cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Improving IS Student Enrollments: Understanding the Effects of IT Sophistication in Introductory IS Courses

The Information Systems (IS) discipline is facing a sharp downturn in student enrollments. De-spite the steady decline in students pursuing the IS major, the demand for information technology (IT) professionals continues to increase. These trends indicate that there might be a shortage of qualified IT employees in the near future. In order to overcome this dilemma, academicians have recently begun to look for mechanisms targeted at improving IS enrollments. This study investi-gates how such a mechanism – IT sophistication – influences students’ aspirations to pursue an IS degree. More specifically, the study suggests that IT sophistication, self-efficacy, outcome expec-tations, and interests are expected to independently and cumulatively affect students’ choice of IS as their major. The data utilized to investigate this issue was collected from students enrolled in introductory IS courses at two large public universities. A total of 151 usable responses were ob-tained. The results indicate that the degree to which students perceive the IT to be sophisticated affects their aspiration to major in IS. Specifically, utilizing state-of-the art technologies that re-flect current industry practices not only enhances students’ confidence in their ability to success-fully perform as an IS major, but also elevates students’ expectations that valued rewards will be received by majoring in IS. In turn, strong self-efficacy and outcome expectations foster student interest in the IS discipline. Moreover, it was found that IT sophistication does not directly affect student interest. Rather, the effects of IT sophistication on interests are channeled indirectly through self-efficacy and outcome expectations. Similarly, our results did not provide support for the direct effects of self-efficacy and outcome expectations on choice goals. In contrast, choice goals develop through strong interests, and finally, interest serves as the primary mechanism through which goals to choose the IS major emerge. Our findings suggest that deploying sophisticated IT in introductory IS classes can be used as a powerful lever to attract additional students the IS discipline. We encourage those who teach in-troductory IS courses to focus on state-of-the-art technologies that reflect cur-rent industry practices. Utilizing these technologies also has the potential to increase student success in the class-room, provide a richer and more engag-ing learning environment for students, and help students become more attrac-tive to recruiters. Despite the knowledge gained herein, the study has certain limitations. The
Effect of hepatic artery flow on bile secretory function after cold ischemia.

These studies evaluated the influence of hepatic arterial flow on biliary secretion after cold ischemia. Preparation of livers for transplantation or hepatic support impairs biliary secretion. The earliest indication of cold preservation injury during reperfusion is circulatory function. Arterial flow at this time may be critical for bile secretion. Porcine livers were isolated, maintained at 4° for 2 h and connected in an extracorporeal circuit to an anesthetized normal pig. The extracorporeal livers were perfused either by both the hepatic artery and portal vein (dual) or by the portal vein alone (single). Incremental doses of sodium taurocholate were infused into the portal vein of both the dual and single perfused livers, and the bile secretion was compared. Most endogenous bile acids are lost during hepatic isolation. After supplementation, the biliary secretion of phosphatidyl choline and cholesterol was significantly better in the dual than single vessel-perfused livers; however, no difference was seen in bilirubin output. Single perfused livers were completely unable to increase biliary cholesterol in response to bile acid. The dependence of bile cholesterol secretion on arterial flow indicates the importance of this flow to the detoxification of compounds dependent on phosphatidyl choline transport during early transplantation.
Kinetics of granular starch hydrolysis in corn dry-grind process.

A promising modification to the dry grind process is the use of granular starch hydrolyzing enzymes (GSHE) for corn fractionation and ethanol production. Modeling the kinetics of granular starch hydrolysis in the corn dry-grind process is challenging given the heterogeneity of the substrate and the combined activities of a-amylase and glucoamylase. By measuring reducing sugars, the hydrolysis progress in dry-grind corn slurry treated with a commercial GSHE was monitored during 3 h of reaction. Progress curves consisted initially of a rapid product formation phase (,15 min), followed by a longer range kinetics characterized by relatively slower product formation. The initial product from the accelerated kinetics was proportional to the adsorbed GSHE concentration, after accounting for the contribution of dissolved starch hydrolysis. The long range kinetics was modeled by an empirical equation that yielded two parameters: a which stood for the asymptotic limit of the product concentration, and ln (b) which was the time required to reach a product concentration of a/2. In response to increasing GSHE concentration, a increased and ln (b) decreased towards a saturation limit. In response to decreasing corn particle size (geometric mean diameter), a increased and ln (b) decreased linearly. These behaviors indicated both parameters were controlled by the concentration of accessible substrates in the starch granules. The findings have implications on the optimal usage of GSHE in dry-grind processes.
Evidence for non-two-state kinetics in the nucleocapsid protein chaperoned opening of DNA hairpins.

