cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Phospholipid molecular species influence crystal habits and transition sequences of metastable intermediates during cholesterol crystallization from bile salt-rich model bile.

Despite its importance in cholesterol gallstone for- mation, crystallization of cholesterol from bile is poorly under- stood, especially with respect to the influences of other biliary lipids. We reported recently (Konikoff et al. J. Clin. Invest. 1992. 90: 1155-1160) that cholesterol can crystallize from model and native biles as filamentous crystals covered by a surface layer of lecithin molecules. During growth, filamentous crystals trans- formed via metastable intermediates into classical plate-like cholesterol monohydrate crystals. Using the same dilute (1.2 g/dl total lipid) bile salt-rich (97.5 moles %) model bile supersatu- rated with cholesterol, we have studied the effects of natural egg yolk, soy bean as well as single molecular species of lecithins, other phospholipids and related lipid classes on early filamen- tous cholesterol crystallization, as well as transformations be- tween crystal habits and their growth to equilibrium cholesterol monohydrate plates. After extraction and derivatization, HPLC analysis revealed that the surfaces of filamentous crystals were enriched preferentially with lecithin molecular species having longer and more saturated sn-1 and sn-2 acyl chains compared to mixed lecithin species of whole bile. In contrast, the molecular species distribution of lecithins on equilibrium plate-like crystals resembled that of whole bile. After incubation of pre-formed an- hydrous cholesterol and cholesterol monohydrate crystals in cholesterol-free lipid solutions, we demonstrated that surface- adsorbed lecithins were not preferentially enriched excluding nonspecific lecithin adsorption. Time-sequences and transfor- mations between metastable crystalline intermediates were al- tered markedly by specific phospholipid species: model biles composed of saturated short-chain, medium-chain, and polyun- saturated long-chain lecithins induced rapid precipitation of short filamentous crystals that became plate-like slowly by an "arborization pattern." Long-chain saturated lecithins and natural sphingomyelins retarded cholesterol crystallization markedly, and filamentous as well as metastable intermediate crystals made transient appearances only after plate-like crystals had formed. I These observations suggest that phospholipid
Channelized lava flows at the East Pacific Rise crest 9°–10°N: The importance of off‐axis lava transport in developing the architecture of young oceanic crust

[1] Submarine lava flows are the building blocks of young oceanic crust. Lava erupted at the ridge axis is transported across the ridge crest in a manner dictated by the rheology of the lava, the characteristics of the eruption, and the topography it encounters. The resulting lava flows can vary dramatically in form and consequently in their impact on the physical characteristics of the seafloor and the architecture of the upper 50–500 m of the oceanic crust. We have mapped and measured numerous submarine channelized lava flows at the East Pacific Rise (EPR) crest 9°–10°N that reflect the high-effusion-rate and high-flow-velocity end-member of lava eruption and transport at mid-ocean ridges. Channel systems composed of identifiable segments 50–1000 m in length extend up to 3 km from the axial summit trough (AST) and have widths of 10–50 m and depths of 2–3 m. Samples collected within the channels are N-MORB with Mg# indicating eruption from the AST. We produce detailed maps of lava surface morphology across the channel surface from mosaics of digital images that show lineated or flat sheets at the channel center bounded by brecciated lava at the channel margins. Modeled velocity profiles across the channel surface allow us to determine flux through the channels from 0.4 to 4.7 × 103 m3/s, and modeled shear rates help explain the surface morphology variation. We suggest that channelized lava flows are a primary mechanism by which lava accumulates in the off-axis region (1–3 km) and produces the layer 2A thickening that is observed at fast and superfast spreading ridges. In addition, the rapid, high-volume-flux eruptions necessary to produce channelized flows may act as an indicator of the local magma budget along the EPR. We find that high concentrations of channelized lava flows correlate with local, across-axis ridge morphology indicative of an elevated magma budget. Additionally, in locations where channelized flows are located dominantly to the east or west of the AST, the ridge crest is asymmetric, and layer 2A appears to thicken over a greater distance from the AST toward the side of the ridge crest where the channels are located.
Membrane electroporation: The absolute rate equation and nanosecond time scale pore creation

The recent applications of nanosecond, megavolt-per-meter electric field pulses to biological systems show striking cellular and subcellular electric field induced effects and revive the interest in the biophysical mechanism of electroporation. We first show that the absolute rate theory, with experimentally based parameter input, is consistent with membrane pore creation on a nanosecond time scale. Secondly we use a Smoluchowski equation-based model to formulate a self-consistent theoretical approach. The analysis is carried out for a planar cell membrane patch exposed to a $10\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{ns}$ trapezoidal pulse with $1.5\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{ns}$ rise and fall times. Results demonstrate reversible supraelectroporation behavior in terms of transmembrane voltage, pore density, membrane conductance, fractional aqueous area, pore distribution, and average pore radius. We further motivate and justify the use of Krassowska's asymptotic electroporation model for analyzing nanosecond pulses, showing that pore creation dominates the electrical response and that pore expansion is a negligible effect on this time scale.
More on the power of demand queries in combinatorial auctions: learning atomic languages and handling incentives

