cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Motivation for Organic Grain Farming in the United States: Profits, Lifestyle, or the Environment?

The objective of this research is to identify and quantify the motivations for organic grain farming in the United States. Survey data of US organic grain producers were used in regression models to find the statistical determinants of three motivations for organic grain production, including profit maximization, environmental stewardship, and an organic lifestyle. Results provide evidence that many organic grain producers had more than a single motivation and that younger farmers are more likely to be motivated by environmental and lifestyle goals than older farmers. Organic grain producers exhibited a diversity of motivations, including profit and stewardship.
Analysis of an observed relationship between colloid collision efficiency and mean collector grain size

Abstract Previous investigators have attempted to use filtration theory to deconvolute the physical and chemical factors that influence colloid filtration in porous media. In the classic single-collector approach, bulk physical properties of the colloids and the medium are assumed to control the rate of colloid–collector collisions, while solution and surface chemical properties are assumed to control the probability of attachment. However, this assumed separation of physical and chemical variables will not apply when collector surface properties also vary with grain size. In recent work, we conducted column experiments with identical colloids and solution conditions, but with sand fractions of different mean grain size. The results indicated that both physical and chemical parameters varied with the collector grain size. However, this analysis was dependent on the particular model used to calculate the rate of colloid–collector collisions (the collector efficiency). To demonstrate that the variation of chemical parameters with grain size is not dependent on a particular physical transport model, in this work we apply and compare three different models for colloid filtration. The assumption of a constant attachment probability (collision efficiency) was found to be inconsistent with the experimental results. Instead, good results were obtained by considering that the collision efficiency varies linearly with the natural logarithm of the hydraulic conductivity of the collector medium. A linear relationship of this type was found for all three colloid filtration models. This analysis confirms that our data show a relationship between collector grain size, hydraulic conductivity, and attachment probability, and that the existence of such a relationship is not dependent on any particular model for colloid filtration.
The Dignity of Elders in an Acute Care Hospital

In a grounded theory study of the social processes engaged in by elderly individuals while hospitalized, dignity arose as one central focus of their strategies. Dignity was found to have two attributes: self-dignity, the individual's sense of self-worth; and interpersonal dignity, that attributed to the elder by others and manifested by the respect they received. Privacy was conceptualized as an interface between the hospitalized elders and staff, visitors, and roommates. The author presents an in-depth discussion of the meaning of dignity for five hospitalized elderly participants for each of three phases of hospitalization. Strategies used by the elders to affect their dignity included making meaning out of interactions with others, adjusting attitude, managing image, managing information, and life reviewing.
First Principles Calculations of the pKa Values and Tautomers of Isoguanine and Xanthine

The accurate replication of DNA requires the formation of complementary hydrogen bonds between a template base and the base moiety of an incoming deoxynucleotide-5‘-triphosphate. Recent structural studies suggest that some DNA polymerases contribute additional constraints by interrogating the minor groove face of the incoming and template bases. Therefore, the hydrogen bond-donating or -accepting properties of the base pairing as well as minor groove faces of the bases could be important determinants of correct base selection. In this paper, we investigate two purines that could arise by endogenous damage of the normal DNA bases: isoguanine (which can be generated by the oxidation of adenine) and xanthine (which can be generated by the deamination of guanine). In both cases, the potential exists for the placement of a proton in the N3 position, converting the N3 position from a hydrogen bond acceptor to a donor. In this paper, we use first principles quantum mechanical methods (density functional theory using the B3LYP functional and the 6-31G++G**basis set) to predict the ionization and tautomeric equilibria of both isoguanine and xanthine in the gas phase and aqueous solution. For isoguanine, we find that the N1H and N3H neutral tautomeric forms are about equally populated in aqueous solution, while the enol tauotomers are predominant in the gas phase. In contrast, we find that xanthine displays essentially no tautomeric shifts in aqueous solution but is nearly equally populated by both an anionic and a neutral form at physiological pH. To obtain these results, we carried out an extensive examination of the tautomeric and ionic configurations for both xanthine and isoguanine in solution and in the gas phase. The potential hydrogen-bonding characteristics of these damaged purines may be used to test predictions of the important components of base selection by different DNA polymerases during DNA replication.
Perceptions of Insulin Treatment Among African Americans With Uncontrolled Type 2 Diabetes.

