cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Titrimetric applications of multiparametric curve-fitting: Part II. Potentiometric titration with an unstandardized reagent

Abstract The execution of a titration rarely performed, or of one with a reagent of limited stability, may be facilitated by applying multiparametric curve-fitting to titration-curve data in such a way that the amount of the substance titrated and the concentration of the reagent are evaluated simultaneously; the necessity for prior standardization of the reagent is thereby eliminated. In the potentiometric titration of acetate ion, a very weak base, with unstandardized hydrochloric acid, the accuracy and precision of the concentration of acetate thus obtained are approximately five times better than those which can be secured by titration with standardized acid and location of the point of maximum slope. The accuracy and precision of the concentration of acid are comparable to those that can be secured in very careful standardizations against a primary standard that gives a titration curve of far more favorable shape.
CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR MECHANISMS OF ASBESTOS CARCINOGENICITY : IMPLICATIONS FOR BIOPERSISTENCE

Carcinogenic agents can influence the carcinogenic process either by mutating critical target genes or by increasing the number of cells at risk for mutations. Cytogenetic and molecular studies of asbestos-related cancers indicate that inactivation or loss of multiple tumor suppressor genes occurs during lung cancer development. Aneuploidy and other chromosomal changes induced by asbestos fibers may be involved in genetic alterations in asbestos-related cancers. Furthermore, asbestos fibers may influence the carcinogenic process by inducing cell proliferation, free radicals, or other promotional mechanisms. Therefore, asbestos fibers may act at multiple stages of the carcinogenic process by both genetic and epigenetic mechanisms. Biopersistence is undoubtedly important in fiber carcinogenicity. However, the time required for a fiber to remain in the lung to exert a cancer-related effect is difficult to specify.
Constitutionalizing Difference: A Case Study Analysis of Gender Provisions in Botswana and South Africa

This article examines the use of gender in constitutions and its significance for gender equality. New democracies, and some older ones, are increasingly including gender provisions in their constitutions. What is the impact of these provisions on women's political and economic status? Does constitutionalizing gender serve to empower women? If so, what kinds of provisions have an empowering effect and under what conditions? To address these questions, we trace the political use (legislation, policy, and judicial interpretation) of gendered constitutional provisions in Botswana and South Africa, countries that differ substantially with respect to how they have “constitutionalized” gender. The case studies demonstrate how constitutional provisions provide a legal basis and legitimacy for women's rights advocacy and how they influence the content of legislation and judicial review of laws and policies.
Balancing Search and Stability: Interdependencies Among Elements of Organizational Design

We examine how and why elements of organizational design depend on one another. An agent-based simulation allows us to model three design elements and two contextual variables that have rarely been analyzed jointly: a vertical hierarchy that reviews proposals from subordinates, an incentive system that rewards subordinates for departmental or firm-wide performance, the decomposition of an organization's many decisions into departments, the underlying pattern of interactions among decisions, and limits on the ability of managers to process information. Interdependencies arise among these features because of a basic, general tension. To be successful, an organization must broadly search for good sets of decisions, but it must also stabilize around good decisions once discovered. An effective organization balances search and stability. We identify sets of design elements that encourage broad search and others that promote stability. The adoption of elements that encourage broad search typically raises the marginal benefit of other elements that provide offsetting stability. Hence, the need to balance search and stability generates interdependencies among the design elements. We pay special attention to interdependencies that involve the vertical hierarchy. Our findings confirm many aspects of conventional wisdom about vertical hierarchies, but challenge or put boundary conditions on others. We place limits, for instance, on the received wisdom that firm-wide incentives and capable subordinates make top-level oversight less valuable. We also identify circumstances in which vertical hierarchies can lead to inferior long-term performance.
The High-Frequency Major Histocompatibility Complex Class I Allele Mamu-B*17 Is Associated with Control of Simian Immunodeficiency Virus SIVmac239 Replication