In HIV-1 reverse transcription, the nucleocapsid protein, NC, induces secondary structure fluctuations in specific DNA and RNA hairpins. Time-resolved single-molecule fluorescence resonance energy transfer was used to study NC chaperoned opening of DNA hairpins over a broader range of conditions and in more depth than in previous studies. The experiments reveal a complex mechanism for secondary structure fluctuations with dynamic processes occurring over a wide time range, i.e., ∼5 to >250 ms and with the involvement of long-lived intermediates. The dynamic role of DNA loop regions and NC binding/dissociation events are discussed.
Complex interactions in Lake Michigan’s rapidly changing ecosystem

For over 30 years, Lake Michigan’s food web has been in a constant state of transition from reductions in nutrient loading and proliferation of invasive species at multiple trophic levels. In particular, there has been concern about impacts from the invasive predatory cercopagids (Bythotrephes longimanus and Cercopagis pengoi) and expanding dreissenid mussel and round goby populations. This special issue brings together papers that explore the status of the Lake Michigan food web and the factors responsible for these changes, and suggests research paths that must be taken for understanding and predicting system behavior. This introductory paper describes the special issue origin, presents an overview of the papers, and draws overarching conclusions from the papers.
Cholesterol efflux mediated by apolipoproteins is an active cellular process distinct from efflux mediated by passive diffusion

It is becoming increasingly accepted that removal of cellular cholesterol occurs by at least two pathways, one involving the well-described aqueous diffusion mechanism and another promoted by lipid-free apolipoproteins. We compared the contribution of apolipoprotein-dependent and -independent pathways, taking into consideration the influence of cellular metabolism, on cholesterol efflux promoted by different extracellular acceptor types. The acceptors used were assumed to participate in only passive efflux by lipid-dependent mechanisms (phospholipid vesicles and trypsin-modified high density lipoproteins) or to stimulate efflux by apolipoprotein-dependent pathways (purified apolipoprotein A-I and high density lipoproteins). Apolipoprotein-mediated cholesterol efflux was only apparent in growth-arrested or cholesterol-enriched cells and required metabolic energy. In contrast, cholesterol efflux by apolipoprotein-depleted acceptors did not depend on cell growth state, cholesterol enrichment, or metabolic energy. Apolipoprotein-mediated efflux was not observed at temperatures below 22 degrees C, while apolipoprotein-independent efflux was only reduced by 50% at 4 degrees C compared with incubations at 37 degrees C. Additionally, apolipoproteins promoted a more rapid and larger decrease in intracellular cholesteryl esters when measured by changes in cholesteryl ester radioactivity, mass, or the pool of cholesterol available for esterification by acyl coenzyme A:cholesterol acyltransferase. Efflux of excess cellular cholesterol by an apolipoprotein-dependent pathway appears to involve specific cellular events consistent with the properties of an active transport pathway and distinguishable from cholesterol efflux by apolipoprotein-depleted acceptors through passive mechanisms.
What Sort of Collective Afterlife Matters and How

In Death and the Afterlife, Samuel Scheffler argues that the assumption of a “collective afterlife” (i.e., the assumption that the human race and humanity lives on after our own individual deaths) plays an essential role in us valuing much of what we do. If a collective afterlife did not exist, our value structures would be radically different according to Scheffler. We would cease to value much of what we do. In Part I of the paper, I argue that there is something to Scheffler’s afterlife conjecture, but that Scheffler has misplaced the mattering of a collective afterlife. Its significance lies not in the realm of axiology but more importantly in coming to terms with the fact of death and in viewing our lives as having meaning. In Part II of the paper, I outline three views on the sort of collective afterlife that matters and argue in favor of the view that it must involve creatures that recognize our existence, reasons, values, and contributions (“The Recognition Thesis”) and the view that it must involve creatures that value similar things to us (“The Valuers Like Us Thesis”)—but argue against the view that it necessarily be a human collective afterlife (“The Human Form Thesis”).
Building Dynamic Cloud Maps from the Ground Up

Satellite imagery of cloud cover is extremely important for understanding and predicting weather. We demonstrate how this imagery can be constructed "from the ground up" without requiring expensive geo-stationary satellites. This is accomplished through a novel approach to approximate continental-scale cloud maps using only ground-level imagery from publicly-available webcams. We collected a year's worth of satellite data and simultaneously-captured, geo-located outdoor webcam images from 4388 sparsely distributed cameras across the continental USA. The satellite data is used to train a dynamic model of cloud motion alongside 4388 regression models (one for each camera) to relate ground-level webcam data to the satellite data at the camera's location. This novel application of large-scale computer vision to meteorology and remote sensing is enabled by a smoothed, hierarchically-regularized dynamic texture model whose system dynamics are driven to remain consistent with measurements from the geo-located webcams. We show that our hierarchical model is better able to incorporate sparse webcam measurements resulting in more accurate cloud maps in comparison to a standard dynamic textures implementation. Finally, we demonstrate that our model can be successfully applied to other natural image sequences from the DynTex database, suggesting a broader applicability of our method.
Bat rabies in Indiana

