cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Neonatal Low- and High-Dose Exposure to Estradiol Benzoate in the Male Rat: II. Effects on Male Puberty and the Reproductive Tract

Environmental contaminants with estrogenic properties have been cause for heightened concern about their possible role in inducing adverse health effects. Brief exposure of rodents to high doses of natural estrogens early in life results in permanent alterations of the male reproductive tissues, but the question of whether environmentally relevant doses can cause the same effects remains controversial. The current project was designed to determine the dose-response relationship between neonatal estradiol exposure and the development of the male reproductive tract in the rat. Neonatal male Sprague-Dawley (SD) and Fisher 344 (F344) rats were exposed to beta-estradiol-3-benzoate (EB) at concentrations ranging from 0.015 microg/kg body weight (BW) to 15.0 mg/kg BW and 0.15 microg/kg BW to 1.5 mg/kg BW, respectively. Results showed an inverted U-shaped dose-response profile for testis and epididymis weights in 35-day-old SD rats, with increased organ sizes at the low-dose end of the treatment. This effect was transient and was not sustained into adulthood. Increased hepatic testosterone hydroxylase activities in low-dose animals suggest an advancement of puberty as the cause for increased reproductive organ weights. On postnatal day (PND) 90, a stimulatory low-dose response to EB was present in SD rat testicular and epididymal weights, however at one order of magnitude lower dose than that seen on PND 35, suggesting a separate effect. All SD male reproductive tract organs and serum hormones showed a permanent inhibitory response to high doses of neonatal EB. F344 rats exhibited greater estrogen sensitivity on PND 90. Despite this heightened responsiveness, F344 rats did not exhibit a low-dose effect for any endpoint. These low-dose responses to estradiol are organ and strain specific.
3D reconstruction of indoor and outdoor scenes using a mobile range scanner

Describes 3D mapping of indoor and outdoor environments using a mobile range scanner. In the raw range data preprocessing stage, we propose to use area decreasing flow for surface mesh smoothing instead of the mean curvature flow. Although the proposed area decreasing flow approach is mathematically equivalent to the mean curvature flow, it can avoid the difficulty in curvature estimation and provide an optimal flowing step size. Geometric details are preserved by adaptive smoothing on crease edges. In the multi-view 3D reconstruction stage, we combine the space carving with Hilton's implicit surface-based method (Hilton et al., 1998) to generate watertight 3D models from limited number of scans. Volumetric deformation by mean curvature flow using the level set method is applied in the post-processing stage to remove outliers. We present results of 3D reconstruction of real indoor and outdoor environments from multi-view noisy range data.
Orthobunyavirus Entry into Neurons and Other Mammalian Cells Occurs via Clathrin-Mediated Endocytosis and Requires Trafficking into Early Endosomes

La Crosse virus (LACV) is a leading cause of pediatric encephalitis and aseptic meningitis in the midwestern and southern United States, where it is considered an emerging human pathogen. No specific therapies or vaccines are available for LACV or any other orthobunyaviruses. Inhibition of LACV entry into cells is a potential target for therapeutic intervention, but this approach is limited by our current knowledge of the entry process. Here, we determined that clathrin-mediated endocytosis is the primary mechanism of orthobunyavirus entry and identified key cellular factors in this process. First, we demonstrated that LACV colocalized with clathrin shortly after infection in HeLa cells; we then confirmed the functional requirement of dynamin- and clathrin-mediated endocytosis for orthobunyavirus entry using several independent assays and, importantly, extended these findings to primary neuronal cultures. We also determined that macropinocytosis and caveolar endocytosis, both established routes of virus entry, are not critical for cellular entry of LACV. Moreover, we demonstrated that LACV infection is dependent on Rab5, which plays an important regulatory role in early endosomes, but not on Rab7, which is associated with late endosomes. These findings provide the first description of bunyavirus entry into cells of the central nervous system, where infection can cause severe neurological disease, and will aid in the design and development of antivirals and therapeutics that may be useful in the treatment of LACV and, more broadly, arboviral infections of the central nervous system.
Software for numerical algebraic geometry: a paradigm and progress towards its implementation

Though numerical methods to find all the isolated solutions of nonlinear systems of multivariate polynomials go back 30 years, it is only over the last decade that numerical methods have been devised for the computation and manipulation of algebraic sets coming from polynomial systems over the complex numbers. Collectively, these algorithms and the underlying theory have come to be known as numerical algebraic geometry. Several software packages are capable of carrying out some of the operations of numerical algebraic geometry, although no one package provides all such capabilities. This paper contains an enumeration of the operations that an ideal software package in this field would allow. The current and upcoming capabilities of Bertini, the most recently released package in this field, are also described.
Monolithic nanocrystalline Au fabricated by the compaction of nanoscale foam

