cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Reply to “Comments on ‘A Bias in the Midtropospheric Channel Warm Target Factor on the NOAA-9 Microwave Sounding Unit’”

The main finding by Po-Chedley and Fu was that the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) microwavesoundingunit(MSU)producthasabiasinitsNOAA-9midtroposphericchannel(TMT)warmtarget factor, which leads to a cold bias in the TMT trend. This reply demonstrates that the central arguments by Christy and Spencer to challenge Po-Chedley and Fu do not stand. This reply establishes that 1) Christy and Spencer found a similar, but insignificant, bias in the UAH target factor because their radiosonde data lack adequate sampling and measurement errors were considered twice; 2) the UAH individual satellite TMT difference between NOAA-9 and NOAA-6 reveals a bias of 0.082 6 0.011 in the UAH NOAA-9 target factor; 3) comparing the periods before and after NOAA-9 is not an adequate method to draw conclusions about NOAA-9 because of the influence of other satellites; 4) using the Christy and Spencer trend sensitivity value,UAHTMThasacoldbiasof0.035 K decade 21 givenatargetfactorbiasof0.082;5)similartrendsfrom UAH and Remote Sensing Systems (RSS) for the lower tropospheric temperature product (TLT) do not indicate that the UAH TMT and TLT NOAA-9 target factor is unbiased; and 6) the NOAA-9 warm target temperature signal in UAH TMT indicates a problem with the UAH empirical algorithm to derive the target factor.
Millimeter-wave multi-gigabit IC technologies for super-broadband wireless over fiber systems

A testbed for transmitting super-broadband 60GHz wireless-over-fiber using all-optical up-conversion and electrical down-conversion by millimeter-wave multi-gigabit IC is demonstrated with 1.5Gbps baseband data. A BER of 10−8 is achieved at 10m between BS and MT.
Dissection of the Dislocation Pathway for Type I Membrane Proteins with a New Small Molecule Inhibitor, Eeyarestatin

The mammalian endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-to-cytosol degradation pathway for disposal of misfolded proteins is an attractive target for therapeutic intervention in diseases that are characterized by...
Infusing industry, community, and the Coast Guard into the Civil Engineering Program at the United States Coast Guard Academy

Educating Civil Engineers at the United States Coast Guard Academy (USCGA) presents its own unique challenges and opportunities. Given our dual mission to graduate civil engineers and officers for the United States Coast Guard, it is important that we infuse practices from industry into the Coast Guard Civil Engineering Program while ensuring that our graduates develop a sense of community and public service. In the Civil Engineering program at the USCGA, emphasis is placed on helping students make connections between theoretical fundamental principles and real engineering practice. It has been challenging to fit into our four year program of study the teaching of fundamental engineering principles, coverage of depth in four sub-fields of Civil Engineering, a large core curriculum required of all cadets, and an introduction to real-life engineering practice of industrial, community-based, and Coast Guard applications. To accomplish this, a strategy was adopted of infusing industrial and community relevance, and Coast Guard mission readiness into the curriculum through class assignments, field trips, guest speakers, capstone projects, community service, summer internships, and membership in professional organizations. Given this approach our graduates are able to most effectively serve the public as Civil Engineers, Coast Guard Officers, and community minded citizens.
Climatic controls of interannual variability in regional carbon fluxes from top‐down and bottom‐up perspectives

region of the north central United States, centered on the Park Falls, Wisconsin, United States, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration tall tower site. These techniques included two bottom‐up methods, based on flux tower upscaling and forest inventory based demographic modeling, respectively, and two top‐down methods, based on tall tower equilibrium boundary layer budgets and tracer‐transport inversion, respectively. While all four methods revealed a moderate carbon sink, they diverged significantly in magnitude. Coherence of relative magnitude and variability of NEE anomalies was strong across the methods. The strongest coherence was a trend of declining carbon sink since 2002. Most climatic controls were not strongly correlated with IAV. Significant controls on IAV were those related to hydrology, such as water table depth, and atmospheric CO2. Weaker relationships were found with phenological controls such as autumn soil temperature. Hydrologic relationships were strongest with a 1 year lag, potentially highlighting a previously unrecognized predictor of IAV in this region. These results highlight a need for continued development of techniques to estimate regional IAV and incorporation of hydrologic cycling into couple carbon‐climate models.
The Impact of the Flynn Effect on LD Diagnoses in Special Education

Because of the Flynn effect, IQ scores rise as a test norm ages but drop on the introduction of a newly revised test norm. The purpose of the current study was to determine the impact of the Flynn effect on learning disability (LD) diagnoses, the most prevalent special education diagnosis in the United States. Using a longitudinal sample of 875 school children who were initially diagnosed with LD on the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised (WISC-R), children experienced a significant decline in IQ when retested on the third edition of the WISC (WISC-III) compared to peers who were tested on the WISC-R twice. Furthermore, results from logistic regression analyses revealed that the probability of a rediagnosis of LD on reevaluation significantly decreased, in part, because of this decline on the WISC-III. These results are discussed in terms of their implications for both basic research and educational policy.
Regulation of microRNA expression by rifampin in human hepatocytes.