Particular HLA alleles are associated with reduced human immunodeficiency virus replication. It has been difficult, however, to characterize the immune correlates of viral control. An analysis of the influence of major histocompatibility complex class I alleles on viral control in 181 simian immunodeficiency virus SIVmac239-infected rhesus macaques revealed that Mamu-B(*)17 was associated with a 26-fold reduction in plasma virus concentrations (P<0.001). Mamu-B(*)17 was also enriched in a group of animals that controlled viral replication by 1,000-fold [corrected] Even after accounting for this group, Mamu-B(*)17 was associated with an eightfold reduction in plasma virus concentrations (P<0.001). Mamu-B(*)17-positive macaques could, therefore, facilitate our understanding of the correlates of viral control.
The bicycle project approach-a vehicle to relevancy and motivation

The author's pedagogical experience with the bicycle project approach at the University of Illinois where open-ended projects are used to supplement lecture mode course material is presented. The focus is on the stable single track trailer (SSTT) design challenge. The SSTT design challenge was to achieve a towed riderless bicycle which will follow, steer, and balance of its own accord behind a lead bicycle. Design constraints included using a tow linkage that would not transmit a torque. The project design approach permitted students to come to grips with an unstructured problem, one for which the answer was not readily available at the back of the text. Problem clarification, synthesis, visualization of spatial mechanisms, stability of mechanisms, report writing, success, and failure were all inherent in the design challenge. >
Cyclic Diguanylate Regulates Vibrio cholerae Virulence Gene Expression

The cyclic dinucleotide second messenger cyclic diguanylate (c-diGMP) has been implicated in regulation of cell surface properties in several bacterial species, including Vibrio cholerae. Expression of genes required for V. cholerae biofilm formation is activated by an increased intracellular c-diGMP concentration. The response regulator VieA, which contains a domain responsible for degradation of c-diGMP, is required to maintain a low concentration of c-diGMP and repress biofilm formation. The VieSAB three-component signal transduction system was, however, originally identified as a regulator of ctxAB, the genes encoding cholera toxin (CT). Here we show that the c-diGMP phosphodiesterase activity of VieA is required to enhance CT production. This regulation occurred at the transcriptional level, and ectopically altering the c-diGMP concentration by expression of diguanylate cyclase or phosphodiesterase enzymes also affected ctxAB transcription. The c-diGMP phosphodiesterase activity of VieA was also required for maximal transcription toxT but did not influence the activity of ToxR or expression of TcpP. Finally, a single amino acid substitution in VieA that increases the intracellular c-diGMP concentration led to attenuation in the infant mouse model of cholera. Since virulence genes including toxT and ctxA are repressed by a high concentration of c-diGMP, while biofilm genes are activated, we suggest that c-diGMP signaling is important for the transition of V. cholerae from the environment to the host.
Expression of a functional g-protein coupled receptor 54 kisspeptin autoregulatory system in hypothalamic gonadotropin releasing hormone neurons

The G protein-coupled receptor 54 (GPR54) and its endogenous ligand, kisspeptin, are essential for activation and regulation of the hypothalamic-pituitarygonadal axis. Analysis of RNA extracts from individually identified hypothalamic GnRH neurons with primers for GnRH, kisspeptin-1, and GPR54 revealed expression of all three gene products. Also, constitutive and GnRH agonist-induced bioluminescence resonance energy transfer between Renilla luciferase-tagged GnRH receptor and GPR54 tagged with green fluorescent protein, expressed in human embryonic kidney 293 cells, revealed heterooligomerization of the two receptors. Whole cell patchclamp recordings from identified GnRH neurons showed initial depolarizing effects of kisspeptin on membrane potential, followed by increased action potential firing. In perifusion studies, treatment of GT1–7 neuronal cells with kisspeptin-10 increased GnRH peak amplitude and duration. The production and secretion of kisspeptin in cultured hypothalamic neurons and GT1–7 cells were detected by a specific RIA and was significantly reduced by treatment with GnRH. The expression of kisspeptin and GPR54 mRNAs in identified hypothalamic GnRH neurons, as well as kisspeptin secretion, indicate that kisspeptins may act as paracrine and/or autocrine regulators of the GnRH neuron. Stimulation of GnRH secretion by kisspeptin and the opposing effects of GnRH on kisspeptin secretion indicate that GnRH receptor/ GnRH and GPR54/kisspeptin autoregulatory systems are integrated by negative feedback to regulate GnRH and kisspeptin secretion from GnRH neurons. (Molecular Endocrinology 21: 3062–3070, 2007)
Suppression of alcohol self-administration and reinstatement of alcohol seeking by melanin-concentrating hormone receptor 1 (MCH1-R) antagonism in Wistar rats