Purpose: Little is known regarding perception of insulin treatment among midlife and older African American (AA) adults with type 2 diabetes, or how perception affects self-management behaviors. Us...
Dopamine in Hypophysial Portal Blood: Relationship to Circulating Prolactin in Pregnant and Lactating Rats

The relationship between dopamine (DA) concentration in hypophysial portal blood and that of PRL in systemic blood during gestation and lactation was investigated. PRL level in plasma collected by decapitation was low during the 18–21 days of gestation, increased on day 22, and remained elevated throughout the first 10 days of lactation. Separation of mothers from pups for 24 h resulted in a marked reduction in plasma PRL concentration. DA, but not norepinephrine or epinephrine, was higher in portal than in arterial plasma in all rats. DA in portal plasma of 18- to 21-day pregnant rats [4.9 ± 0.7 ng/ ml, (mean ± SEM)] was significantly higher than that in portal plasma from 1- to 5- and 6- to 10-day lactating rats (2.9 ± 0.3 and 2.7 ± 0.4 ng/ml, respectively). Separation of mothers from pups for 24 h resulted in a significant elevation of portal plasma dopamine compared with separation for 30 min. No differences were found in hypothalamic, anterior, or posterior pituitary catecholamine concentrations as a...
Effectiveness of Conservation Targets in Capturing Genetic Diversity

Any conservation actions that preserve some populations and not others will have genetic conse- quences. We used empirical data from four rare plant taxa to assess these consequences in terms of how well allele numbers (all alleles and alleles occurring at a frequency of � 0.05 in any population) and expected het- erozygosity are represented when different numbers of populations are conserved. We determined sampling distributions for these three measures of genetic diversity using Monte Carlo methods. We assessed the propor- tion of alleles included in the number of populations considered adequate for conservation, needed to cap- ture all alleles, and needed to meet an accepted standard of genetic-diversity conservation of having a 90- 95% probability of including all common alleles. We also assessed the number of populations necessary to ob- tain values of heterozygosity within � 10% of the value obtained from all populations. Numbers of alleles were strongly affected by the number of populations sampled. Heterozygosity was only slightly less sensitive to numbers of populations than were alleles. On average, currently advocated conservation intensities repre- sented 67-83% of all alleles and 85-93% of common alleles. The smallest number of populations to include all alleles ranged from 6 to 17 (42-57%), but � 0.2% of 1000 samples of these numbers of populations included them all. It was necessary to conserve 16-29 (53-93%) of the sampled populations to meet the standard for common alleles. Between 20% and 64% of populations were needed to reliably represent species-level het- erozygosity. Thus, higher percentages of populations are needed than are currently considered adequate to conserve genetic diversity if populations are selected without genetic data.
Humanity and Comparative Mythology

Robert A. Segal. Joseph Campbell: An Introduction. Revised edition. New York: Penguin, 1990. 288 pp. $4.95 paper).
Activation of GABAB receptors increases a potassium conductance in rat bulbospinal neurons of the C1 area

In anesthetized rats, iontophoresis of the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABAB)-receptor agonist and antispastic drug baclofen inhibits the bulbospinal vasomotor neurons of the rostral ventrolateral medulla (RVLM). The present study was carried out to determine whether C1 adrenergic and other bulbospinal neurons of the RVLM have postsynaptic GABAB receptors. Retrogradely labeled RVLM bulbospinal neurons (n = 52) were recorded in 120-micron-thick slices from neonatal rat brain (3-10 days old). Most neurons (48/52) were tonically active (3 +/- 0.6 spikes/s). Twenty-six neurons were recovered histologically, and 18 of them were immunoreactive for tyrosine hydroxylase (TH). In current clamp, baclofen (0.3-10 microM) hyperpolarized RVLM bulbospinal cells in a dose-dependent manner (16 +/- 0.5 mV hyperpolarization by 3 microM baclofen; n = 19) and decreased input resistance by 40% (n = 10). In voltage clamp (1 microM tetrodotoxin present; holding potential: -40 to -60 mV), 3 microM baclofen induced an outward current of 21 +/- 2 pA (n = 29). This current exhibited inward rectification and reversed polarity close to the K+ equilibrium potential (external K+ from 2.5 to 10 mM). The current induced by baclofen was reduced 90% by 0.1-0.2 mM BaCl2 (n = 6) and was blocked reversibly by the selective GABAB-receptor antagonist CGP-55845A (0.5-1 microM; n = 6). All histologically verified TH-immunoreactive cells (n = 18) were sensitive to baclofen. In summary, RVLM bulbospinal neurons including C1 adrenergic cells possess GABAB receptors. Activation of these receptors increases an inwardly rectifying K+ conductance. This effect reduces the intrinsic firing frequency of RVLM vasomotor neurons "in vitro" and may contribute to the sympatholytic action of baclofen "in vivo."
Reporting and Dictation

Since the discovery of the X-ray in 1896 radiology reporting has changed very little until the past decade. Very early reports were typed or handwritten by the radiologist. Later, reports were dictated into a recording device and later transcribed to text. Most reports were in prose format. Fewer were in a list or itemized configuration. There has been recent renewed interest in other reporting techniques. Speech recognition has been available for a number of years and has become more prevalent, albeit controversial, in the past decade. Although structured reporting has been available for a number of years, it is not widespread in radiology practice.
PROGRAMMABLE PLATFORM CHARACTERIZATION FOR SYSTEM LEVEL PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS

It is customary to begin a discussion of Electronic System Level (ESL) design by stating at least one of the following observations [7]: • Time-to-market is a major influence on the design of most electronic systems; • Design complexity has outpaced designer productivity; • Verification effort now dominates design effort; • Custom design costs too much to be practical for most designs; • Register Transfer Level (RTL) design methods will not scale to address the design complexity; • Designers must work at higher levels of design abstraction to overcome design complexity; • Design re-use will be necessary to overcome design complexity. Figure 1 presents a graph relating design complexity to designer productivity with both RTL and ESL design methods. Today, most designers work with RTL design tools and languages. They find themselves in the ‘design gap’ where the system they are trying to create exceeds the capabilities of their design environment. This is not to say that the design gap cannot be crossed. On the contrary, the gap can be overcome with existing design methods but only at a significantly increased cost (both financially [5], [6] and in designer effort). Existing RTL design methods will continue to be employed until the additional cost of design overwhelms the
Synthesis and Structural, Optical, and Dynamic Properties of Core/Shell/Shell CdSe/ZnSe/ZnS Quantum Dots

We have synthesized core/shell/shell (CSS) CdSe/ZnSe/ZnS quantum dots (QDs) and investigated their exciton dynamics using time correlated single photon counting (TCSPC). The unique synthetic method combines hot injection with successive injection of precursors in one pot. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) shows that CSS QDs were 6 ± 2 nm in diameter. The elemental composition, determined by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, was 3.3% cadmium, 8.6% selenium, 42.3% sulfur, and 45.8% zinc by mole. Photoluminescence spectroscopy (PL) showed that the PL quantum yield is increased from 0.9% for CdSe to 25% for CSS. Global fitting was used for the analysis of exciton dynamics for CdSe, CdSe/ZnS core/shell, and CSS QDs. The decays of the PL spectra for CdSe and CdSe/ZnS were fit with triple exponentials with lifetimes of 0.7, 8, and 30 ns and 0.7, 10, and 30 ns respectively, while the CSS spectrum was fit with a double exponential with lifetimes of 12 and 30 ns. We attribute the 0.7 ns component to nonrad...
The bovine dominant ovarian follicle

Central roles in reproductive biology (i.e., growth and development of the oocyte, steroidogenesis, and ovulation) are played by the ovarian dominant follicle (DF). The DF is different from other follicles because it can escape atresia (the fate of all other follicles), and if exposed to the LH surge, its cells will differentiate into the corpus luteum. The DF was originally studied by looking at the surface of ovary through a surgical approach. Current studies employ a less-invasive ultrasound technique to track the growth and development of the DF. Recruitment and selection, the processes that give rise to the DF, and dominance, the physiological state of the mature DF, are important areas of basic research. Results of these basic studies are easily translated into real-world problems in farm animal reproduction. Superovulation, for example, overrides the selection mechanism and increases the number of ovulations. Understanding the factors that affect the size of the recruited pool should increase success rates (i.e., number of collected embryos) for superovulation. In most animals, the DF is short-lived, existing for long enough to allow for the final maturation of the oocyte. Some DF become atretic because they mature during the luteal phase and are never exposed to the LH surge. For other DF, the LH surge redirects the DF toward its ultimate demise (i.e., luteinization, ovulation, and differentiation into the corpus luteum). The DF is managed pharmacologically within protocols for timed AI. When timed AI fails, there may be abnormal corpus luteum development and early embryonic loss; outcomes that are secondary to inadequate follicular cell maturation and incomplete oocyte capacitation in the DF. Future work on the DF will clarify its underlying biological functions so that a variety of needs in farm animal reproduction can be efficiently managed.
Release of Arachidonate Cascade Products by the Rabbit of Bladder; Neurophysiological significance?

The endogenous production of prostaglandins and thromboxane A2 by the rabbit urinary bladder was assessed by radioimmunoassay in a relatively intact system and in the absence of substrate. PGE2 and PGI2 (prostacyclin) were the main prostaglandins released whereas PGF2 alpha ratio of 5:1 and a PGI2 to PGF2 alpha ratio of 3:1 were observed. This qualitative pattern was independent of bladder area. In addition, prostaglandin release by the bladder body was significantly greater than by the bladder base at all incubation times. The physiological implications of these experimental observations are discussed.
Facilitate Knowledge Exploration with Storytelling

Abstract With the fast development of natural language processing and web technologies in recent years, the amount of knowledge/data available for everyone to explore has grown exponentially. This project is aimed at creating an interactive and proactive presentation agent. In particular, narrative and storytelling techniques are used for engaging the audience and helping the audience digest and remember the content. We present examples of using this system for generating presentations, and preliminary evaluation results.
Trafficking and Expansion of NK Cells in Murine Models of Bone Marrow Transplantation.

Allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation has proven to be an effective treatment for hematologic malignancies and some solid tumors. However, the high incidence of graft versus host disease (GVHD) as a complication of this treatment has limited the overall effectiveness of HCT. In addition, disease relapse also limits overall success. Novel strategies are needed which can suppress the development of GVHD but still maintain an effective immune response to provide a GVT effect. It has been shown that NK cells have the capability of suppressing the development of GVHD while inducing an anti-tumor response. The trafficking of cells to specific organs and tissue sites after transplant can be a major factor in determining whether or not they contribute to GVT and GVHD reactions. Little is known about the trafficking patterns of NK cells following hematopoietic cell transplantation, their proliferation or how long they persist in vivo. We investigated the trafficking patterns of NK cells in vivo in an allogeneic and syngeneic bone marrow transplant setting using a novel in vivo bioluminescence imaging (BLI) technique. Freshly isolated NK cells from FVB L2G85 transgenic mice, which constitutively express the luciferase gene and can be imaged by BLI, were transplanted along with T-cell depleted bone marrow into lethally irradiated BALB/c (allogeneic) or FVB (syngeneic) mice. BLI of the irradiated mice on successive days post-transplant indicated that in the allogeneic setting, NK cells traffic to distinct lymphoid organs, such as the cervical lymph nodes and spleen. The bioluminescent signal was 2.75-fold greater on Day 6 post-transplant than on Day 2 post-transplant, indicating a significant in vivo expansion of the NK cells in an allogeneic recipient in the first week post-transplant. In the syngeneic setting, NK cell trafficking to distinct lymphoid organs was not observed, and the bioluminescent signal intensity emitted from the transplanted mice remained constant. Thus, we anticipate that the in vivo expansion of NK cells seen in the allogeneic bone marrow transplant setting is not due to homeostatic proliferation alone. Continuing studies will address whether the in vivo expansion is driven by NK cell receptor-ligand interactions or MHC Class I differences. Understanding NK cell trafficking and proliferation could provide novel insights into enhancing function of both innate and adoptively transferred NK cells.
Abstract 3659: Target validation and structural optimization of selective small molecule survivin inhibitors as potential anti-cancer agents

The anti-apoptotic protein survivin is highly expressed in most human cancer cells, but has very low expression in normal differentiated cells. Thus survivin is widely considered as an attractive cancer drug target. Herein we report the in vitro and in vivo study on a series of novel survivin inhibitors modified from our recently identified hit compound UC-112. NCI 60-cell line screening assay showed that three new analogs with oxyquinoline scaffold had GI50 values within the nanomolar range (513 nM, 646 nM and 891 nM). These new compounds can overcome the P-gp mediated multidrug-resistance in cancer cell lines. Western blot analyses demonstrated the high selectivity for survivin inhibition among other members in the inhibitor of apoptosis protein family. Mechanistic studies such as isothermal calorimetry measurements, survivin protein pull-down assay and fluorescence polarization assay confirm that these novel compounds indeed target survivin and inhibit its function. The most active compound showed excellent aqueous solubility of 148.7 μM (PBS pH7.4), reasonable metabolic stability (half-life) of 51 minutes as tested in human liver microsomes, and no significant inhibitions to major CYP enzymes except one of CYPs. Rat pharmacokinetic studies indicated good pharmacokinetic profiles for this novel scaffold. When tested in an A375 human melanoma xenograft model, this compound effectively suppressed tumor growth and strongly induced cancer cell apoptosis in tumor tissues. Overall, our study has demonstrated that these cell-permeable small molecular survivin inhibitors possessing a novel scaffold could be developed as potent anti-tumor therapeutic agents. Citation Format: Jin Wang, Min Xiao, Duane D. Miller, Wei Li. Target validation and structural optimization of selective small molecule survivin inhibitors as potential anti-cancer agents. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 106th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2015 Apr 18-22; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(15 Suppl):Abstract nr 3659. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2015-3659
Application of IR imaging for free-surface velocity measurement in liquid-metal systems

Measuring free-surface, liquid-metal flow velocity is challenging to do in a reliable and accurate manner. This paper presents a non-invasive, easily calibrated method of measuring the surface velocities of open-channel liquid-metal flows using an IR camera. Unlike other spatially limited methods, this IR camera particle tracking technique provides full field-of-view data that can be used to better understand open-channel flows and determine surface boundary conditions. This method could be implemented and automated for a wide range of liquid-metal experiments, even if they operate at high-temperatures or within strong magnetic fields.
Basics of Chemotherapy

Gastrointestinal (GI) cancers commonly include cancers of the colon, rectum, anus, pancreas, stomach, liver, bile ducts, and gallbladder. In the following chapter, we discuss some of the more common chemotherapies used in GI oncology, with a focus on mechanism of action, schedule, and toxicity. We also provide an overview of the clinical situations; one may see these chemotherapies and the role of radiation.
Sharing Tobacco and E-Cigarette Information: Predicting its Occurrence and Valence among Youth and Young Adults.

