cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Exponential Observer Design

Abstract Using center manifold theory, we derive a necessary and sufficient condition characterizing the exponential observers for Lyapunov stable nonlinear systems. We also show that the standard definition of exponential observers can be weakened for neutrally stable nonlinear systems.
Authenticating Users Through Fine-Grained Channel Information

User authentication is the critical first step in detecting identity-based attacks and preventing subsequent malicious attacks. However, the increasingly dynamic mobile environments make it harder to always apply cryptographic-based methods for user authentication due to their infrastructural and key management overhead. Exploiting non-cryptographic based techniques grounded on physical layer properties to perform user authentication appears promising. In this work, the use of channel state information (CSI), which is available from off-the-shelf WiFi devices, to perform fine-grained user authentication is explored. Particularly, a user-authentication framework that can work with both stationary and mobile users is proposed. When the user is stationary, the proposed framework builds a user profile for user authentication that is resilient to the presence of a spoofer. The proposed machine learning based user-authentication techniques can distinguish between two users even when they possess similar signal fingerprints and detect the existence of a spoofer. When the user is mobile, it is proposed to detect the presence of a spoofer by examining the temporal correlation of CSI measurements. Both office building and apartment environments show that the proposed framework can filter out signal outliers and achieve higher authentication accuracy compared with existing approaches using received signal strength (RSS).
Efficacy and Safety of Aztreonam in the Treatment of Serious Gram-Negative Bacterial Infections

• Aztreonam was used in the initial treatment of infection of the urinary tract (23 cases), respiratory tract (17 cases), skin and soft tissue (12 cases), abdominal cavity (three cases), endocarditis (two cases), septicemia (eight cases), and osteomyelitis (two cases). In 26 of 60 evaluable infectious episodes, aztreonam was used alone. Clinical cure was observed in 35 of 60, improvement in 24 of 60, and failure in one of 60 cases. Ten patients developed subsequent superinfection. Aztreonam was well tolerated, although one case of exfoliative dermatitis and one of pseudomembranous colitis occurred. However, these cases were complicated by proximal administration of other antibiotics. (Arch Intern Med1987;147:325-328)
Intraoperative Interstitial Hyperthermia in Conjunction With Intraoperative Radiation Therapy in a Radiation-Resistant Carcinoma of the Abdomen: Report on the Feasibility of a New Technique

The application of a new technique of intraoperative interstitial hyperthermia (IOHT) and intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT) was investigated for unresectable abdominal carcinoma. A 43-year-old white male presented with severe back pain due to metastatic adenocarcinoma in the left paravertebral area, producing erosion of the body of T12. The disease had not responded to external beam radiation therapy. The tumor was approached through a thoraco-abdominal incision and IOHT was delivered via interstitial electrodes. Temperature was monitored at 16 locations within the tumor. An LCF hyperthermia unit was utilized to deliver RF power and produced a treatment temperature of 43 degrees C for 60 minutes uniformly throughout the treatment volume. Immediately following hyperthermia treatment, the lesion was treated with 15 meV electrons via IORT to a tumor dose of 25Gy. The patient recovered without complication and had complete relief from pain. Posttreatment CT scans have demonstrated control of disease over a 5-month follow-up period. A clinical pilot study has been established to further investigate the application of this combination therapy.
Temporal Changes in Motility Parameters Related to Acrosomal Status: Identification and Characterization of Populations of Hyperactivated Human Sperm

The occurrence and time course of capacitation, acrosomal loss, and hyperactivated motility require quantitative definition in order to characterize fertile human sperm. In this study, video microscopy and digital image analysis were used to measure curvilinear (VCL) and straight line (VSL) velocity, average linearity of progression (UN [100 x VSL/VCUJ), maximum and mean amplitude of lateral head displacement (ALH), beat-cross-frequency (BCF), DANCE (VCL x meanALH) and DANCEMEAN (meanALH/(UIN/100)). These parameters were measured for sperm in semen and in the swim-up fraction of washed cells during incubation for up to 24 h under in vitro fertilization (IVF) conditions. Acrosomal loss was monitored in the same population of washed cells by an immunofluorescence end-point assay. The greatest increase in mean values of motility parameters was observed when seminal sperm were washed free of seminal plasma. Increases continued for up to 6 h of incubation. Two subpopulations of hyperactivated sperm were identified; one type, not found in semen, showed star-spin trajectories, and constituted 3.0, 3.8, 4.5, and 4.1% of the swim-up population after 0, 3, 6 and 24 h of incubation. The second type, termed transitional showed a more progressive trajectory and constituted less than 1% in semen. In total, hyperactivated cells constituted 0.8% of cells in semen, 14.5% of the swim-up population with no incubation, and 23.1, 22.7, and 19.4% after 3, 6, and 24 h of incubation, respectively. Acrosomal loss in the swim-up population was delayed during the first 3 h of incubation, then increased from near 5% at 3 h to 7 and 12% at 6 and 24 h, respectively. The kinetics of change in the extent of hyperactivation and in acrosomal loss, although measured in different cell populations, are consistent with an association between these two events.
Studies on Osteoporoses. XII. Effect of Imidazoquinazolinones on Experimental Osteoporosis. A Preliminary Report

In vivo neutron activation analysis was employed to determine total body calcium content in C3H/St(Ha) female mice. Ninety-nine percent of calcium is in bone and loss of calcium was used as an index of osteoporosis. Heparin (500 U/kg b.i.d.) treatment for three months resulted in significant osteoporosis. BL3459 and BL4160 (6 mg/kg i.m. q.d.) prevented this heparin induced osteoporosis. BL4160 appeared to be more effective than BL3459 in this regard but the difference was not statistically significant.
Ultrasonographic Antenatal Diagnosis: Will it Change the Spectrum of Neonatal Surgery?