Query learning models from computational learning theory (CLT) can be adopted to perform elicitation in combinatorial auctions. Indeed, a recent elicitation framework demonstrated that the equivalence queries of CLT can be usefully simulated with price-based demand queries. In this paper, we validate the flexibility of this framework by defining a learning algorithm for atomic bidding languages, a class that includes XOR and OR. We also handle incentives, characterizing the communication requirements of the Vickrey-Clarke-Groves outcome rule. This motivates an extension to the earlier learning framework that brings truthful responses to queries into an equilibrium.
Optimizing P2P streaming throughput under peer churning

High-throughput P2P streaming relies on peer selection, the strategy a peer uses to select other peer(s) as its parent(s) of streaming. Although this problem has been thoroughly investigated in the classical optimization framework under static settings, it still remains unaddressed as how to sustain throughput competitive to the optimum under highly dynamic peer churning. To accommodate such peer dynamics, we extend the classical optimization framework and propose a distributed online peer selection algorithm. This basic algorithm is further extended to a variety of settings commonly seen in operational P2P networks, such as multi-parent streaming, admission control, delay constraint, etc. We prove approximation bound of our algorithm to the optimal throughput. Through evaluation under different topological setups and peer churning sequences, we show that our solution can consistently deliver competitive throughput, which greatly outperforms its theoretical bound.
Performance metrics for structural composites with electrochemical multifunctionality

Structural electrochemical composites, which are capable of carrying mechanical loads while simultaneously storing or releasing electrical energy, combine the components and behaviors of conventional polymer composite structures and electrochemical devices such as batteries and supercapacitors into a single multifunctional material. In order to analyze these systems more rigorously, this paper derives relationships and metrics for the mass savings of a multifunctional design relative to a design consisting of conventional structures and electrochemical devices. These metrics are then evaluated using structural supercapacitors composed of carbon fiber electrodes and conductive solid polymer electrolytes, as well as multifunctional supercapacitors from literature. The analysis reveals that state-of-the-art multifunctional supercapacitors are still far from reaching the levels of performance needed to supplant conventional structures and save system mass. The metrics provide further insight regarding multifu...
Activity-based sleep-wake identification in infants

Actigraphy offers one of the best known alternatives to polysomnography for wake-sleep identification. The advantages of actigraphy include high accuracy, simplicity of use and low intrusiveness. These features allow of use actigraphy for determining wake-sleep states in highly sensitive groups such as infants. Both logistic regression and neural networks were tested as predictors. The accuracy of predicted wake-sleep states were established in comparison to the sleep/wake states recorded by technicians in a polysomnograph study. Both prediction methods provided good accuracy of prediction and agreement in results with other studies, thus validating the suggested methodology.
Toxicity of Aspergillus ochraceus Contaminated Wheat and Different Chemical Forms of Ochratoxin A in Broiler Chicks

The toxicity of Aspergillus ochraceus contaminated wheat and various chemical forms of ochratoxin A (OA) were compared by feeding diets containing A. ochraceus contaminated wheat (3.0 micrograms OA/g diet) and 3.0 micrograms/g of purified OA in the K salt, Na salt, or organic acid form to broiler chicks from hatching to 4 weeks of age. All OA diets caused listlessness, emaciation, dehydration, and occasional diarrhea. Cumulative mortalities were 0, 13, 17, and 10% for the control, contaminated wheat, OA Na salt, OA K salt, and OA acid, respectively. Necropsies at the end of the experiment revealed pale friable livers, enlarged pale kidneys, and enlarged gall bladders in all OA treatments. Body weights and gain were significantly depressed throughout the experiment, and cumulative feed conversion ratios were significantly increased by all forms of OA. Relative kidney and liver weights were also significantly increased by all forms of OA. Serum analysis revealed significant decreases in total protein, albumin, globulin, cholesterol, and phosphorus concentrations and significant increases in uric acid concentrations in chicks fed all forms of OA. Determinations of median lethal dose (LD50) were conducted by dosing day-old chicks and recording mortality for 10 days. LD50 values were 4.41, 3.95, and 2.69 mg/kg for OA acid, Na salt, and K salt, respectively. These results indicated that the K salt of OA was more toxic than the Na salt in acute oral dosing. During the feeding study, results also suggested that chemical form of OA affected its toxicity, but after feeding 3.0 micrograms/g OA for 4 weeks, no significant differences in toxicity were caused by the various chemical forms of OA or the A. ochraceus contaminated diet.
Shared Gene Expression Alterations in Schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorder

Schizophrenia (SZ) and bipolar disorder (BPD) have traditionally been diagnosed by clinical examination of psychotic symptoms and affective dysregulation. The clinical impressions along these two dimensions coupled with historical separation into current diagnostic classifications have led to these illnesses being viewed and treated in research as independent classes (1,2). Categorization into separate classes has led to efforts for identification of separate pathophysiologies for each disorder (3). However, it has not escaped attention that the classifications share some pathophysiology, vulnerability and risk factors, genetic loci, clinical manifestations, and approximate ages of onset. Classifications have arisen that are based upon meeting clinical characteristics, and multiple criteria can be combined into discrete subgroups, which might be different in terms of pathophysiology. Recent discussions have centered on the idea that schizophrenia and bipolar are not separate illnesses (1-5), but share many criteria and differ along a dimension related to psychosis and affective symptom clusters. Medication response can be effective in one or both disorders or equally ineffective in both. Furthermore, patients clinically present with both affective and psychotic symptoms. This study was motivated by the idea of identifying common gene-expression profiles akin to recent reports of shared candidate genes that overlap in linkage and association genetic studies of BPD and SZ, although clearly not in all studies (1). Most reports of SZ or BPD microarray studies have not compared both disorders with a common reference control group with a few exceptions (6,7). We now present a common molecular profile of both SZ and BPD as one potential indicator of a partially shared molecular phenotype.
Seismic slip, segmentation, and the Loma Prieta Earthquake

We have plotted the cumulative seismic slip projected onto a vertical plane for earthquakes occurring during the last 20 years along 210 km of the San Andreas fault that includes the section that moved in the Loma Prieta earthquake. These plots illustrate the differences in depth and character of the seismicity between the locked and creeping portions of the fault or fault zone and define the segment upon which the Loma Prieta earthquake occurred. Working by analogy from the relation between pre-main shock microseismicity and presumed main shock slip regions at Parkfield and Loma Prieta, we identify a segment on the San Francisco Peninsula where we believe the M 7 1838 earthquake occurred, and which we believe may have accumulated sufficient strain that rupture should be expected in the coming decades.
Bacterial Colonization of the Dental Implant Fixture–Abutment Interface: An In Vitro Study

Background: The geometry of the fixture–abutment interface (FAI) might influence the risk of bacterial invasion of the internal part of the implant. The aim of this study was to use an in vitro model to assess the potential risk for invasion of oral microorganisms into the FAI microgap of dental implants with different characteristics of the connection between the fixture and abutment. Methods: Thirty implants were divided into three groups (n = 10 per group) based on their microgap dynamics. Groups 1 and 2 were comprised of fixtures with internal Morse-taper connections that connected to standard abutments and the same abutments with a 0.5-mm groove modification, respectively. Group 3 was comprised of implants with a tri-channel internal connection. Fixtures and abutments were assembled and allowed to incubate in a bacterial solution of Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans (previously Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans) and Porphyromonas gingivalis. Two standard abutments were either exposed to bacterial culture or left sterile to serve as positive and negative controls. After disconnection of fixtures and abutments, microbial samples were taken from the threaded portion of the abutment, plated, and allowed to culture under appropriate conditions. Results: Three of the 10 samples in group 1 developed one colony forming unit (CFU) for A. actinomycetemcomitans, whereas zero of 10 samples developed CFUs for P. gingivalis. Ten of 10 and nine of 10 samples from groups 2 and 3, respectively, developed multiple CFUs for A. actinomycetemcomitans and P. gingivalis. Conclusion: This study indicated that differences in implant designs may affect the potential risk for invasion of oral microorganisms into the FAI microgap. J Periodontol 2009;80:19911997.
Visualization of distributed processes using "Data Jewelry Box" algorithm

Visualization of distributed processes is useful for the management of large-scale distributed computing systems. Reactivity and scalability are especially important requirements for such visualization of distributed processes. We have proposed the visualization technique "Data Jewelry Box" algorithm, which satisfies both of the above requirements. The technique can be applied for the visualization of distributed processes, however, the algorithm has a problem that may yield much different data layouts even among very similar datasets. This is a serious issue for the seamless visualization of time-varying data. To solve the problem, we propose the extension of "Data Jewelry Box" algorithm. The extension places data elements referring positions of the previous data layout, so that the extension can yield similar layouts among similar datasets. We introduce the extended algorithm, and propose the visualization system for distributed computing systems using the extended algorithm.
Manifestation of left atrial events in the surface electrocardiogram during atrial fibrillation

In most patients, atrial fibrillation (AF) is initiated by pulmonary veins foci. We investigated whether these left atrial events are reflected in the surface electrocardiogram (ECG) and whether additional information can be obtained from recording posterior leads in patients with AF. In 7 patients, we identified 51 5-second segments with a significant frequency gradient between right (RA) and left (LA) intra-atrial electrograms, as well as frequency changes from segment to segment in the same patient. QRS-T cancellation methods were used to isolate atrial activity in the surface ECG, and peak frequencies were computed. Peak frequencies of posterior leads were very similar (6.0 plusmn1.3 Hz for V7, 5.9 plusmn1.4 Hz for V8, 6.0 plusmn1.1 Hz for V9, 6.0 plusmn 1.3 Hz for V10). Lead V9 seemed to have the best signal quality and was chosen for further analysis. We found a strong correlation between VI and RA and between V9 and LA, 0.98 and 0.93 respectively, while the lowest correlation was found between lead VI and LA, 0.64, p < 0.00001. Magnitude-squared coherence values were highest between VI and RA and lowest between VI and LA.
State Variation in Increased ADHD Prevalence: Links to NCLB School Accountability and State Medication Laws