We describe a two-step dealloying/compaction process to produce nanocrystalline Au. First, nanocrystalline/nanoporous Au foam was synthesized by electrochemically driven dealloying. The resulting Au foams exhibited porosities of ∼60% with pore sizes of 40 and 100 nm and a typical grain size of <50 nm. Second, the nanoporous foams were fully compacted to produce nanocrystalline monolithic Au. The compacted Au was characterized by transmission electron microscopy and x-ray diffraction and tested by depth-sensing nanoindentation. The compacted nanocrystalline Au exhibited an average grain size of <50 nm and hardness values ranging from 1.4 to 2.0 GPa, which were up to 4.5 times higher than the hardness values obtained from polycrystalline Au.
On big science: a survey

Scientific quest is driven by eternal human curiosity and the need to understand and explain unknown worlds. It is an endless process of extending current human knowledge with new insights, improved theories, and advances via discoveries and singular inflection points. Big Science denotes long lasting, high risk and extremely expensive projects addressing the big challenges and hard issues. Opinions are divided about the Big Science approach to scientific advances, and this short paper setts the ground for a discussion about the merits and perils of such an approach. We conclude with our belief that the changed technological circumstances, recent scientific achievements, and economic needs will likely lead to a new rise of experimental sciences. We believe that a combination of AI-inspired methods, digesting unprecedented volumes of data and exploiting the limitless capacities of computing clouds, will create new kinds of scientific instruments, tools, and collaborative environments, advancing theoretical insights via experimental proofs.
Altitudinal Distribution and Ranging Patterns of Pygmy Tarsiers (Tarsius pumilus)

Pygmy tarsiers (Tarsius pumilus) of central Sulawesi, Indonesia are the only species of tarsier known to live exclusively at high altitudes. This paper examines how the ranging patterns and altitudinal distribution of high-altitude pygmy tarsiers compare to those of lowland Sulawesian tarsier species, within an elevational gradient in Lore Lindu National Park. This study a) assesses the altitudinal range of pygmy tarsiers and determines the degree of overlap with lowland tarsiers; b) describes the ranging patterns of pygmy tarsiers; and c) compares the home range sizes of pygmy tarsiers to lowland tarsiers. Given that species ranges should increase as elevation increases, I hypothesized that pygmy tarsiers would have a larger altitudinal range than lowland tarsiers. Further, given that tarsier food resources decline at higher altitudes, I hypothesized that pygmy tarsiers would have relatively large home ranges. Results indicate that pygmy tarsiers within the study area are allopatrically separated from lowland tarsier species. Pygmy tarsiers were found at 2000-2300 m and do not occupy a wider elevational range than lowland tarsiers, contrary to Rapoport’s rule. Pygmy tarsier home ranges are comparable to or relatively larger than those of lowland tarsiers, although interpretation of these results is limited by a small sample size. The average home range size for the observed pygmy tarsiers was 2.0 ha, and the average nightly path length was 365.36 m. While pygmy tarsier home ranges may be larger than lowland species, nightly path length is shorter, indicating that the tarsiers do not utilize a large proportion of their home range on a nightly basis. The relatively small nightly path length of pygmy tarsiers is unexpected, given that nightly travel distances are known to increase in habitats with lower productivity. One explanation for this short nightly travel distances of pygmy tarsiers may be their biased distribution near forest edges where insects are more abundant, lessening the need to increase foraging area. A possible confounding variable for these results is seasonal change in resources, although there is no clear seasonal change in rainfall at the study site.
OptCluster : an R package for determining the optimal clustering algorithm and optimal number of clusters.

Determining the best clustering algorithm and ideal number of clusters for a particular dataset is a fundamental difficulty in unsupervised clustering analysis. In biological research, data generated from Next Generation Sequencing technology and microarray gene expression data are becoming more and more common, so new tools and resources are needed to group such high dimensional data using clustering analysis. Different clustering algorithms can group data very differently. Therefore, there is a need to determine the best groupings in a given dataset using the most suitable clustering algorithm for that data. This paper presents the R package optCluster as an efficient way for users to evaluate up to ten clustering algorithms, ultimately determining the optimal algorithm and optimal number of clusters for a given set of data. The selected clustering algorithms are evaluated by as many as nine validation measures classified as “biological”, “internal”, or “stability”, and the final result is obtained through a weighted rank aggregation algorithm based on the calculated validation scores. Two examples using this package are presented, one with a microarray dataset and the other with an RNA-Seq dataset. These two examples highlight the capabilities the optCluster package and demonstrate its usefulness as a tool in cluster analysis.
Psychiatric outcomes of bullying victimization: a study of discordant monozygotic twins

