cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
New Species of Angiosperm Pollen from the Dakota Formation (Cenomanian, Upper Cretaceous) of Minnesota, U.S.A

Abstract Five new species of angiosperm pollen described from three localities in south-central Minnesota support a Cenomanian age for the Dakota Formation in this area. The new taxa, Cupliferoidaepollenites microscabratus, Dryadopollis minnesotensis, Nyssapollenites microfoveolata, Phimopollenites striolata, and Tricolpites labeonis, are described using both light and scanning electron microscopy, are easily recognizable, and are useful age indicator species. Because of the extent and transgressive nature of the Dakota Formation, age determination has been difficult. The new angiosperm pollen species described here may help to support age determination for the Dakota Formation over a broader geographic area.
The Impact of Accounting Standards on Audit Firm Switch Rates

ABSTRACT: Researchers have conjectured that accounting standards decrease the rate at which clients change auditors. They argue that conflict caused by disagreements over accounting standards is reduced because there are fewer acceptable accounting principles. Surprisingly, there is little empirical evidence that investigates the impact of accounting standards on audit firm switch rates. This study investigates the relationship between accounting standards and audit firm switch rates. The paper presents surprising evidence that in the year of enactment, accounting standards cause clients to change auditors at a faster rate. This finding supports the idea that conflict is created over the implementation of the standard which results in a client changing auditors. The paper also supports traditional thought by presenting evidence that in years following the issuance of an accounting standard clients change auditors at slower rates. This finding supports the idea that conflict will be reduced in future years because there are fewer acceptable accounting principles on which an auditor and a client can disagree. Data Availability: Data are available from sources identified in the text.
Delegated IP: A Mobile IPv6-Based Protocol to Support Session Delegation

This work defines a new protocol, Delegated IP, that uses Mobile IPv6 to allow session migration from a mobile node to a target node without affecting the other session endpoint at the correspondent node. Moreover, the concept of session delegation is introduced to indicate that a master device, the mobile node, delegates a session to a target device, or target node, to which the session is migrated while the first one can still manage the target device. The proposed session delegation procedure requires state handover from the mobile node to the target node and the interaction between the application, which triggers the procedure, and the network layer. At the target node, Delegated IP mangles packets belonging to the delegated session at Mobile IPv6 layer so that the mobile node home address is used instead of the target node's home address which appears as care-of address. Whereas this protocol requires application awareness in the mobile node and the target node, it is totally transparent for a Mobile IPv6 correspondent node and a Home Agent, allowing a vendor's implementing its own solution without compromising interaction with the ecosystem.
Measuring children's blood pressure matters.

In the 1970s, childhood, and particularly the part of childhood before adolescence, was considered a low–cardiovascular risk state. With the exception of specific conditions such as diabetes mellitus type 1, familial hypercholesterolemia, end stage renal disease, and secondary hypertension, assessment of cardiovascular risk in children seemed unnecessary. Childhood risk factor distributions were well below thresholds thought to be associated with risk for cardiovascular disease. Even today, it is not until adolescence that blood pressure classified as prehypertension by adult criteria is at the 90th percentile of the pediatric distribution.1 Article p 3171 In the Korean War, the observation that significant atherosclerosis was present in young US soldiers dying in that conflict suggested that atherosclerosis had its origins in youth. This possibility has been dramatically confirmed by the Pathobiological Determinants in Youth (PDAY) study and the Bogalusa Heart Study where autopsy assessment of coronary and abdominal aortic atherosclerosis has been shown to relate directly to risk factors measured postmortem (PDAY) and those measured before accidental death (Bogalusa).2,3 The recognition that atherosclerosis is a chronic disease with possible origins early in life led several pioneering investigators in the United States and around the world, beginning in the 1970s, to measure cardiovascular risk factors in youth. In addition to determining the distribution of these risk factors at young ages, an important goal of these studies was to determine if risk in youth predicted risk later in life, a concept termed “tracking,” meaning that those with higher or lower risk at initial measurement would likely retain that position relative to the rest of the cohort …
The AGP‐based polarization propagator

The application of the antisymmetrized geminal power (AGP) reference state in the treatment of excitation spectra using the polarization propagator is reviewed, and the rationale for its use discussed in some detail.
Regional hyperthermia for deep-seated malignancies using the BSD annular array.