Rationale Melanin-concentrating hormone (MCH) is involved in regulation of appetitive behaviors as well as emotional reactivity and reward, behavioral domains relevant to alcohol addiction.
An MCMC sampling approach to estimation of nonstationary hidden Markov models

Hidden Markov models (HMMs) represent a very important tool for analysis of signals and systems. In the past two decades, HMMs have attracted the attention of various research communities, including the ones in statistics, engineering, and mathematics. Their extensive use in signal processing and, in particular, speech processing is well documented. A major weakness of conventional HMMs is their inflexibility in modeling state durations. This weakness can be avoided by adopting a more complicated class of HMMs known as nonstationary HMMs. We analyze nonstationary HMMs whose state transition probabilities are functions of time that indirectly model state durations by a given probability mass function and whose observation spaces are discrete. The objective of our work is to estimate all the unknowns of a nonstationary HMM, which include its parameters and the state sequence. To that end, we construct a Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) sampling scheme, where sampling from all the posterior probability distributions is very easy. The proposed MCMC sampling scheme has been tested in extensive computer simulations on finite discrete-valued observed data, and some of the simulation results are presented.
Team-based learning: a relevant strategy in health professionals' education.

For about a decade, team-based learning (TBL), as an educational strategy, has been growing in use in the US and in several other international medical schools. It is a learner-centered, small grou...
Arterial and Central Venous Pressure Monitoring

The pulsatile arterial pressure wave is a fundamental clinically monitored variable that is used commonly to determine heart rate and rhythm and to provide the principle cardiovascular parameter indicative of adequate tissue perfusion. Detailed analysis of the pressure wave reveals that it has more to offer than this, and careful observation of its more subtle characteristics can provide additional useful diagnostic information. It is therefore surprising that it is given so little attention. There is a similar tendency to overlook the added information obtainable from close analysis of the central venous pressure (CVP) waveform. In both measurements, clinicians tend to concentrate on the numeric values rather than the more qualitative data that are available. The shape and timing of the pressure waves and the changes that occur during the respiratory cycle should not be overlooked. In the first half of this chapter, we describe how some additional clinically important information can be obtained easily from close study of the arterial pressure waveform. The second part of the chapter has a similar focus on the CVP wave. We begin by identifying some technical considerations relevant to all pressure monitoring that are necessary to ensure that the high-resolution monitoring displays now available in the operating room and intensive-care unit can be readily and correctly used for this purpose. A clear understanding of the properties and limitations of monitoring systems is necessary to ensure accurate analysis of pressure waveforms.
Vignettes: Switzerland, Australia, Santa Barbara

I must not be alone in how I remember specific locations in connection with vivid memories of Walter Kohn. I can briefly relate strong impressions that Walter has left me with, from three spots across the globe.
Modeling of ESD events from polymeric surfaces

Transient electrostatic discharge (ESD) events are studied to assemble a predictive model of discharge from polymer surfaces. An analog circuit simulation is produced and its response is compared to various literature sources to explore its capabilities and limitations. Results suggest that polymer ESD events can be predicted to within an order of magnitude. These results compare well to empirical findings from other sources having similar reproducibility.
An Approach to the Study of Relative Prestige of Formal Organizations

