cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The dynamical origin of early-type dwarfs in galaxy clusters: a theoretical investigation

Observations of early-type dwarf galaxies in clusters often show that cluster dwarf members have significantly higher velocities and less symmetric distributions than cluster giant ellipticals, suggesting that these dwarfs are recently accreted galaxies, possibly from an infalling group. We use a series of $N$-body simulations, exploring a parameter space of groups falling into clusters, to study the observed velocity distributions of the infall components along various lines of sight. We show that, as viewed along a line of sight parallel to the group's infall direction, there is a significant peculiar velocity boost during the pericentric passage of the group, and an increase in velocity dispersion that persists for many Gyr after the merger. The remnants of the infalling group, however, do not form a spatially distinct system -- consistent with recent observations of dwarf galaxies in the Virgo and Fornax clusters. This velocity signature is completely absent when viewed along a direction perpendicular to the merger. Additionally, the phase-space distribution of radial velocity along the infall direction versus cluster-centric radius reveals the separate dynamical evolution of the group's central core and outer halo, including the presence of infalling remnants outside the escape velocity envelope of the system. The distinct signature in velocity space of an infalling group's galaxies can therefore prove important in understanding the dynamical history of clusters and their dwarfs. Our results suggest that dwarf galaxies, being insensitive to dynamical friction, are excellent probes of their host clusters' dynamical histories.
Predictors of Racial Prejudice in White American Counseling Students

This study extends the research on racial prejudice by combining previously identified predictors into 1 study to determine their relative importance in contributing to racial prejudice. Results revealed that White racial identity significantly predicted racial prejudice when demographic variables were controlled. Implications of reducing racial prejudice of White American counseling students are discussed. Este estudio extiende la investigacion sobre el prejuicio racial combinando pronosticadores previamente identificados en 1 estudio para determinar su importancia relativa a contribuir al prejuicio racial. Los resultados revelaron que la identidad racial Blanca apreciablemente predijo el prejuicio racial cuando los variables demograficas son controladas. Las implicaciones para reducir el prejuicio racial de estudiantes Americano Blanco que aconsejan es discutido.
Baseline comparison of three health utility measures and the feeling thermometer among participants in the Action to Control Cardiovascular Risk in Diabetes trial.

Background Health utility (HU) measures are used as overall measures of quality of life and to determine quality adjusted life years (QALYs) in economic analyses. We compared baseline values of three HUs including Short Form 6 Dimensions (SF-6D), and Health Utilities Index, Mark II and Mark III (HUI2 and HUI3) and the feeling thermometer (FT) among type 2 diabetes participants in the Action to Control Cardiovascular Risk in Diabetes (ACCORD) trial. We assessed relationships between HU and FT values and patient demographics and clinical variables.
ECTOPIC AND UNDESCENDED TESTES: 2 VARIANTS OF A SINGLE CONGENITAL ANOMALY?

Purpose: We compared pathological findings in ectopic and undescended testis to determine whether the pathological evidence supports the hypothesis that the 2 conditions are variants of the same congenital anomaly. Materials and Methods: We identified 24 boys with ectopic testis not in the superfical inguinal pouch of Denis Browne. Seven boys were excluded from study due to unavailable clinical records for 3, contralateral undescended testis in 2 and inadequate biopsy specimens in 2. Pathological findings of ectopic testis in the remaining 17 patients were compared with those of age matched patients with unilateral undescended testis. Total germ cell count, testicular volume, patency of the processus vaginalis and epididymal abnormalities were compared. Data were analyzed using the Wilcoxon matched pairs signed rank and Fisher’s exact tests. Results: No difference was noted in total germ cell count (p = 0.33), testicular volume (p = 0.1475), processus vaginalis patency (p = 0.0854) or epididymal abnormalities (p = 1.00) in the 2 groups. Of the 24 boys (8%) with ectopic testis 2 also had a contralateral undescended testis. Conclusions: Similar pathological findings in ectopic and undescended testes as well as the association of ectopic testis with a contralateral undescended testis suggest that ectopic and undescended testes are variants of the same congenital anomaly. Thus, boys with ectopic testis may have an increased incidence of subfertility and testicular malignancy. This spectrum of abnormal testicular position, and its range of pathological conditions and complications may appropriately be called the undescended testis sequence.
Evaluation of traditional and novel radiographic vertebral ratios in Great Danes with versus without cervical spondylomyelopathy.