Forty-four patients were treated using the BSD-1000 Annular Phased Array between April 1983 and December 1986. There were 32 pelvic, nine abdominal, two extremity, and one thoracic sites treated. Mean tumour volume was 646 cc. Thirty-nine patients had concurrent radiation therapy, receiving a mean dose of 38 Gy. Mean average temperature was 41.0 ± 1.4°C. Most patients experienced local or systemic toxicity, requiring temporary treatment interruption in 33 patients, and termination of treatment in eight. Chronic complications were seen in four, but these were in patients receiving high total radiation doses as well. There were six complete and five partial responses.Among the 32 patients with pelvic tumours, mean tumour volume was 317 cc, mean radiation dose was 42 Gy, and mean average temperature was 41.3 ± 1.2°C. There were five complete and four partial responses.Achieving tumour temperatures ± 42°C with the annular array is difficult, due to both systemic and local toxicity. To improve clinical hyperth...
Convective transport of mass and energy in severe storms over the United States—an estimate from a geostationary altitude

Some important characteristics of intense convection associated with tornado vortices are described in a case study based on photographs of the United States on April 19 and 23, 1968, that were transmitted from NASA's geosynchronous satellite, ATS-3. The growth rates of a number of convection complexes as estimated from the satellite cloud photographs are studied. Based on a three-layer convection model, the upward fluxes of mass and energy in these severe storms are computed. The computed fluxes seem to be higher by at least one order of magnitude than in a moderate thunderstorm (Brown, 1967). It is suggested that the pronounced growth rate of a convection complex as estimated on the ATS-3 satellite photographs should be an indication of the presence of severe storm cells below the cirrus canopy. DOI: 10.1111/j.2153-3490.1970.tb00519.x
Equity for Excellence in Physical Education.

(1988). Equity for Excellence in Physical Education. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance: Vol. 59, No. 6, pp. 54-58.
Mixed estimation as generated data

Abstract Mixed estimation with an informative prior can be regarded as a form of least squares estimation with an enlarged data set. The relationship between such additional ‘pseudo data’ and the sample data is studied.
Relationship of Acculturation and Family Functioning to Smoking Attitudes and Behaviors Among Asian-American Adolescents

The primary objective of this study was to examine the combination of acculturation, family functioning, and parental smoking as predictors of smoking attitudes and behaviors among Asian-American adolescents. The participants were 106 Asian-American high school students whose ages ranged from 15 to 19 (51 male and 55 female, mean age = 16.30 years). Of the sample, 49% reported having tried smoking, and 27% identified themselves as “regular” smokers. The results indicated that smoking attitudes were significantly associated with smoking behaviors. Compared to nonsmokers, adolescent regular smokers had more positive smoking attitudes, lower acculturation, poorer family functioning and were more likely to have a father who smoked.
The use of basis functions in modelling joint articular surfaces: application to the knee joint

This article introduces a new method to represent bone surface geometry for simulations of joint contact. The method uses the inner product of two basis functions to provide a mathematical representation of the joint surfaces. This method guarantees a continuous transition in the direction of the surface normals, an important property for computation of joint contact. Our formulation handles experimental data that are not evenly distributed, a common characteristic of digitized data of musculoskeletal morphologies. The method makes it possible to represent highly curved surfaces, which are encountered in many anatomical structures. The accuracy of this method is demonstrated by modeling the human knee joint. The mean relative percentage error in the representation of the patellar track surface was 0.25% (range 0}1.56%) which corresponded to an absolute error of 0.17 mm (range 0}0.16 mm). ( 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
Data Parallel Bin-Based Indexing for Answering Queries on Multi-core Architectures

The multi-core trend in CPUs and general purpose graphics processing units (GPUs) offers new opportunities for the database community. The increase of cores at exponential rates is likely to affect virtually every server and client in the coming decade, and presents database management systems with a huge, compelling disruption that will radically change how processing is done. This paper presents a new parallel indexing data structure for answering queries that takes full advantage of the increasing thread-level parallelism emerging in multi-core architectures. In our approach, our Data Parallel Bin-based Index Strategy (DP-BIS) first bins the base data, and then partitions and stores the values in each bin as a separate, bin-based data cluster. In answering a query, the procedures for examining the bin numbers and the bin-based data clusters offer the maximum possible level of concurrency; each record is evaluated by a single thread and all threads are processed simultaneously in parallel. We implement and demonstrate the effectiveness of DP-BIS on two multi-core architectures: a multi-core CPU and a GPU. The concurrency afforded by DP-BIS allows us to fully utilize the thread-level parallelism provided by each architecture---for example, our GPU-based DP-BIS implementation simultaneously evaluates over 12,000 records with an equivalent number of concurrently executing threads. In comparing DP-BIS's performance across these architectures, we show that the GPU-based DP-BIS implementation requires significantly less computation time to answer a query than the CPU-based implementation. We also demonstrate in our analysis that DP-BIS provides better overall performance than the commonly utilized CPU and GPU-based projection index. Finally, due to data encoding, we show that DP-BIS accesses significantly smaller amounts of data than index strategies that operate solely on a column's base data; this smaller data footprint is critical for parallel processors that possess limited memory resources (e.g. GPUs).
The influence of diet and physical activity on brain repair and neurosurgical outcome