Objective:The study’s objective was to investigate whether attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) diagnoses from 2003 to 2011 were associated with either public school consequential accountability reforms initiated by the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, particularly for low-income children, or with state psychotropic medication laws that prohibit public schools from recommending or requiring medication use.Methods:Logistic regression difference-in-differences models were estimated with repeated U.S. and state-representative cross-sections of responses to the 2003, 2007, and 2011 National Survey of Children’s Health. Each wave included approximately 35,000 public school children between ages six and 13.Results:From 2003 to 2007, the change in adjusted diagnostic prevalence was 2.8 percentage points higher for children ages six to 13 in households with incomes ≤185% of the federal poverty level residing in states first exposed to consequential accountability through NCLB (from 8.5% to 13.2%), comp...
In spite of good intentions: patients' perspectives on problematic social support interactions.

Background In the setting of an acute coronary syndrome, the natural inclination of friends and family members is to provide social support. However, their efforts may be perceived as being problematic or unhelpful. The objective of this study was to identify the characteristics of problematic social support interactions from the perspectives of patients.
The double-edged sword of social service contracting: public accountability versus nonprofit autonomy.

The increased role of government contracts in the funding of nonprofits has heightened tensions as governments seek accountability and nonprofits seek to preserve autonomy. Considering both sides of the contract market, this article suggests that the threat of government funding is exaggerated. Nonprofits are attractive contractor options because of their experience and trustworthiness. Governments should recognize that excessive intrusions limit the advantages of the nonprofit sector. At the same time, nonprofits should be conscious of the implications of public funding, just as they must be of other sources of funding.
Effects of Mycobacterium avium Complex—Infection Treatment on Cytokine Expression in Human Immunodeficiency Virus—Infected Persons: Results of AIDS Clinical Trials Group Protocol 853

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) type 1-infected persons with newly diagnosed Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) bacteremia were enrolled in an 8-week study to determine whether treatment of MAC infection is associated with decreases in plasma tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha levels. Blood specimens were obtained for quantitative MAC cultures and to determine plasma levels of HIV RNA, TNF-alpha, and other proinflammatory cytokines. MAC levels decreased by 1.75 log at week 4 (P=.008) and by 2.48 log at week 8 (P=.001). Plasma TNF-alpha decreased by 0.15 log at week 4 (P=.042) and by 0. 40 log at week 8 (P=.027). Plasma interleukin (IL)-6 decreased by 0. 56 log at week 8 (P=.039). There were nonsignificant trends (P<.10) for plasma levels of IL-1beta and HIV RNA to decrease at week 8. Nonsignificant decreases in plasma levels of TNF-alpha, IL-1beta, IL-6, and HIV RNA were also seen in those individuals who remained on stable antiretroviral therapy throughout the 8 weeks of the study.
The Logic of the Latifundio: The Large Estates of Northwestern Costa Rica Since the Late Nineteenth Century

Introduction: the Latin American hacienda, Agrarian capitalism, and political process Part I. The Period Before 1950: 1. Formation and consolidation of the haciendas 2. technology, transport, and markets 3. Relations of production and domination 4. Agrarian conflict and the external peasantry 5. The transition to the beef export economy Part II. The Period After 1950: 6. The beef export economy 7. Changes on the ground: the large properties 8. The rural poor: resistance, resignation, and retreat 9. Limits of the transformation from hacienda to plantation 10. The politics of water and landlord resistance Conclusion: economic crisis and the persistence of latifundismo Appendixes Notes Index.
Imipramine with or without cognitive-behavior therapy in the treatment of an agoraphobic.

-This single case experiment compared the relative efficacy of imipramine hydrochloride and imipramine in conjunction with in viuo exposure and cognitive therapy, in the treatment of an agoraphobic. Results indicated that imipramine alone was ineffective in improving the client's phobic condition. However, the addition of the cognitive-behavioral intervention to imipramine proved extremely effective in altering phobic fear and avoidance behavior.
"Snowboarder's fracture" : fracture of the lateral process of the talus