Great Danes are predisposed to osseous-associated cervical spondylomyelopathy (Wobbler syndrome). The first aim of this prospective study was to compare values measured using previously published intravertebral and intervertebral ratio methods and a novel ventrodorsal ratio method in radiographs of clinically normal and affected Great Danes. The second aim was to determine whether these ratios could be used as predictors of sites of spinal cord compression based on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Thirty dogs (15 normal, 15 affected) were prospectively enrolled. Lateral and ventrodorsal radiographs were obtained and six measurements were recordedfromC3-T1.Foreachvertebrallocation,intravertebralratiosandintervertebralratioswerecalculated from lateral views, and the ratio of the distance between the articular process joints vs. vertebral body width (novel ventrodorsal ratio) was calculated from ventrodorsal views. Values for these three ratios were compared, by vertebral location and dog group. Intravertebral and intervertebral ratios did not differ between dog groups. The ventrodorsal ratio was significantly smaller in affected Great Danes at C5‐6 (P = 0.005) and C6‐7 (P<0.001).TheventrodorsalratiowassignificantlyassociatedwithMRIpresenceofspinalcordcompression. For each 0.1 unit increase in this ratio value, there was a 65% decrease in the odds of spinal cord compression being present at that site, independent of vertebral location (P = 0.002). Findings from this study supported use of the novel ventrodorsal ratio as an initial radiographic screening method for Great Danes with suspected cervical spondylomyelopathy. C � 2014 American College of Veterinary Radiology.
NONLINEAR VISCOELASTIC SOLIDS

1. Introduction. The classical theories of the mechanics of deformable materials are, for the most part, linear theories and ones in which the stress depends only on the kinematic situation existing at the time of measurement of the stress. For many materials, such as viscoelastic solids and liquids, these assumptions are not valid. Since the paper by Oldroyd [13], considerable advances have been made in formulating the continuum mechanics of such materials. In the present paper an account of this work will be given, particularly in relation to viscoelastic solids. Provided that any characteristic lengths which may exist iu the solid can be ignored, we may take as our starting point in the development of appropriate constitutive equations the assumption that the stress tensor: depends not only on the displacement gradients existing in the material considered at the instant at which the stress is measured, but also on those which existed in it at all previous times, i.e., the stress is a functional of the deformation gradient history up to the instant of measurement. If some reference state is adequately specified, the assumption that stress depends on the history of the deformation gradients and the assumption that stress depends on the history of the velocity or acceleration. gradients are quite equivalent, since either of the latter determine the deformation gradient history. The form of the functional dependence of the stress on the deformation gradient history cannot be arbitrarily chosen. It is subject to two major restrictions. The first of these, which is discussed in 2, arises from the fact that a simultaneous time-dependent rotation of the deformed body and reference system leaves the stress components unaltered. The second, which is discussed in 3 and 5, arises from any symmetry which the material may possess in its reference state. The important particular case when the material is isotropic in its reference state is discussed in 5. In certain circumstances, the history of the deformation gradients may be adequately described by a knowledge of the values of the deformation gradients and of the gradients of velocity, acceleration, second acceleration., etc., at the instant of measurement of the stress. The development of canonical forms for the constitutive equations in this case is discussed generally in 4 and for the particular circumstance when the material is isotropic in its reference state in 5. The constitutive equations which arise from these general studies are inevitably complicated. In 6 attention is drawn to the great simplifications whichmay arise
Scintillating Metal Organic Frameworks: A New Class of Radiation Detection Materials

The detection and identification of subatomic particles is an important scientific problem with implications for medical devices, radiography, biochemical analysis, particle physics, and astrophysics. In addition, the development of efficient detectors of neutrons generated by fissile material is a pressing need for nuclear nonproliferation and counterterrorism efforts. A critical objective in the field of radiation detection is to develop the physical insight necessary to rationally design new scintillation materials for specific applications. However, none of the material types currently used in has sufficient synthetic versatility to exert systematic control over the factors controlling the light output and its dynamics. Here we describe a spectroscopic investigation of two stilbene-based metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) we synthesized, demonstrating that they emit light in response to ionizing radiation, creating the first completely new class of scintillation materials since the advent of plastic scintillators in 1950. This highly novel and unexpected property of MOFs opens a new route to rational design of radiation detection materials, since the spectroscopy shows that both the luminescence spectrum and its timing can be varied by altering the local environment of the chromophore within the MOF. Therefore, the inherent synthetic flexibility of MOFs, which enables both the chromophore structure and its local environment to be systematically varied, suggests that this class of materials can serve as a controlled “nanolaboratory” for probing a broad range of photophysical and radiation detection phenomena. In this presentation we report on the time-dependent fluorescence and radioluminescence of these MOFs and related structures. Multiple decay characteristics have been observed for some materials under study, including fast (ns) exponential and slow (microsecond) non-exponential components. We interpret the results in terms of the electronic states, crystal structures, intermolecular interactions, and transport effects mediating the luminescence. The potential for particle discrimination schemes and large scale production of MOFs and will be discussed.
Cardiac overexpression of catalase rescues cardiac contractile dysfunction induced by insulin resistance: role of oxidative stress, protein carbonyl formation and insulin sensitivity