Rifampin causes drug interactions by altering hepatic drug metabolism. Because microRNAs (miRNAs) have been shown to regulate genes involved in drug metabolism, we determined the effect of rifampin on the expression of hepatic miRNAs. Primary human hepatocytes from seven subjects were treated with rifampin, and the expression of miRNA and cytochrome P450 ( P450) mRNAs was measured by TaqMan assays and RNA-seq, respectively. Rifampin induced the expression of 10 clinically important and 13 additional P450 genes and repressed the expression of 9 other P450 genes ( P P P450 mRNAs, supporting the possibility of miRNA-induced regulation of P450 mRNA expression. In addition, several other miRNA changes were positively correlated with the changes in P450 mRNA expression, suggesting similar regulatory mechanisms. Despite the interindividual variability in the rifampin effects on miRNA expression, principal components analysis clearly separated the rifampin-treated samples from the controls. In conclusion, rifampin treatment alters miRNA expression patterns in human hepatocytes, and some of the changes were correlated with the rifampin-induced changes in expression of the P450 mRNAs they are predicted to target.
P02.107. Mindfulness and emotion regulation: the mediating role of coping self-efficacy

Purpose Mindfulness, the nonjudgmental awareness of present moment experiences, has received increased scientific attention for its role in promoting mental health. Specifically, mindfulness is associated with fewer difficulties regulating negative emotional states. Recent research has identified mediators of this relationship, including decreased rumination and greater positive emotions. Coping self-efficacy, one’s perceived ability to effectively manage stressors, might be another important mediator, as Eastern philosophy contends that passive rather than active action can enhance a sense of personal control. The purpose of this study was to test whether coping selfefficacy mediated the relationships between specific mindfulness skills and emotion regulation difficulties. Methods Undergraduate participants (N=300; Mage=21.25; 73% female; 83% White) completed questionnaires assessing four mindfulness skills (observing, describing, acting with awareness, accepting without judgment), coping self-efficacy, and emotion regulation difficulties. Pearson correlations were computed for each mindfulness skill and coping self-efficacy, and significant (p<.05) relationships were examined using a series of mediation analyses according to Baron & Kenny. Results Observing was not associated with coping self-efficacy and was dropped from further analyses. Greater accepting without judgment was associated with fewer emotion regulation difficulties (R 2 =.47, b=-.69, p<.001) and greater coping self-efficacy (R 2 =.29, b=.54, p<.01). The effect of accepting without judgment on emotion regulation difficulties dropped when coping self-efficacy was entered into the model (b decreased from -.69 to -.45; total R 2 =.69, p<.001 ). Post-hoc analyses using the Sobel test indicated that coping self-efficacy was a significant mediator (z=-1.62, p<.05). Describing and acting with awareness showed some indirect effect on emotion regulation difficulties through coping self-efficacy, though Sobel tests did not indicate significance. Conclusion Findings suggest that the mindfulness skill of accepting without judgment may improve emotion regulation by promoting self-efficacy for coping with stressors. Future studies should continue to examine other potential mediators to help explain the benefits of mindfulness for emotion regulation.
Hierarchical encryption of Motion JPEG2000 codestreams for layered multicast transmission

This paper proposes the hierarchical encryption of Motion JPEG 2000 code streams for layered multicast transmission. JPEG 2000 generates hierarchical code streams and offers flexible scalability in characteristics such as resolution and SNR. The layered multicast encryption proposal allows a sender to multicast hierarchical encrypted JPEG 2000 code streams such that only designated groups of users can de-crypt the code streams. The encrypted bitstreams produced by the proposed method comply fully with JPEG 2000.
Functional conservation of the Drosophila hybrid incompatibility gene Lhr.

Hybrid incompatibilities such as sterility and lethality are commonly modeled as being caused by interactions between two genes, each of which has diverged separately in one of the hybridizing lineages. The gene Lethal hybrid rescue (Lhr) encodes a rapidly evolving heterochromatin protein that causes lethality of hybrid males in crosses between Drosophila melanogaster females and D. simulans males. Previous genetic analyses showed that hybrid lethality is caused by D. simulans Lhr but not by D. melanogaster Lhr, confirming a critical prediction of asymmetry in the evolution of a hybrid incompatibility gene. Here we have examined the functional properties of Lhr orthologs from multiple Drosophila species, including interactions with other heterochromatin proteins, localization to heterochromatin, and ability to complement hybrid rescue in D. melanogaster/D. simulans hybrids. We find that these properties are conserved among most Lhr orthologs, including Lhr from D. melanogaster, D. simulans and the outgroup species D. yakuba. We conclude that evolution of the hybrid lethality properties of Lhr between D. melanogaster and D. simulans did not involve extensive loss or gain of functions associated with protein interactions or localization to heterochromatin.
Quasilocal defects in regular planar networks: Categorization for molecular cones