ABSTRACTWhile interpersonal communication has been shown to influence smoking-related outcomes, mostly in the context of interventions, there is not much research showing what drives young people to talk about tobacco or e-cigarettes. Additionally, the changing media environment calls for research that expands the scope of what is included as interpersonal communication to include not just conversations but also online forms of communicating information. This study puts forth sharing as such a concept, and examines its prevalence and predictors in the context of tobacco and e-cigarette information. Using a nationally representative rolling cross-sectional (N = 9,115) and recontact (N = 2,413) survey of 13–25-year olds, this study found that most young people shared negatively about tobacco (56% of 1,514 tobacco sharers at Time 1) and mixed information about e-cigarettes (41% of 968 e-cigarette sharers). Sharing occurrence was predicted by topical relevance and recent exposure to information, while pro-tob...
Abstract 318: Heterogeneous Remodeling in Diabetic Hearts Leads to Sudden Cardiac Death

Diabetes increases propensity to sudden cardiac death. Although ion channels were implicated, the precise mechanisms leading to arrhythmias remain unclear. We hypothesized that the diabetic heart undergoes heterogeneous remodeling leading to arrhythmogenic substrate and sudden cardiac death. For this, we investigated the expression of cardiac specific microRNAs, key transcriptional factors and their target gene in right (RV) and left ventricle (LV). TaqMan and SYBR green qRT-PCR was used to estimated the transcriptional data and Western blots/ELISA for protein profiles. Our data clearly suggests that miR-1-1a (1.6±0.021; p≤0.00067) and miR-301 (1.36±0.02; p≤0.0201) were up-regulated in epicardium of left ventricle (LV-epi), whereas miR-1-1a (2.9±0.59; p≤0.027), miR-133a (3.7±0.19; p ≤ 0.041) and miR-301 (3.6±0.26; p-value ≤ 0.037) were up-regulated in RV of diabetic (db/db) mice (n=3) hearts compared with wild type (n=3). Out of 30 genes tested we confirmed down-regulation of 14 genes (with p≤0.05) including transcriptional factors NFkB2, GATA6, Irx5, Ezh-2, Six-1, CtBP, SiRT1; ion channels Kv4.2, Scn1b and Scn5a and its protein chaperon Kchip-2, whereas Mef2c was up-regulated significantly in LV-epi in diabetic mice. Similarly, 11 genes including Kv4.2, Mef2c, GATA4, GATA6, Pitx2c, Scn1b, Kchip-2, SiRT1, Nampt and MMP-9 were down-regulated (p≤0.05), whereas 9 genes such as Irx5, Kv2.1, Kv4.3, NFkB1, NFkB2, MHC7, CtBP, NNt, and G6PD were up-regulated significantly in RV of diabetic mice. The Ingenuity Pathway Analysis of the differentially expressed genes in heart revealed hypertrophy, arrhythmias, proliferation, and failure as top toxicology networks in LV-epi, whereas cardiac hypertrophy, hepatic stellate cell activation, oxidative stress, PPAR mediated gene activation, fibrosis and necrosis are among top toxicology networks in RV. The role of miR’s along with transcriptional factors down-regulating Kv4.2 in diabetic LV may be consistent with the idea that repolarization reserve is decreased in diabetic hearts. Moreover, regional differences in potassium current may play vital role in regulating function. These data suggest that the ion channel remodeling in left and right ventricles are modulated via different mechanisms.
Three-dimensional phonon population anisotropy in silicon nanomembranes

Nanoscale single crystals possess modified phonon dispersions due to the truncation of the crystal. The introduction of surfaces alters the population of phonons relative to the bulk and introduces anisotropy arising from the breaking of translational symmetry. Such modifications exist throughout the Brillouin zone, even in structures with dimensions of several nanometers, posing a challenge to the characterization of vibrational properties and leading to uncertainty in predicting the thermal, optical, and electronic properties of nanomaterials. Synchrotron x-ray thermal diffuse scattering studies find that freestanding Si nanomembranes with thicknesses as large as 21 nm exhibit a higher scattering intensity per unit thickness than bulk silicon. In addition, the anisotropy arising from the finite thickness of these membranes produces particularly intense scattering along reciprocal-space directions normal to the membrane surface compared to corresponding in-plane directions. These results reveal the dimensions at which calculations of materials properties and device characteristics based on bulk phonon dispersions require consideration of the nanoscale size of the crystal.
Limited Magnitude Error Correction Using OLS Codes for Memories with Multilevel Cells