Abstract Our objective was to determine rates of rabies infection in bats submitted to the Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH) between species, over time, and in normally behaving bats. Those are important questions for public health reasons and also for protection of bats. Bats were tested by ISDH by using the immunofluorescent method. We tested 8,262 bats for rabies at the ISDH from 1966 to 2003, of which 445 (5.4%) tested positive. The 2 most common species, the big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus; n = 5,584; 173 [3.1%] rabid), and the red bat (Lasiurus borealis; n = 1,512; 169 [11.2%] rabid), accounted for 85.9% of submissions. We found the highest rates of rabies in the hoary bat (L. cinereus; 54 of 178 [30.3%] rabid) and eastern pipistrelle (Pipistrellus subflavus; 41 of 314 [13.1%] rabid). Rates of rabies in other species ranged from 3.7% in the silver-haired bat (Lasionycteris noctivagans) to zero in Indiana myotis (Myotis sodalis) and evening bats (Nycticeius humeralis). The above data were mos...
Amyloidosis Complicating Hairy Cell Leukemia

A patient development renal failure following a ten-year affliction with hairy cell leukemia. Renal biopsy showed amyloidosis, characterized by the presence of potassium permagnate-sensitive congophilia in deposits within glomeruli and renal blood vessels. Electron microscopy demonstrated amyloid fibrils. Immunohistochemical technics showed the deposits were composed of AA Protein. These Congo red staining properties, and the presence of AA Protein are characteristic of deposits in secondary amyloidosis. Secondary amyloidosis is a known complication of many chronic illnesses. This report shows it may concur with hairy cell leukemia, and that amyloidosis should be considered in the differential diagnosis of renal failure in patients with hairy cell leukemia.
Combinations of rendered protein meals for growing calves.

Complementary responses between rendered protein meals were investigated in this study. In a preliminary trial using 12 mature wethers in two replications, there was no differ- ence (P > .20) in N digestibility between meat and bone meal (MBM; 96.7%), feather meal (FTH; 89.8%), and soybean meal (SBM; 98.7%). In a 112-d growth trial, individually fed calves (n = 120; 230 kgl received graded levels of FTH, MBM, 50:50 MBM-FTH (CP basis), or SBM with or without tryptophan (Trp) supplementation. Additions of Trp increased plasma Trp levels (P .35). Pooled results showed that this efficiency was greater (P < .05) for FTH (1.471 than for MBM (1.041, FTH:MBM (-801, or SBM (.66). A trial was conducted to determine whether Trp addition reduces growth response to FTH:MBM (50:501 combinations. Calves (n = 230; 285 kg) were blocked by sex and weight into six replications and received FTH:MBM supplying 35% of the supplemental CP fed alone or with a high or low level of Trp supplement. Negative (urea only) and positive controls were included. Calves receiving FTH:MBM combinations gained faster (P e .lo) and were more efficient (P < .lo1 than urea- supplemented calves. Performance was not altered by Trp addition. Calves (n = 120; 230 kg) were individually fed in two replications (43 or 48% CP MBM in Replications 1 and 2, respectively) of a growth trial to determine whether there was a complementary response between blood meal (BM) and MBM. There was no complementary response between MBM and BM in either replication. Addition of graded levels of BM linearly (P e .01) increased ADG. Results indicate that there is no complementary response between MBM and BM or FTH.
Evaluating the Effectiveness of Leadership Decapitation Tactics Against Terrorist Groups

This chapter examines the effectiveness of leadership decapitation as a counterterrorism tool. Several States have put decapitation tactics—those that seek to kill or capture the leader of an organization—at the forefront of their counterterrorism efforts. However, most of the scholarly work on decapitation suggests it is ineffective at best and counterproductive at worst. Using survival analysis to measure decapitation effectiveness against an original dataset, this chapter shows that decapitation significantly increases the mortality rate (the rate at which groups end) of terrorist groups. The results indicate that the effect of decapitation on terrorist group mortality decreases with the age of the group, even to a point where decapitation may have no effect on the group’s mortality rate, which helps explain the previously perplexing mixed record of decapitation effectiveness. Additionally, this work puts forth a theoretical justification for why terrorist groups are especially susceptible to decapitation tactics and challenges the conventional wisdom regarding terrorist group durability, showing that politically relevant terrorist groups last significantly longer than previously believed.
Gas-Phase Studies of Purine 3-Methyladenine DNA Glycosylase II (AlkA) Substrates

3-Methyladenine DNA glycosylase II (AlkA) is an enzyme that cleaves a wide range of damaged bases from DNA. The gas-phase thermochemical properties (tautomerism, acidity, and proton affinity) have been measured and calculated for a series of AlkA purine substrates (7-methyladenine, 7-methylguanine, 3-methyladenine, 3-methylguanine, purine, 6-chloropurine, xanthine) that have not been heretofore examined. The damaged nucleobases are found to be more acidic than the normal nucleobases adenine and guanine. Because of this increased acidity, the damaged bases would be expected to be more easily cleaved from DNA by AlkA (their conjugate bases should be better leaving groups). We find that the gas-phase acidity correlates to the AlkA excision rates, which lends support to an AlkA mechanism wherein the enzyme provides a nonspecific active site, and nucleobase cleavage is dependent on the intrinsic N-glycosidic bond stability.
Nitrate removal from water supplies using biodenitrification and GAC-sand filter systems