Graphical networks are cast into structural equivalence classes, with special focus on ones related to two-dimensional regular translationally symmetric nets (or lattices). A quasilocal defect in a regular net is defined as consisting of a finite subnet surrounded outside this region by an infinitely extended network of which arbitrary, simply connected regions are isomorphic to those of the regular undefected net. The global equivalence classes for such quasilocal defects are identified by a “circum-matching” characteristic. One or more such classes are identified as a “turn” number, or equivalently as a discrete “combinatorial curvature” κ, which associates closely to the geometric Gaussian curvature of “physically reasonable” embeddings of the net in Euclidean space. Then for positive κ, geometric cones result; for κ = 0, the network is flat overall; and for negative κ, fluted or crenalated cones result. As κ or q varies through its discrete range, the number of defect classes varies between 1 and ∞ and repeats with a period depending on the parent regular net. For the square-planar net, the numbers of defect classes at succeeding turn numbers (q) starting at q = 0 are ∞, 2, 3, 2, repeating with a period of 4. For the hexagonal and triangular nets, the numbers of classes at suceeding q starting at q = 0 are ∞, 1, 2, 2, 2, 1, repeating with a period of 6. A further refinement of the classes of quasilocal defects breaks these classes up into “irrotational” subclasses, as are relevant for multiwall cones. The subclasses are identified via a “quasispin” characteristic, which is conveniently manipulatable for the categorization of multiwall cones. Besides the development of the overall comprehensive topo-combinatoric categorization scheme for quasilocal defects, some consequences are briefly indicated, and combining rules for the characteristics of pairs of such defects are briefly considered. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2003
Interactive Wireless Electronic Billboard

This paper describes an electronic billboard system called Interactive Wireless Electronic Billboard. This new type of electronic billboard is a data processing system equipped with a display device and short-range wireless communication capability, such as Bluetooth. Potential use of the Interactive Wireless Electronic Billboard is in commercial product advertisements and transactions. In this application, the display device displays product advertisements while the data processing system uses a wireless communication interface to communicate with nearby mobile devices such as PDAs. Upon seeing an advertisement on a display device, a customer may initiate a request from his mobile device to start an interactive process with the electronic billboard system to receive more information, or to complete the transaction of purchasing the advertised product. In this paper, we present a high level design and proposed system architecture of the Interactive Wireless Electronic Billboard system.
Management of Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection in cystic fibrosis patients using inhaled antibiotics with a focus on nebulized liposomal amikacin

Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PsA) is a highly prevalent bacterial organism recovered from the lungs of cystic fibrosis (CF) patients and chronic PsA infection is linked to progressive pulmonary function decline. The eradication and treatment of this organism from CF airways is particularly challenging to CF care providers. Aerosolized antibiotics that target PsA help to slow down growth, maintain lung function and reduce the frequency of pulmonary exacerbations. In this review, we discuss the currently available inhaled antibiotics for management of PsA lung infections in CF patients, with a focus on liposomal amikacin for inhalation (LAI). LAI is a unique formulation of amikacin under development that enhances drug delivery and retention in CF airways via drug incorporation into neutral liposomes. Factors such as once-daily dosing, mucus and biofilm penetration and potentially prolonged off-drug periods make LAI a potentially attractive option to manage chronic PsA lung infections in CF patients.
Risk-Cost-Benefit Methodology and Equal Protection

Ten years ago, it was commonplace for economists to calculate the value of human life as the lost economic productivity associated with a shortened life-span.1 As is well known, such a view has been shown to be grossly inadequate. Most obviously, it leads to counter-intuitive results, such as that the value of the life of a 65-year-old laborer is equal to the sum of his remaining earnings until retirement or that the value of the life of a small child is near zero, since her future earnings are discounted at a market rate of interest.
Somatic Cell Cytogenetics

By somatic cell cytogenetics is meant the study of differentiated cells outside the germline. Since such cells usually do not divide, it is not surprising that much less is known about them than about germline or meristematic cells.
Effects of Experience, Task Specific Information, and Risk on Tax Professionals’ Judgments

This research examines whether (1) less experienced tax accountants exhibit a pro-client bias (a tendency to conclude a client-favorable [unfavorable] outcome is more [less] likely as compared to more experienced tax accountants’ judgments), (2) whether task-specific declarative information (a summary of relevant IRC and Congressional intent) can reduce this bias, and (3) whether tax seniors and managers can make judgments similar to partner experts in a closed-cue judgment situation as suggested by prior research in medical decision making. The results show tax seniors judge taxability significantly less likely when the facts are against the client or neutral than both tax managers and partners. This pro-client bias is significantly reduced when the seniors are provided with relevant declarative information. In contrast, tax managers are able to make taxability judgments similar to the partner experts across all three risk conditions. I discuss implications for training, practice management, and future research.
Burkitt lymphoma presenting as facial nerve paresis

Abstract Acute onset unilateral facial palsy can be seen in children with otitis media. However, when symptoms fail to improve with antibiotics a broader differential should be considered. Here we present two cases of patients who were initially treated for otitis media, but developed facial paresis and were subsequently diagnosed with Burkitt lymphoma involving the temporal bone. In both instances facial nerve function improved with chemotherapy initiation.
60-Gb/s Mode Division Multiplexing and Wavelength Division Multiplexing in Si Multimode Waveguides

A silicon photonic waveguide system with mode-division and wavelength-division-multiplexing capabilities is demonstrated. Error-free (BER < 10-12) data transmission of 2 modal channels and 3wavelengths operating with aggregate bandwidth of 60-Gb/s is realized. This work motivates future bandwidth scalability of silicon photonic interconnects.
Parasitism of the Black Soldier Fly by Trichopria sp. (Hymenoptera: Diapriidae) in Poultry Houses