The brain has a remarkable capacity for plasticity, an aptitude that ironically contrasts with the limited therapeutic approaches that would reduce the consequences of brain insults. Although a large amount of clinical trials have been performed to test the efficacy of various pharmacological compounds in minimizing the burden of neurological disorders, the results of many of these trials have been unsuccessful. Another concern frequently encountered in neurosurgical surroundings is that the patient outcome after brain surgery may not match the predicted prognosis. A likely explanation for these observations is that the intrinsic biological variability encountered in the human population can greatly influence the vulnerability of the brain to stress and insults. An increasing number of basic science studies indicate that environmental conditions and experiences encountered in the daily routine of individuals can dramatically affect the capacity of the brain to react to challenges. In particular, certain types of dietary factors, such as omega-3 fatty acids, can increase production of molecular systems that serve synaptic function, while diets rich in saturated fats do the opposite. In turn, exercise similarly displays healing effects on the human brain by counteracting the mental decline associated with age [11] and facilitating function recovery resulting from brain injury and disease [1, 6]. The overall evidence indicates that diet and exercise are two noninvasive approaches that can be used to improve molecular mechanisms of neural repair after brain surgery, most likely by working through brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). BDNF has been observed to play an important role in protecting neurons from insult and disease as well as modulating synaptic transmission [23]. As discussed below, studies have been conducted which indicate that select diets and cardiovascular exercise modulate levels of BDNF, thus affecting normal brain function and recovery events following brain insults.
Combining Measures of Dispersal to Identify Conservation Strategies in Fragmented Landscapes

Understanding the way in which habitat fragmentation disrupts animal dispersal is key to identifying effective and efficient conservation strategies. To differentiate the potential effectiveness of 2 frequently used strategies for increasing the connectivity of populations in fragmented landscapes-corridors and stepping stones-we combined 3 complimentary methods: behavioral studies at habitat edges, mark-recapture, and genetic analyses. Each of these methods addresses different steps in the dispersal process that a single intensive study could not address. We applied the 3 methods to the case study of Atrytonopsis new species 1, a rare butterfly endemic to a partially urbanized stretch of barrier islands in North Carolina (U.S.A.). Results of behavioral analyses showed the butterfly flew into urban and forested areas, but not over open beach; mark-recapture showed that the butterfly dispersed successfully through short stretches of urban areas ( 5 km) were a dispersal barrier, but shorter stretches of urban areas (≤5 km) were not. Although results from all 3 methods indicated natural features in the landscape, not urbanization, were barriers to dispersal, when we combined the results we could determine where barriers might arise: forests restricted dispersal for the butterfly only when there were long stretches with no habitat. Therefore, urban areas have the potential to become a dispersal barrier if their extent increases, a finding that may have gone unnoticed if we had used a single approach. Protection of stepping stones should be sufficient to maintain connectivity for Atrytonopsis new species 1 at current levels of urbanization. Our research highlights how the use of complementary approaches for studying animal dispersal in fragmented landscapes can help identify conservation strategies.
Converging Methods for Investigating Lexical Access

In our discussion of the articles in this Special Section, we ask how well the various methods employed in these investigations can be made to converge on a common issue. We review how current evidence from positron emission tomography, studies of event-related potentials, cognitive methods, lesion studies, and network models relates to the mental processing of an ambiguous word. While many puzzles remain, we are impressed by the promising possibility of bringing these different methods together to deal with an issue central to cognition.
Two Pairs of Shoes, a Bed, and Food: Wisconsin American Indian Women in the Military during World War II.

All work in the field of American Indian studies should in some way be decolonizing, and this paper is no exception. The research and information presented disprove the stereotypes of all Native men being warriors while all Native women simply prepare food and tend crops. The women discussed in this paper fit neither stereotype, which challenges many people’s views of Native people. Having their views challenged forces people to rethink the stereotypes they place on Native people. This paper will assist in breaking down the stereotypes of Native people and their cultures by disproving the idea that all Native men and women fit into one cliched image.
SOMAN-INDUCED CARDIAC TOXICITY: SINGLE-CELL COMPUTER SIMULATIONS OF ACETYLCHOLINE OVERLOAD

Cardiac toxicity caused by organophosphonates (OPs) and expressed through acetylcholine (ACh) overload was studied by simulating the divergence of the action potential (AP) from baseline. Three cardiac structures–the sinoatrial (SA) node, the Purkinje fibers, and the ventricles–were studied with regard to their sensitivity to ACh overload and to determine which is most vulnerable to electrical failure. In addition, based on results of simulations with increased extracellular concentrations, a new model for soman-induced cardiac toxicity is proposed. It was shown that hyperkalemia must be considered in strategies for the prophylaxis of soman poisoning.
NATIONAL SURVEILLANCE FOR ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE IN ZOONOTIC ENTERIC PATHOGENS