The outcome of 139 fetuses with anatomical abnormalities diagnosed by ultrasonography (out of 15,180 examinations) at our institution during the last 6 years was reviewed. Of these, 56 were diagnosed before 21 weeks gestational age and 83 there-after. Fifty-four had anomalies of the central nervous system. Of these 27 were diagnosed early. Twentysix had anomalies of the genitourinary tract, 11 diagnosed early. Four had anomalies of the musculoskeletal system diagnosed early in 3. Thirty-seven had miscellaneous anomalies and early diagnosis was made in 6. Only the early pregnancies were terminated, 38 in number. The fetal diagnosis was clearly confirmed in 33. Of particular interest were the 18 fetuses with anomalies of the gastrointestinal tract and abdominal wall. There were nine early diagnoses. The pregnancy was interrupted in seven. In all the diagnosis was confirmed. Five of these had associated anomalies. Among the 9 fetuses whose anomalies were diagnosed late, 3 had associated anomalies and died shortly after birth before corrective surgery. In all, two fetuses with abdominal wall defects had no detectable associated anomalies and were potentially correctable but the pregnancies were terminated. With earlier, accurate imaging diagnosis possible, special attention has to be directed toward multidisciplined counseling (including a pediatric surgeon) for ultimately satisfactory fetal-neonatal salvage. Otherwise the spectrum of neonatal surgical pathology could be seriously altered.
Serum Hexosaminidase as a Possible Biomarker for Human Cancer

The levels of total serum hexosaminidase and of its heat stable isozyme (beta-hexosaminidase) were determined in the sera of subjects bearing ovarian and other female genital cancers and of control subjects. The assays were carried out on a double blind basis. Total hexosaminidase levels were significantly elevated in sera of subjects with female genital cancers and in subjects with ovarian cancer. Levels of beta-hexosaminidase were elevated in all subjects with genital cancer. The hexosaminidase assay may be a convenient biomarker for human cancer since earlier studies have shown that total and beta-hexosaminidase levels are elevated in sera of most cancer patients studied.
Associations between long-term exposure to air pollution, glycosylated hemoglobin and diabetes.

Abstract Background Air pollution exposures have been shown to adversely impact health through a number of biological pathways associated with glucose metabolism. However, few studies have evaluated the associations between air pollution and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels. Further, no studies have evaluated these associations in US populations or investigated whether associations differ in diabetic as compared to non-diabetic populations. To address this knowledge gap, we investigated the associations between airborne fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ) and nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ) and HbA1c levels in both diabetic and non-diabetic older Americans. We also examined the impact of PM 2.5 and NO 2 on prevalent diabetes mellitus (DM) in this cohort. Methods We used multilevel logistic and linear regression models to evaluate the association between long-term average air pollutant levels and prevalence of DM and HbA1c levels, respectively, among 4121 older (57+ years) Americans enrolled in the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project between 2005 and 2011. All models adjusted for age, sex, body mass index, smoking status, race, household income, education level, neighborhood socioeconomic status, geographic region, urbanicity and diabetic medication use. We estimated participant-specific exposures to PM 2.5 on a six-kilometer grid covering the conterminous U.S. using spatio-temporal models, and to NO 2 using nearest measurements from the Environmental Protection Agency’s Air Quality System. HbA1c levels were measured for participants in each of two data collection waves from dried blood spots and log-transformed prior to analysis. Participants were considered diabetic if they had HbA1c values ≥ 6.5% or reported taking diabetic medication. Results The prevalence of diabetes at study entry was 22.2% (n = 916) and the mean HbA1c was 6.0 ± 1.1%. Mean one-year moving average PM 2.5 and NO 2 exposures were 10.4 ± 3.0 μg/m 3 and 13.1 ± 7.0 ppb, respectively. An inter-quartile range (IQR, 3.9 μg/m 3 ) increase in one-year moving average PM 2.5 was positively associated with increased diabetes prevalence (prevalence odds ratio, POR 1.35, 95% CI: 1.19, 1.53). Similarly, an IQR (8.6 ppb) increase in NO 2 was also significantly associated with diabetes prevalence (POR 1.27, 95% CI: 1.10, 1.48). PM 2.5 (1.8% ± 0.6%, p 2 (2.0% ± 0.7%, p 2 was significantly associated with HbA1c in non-diabetic participants (0.8% ± 0.2%, p 2 in non-diabetic participants. Conclusions/interpretations In a cohort of older men and women in the United States, PM 2.5 and NO 2 exposures were significantly associated with prevalence of DM and increased HbA1c levels among both non-diabetic and diabetic participants. These associations suggest that air pollution could be a key risk factor for abnormal glucose metabolism and diabetes in the elderly.
A near-infrared 64-pixel superconducting nanowire single photon detector array with integrated multiplexed readout