A Trichopria sp. (Hymenoptera: Diapriidae) was found to be an endophagous pupal parasitoid of the black soldier fly, Hermetia illucens (L.), at two caged-layer poultry operations in south Georgia. The life cycle of the Trichopria parasitoid averaged 32 days, and a mean of 96 ± 21 parasitoids emerged from each parasitized black soldier fly pupa. Parasitism of soldier fly pupae collected during the summer (June–September) ranged from 21 to 32%, whereas those collected during the winter (October–April) ranged from 0 to 4% parasitism. Though parasitoids could be reared from both soldier fly larvae and pupae, laboratory preference tests resulted in only soldier fly pupae being attacked. Trichopria sp. were never observed ovipositing on or emerging from house fly larvae or pupae.
Transforming Growth Factor β as a Predictor of Liver and Lung Fibrosis after Autologous Bone Marrow Transplantation for Advanced Breast Cancer

Background Hepatic veno-occlusive disease and idiopathic interstitial pneumonitis are major causes of morbidity and mortality after bone marrow transplantation. Fibrosis is a characteristic of both conditions, and transforming growth factor β (TGFβ) has been implicated in the pathogenesis of fibrosis. Methods Using acid-ethanol extraction to remove TGFβ from human plasma and a mink-lung epithelial-cell growth-inhibition assay to measure TGFβ activity, we quantified plasma TGFβ in 10 normal subjects and 41 patients before and after they underwent high-dose chemotherapy and autologous bone marrow transplantation for advanced breast cancer. Results There was no difference in pretransplantation TGFβ levels between the controls and the patients who did not have hepatic veno-occlusive disease or idiopathic interstitial pneumonitis after transplantation. In contrast, pretransplantation TGFβ levels were significantly higher in patients in whom hepatic veno-occlusive disease or idiopathic interstitial pneumonitis ...
Plasma uric acid concentrations and risk of ischaemic stroke in women.

Background and purpose Elevated plasma uric acid has been inconsistently associated with an increased risk of total stroke; however, data are sparse amongst women. The association between plasma uric acid concentrations and ischaemic stroke amongst women was examined and the effect modification by key cardiovascular risk factors was evaluated. Methods A nested case−control design with matching by age, race/ethnicity, smoking status, menopausal status, postmenopausal hormone therapy use, date of blood draw and fasting status was utilized amongst female participants of the Nurses' Health Study who provided blood samples between 1989 and 1990. Plasma uric acid was measured on stored blood samples. The National Survey of Stroke criteria were utilized to confirm 460 incident cases of ischaemic stroke by medical records from 1990 to 2006. Multivariable conditional logistic regression models were estimated. Results In matched analysis, risk of ischaemic stroke increased by 15% for each 1 mg/dl increase in plasma uric acid [95% confidence interval (CI) 3%–28%], but was no longer significant after adjustment for cardiovascular risk factors, particularly history of hypertension. The highest quartile of uric acid was significantly associated with greater risk of ischaemic stroke (relative risk 1.56; 95% CI 1.06–2.29, extreme quartiles) in matched analysis, but estimates were no longer significant after adjustment for cardiovascular risk factors (relative risk 1.43; 95% CI 0.93–2.18). Significant effect modification by key cardiovascular risk factors was not observed. Conclusions Plasma uric acid levels were not independently associated with increased risk of ischaemic stroke in this cohort of women. Whilst plasma uric acid was associated with stroke risk factors, it was not independently associated with stroke risk.
Tradition and the individual sodomite: Barnfield, Shakespeare, and subjective desire.

This article compares Shakespeare's sonnets with those written by Richard Banfield in order to examine the possibility of homoerotic subjectivity in early Renaissance England. Social constructionist debates about sexual subjectivity have convincingly argued that "the homosexual" - the person defined by homosexuality - did not exist before the Enlightenment. The sequences of Shakespeare and Barnfield, both of which deal with homoerotic desire, suggest that homoerotic desire could indeed play a role in defining the individual subject prior to the Enlightenment. However, the ways in which they use homoeroticism also suggest that subjectivity was defined in radically different ways during the period.
Putting Neuroscience to Work for Peace

Through his years of scholarship, Daniel Bar-Tal has provided the scientific community with an articulation of some of the key psychological processes that underlie protracted intergroup conflicts, and a roadmap to bringing about change through peace education. One challenge for building on the foundation laid by Daniel Bar-Tal is determining how to measure the biases that he has articulated. Measures that accurately capture the biases that drive intergroup conflict would enable an evidence-based approach to determining which interventions best chip away at these monolithic psychological forces. There are a number of reasons why applying theory to practice is particularly challenging in the context of intergroup conflict. First, biases such as “delegitimization” are complex social processes that may be difficult to capture using conventional measures. Second, delegitimization may be hard to admit. Above and beyond the typical challenge of getting past people’s desire to appear fair and open-minded, groups in conflict have strategic concerns that may also come into play (i.e., wanting their group to be perceived as the “good guys” by the international community), adding group-presentation biases to existing self-presentation biases. At the same time, some people might feel pressurized to respond in the opposite direction, exaggerating their antipathy towards the enemy so as not to be viewed as a “sympathizer.” Together, these undermine the accuracy and therefore usefulness of explicit measures of processes like delegitimization. One potential solution to this problem is the use of measures that are sophisticated enough to capture complex social processes, and also less sensitive to self-presentation biases. The recent technological advance of functional neuroimaging provides a tool that is theoretically ideal in many ways for just this purpose. In this chapter I will explore the ways in which functional neuroimaging has been used to examine biases in the context of ideological conflicts, and describe potential routes of future investigation.
Interleukin-11 inhibits adipogenesis and stimulates myelopoiesis in human long-term marrow cultures