Treatment of food-producing animals with antimicrobial agents that are important in human therapy may present a public health risk by the transfer of resistant zoonotic pathogens from animals to humans. Resistant bacteria can diminish the effectiveness of antibiotics and demand the use of more expensive or less safe alternatives. In 1996, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) established the National Antimicrobial Monitoring System to prospectively monitor changes in antimicrobial susceptibilities of zoonotic pathogens from human and animal clinical specimens, healthy farm animals, and carcasses of food-producing animals at slaughter plants. This article describes the development, implementation, and objectives of the monitoring system and presents initial data generated by the system.
The Pull of the Parties for Immigrants in the United States

Immigrants in the United States frequently express a desire to return to their country of birth, an attitude that could undermine political acculturation and democratic inclusion in the American context. This mindset has been labeled an “ideology of return.” Drawing from original surveys of the Mexican-born population conducted during the 2006 and 2008 elections, we show that partisan competition during major national campaigns has the potential to pull immigrants towards U.S. civic life and make the prospect of remaining in the country over the long-term a more attractive option.
The Morphology and Higher Systematics of the Idiostolinae (Hemiptera: Lygaeidae)

Both sexes of Idiostolus insularis Berg were dissected. Some details of genitalic morphology are advanced, other details of the morphology of the female genitalia, wings, and pregenital abdomen are primitive in the Pentatomomorpha. The adult arrangement of trichobothria is very primitive. These primitive morphological features probably resemble those found in the pentatomomorphan group ancestral to the Trichophora. Idiostolus and the genus Trisecus Bergroth are best regarded as comprising a separate family Idiostolidae, in the Lygaeoidea.
Pulse Electrochemical Micromachining of Tungsten Carbide

Pulse electrochemical micromachining (PECMM) is a non-conventional manufacturing method suitable for the production of micro-sized components on a wide range of conductive materials. PECMM improves dimensional accuracy and simplifies tool design in machining hard, high strength, and heat resistant materials into complex shapes. Extremely small interelectrode gaps are required in PECMM for better dimensional accuracy. However, excessively small interelectrode gaps may lead to complications like short-circuiting. This imposes the need for better control of the PECMM process. In this study a feedback controlled PECMM system was developed for the electrochemical micromachining of tungsten carbide. It was noticed that while, higher ratios of return velocity to feed rate is preferred as it reduces the number of current spikes, very high value of this ratio results in poor machining rates due to increased interelectrode gap. Therefore, this ratio of return velocity to feed rate may be used to optimize the PECMM process.Copyright © 2012 by ASME
TIME-DEPENDENT RELIABILITY MODEL OF COMPONENT UNDER RANDOM LOAD

The time-dependent reliability model of component is developed with the order statistic and the probability differential equation. The relationship between reliability and time and the relationship between failure rate and time are studied. First, the failure mechanism of component is analyzed when random load acts for multiple times, and from the statistic meaning of random load action, the cumulative distribution function and the probability density function of equivalent load are derived with the order statistic. Further, the reliability model of component under random repeated load is built with the stress-strength interference theory. The loading process is described with the Poisson stochastic process, and the time-dependent reliability model of component without strength degeneration and the model with strength degeneration are derived respectively. The result shows that reliablity decreases with time and the failure rate also decreases with time when strength degeneration is not considered and can be neglected. When strength degeneration is obvious and is considered, reliability decreases with time more obviously and the failure rate has the whole feature of bathtub curve.
Machine Learning Approaches for Detecting Diabetic Retinopathy from Clinical and Public Health Records.

Introduction Annual eye examinations are recommended for diabetic patients in order to detect diabetic retinopathy and other eye conditions that arise from diabetes. Medically underserved urban communities in the US have annual screening rates that are much lower than the national average and could benefit from informatics approaches to identify unscreened patients most at risk of developing retinopathy. Methods Using clinical data from urban safety net clinics as well as public health data from the CDC's National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, we examined different machine learning approaches for predicting retinopathy from clinical or public health data. All datasets utilized exhibited a class imbalance. Results Classifiers learned on the clinical data were modestly predictive of retinopathy with the best model having an AUC of 0.72, sensitivity of 69.2% and specificity of 55.9%. Classifiers learned on public health data were not predictive of retinopathy. Discussion Successful approaches to detecting latent retinopathy using machine learning could help safety net and other clinics identify unscreened patients who are most at risk of developing retinopathy and the use of ensemble classifiers on clinical data shows promise for this purpose.
Anaplastic oligodendroglial tumors: The Cleveland Clinic experience.