The dominant errors for memories with multilevel cells are due to interference and low data retention which causes the threshold voltage to shift compared to its original value. Thus, the dominant error type is limited magnitude errors. Orthogonal Latin squares (OLS) codes have been used in SRAM for their low latency decoding. In this paper, OLS codes are extended to correct limited magnitude errors. The proposed codes aim at lowering the redundancy by considering only a few bits from each symbol to compute the parity bits. An efficient methodology for constructing the decoding logic necessary to correct limited magnitude errors is described. Also, new hybrid codes are proposed in this paper which combine the proposed limited magnitude OLS codes together with low redundancy error correcting codes to further reduce the number of check-bits with some additional decoding complexity.
Towards Cross-Framework Workload Analysis via Flexible Event-Driven Interfaces

Hardware/software co-design and software profiling rest on the ability to perform a range of workload analyses. State-of-the-art tools and methods used in such analyses utilize either custom solutions or complex frameworks. There are two problems with this approach: 1) duplicated development work when moving to new and unsupported frameworks or platforms, and 2) the additional burden of in-depth knowledge required to develop the analysis tools. This work presents a methodology to solve these inefficiencies by decoupling workload analysis from the underlying techniques used to observe the workload. The interface is designed to be cross-platform and presents workloads as a set of configurable events with scalable levels-of-detail. An implementation of the methodology, PRISM, is presented which leverages two popular dynamic binary instrumentation tools, Valgrind and DynamoRIO, and additionally Intel PT via Linux perf. The goals of the methodology are three-fold: modularity, flexibility, and productivity. Three analyses are conducted using PRISM to demonstrate these properties: 1) discrepancies are assessed between workloads generated with Valgrind, DynamoRIO, and perf, 2) scalability of a complex Valgrind trace generation tool is improved, and 3) prototyping of a new dynamic loop detection and data-dependence tool is demonstrated. The average overhead of PRISM compared to in-framework analysis is 33% in the worse case and under 1% during typical analysis.
Autoimmune hemolytic anemia during pregnancy with hemolytic disease in the newborn.

A young woman had idiopathic autoimmune hemolytic anemia occurring in the last weeks of pregnancy. The hemolytic process was quite severe in the mother but responded to steroid therapy and transfusions. The baby was born with a mild form of hemolytic disease with elevated indirect bilirubin levels, increased normoblasts and reticulocytes, and a positive direct antiglobulin test. The child did not require any exchange transfusions, and although the hemoglobin fell to a low of 9.7 g/100 ml 1 mo after delivery, it continued to rise to normal levels after that. The child is developing normally. The antibody was an IgG globulin, presumably 7S, and crossed the placenta to react with the fetal red cells. The antibody showed no specificity when tested with a panel of cells, including Rh null cells.
The Release of Particles During Spaceflight

Particles have been observed by spacecraft sensors, sometimes in a manner that threatened mission objectives. A selective history of such missions is presented to demonstrate that particles in the vicinity of spacecraft are common and that the particles originate with the flight system. Some basic experimental and analytical work to understand particle adhesion and release mechanisms and to predict the release of particles is reviewed.
BIOLOGY OF ADHESINS OF BORDETELLA PERTUSSIS: INTEGRINS, SELECTINS, AND MIMICRY OF LEUKOCYTE ADHERENCE TO ENDOTHELIA

Bordetella pertussis is a Gram-negative coccobacillus that is the causative agent of whooping cough. It has long been recognized that B. pertussis establishes pulmonary colonization by adhering specifically to human ciliated epithelial cells and this interaction has been studied in detail.1 Recently, however, in vitro studies have shown that B. pertussis also adheres specifically to, enters, and survives within human macrophages and some tissue culture cells.2–4 Bacterial populations adherent to both alveolar macrophages and respiratory cilia have been shown to be important to colonization of the lung in a rabbit model of infection.2 Interestingly, the bacterium employs the same adhesins to recognize its two different target cells, but the precise nature of the molecular interactions involved differs (Figure 1).
Effects of Manure Management on Phosphorus Biotransformations and Losses During Animal Production

Regional intensification of animal production has drastically changed the natural landscape and the ecological balance on millions of hectares of agricultural lands. Animal manure, which is a substantial source of environmental phosphorus (P), has accumulated and now often exceeds the nutrient utilization capacity of the plant production sector within watersheds with a high density of livestock feeding operations. How manure is handled, collected, stored, and disposed of determines the dominant types of transformations and bioavailability of the various P forms excreted in the manure (given the animal species and its diet). Livestock and poultry utilize feed P inefficiently, and unavoidable P excretion occurs even at recommended feeding levels. P excretion increases over and above that level, in proportion to the rise in dietary P intake. Although the use of dietary phosphohydrolases improves feed digestibility and recovery of feed organic P forms, the practice also increases the proportion of water-extractable P excreted in feces. The latter phenomenon may appear advantageous during the reuse of manure as a biofertilizer in crop production, but high levels of water-soluble P also present undue risk of dispersal and contamination of the environment. Linkages between production system characteristics and animal manures were examined to gain an improved understanding of management-induced transformations of manure P forms on the farm. Co-transformations of manure C and N influence the turnover of P and accumulation of water-extractable P in stored manures and amended soils. Mineralization of organic P forms occurs in manure in spite of elevated initial water-extractable P levels. A wide C:P molar ratio enhances manure organic P mineralization, given the need of manure-borne organisms to assimilate C substrates and obtain metabolic energy. P losses from animal production systems occur primarily via P transport in rainwater or snowmelt, and in water percolating through soil. The identification of likely loss pathways on grazinglands, animal production facilities, manure storage structures, and treated fields contributes to the development of comprehensive mitigation strategies to ultimately reduce the environmental footprint of animal agriculture.
Intent to share: enhancing Android inter-component communication for distributed devices

