aged OTC-KO Heterozygotes and Successful Correction by AAV8-Mediated Gene Therapy

Ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency (OTCD) is an X-linked disorder of the urea cycle. Affected males are at risk of life threatening elevation of ammonia that can lead to irreversible cognitive impairment, coma and death. Female carriers show variable clinical manifestations depending on the level of X chromosome inactivation skewing. Histological analyses on liver samples from patients with urea cycle disorders found diffuse microvesicular steatosis, nuclear glycogen, and variable portal-to-portal bridging fibrosis. The OTC knockout (KO) model generated in our laboratory through the deletion of exons 2-3 closely mimics the severe neonatal onset form of OTCD in humans. Neonatal male OTC KO pups have elevated plasma ammonia levels due to the absence of OTC expression in the liver, and they inevitably die within 24 hours after birth. Heterozygous females breed normally, have normal plasma ammonia levels, reduced liver OTC enzyme activity, elevated urine orotic acid levels, and in some cases lower body weight compared to wild type (WT) littermates. Sirius red staining on liver samples from heterozygous mice of different ages (6, 12, and 18 months old) showed liver fibrosis in aged (18-month old) OTC-KO heterozygous female mice, similar to a liver sample from a 11-year-old OTCD patient. We then tested if gene therapy could prevent the liver fibrosis. Two-month old OTC-KO heterozygous received a single tail vein injection of a self-complementary AAV8 vector encoding a codon-optimized human OTC gene (hOTCco) at 1×10^10, 3×10^10, and 1×10^11 vector genome copies per mouse. One week following vector treatment, mice in all three vector dose groups had normal urine orotic acid levels which were maintained throughout the study (16 months). Liver samples were harvested from 18 month old treated mice for pathology analysis and compared to age-matched untreated heterozygous mice and WT littermates. All treated mice showed normal liver histology similar to WT, in contrast to the untreated heterozygous animals which had fibrosis throughout the liver. In conclusion, a single injection of AAV8sc-hOTCco vector can prevent liver fibrosis in OTC-KO heterozygous and has great potential for correction of liver fibrosis in OTCD patients.
Industry Adaptability Index in Q1 2017

In Q1 2018 Industry Adaptability Index notably fell (Fig. 1) – just 74% of enterprises have assessed their main indicators as “normal”. Such negative change in consolidated indicators has not been registered since the crisis of 2009, when Index fell by 10 points. Note, that in Q1 2015 adaptability Index fell by only 2 points.
Mismatch repair status and PD-L1 expression in clear cell carcinomas of the ovary and endometrium.

Clear cell carcinoma represents a distinct histologic type of mullerian carcinoma that is resistant to conventional chemotherapy. Expression of programmed cell death ligand (PD-L1) has been associated with immune evasion in numerous tumor types and may be used to identify patients who will benefit from targeted immunotherapy, particularly in the setting of mismatch repair defects. We evaluated PD-L1 expression in 23 ovarian clear cell carcinomas and 21 endometrial clear cell carcinomas, and correlated expression with mismatch repair status. Tumor PD-L1 staining was seen in 43% of ovarian tumors and 76% of endometrial tumors, including 71% of cases (67% of ovarian and 75% of endometrial) with mismatch repair defects. Extensive tumoral staining (>50%) was seen in only one case (an endometrial case with MSH6 loss). However, tumoral PD-L1 expression remained common in mismatch repair-intact tumors and mismatch repair status was not significantly correlated with PD-L1 expression. The increased incidence of PD-L1 positivity in tumor cells (P=0.04) in endometrial vs ovarian clear cell carcinomas suggests differences in the tumor microenvironment of these histologically and molecularly similar tumors that may inform treatment options. These results suggest that clear cell histology may be a useful susceptibility marker for immunotherapy targeting the PD-1/PD-L1 axis irrespective of mismatch repair status, particularly in endometrial carcinomas.
Using bioinformatic and phylogenetic approaches to classify transposable elements and understand their complex evolutionary histories