2100 Background: Anaplastic oligodendroglial tumors include both anaplastic oligodendroglioma (AO), and anaplastic oligoastrocytoma (AOA), histological categories of WHO grade 3 gliomas. There is limited data on specific prognostic factors for patients with these tumors. Methods: After obtaining IRB approval, the Cleveland Clinic Brain Tumor and Neuro-Oncology Center’s database was used to identify patients with histologically confirmed AO and AOA at the time of diagnosis. Multivariable analysis was conducted with use of a Cox proportional hazards model and a stepwise selection algorithm that used p<0.05 both as the criteria for entry and retention in the model to identify independent predictors of survival. Results: Chart records of 139 patients, 52% of whom were male, diagnosed between 1992 and 2009 were included for analysis. Median age at presentation was 47 years (range, 18-83 years). 22% of patients had biopsy only, 35% had gross total resection, 43% had near total resection or subtotal resection. F...
Dissonant discourses: The rhythmic event: art, media, and the sonic, by Eleni Ikoniadou / Chaos media: a sonic economy of digital space, by Stephen Kennedy

If titles hold a promise, these two books both raise expectations about arguments relating to media and the sonic. Stephen Kennedy’s book Chaos Media: A Sonic Economy of Digital Space raises many q...
Finish turning of Ti-6Al-4V with the atomization-based cutting fluid (ACF) spray system

Abstract Product quality and productivity are important factors in manufacturing industries, especially when dealing with cumbersome materials like titanium. Cooling and lubrication effects offered by the associated metalworking fluid application system play a vital role in determining these factors, especially during finish cutting. Recently, the atomization–based cutting fluid (ACF) spray system has shown promising cooling and lubrication effects during rough turning of titanium at the macro–scale, but yet to be examined during finish cutting (e.g., depth of cut and feed rate 0.2 mm or lower). This paper aims to study the effect of the ACF spray system on machining performance during finish turning of Ti-6Al-4V. In the first set of experiments, two spray parameters (viz., gas velocity and flow rate) and cutting parameters (viz., cutting speed, feed rate and depth of cut) are varied to select the most suitable condition for the application of the ACF spray system. Machining outputs are evaluated in terms of nose wear, cutting temperature, surface roughness, roundness error, chip morphology, and part hardness. A separate set of experiments is then performed to compare the performance of the ACF spray system against compressed air (dry) and flood coolant conditions. It is found that, even a lower fluid flow rate of 1.5 mL/min (10 vol.%) at a lower gas velocity of the spray system outperforms the other two coolant conditions, thus further enhancing the performance of environmentally-friendly manufacturing process.
Collaboration, Visibility, and Relationship Marketing: Driving Use and Demonstrating Value of a Consumer Health Information Service

ABSTRACTPreston Medical Library/Health Information Center partnered with the University of Tennessee Medical Center Marketing and an outside marketing firm to better promote patient and community engagement in health information. An internal and external marketing plan was developed to promote the library through the development of brochures, table tents, room signage, television appearances and other various marketing strategies. Working with both marketing teams has created a unique opportunity to broaden internal promotion of the library. In addition, the relationship developed between the library and the marketing teams has expanded the library’s presence in the community and created an increase in community use.
Correction to: Soil as a Basic Nexus Tool: Soils at the Center of the Food–Energy–Water Nexus

The original version of this article, published in Current Sustainable Renewable Energy Reports, Volume 4, Issue 3, September 2017, inadvertently misspelled an author’s last name on the title page as Haimanote Baybil. The correct name is Haimanote Bayabil.
STAFF: online learning with stabilized adaptive forgetting factor and feature selection algorithm

Dynamic resource management techniques rely on power consumption and performance models to optimize the operating frequency and utilization of processing elements, such as CPU and GPU. Despite the importance of these decisions, many existing approaches rely on fixed power and performance models that are learned offline. However, offline models cannot guarantee accuracy when workloads differ significantly from the training available at design time. This paper presents an online learning framework (STAFF) that constructs adaptive run-time models for stationary and non-stationary workloads. STAFF is the first framework that (1) guarantees stability while quickly adapting to workload changes, (2) performs online feature selection with linear complexity, and (3) adapts to new model coefficients by employing adaptively varying forgetting factor, all at the same time. Experiments on an Intel® Coreh™ i5 6th generation platform demonstrate up to 6× improvement in the performance prediction accuracy compared to existing techniques.
Comparative analysis of methods for heat losses in turbulent premixed flames using physically-derived reduced-order manifolds

Heat losses have the potential to substantially modify turbulent combustion processes, especially the formation of pollutants such as nitrogen oxides. The chemistry governing these species is strongly temperature sensitive, making heat losses critical for an accurate prediction. To account for the effects of heat loss in large eddy simulation (LES) using a precomputed reduced-order manifold approach, thermochemical states must be precomputed not only for adiabatic conditions but also over a range of reduced enthalpy states. However, there are a number of methods for producing reduced enthalpy states, which invoke different implicit assumptions. In this work, a set of a priori and a posteriori LES studies have been performed for turbulent premixed flames considering heat losses within a precomputed reduced-order manifold approach to determine the sensitivity to the method by which reduced enthalpy states are generated. Two general approaches are explored for generating these reduced enthalpy states and are...
LIN-12/Notch Regulates GABA Signaling at the Caenorhabditis elegans Neuromuscular Junction.