Interleukin-11 (IL-11) is a bone marrow (BM) stromal-derived growth factor that has been shown to stimulate murine myeloid and lymphoid cells both in vitro and in vivo and to inhibit adipogenesis in a murine fibroblast cell line. We have studied the effects of IL-11 on highly purified human BM stem and progenitor cells and on human long-term marrow cultures (LTMC). Adipocyte differentiation is an integral component of murine and human LTMC. IL-11 stimulates myeloid growth as a single cytokine when added to highly enriched CD34+, HLA-DR+ bone marrow cells. IL-11 stimulated no growth in the more primitive CD34+, HLA-DR- population even in the presence of additional cytokines. IL-11 addition to human LTMC resulted in the expansion of myeloid and mixed, but not erythroid, progenitor populations. IL-11 dramatically increased the adherent cell populations, including both stromal cells and macrophages. Treated cultures also showed marked inhibition of fat accumulation in the adherent cells due in part to a block in the differentiation of preadipocytes to adipocytes, as shown by RNA analysis using adipocyte-specific markers. These data show that IL-11 stimulates a more differentiated, although multipotential, progenitor cell in human BM and that LTMC provide a useful model for studying the effects of this cytokine in the context of the hematopoietic microenvironment.
Effects of tallow supplementation and protein withdrawal on ruminal fermentation, microbial synthesis and site of digestion.

The effects of tallow supplementation [0% (NT) vs 7.5% (T)] and crude protein level [8.5% (LP) vs 12.0% (HP)] on ruminal fermentation, microbial protein (MCP) synthesis, digesta passage and site of digestion were estimated using yearling Angus X Simmental steers (390 kg) fitted with ruminal and T-type duodenal cannulae. Chromium-EDTA and ytterbium (Yb) chloride were used as markers of the liquid and solid phases. Passage and site of digestion data were estimated from the concentrations of Yb in the duodenal digesta and feces. Dry matter (DM) intakes were 6.8, 6.5, 6.3 and 6.6 kg/d for the NT-LP, NT-HP and T-HP diets, respectively. Ruminal ammonia concentrations (mg/100 ml) for the NT-LP, NT-HP, T-LP and T-HP diets were 1.22, 4.75, 1.05 and 3.41, respectively. Tallow decreased (P less than .05) acetate (mol/100 mol), increased (P less than .01) propionate (mol/100 mol) and decreased the total volatile fatty acid concentration. Tallow depressed apparent ruminal DM and organic matter (OM) digestibilities only on the HP diet. High protein increased ruminal DM, OM and fiber digestibilities. Tallow and LP tended to shift the site of OM digestion to the lower tract. The liquid and solid dilution rates for the NT-LP, NT-HP, T-LP and T-HP diets were 9.53, 3.37; 5.63, 3.28; 6.66, 5.10 and 6.79, 5.34%/h, respectively.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Differences in inhibitory synaptic input between layer II-III and layer V neurons of the cat neocortex

1. The goal of this study was to compare the relative effectiveness of intrinsic inhibitory synaptic inputs in different layers of the cat motor cortex. Postsynaptic potentials (PSPs) were evoked i...
My patients are the sickest

People with symptoms of the irritable bowel syndrome represent a broad spectrum with respect to severity of symptoms. Only a minority of them seek medical help and thereby become patients. The more severe are the symptoms that are experienced, the lower are the quality of life ratings, but patients will be more prone to participate in enquiries. This makes it very difficult to gain a representative picture of quality of life in irritable bowel syndrome.
Vancomycin-resistant enterococcus.

Vancomycin-resistant enterococcus (VRE) rapidly is becoming a significant cause of nosocomial infections. VRE lives in the environment (e.g., bedside tables, side rails, door knobs) for five to seven days, making transmission difficult to eliminate. Patients who are immunosuppressed or are receiving multiple antibiotics are particularly susceptible to developing VRE infections. Nursing management is the cornerstone of prevention and treatment. Nurses need to identify patients at risk, maintain isolation, and educate patients, family members, and other healthcare team members.
Discovery of Novel Thiophene-Based, Thumb Pocket 2 Allosteric Inhibitors of the Hepatitis C NS5B Polymerase with Improved Potency and Physicochemical Profiles