Aims/hypothesis: Insulin resistance leads to oxidative stress and cardiac dysfunction. This study examined the impact of catalase on insulin-resistance- induced cardiac dysfunction, oxidative damage and insulin sensitivity. Methods: Insulin resistance was initiated in FVB and catalase-transgenic mice by 12 weeks of sucrose feeding. Contractile and intracellular Ca 2+ properties were evaluated in cardiomyocytes including peak shortening (PS), time-to-PS (TPS), time-to-90% relengthening (TR90), half-width duration (HWD), maximal velocity of shortening/relengthening (±dL/dt), fura-fluorescence in- tensity change (ΔFFI) and intracellular Ca 2+ clearance rate (τ). Reactive oxygen species (ROS) and protein damage were evaluated with dichlorodihydrofluorescein and protein carbonyl formation. Results: Sucrose-fed mice displayed hyperinsulinaemia, impaired glucose tolerance and normal body weight. Myocytes from FVB sucrose-fed mice exhibited depressed PS and ±dL/dt, prolonged TR90 and τ, and reduced ΔFFI associated with normal TPS and HWD compared with those from starch-fed control mice. ROS and protein carbonyl formation were elevated in FVB sucrose-fed mice. Insulin sensitivity was reduced, evi- denced by impaired insulin-stimulated 2-deoxy-D-( 3 H) glucose uptake. Western blot analysis indicated that sucrose feeding: (1) inhibited insulin-stimulated phosphor- ylation of insulin receptor and Akt; (2) enhanced protein- tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B) expression; and (3) suppressed endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) and Na + -Ca 2+ exchanger expression without affecting peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ), sarco(endo)plasmic reticulum Ca 2+ -ATPase isozyme 2a
Nonlinear Optical Effects: An Optical Power Limiter

Parametric subharmonic oscillators and amplifiers at optical frequencies have recently been proposed, using optical maser pump sources together with the nonlinear optical properties of certain crystals. The simplest such structure would comprise a Fabry-Perot resonator filled with nonlinear crystal, the ends being transparent at the fundamental or pump frequency ω and reflecting at the subharmonic frequency ω/2. This paper demonstrates that such a structure will also function as an ideal optical power limiter at the fundamental. Power transmission through the structure at ω will limit sharply and flatly at the threshold level at which subharmonic oscillations commence; a large power-dependent reflection will also occur on the input end above threshold. The use of such a limiter for eliminating spiking in optical masers, and for other purposes, is suggested.
Shifting gears: Enabling change in corporate aggressiveness

This paper interprets the corporate strategies of multi-business firms as patterns in their aggregate deployment of resources to functional uses across businesses. By integrating business and corporate levels in the study of strategy-making, such a perspective facilitates analyzing aggressiveness in corporate posture as a concept distinct from, but complementary to, competitive strategy and diversification. Changes in aggressiveness, we argue, result from the interplay of two sets of forces: (1) inhibitors that create inertia; and (2) inductors that stimulate redeployments. Specific hypotheses are tested using data drawm from a random sample of 352 firms in ten economic sectors between 1977 and 1984. Results support the view that prior performance and sector volatility have a curvilinear impact on the propensity of firms to change their corporate aggressiveness. Change in corporate posture is significantly inhibited by size and prior resource deployments. However, the inductive forces of prior performance and volatility act to stimulate change.
What Is Conservation Science

In 1985, Michael Soule asked, “What is conservation biology?” We revisit this question more than 25 years later and offer a revised set of core principles in light of the changed global context for conservation. Most notably, scientists now widely acknowledge that we live in a world dominated by humans, and therefore, the scientific underpinnings of conservation must include a consideration of the role of humans. Today's conservation science incorporates conservation biology into a broader interdisciplinary field that explicitly recognizes the tight coupling of social and natural systems. Emerging priorities include pursuing conservation within working landscapes, rebuilding public support, working with the corporate sector, and paying better attention to human rights and equity. We argue that in conservation, strategies must be promoted that simultaneously maximize the preservation of biodiversity and the improvement of human well-being.
Analysis of DNA methylation acquisition at the imprinted Dlk1 locus reveals asymmetry at CpG dyads

Background Differential distribution of DNA methylation on the parental alleles of imprinted genes distinguishes the alleles from each other and dictates their parent of origin-specific expression patterns. While differential DNA methylation at primary imprinting control regions is inherited via the gametes, additional allele-specific DNA methylation is acquired at secondary sites during embryonic development and plays a role in the maintenance of genomic imprinting. The precise mechanisms by which this somatic DNA methylation is established at secondary sites are not well defined and may vary as methylation acquisition at these sites occurs at different times for genes in different imprinting clusters.
A Unified Theory of Conjugate Flows