BACKGROUND: Bullying victimization in childhood is associated with a broad array of serious mental health disturbances, including anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation and behavior. The key goal of this study was to evaluate whether bullying victimization is a true environmental risk factor for psychiatric disturbance using data from 145 bully-discordant monozygotic (MZ) juvenile twin pairs from the Virginia Twin Study of Adolescent Behavioral Development (VTSABD) and their follow-up into young adulthood. METHOD: Since MZ twins share an identical genotype and familial environment, a higher rate of psychiatric disturbance in a bullied MZ twin compared to their non-bullied MZ co-twin would be evidence of an environmental impact of bullying victimization. Environmental correlations between being bullied and the different psychiatric traits were estimated by fitting structural equation models to the full sample of MZ and DZ twins (N = 2824). Environmental associations were further explored using the longitudinal data on the bullying-discordant MZ twins. RESULTS: Being bullied was associated with a wide range of psychiatric disorders in both children and young adults. The analysis of data on the MZ-discordant twins supports a genuine environmental impact of bullying victimization on childhood social anxiety [odds ratio (OR) 1.7], separation anxiety (OR 1.9), and young adult suicidal ideation (OR 1.3). There was a shared genetic influence on social anxiety and bullying victimization, consistent with social anxiety being both an antecedent and consequence of being bullied. CONCLUSION: Bullying victimization in childhood is a significant environmental trauma and should be included in any mental health assessment of children and young adults. Language: en
Additional Evidence for the Existence of a New Factor Essential for Mevalonic Acid Utilization.

SummaryAdditional evidence is presented for the existence of a new factor essential for utilization of mevalonic acid. This factor is present in autoclaved extracts of fresh liver from several species but absent from auto-lyzed liver. It is heat stable but is lost on dialysis or exposure to pH 0.5 and to a lesser extent by exposure to pH 11.0. A variety of biological compounds has been examined for activity. No compound thus far studied, including coenzyme A, will replace natural material.
Reviews in English of Recent Soviet Psychology: A Bibliography

General Reviews (Arranged Chronologically): Mintz, A. Recent developments in psychology in the USSR. Ann. Rev. Psychol., 1958, 9, 453-504.
Attitude control optimization for a small-scale unmanned helicopter

This paper presents results from the attitude control optimization for a small-scale helicopter by using an identified model of the vehicle dynamics that explicitly accounts for the coupled rotor/stabilizer/fuselage (r/s/f) dynamics. The accuracy of the model is verified by showing that it successfully predicts the performance of the control system currently used for Carnegie Mellon's autonomous helicopter (baseline controller). Elementary stability analysis shows that the light damping in the coupled r/s/f mode, which is due to the stabilizer bar, limits the performance of the baseline control system. This limitation is compensated by a second order notch filter. The control system is subsequently optimized using the CONDUIT control design framework with a frequency response envelope specification, which allows the attitude control performance to be accurately specified while insuring that the lightly damped r/s/f mode is adequately compensated.
A LOCALLY CONSERVATIVE ENRICHED GALERKIN APPROXIMATION AND EFFICIENT SOLVER FOR ELLIPTIC AND PARABOLIC PROBLEMS

We present and analyze an enriched Galerkin finite element method (EG) to solve elliptic and parabolic equations with jump coefficients. EG is formulated by enriching the conforming continuous Galerkin finite element method (CG) with piecewise constant functions which can be considered as a penalty stabilization. The method is shown to be locally and globally conservative, while keeping fewer degrees of freedom in comparison with discontinuous Galerkin finite element methods (DG). Moreover, we present and analyze a fast effective EG solver whose cost is roughly that of CG and which can handle an arbitrary order of approximations. A number of numerical tests in two and three dimensions are presented to confirm our theoretical results as well as to demonstrate the advantages of EG when coupled with transport.
Resilience at the margins: informal housing recovery in Bachhau, India, after the 2001 Gujarat quake

This paper examines informal housing recovery in Bachhau, an urban centre in Kutch district close to the epicentre of the 2001 Gujarat earthquake. Unlike other impacted urban areas, an informal housing recovery programme crafted to meet land tenure and housing needs of squatter households within the town's municipal limits was planned and implemented in Bachhau. The study employs a qualitative case study approach based upon in-depth informant interviews. It examines whether the current urban housing policy paradigm of enabling governance extends to post-disaster housing recovery. The paper argues that a centralised approach to post-disaster governance was put in place after the Gujarat earthquake with State appointed local authorities leading urban reconstruction and inviting select local NGOs to work on housing recovery. In Bachhau, the selected NGO became a de facto informal consultant to the Bachhau Authority, a State appointed local body to implement urban reconstruction in the town, and eventually ga...
Inhalt eines Vielecks

Es soll der Flacheninhalt eines Vielecks aus den Koordinaten seiner Ecken berechnet werden. Wir setzen voraus, das sich die Seiten des Vielecks nicht durchsetzen. Wir berechnen zunachst den Inhalt eines Dreiecks. P 1 (x 1; y l); P 2(x 2; y 2); P 3(x 3; y 3) seien die Ecken (Abb. 7). OP 1 = r l; OP 2 = r 2; OP 3 = r 3. Diese Linien schliesen mit der X-Achse der Reihe nach die Winkel a l ; a 2 und a 3 ein. Dann ist der Inhalt J des Dreiecks gegeben durch\(J = \vartriangle O{P_1}{P_2} + \vartriangle O{P_2}{P_3} - \vartriangle O{P_3}{P_1}\), oder 2 J = r 1 r 2 · sin (α2 − αl) + r 2 r 3 − sin (α3 − α 2 ) − r 3 r 1 sin (α3 − α1), was, da sin (α3 − αl) = — sin (α1 − α3) ist, auch geschrieben werden kann als $$2J = {r_1}{r_2} \cdot \sin \;\left( {{a_2} - {a_1}} \right) + {r_2}{r_3} \cdot \sin \;\left( {{a_3} - {a_2}} \right) + {r_3}{r_1} \cdot \sin \;\left( {{a_1} - {a_3}} \right).$$ Open image in new window Abb. 7
p19Arf Cooperation in Shp2-Induced Leukemogenesis.