BACKGROUND: As physicians caring for patients who sustain snowboarding ankle injuries, we have noted that fracture of the lateral process of the talus occurs frequently. The incidence of this fracture, however, is very low in other accounts of ankle injuries. We report a case of fracture of the lateral process of the talus and review the pertinent literature of this injury. METHODS: A literature review was performed using MEDLINE files from 1966 to the present. We found additional references from the bibliographies of available reports. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: Physicians caring for snowboarders should look specifically for fracture of the lateral process of the talus in a snowboarder with a lateral ankle or foot injury. This fracture can mimic a lateral ankle sprain, yet the fracture is easily missed on plain radiographs of the ankle. Because displaced or comminuted fractures can cause long-term disability, primary care physicians and specialists alike need to be aware of the association of this fracture with snowboarding. Language: en
Continuous-throughput rectification of organic liquid mixtures with thermal-diffusion columns

Experiments were carried out with cylindrical thermal-diffusion columns in which the separation chambers were sufficiently narrow so that curvature effects might be ignored. For both open and closed operation, results were obtained for the two binary systems benzene-carbon tetrachloride and n-heptane–benzene as well as the ternary mixture n-heptane–methylcyclo-hexane-toluene. For the binary systems, correlations are given in terms of dimensionless combinations which arise when the equations of conservation are placed in dimensionless form. The thermal-diffusion coefficients used in the correlations are literature values determined in steady-state–cell (no convection) measurements.
Thermal degradation of PEO on SiO2 nanoparticles as a function of SiO2 silanol density, hydrophobicity and size

Abstract The degradation behavior of semicrystalline PEO on silica (SiO 2 ) nanoparticles as a function of silanol density, hydrophobicity and nanoparticle size was investigated under N 2 purge by derivative thermogravimetric analysis (dTGA) for adsorption amounts at or below plateau adsorption. The PEO was adsorbed onto colloidal (Stober) onto 100 nm colloidal that had been heat-treated to vary the silanol density or hydrophobically modified, (CH 3 ) 3 –SiO 2 , and onto 15, 40 and 100 nm SiO 2 made by a water-glass process. Either one or two degradation peaks, T d , were observed for the adsorbed PEO, one at ∼180–210 °C and one at ∼250–300 °C. The degradation peak at 180–210 °C appeared either at high adsorption amounts for the 100 nm SiO 2 , on the 15 nm SiO 2 , and on hydrophobically modified SiO 2 , where PEO not directly hydrogen-bonded with SiOH was expected. The degradation peak at 250–300 °C correlated with SiOH density of the SiO 2 , and thus SiOH/C O contacts, and the peak position increased with increase in SiOH density. With decreasing adsorption amount for the 100 nm SiO 2 , the 180–210 °C peak decreased with respect to the 250–300 °C peak. Thus, the freer PEO segments appeared to degrade at lower temperatures than the H-bonded segments. However, both T d s were well below those observed for neat PEO, which occurs at ca 388 °C. This may arise since PEO is oxidatively unstable, and the volatile degradation products of the relatively small number of PEO chains on the high surface area SiO 2 are removed quickly, resulting in more rapid degradation.
Introducing Semantics to Cloud Services Catalogs

A formal catalog representation of Cloud services is required for automated fulfillment of user requests on catalog items, sharing of building blocks across service offerings and semantic interoperability between IT platforms. The technologies and tools provided by the Semantic Web community are well suited to achieve this formal representation. In this paper, we give an analysis on the commonality and differences of typical Cloud service offerings and of their catalog actions' mappings to delivery operations. We introduce a new ontological representation that leverages Semantic Web technology to formally model the structure and relationships of these service offerings and their operational processes. Our algorithm to select and order the execution of appropriate delivery operations uses this representation together with a new notion of safe sequences. This algorithm realizes the catalog action requests while ensuring system robustness by following sequencing rules we developed to prevent failures during the fulfillment processes for complex offerings. We evaluate our model on concrete Cloud offerings.
Inhibition of v-Mos kinase activity by protein kinase A

We investigated the effect of cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA ) on v-Mos kinase activity. Increase in PKA activity in vivo brought about either by forskolin treatment or by overexpression of PKA catalytic subunit resulted in a significant inhibition of v-Mos kinase activity. The purified PKA catalytic subunit was able to phosphorylate recombinant p37v-mos in vitro, suggesting that the mechanism of in vivo inhibition of v-Mos kinase involves direct phosphorylation by PKA. Combined tryptic phosphopeptide two-dimensional mapping analysis and in vitro mutagenesis studies indicated that Ser-56 is the major in vivo phosphorylation site on v-Mos. In vivo phosphorylation at Ser-56 correlated with slower migration of the v-Mos protein during sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. However, even though Ser-56 was phosphorylated by PKA, this phosphorylation was not involved in the inhibition of v-Mos kinase. The alanine-for-serine substitution at residue 56 did not affect the ability of v-Mos to autophosphorylate in vitro or, more importantly, to activate MEK1 in transformed NIH 3T3 cells. We identified Ser-263 phosphorylation, the Ala-263 mutant of v-Mos was not inhibited by forskolin treatment. From our results, we propose that the known inhibitory role of PKA in the initiation of oocyte maturation in mice could be explained at least in part by its inhibition of Mos kinase.
Vibrational second-order perturbation theory (VPT2) using local monomer normal modes