The role of Notch signaling in cell-fate decisions has been studied extensively; however, this pathway is also active in adult tissues, including the nervous system. Notch signaling modulates a wide range of behaviors and processes of the nervous system in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, but there is no evidence for Notch signaling directly altering synaptic strength. Here, we demonstrate Notch-mediated regulation of synaptic activity at the C. elegans neuromuscular junction (NMJ). For this, we used aldicarb, an inhibitor of the enzyme acetylcholinesterase, and assessed paralysis rates of animals with altered Notch signaling. Notch receptors LIN-12 and GLP-1 are required for normal NMJ function; they regulate NMJ activity in an opposing fashion. Complete loss of LIN-12 skews the excitation/inhibition balance at the NMJ toward increased activity, whereas partial loss of GLP-1 has the opposite effect. Specific Notch ligands and co-ligands are also required for proper NMJ function. The role of LIN-12 is independent of cell-fate decisions; manipulation of LIN-12 signaling through RNAi knockdown or overexpression of the co-ligand OSM-11 after development alters NMJ activity. We demonstrate that LIN-12 modulates GABA signaling in this paradigm, as loss of GABA signaling suppresses LIN-12 gain-of-function defects. Further analysis, in vivo and in silico, suggests that LIN-12 may modulate transcription of the GABAB receptor GBB-2. Our findings confirm a non-developmental role for the LIN-12/Notch receptor in regulating synaptic signaling and identify the GABAB receptor GBB-2 as a potential Notch transcriptional target in the C. elegans nervous system.
Down-regulation of dcr3 enhances TRAIL-mediated apoptosis in pancreatic cancer

827 Introduction: Tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL), a critical pro-apoptotic molecule on the cell surface, has been identified as a promising anti-cancer agent. However, most human pancreatic cancer cells are resistant to TRAIL-induced apoptosis. This study is focused on revealing the underlying mechanisms by which pancreatic cancer cells utilize their extracellular molecules to counteract the pro-apoptotic signaling mediated by the TNF family. Methods: The binding of DcR3 (Decoy Receptor 3) with TRAIL was determined with several assays including Flow cytometry analysis, Western blotting and ELISA-like binding assay using recombinant DcR3 and TRAIL. The binding assays were also performed in both culture media and cell lysate from AsPC-1 and MiaPaCa-2 human pancreatic cancer cells. The biological function of this binding was studied with several indices for apoptosis including sub-G1 population, caspase 3 activity and cleaved PARP. Gemcitabine and siRNA for DcR3 were used to regulate the expression levels of DcR3 and TRAIL to confirm the function of the interaction of these two molecules. Results: In this study, we demonstrate for the first time that DcR3, a secreted decoy receptor expressed at a high level by malignant pancreatic cancer cells, acts as an extracellular anti-apoptotic molecule by binding to TRAIL, thus counteracting the death-promoting function of TRAIL. The reduction of DcR3 with siRNA unmasks TRAIL and greatly enhances TRAIL-induced apoptosis. Gemcitabine, a first line drug for pancreatic cancer, also reduces the level of DcR3. The addition of DcR3 siRNA could further enhance the apoptosis induced by Gemcitabine. Importantly, the in vivo studies demonstrate that the therapeutic effect of Gemcitabine is enhanced via further reduction of DcR3, suggesting that down-regulation of DcR3 in tumor cells could tip the balance from survival to death and serve as a new strategy for pancreatic cancer therapy. Conclusion: DcR3 is utilized by cancer cells for their survival upon the various stresses, including chemotherapy. The binding of DcR3 to TRAIL blocks the apoptosis induced by TRAIL. The down-regulation of DcR3 is a new strategy for enhancement of anti-cancer therapy.
Limits of our knowledge, part 2: Selected frontiers in marine organic biogeochemistry