Shp2 is a protein-tyrosine phosphatase which has both proliferation and apoptosis functions in hematopoietic cells. Gain-of-function (GOF) Shp2 mutations are found in Juvenile Myelomonocytic Leukemia (JMML) and Noonan syndrome patients predisposed to JMML, as well as in common childhood leukemias. Genetic data suggest that Shp2 alone is insufficient for leukemogenesis, and other genetic alterations are required, such as disruption of tumor suppressor pathways. We hypothesized that Arf deletion will enhance GOF Shp2-induced leukemogenesis. In colony forming cell assays (CFC), E76K Shp2 expression in arf−/− bone marrow cells led to increased colony number and size compared to E76K Shp2 expression in arf+/− cells or arf−/− cells with vector alone. To assay leukemia induction, arf+/− or arf−/− bone marrow cells transduced with E76K Shp2 mutant were transplanted into lethally irradiated WT C57BL/6 mice. We found that mice transplanted with E76K Shp2/arf−/− bone marrow cells developed leukemia/lymphoma at an accelerated rate compared to mice transplanted with E76K Shp2/arf+/− or vector/arf−/− bone marrow. While the most common hematological disease in mice transplanted with either E76KShp2/arf+/− or vector/arf−/− bone marrow was myeloproliferation, mice with E76K Shp2/arf−/− bone marrow developed predominantly B220+ leukemia. Compared to leukemia in E76K Shp2/arf+/− reconstituted mice, leukemias arising from E76K Shp2/arf−/− bone marrow were much more aggressive, effacing the bone marrow and spleen, infiltrating the liver diffusely and into surrounding tissue. Diseases arising from vector/arf−/− bone marrow were either localized lymphoma or mild myeloproliferation. Both E76K Shp2 expression and arf deletion were associated with the presence of BrdU-positive immature hematopoietic progenitors in the spleens of pre-leukemic mice, consistent with extramedullary hematopoiesis. These findings suggest that arf deletion cooperated with E76K Shp2’s proliferative function to accelerate leukemogenesis.
Retrograde trans-synaptic visual pathway degeneration in multiple sclerosis: A case series.

Background:Trans-synaptic degeneration (TSD) describes the propagation of neuronal injury through synaptic pathways in the human nervous system and may be linked to the accelerated retinal atrophy seen in multiple sclerosis (MS).Results:We report six cases where homonymous, hemi-macular ganglion cell + inner plexiform (GCIP) thickness reduction was seen in conjunction with posterior visual pathway lesions. Macular microcystoid changes of the inner nuclear layer (INL) were seen in a subset of three subjects.Conclusion:Our findings highlight the utility of assessing regional GCIP changes to identify potential retrograde TSD in MS and demonstrate that INL changes may be an accompaniment in such instances.
Empathy, Caring, and Bullying: Toward an Understanding of Complex Associations

These responses from students delineate the complex nature of bullying during early adolescence. Students struggle between the desire to “ﬁt in” and the desire to not hurt others. Through an interview study about bullying, these quotes provide some support for the importance of understanding how kids think about the feelings of others (Espelage & Asidao, 2001). However, the association between empathy and bullying is not always straightforward. For many years, research has documented that empathy does promote prosocial behavior, yet thelink between empathy and aggression has been explored less, and ﬁndings have been less conclusive (for review see Eisenberg, 1988). The operationalization and measurement of empathy, as well as gender differences in the expression of empathy and aggression across the early developmental years, are complex. This complexity often complicates the interpretation of study ﬁndings. Despite the inconsistent ﬁndings in the extant literature, there is general consensus that attending, fostering, and promoting empathy in children and adolescents could relate to the development of prosocial behavior and to the prevention of aggressive behavior.
Profiles of an Acquisition Generation: Nontraditional Heritage Speakers of Spanish

Though definitions vary, the literature on heritage speakers of Spanish identifies two primary attributes: a linguistic and cultural connection to the language. This article profiles four Anglo col...
Educating Future Leaders of the Sport-based Youth Development Field

In recent years, a substantial surge has occurred in the number of initiatives, events and organizations focused on using sport as a tool for development, peacebuilding and humanitarian efforts. Th...
Work should help teens, not hurt them.