In recent years, much attention has been paid to comparative genomic studies of transposable elements (TEs) and the ensuing problems of their identification, classification, and annotation. Different approaches and diverse automated pipelines are being used to catalogue and categorize mobile genetic elements in the ever-increasing number of prokaryotic and eukaryotic genomes, with little or no connectivity between different domains of life. Here, an overview of the current picture of TE classification and evolutionary relationships is presented, updating the diversity of TE types uncovered in sequenced genomes. A tripartite TE classification scheme is proposed to account for their replicative, integrative, and structural components, and the need to expand in vitro and in vivo studies of their structural and biological properties is emphasized. Bioinformatic studies have now become front and center of novel TE discovery, and experimental pursuits of these discoveries hold great promise for both basic and applied science.
Womanly “Acts”: “Attaining Age” in Contemporary Sri Lankan Writing

The puberty ceremony for young girls is an important rite of passage in Sri Lanka, as it is in many other cultures. The ceremony is commonly referred to as “attaining age.” Many Sri Lankan Anglopho...
Bad Security Metrics Part 1: Problems

This two-part series focuses on defining the problem of questionable metrics conceptually and revealing a path forward for improving both security metrics and how people use them.
Earnings of Academic Scientists and Engineers: Intersectionality of Gender and Race/Ethnicity Effects:

While research increasingly examines the intersection of gender and race/ethnicity in science and engineering, not much is known regarding how they work together to affect career outcomes. This art...
Locally Stable Dynamics for Reaction Diffusion Systems

We shall be concerned with the dynamics of solutions to systems of reaction diffusion equations. To be more precise we consider a weakly coupled semilinear parabolic system of the form: $$ \partial u/\partial t = D\Delta u + f\left( u \right){\text{ }}x \in \Omega ,t > 0 $$ (1.1a) $$ \partial u/\partial n = 0{\text{ }}x \in \partial \Omega ,t > 0 $$ (1.1b) $$ u\left( {x,0} \right) = {u_0}\left( x \right){\text{ }}x \in \Omega $$ (1.1c) .
Spectroscopic Orbits of Algols–A Progress Report

Preliminary values of masses and radii are presented for twelve Algol systems with cooler components of class F or later. The results are new for nine of the systems and are based on measures of the D lines for the faint cooler components. For most of the systems with periods longer than six days the orbits of the hotter components are uncertain because of absorption by non-photospheric matter in the systems. The masses of the hotter components are approximately normal for their spectral types, while the masses of the Roche-lobe filling components range from 0.2 to 1.4 solar masses.
Theon of Smyrna and Ptolemy on Celestial Modelling in Two and Three Dimensions

Ptolemy , as is well known, devoted the great part of his Almagest (properly, Mathematical Composition) to modelling the motions of the Sun, Moon, and planets by means of combinations of circular motions that are represented in his geometrical analyses by two-dimensional assemblages of circles, straight lines, and points. It is a little less well known that his later work, the Planetary Hypotheses, proposed systems of three-dimensional bodies, composed of ether (αἰθήρ, the Aristotelian fifth, celestial element) and having spherical and planar surfaces, that were supposed to be the physical realities performing the various revolutions that the Almagest’s circles describe geometrically. The three-dimensional, physical cosmology of the Planetary Hypotheses was not an abrupt innovation that Ptolemy imposed after the fact on the geometrical theories he worked out the Almagest. Its foundations include assumptions expressed, albeit sometimes briefly and in passing, in the Almagest and in works that Ptolemy composed before the Almagest, as well as ideas that were already current in Platonist and Peripatetic philosophy before Ptolemy ’s time, for which we have a valuable witness in the one surviving work by the Platonist philosopher Theon of Smyrna . This paper attempts to delineate some of this background and to show what elements were indeed new in the Planetary Hypotheses.
Al 2p core exciton in AlxGa1-xAs.