We demonstrate a 64-pixel free-space-coupled array of superconducting nanowire single photon detectors optimized for high detection efficiency in the near-infrared range. An integrated, readily scalable, multiplexed readout scheme is employed to reduce the number of readout lines to 16. The cryogenic, optical, and electronic packaging to read out the array, as well as characterization measurements are discussed.
UTPlaceF: A Routability-Driven FPGA Placer With Physical and Congestion Aware Packing

Field programmable gate array (FPGA) packing and placement without routability consideration could lead to unroutable results for high-utilization designs. Conventional FPGA packing and placement approaches are shown to have severe difficulties to yield good routability. In this paper, we propose an FPGA packing and placement engine called UTPlaceF that simultaneously optimizes wirelength and routability. A novel physical and congestion aware packing algorithm and a hierarchical detailed placement technique are proposed. UTPlaceF outperforms state-of-the-art FPGA placers simultaneously in runtime and solution quality on International Symposium on Physical Design (ISPD) 2016 benchmark suite. Compared with the top three winners of ISPD’16 FPGA placement contest, UTPlaceF can deliver 6.2%, 11.6%, and 29.1% better routed wirelength with shorter runtime.
Nation or District? Evaluating the Territorial Scope of Bills through Experimental Designs

This paper studies the territorial scope of the bills presented by members of the Chamber of Deputies (the lower chamber of the Argentine National Congress) during Juan Domingo Peron’s first two terms in office (1946–1955). Its main objective is to observe the effect that modifying the electoral system (switching from incomplete party ballots in multimember districts to relative majorities in single-member districts) had on that scope. Experimental techniques (an interrupted time-series and a within-subjects design) are used to analyze a novel database including every bill presented in the Chamber of Deputies during the period in question. Contrary to theoretical expectations, an increase is observed in the share of bills with a territorial scope that goes beyond deputies’ districts – especially for those presented by legislators from the opposition and from larger provinces. In addition, by separately analyzing the effect on the ruling party and the opposition, the paper uncovers a plausible explanation for previous nonconclusive findings.
DUAL MOBILITY CUP: EMERGENT STANDARD FOR RECURRENT DISLOCATION – AFFIRMS

Dual mobility components for total hip arthroplasty provide for an additional articular surface, with the goals of improving range of motion, jump distance, and overall stability of the prosthetic hip joint. A large polyethylene head articulates with a polished metal acetabular component, and an additional smaller metal or ceramic head is snap-fit into the large polyethylene. In some European centers, these components are routinely used for primary total hip arthroplasty. However, their greatest utility will be to prevent and manage recurrent dislocation in the setting of revision total hip arthroplasty. Several retrospective series have shown satisfactory results for this indication at medium-term follow-up times. The author has used dual mobility components on two occasions to salvage a failed constrained liner. At least one center reports that dual mobility outperforms 40mm femoral heads in revision arthroplasty. Modular dual mobility components, with screw fixation, are the author9s first choice for the treatment of recurrent dislocation, revision of failed metal-metal resurfacing, total hips, unipolar arthroplasties, and salvage of failed constrained liners. There are concerns of elevated metal levels with one design, and acute early intra-prosthetic dissociation following attempted closed reduction. Total hip surgeons no longer cement Charnley acetabular components, use conventional polyethylene, autologous blood donation, or a drain; now constrained components join these obsolete techniques! In 2017, a dual mobility component, rather than a constrained liner, is the preferred solution in revision surgery to prevent and manage recurrent dislocation.
The interplay of internal and forced modes of Hadley Cell expansion: lessons from the global warming hiatus

The poleward branches of the Hadley Cells and the edge of the tropics show a robust poleward shift during the satellite era, leading to concerns over the possible encroachment of the globe’s subtropical dry zones into currently temperate climates. The extent to which this trend is caused by anthropogenic forcing versus internal variability remains the subject of considerable debate. In this study, we use a Joint EOF method to identify two distinct modes of tropical width variability: (1) an anthropogenically-forced mode, which we identify using a 20-member simulation of the historical climate, and (2) an internal mode, which we identify using a 1000-year pre-industrial control simulation. The forced mode is found to be closely related to the top of the atmosphere radiative imbalance and exhibits a long-term trend since 1860, while the internal mode is essentially indistinguishable from the El Nino Southern Oscillation. Together these two modes explain an average of 70% of the interannual variability seen in model “edge indices” over the historical period. Since 1980, the superposition of forced and internal modes has resulted in a period of accelerated Hadley Cell expansion and decelerated global warming (i.e., the “hiatus”). A comparison of the change in these modes since 1980 indicates that by 2013 the signal has emerged above the noise of internal variability in the Southern Hemisphere, but not in the Northern Hemisphere, with the latter also exhibiting strong zonal asymmetry, particularly in the North Atlantic. Our results highlight the important interplay of internal and forced modes of tropical width change and improve our understanding of the interannual variability and long-term trend seen in observations.
Multifocal myeloid sarcomas: a rare presentation of AML