* Abbreviation: NRC/IOM = : National Research Council and Institute of Medicine It is axiomatic that education and healthy development are primary goals of childhood and adolescence. An obvious corollary is that work should contribute to these objectives, not detract from them. It follows that in the formative years of childhood and adolescence young workers need a higher standard of protection from hazardous work, excessive work hours, and unsafe or unhealthy work environments. Public policy responded with the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 not to prohibit child labor but to eliminate employment of youth in hazardous or exploitative work settings. Work is still important for teenagers; more than 80% of teens report having worked during their high school years. Parents, for the most part no longer dependent on income from their children, now expect them to work for spending money. Remaining as a question, however, is how suitable and how safe are the jobs available for youth. To assess the present situation, … Address correspondence to David H. Wegman, MD, MSc, University of Massachusetts Lowell, Department of Work Environment, One University Ave, Lowell, MA 01854-2867.
Internet Appendix for the Discretion and Systemic Risk in Credit Line Contracts

This internet appendix contains additional extensions and results for Chaderina, Maria and Tengulov, Angel, 2017, Discretion and Systemic Risk in Credit Line Contracts. The paper is available here: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2617223.
Structural and Molecular Characterization of the Hemagglutinin from the Fifth Epidemic Wave A(H7N9) Influenza Viruses.

The avian influenza A(H7N9) virus continues to cause human infections in China and is a major ongoing public health concern. Five epidemic waves of A(H7N9) infection have occurred since 2013, and the recent fifth epidemic wave saw the emergence of two distinct lineages with elevated numbers of human infection cases and broader geographic distribution of viral diseases compared to the first four epidemic waves. Moreover, highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) A(H7N9) viruses were also isolated during the fifth epidemic wave. Here, we present a detailed structural and biochemical analysis of the surface hemagglutinin (HA) antigen from viruses isolated during this recent epidemic wave. Results highlight that, compared to the 2013 virus HAs, the fifth-wave virus HAs remained a weak binder to human glycan receptor analogs. We also studied three mutations, V177K-K184T-G219S, that were recently reported to switch a 2013 A(H7N9) HA to human-type receptor specificity. Our results indicate that these mutations could also switch the H7 HA receptor preference to a predominantly human binding specificity for both fifth-wave H7 HAs analyzed in this study. IMPORTANCE The A(H7N9) viruses circulating in China are of great public health concern. Here, we report a molecular and structural study of the major surface proteins from several recent A(H7N9) influenza viruses. Our results improve the understanding of these evolving viruses and provide important information on their receptor preference that is central to ongoing pandemic risk assessment.
Lessons Learned from Clinical Trials in 1976 and 1977 of Vaccines for the Newly Emerged Swine and Russian Influenza A/H1N1 Viruses

An explosive local outbreak of respiratory disease in the US in 1976 with a swine influenza A/H1N1-like virus [A/New Jersey/76 (H1N1)] and the appearance of another A/H1N1 virus [A/USSR/77 (H1N1)] in the subsequent year led to extensive clinical trials of vaccines as preparations for public use. Two whole virus (WV) and two subunit (SV) vaccines of each virus were evaluated in all age groups for safety and immunogenicity. A/NJ WV vaccines were more reactogenic and more immunogenic than SV vaccines, particularly in children. Increase in the dosage led to increase in reactogenicity, which was significant for one WV vaccine that contained more antigen, but reactogenicity was best associated with the presence of WV particles of varied morphology. Although this result led to the concept that WV vaccines were not acceptable for children, WV A/USSR vaccines were not reactogenic in adults as were the A/NJ vaccines.
Mechanisms of somatostatin action in pituitary cells.

Tetradecapeptide somatostatin (S-14, SRIF) inhibits secretion by a large number of different target cells, and therefore studies probing its mechanism of action have focused on the involvement of two intracellular messengers known to regulate secretory processes: cyclic AMP and calcium (for reviews see references l–5). However, the results from mechanistic studies have been complex and, at times, contradictory. Thus, the biochemical events which mediate the inhibitory actions of S-14 are still not well understood. In fact, S-14 has been proposed to act at all possible sites: it has been hypothesized to regulate the concentrations of both cyclic AMP and calcium, as well as the effectiveness of a given concentration of each of these intracellular messengers. This review summarizes our studies on the role of cyclic AMP in S-14 inhibition of hormone secretion by a clonal pituitary-tumor cell line (GH2C1) and relates our observations to those reported by other investigators in the more complex mixed population present in primary cultures of pituitary cells.
MBE Growth and Surface Diffusion