In this paper, a study on using fixed-film biological denitrification to remove nitrates from water supplies is reported. Fixed-film biological systems have not been used in water supply systems in the U.S. although they are proven to be efficient and economical for removing nitrates with the reason being the possibility of imparting residual organics, suspended solids and bacteria to the treated water. In this research, fixed-film upflow biodenitrification columns were operated under carbon-starved conditions and the effluent was treated with a granular activated carbon (GAC) and sand filter system (combined in one unit) to remove residual organics and suspended matter. The system resulted in an average effluent turbidity of 0.8 NTU, and COD and total suspended solids (TSS) concentrations of 5.7 and 0.6 mg/L, respectively.
Novel Treatments for Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis:

Drug resistance has emerged as a major obstacle to global control of tuberculosis (TB). Treatment with currently available medications requires prolonged courses of numerous drugs, many of which are associated with significant adverse effects. New drugs are urgently needed to meet the challenge posed by drug-resistant TB, in order to relieve the burden that drug resistance has placed on individual patients and health systems. Fortunately, many new drugs have been developed for the treatment of drug-resistant TB in recent years. The new antimycobacterial agents are derived from various medication classes, work by means of an assortment of mechanisms of action, and are at differing phases of development. This review provides a survey of the most promising new agents, in order to promote familiarity with these emerging drugs and compounds.
Gynecologic laparoscopy for old women

[Objective] To explore the practical evaluation of laparoscopy in old women gynecologic surgery. [Methods] The clinic data of 75 old women gynecologic surgery were analyzed retrospectively. [Results] Among the 75 old patients, 63 have complication. Laparoscopic surgery were performed successfully in 73 cases, the other 2 cases were changed to laparotomy. [Conclusions] With the improvement of anesthesia and laparoscopy, as long as we make better preoperative preparation and actively control the complications, laparoscopic surgery in old female is a safe and effective method.
The expressions of P-gp,MRP1,LRP,and GST-πin hepatoblastoma

Objective To explore the relationship between the expressions of P-gp,MRP1, LRP and GST-πwith the clinical pathological types of hepatoblastoma,and evaluate their roles in mul- tidrug resistance of hepatoblastoma.Methods Twenty specimens were collected from the hepatoblas- toma patients,and the expressions of P-gp,MRP1,LRP and GST-πwere detected by streptavidin perosidase(SP)immunohistochernical staining.Results There was primary drug resistance in hepato- blastoma,the P-gp and GST-πplayed a leading role in the multidrug resistance of hepatoblastoma,and MRP1 and LRP were also involved.There were no relationship among the expressions of P-gp, MRP1,LRP and GST-πin all specimens.All pathological types of hepatoblastoma showed P-gp over- expression.Conclusions The discrepancy expressions of P-gp,MRP1,LRP and GST-πin hepato- blastoma are helpful in the judgment of prognosis and planning of individualized adjuvant chemothera- py.
Fairness: What It Isn’t, What It Is, and What It Might Be For

Fairness concerns are an important determinant of how people share their resources with others, but the ultimate function of these fairness concerns is not clear. In this chapter, I will review recent developmental findings along with some adult work on how and why people share resources with others, and I will begin to sketch out an account of why people are concerned with fairness. More specifically, I argue that people’s concerns with fairness are connected to their alliance psychology and that people are fair at the ultimate level in order to avoid being condemned by third parties for demonstrating or initiating alliances through preferential sharing. I conclude by suggesting how this account of fairness might be used by teachers in classroom settings. At the broadest level, the chapter will take on two big questions about fairness: What adaptive problem does fairness solve? How do fairness concerns develop ontogenetically?
Biophotonics Technology Applications

Biophotonics technologies are widely used in biomedical research, in the detection and treatment of diseases and health conditions, and in point-of-care healthcare clinics. This chapter describes advanced tools and implementations such as optical tweezers and optical trapping techniques that enable microscopic manipulation of cells and molecules for exploring biological materials and functions in the micrometer and nanometer regime, miniaturized photonics-based instrumentation functions and devices such as the lab-on-a-chip and lab-on-fiber technologies, microscope-in-a-needle concepts to enable 3-dimensional scanning of malignant tissue within the body, and optogenetics procedures which attempt to explore and understand the mechanisms of neuronal activity in organs such as the brain and the heart.
Clinical Outcomes of Large Brain Metastases Treated With Neurosurgical Resection and Intraoperative Cesium-131 Brachytherapy: Results of a Prospective Trial