Various examples of flow systems are known in which the study of conjugate flows (i.e. flows uniform in the direction of streaming which separately satisfy the hydrodynamical equations) is crucial to the understanding of observed wave phenomena. Open-channel flows are the best-known example, with which remarkable qualitative similarities have been revealed in studies of other systems: for instance, it has appeared in general that any pair of conjugate flows is transcritical (i.e. if one flow is supercritical according to a generalized definition, then the other is subcritical). So far the common ground among theoretical treatments has been defined only by intuitive analogies, and the aim of this paper is to give unity to the whole subject by identifying the elements that are intrinsically responsible for universal properties. The problem is accordingly considered in the form of an abstract (nonlinear) operator equation, whose solution representing a conjugate flow is a vector in a linear space of finite or infinite dimensions: all known examples are reducible to this form and other applications may be anticipated. The generalized treatment on these lines must have recourse to new methods, however, of a more powerful kind than would suffice for the ad hoc treatment of particular examples. A resume of the required mathematical material is presented in §2. The main substance of the paper is in § 3. In § 3.1 the supercritical and subcritical classification of flows is explained generally, being shown to depend on the eigenvalues of the Frechet derivative of the nonlinear operator presented by the hydrodynamical problem. In §3.3 fixed-point principles are used to define general conditions under which the existence of conjugate flows in a proposed category is guaranteed, and also in this subsection a special argument is given to exemplify the transcritical property of conjugate flows. Several aspects are covered in §3.4 by means of index theory, in particular the problem of classifying a multiplicity of conjugate flows possible in a given system and the question of what conditions ensure uniqueness. In §3.5 variational methods are used to account for the differences in flow force that appear to be an essential attribute of frictionless conjugate flows (flow force is a scalar property which is generally stationary to small variations about a solution of the hydrodynamical equations). The last three sections of the paper present treatments of specific examples illustrating the unified viewpoint given by the theory. Proofs of two topological theorems used in §3.4 are presented in appendix 1, and in appendix 2 the reasons for the variational significance of flow force are examined.
Nuclear protein kinase CLK1 uses a non-traditional docking mechanism to select physiological substrates

Phosphorylation-dependent cell communication requires enzymes that specifically recognize key proteins in a sea of similar, competing substrates. The protein kinases achieve this goal by utilizing docking grooves in the kinase domain or heterologous protein adaptors to reduce 'off pathway' targeting. We now provide evidence that the nuclear protein kinase CLK1 (cell division cycle2-like kinase 1) important for splicing regulation departs from these classic paradigms by using a novel self-association mechanism. The disordered N-terminus of CLK1 induces oligomerization, a necessary event for targeting its physiological substrates the SR protein (splicing factor containing a C-terminal RS domain) family of splicing factors. Increasing the CLK1 concentration enhances phosphorylation of the splicing regulator SRSF1 (SR protein splicing factor 1) compared with the general substrate myelin basic protein (MBP). In contrast, removal of the N-terminus or dilution of CLK1 induces monomer formation and reverses this specificity. CLK1 self-association also occurs in the nucleus, is induced by the N-terminus and is important for localization of the kinase in sub-nuclear compartments known as speckles. These findings present a new picture of substrate recognition for a protein kinase in which an intrinsically disordered domain is used to capture physiological targets with similar disordered domains in a large oligomeric complex while discriminating against non-physiological targets.
Mossy fiber-granule cell synapses in the normal and epileptic rat dentate gyrus studied with minimal laser photostimulation.

Dentate granule cells become synaptically interconnected in the hippocampus of persons with temporal lobe epilepsy, forming a recurrent mossy fiber pathway. This pathway may contribute to the devel...
Practicing What We Teach

Science Teacher Educators as K-12 Teachers: Practicing What We Teach presents the professional purposes and benefits realized when science teacher educators arrange opportunities to teach children and adolescents in public schools and informal settings. This monograph for the Association for Science Teacher Education (ASTE) offers practical and theoretical insights for science teacher education articulated by ASTE scholars who have acted on their conviction that K-12 science teaching practice is integral to their work as science teacher educators. Each of the 16 narratives is placed in one of four groups defined by level of immersion in the teaching role. These groupings range from full-time “teaching with no ties to university” to part-time “teaching while university professor,” thus providing different models for integrating K-12 teaching with the professoriate. Each chapter presents science teacher educators as professionals engaged in reflective analysis of experiences in teaching children or adolescents science. This is not a collection of chapters that depict teacher educators as role models, showing the classroom teacher “how it’s done” or even that they’ve “still got it.” Rather, it is the willingness to learn anew about teaching youth that generates these honest accounts of praxis enhancing credibility and relevance for the teacher educators authoring these chapters. This introduction surveys the strengths and distinguishing aspects of each chapter.
Predictive model for surgical site infection risk after surgery for high-energy lower-extremity fractures: Development of the risk of infection in orthopedic trauma surgery score