There has been much recent interest in the statistical properties of nonequilibrium surfaces. In particular, much attention has been focussed on theoretical models to describe thin film growth by Molecular Beam Epitaxy. A number of groups 1,2,3 have proposed that the statistical properties of MBE growth are given by the fourth order continuum equation1 $$\mathop h\limits^ \cdot = - {D_4}{\nabla ^4}h + {\lambda _4}{\nabla ^2}{(\nabla h)^2} + \eta$$ (1) where \(h({\vec x_\parallel },t)\) is the height of the surface and η is a noise source with correlations $$ \begin{array}{*{20}{c}} {\left\langle {\eta ({{\vec x}_\parallel },t)} \right\rangle = 0} \\ {\left\langle {\eta ({{\vec x}_\parallel },t)\eta ({{\vec x'}_\parallel },t')} \right\rangle = S{\delta ^d}({{\vec x}_\parallel } - {{\vec x'}_\parallel })\delta (t - t')} \end{array} $$ (2)
Parallel Local Search for Satisfiability

This chapter studies the impact of knowledge sharing on the performance of portfolio-based parallel local search algorithms. Our work is motivated by the demonstrated importance of clause-sharing in the performance of complete parallel SAT solvers. Unlike complete solvers, state-of-the-art local search algorithms for SAT are not able to generate redundant clauses during their execution. In our settings, each member of the portfolio shares its best configuration. At each restart point, instead of classically generating a random configuration to start with, each algorithm aggregates the shared knowledge to carefully craft a new starting point. We present several aggregation strategies and evaluate them on a large set of problems.
Sintomatologia depresiva y control metabólico en pacientes ambulatorios portadores de diabetes mellitus tipo 2

Background Patients with diabetes mellitus show a higher risk of developing depressive symptoms when compared to healthy people, hampering the management and prognosis of both diseases. However, national studies on the topic are scarce. Aim To study the frequency and severity of depressive symptoms in patients with type 2 diabetes. Material and methods Beck Depression Inventory-IA and Morisky Green Levine scale were administered to diabetic patients under control at a primary care center. Pharmacological compliance was evaluated using glycosylated hemoglobin levels obtained from their clinical records. Results We included 323 patients aged 64 ± 12 years (49% women). The frequency of depressive symptoms was 34.7%. Compared with their counterparts without depressive symptoms, patients with depression showed higher glycosylated hemoglobin levels (7.2 ± 1.7 and 6.7 ± 1.3% respectively), a higher frequency of non-compliance with treatment (63 and 43% respectively) and a higher frequency of metabolic decompensation (38 and 23% respectively). Depressive symptomatology was more common among women. Conclusions Patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and depressive symptoms exhibit a poorer treatment compliance and worse metabolic control as compared to their non-depressive counterparts.
MEMS RF Magnetoelectric FeGaB/Quartz Receivers.

Recent research work on the theoretical and experimental possibilities of acoustically actuated MEMS RF magnetoelectric antennas using piezoelectric-magnetostrictive multilayers have been published, for example in ref. [1], [2]. A mechanism of electromagnetic-acoustic coupling was achieved in the composite ferromagnetic/piezoelectric heterostructure. The magnetostrictive thin film provided the function of converting the RF magnetic signal to acoustic vibration of the composite resonator while the piezoelectric body realized the transduction of acoustic wave to electric signal. In this paper, we proposed a novel MEMS RF FeGaB/Quartz receiver sensor where FeGaB had a relatively stronger piezomagnetic coefficient compared to other ferromagnetic materials such as nickel. The quartz resonator had the advantages of high Q, low resistance, and high frequency-temperature stability. Experiments were set up to measure the remnant magnetization state of FeGaB thin film deposited on AT- and SC-cut quartz wafers. Consistent comparison results were obtained between the simulated and measured magnetization curves of FeGaB thin films. A 10 MHz AT-cut quartz resonator coated with 200-nm-thick FeGaB layer was fabricated and tested. The frequency response of a similar uncoated quartz resonator was also tested so that the difference between the responses of coated and uncoated resonator respectively could yield a qualitative view of the magnetic field response. A special setup of experiments were taken to reduce the electric field effect of the RF signal. The simulated frequency responses of the coated and uncoated resonators showed trends that were consistent with the experimental results.
An Energy Measurement Frontend With Integrated Adaptive Background Accuracy Monitoring of the Full System Including the Current and Voltage Sensors

This article presents an ac energy measurement frontend on 0.18 $\mu $ CMOS with integrated, condition-based monitoring capability that can continuously monitor and report on the accuracy of the full measurement system, including the external current and voltage sensors, without interruption of the measurement used for billing. This is achieved using a highly stable, digitally controlled, adaptive background accuracy monitoring (ABAM) system, which injects a small, known signal into the sensors and extracts it using digital signal processing, in the background while normal measurement is ongoing. The realized system is an energy metering frontend that can be used for utility metering applications capable of measuring rms current to 0.1% accuracy over a 1000:1 dynamic range and active energy to 0.25% accuracy over a 5000:1 dynamic range over the full supply and temperature range, while continuously monitoring the system accuracy in the background. The ABAM signal references and drivers used for monitoring the current and voltage channels independently achieve an absolute accuracy in the order of 0.1%, and the full ABAM system has been shown to track the relative accuracy of the full meter when subjected to interference and when trialed in the field to 0.1%.
Fear: It's All in Your Line of Sight.