The hepatitis C viral proteins NS3/4A protease, NS5B polymerase, and NS5A are clinically validated targets for direct-acting antiviral therapies. The NS5B polymerase may be inhibited directly through the action of nucleosides or nucleotide analogues or allosterically at a number of well-defined sites. Herein we describe the further development of a series of thiophene carboxylate allosteric inhibitors of NS5B polymerase that act at the thumb pocket 2 site. Lomibuvir (1) is an allosteric HCV NS5B inhibitor that has demonstrated excellent antiviral activity and potential clinical utility in combination with other direct acting antiviral agents. Efforts to further explore and develop this series led to compound 23, a compound with comparable potency and improved physicochemical properties.
Geometry of Hyper-Kähler Connections with Torsion

The internal space of a N = 4 supersymmetric model with Wess–Zumino term has a connection with totally skew-symmetric torsion and holonomy in SP(n). We study the mathematical background of this type of connection. In particular, we relate it to classical Hermitian geometry, construct homogeneous as well as inhomogeneous examples, characterize it in terms of holomorphic data, develop its potential theory and reduction theory.
Structural Stability of Functionalized Silicene Nanoribbons with Normal, Reconstructed, and Hybrid Edges

Silicene, a novel graphene-like material, has attracted a significant attention because of its potential applications for nanoelectronics. In this paper, we have theoretically investigated the structural stability of edge-hydrogenated and edge-fluorinated silicene nanoribbons SiNRs via first-principles calculations. Various edge forms of SiNRs including armchair edge, zigzag edge, Klein edge, reconstructed Klein edge, reconstructed pentagon-heptagon edge, and hybrid edges have been considered. It has been found that fully fluorinated Klein edge SiNRs, in which each edge Si atom is terminated by three fluorine atoms, are the most stable structure. We also discovered that a hybrid edge structure of trihydrogenated Klein edge and dihydrogenated zigzag edge can increase the nanoribbon’s stability up to that of dihydrogenated armchair edge SiNR, which is known as the most stable edge-hydrogenated structure. With the attractive properties of silicene for practical applications, the obtained results will advance experimental investigations toward the development of silicene based devices.
Extended Postnatal Brain Development in the Longest-Lived Rodent: Prolonged Maintenance of Neotenous Traits in the Naked Mole-Rat Brain.

The naked mole-rat (NMR) is the longest-lived rodent with a maximum lifespan >31 years. Intriguingly, fully-grown naked mole-rats (NMRs) exhibit many traits typical of neonatal rodents. However, little is known about NMR growth and maturation, and we question whether sustained neotenous features when compared to mice, reflect an extended developmental period, commensurate with their exceptionally long life. We tracked development from birth to three years of age in the slowest maturing organ, the brain, by measuring mass, neural stem cell proliferation, axonal and dendritic maturation, synaptogenesis and myelination. NMR brain maturation was compared to data from similar sized rodents, mice, and to that of long-lived mammals, humans and non-human primates. We found that at birth, NMR brains are significantly more developed than mice, and rather are more similar to those of newborn primates, with clearly laminated hippocampi and myelinated white matter tracts. Despite this more mature brain at birth than mice, postnatal NMR brain maturation occurs at a far slower rate than mice, taking four-times longer than required for mice to fully complete brain development. At four months of age, NMR brains reach 90% of adult size with stable neuronal cytostructural protein expression whereas myelin protein expression does not plateau until nine months of age in NMRs, and synaptic protein expression continues to change throughout the first three years of life. Intriguingly, NMR axonal composition is more similar to humans than mice whereby NMRs maintain expression of three-repeat (3R) tau even after brain growth is complete; mice experience an abrupt downregulation of 3R tau by postnatal day 8 which continues to diminish through six weeks of age. We have identified key ages in NMR cerebral development and suggest that the long-lived NMR may provide neurobiologists an exceptional model to study brain developmental processes that are compressed in common short-lived laboratory animal models.
Distributed proportional stochastic coordinate descent with social sampling

We consider stochastic message passing algorithms that limit the communication required for decentralized and distributed convex optimization and provide convergence guarantees on the objective value. We first propose a centralized method that modifies the coordinate-sampling distribution for stochastic coordinate descent, which we call proportional stochastic coordinate descent. This method treats the gradient of the function as a probability distribution to sample the coordinates, and may be useful in so-called lock-free decentralized optimization schemes. For general distributed optimization in which agents jointly minimize the sum of local objectives, we propose treating the iterates as gradients and propose a stochastic coordinate-wise primal averaging algorithm for optimization.
Valuing farm access to irrigation in Nepal: A hedonic pricing model

Abstract The objective of this research is to quantify the economic value of access to irrigation for agricultural lands in rural Nepal, while controlling for the effects of social institutions that can either enhance or detract from agricultural production and land values. The analysis employs the hedonic pricing method (HPM) and uses self-assessed land value data from the Nepal Living Standards Survey, 2011. For the econometric modeling, a Box-Cox transformation supports the selection of the double log HPM model. Results show that the value of land with access to irrigation water is approximately 46 percent higher than the value of non-irrigated lands with a marginal implicit price of approximately NRs. 150,840 in 2011, (representing about seven times the median rural annual per capita income). Results also show the importance of built irrigation infrastructure, such as canals and tube wells, as well as access to multiple sources of irrigation water. We find that land-owner membership in community-managed irrigation systems and forestry user groups has positive impacts on land values. In consideration of extensive 2015 earthquake damages across large areas of Nepal, the findings support the critical importance of repairing irrigation access, especially to built irrigation infrastructures, and supporting community-managed irrigation and forestry user groups, which often lack the initial capital to initiate projects, for restoring rural well-being.
Eigenvalues and Perturbed Domains