Purpose Studies on adjuvant stereotactic radiosurgery to the cavity of resected brain metastases have suggested that larger tumors (>2.0 cm) have greater rates of recurrence and radionecrosis (RN). The present study assessed the effect of permanent low-dose 131Cs brachytherapy on local control and RN in patients treated for large brain metastases. Methods and Materials After institutional review board approval, 42 patients with 46 metastases ≥2.0 cm in preoperative diameter were accrued to a prospective trial from 2010 to 2015. Patients underwent surgical resection with intraoperative placement of stranded 131Cs seeds as permanent volume implants in the resection cavity. The primary endpoint was local freedom from progression (FFP). Secondary endpoints included regional and distant FFP, overall survival (OS), and RN rate. Failures 5 to 20 mm from the cavity and dural-based failures were considered regional. A separate analysis was performed for metastases >3.0 cm. Results Of the 46 metastases, 18 were >3.0 cm in diameter. The median follow-up period was 11.9 months (range 0.6-51.9). The metastases had a median preoperative diameter of 3.0 cm (range 2.0-6.8). The local FFP rate was 100% for all tumor sizes. Regional recurrence developed in 3 of 46 lesions (7%), for a 1-year regional FFP rate of 89% (for tumors >3.0 cm, the FFP rate was 80%, 95% confidence interval 54%-100%). Distant recurrences were found in 19 of 46 lesions (41%), for a 1-year distant FFP rate of 52%. The median OS was 15.1 months, with a 1-year OS rate of 58%. Lesion size was not significantly associated with any endpoint on univariate or multivariate analysis. Radioresistant histologic features resulted in worse survival (P=.036). No cases of RN developed. Conclusions Intraoperative 131Cs brachytherapy is a promising and effective therapy for large brain metastases requiring neurosurgical intervention, which can offer improved local control and lower rates of RN compared with stereotactic radiosurgery to the resection cavity.
Nanoparticles for photoacoustic imaging of vasculature

Photoacoustic imaging (PAI) is a multi-scale, multi-contrast biomedical imaging modality that can provide anatomical, functional, metabolic, and molecular information about tissue. PAI offers up to submicron resolution and several centimeters penetration depth, employing various endogenous or exogenous contrasts. In particular, because nanoparticles strongly absorb near infrared light, they enable high-contrast PAI with improved detection sensitivity at depths. In this chapter, we review the use of nanoparticles to enhance the performance of PAI in a wide range of biomedical applications, in particular in imaging vasculature. By using engineered nanoparticles with different structures and functions, PAI can target specific molecules in disease associated endothelial cells. By manipulating nanoparticles with light or ultrasound, PAI can also guide therapy. Overall, nanoparticle-enhanced PAI shows promising potential for high-sensitivity, deep-tissue imaging, especially for vasculature imaging.
Influence of sulfhydryl sites on metal binding by bacteria

Abstract The role of sulfhydryl sites within bacterial cell envelopes is still unknown, but the sites may control the fate and bioavailability of metals. Organic sulfhydryl compounds are important complexing ligands in aqueous systems and they can influence metal speciation in natural waters. Though representing only approximately 5–10% of the total available binding sites on bacterial surfaces, sulfhydryl sites exhibit high binding affinities for some metals. Due to the potential importance of bacterial sulfhydryl sites in natural systems, metal-bacterial sulfhydryl site binding constants must be determined in order to construct accurate models of the fate and distribution of metals in these systems. To date, only Cd-sulfhydryl binding has been quantified. In this study, the thermodynamic stabilities of Mn-, Co-, Ni-, Zn-, Sr- and Pb-sulfhydryl bacterial cell envelope complexes were determined for the bacterial species Shewanella oneidensis MR-1. Metal adsorption experiments were conducted as a function of both pH, ranging from 5.0 to 7.0, and metal loading, from 0.5 to 40.0 μmol/g (wet weight) bacteria, in batch experiments in order to determine if metal-sulfhydryl binding occurs. Initially, the data were used to calculate the value of the stability constants for the important metal-sulfhydryl bacterial complexes for each metal-loading condition studied, assuming a single binding reaction for the dominant metal-binding site type under the pH conditions of the experiments. For most of the metals that we studied, these calculated stability constant values increased significantly with decreasing metal loading, strongly suggesting that our initial assumption was not valid and that more than one type of binding occurs at the assumed binding site. We then modeled each dataset with two distinct site types with identical acidity constants: one site with a high metal-site stability constant value, which we take to represent metal-sulfhydryl binding and which dominates under low metal loading conditions, and another more abundant site that we term non-sulfhydryl sites that becomes important at high metal loadings. The resulting calculated stability constants do not vary significantly as a function of metal loading and yield reasonable fits to the observed adsorption behaviors as a function of both pH and metal loading. We use the results to calculate the speciation of metals bound by the bacterial envelope in realistic bacteria-bearing, heavy metal contaminated systems in order to demonstrate the potential importance of metal-sulfhydryl binding in the budget of bacterially-adsorbed metals under low metal-loading conditions.
Polycomb Group Member Rybp Is a Functional Tumor Suppressor Repressed By Mir-9 in MLL-Rearranged AML