Summary The brain circuits that create our sense of fear rely on ancient ‘hard-wired’ components of the limbic system, but also use sensory processing to determine what we become afraid of. A new study shows that, when viewing of simple oriented line stimuli is coupled with aversive experiences, neurons in primary visual cortex rapidly alter their responses in a manner that indicates the line stimuli become a source of fear.
Agent-based model characterization using natural language processing

This paper reports on Natural Language Processing (NLP) as a technique to analyze phenomena towards specifying agent-based models (ABM). The objective of the ABM NLP Analyzer is to facilitate non-simulationists to actively engage in the learning and collaborative designing of ABMs. The NLP model identifies candidate agents, candidate agent attributes, and candidate rules all of which non-simulationists can later evaluate for feasibility. IBM's Watson Natural Language Understanding (NLU) and Knowledge Studio were used in order to annotate, evaluate, extract agents, agent attributes, and agent rules from unstructured descriptions of phenomena. The software, and related agent-attribute-rule characterization, provides insight into a simple but useful means of conceptualizing and specifying baseline ABMs. Further, it emphasizes on how to approach the design of ABMs without the use of NLP by focusing on the identification of agent, attributes and rules.
Taste and smell function in Wolfram syndrome

Wolfram syndrome is a rare genetic disease characterized by insulin-dependent diabetes, optic nerve atrophy, sensorineural hearing loss and neurodegeneration. Although olfactory dysfunction, a classical clinical marker of neurodegenerative processes, has been reported in Wolfram syndrome, its use as a clinical marker in Wolfram is limited due to data scarcity. In addition, it is unknown whether Wolfram syndrome affects the sense of taste. Smell and taste perception were assessed in participants with Wolfram syndrome (n = 40) who were 15.1 ± 6.0 years of age (range: 5.1–28.7 years) and two sex- and age-matched control groups: one group with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D; n = 25) and a healthy control group (HC; n = 29). Smell sensitivity was assessed by measuring n-butanol detection thresholds and smell identification by using the University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test (UPSIT). Taste function was assessed using NIH Toolbox, which includes the assessment of sucrose (sweet) taste preference, and perceived intensity of sucrose, sodium chloride (salty), and quinine hydrochloride (bitter) both in the tip of the tongue (regional test) and the whole mouth. Smell sensitivity was not significantly different among groups; however, smell identification was impaired in Wolfram syndrome, as reflected by significantly lower UPSIT scores in Wolfram syndrome compared to HC and T1D (P < 0.001). Compared to participants in the control groups, participants with Wolfram syndrome had a blunted perception of sweetness and saltiness when taste stimuli were applied regionally (P < 0.05), but differences in perceived intensity were no longer significant among groups when taste stimuli were tasted with the whole mouth. Groups preferred similar sucrose concentrations. Wolfram syndrome was associated with olfactory dysfunction. However, the olfactory dysfunction was qualitative (related to smell identification) and not secondary to olfactory insensitivity or diabetes, suggesting is arising from dysfunction in central olfactory brain regions. In contrast to olfaction, and despite decreased perception of taste intensity in the anterior tongue, the sense of taste was overall well-conserved in individuals with Wolfram syndrome. Future longitudinal studies of taste and smell perception in Wolfram syndrome will be important to determine the use of the chemical senses as clinical markers of disease progression.
The Popular Courts in Athenian Democracy

Accounts of Athenian democracy often emphasize the composition, procedures, and functions of the assembly: openness to all citizens, the right of each citizen to speak publicly, and the power of ordinary citizens to decide policy. Yet a series of legal reforms that enhanced the powers of judges at the end of the fifth century BC suggests that the Athenians perceived their popular courts as their most “demotic” institution, that is, the institution most likely to support the interests of ordinary citizens against the political elite and thus most crucial to democracy. Key features of the courts, such as greater numbers of poorer and older citizens, random selection, restrictions on speech, the secret ballot, and the power of ordinary citizens to decide justice, were more important to the idea and practice of democracy in Athens than has been recognized, with significant implications for understanding its differences from democracy today.
Introduction: The Parallel Voices of Modern Animal Welfare Movements and a Literature of Compassion

Compassion-inclined animal literature has an unsettling, estranging effect on readers. It invites a reappraisal of our interactions with nature and encourages engagement with difficult ethical questions. This chapter introduces the idea of animal literature as a literature of protest that educates readers on ways human behavior causes suffering, promotes empathy, and envisions more compassionate ways of interacting with nonhuman neighbors. This chapter argues the imaginative spaces stories provide make an important contribution toward the formation of humane values. Here and throughout, Hugh Lofting’s Doctor Dolittle novels provide the impetus for the ‘welfarist’ approach to reading introduced.
(Broken) Promises of Sustainable Food and Agriculture through New Biotechnologies: The CRISPR Case