Background Current infection risk scores are not designed to predict the likelihood of surgical site infection after orthopedic fracture surgery. We hypothesized that the National Nosocomial Infections Surveillance (NNIS) System and the Study on the Efficacy of Nosocomial Infection Control (SENIC) scores are not predictive of infection after orthopedic fracture surgery and that risk factors for infection can be identified and a new score created (Emerg Infect Dis. 2003;9:196-203). Methods We conducted a secondary analysis of data from a trial involving internal fixation of 235 tibial plateau, pilon, and calcaneus fractures treated between 2007 and 2010 at a Level I trauma center. The predictive value of the NNIS System and SENIC scores was evaluated based on areas under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Bivariate and multiple logistic regression analyses were used to build an improved prediction model, creating the Risk of Infection in Orthopedic Trauma Surgery (RIOTS) score. The predictive value of the RIOTS score was evaluated via the ROC curve. Results NNIS System and SENIC scores were not predictive of surgical site infection after orthopedic fracture surgery. In our final regression model, the relative odds of infection among patients with AO [Arbeitsgemeinschaft fur Osteosynthesefragen] type C3 or Sanders type 4 fractures compared with fractures of lower classification was 5.40. American Society of Anesthesiologists class 3 or higher and body mass index less than 30 were also predictive of infection, with odds ratios of 2.87 and 3.49, respectively. The area under the ROC curve for the RIOTS score was 0.75, significantly higher than the areas for the NNIS System and SENIC scores. Conclusion The NNIS System and SENIC scores were not useful in predicting the risk of infection after fixation of fractures. We propose a new score that incorporates fracture classification, American Society of Anesthesiologists classification, and body mass index as predictors of infection. Level of evidence Prognostic study, level II.
The communication of the emperor's virtues

The Roman emperor served a number of functions within the Roman state. The emperor's public image reflected this diversity. Triumphal processions and imposing state monuments such as Trajan's Column or the Arch of Septimius Severus celebrated the military exploits and martial glory of the emperor. Distributions of grain and coin, public buildings, and spectacle entertainments in the city of Rome all advertised the emperor's patronage of the urban plebs, while imperial rescripts posted in every corner of the Empire stood as so many witnesses to the emperor's conscientious administration of law and justice. Imperial mediation between man and god was commemorated by a proliferation of sacrificial images that emphasized the emperor's central role in the act of sacrifice. Portrait groups of the imperial family were blunt assertions of dynasty and figured the emperor as the primary guarantor of Roma aeterna. Public sacrifices to deified emperors and the imagery of imperial apotheosis surrounded the emperor with an aura of divinity. An extraordinary array of rituals, images, and texts, then, gave visual and symbolic expression to the emperor's numerous functions and publicized the manifold benefits of imperial rule.
The Effects of Anterior Cruciate Ligament Deficiency on the Meniscus and Articular Cartilage A Novel Dynamic In Vitro Pilot Study

Background:Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury increases the risk of meniscus and articular cartilage damage, but the causes are not well understood. Previous in vitro studies were static, requ...
The participation of chemokines in atherosclerosis.

Abstract Extract: Atherosclerosis is a disease of the blood vessels that is characterized by narrowing of the lumen due to plaque buildup within the vessel wall that occurs over decades of life. The atherosclerotic plaque was once thought to be composed mainly of fat and cholesterol, but it is now widely recognized that inflammatory cells of the immune system, especially a phagocytic cell (a cell which will engulf particulate matter as a prelude to its digestion) called the macrophage, plays a pivotal role in its pathogenesis.
Application of Wide Area Phasor Measurement Technology in Smart Grid

In recent years, UHV transmission technology has been entered into a new era of rapid development, especially, the 1 000 kV Jindongnan-Nanyang-Jingmen UHVAC Demonstration Project has officially entered commercial operation, and UHV synchronized network connecting North, East and Central China will be put into operation in 2012. Furthermore, the smart grid concept is being widely discussed as the route map of the next generation of electric power grids. But up to now, there are many difficulties to achieve these objectives. Since 2003, the wide area phasor measurement technology has been developed prosperously in China. The technology proposes some solutions for dynamic security and stability assessment, and it is one of the fundamental technologies in the future smart grid. In this paper, some progresses and technologies in the field are reviewed, and the author's considerations for future development of wide area phasor measurement system are presented.
Verification Of Global Cerebral Ischaemia Using Scintigraphy

AbstractThe induction of global cerebral ischaemia in laboratory animals is difficult to accomplish and has been even more difficult to verify. Most reported verification methods suffer from lack of sensitivity or from being traumatic and highly invasive. We describe a non-traumatic global cerebral ischaemia verification technique which is quantitative, simple, and highly sensitive. Radioactive technetium-99m pertechnetate is injected intravenously during the ischaemic phase of an experiment and the appearance of radioactivity within the animal’s head is quantitated using a gamma camera and nuclear medicine computer. Radioactivity levels below the visual perception threshold are readily measured, thus providing a high degree of confidence in assessing the partial or total nature of cerebral ischaemia.
Correcting regional seismic discriminants for path effects in western China