ABSTRACTLocal normal modes have been used recently in vibrational self-consistent field/virtual state configuration interaction calculations of vibrational energies and infrared spectra of water clusters ranging from the water hexamer to bulk water. This approach is termed the local monomer model, and here we show that vibrational second-order perturbation theory (VPT2) can be used with this model. The approach is thus complementary to standard VPT2 theory, but has near linear scaling with the number of monomers, in contrast to standard VPT2 theory. The local VPT2 approach is described and then illustrated and tested for the water dimer H2O2 using the ab initio Wang-Huang-Braams-Bowman (WHBB) potential energy surface, mainly for the six intramolecular modes.
Electrochemical Deposition and Stripping Behavior of Lithium Metal across a Rigid Block Copolymer Electrolyte Membrane

Author(s): Harry, KJ; Liao, X; Parkinson, DY; Minor, AM; Balsara, NP | Abstract: Replacing the conventional graphite anode in rechargeable batteries with lithium metal results in a significant increase in energy density. However, growth of electronically conductive structures, like dendrites, from lithium anodes causes premature battery failure by short circuit. Mechanically rigid electrolytes are thought to promote smooth lithium deposition by increasing the energy required for lithium reduction at regions of high local strain, like a dendrite tip. The study reported herein used X-ray microtomography, Focused Ion Beam (FIB) milling, and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) imaging to investigate the electrochemical stripping and deposition behavior of lithium in symmetric lithium - polymer cells using a rigid polystyrene-b-poly(ethylene oxide) membrane as the electrolyte. In situ experiments show the formation of globular lithium structures that grow to puncture the polymer electrolyte membrane. They form on faceted impurity particles that are initially located at the lithium/electrolyte interface. While the impurities are uniformly distributed throughout the lithium foil in initial images, their relative concentration near the electrolyte changes as lithium is stripped from one electrode and deposited on the other. Notably, the deposited lithium is devoid of faceted impurities. This electrolytic refining of lithium could be used to prepare anodic lithium foils for batteries with improved cycle life.
Proliferation of human bone marrow cells in diffusion chambers implanted into normal or irradiated mice.

Diffusion chambers containing normal, human bone marrow cells were implanted in the abdominal cavity of normal and irradiated mice. Granulocytic cells and macrophages proliferated in the chambers. The number of cells in the granulocytic series recovered from the chambers dropped to 60% after 1 day; during the next 7 days it varied between 40% and 60% of the inoculated number of granulocytes, with no difference between irradiated and non-irradiated animals. From day 9 the yield of cells in granulocytic series increased in chambers from irradiated animals, and a higher percentage of cells were in the proliferating pool of the granulocytic series. Simultaneously, the cell yield in chambers from normal animals dropped markedly and consisted mostly of mature granulocytes. In both groups the percentage of eosinophilic cells increased significantly during the last part of the culture period. The enhanced growth in the irradiated mice suggests an increased self-renewal of granulocytic stem cells, leading to a larger yield of differentiated granulocytic cells later in the culture period. A shortened generation time and/or increased cloning efficiency of stem cells may also contribute to the enhanced granulocyte production. The suppression of the immune reactivity by irradiation of the host animals may allow better proliferation by delaying production of cytotoxic antibodies against the xenogenic human cells. The number of macrophages increased gradually, and there was no significant difference between irradiated and nonirradiated animals. The lymphocyte number decreased after implantation and varied between 30% and 50% of the inoculated number. From day 11, the lymphocyte number dropped more in normal animals than in irradiated animals.
Enterprise and Entrepreneurship: The Impact of Director Disqualification

This article examines the relationship between business organisation law and policies designed to encourage entrepreneurial activity. In particular the article focuses on the UK's regime for disciplining directors of failed companies, and notes that the United States does not have comparable rules. In the United States, director disqualification is designed to protect investors, as part of the protections necessary for the capital markets, whereas in the United Kingdom director disqualification is designed to protect creditors. The United States tends to rely on private, rather than public, mechanisms for the protection of creditors.
Introduction: Gender & Equality Law

This volume draws on several decades of advocacy for law reform to advance gender equality. Following an introduction that traces theoretical and doctrinal developments, the selected essays illustrate the evolution of dominant theoretical approaches and trace their application to core issues, such as the meaning of gender, family formation and roles, equality in the workplace, reproductive rights and violence. The selections are international in their range and include recent works that summarize foundational discussions as well as less well-known articles and essays that capture defining issues with enduring resonance. Taken together, these articles form the basis for discussions of recurring themes and debates such as: how best to define and account for biological, social or cultural differences based on gender; how the law can recognize historic and ongoing gender subordination while supporting individuals’ autonomy and agency; and the nature and role of women’s sexuality. They exemplify the ongoing dialectic between well-intentioned reform and unintended consequences that characterizes ongoing efforts to advance equality based on gender.
Enabling New Computation Paradigms with HyperFET - An Emerging Device