Data-intensive applications in diverse domains, including video streaming, gaming, and health monitoring, increasingly require that mobile devices directly share data with each other. However, developing distributed data sharing functionality introduces low-level, brittle, and hard-to-maintain code into the mobile codebase. To reconcile the goals of programming convenience and performance efficiency, we present a novel middleware framework that enhances the Android platform's component model to support seamless and efficient inter-device data sharing. Our framework provides a familiar programming interface that extends the ubiquitous Android Inter-Component Communication (ICC), thus lowering the learning curve. Unlike middleware platforms based on the RPC paradigm, our programming abstractions require that mobile application developers think through and express explicitly data transmission patterns, thus treating latency as a first-class design concern. Our performance evaluation shows that using our framework incurs little performance overhead, comparable to that of custom-built implementations. By providing reusable programming abstractions that preserve component encapsulation, our framework enables Android devices to efficiently share data at the component level, providing powerful building blocks for the development of emerging distributed mobile applications.
Ubiquitin Regulation: The Histone Modifying Enzyme′s Story

Histone post-translational modifications influence many fundamental cellular events by regulating chromatin structure and gene transcriptional activity. These modifications are highly dynamic and tightly controlled, with many enzymes devoted to the addition and removal of these modifications. Interestingly, these modifying enzymes are themselves fine-tuned and precisely regulated at the level of protein turnover by ubiquitin-proteasomal processing. Here, we focus on recent progress centered on the mechanisms regulating ubiquitination of histone modifying enzymes, including ubiquitin proteasomal degradation and the reverse process of deubiquitination. We will also discuss the potential pathophysiological significance of these processes.
Optimized Compton fitting and modeling for light element determination in micro-X-ray fluorescence map datasets

Abstract The Planetary Instrument for X-ray Lithochemistry (PIXL) is an X-ray fluorescence instrument scheduled to fly to Mars on NASA’s 2020 rover (Allwood et al., 2015). It will be capable of quantifying elements with atomic number of at least 11 using X-ray fluorescence (XRF), but the detector window blocks fluorescence from lighter elements. Important elements otherwise invisible include carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen, which can make up anions in minerals of scientific interest. X-rays scattered by all elements can be detected, so the ratio of Compton to Rayleigh scatter may be measured and used to infer the presence of elements for which there is no detectable fluorescence. We have refined a fundamental parameters model to predict the Compton/Rayleigh ratio for any given composition that can be compared to an experimentally measured ratio. We compare with a published Monte Carlo model (Schoonjans et al., 2012) and to experimental values for a set of seven materials. Compton/Rayleigh ratios predicted by the model are in good, though imperfect, agreement with experimental measurements. A procedure for consistently computing the Compton/Rayleigh ratio from a noisy spectrum has also been developed using a variation on a common background removal method and peak fitting.
Accuracy and Reliability of the Visual Assessment of Patellar Tracking.

Background:Abnormal patellar tracking is described as a “J-sign” when the patella exhibits excessive lateral displacement during active knee extension.Purpose:To determine (1) the accuracy and reli...
Sensory perception drives food avoidance through excitatory basal forebrain circuits

Appetite is driven by nutritional state, environmental cues, mood, and reward pathways. Environmental cues strongly influence feeding behavior, as they can dramatically induce or diminish the drive to consume food despite homeostatic state. Here, we have uncovered an excitatory neuronal population in the basal forebrain that is activated by food-odor related stimuli, and potently drives hypophagia. Notably, we found that the basal forebrain directly integrates environmental sensory cues to govern feeding behavior, and that basal forebrain signaling, mediated through projections to the lateral hypothalamus, promotes selective avoidance of food and food-related stimuli. Together, these findings reveal a novel role for the excitatory basal forebrain in regulating appetite suppression through food avoidance mechanisms, highlighting a key function for this structure as a potent integrator of sensory information towards governing consummatory behaviors.
Fuzzy Modeling of Combined Manual Materials-Handling Capacities