Abstract The effect of path on regional seismic wave propagation can be significant. In an effort to improve discriminant performance, we explore the effect of path upon P g / L g ratios. Our primary objective is to find path corrections that reduce scatter within earthquake and explosion ratio populations, while at the same time increasing the separation between the two populations. We emphasize the 1.5- to 3-Hz and 2- to 4-Hz bands, as P g and L g in these bands can often be observed at smaller magnitudes and greater distances than higher-frequency bands, which have previously been shown to be reliable discriminants. For data, we use 271 earthquakes from northwest China, 25 nuclear explosions from the Kazakh test site (KTS), and one nuclear explosion from the Lop Nor test site recorded at station WMQ. We also use 185 earthquakes from the same region and seven nuclear explosion from the Lop Nor test site recorded at station AAK. Event-station distances range from 200 to 1400 km, earthquake magnitudes range between m b 2.5 and 6.2, and explosion magnitudes range between m b 4.5 and 6.5. In addition to ratio-distance trends, we examine P g / L g ratio-parameter trends related to topography, basin thickness, and crustal thickness. The parameters we consider are mean, roughness, gradient mean, and gradient roughness of the topography, basin thickness, and crustal thickness along each event-station path. We also consider the same parameters after weighting by path length. Through linear regressions, we found path corrections that reduce scatter within event populations, and we also found path corrections that increase the separation between earthquakes and KTS explosions recorded at WMQ. We obtained the best improvement in discrimination performance at WMQ by removing the trends of topography roughness, mean topography, and the gradient of basin thickness after weighting the parameters by path length. For AAK, we found that removing the trends of mean topography and the basement roughness improved discrimination performance over the uncorrected case. However, unlike WMQ, weighting these parameters by path length degraded discriminant performance. Because we see no predictable or repeatable trends for “adjacent” central Asian stations and overlapping regions of interest, we recommend an even more empirical approach to correcting for the effect of path. Where earthquakes are abundant, such as the Tian Shan, contouring a grid of ratio residuals (for each band of interest) may be a simpler method of finding appropriate path corrections.
Microbes and the Fossil Record: Selected Topics in Paleomicrobiology

The study of microbial fossils involves a broad array of disciplines and covers a vast diversity of topics, of which we review a select few, summarizing the state of the art. Microbes are found as body fossils preserved in different modes and have also produced recognizable structures in the rock record (microbialites, microborings). Study of the microbial fossil record and controversies arising from it have provided the impetus for the assembly and refining of powerful sets of criteria for recognition of bona fide microbial fossils. Different types of fossil evidence concur in demonstrating that microbial life was present in the Archean, close to 3.5 billion years ago. Early eukaryotes also fall within the microbial realm and criteria developed for their recognition date the oldest unequivocal evidence close to 2.0 billion years ago (Paleoproterozoic), but Archean microfossils >3 billion years old are strong contenders for earliest eukaryotes. In another dimension of their contribution to the fossil record, microbes play ubiquitous roles in fossil preservation, from facilitating authigenic mineralization to replicating soft tissue with extracellular polymeric substances, forming biofilms that inhibit decay of biological material, or stabilizing sediment interfaces. Finally, studies of the microbial fossil record are relevant to profound, perennial questions that have puzzled humanity and science—they provide the only direct window onto the beginnings and early evolution of life; and the methods and criteria developed for recognizing ancient, inconspicuous traces of life have yielded an approach directly applicable to the search for traces of life on other worlds.
The pattern and degree of capsular fibrous sheaths surrounding cochlear electrode arrays.

Abstract An inflammatory tissue reaction around the electrode array of a cochlear implant (CI) is common, in particular at the electrode insertion region (cochleostomy) where mechanical trauma often occurs. However, the factors determining the amount and causes of fibrous reaction surrounding the stimulating electrode, especially medially near the perimodiolar location, are unclear. Temporal bone (TB) specimens from patients who had undergone cochlear implantation during life with either Advanced Bionics (AB) Clarion ™ or HiRes90K™ (Sylmar, CA, USA) devices that have a half-band and a pre-curved electrode, or Cochlear ™ Nucleus (Sydney, Australia) device that have a full-band and a straight electrode were evaluated. The thickness of the fibrous tissue surrounding the electrode array of both types of CI devices at both the lower (LB) and upper (UB) basal turns of the cochlea was quantified at three locations: the medial, inferior, and superior aspects of the sheath. Fracture of the osseous spiral lamina and/or marked displacement of the basilar membrane were interpreted as evidence of intracochlear trauma. In addition, post-operative word recognition scores, duration of implantation, and post-operative programming data were evaluated. Seven TBs from six patients implanted with AB devices and five TBs from five patients implanted with Nucleus devices were included. A fibrous capsule around the stimulating electrode array was present in all twelve specimens. TBs implanted with AB device had a significantly thicker fibrous capsule at the medial aspect than at the inferior or superior aspects at both locations (LB and UB) of the cochlea (Wilcoxon signed-ranks test, p 0.05). Nine of fourteen (64%) basal turns of the cochlea (LB and UB of seven TBs) implanted with AB devices demonstrated intracochlear trauma compared to two of ten (20%) basal turns of the cochlea (LB and UB of five TBs) with Nucleus devices, (Fisher exact test, p
Why knowledge matters: rescuing our children from failed educational theories