Etude de la nature de l'exciton de cœur 2p d'Al observe dans les spectres d'emission des rayons X L 2,3 d'Al. Commentaires sur les effets du desordre des anions dans ces alliages
Compositional Analysis of Microbiome Data

This chapter focuses on compositional analysis of microbiome data. In Sect. 10.1, we introduce the concepts, principles, statistical methods and tools of compositional data analysis. Section 10.2 introduce the reasons that microbiome dataset can be treated as compositional. In Sect. 10.3, we illustrate some graphics of exploratory compositional data analysis. Section 10.4 is covered by the ALDEx2 package for hypothesis testing between the groups. In Sect. 10.5, we introduce the concept of proportionality for correlation analysis for relative data and illustrate its use. In Sect. 10.6, we summarize this chapter and discuss the limitations of compositional data analysis.
Narcissistic neuroticism and elevated reward learning

Abstract Narcissism can be conceptualized as a combination of maladaptive variants of Five-Factor Model facets which load onto three of the five factors—antagonism (i.e., low agreeableness), agentic extraversion, and narcissistic neuroticism. Much research examines approach and avoidance motivations in narcissism; however, few studies assess these processes beyond self-report. In this study we examined how antagonism, agentic extraversion, and narcissistic neuroticism relate to reward learning—thought to be a component of approach motivation. A sample of 73 nonpsychiatric participants (71% female) completed a behavioral computer-administered probabilistic reward learning task involving monetary winnings. Narcissism was measured using the Five-Factor Narcissism Inventory (FFNI), which is a measure of grandiose and vulnerable narcissism using meta-analytically related Five-Factor Model facets that were modified to reflect narcissistic themes. Results indicated that narcissistic neuroticism related to greater average reward learning (i.e., response bias) across the task. Examination at the facet level indicated that FFNI Need for Admiration was the only facet that related significantly to response bias. This finding suggests that vulnerable narcissists may be more responsive to positive self-relevant feedback because of an increased sensitivity and ability to learn implicitly from reward.
Remote Off-grid Microgrid Design Support Tool (ROMDST) - An Optimal Design Support Tool for Remote, Resilient, and Reliable Microgrids Phase II - Final Report

Author(s): Cardoso, Goncalo; Heleno, Miguel; DeForest, Nicholas | Abstract: The objective of the project is to develop an advanced optimization-based design support tool for AC or DC microgrids in remote locations, where utility grids may not be accessible. The mathematical model and the interface are being developed such that multiple design objectives and criteria/constraints can be easily enabled or disabled, to deliver a flexible tool relevant to a large, diverse user base, and to facilitate future feature developments. The new tool delivered by this project leverages the team’s extensive expertise in the development, testing, deployment, and commercialization of the state-of-the-art Distributed Energy Resources Customer Adoption Model (DER-CAM) – which is the foundation for the new tool. Phase I of the project leverages the microgrid design and decision support tool DER-CAM. Key Phase I developments include the following adaption to the DER-CAM model: a) AC or DC microgrid architectures, b) multiple economic objectives (e.g. single customer vs community vs utility perspective), c) constraints on fuel availability (e.g. total fuel available during outage periods), d) active and reactive power flow constraints for normal and N-1 contingency cases, e) component part load efficiencies (e.g. power electronic devices), and f) interactive data visualization capabilities (e.g. design topology elements). A component library including components’ default technical and economical characteristics was also developed. In Phase II, the project is focused on tool testing and validation, use for real-world microgrid designs, and outreach. Fully developing this tool will have the following impacts: 1) optimal off-grid microgrid designs that replace existing back of the envelope or non-optimal calculations, reducing capital costs and risk of microgrid deployment; 2) removing barriers to microgrid assessments by lowering microgrid soft costs, as the tool is freely usable; 3) reliable and resilient designs that reduce the cost of critical load shedding due to component outages.
Factors Associated With Asthma Diagnosis Within Five Years of a Bronchiolitis Hospitalization: A Retrospective Cohort Study in a High Asthma Prevalence Population.

OBJECTIVES: Bronchiolitis, the leading cause of infant hospitalizations in the United States, is associated with increased risk of childhood asthma. We hypothesized that factors during a bronchiolitis hospitalization were associated with subsequent asthma. METHODS: This is a retrospective cohort study at an urban, tertiary-care children’s hospital of infants RESULTS: There were 534 infants hospitalized for bronchiolitis, of which 294 (55.1%) were diagnosed with asthma, and 102 (19.1%) were hospitalized for asthma within 5 years of discharge. There was significant interaction between age and family history. In both models, female sex was protective (odds ratio [OR] 0.46). Age and race were only associated with asthma in infants without a family history of asthma: age (OR 1.19; 95% confidence interval 1.08–1.32) and race (OR 4.06; 95% confidence interval 1.56–10.58). Hospitalization length, ICU stay, albuterol treatments received, supplemental oxygen, respiratory support, highest respiratory rate, and respiratory syncytial virus infection were not associated with asthma diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS: More than 55% of infants hospitalized for bronchiolitis developed asthma within 5 years of discharge. Demographic and family history variables were independently associated with asthma. However, hospital-based variables during the bronchiolitis hospitalization were not independently associated with asthma. These results can direct further research and differentiate anticipatory guidance for infants with bronchiolitis at risk for asthma.
Can a values-affirmation intervention bolster academic achievement and raise critical consciousness? Results from a small-scale field experiment