Abstract Fuzzy set theory was applied to develop capacities models for combined manual materials-handling (MHH) activities. These models can be applied to job design/redesign to reduce the risk involved to the human operator. Twelve male subjects were employed for this study. The capacities for four individual MMH activities (lifting from floor to knuckle height, lifting from knuckle to shoulder height, carrying for 4.3 m, and lowering from knuckle to floor height) and three combined MMH activities, which were the combination of the above four individual activities, were determined psychophysically under three frequency conditions: one time maximum, 1 handling/min, and 6 handlings/min. In all experimental conditions, the pyschophysically determined capacities were the maximum acceptable work loads for a one-hour work period. The models were developed to combine two individual MMH capacities into a combined MMH capacity using fuzzy set theory. Membership functions and reference points were determined from the previously published literature. These models were tested from the experimental data in this study. The mean absolute error was 5.2%.
Mechanical stimulation from plant contact and wind negatively impact pea aphids (Hemiptera: Aphididae) indirectly through host plants

Global change research has shown how altering factors like temperature and precipitation can impact insect ecology. However, despite global changes in wind patterns, the effects of altering wind have been relatively unexplored, and even less is understood about indirect effects on insects. To better understand indirect effects of wind on pea aphids (Acyrthosiphon pisum (Harris); Hemiptera: Aphididae), we performed two experiments using different techniques for simulating mechanical stimulation effects from wind. First, we used either a brush or leaf to simulate plant-to-plant contact caused by wind. Then we tested the indirect effects of wind by distinguishing between wind and wind plus plant contact produced by adjacent plants. In the first experiment, aphid fecundity was reduced on plants with the leaf-to-plant treatment compared to the control. In the second experiment, wind treatments reduced pea aphid fecundity, but wind did not interact with plant density. Our results further the idea that altering wind patterns can influence plant–insect interactions. We also show that more research is necessary to disentangle how and why wind indirectly influences herbivores. Future research should focus on how pea aphid responses to wind change due to the methodology of wind exposure and interactions with additional biotic and abiotic factors.
Anti-Diabetic Countermeasures Against Tobacco Smoke-Dependent Cerebrovascular Toxicity: Use and Effect of Rosiglitazone

Tobacco smoking (TS) is one of the most addictive habit sand a main public health hazards, impacting the vascular endothelium through oxidative stress (OS) stimuli, exposure to nicotine, and smoking-induced inflammation in a dose-dependent manner. Increasing evidence also suggested that TS increases glucose intolerance and the risk factor of developing type-2 diabetes mellitus (2DM), which, along with TS, is connected to blood–brain barrier (BBB) injuries, and heightens the risk of cerebrovascular disorders. Although the exact mechanism of rosiglitazone (RSG) is unknown, our previous in vitro work showed how RSG, an oral anti-diabetic drug belonging to the family of thiazolidinedione class, can protect BBB integrity through enhancement of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor (Nrf2) activity. Herein, we have validated the protective role of rosiglitazone against TS-induced BBB impairment in vivo. Our results revealed that RSG as a peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ), activates counteractive mechanisms primarily associated with the upregulation of Nrf2 and PPARγ pathways which reduce TS-dependent toxicity at the cerebrovascular level. In line with these findings, our results show that RSG reduces inflammation and protects BBB integrity. In conclusion, RSG offers a novel and promising therapeutic application to reduce TS-induced cerebrovascular dysfunction through activation of the PPARγ-dependent and/or PPARγ-independent Nrf2 pathway.
Epistemological, Psychological, Neurosciences, and Cognitive Essence of Computational Thinking

The construct of computational thinking (CT) was popularized a decade ago as an “attitude and skillset” for everyone. However, since it is equated with thinking by computer scientists, the teaching of these skills poses many challenges at K-12 because of their reliance on the use of electronic computers and programming concepts that are often found too abstract and difficult by young students. This article links CT – i.e., thinking generated and facilitated by a computational device – to our typical fundamental cognitive processes by using a model of mind that is aligned with research in cognitive psychology and neuroscience and supported by a decade of empirical data on teaching and learning. Our model indicates that associative and distributive aspects of information storage, retrieval, and processing by a computational mind is the very essence of thinking, particularly deductive and inductive reasoning. We all employ these cognitive processes but not everyone uses them as iteratively, consistently, frequently, and methodologically as scientists. Some scientists have even employed electronic computing tools to boost deductive and inductive uses of their computational minds to expedite the cycle of conceptual change in their work. In this article, we offer a theoretical framework that not only describes the essence of computational thinking but also links it to scientific thinking. We recommend teaching students cognitive habits of conceptual change and reasoning prior to teaching them skills of using electronic devices. Empirical data from a five-year study involving 300 teachers and thousands of students suggests that such an approach helps improve students’ critical thinking skills as well as their motivation and readiness to learn electronic CT skills.