In Why Knowledge Matters: Rescuing Our Children from Failed Educational Theories, E. D. Hirsch, Jr introduces a plethora of topics including cultural capital, the failure of progressive educational...
Electronic cleansing for CT colonography using spectral-driven iterative reconstruction

Dual-energy computed tomography is used increasingly in CT colonography (CTC). The combination of computer-aided detection (CADe) and dual-energy CTC (DE-CTC) has high clinical value, because it can detect clinically significant colonic lesions automatically at higher accuracy than does conventional single-energy CTC. While CADe has demonstrated its ability to detect small polyps, its performance is highly dependent on several factors, including the quality of CTC images and electronic cleansing (EC) of the images. The presence of artifacts such as beam hardening and image noise in ultra-low-dose CTC can produce incorrectly cleansed colon images that severely degrade the detection performance of CTC for small polyps. Also, CADe methods are very dependent on the quality of input images and the information about different tissues in the colon. In this work, we developed a novel method to calculate EC images using spectral information from DE-CTC data. First, the ultra-low dose dual-energy projection data obtained from a CT scanner are decomposed into two materials, soft tissue and the orally administered fecal-tagging contrast agent, to detect the location and intensity of the contrast agent. Next, the images are iteratively reconstructed while gradually removing the presence of tagged materials from the images. Our preliminary qualitative results show that the method can cleanse the contrast agent and tagged materials correctly from DE-CTC images without affecting the appearance of surrounding tissue.
Abstract IA29: Targeting undruggable proteins for degradation with small molecules

Many well-studied oncoproteins are currently viewed to be “undruggable”. The infamous teratogen thalidomide was serendipitously discovered to be a potent antimyeloma drug in the 1990s but its mechanism of action was unknown. In 2010 thalidomide was shown by Handa and coworkers to bind to cereblon, which is the substrate-recognition subunit of a cullin-dependent ubiquitin ligase. Moreover, thalidomide was found to inhibit this ligase in vitro, suggesting that thalidomide is a cereblon antagonist. However, it soon became apparent that loss of cereblon rendered myeloma cells resistant to thalidomide (and related drugs such as lenalidomide, collectively referred to as IMiDs). This suggested to us that cereblon, once bound to an IMiD, acquires a new (neomorphic) ability to target a myeloma-relevant protein for destruction. To look for such a protein we built a bicistronic expression vector that encodes both a protein open reading frame (ORF)-firefly luciferase fusion protein and, from the same mRNA, renilla luciferase for normalization purposes, with both proteins under the control of an internal ribosomal entry site (IRES). We then made a library of ~12,000 such ORF-luciferase fusions and introduced them into 293T cells in quadruplicate in multiwell plate format (1 ORF/well), treated the cells with lenalidomide or vehicle, and monitored changes in firefly luciferase/renilla luciferase as a surrogate for changes in ORF stability. In this way we discovered that cereblon, once bound to lenalidomide, destabilizes IKZF1 and IKZF3. We went on to show that downregulation of IKZF1 and IKZF3 is intimately linked to the antimyeloma activity of the IMiDs. Ben Ebert and his group working in parallel and using complimentary approaches reached the same conclusion. Published and unpublished work from investigators such as Jay Bradner and Craig Crews suggests IMiDs can be reengineered to serve as molecular matchmakers between cereblon and novel targets. We are currently developing new screening methodologies to identify chemicals and genetic perturbants that directly or indirectly destabilize proteins of interest. Citation Format: William G. Kaelin, Jr. Targeting undruggable proteins for degradation with small molecules. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Precision Medicine Series: Targeting the Vulnerabilities of Cancer; May 16-19, 2016; Miami, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Clin Cancer Res 2017;23(1_Suppl):Abstract nr IA29.
Time to Adopt New Measures of Severe Obesity in Children and Adolescents.