Abstract The advent of new sampling tools, analytical methods, and data handling capabilities that have been applied to marine chemistry since the 1970s along with coordinated, international and interdisciplinary research programs has led to explosive growth of marine organic biogeochemistry. Here we briefly summarize the history of stepwise growth as illustrated by community-wide workshop reports and symposia, highlighting evolving recommendations for future research put forth in those reports. Following that, we present examples of four frontiers that have been explored recently, focusing as much as possible at the molecular level and on marine water columns: (i) how analytical advances and informatics tools provide new insight into the chemical nature and cycling of dissolved organic matter; (ii) how evolving studies of suspended and sinking particles play an important role in understanding ocean biogeochemistry; (iii) the new symbiosis between marine microbiology, analytical chemistry and organic geochemistry as illustrated by the archaea, their habitats, lipid biomarkers, and influence on geochemical cycles; and (iv) how advances in compound-specific measurements of carbon, nitrogen, hydrogen, and sulfur isotopes shed new light on sources and behavior of marine organic matter. We cite selected recent (primarily the past two decades) research examples as a basis for further reading and to project into the future some aspects of these research areas that could be further developed. Throughout, we highlight how new analytical and sampling methods allowed these fields to progress.
Framing innocence: an experimental test of the effects of wrongful convictions on public opinion

Discourse about criminal justice in the USA increasingly revolves around wrongful convictions. Research has documented the emergence of the “innocence frame,” but relatively little is known about its effects on public opinion. We utilize framing theory to examine how various presentations of wrongful conviction information affect attitudes toward the justice system and highlight the consequences of the innocence movement for public opinion. We implement two survey experiments to test the effects of innocence information for criminal justice attitudes. In the first experiment, we test the impact of wrongful conviction numbers relative to a control group for death penalty support. In the second experiment, we analyze the effects—both separately and jointly—of exoneration numbers and a wrongful conviction narrative relative to a control group for attitudes toward the death penalty and police reform, trust in the justice system, and personal concern. We demonstrate that the presentation of factual numbers of exonerations reduces support for capital punishment and erodes trust in the justice system, but fails to garner support for police reforms or increase personal concern about wrongful convictions. However, a narrative about an individual wrongful conviction predictably has more pronounced effects on death penalty attitudes and increases personal concern and support for police reform, but has little effect on trust in the justice system more broadly. Wrongful convictions are consequential for public opinion, but the effects are contingent on how the information is framed and the attitudinal outcome of interest. Our findings have implications for criminal justice attitudes and policy, the innocence movement, and framing theory.
Research on Preventing Behavior Problems Using a Cognitive-Behavioral Intervention: Preliminary Findings, Challenges, and Future Directions:

One goal of prevention research in the field of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders (EBD) is to improve social and academic outcomes for students with the highest risk behavioral profiles before the...
Introduction: Political Science, Democratic Citizenship and the Displacement of Pedagogy

This chapter examines the relationship between political science, pedagogy and democratic citizenship. Scholars in the field of political science have struggled to grasp and articulate this relationship. I try to explain why. I also present some of the dominant perspectives on the relationship between pedagogy and democratic citizenship (e.g. liberal, conservative, cosmopolitan and activist). Finally, I outline a critical, radical and utopian perspective on political science pedagogy and democratic citizenship as an alternative to standard ways of construing this relationship. My goal is to disrupt the authority, hierarchy and knowledge nexus and articulate a general theory of radical political theory pedagogy as the practice of equality.
Actin-binding compounds, previously discovered by FRET-based high-throughput screening, differentially affect skeletal and cardiac muscle

Actin's interactions with myosin and other actin-binding proteins are essential for cellular viability in numerous cell types, including muscle. In a previous high-throughput time-resolved FRET (TR-FRET) screen, we identified a class of compounds that bind to actin and affect actomyosin structure and function. For clinical utility, it is highly desirable to identify compounds that affect skeletal and cardiac muscle differently. Because actin is more highly conserved than myosin and most other muscle proteins, most such efforts have not targeted actin. Nevertheless, in the current study, we tested the specificity of the previously discovered actin-binding compounds for effects on skeletal and cardiac α-actins as well as on skeletal and cardiac myofibrils. We found that a majority of these compounds affected the transition of monomeric G-actin to filamentous F-actin, and that several of these effects were different for skeletal and cardiac actin isoforms. We also found that several of these compounds affected ATPase activity differently in skeletal and cardiac myofibrils. We conclude that these structural and biochemical assays can be used to identify actin-binding compounds that differentially affect skeletal and cardiac muscles. The results of this study set the stage for screening of large chemical libraries for discovery of novel compounds that act therapeutically and specifically on cardiac or skeletal muscle.
Marginal and nonusers of a small academic library

In fall 2019 the Access Services and User Engagement librarians at the Woodbury University Library undertook to identify campus library marginal and nonusers among faculty and students. We administ...
Unconventional van der Waals heterostructures beyond stacking.