This small-scale field experiment tests whether an adapted values-affirmation intervention enhances youths’ academic achievement and mitigates social identity threat while simultaneously raising capacity to promote social change via the development of critical consciousness (CC). CC is the critical analysis of inequitable social conditions, motivation to effect change, and the action taken to change perceived inequities. Participants included 53 ninth and tenth grade students from the Midwestern United States (Mage = 14.97). Results suggested that the intervention may bolster academic performance and raise critical motivation, a subcomponent of CC. Because CC has been thought to be slow to develop, this study provides new insight into how CC can be fostered to support the social mobility and inclusion of youth experiencing marginalization.
Water Treatment: Are Membranes the Panacea?

Alongside the rising global water demand, continued stress on current water supplies has sparked interest in using nontraditional source waters for energy, agriculture, industry, and domestic needs...
Design analysis of a particle-based thermal energy storage system for concentrating solar power or grid energy storage

Abstract Energy storage is becoming indispensable for increasing renewable energy integration, and it is critical to the future low-carbon energy supply. Large-capacity, grid scale energy storage can support the integration of solar and wind power and support grid resilience with the diminishing capacity of baseload fossil power plants. With the development of thermal energy storage (TES) for concentrating solar power systems, standalone TES for grid integration becomes attractive due to the declining renewable generation cost and an increasing need for energy storage. The standalone TES system introduced in this paper can play a big role in the carbon-free energy future with capacity larger than batteries and cost likely lower than other energy storage methods such as pumped storage hydropower and compressed air energy storage, both of which also have geological limitations. To this end, we describe a TES system that uses stable, inexpensive solid particles as a TES media to provide scalable, low cost energy storage. The particle-based TES has the ability to drive various thermal power cycles including conventional steam-Rankine, air Brayton turbine with combined-cycle ability, or the emerging supercritical carbon dioxide Brayton power cycle. This work describes the containment design method including a concrete silo and an internal-insulation layer for the particle-TES system. The economic analysis shows significantly low storage cost when the particle-TES is integrated with Brayton combined-cycle power generation. The paper shows the design approach of the particle-TES system and its economic potential for bulk energy storage. The advantage of the particle-TES system as a promising bulk energy storage method is its ability to economically support dispatchable renewable grid penetration for larger capacity and longer discharging hours than current battery storage technologies.
Baboons, bonds, biology, and lessons about early life adversity.

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have been defined as those that exhibit a dose–response relationship with health risk behaviors and chronic diseases known to increase mortality (1). ACEs are also associated with biomarkers related to inflammation, genetics, and endocrine functioning (e.g., cortisol) (2). The standard compendium of 10 ACEs includes abuse (physical, emotional, sexual), neglect (physical, emotional), and household dysfunction (mental illness, mother treated violently, divorce, incarcerated relative, substance abuse). ACEs are, unfortunately, an all-too-prevalent reality in the US population. In 2017 to 2018, about 33% of children aged 0 to 17 had experienced at least one ACE, and 14% had experienced two or more (3). The question that now occupies many researchers in this field is, “How do events that happen in childhood persist to affect adult physical and mental health?” Data that address life course questions such as this are rarely available in studies of humans. In PNAS, Rosenbaum et al. (4) take advantage of a rich longitudinal data resource in their long-standing field study of female savannah baboons to test the plausibility of a well-reasoned hypothesis: Early life adversity is associated with increased fecal glucocorticoid (fGC) concentrations in adulthood, and this effect is mediated by social bond strength in adulthood (Fig. 1 A ). Fig. 1. Pathways linking early life adversity to adult fecal glucocorticoid (fGC) concentrations. Gray font and dashed arrows depict how childhood social bond strength could enter into explanations for adult fGC concentrations. ( A ) Mediation model: Adult social bond strength mediates the association between early life adversity and adult fGC concentrations. ( B ) Moderation model: Adult social bond strength moderates the association between early life adversity and adult fGC concentrations. ( C ) Independent effects model: Early life adversity and adult bond strength are independently associated with adult fGC concentrations. ( a ) Long-term (persistent) effects of childhood social bonds on adult fGC … [↵][1]1To whom correspondence may be addressed. Email: hawkley-louise{at}norc.org. [1]: #xref-corresp-1-1
Physiology of the Medial and Lateral Olivocochlear Systems