* Abbreviations: ΔBMIp95 — : BMI minus BMI at the 95th percentile BMIp95 — : BMI as a percent of the 95th percentile BMIz — : BMI z score CDC — : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention The ideal measure of weight gain and loss should distinguish children and adolescents across the distribution of weight and height and should include the capacity for changes in weight adjusted for height over time. Over short intervals, in which there is little growth in height, absolute changes in weight or BMI provide suitable indicators of weight gain or loss. However, over longer intervals, during which height increases significantly, weight change must be adjusted for changes in height and age by sex. BMI, which is calculated as weight (in kg) divided by the square of height (in m2), adjusts body weight for height. Although the correlation of BMI with various measures of body fat percentage is modest across the distribution of BMI, the correlation of BMI with body fat improves at the upper part of the body fat distribution. Increases in BMI greater than the 95th percentile are associated with increases in body fat.1,2 In addition, BMI has benefits in feasibility, reliability, and measurement and clinical validity.3 Changes in BMI, BMI percentiles, or changes in BMI expressed as an SD score (BMI z score [BMIz]) provide a reasonably … Address correspondence to William H. Dietz, MD, PhD, George Washington University, Sumner M. Redstone Global Center for Prevention and Wellness, 950 New Hampshire Ave, NW, Washington, DC 20052. E-mail: dietzwcd4{at}gmail.com
Does mental context drift or shift

Theories of episodic memory have proposed that individual memory traces are linked together by a representation of context that drifts slowly over time. Recent data challenge the notion that contextual drift is always slow and passive. In particular, changes in one's external environment or internal model induce discontinuities in memory that are reflected in sudden changes in neural activity, suggesting that context can shift abruptly. Furthermore, context change effects are sensitive to top-down goals, suggesting that contextual drift may be an active process. These findings call for revising models of the role of context in memory, in order to account for abrupt contextual shifts and the controllable nature of context change.
Characterizing selection in black-throated blue warblers using a sexual network approach

Our understanding of trait evolution is built upon studies that examine the correlation between traits and fitness, most of which implicitly assume all individuals experience similar selective environments. However, accounting for differences in selective pressures, such as variation in the social environment, can advance our understanding of how selection shapes individual traits and subsequent fitness. In this study, we test whether variation in the social environment affects selection on individual phenotype. We apply a new sexual network framework to quantify each male's social environment as the mean body size of his primary competitors. We test for direct and social selection on male body size using a 10-year dataset on black-throated blue warblers (Setophaga caerulescens), a territorial species for which body size is hypothesized to mediate competition for mates. We found that direct selection on body size was weak and non-significant, as was social selection via the body size of the males’ competitors. Analyzing both types of selection simultaneously allows us to firmly reject a role for body size in competitive interactions between males and subsequent male fitness in this population. We evaluate the application of the sexual network approach to empirical data, and suggest that other phenotypic traits such as song characteristics and plumage may be more relevant than body size for male-male competition in this small passerine bird. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Prospective Study of Epigenetic Age Acceleration and Incidence of Cardiovascular Disease Outcomes in the ARIC Study (Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities).

Background:DNA methylation-based patterns of biological aging, known as epigenetic age acceleration, are predictive of all-cause mortality, but little is known about their association with cardiova...
Solution Processed High Efficiency Quantum Dot Light Emitting Diode With Inorganic Charge Transport Layers

High efficiency all-inorganic quantum dot light emitting diodes are fabricated with metal oxide charge transport layers. Alloyed CdSe/ZnS quantum dots are used as the active layer with nickel oxide thin film hole transport layer and zinc oxide nanoparticle electron transport layer. The turn on voltage of the device is 5 V and the emission peak is at 555 nm. The current efficiency reached a maximum of 144 cd/A with a luminance of 116,000 cd/ $\text{m}^{2}$ at 10 V bias voltage. The peak external quantum efficiency of 11.4% is achieved at a current density of 80 mA/cm2, and it starts to decrease at higher current densities. The superior device performance can be attributed to enhanced charge transport from the adjacent transport layers into the active quantum dot emissive layer.
Why Should I Believe Your Applied Economics

In an era of rising skepticism about science, this article explores what agricultural and applied economists can do to advance knowledge. If knowledge is what is believed by the preponderance of a community, then the key to advancing knowledge is to build substantive arguments—ones that are persuasive. To evaluate the substantiveness of an argument, this article develops a framework based on validity, topic, and audience. Applying that framework to two highly-cited articles, this article concludes that validity is a necessary condition for a substantive argument, but relevance (of topic to audience) is the sufficient condition. Applied economists are well-positioned to build compelling, objective arguments by fitting appropriate theory and methods to relevant, important topics.
Developing and refining a framework for mathematical and linguistic complexity in tasks related to rates of change

Abstract We present and develop a preliminary framework for describing the relationship between the mathematical and linguistic complexity of instructional tasks used in secondary mathematics. The initial framework was developed through a review of relevant literature. It was refined by examining how 4 ninth grade mathematics teachers of linguistically diverse groups of students described the linguistic and mathematical complexity of a set of tasks from their curriculum unit on linear functions. We close by presenting our refined framework for describing the interaction of linguistic complexity and mathematical complexity in curriculum materials, and discuss potential uses of this framework in the design of more accessible classroom learning environments for linguistically diverse students.