High power consumption has significantly increased the cooling cost in high-performance computation stations and limited the operation time in portable systems powered by batteries. Traditional power reduction mechanisms have limited traction in the post-Dennard Scaling landscape. Emerging research on new computation devices and associated architectures has shown three trends with the potential to greatly mitigate current power limitations. The first is to employ steep-slope transistors to enable fundamentally more efficient operation at reduced supply voltage in conventional Boolean logic, reducing dynamic power. The second is to employ brain-inspired computation paradigms, directly embodying computation mechanisms inspired by the brains, which have shown potential in extremely efficient, if approximate, processing with silicon-neuron networks. The third is “let physics do the computation”, which focuses on using the intrinsic operation mechanism of devices (such as coupled oscillators) to do the approximate computation, instead of building complex circuits to carry out the same function. This paper first describes these three trends, and then proposes the use of the hybrid-phase-transition-FET (Hyper-FET), a device that could be configured as a steep-slope transistor, a spiking neuron cell, or an oscillator, as the device of choice for carrying these three trends forward. We discuss how a single class of device can be configured for these multiple use cases, and provide in-depth examination and analysis for a case study of building coupled-oscillator systems using Hyper-FETs for image processing. Performance benchmarking highlights the potential of significantly higher energy efficiency than dedicated CMOS accelerators at the same technology node.
Cricotracheal disruption owing to strangulation: A report of two cases with successful surgical repair

Two patients with cricotracheal disruption resulting from accidental strangulation of the neck were treated. The first patient had severe respiratory obstruction. In the second patient, a fascial tube maintained airway continuity between the separated larynx and trachea, and she had no difficulty breathing. A preoperative diagnosis of tracheal injury was based on the findings of respiratory obstruction, bloody secretions in the endotracheal tube, and subcutaneous emphysema in the neck. In both cases, an endotracheal tube was easily passed and entered the distal tracheal lumen. This relieved the respiratory obstruction in the first case and allowed administration of general anesthesia and control of ventilation during the operation. Prompt repair with cricotracheal anastomosis was followed by excellent results in both cases.
The safety and efficacy of rigosertib in the treatment of myelodysplastic syndromes

ABSTRACTIntroduction: Hypomethylating agents (HMAs) are the standard of care for patients with higher-risk myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), but patients who relapse or are refractory have a poor prognosis with an estimated survival of 4–6 months. Rigosertib, a Ras mimetic that inhibits the phophoinositide 3-kinase and polo-like kinase pathways, has been tested in patients with higher-risk MDS following treatment with HMAs, where there are no approved second-line therapies.Areas covered: This review will provide an overview of rigosertib, including safety and efficacy demonstrated in clinical trials.Expert commentary: There is an urgent need for new treatment options for patients who have failed or progressed on HMAs. Rigosertib is currently undergoing testing as a single agent in certain subsets of higher-risk MDS patients as well as in combination with azacitidine, where preliminary data show efficacy in patients with de novo MDS as well as HMA failures.
Direct Marketing: The Basis for Increased Emphasis in the Marketing Curriculum

There is a need for an increased emphasis on direct marketing in marketing curriculums. A failure to alert course offerings in response to the tremendous growth of direct marketing may lead to a drop in enrollment, funding and business/industry support of marketing programs.
Origin(s) of Intraneuronal Amyloid

The origin(s) of amyloid, or specifically Aβ, is of the utmost importance to the information presented in the book. As presented, there are a myriad of plausible extraneuronal sources of Aβ including other cells in the brain, as well as peripheral sources of Aβ that may gain entry into the brain through a dysfunctional BBB. How extraneuronal Aβ is internalized in neurons is also presented, and includes Aβ binding proteins, as well as a variety of Aβ binding receptors.
Academic Urological Surgeons have Greater Exposure to Risk Management Activity than Community Urological Surgeons: An Empirical Analysis of Patient Complaint Data

Abstract Introduction Previous research reveals associations between patient complaints and urological subspecialty, but relationships between complaints and practice environments have gone untested. In this study we explored whether associations exist between the types and rates of patient complaints filed against urological surgeons and their practice environments, defined as academic (medical school faculty) or community (independent medical group members). Complaints are a surrogate for malpractice litigation risk, so understanding the variables that drive complaints may suggest risk reduction interventions. Methods In this retrospective, exploratory study we examined 2,883 unsolicited patient complaints about 357 urologists affiliated with organizations partnering with the Vanderbilt Center for Patient and Professional Advocacy. Overall 222 (62%) urologists were practicing in 16 academic medical center systems and 135 (38%) in 11 community systems that recorded complaints from January 1, 2011 through December 31, 2014. Specific concerns about urologists were counted. Complaint type profiles were generated using a standardized coding system. Statistical analyses tested associations among practice environment (academic vs community), complaint counts and distribution of complaints by type. Results Academic urologists had more complaints per physician than their community colleagues (Z = 2.53, p Conclusions Academic urologists are associated with more patient complaints than community urologists, suggesting greater exposure to medical malpractice claims. Concerns regarding access, communication and the care that patients received appear to drive this discrepancy. Personal practice and clinical management solutions designed to improve these elements of patient experiences, especially access, may help reduce medical malpractice claims related activity.
Bringing Synergy Between EOR and Storage