In this chapter we deal with the ways in which the two olivocochlear (OC) efferent systems, the medial (MOC) and lateral (LOC) systems, change the operation of the cochlea and how these changes may benefit hearing. To understand these changes, it is necessary to understand OC anatomy. OC anatomy is dealt with extensively in Brown (Chap. 2). Here we present the anatomy necessary for understanding OC physiology and function.
Response to targeted cognitive training may be neuroprotective in patients with early schizophrenia.

Abstract Individuals with schizophrenia exhibit widespread cortical thinning associated with illness severity and deficits in cognition. However, intact cortical thickness (CTh) may serve as a protective factor. The current study sought to examine changes in CTh in response to auditory targeted cognitive training (TCT) in individuals with recent onset schizophrenia. Participants underwent MRI scanning and a cognitive assessment before and after being randomly assigned to 40 h of either TCT (N = 21) or a computer games control condition (CG; N = 22) over 16 weeks. Groups did not differ at baseline on demographic variables or measures of CTh. At the level of group averages, neither group showed significant pre-post changes in CTh in any brain region. However, changes in CTh related to individual differences in treatment outcome, as improved global cognition in the TCT group corresponded to reduced cortical thinning in frontal, temporal, parietal, and occipital lobes. These relationships were not observed in the CG group. The current findings suggest that TCT may be neuroprotective in early schizophrenia, such that individuals who improved in response to training also showed a reduction in cortical thinning that may be otherwise hastened due to age and illness.
Built-in self-test for bias temperature instability, hot-carrier injection, and gate oxide breakdown in embedded DRAMs

Abstract As CMOS technology scales, frontend wearout mechanisms, such as bias temperature instability, hot-carrier injection, and gate oxide breakdown significantly degrade transistor performance. We investigate the impact of these frontend wearout mechanisms on embedded DRAM cells, which are used for last-level caches owing to their high-density characteristics. Our results show that a cell transistor of eDRAM is more susceptible to gate oxide breakdown than bias temperature instability and hot-carrier injection. The impact of all such wearout mechanisms on a cell capacitor is negligible. Based on observations from our simulations, which estimate the performance degradation of eDRAMs resulting from frontend wearout mechanisms, we propose monitoring methods to proactively detect the failures of eDRAMs caused by frontend wearout mechanisms.
Collaborative Commerce (C-commerce)

Collaborative commerce (c-commerce) is a strategy for the next stage of electronic business (e-business) evolution. C-commerce business practices enable trading partners to create, manage, and use data in a shared environment to design, build, and support products throughout their life cycles, working separately to leverage their core competencies together in a value chain that forms a virtual enterprise. The hallmark of c-commerce architecture is the integration hub, which is the e-business platform that facilitates the sharing of information between trading partners as either a private trading exchange or public e-marketplace. Integration hub messaging services, such as inventory visibility, event notification, and performance measurement, provides the fundamental enabling technology for real-time decision making in a virtual enterprise. C-commerce strategies are being built around collaborative product commerce (CPC) and collaborative planning, forecasting, and replenishment (CPFR) business models. While CPC scenarios are most prevalent in the industrial products sector for build-to-order solutions, CPFR was created to solve supply chain problems in the consumer packaged goods market space. The e-business transformation that is being realized via c-commerce can be described in terms of management decision making processes that leverage feedback using real-time information throughout the value chain. The two key adaptive strategic planning processes are: building the virtual enterprise infrastructure using integration hubs and making decisions to optimize value chain business performance. As c-commerce evolves as the mainstream e-business strategy for effective value chain management, the reengineering of management decision making processes becomes the critical success factor for enterprise profitability and growth in the 21st century. Keywords: collaborative product commerce; CPFR (collaborative planning, forecasting and replenishment); ERP (enterprise resource planning); integration hubs; PTX (private trading exchange); supply chain; virtual enterprise integration (VEI)
Gateaux differentiability spaces