For elliptic partial differential equations on a bounded domain, we present a survey of some results on the dependence of eigenvalues and eigenfunctions on smooth and nonsmooth perturbations of the domain.
CuTaS3: Intermetal d–d Transitions Enable High Solar Absorption

To realize the fundamental limits of photovoltaic device efficiency, solar absorbers must exhibit strong absorption and abrupt absorption onsets. Ideally, onsets to maximum absorption (α > 105 cm–1) occur over a few tenths of an electronvolt. First-principles calculations predict CuTaS3 represents a potentially new class of materials with such absorption characteristics. Narrow metallic d bands in both the initial and final states present high joint densities of states and, therefore, strong absorption. Specifically, a mixture of metal d (Cu1+, d10) and S p characterizes states near the valence band maximum, and metal d (Ta5+, d0) dominates near the conduction band minimum. Optical absorption measurements on thin films confirm the abrupt onset to strong absorption α > 105 cm–1 at Eg + 0.4 eV (Eg = 1.0 eV). Theoretical CuTaS3 solar cell efficiency is predicted to be 28% for a 300 nm film based on the metric of spectroscopic limited maximum efficiency, which exceeds that of CuInSe2. This sulfide may offer n...
Jacques Ellul: Essential Spiritual Writings

Jacques Ellul (1912-1994) was a French sociologist, philosopher, andlay theologian whose prophetic critique of modern civilization andtechnology won an appreciative audience far beyond Christian circles.Yet this was only one half of his project. For nearly every sociologicalbook he wrote, Ellul would write a theological or spiritual counterpart.This volume highlights that side of his work, with spiritual gems onprayer, hope, and universal salvation. His call to reject the worship ofthe state and to embrace nonviolent activism has an abiding relevanceand urgency.
Hermenêutica Fenomenológica: A Investigação Filosófica de Husserl Sobre o que Afinal Acontece Quando Ocorre Compreensão (Uma Exploração da Primeira Investigação Lógica)

Este ensaio examina a explicacao de Husserl sobre o que afinal acontece quando ocorre a compreensao. Os topicos de sua Primeira Investigacao Logica sao familiares ao ponto de serem menosprezadas: distincoes essenciais envolvendo atos conferidores de significacao e preenchedores de significacao e seus conteudos, caracterizacoes dos atos conferidores de significacao, a flutuacao dos significados das palavras e a idealidade das unidades de significacao, e os conteudos fenomenologico e ideal das vivencias de significacao. Uma vez feitas as distincoes essenciais, a investigacao abre um caminho direto. Ela conduz dos atos psiquicamente reais de significacao e seus conteudos subjetivamente flutuantes as significacoes logicamente ideais e seus conteudos objetivamente constantes. Dado que aparentemente a estrategia de Husserl para lidar com expressoes essencialmente ocasionais e suas significacoes aparentemente flutuantes pode funcionar para a Logica pura, com sua necessidade de rigor de identidade e determinacao de sentido, mas nao, entretanto, para o discurso ordinario, parece que a Primeira Investigacao Logica nao pode prover uma explicacao sobre a compreensao. Contudo, este ensaio tenta mostrar que Husserl apresenta uma hermeneutica fundamental na Primeira Investigacao Logica e que ela se volta da linguistica para a ontologia, ou de ‘meras palavras’ para as ‘coisas elas mesmas’.
Bringing the patient voice into quality assessment: National stakeholder perceptions of facilitators and barriers for the use of PROs as performance measures.

61Background: An emerging trend in quality improvement is to incorporate the patient voice into performance metrics for routine care delivery using patient-reported outcomes (PRO). For instance, pa...
Venture Labor| Labor on the Cutting Edge

In Venture Labor , we encounter resourceful and skilled groups of professionals dealing with a complex mixture of economic and noneconomic opportunity, risk, insecurity, and creative fulfillment. To navigate this shifting and fluid landscape, these professionals choose from among a set of contrasting strategies. Some of these strategies entail insecurity and risk, while others maximize opportunities for desired creative work or the chance to acquire economic wealth. In examining these strategies, Venture Labor unravels the mysteries of work under a form of individualizing capitalism still in its infancy.
Acoustic plus electric speech processing: Long-term results.