A 29-year-old previously healthy man presented to the hospital with a 2-month history of generalised weakness and swelling of the right eyelid. Physical examination showed ptosis of the right eye (figure 1A). In addition, he was anaemic and had had a decreased breath sound on the left lung. White cell count was 78 000 cells/mm3, haemoglobin was 5.3 g/dL and platelet was 63 000 cells/mm3. Peripheral blood smear revealed immature circulating cells (figure 1B). Flow cytometry was positive for CD34, CD117 and CD13, compatible with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML). Whole body CAT scan demonstrated infiltrative orbital mass at right eyelid and the superior …
Trends in Extreme Rainfall Frequency in the Contiguous United States: Attribution to Climate Change and Climate Variability Modes

AbstractThis study presents a systematic analysis for identifying and attributing trends in the annual frequency of extreme rainfall events across the contiguous United States to climate change and climate variability modes. A Bayesian multilevel model is developed for 1,244 stations simultaneously to test the null hypothesis of no trend and verify two alternate hypotheses: trend can be attributed to changes in global surface temperature anomalies, or to a combination of well known cyclical climate modes with varying quasi-periodicities and global surface temperature anomalies. The Bayesian multilevel model provides the opportunity to pool information across stations and reduce the parameter estimation uncertainty, hence identifying the trends better. The choice of the best alternate hypothesis is made based onWatanabe-Akaike Information Criterion, a Bayesian pointwise predictive accuracy measure. Statistically significant time trends are observed in 742 of the 1,244 stations. Trends in 409 of these stati...
Peer Review of a Manuscript Submission: A How-To Guide for Effective and Efficient Commentary.

Scientific publication is fundamentally based on peer review—a process whereby reviewers are asked to evaluate the scientific merits of the submitted manuscript contents and provide feedback.1 It is hoped that through this peer review process, good science is enhanced and bad science is dismissed.2 Journal editors will discuss the merits of a manuscript critically informed by the reviews provided.3 An invitation to conduct peer review is a chance to serve as the arbiter of scientific quality and an opportunity to participate directly in the dissemination of new knowledge. Unfortunately, many reviewers never receive formal guidance or mentorship on how best to review an original research manuscript. With the growth of academic medicine and the proliferation of open-access journals, high-quality peer reviews have …
Isogeometric shape optimization on triangulations

Abstract The paper presents a Bezier triangle based isogeometric shape optimization method. Bezier triangles are used to represent both the geometry and physical fields. For a given physical domain defined by B-spline boundary, a coarse Bezier triangular parameterization is automatically generated. This coarse mesh is used to maintain parameterization quality and move mesh by solving a pseudo linear elasticity problem. Then a fine mesh for isogeometric analysis is generated from the coarse mesh through degree elevation and refinement. As the fine mesh retains the same geometric map as the coarse mesh, we can guarantee mesh validity with the coarse mesh only. This bi-level mesh allows us to achieve high numerical accuracy of isogeometric analysis and lower computational cost on mesh validity control and mesh movement. Due to the use of B-spline boundary, the optimized shape can be compactly represented with a relatively small number of optimization variables. Due to the use Bezier triangles, this shape optimization method is applicable to structures of complex topology and allows for local refinement for analysis. By representing the squared distance between two Bezier curves as a Bezier form, a distance check scheme is also introduced to prevent intersections of design boundaries and control the thickness of structural connections. Numerical examples on minimal compliance design and design of negative Poisson ratios are presented to demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed method.
Complex F,Cl Apatite Solid Solution Investigated Using Multinuclear Solid-State NMR Methods

A series of synthetic F,Cl apatites with low hydroxyl content was investigated using 31P, 19F, and 35Cl solid-state magic angle spinning (MAS) NMR spectroscopic methods. 31P single-pulse (SP) NMR spectra show that for each composition the phosphate 31P chemical shift depends on occupancy of the nearest anion site for each composition. Overall the average chemical shift deviates from linear across the F/Cl series. For intermediate compositions 19F SP NMR spectra reveal complex, broadened spectral profiles that are not correlated to composition. 19F{35Cl} TRAPDOR results indicate that the spectral profiles do not reflect occupancy of F and Cl in adjacent column anion sites. We propose that the complex 19F lineshapes are principally due to broad distributions of 19F–Ca distances arising from displacement of F along the anion channel. Approximate fluorine atomic positions are estimated based on 19F chemical shifts of alkaline earth fluoride salts, and the results are in good accord with those proposed for int...
Beyond $a = c$: gravitational couplings to matter and the stress tensor OPE