MicroRNAs (miRNAs), are small non-coding RNA molecules known to be important regulators of cancer biology. Notably, we and others have shown that miRNAs play important roles in Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML), a heterogeneous malignancies with multiple chromosomal and molecular abnormalities. Patients with chromosomal rearrangements involving mixed lineage leukemia (MLL), the mammalian homology of trithorax gene, are associated with poor survival. Previously, we have found that MLL-rearranged AML drives aberrant expression of several miRNAs, most notably microRNA-9 (miR-9). Expression of miR-9 with MLL-AF9, a common MLL-translocation, was sufficient to promote transformation normal hematopoietic progenitor cells in vitro and leukemogenesis in vivo. We previously found that miR-9 reduces expression of several genes but we did not know which genes were critical tumor suppressors. We found that the polycomb group member RING1- and YY1-Bindin Protein (RYBP) was consistently inhibited upon miR-9 expression. To assess the regulation of RYBP we used publically available data from the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and looked at genome-wide Illumina 450K methylation data. We did not find a strong correlation with methylation and RYBP expression, suggesting that expression of RYBP is likely not regulated by the DNA methylation machinery in patients. Upon looking at copy number alterations we found that a small population of AML patients contained either homozygous or heterozygous loss of RYBP, suggesting a potential role of RYBP in leukemia pathogenesis. To assess the role of RYBP we did a series of in vitro experiments. We found that expression of RYBP was sufficient to attenuate colony-forming growth driven by MLL- AF9. Furthermore, RYBP expression was able to reduce proliferation, increase apoptosis, and significantly reduce immature cell population. To determine the role of RYBP expression in vivo, we transplanted lethally irradiated mice with progenitors retrovirally transduced with MLL-AF9 compared to MLL-AF9 and RYBP. We found that expression of RYBP was sufficient to reduce leukemia burden in vivo as well as induce differentiation as shown by flow cytometry and histological analysis. Thus, this demonstrates that RYBP is a functional tumor suppressor in MLL-rearranged AML. In conclusion, we have demonstrated that chromosomal rearrangements involving MLL, the mammalian homology of trithorax, downregulates a member of the polycomb complex through upregulation of miR-9. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
Feeding behavior of Morpho butterflies (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Morphinae) in a seasonal tropical environment

Observations in a semi-deciduous tropical wet forest in Guanacaste, Costa Rica, early in the dry season (December 1973 ) revealed that adults of the butterfly Morpho peleides (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Morphinae) feed on tiny sap flows on exposed roots of the tree Samanea saman (Leguminoseae). These observations supplement earlier studies on the association of the butterflies with fallen, decaying fruits of the tree Guazuma ulmifolia (Sterculiaceae) in the same forest but during the previous dry season (January 1973). Morphoes collect in small groups of both sexes on the tree sap flows along with several species of ants. These feeding clubs, which are formed daily, usually in the afternoons, are tightly structured in that adults feed very closely together with no indications of agonistic behavior or courtship. When suddenly disturbed, the butterflies cease feeding and fly around the area before settling on nearby vegetation. The feeding behavior is different when morphoes feed on juices of Guazuma fruits: adults are widely dispersed and no feeding clubs are formed. Guazuma trees are more abundant in this forest and scattered over a larger area than the few Samanea trees. The association of Pierella luna; with the tree sap flows and the conspicuous lack of Caligo memmon, both abundant butterflies, is discussed from the standpoint of phylogenetic relationship between the Satyrinae and Morphinae. The implications of the changeover in feeding behavior of Morpho are discussed in terms of seasonality and destruction of forests by agricultural practices. Experiments employing baits predict changes in the dispersion of the adult population at different times during the dry season.
Negative Exponential Model Parameters and the Size of Large Urban Areas in the U.S., 1950-2010

The density of urban development tends toward a negative exponential decline with distance from the center. The density gradient has been observed to be inversely related to the size of the urban area, while the central density is directly related. If the negative exponential density decline holds, the size of the urban area, the density gradient, and the central density are necessarily mathematically related. This relationship is derived, and a simplified approximation is compared with the sizes of large urban areas and the estimated density gradients and central densities. The results generally confirm the expectations, although the coefficient for the central density is larger than expected, possibly because of the use of gross rather than net residential density in estimating the parameters for the negative exponential model.
DEMAND-SIDE PLANNING INTEGRATING CONSERVATION

ABSTRACT In their search to optimize systems, utility planners have begun to recognize the advantages of incorporating demand-side programs. These programs incorporate changing the pattern and amount of consumers' electricity consumption. Among the categories of such activities are load management, electrification, load growth or increased market share and strategic conservation. Strategic conservation is the naturally occurring conservation which results from deliberate utility programs or activities to either accelerate or cause actions which would not otherwise have taken place at that time or in that magnitude. This paper focuses on the conservation option which can be integrated into demand-side planning for a utility in the Near East. Most of the text applies equally to an electric utility anywhere in the world.
A Protocol to Validate Specimen Collection Tubes Without Requiring IRB Approval

CLIA regulations require the validation of specimen collection tubes before reporting patient results (1, 2). Our laboratory recently encountered a problem with a new formulation of Vitamin D reagent (Abbott Diagnostics) when utilizing plasma processed from lithium heparin gel vacutainers (mint green top) (Becton, Dickinson and Company). Cells and particulates that remained above the gel after centrifugation were mixed into plasma samples during courier transportation from outpatient clinics. Analysis of these samples generated falsely increased values of vitamin D with the new formulation of reagent but not with the previous formulation. Removal of plasma from the gel tube followed by recentrifugation gave clinically sensible results that matched results obtained using the previous reagent formulation. This issue was not discovered during …
Attenuation of experimental proliferative vitreoretinopathy by inhibiting the platelet-derived growth factor receptor.