The following class of spaces is formally larger than the class of weak Asplund spaces, but appears to be a more natural object of study.
AXIOMATIC FOUNDATIONS FOR COST‐EFFECTIVENESS ANALYSIS

We show that individual utilities can be measured in units of healthy life years. Social preferences over these life metric utilities are assumed to satisfy the Pareto principle, anonymity, and invariance to a change in origin. These axioms generate a utilitarian social welfare function implying the use of cost-effectiveness analysis in ordering health projects, based on maximizing the healthy years equivalents gained from a fixed health budget. For projects outside the health sector, our cost-effectiveness axioms imply a form of cost-benefit analysis where both costs and benefits are measured in equivalent healthy life years.
On the Uses and Abuses of Repetition

Consider a common assumption harboured by many teaching in tertiary education: non-European students, upon whom we increasingly rely (due to various issues of funding), are not aware of the proper ...
Socioeconomic status and the occurrence of fatal and nonfatal injury in the United States.

OBJECTIVES: This study examined the contribution of socioeconomic status (SES) to the risk of injury mortality and morbidity among working-age adults. METHODS: The sample consisted of respondents to the National Health Interview Survey (1987-1994), and separate analyses were conducted for injury deaths to respondents by linking to the National Death Index. Proportional hazards regression models were used to analyze mortality. Logistic regression models were used to analyze morbidity. RESULTS: The effects of SES varied substantially by cause of injury mortality and indicator of SES. In the multivariate models, blue-collar workers were at significantly increased odds of nonfatal injury. Education was unrelated to total injury morbidity, although associations were observed after stratification of the outcome by severity and place of occurrence. Black persons were at increased risk for homicide, and Black and Hispanic persons were at decreased risk for suicide and nonfatal injuries, after adjustment for SES. CONCLUSIONS: SES is an important determinant of injury, although the effect depends on the indicator of SES and the cause and severity of injury.
Electric-analog studies of impact dampers

An experimental study is made of the general behavior of single-particle impact dampers, using an electronic-analog computer and a mechanical model. It is found that, under practically realizable conditions, impact damping is effective in reducing the vibration-amplitude levels resulting from sinusoidal or random excitation.
ELECTRONIC REVERSE AUCTIONS AND THE PUBLIC SECTOR: FACTORS OF SUCCESS

Electronic reverse auctions (e-RAs) provide purchasers with an opportunity for greater savings, transparency and administrative benefits. This paper reviews the literature, identifying the factors relevant to public sector e-RA success, and then tests these factors through a statistical analysis of a large sample of e-RAs, with a view towards providing guidance to public sector purchasers looking to conduct e-RAs. Our research found no correlation between e-RA success and the number of bidders or auction volume, but did find correlation between e-RA success and (1) competition among suppliers, (2) purchase complexity, and (3) purchase specification. The number of bidders was found to be correlated with competition among suppliers, specification and complexity. Auction volume was found to be correlated with none of the factors. We discuss the possible explanations for our results and draw conclusions for public sector procurement managers to consider when deciding whether to conduct an e-RA for a particular purchase.
Physically-Based Validation of Deformable Medical Image Registration

We propose a new approach for validating deformable image registration algorithms. Since difference images do not necessarily reflect the 3D correspondence of organs, we propose to use the deformation fields generated in our FEM-based simulations to assess the displacement resulted from other registration methods. Unlike traditional FEM-based registration methods, the boundary condition for the target organ is not given explicitly. Instead it is driven by inter-organ contact forces generated by boundary conditions on surrounding organs to reduce the uncertainty induced by geometry-based surface matching. To validate our system, real CT images of the male pelvis are analyzed, and the prostate can be reasonably registered without matching its surface to the image. Several registration methods are then evaluated using our system.
Quantitative vs. Qualitative Drought Assessment