We derive constraints on the operator product expansion of two stress tensors in conformal field theories (CFTs), both generic and holographic. We point out that in large N CFTs with a large gap to single-trace higher spin operators, the stress tensor sector is not only universal, but isolated: that is, ⟨TTO⟩=0, where O≠T is a single-trace primary. We show that this follows from a suppression of ⟨TTO⟩ by powers of the higher spin gap, Δ_(gap), dual to the bulk mass scale of higher spin particles, and explain why ⟨TTO⟩ is a more sensitive probe of Δ_(gap) than a − c in 4d CFTs. This result implies that, on the level of cubic couplings, the existence of a consistent truncation to Einstein gravity is a direct consequence of the absence of higher spins. By proving similar behavior for other couplings ⟨TO_1O_2⟩ where O_i have spin s_i ≤ 2, we are led to propose that 1/Δ_(gap) is the CFT “dual” of an AdS derivative in a classical action. These results are derived by imposing unitarity on mixed systems of spinning four-point functions in the Regge limit. Using the same method, but without imposing a large gap, we derive new inequalities on these three-point couplings that are valid in any CFT. These are generalizations of the Hofman-Maldacena conformal collider bounds. By combining the collider bound on TT couplings to spin-2 operators with analyticity properties of CFT data, we argue that all three tensor structures of 〈TTT〉 in the free-field basis are nonzero in interacting CFTs.
Similar neural responses predict friendship.

Human social networks are overwhelmingly homophilous: individuals tend to befriend others who are similar to them in terms of a range of physical attributes (e.g., age, gender). Do similarities among friends reflect deeper similarities in how we perceive, interpret, and respond to the world? To test whether friendship, and more generally, social network proximity, is associated with increased similarity of real-time mental responding, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging to scan subjects’ brains during free viewing of naturalistic movies. Here we show evidence for neural homophily: neural responses when viewing audiovisual movies are exceptionally similar among friends, and that similarity decreases with increasing distance in a real-world social network. These results suggest that we are exceptionally similar to our friends in how we perceive and respond to the world around us, which has implications for interpersonal influence and attraction.
How struggling adult readers use contextual information when comprehending speech: Evidence from event-related potentials

Abstract We investigated how struggling adult readers make use of sentence context to facilitate word processing when comprehending spoken language, conditions under which print decoding is not a barrier to comprehension. Stimuli were strongly and weakly constraining sentences (as measured by cloze probability), which ended with the most expected word based on those constraints or an unexpected but plausible word. Community-dwelling adults with varying literacy skills listened to continuous speech while their EEG was recorded. Participants, regardless of literacy level, showed N400 effects yoked to the cloze probability of the targets, with larger N400 amplitudes for less expected than more expected words. However, literacy-related differences emerged in an earlier time window of 170–300 ms: higher literacy adults produced a reduced negativity for strongly predictable targets over anterior channels, similar to previously reported effects on the Phonological Mapping Negativity (PMN), whereas low-literacy adults did not. Collectively, these findings suggest that in auditory sentence processing literacy may not notably affect the incremental activation of semantic features, but that comprehenders with underdeveloped literacy skills may be less likely to engage predictive processing. Thus, basic mechanisms of comprehension may be recruited differently as a function of literacy development—even in spoken language.
Dimethyl fumarate attenuates reactive microglia and long-term memory deficits following systemic immune challenge

Systemic inflammation is associated with increased cognitive decline and risk for Alzheimer’s disease. Microglia (MG) activated during systemic inflammation can cause exaggerated neuroinflammatory responses and trigger progressive neurodegeneration. Dimethyl fumarate (DMF) is a FDA-approved therapy for multiple sclerosis. The immunomodulatory and anti-oxidant properties of DMF prompted us to investigate whether DMF has translational potential for the treatment of cognitive impairment associated with systemic inflammation. Primary murine MG cultures were stimulated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in the absence or presence of DMF. MG cultured from nuclear factor (erythroid-derived 2)-like 2-deficient (Nrf2 −/− ) mice were used to examine mechanisms of DMF actions. Conditioned media generated from LPS-primed MG were used to treat hippocampal neuron cultures. Adult C57BL/6 and Nrf2 −/− mice were subjected to peripheral LPS challenge. Acute neuroinflammation, long-term memory function, and reactive astrogliosis were examined to assess therapeutic effects of DMF. DMF suppressed inflammatory activation of MG induced by LPS. DMF suppressed NF-κB activity through Nrf2-depedent and Nrf2-independent mechanisms in MG. DMF treatment reduced MG-mediated toxicity towards neurons. DMF suppressed brain-derived inflammatory cytokines in mice following peripheral LPS challenge. The suppressive effect of DMF on neuroinflammation was blunted in Nrf2 −/− mice. Importantly, DMF treatment alleviated long-term memory deficits and sustained reactive astrogliosis induced by peripheral LPS challenge. DMF might mitigate neurotoxic astrocytes associated with neuroinflammation. DMF treatment might protect neurons against toxic microenvironments produced by reactive MG and astrocytes associated with systemic inflammation.
Bystro: rapid online variant annotation and natural-language filtering at whole-genome scale