Purpose The work from numerous laboratories has led to the idea that the growth factors such as platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) contribute to proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR) in experimental models of the disease, as well as in humans. In support of this idea, the authors have previously reported that cells unable to respond to PDGF had a greatly reduced PVR potential, compared with PDGF-responsive versions of the same cells. The goal of this study was to test the effect of blocking the output of the PDGF receptor in an experimental model of PVR. Methods Polymerase chain reaction-based site-directed mutagenesis was used to generate point mutations in the human PDGF alpha receptor (alphaPDGFR) cDNA, which resulted in single amino acid substitutions. These changes were based on naturally occurring point mutations in the c-kit receptor tyrosine kinase, which suppresses the function of wild-type c-kit. A truncated alphaPDGFR was also made, in which the receptor ended just after the juxtamembrane domain. As with the point mutants, truncated receptors have been shown to block the action of wild-type receptors. All the alphaPDGFR mutants were introduced into cells that naturally express the wild-type receptor, and the PDGF-dependent output of the resultant cell lines was determined. In addition, the PVR potential of cell lines expressing the mutant receptors was tested in a PVR rabbit model. Results Although the mutants differed in their ability to suppress PDGF-dependent signaling of the wild-type receptor, each mutant effectively blocked cell cycle progression. When expressed in rabbit conjunctival fibroblasts, a cell line that effectively induces PVR, the mutant receptors blocked PVR to various degrees. The most effective receptor was the truncated mutant. Conclusions These data suggest that the alphaPDGFR plays an important role in PVR. In addition, these mutant receptors appear to have therapeutic potential for prevention of this blinding disease.
Composable reliability for asynchronous systems

Distributed systems designs often employ replication to solve two different kinds of availability problems. First, to prevent the loss of data through the permanent destruction or disconnection of a distributed node, and second, to allow prompt retrieval of data when some distributed nodes respond slowly. For simplicity, many systems further handle crash-restart failures and timeouts by treating them as a permanent disconnection followed by the birth of a new node, relying on peer replication rather than persistent storage to preserve data. We posit that for applications deployed in modern managed infrastructures, delays are typically transient and failed processes and machines are likely to be restarted promptly, so it is often desirable to resume crashed processes from persistent checkpoints. In this paper we present MaceKen, a synthesis of complementary techniques including Ken, a lightweight and decentralized rollback-recovery protocol that transparently masks crash-restart failures by careful handling of messages and state checkpoints; and Mace, a programming toolkit supporting development of distributed applications and application-specific availability via replication. MaceKen requires near-zero additional developer effort--systems implemented in Mace can immediately benefit from the Ken protocol by virtue of following the Mace execution model. Moreover, this model allows multiple, independently developed application components to be seamlessly composed, preserving strong global reliability guarantees. Our implementation is available as open source software.
Some Atomic Masses in the Region from Gallium Through Molybdenum

In 1961, operational difficulties in the 16-inch double focusing mass spectrometer at the University of Minnesota became progressively more apparent, especially in measurements of heavier isotopes where maximum resolution is required. These difficulties necessitated the movement and reconstruction of the instrument. Some of the modifications made at that time will be discussed in this report. This improved spectrometer was then employed to measure a number of mass doublets in the region from gallium through xenon. Some of the atomic masses of the stable isotopes between A = 69 and A = 100 will be reported in this paper, while some masses between A = 100 and A = 130 will be reported in the following paper. These mass results are compared with other mass spectroscopic results and with nuclear reaction results wherever possible, and in addition, a partial mass table of radioactive atoms has also been calculated for this region by combining the stable mass results with available disintegration energies. Finally, one can then use these mass values to study the nuclear binding energy systematics in the region around the neutron shell closure at N = 50, as well as the proposed sub-shell at N = 40 and Z = 40.
Strategies to Increase Food Supplies for Rapidly Growing Populations: Crops, Livestock, and Fisheries

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations estimates that by 2050, food production will surpass 2009 levels by 70 % globally and by 100 % in developing countries. This may supply the needs of a growing world population that is projected to be more than a third larger (2.6 billion more people) by 2050 than in 2013. It will likely ease the food security risk for Africa and Asia, regions where populations will grow most and where the majority of the world’s one billion malnourished population live today (e.g., Asia with 578 million and sub-Saharan Africa with 239 million). To achieve this goal means that cereals production will have to increase by one billion tonnes and livestock products by 200 million tonnes, annually [1]. This will have to be done as competition for land and water intensifies for other uses (e.g., feedstock, biofuels). Competition will also come from aquaculture that has grown 6.6 % annually during 1970–2008 and is expected to continue increasing its contribution to the global food fish supply. Further, rising incomes and changing dietary tastes in developing nations (e.g., inclusion of more beef and dairy products) may temper the easing of food security risks so that even with a doubling of agricultural production by 2050, malnourished persons will still number 370 million citizens. This is just under 4 % of the projected 2050 global population. Although not acceptable, this is a notable improvement over the 14 % malnourished persons on earth in 2013.
Management and Lesion Detection Effects of Lossy Image Compression on Digitized Mammograms