In recent years, the development of diverse CRISPR-based technologies has revolutionized genome manipulation and enabled a broad scientific community in industry, academia, and beyond to redefine research and development for biotechnology products encompassing food, agriculture, and medicine. CRISPR-based genome editing affords tremendous opportunities in agriculture for the breeding of crops and livestock across the food supply chain that could benefit larger portions of the population compared to CRISPR applications in medicine, for example by helping to feed a growing global population, reach sustainability goals, and possibly mitigate the effects of climate change. These promises come alongside concerns of risks and adverse impacts associated with CRISPR-based genome editing and concerns that governance systems that are ill equipped or not well suited to evaluate these risks. The international community will continue to gather, in multiple venues, in the coming years to discuss these concerns. At the same time, responsible research and innovation paradigms also promise to evaluate the risks and benefits better while incorporating broad stakeholder engagement across the research and development process. The CRISPR community therefore must actively engage with these international deliberations, society, and national governance systems that have promised to build better agricultural systems and provide better food products to achieve equitable outcomes while protecting the environment. Without this active engagement, the promises discussed in this paper are sure to be broken.
Human alteration of global surface water storage variability.

Knowing the extent of human influence on the global hydrological cycle is essential for the sustainability of freshwater resources on Earth1,2. However, a lack of water level observations for the world’s ponds, lakes and reservoirs has limited the quantification of human-managed (reservoir) changes in surface water storage compared to its natural variability3. The global storage variability in surface water bodies and the extent to which it is altered by humans therefore remain unknown. Here we show that 57 per cent of the Earth’s seasonal surface water storage variability occurs in human-managed reservoirs. Using measurements from NASA’s ICESat-2 satellite laser altimeter, which was launched in late 2018, we assemble an extensive global water level dataset that quantifies water level variability for 227,386 water bodies from October 2018 to July 2020. We find that seasonal variability in human-managed reservoirs averages 0.86 metres, whereas natural water bodies vary by only 0.22 metres. Natural variability in surface water storage is greatest in tropical basins, whereas human-managed variability is greatest in the Middle East, southern Africa and the western USA. Strong regional patterns are also found, with human influence driving 67 per cent of surface water storage variability south of 45 degrees north and nearly 100 per cent in certain arid and semi-arid regions. As economic development, population growth and climate change continue to pressure global water resources4, our approach provides a useful baseline from which ICESat-2 and future satellite missions will be able to track human modifications to the global hydrologic cycle. Data from the ICESat-2 satellite quantifying the variability of water levels in natural and human-managed water bodies show that a disproportionate majority of global water storage variability occurs in human-managed reservoirs.
Safety and Predictors of 30-Day Adverse Events of Laryngeal Framework Surgery: An Analysis of ACS-NSQIP data

Objectives/hypothesis To characterize and identify predictors of 30-day adverse events in patients undergoing laryngeal framework surgery (LFS). Study design This study is a retrospective analysis of the National Surgical Quality Improvement dataset. Methods LFS cases were identified from the American College of Surgeons-National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) database from 2008 to 2018. Demographic variables, patient comorbidities, and perioperative outcomes (any adverse event, 30-day readmission, 30-day reoperation, and unplanned intubation) were extracted. Patient-specific and surgery-specific factors associated with perioperative adverse events were examined using descriptive statistics and univariate logistic regression (LR). Results Of 283 patients who underwent LFS, 225 underwent laryngoplasty medialization, 56 underwent laryngoplasty medialization with arytenoidectomy or arytenoidopexy via an external approach, and 2 underwent local myocutaneous or fasciocutaneous advancement flap along with laryngoplasty. Medical comorbidities were present in 33.6% of patients and 57.9% were American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) Class III/IV (57.9%). LFS was performed as same-day surgery in 30.7% of cases. Fourteen patients (4.9%) suffered an adverse condition within 30 days following surgery. In univariate LR, ASA Class III or IV (odds ratio [OR] 4.6, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.2-30.1) was the only predictor associated with any adverse event. Arytenoid adduction (AA) was associated with increased risk of reoperation within 30 days of the initial surgery (OR 6.4, 95% CI 1.0-49). Conclusions LFS is a generally safe procedure with infrequent perioperative adverse events. In the ACS-NSQIP database, ASA classification of III or IV was associated with a higher risk for any 30-day adverse event and AA was associated with a higher risk for 30-day reoperation. Level of evidence 4 Laryngoscope, 2021.
School uniforms and student behavior: is there a link?

Abstract Whether or not schoolchildren exhibit better behavior in the context of wearing uniforms has been a longstanding area of debate in education. Nonetheless, there has been little empirical inquiry into the benefits or drawbacks of school uniform policies. To contribute new insights to the dialog, the present investigation used nationally representative data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study Kindergarten Class of 2011 (n = 6,320) to examine students’ social-behavioral and engagement outcomes across the elementary school years as a function of school uniform policies. In general, students in schools that required school uniforms did not demonstrate better social skills, internalizing and externalizing behavior, or school attendance as compared with students in schools without school uniforms. These associations were true across both public and private schools. There was, however, some indication that low-income students in schools that required uniforms demonstrated better school attendance than low-income students in schools that did not.