Accurately selecting relevant alleles in large sequencing experiments remains technically challenging. Bystro ( https://bystro.io/ ) is the first online, cloud-based application that makes variant annotation and filtering accessible to all researchers for terabyte-sized whole-genome experiments containing thousands of samples. Its key innovation is a general-purpose, natural-language search engine that enables users to identify and export alleles and samples of interest in milliseconds. The search engine dramatically simplifies complex filtering tasks that previously required programming experience or specialty command-line programs. Critically, Bystro’s annotation and filtering capabilities are orders of magnitude faster than previous solutions, saving weeks of processing time for large experiments.
Selectivity Mechanism of the Nuclear Pore Complex Characterized by Single Cargo Tracking

Identifying and understanding the differences between protein folding in bulk solution and in the cell is a crucial challenge facing biology. Using Langevin dynamics, we have simulated intact ribosomes containing five different nascent chains arrested at different stages of their synthesis such that each nascent chain can fold and unfold at or near the exit tunnel vestibule. We find that the native state is destabilized close to the ribosome surface due to an increase in unfolded state entropy and a decrease in native state entropy; the former arises because the unfolded ensemble tends to behave as an expanded random coil near the ribosome and a semicompact globule in bulk solution. In addition, the unfolded ensemble of the nascent chain adopts a highly anisotropic shape near the ribosome surface and the cooperativity of the folding-unfolding transition is decreased due to the appearance of partially folded structures that are not populated in bulk solution. The results show, in light of these effects, that with increasing nascent chain length folding rates increase in a linear manner and unfolding rates decrease, with larger and topologically more complex folds being the most highly perturbed by the ribosome. Analysis of folding trajectories, initiated by temperature quench, reveals the transition state ensemble is driven toward compaction and greater native-like structure by interactions with the ribosome surface and exit vestibule. Furthermore, the diversity of folding pathways decreases and the probability increases of initiating folding via the N-terminus on the ribosome. We show that all of these findings are equally applicable to the situation in which protein folding occurs during continuous (non-arrested) translation provided that the time scales of folding and unfolding are much faster than the time scale of monomer addition to the growing nascent chain, which results in a quasi-equilibrium process. These substantial ribosome-induced perturbations to almost all aspects of protein folding indicate that folding scenarios that are distinct from those of bulk solution can occur on the ribosome.
The Histone Demethylase KDM5 Is Essential for Larval Growth in Drosophila

Regulated gene expression is necessary for developmental and homeostatic processes. The KDM5 family of transcriptional regulators are histone H3 lysine 4 demethylases that can function through both demethylase-dependent and -independent mechanisms. While loss and overexpression of KDM5 proteins are linked to intellectual disability and cancer, respectively, their normal developmental functions remain less characterized. Drosophila melanogaster provides an ideal system to investigate KDM5 function, as it encodes a single ortholog in contrast to the four paralogs found in mammalian cells. To examine the consequences of complete loss of KDM5, we generated a null allele of Drosophila kdm5, also known as little imaginal discs (lid), and show that it is essential for viability. Animals lacking KDM5 show a dramatically delayed larval development that coincides with decreased proliferation and increased cell death in wing imaginal discs. Interestingly, this developmental delay is independent of the well-characterized Jumonji C (JmjC) domain-encoded histone demethylase activity of KDM5, suggesting key functions for less characterized domains. Consistent with the phenotypes observed, transcriptome analyses of kdm5 null mutant wing imaginal discs revealed the dysregulation of genes involved in several cellular processes, including cell cycle progression and DNA repair. Together, our analyses reveal KDM5 as a key regulator of larval growth and offer an invaluable tool for defining the biological activities of KDM5 family proteins.
Personalized Language Model for Query Auto-Completion

Query auto-completion is a search engine feature whereby the system suggests completed queries as the user types. Recently, the use of a recurrent neural network language model was suggested as a method of generating query completions. We show how an adaptable language model can be used to generate personalized completions and how the model can use online updating to make predictions for users not seen during training. The personalized predictions are significantly better than a baseline that uses no user information.
Precision Electroweak Physics at the Z

The experimental study of the process e+e− → Z → ff began 10 years ago and ended (data taking) just over 1 year ago. The first electroweak measurements performed at the Z ere presented exactly 10 years ago at LP89 in this auditorium [1]. Those results which were based upon a sample of 233 events are compared with the present state of the art in Table 1. The LP99 measurements are approximately 100 times more precise than their LP89 counterparts! The reader should keep in mind that the LP89 measurements were among the best electroweak measurements available at that time.
Synthesis of a Reactive Oxygen Species-Responsive Doxorubicin Derivative

A heterobifunctional reactive oxygen species (ROS)-responsive linker for directed drug assembly onto and delivery from a quantum dot (QD) nanoparticle carrier was synthesized and coupled to doxorubicin using N-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)-N'-ethylcarbodiimide hydrochloride (EDC)/sulfo⁻NHS coupling. The doxorubicin conjugate was characterized using ¹H NMR and LC-MS and subsequently reacted under conditions of ROS formation (Cu2+/H₂O₂) resulting in successful and rapid thioacetal oxidative cleavage, which was monitored using ¹H NMR.
A Clustering Approach to Understanding Farmers’ Success Strategies