Objective Few studies have investigated the stability of residual hearing and speech perception outcomes in individuals who were implanted with a shorter electrode device. Study Design Longitudinal, single-subject design. Methods Fifty subjects who received a Nucleus Hybrid (Cochlear, Sydney, Australia) short electrode cochlear implant (CI) and had a minimum of 2 years (and up to 15 years) of postoperative longitudinal experience were included in this study. Twenty-three subjects received a Nucleus Hybrid S8 (S8); 14 subjects received a Nucleus Hybrid L24 (L24); and 13 received a Nucleus Hybrid S12 (S12). Audiometric thresholds and consonant-nucleus-consonant (CNC) words were collected pre- and postoperatively for up to 15 years for the S8 subjects and for up to 7 years for the S12 and L24 subjects. AzBio Sentences in multi-talker babble was collected for up to 7 years on the S12 and L24 subjects. Results Longitudinally, 83% of the S8 subjects, 92% of the S12 subjects, and 86% of the L24 subjects maintained a functional hearing pure-tone average (PTA) (125–500 Hz). Predicted change using a piecewise linear mixed model in PTA over time showed a postoperative linear decrease in hearing for each group until 0.5 years, after which the PTA stabilizes and is maintained. The averaged individual data for CNC and AzBio sentences show a significant improvement in scores by 0.25 to 0.5 years postimplantation, after which scores start to reach their maximum. Conclusion This long-term study demonstrates that acoustic-electric processing hearing and improvement in speech understanding in quiet and in noise can be accomplished and sustained for many years with a short electrode CI. Level of Evidence 2C. Laryngoscope, 2017
Critique [of Fascism: A Review of Its History and Its Present Cultural Reality in the Americas]

Writing from the vantage point of the 1980s, white historians have questioned the earlier simplistic interpretations of Jeffersonian and Jacksonian Democracy. Certainly that “democracy” excluded blacks, Indians, women, and the poor, since it was modeled on the ancient Athenian system. It is clear that these and other evils were compromised and were not resolved to the complete satisfaction of the masses. For example, though the Civil War produced the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth amendments white Americans devised other systems to keep blacks in an inferior position.
Gastroschisis and Omphalocele

Gastroschisis and omphalocele are the major abdominal wall defects present in neonates. Omphalocele is a midline abdominal wall defect of the umbilical ring. Abdominal viscera, including intestines, spleen, or liver may herniate into the umbilical sac. Gastroschisis is a defect in the anterior abdominal wall typically located to the right of the umbilical ring, usually containing only the small and large intestines, without a surrounding membrane. The frequency of other associated abnormalities is higher with omphalocele (35–75%) than gastroschisis (2–10%). Patients with gastroschisis often are premature and small for gestational age (SGA). Management for omphalocele or gastroschisis repair includes meticulous attention to volume replacement, covering the mucosal surfaces with sterile, saline-soaked dressings to minimize evaporative and heat losses, and a rapid sequence induction for intubation. As abdominal closure is attempted, it is important to monitor for (1) decreased perfusion to abdominal organs, (2) decreased ventilation/oxygenation, and (3) decreased venous return. Impaired organ function/damage may lead to decreased drug metabolism, lactic acidosis, and renal congestion. It is important to monitor for urine output (UOP), lactic acidosis, and ventilator changes as well as electrolyte abnormalities that may develop as the abdomen is closed. In patients who have large defects, the replacement of abdominal contents may lead to mechanical obstruction of the IVC and subsequent decreased venous return, lower body edema, and lactic acidosis. In these cases, the reduction of abdominal contents may be done in a staged procedure to allow for the body to adapt.
Simulations of Materials: Clusters and Interfacial Junctions

The emergence of computers as high-powered research tools, and the development and proliferation of computer-based modeling and simulations, coupled with microscopies with atomic scale resolution, add new dimensions to our capabilities to explore materials systems and phenomena. We review quantum and classical molecular dynamics simulations, illustrating the insights gained by such studies, for a broad range of systems. Case studies discussed include: quantum simulations of fission dynamics of charged atomic clusters, metallization of finite alkali-halide clusters, energetics and structure of solvation of alkali-metal atoms in water clusters, collision dynamics of nanoclusters with solid and liquid surfaces, stability of nanostructures deposited on a surface, investigations of the consequences of interfacial adhesive interactions leading to the formation of intermetallic junctions, and the molecular mechanisms of capillary processes.
Young Adults’ Life Outcomes and Well-Being: Perceived Financial Socialization from Parents, the Romantic Partner, and Young Adults’ Own Financial Behaviors

We examined how perceived financial socialization—from parents, the romantic partner, and young adults’ own behavior—was associated with young adults’ life outcomes and well-being (i.e., physical and mental health, finances, romantic relationship). Using data (N = 504) from young adults specific to their finances, results from hierarchical regression analyses showed that young adults’ own financial behaviors were the most patterned, followed by financial socialization from the romantic partner, and then from financial socialization from parents (only objective financial knowledge). We discuss how young adults’ financial behavior, financial socialization from the romantic partner and, to a lesser extent, parental socialization are associated with young adults’ life domains, underscoring the developmental salience of increased financial capability and relationship formation and decreased dependence on parents during the transition to adulthood.
Crude Oil Releases to the Environment: Natural Fate and Remediation Options

Crude oils and other hydrocarbons have been a part of the biosphere for millions of years, so it is no surprise that a ubiquitous, diverse population of hydrocarbon-consuming microorganisms uses this resource as a source of carbon and energy. These organisms can respond rapidly to human-associated oil spills, although sometimes mobilizing their full benefits requires physical treatments to disperse or remove bulk oil, such as by the use of dispersants, mechanical pick-up or combustion. Modern environmentally responsible remediation activities work to stimulate these natural processes without causing any additional adverse environmental impact.