(1983). Quantitative vs. Qualitative Drought Assessment. The Professional Geographer: Vol. 35, No. 2, pp. 192-194.
Anemia up-regulates pontine A1 adenosine receptors in fetal sheep

Abstract A rise in central adenosine concentrations most likely triggers the inhibitory effects of acute hypoxia on fetal breathing movements. During prolonged O2 deficiency, the incidence of fetal breathing increases ove time, an adaptation which may involve down-regulation of adenosine receptors. Therefore, isovolemic anemia was induced in chronically catheterized fetal sheep to determine the effects of acute O2 deprivation on the affinity of brainstem A1 adenosine receptors. Compared to control values, the mean hemoglobin concentration in 4 fetuses was lowered by 54% (to 3.7 ± 0.4g/dl) for 1 h and in 3 fetuses by 58% (to 3.8 ± 0.6g/dl) for 4 h. Mean preductal arterial pH during anemia was significantly reduced to values as low as 7.123 ± 0.090, but mean paO2 and paCO2 were not significantly affected. The average incidence of fetal breathing movements was decreased by 80% during the first hour and by 50% during the fourth hour of anemia. In 3 fetuses with normal hemoglobin levels, about 32 ± 6.0% of the A1 adenosine receptors in the brainstem were in the high affinity state. After 1 h of anemia, the percentage of high affinity receptors in the pons (but not medulla or midbrain) had significantly increased to 47 ± 2.9%, but after 4 h of anemia all 3 brainstem regions had A1 receptor affinity within the range of control values. It is concluded that acute anemia induces a short-lived up-regulation of pontine A1 adenosine receptors, but anemia does not alter A1 receptor coupling in the midbrain where A1 receptors related to breathing inhibition may be located.
HEREDITARY EXOPHTHALMIC GOITRE—REPORT OF ELEVEN CASES IN ONE FAMILY

HEREDITARY exophthalmic goitre is frequently encountered, and, yet, the presence of the disease in more than three members of one family is uncommon. Romberg (55) was the first to record the familial occurrence of exophthalmic goitre when in 1851 he reported its presence in twin sisters, twenty years of age. Withusen (71), eight years later, was the first to suggest a hereditary factor in this disease but he was unable to substantiatehis impression. In 1871 Solbrig (60) described the disease in a woman and in her eight year oldson. Four authors (44, 54, 59, 72) have reported families each with six members afflictedwith the disease. The family we present has eleven members with exophthalmic goitre. Thisfamily was described by Morrison (44) in 1928, at which time only six members had developed the disease. Inthis communication a hereditary study of exophthalmic goitre and otherdiseases occurring in this family ispresented. Complete case histories were obtained on those members with evidence of thyroid diseases.
Scaling and intensification procedures for simulated moving-bed systems

Scaling rules and intensification procedures developed for single adsorption or chromatographic columns are extended for both linear and nonlinear isotherms to simulated moving-bed (SMB) systems. The effects of particle diameter, column length, column diameter, switching time, flow rates, mass transfer, axial dispersion, and dead volume are studied in order to design a new SMB. Changes in the pressure drop, separation, and throughput can be changed as desired. Once an original design has been developed, the scaling procedure requires only algebraic manipulation. Simulations done by Aspen Chromatography showed that the new designs were remarkably good at producing the same product purities and pressure drops as the original design. Intensification is predicted when particle diameter is decreased. The limitations of the technique are that the number of columns per zone cannot be changed, the relative velocities in each zone are fixed, and for nonlinear systems the results apply only for the same feed concentration.
Role of intercellular interactions in heterosynaptic long-term depression

Bidirectional control of synaptic strength is thought to be important for the development of neuronal circuits and information storage. The demonstration of homosynaptic long-term depression greatly enhances the usefulness of the synapse as a mnemonic device, but theoreticians have also seen the need for heterosynaptic decreases in synaptic efficacy, both in neuronal development and information storage. Indeed, induction of long-term potentiation in one population of synapses can be associated with a modest depression at neighbouring inactive synapses in the same population of cells. Here we report that in the CA1 region of the hippocampus this heterosynaptic long-term depression has the property that its sites of induction and expression occur in different populations of cells and thus requires the spread of a signal between neurons. Such a mechanism ensures a widespread distribution of this form of plasticity.