This paper examines the prioritization of management factors by farmers that lead to the success of their farm business. The research also examines the heterogeneity of producer prioritization of different success strategies. Using a hierarchical clustering approach, we found that each farmer group prioritizes either managing costs, managing output prices, managing people, managing production, or managing assets. The results indicate that the farmer groups are heterogeneous in their prioritization of five strategic management factors. These results provide useful insights for farmers, farm input providers, and farm service providers.
Mitochondrial dysfunction and infection generate immunity–Fecundity tradeoffs in Drosophila

Physiological responses to short-term environmental stressors, such as infection, can have long-term consequences for fitness, particularly if the responses are inappropriate or nutrient resources are limited. Genetic variation affecting energy acquisition, storage, and usage can limit cellular energy availability and may influence resource-allocation tradeoffs even when environmental nutrients are plentiful. Here, we utilized Drosophila mitochondrial-nuclear genotypes to test whether disrupted mitochondrial function interferes with nutrient-sensing pathways, and whether this disruption has consequences for tradeoffs between immunity and fecundity. We found that an energetically-compromised genotype was relatively resistant to rapamycin-a drug that targets nutrient-sensing pathways and mimics resource limitation. Dietary resource limitation decreased survival of energetically-compromised flies. Furthermore, survival of infection with a natural pathogen was decreased in this genotype, and females of this genotype experienced immunity-fecundity tradeoffs that were not evident in genotypic controls with normal energy metabolism. Together, these results suggest that this genotype may have little excess energetic capacity and fewer cellular nutrients, even when environmental nutrients are not limiting. Genetic variation in energy metabolism may therefore act to limit the resources available for allocation to life-history traits in ways that generate tradeoffs even when environmental resources are not limiting.
"Mallostery"-ligand-dependent protein misfolding enables physiological regulation by ERAD.

HMG-CoA reductase (HMGR) undergoes regulated degradation as part of feedback control of the sterol pathway. In yeast, the stability of the HMGR isozyme Hmg2 is controlled by the 20-carbon isoprenoid geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate (GGPP). Increasing GGPP levels cause more efficient degradation by the HMG-CoA reductase degradation (HRD) pathway, allowing for feedback regulation of HMGR. The HRD pathway is critical for the endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-associated degradation (ERAD) of misfolded ER proteins. Here, we have explored GGPP's role in HRD-dependent Hmg2 degradation. We found that GGPP potently regulates Hmg2 levels in vivo and causes reversible Hmg2 misfolding at nanomolar concentrations in vitro. These GGPP-mediated effects were absent in several stabilized or nonregulated Hmg2 mutants. Consistent with its high potency, GGPP's effects were highly specific such that other structurally related molecules were ineffective in altering Hmg2 structure. For instance, two closely related GGPP analogues, 2F-GGPP and GGSPP, were completely inactive at all concentrations tested. Furthermore, GGSPP antagonized GGPP's effects in vivo and in vitro. Chemical chaperones reversed GGPP's effects on Hmg2 structure and degradation, suggesting that GGPP causes selective Hmg2 misfolding. These results indicate that GGPP functions in a manner similar to an allosteric ligand, causing Hmg2 misfolding through interaction with a reversible, specific binding site. Consistent with this, the Hmg2 protein formed multimers, typical of allosteric proteins. We propose that this “allosteric misfolding,” or mallostery, observed here for Hmg2 may be a widely used tactic of biological regulation with potential for development of therapeutic small molecules that induce selective misfolding.
Gender differences in asset information acquisition

Abstract Using an experiment, we test whether men acquire information about investments differently than women. When information is costly, we find that men purchase more information about investment choices than females and more information increases the likelihood of owning the risky asset. The information that subjects purchase suggests they are searching for reference points to simplify their decisions and reduce ambiguity. As a robustness check, we also examine behavior in a modified Holt and Laury risk preference task and find that men and women acquire information differently in that setting as well.
A test of the cognitive model of negative symptoms: Associations between defeatist performance beliefs, self-efficacy beliefs, and negative symptoms in a non-clinical sample

Abstract The cognitive model of negative symptoms posits that defeatist performance beliefs—overgeneralized negative beliefs about one's ability to successfully perform tasks—contribute to the development and maintenance of negative symptoms. However, a conceptually similar construct, reduced generalized self-efficacy—diminished confidence in one's ability to effectively complete or respond to new or challenging tasks and situations—has also been linked to negative symptoms. To identify which beliefs might be most important to target to reduce negative symptoms, we examined: 1) the association between defeatist performance and self-efficacy beliefs and 2) which beliefs are more strongly associated with negative symptoms in a non-clinical sample of young adults (N = 941). Analyses revealed a significant, medium-sized correlation between defeatist performance and self-efficacy beliefs. Both beliefs types were significantly associated with negative symptoms, but defeatist performance beliefs were more strongly related to negative symptoms than self-efficacy beliefs. Defeatist performance and self-efficacy beliefs appear to be distinct yet overlapping constructs. Findings support the cognitive model and indicate that defeatist performance beliefs may have a greater role in the manifestation of negative symptoms than self-efficacy beliefs. Thus, defeatist performance beliefs may be a uniquely promising treatment target for reducing or preventing negative symptoms.
Much room for optimism on measuring diet, preventing cancer and cardiovascular disease, and correcting for measurement error – discussion of the paper by R. L. Prentice and Y. Huang