Radiology is increasingly embracing digital technologies in an effort to provide patients with better and more cost effective care. Mammography in particular should soon see the widespread deployment of Full Field Digital Mammography (FFDM) systems. The benefits such systems promise are numerous, yet come with new challenges. Two challenges stand out: how to display very high resolution digital images, and how to transmit and store the large volumes of digital image data. This paper addresses aspects of the latter challenge.
Wednesday, September 26, 2018 7:35 AM–9:00 AM ePosters: P100. Cervical laminoplasty: timing of postoperative complications

BACKGROUND CONTEXT Understanding the timing of adverse event onset is a critical component of post-surgical care and discharge planning. As health-care systems continue to evolve toward rewarding quality of care through episode and bundled payments, spine surgeons face increasing pressure to minimize hospital length of stay following common yet costly procedures such as cervical laminoplasty. Although prior studies outline the incidence and predictors of postoperative complications following cervical laminoplasty, the time elapsed between surgery and adverse event onset remains unknown. PURPOSE To characterize the timing of postoperative complications following cervical laminoplasty. STUDY DESIGN/SETTING Retrospective cohort analysis using the 2012-2015 American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) database. PATIENT SAMPLE The study included 1,243 patients undergoing cervical laminoplasty. OUTCOME MEASURES Outcome measures were rate and timing of postoperative complications, readmission, and reoperation. METHODS A retrospective cohort analysis of the NSQIP database for 2012-2015 was performed. Data from patients undergoing cervical laminoplasty was extracted with 12 outcomes selected a priori: stroke or CVA, MI,pneumonia, pulmonary embolism, UTI, deep vein thrombosis requiring therapy, sepsis, superficial SSI, deep SSI, organ space SSI, unplanned reoperation, and hospital readmission. Analysis was done to determine rate of adverse events, timing to adverse events, 30-day readmission rates and timing, and 30-day unplanned reoperation rates and timing. RESULTS A total of 1,243 patients undergoing cervical laminoplasty were identified for this study. The median day of diagnosis (lower quartile-upper quartile) for myocardial infarction was 2days (1–7 days), for pneumonia 4days (1–6 days), for pulmonary embolism 4days (3–13 days), for stroke or CVA 8 (4–14 days), unplanned reoperation 9.5 (4–16 days), urinary tract infection 10.5 (4–14.5 days), readmission 14 (6.5–18.5 days), deep incisional surgical site infection 16.5 (12–19 days), organ or space surgical site infection 18 (15–21 days), sepsis 18 (8–21 days), and superficial incisional surgical site infection 24 (20–26 days). CONCLUSIONS A value-based health-care system requires that physicians optimize patient outcomes while containing costs wherever possible. Decreasing postoperative length of stay has been a major focus of hospital systems and surgeons in their response to emerging alternative payment models. However, outcome-based reimbursement and penalties for hospital readmissions necessitate that surgeons not discharge a patient prematurely. The results of this study can help improve clinical decision-making by identifying the typical time frame during which adverse events develop following cervical laminoplasty.
CEO compensation and government ownership

Research Question/Issue. Despite the benefits of privatization (i.e., divestiture of government‐owned enterprises), governments still own substantial stakes in economically important firms. Given public concern about excessive compensation and frequent government responses, this paper compares the level and structure of CEO compensation in privatized firms, including those still partially owned by governments, to firms never owned by the government. Research Findings/Insights. Using a multinational sample of firms, we find that privatized firms have lower total CEO compensation than private firms never owned by governments. CEO equity‐linked wealth in privatized firms is less sensitive to stock performance, and equity compensation is negatively related to government ownership stakes. Privatized companies engage in less risk‐taking than nonprivatized companies, suggesting that government risk aversion could explain differences in CEO compensation. Theoretical/Academic Implications. This study finds that the role government ownership plays in the level and structure of executive compensation is broadly consistent with pay regulations governments periodically impose. It provides empirical support for the argument that government owners are risk‐averse and associated with lower equity‐linked executive pay, which discourages CEO risk‐taking. Practitioner/Policy Implications. This study encourages corporate boards to consider the degree of government involvement in their firms when setting CEO compensation packages and policies. Government concerns about excessive compensation may require boards to find other ways to incentivize CEOs, particularly given the weaker governance linked to state‐influenced firms. Additionally, governments should analyze their influences on CEO compensation, and how these can affect performance, when considering their ownership stakes in public companies.