Summary Two-dimensional crystals provide exceptional opportunities for integrating dissimilar materials and forming interfaces where distinct properties and phenomena emerge. To date, research has focused on two basic heterostructure types: vertical van der Waals stacks and laterally joined monolayer crystals with in-plane line interfaces. Much more diverse architectures and interface configurations can be realized in the few-layer and multilayer regime, and if mechanical stacking and single-layer growth are replaced by processes taking advantage of self-organization, conversions between polymorphs, phase separation, strain effects, and shaping into the third dimension. Here, we highlight such opportunities for engineering heterostructures, focusing on group IV chalcogenides, a class of layered semiconductors that lend themselves exceptionally well for exploring novel van der Waals architectures, as well as advanced methods including in situ microscopy during growth and nanometer-scale probes of light-matter interactions. The chosen examples point to fruitful future directions and inspire innovative developments to create unconventional van der Waals heterostructures beyond stacking.
Polynomial-time algorithms for coding across multiple unicasts

We consider the problem of network coding across multiple unicasts. We give, for wired and wireless networks, efficient polynomial time algorithms for finding optimal network codes within the class of network codes restricted to XOR coding between pairs of flows.
Critique of (im)pure reason: evidence-based medicine and common sense

While the goal of evidence-based medicine (EBM) is certainly laudable, it is completely based on the proposition that ‘truth’ can be gleaned exclusively from statistical studies. In many instances, the complexity of human physiology and pathophysiology makes this a reasonable, if not necessary, assumption. However, there are two additional large classes of medical ‘events’ that are not well served by this paradigm: those that are based on physically required causality, and those that are so obvious (to the casual observer) that no self-respecting study will ever be undertaken (let alone published). Frequently, cause-and-effect relationships are so evident that they fall into both categories, and are best dealt with by the judicious use of common sense. Unfortunately, the use of common sense is not encouraged in the EBM literature, as it is felt to be diametrically opposed to the very notion of EBM. As is more fully discussed in the manuscript, this active disregard for common sense leaves us at a great disadvantage in the practical practice of medicine.
London Calling: Does the U.K.'s Experience with Individual Taxation Clash with the U.S.'s Expectation?

The United States is one of the last countries to tax married couples jointly; most other countries have adopted individual taxation. In 1990, the United Kingdom completed transitioning its tax system from one that treated husbands and wives as a marital unit to one that mandates an individual-based system, and so it has two decades of experience with the new regime. This article provides American policymakers valuable information regarding the consequences of adopting individual taxation by examining the U.K.’s experience. First, it establishes a matrix of factors that identifies and assesses differences between the two nations that affect the predictive value of the U.K.’s experience for the U.S. The article then reviews the origins and development of the U.K.’s original mandatory joint return and the forces that drove the change to individual taxation. Finally, it appraises the consequences of this revision of British law, including the improved economic position of many wives and the increased incidence of tax avoidance. Comparing the change in the U.K. with what would likely occur in the U.S., this article uses comparative taxation to provide a guide for the U.S., urging consideration of the costs as well as the benefits of changing tax units.
A Review of Lani Guinier's The Tyranny of the Majority

Almost thirty years ago, after three insufficient runs at the problem in 1957, 1960, and 1964, the Congress of the United States overwhelmingly approved a comprehensive federal law designed to eradicate racial discrimination in voting.1 The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was radical, in federalism terms. It superseded basic state law in many respects, providing for direct federal supervision, indeed implementation, of the process of registration and voting in numerous localities, and required preclearance by the Justice Department, or a court, of changes in laws affecting voting rights in jurisdictions deemed by a statistical yardstick, without any other proof, to have engaged in racial discrimination in the process. The Act was directed in the first instance at voter registration, through control of which hundreds of thousands of African-Americans had been denied by state officials any entry at all into politics. It had an almost immediate impact, resulting in the registration of thousands for the 1966 and 1968 elections, particularly in the States of the Deep South.2 Over a period of time this surge in registration combined with other factors to cause a stunning increase in the election of black officials to local and federal offices, from a few hundred in 1965 to over 8,000 by 1994, including thirty-nine members of the House of Representatives.3
Development of ethnic–racial identity among Latino adolescents and the role of family ☆

Abstract The current study modeled the simultaneous development of ethnic–racial identity (ERI) exploration and resolution for Latino adolescents (n = 323, Mage at T1 = 15.31, SDage = .76; 49.5% female) from 9th to 12th grade. Three theoretically supported ERI trajectories emerged, including (1) high and significantly increasing exploration and resolution (i.e., “Increasingly Achieved”), (2) low and stable exploration and resolution (i.e., “Consistently Diffused”), and (3) low exploration and moderate resolution that were both stable over time (i.e., “Consistently Foreclosed”). Increasingly achieved was the most common trajectory. High levels of family ethnic socialization promoted membership into this trajectory class (relative to others) most strongly. Implications for advancing understandings of ERI development and the role of family ethnic socialization among Latino youth, as well as the focus and timing of possible intervention efforts, are discussed.