I commend Drs. Prentice and Huang (PH) for their continued and longstanding commitment to the generation of knowledge concerning the nutritional causes of chronic diseases, and in their dedication ...
Optical Companding

We introduce a new nonlinear analog optical computing concept that compresses the signal's dynamic range and realizes non-uniform quantization that reshapes and improves the signal-to-noise ratio in the digital domain.
Predicting the integer decomposition property via machine learning

In this paper we investigate the ability of a neural network to approximate algebraic properties associated to lattice simplices. In particular we attempt to predict the distribution of Hilbert basis elements in the fundamental parallelepiped, from which we detect the integer decomposition property (IDP). We give a gentle introduction to neural networks and discuss the results of this prediction method when scanning very large test sets for examples of IDP simplices.
Long-term stroke risk of single-fraction photon-based stereotactic radiosurgery for meningioma.

2021Background: A recent randomized study of fractionated radiation therapy (RT) examining 44 subtotally resected/recurrent benign meningioma patients revealed that at median follow-up of 17.1 year...
Petrophysical property estimation from seismic data using recurrent neural networks

Reservoir characterization involves the estimation petrophysical properties from well-log data and seismic data. Estimating such properties is a challenging task due to the non-linearity and heterogeneity of the subsurface. Various attempts have been made to estimate petrophysical properties using machine learning techniques such as feed-forward neural networks and support vector regression (SVR). Recent advances in machine learning have shown promising results for recurrent neural networks (RNN) in modeling complex sequential data such as videos and speech signals. In this work, we propose an algorithm for property estimation from seismic data using recurrent neural networks. An applications of the proposed workflow to estimate density and p-wave impedance using seismic data shows promising results compared to feed-forward neural networks.
Real-Time Model Predictive Control for Energy Management in Autonomous Underwater Vehicle

Improving endurance is crucial for extending the spatial and temporal operation range of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs). Considering the hardware constraints and the performance requirements, an intelligent energy management system is required to extend the operation range of AUVs. This paper presents a novel model predictive control (MPC) framework for energy-optimal point-to-point motion control of an AUV. In this scheme, the energy management problem of an AUV is reformulated as a surge motion optimization problem in two stages. First, a system-level energy minimization problem is solved by managing the trade-off between the energies required for overcoming the positive buoyancy and surge drag force in static optimization. Next, an MPC with a special cost function formulation is proposed to deal with transients and system dynamics. A switching logic for handling the transition between the static and dynamic stages is incorporated to reduce the computational efforts. Simulation results show that the proposed method is able to achieve near-optimal energy consumption with considerable lower computational complexity.
Exorcising Presumptions? Judges and Attorneys Contemplate “Felon-Juror Inclusion” in Maine

This exploratory study is the first to examine how courtroom personnel conceive of and navigate Maine’s unique policy of felon-juror inclusion. Findings derived from interviews with trial judges an...
Wristwash: towards automatic handwashing assessment using a wrist-worn device

Washing hands is one of the easiest yet most effective ways to prevent spreading illnesses and diseases. However, not adhering to thorough handwashing routines is a substantial problem worldwide. For example, in hospital operations lack of hygiene leads to healthcare associated infections. We present WristWash, a wrist-worn sensing platform that integrates an inertial measurement unit and a Hidden Markov Model-based analysis method that enables automated assessments of handwashing routines according to recommendations provided by the World Health Organization (WHO). We evaluated Wrist-Wash in a case study with 12 participants. WristWash is able to successfully recognize the 13 steps of the WHO handwashing procedure with an average accuracy of 92% with user-dependent models, and with 85% for user-independent modeling. We further explored the system's robustness by conducting another case study with six participants, this time in an unconstrained environment, to test variations in the hand-washing routine and to show the potential for real-world deployments.
Passive Radiative “Thermostat” Enabled by Phase-Change Photonic Nanostructures

A thermostat senses the temperature of a physical system and switches heating or cooling devices on or off, regulating the flow of heat to maintain the system’s temperature near a desired set point. Taking advantage of recent advances in radiative heat transfer technologies, here we propose a passive radiative “thermostat” based on phase-change photonic nanostructures for thermal regulation at room temperature. By self-adjusting their visible to mid-IR absorptivity and emissivity responses depending on the ambient temperature, the proposed devices use the sky to passively cool or heat during day-time using the phase-change transition temperature as the set point, while at night-time temperature is maintained at or below ambient. We simulate the performance of a passive nanophotonic thermostat design based on vanadium dioxide thin films, showing daytime passive cooling (heating) with respect to ambient in hot (cold) days, maintaining an equilibrium temperature approximately locked within the phase transiti...