An increased synergy between commercial CO2-EOR and storage activities can further advance the geologic CO2 storage as one of the core business activities of the petroleum industry. However, it is unlikely to be adopted by the petroleum industry without additional incentives. The petroleum industry has already capitalized on the ability to capture CO2 at high-purity stationary sources such as natural gas processing, fertilizer production and an expansion of simultaneous CO2-EOR and storage projects to the countries like China and India while creating additional pore space for storing large amounts of captured CO2 will be the key for the future of geologic CO2 storage for reducing GHG emissions around the world. The petroleum industry has skilled workforce that can support the initial growth of geologic CO2 storage as a service industry in a future low-carbon economy, however, it is imperative that the technical managers, policy makers, and community leaders have an appreciation for various engineering aspects of geologic CO2 storage projects so that they can devise necessary strategies needed to retrain existing workforce.
Toxic Air Pollution on Neighborhood Scales

This chapter provides real-life examples of oil and gas industry emission events leading to transient, high ambient concentrations of hazardous air pollutants, including the largest natural gas leak in US history at Aliso Canyon, and pipeline leaks of benzene in an industrial fence line community near the Houston Ship Channel. These emission events demonstrate the dilemma of how to measure emissions of toxic pollutants that vary greatly in both time and space, and the flaws of conventional monitoring studies of the environmental health impacts of oil and gas development. Difficulties in health risk assessment are compounded by secondary pollution from chemically reactive primary emissions and by complex mixtures in ambient air that can generate health effects due to the combination of pollutants, including cancer and immune system damage. Alleged health effects from oil and gas development also include endocrine disruption and birth defects.
Decorrelation-based viscosity measurement using phase-sensitive optical coherence tomography (Conference Presentation)

A robust method to measure viscosity of microquantities of biological samples, such as blood and mucus, could lead to a better understanding and diagnosis of diseases. Microsamples have presented persistent challenges to conventional rheology, which requires bulk quantities of a sample. Alternatively, fluid viscosity can be probed by monitoring microscale motion of particles. Here, we present a decorrelation-based method using M-mode phase-sensitive optical coherence tomography (OCT) to measure particle Brownian motion. This is similar to previous methods using laser speckle decorrelation but with sensitivity to nanometer-scale displacement. This allows for the measurement of decorrelation in less than 1 millisecond and significantly decreases sensitivity to bulk motion, thereby potentially enabling in vivo and in situ applications. From first principles, an analytical method is established using M-mode images obtained from a 47 kHz spectral-domain OCT system. A g(1) first-order autocorrelation is calculated from windows containing several pixels over a time frame of 200-1000 microseconds. Total imaging time is 500 milliseconds for averaging purposes. The autocorrelation coefficient over this short time frame decreases linearly and at a rate proportional to the diffusion constant of the particles, allowing viscosity to be calculated. In verification experiments using phantoms of microbeads in 200 µL glycerol-water mixtures, this method showed insensitivity to 2 mm/s lateral bulk motion and accurate viscosity measurements over a depth of 400 µm. In addition, the method measured a significant decrease of the apparent diffusion constant of soft tissue after formalin fixation, suggesting potential applications in mapping tissue stiffness.
One Strike to Second Chances: Using Criminal Backgrounds in Admission Decisions for Assisted Housing

AbstractThe U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has changed its position toward housing individuals with criminal records from strict one-strike policies in the 1980s to providing second chances to returning citizens. Many public housing authorities have not updated their admission policies for using criminal backgrounds and still adhere to the one-strike philosophy. In response to new guidance from HUD, housing agencies are trying to find a balance between screening practices to identify demonstrable risk but avoid discrimination and violation of the Fair Housing Act. This research examines several questions critical to assisting housing providers to address the new guidance from HUD. Findings provide direction for housing providers on understanding recidivism risk rates, using useful lookback periods, considering risk and harm across crime types, and verifying rehabilitation and other evidence to design informed policies and procedures for using criminal records in admission decisions...
Poster: Improving Multipath Resolution with MIMO Smoothing

Super-resolution subspace methods are popular in estimating multipath parameters such as angle of arrival and time of flight. However, they require decorrelation techniques to resolve coherent multipath components. The conventional decorrelation techniques reduce the effective aperture of the MIMO array, thus reducing the resolution and number of resolved paths. In this paper, we introduce MIMO smoothing as a new technique to bring decorrelation effect by leveraging the spacial and frequential diversity in MIMO transmitters and receivers. Via extensive experiments on WiFi links, we show that MIMO smoothing can increase the accuracy of multipath resolution.