HE purpose of this study was to determine whether formal organizations,' coexisting within limited socio-geographic areas, were ascribed by those familiar with them relative evaluations measurable in quantitative terms. It was hypothesized that the individual organizations within a county, for instance, would be ascribed relative positions, i.e., that they would be found existing in an hierarchical prestige order. Further, it was proposed that the relative position of a given organization (or type of organization) within the order would be related to (1) characteristics of the organization itself, and (2) characteristics of the judges. With these purposes and this approach the study becomes in part an investigation of differential response accorded organizations, a complex phenomenon usually studied in terms of direct participation, not in terms of relative prestige placement. In addition, insofar as the study impinges upon the community domination-submission patterns it constitutes an attempt to develop means for discovering the principles by which some community sub-groupings come to be accorded positions of superiority with the attendant rights and privileges which allow them to initiate, negate, or otherwise influence community action. PROCEDURE
Atomic Resolution Disk Resonant Force and Displacement Sensors for Measurements in Liquid

This letter presents resonant microelectromechan- ical systems capable of resolving subatomic features and/or measurement of atomic level forces in liquid media (in addition to air/vacuum). It has previously been shown that forces in the micro- and nano-Newton range applied to flexible extensional- mode resonant microstructures can cause significant resonant frequency shifts (1). In this letter, the same principle has been applied to rotational mode disk resonators that are capable of maintaining relatively high quality factors in liquid. Prelimi- nary results indicate about tenfold improvement in combined displacement-force resolution figure-of-merit compared with typ- ical piezoresistive cantilevers when operating in liquid. Using integrated comb-drive electrostatic actuators, displacement and force resolutions as high as 200 fm and 1 nN, respectively, have been demonstrated. By application of the force through a levering mechanism, force sensitivities in the pN range can be achieved while maintaining sub-nm spatial resolution.
Epidemiology and economics of adult patients hospitalized with urinary tract infections.

AbstractBackground: Urinary tract infections (UTI) are among the most common bacterial diseases worldwide, with significant clinical and economic burden. Surveillance of pathogen epidemiology and risk factors for resistant pathogens in the hospital setting may improve the management of UTI. Objective: To evaluate microbiology and antimicrobial susceptibility of UTI pathogens, with associated costs, in hospitalized patients. Methods: Patients diagnosed with UTI between July and September 2013 were retrospectively screened for clinical symptoms and treatment within 24 hours of admission, then categorized into groups: community acquired (Group 1); recent healthcare exposure (Group 2); or a history of identification of an extended-spectrum beta lactamase (ESBL)-producing organism (Group 3). Clinical, epidemiological, and financial data were compared between groups. Results: From 308 included patients, a total of 216 pathogens were identified. Escherichia coli was most commonly identified pathogen, but frequen...
Optimized Volumetric Live Imaging with Light Field Microscopy and Selective Volume Illumination

Many important biological processes, e.g. brain activity, depend on the tight spatio-temporal coordination between cells across tissue-scale 3D space. Thus a cellular-level understanding of these processes could greatly benefit from a volumetric live imaging modality, where a single snapshot could capture spatial information over a tissue-scale axially-extended volume, while maintaining single- or few-cell resolution. Such capability has been recently demonstrated with Light Field Microscopy (LFM), where the light field coming from the sample space is recorded in a single 2D image, capturing information from the 3D volume extended above and below the native focal plane, albeit at reduced spatial resolution due to the diffraction limit. Computational reconstruction is used to generate the 3D images of the sample from the 2D light field images. Up until now, LFM has been done with widefield illumination, essentially lighting up the entirety of the sample, even though only a part of the sample is meaningfully captured in the reconstruction. Thus, widefield illumination introduces extraneous background and noise, degrading the contrast and accuracy of the final reconstructed images. Here, we implement Selective Volume Illumination (SVI) to LFM, illuminating only the volume of interest, thus significantly reducing the background and providing higher contrast and accuracy for the light field image reconstruction. We demonstrate SVI-LFM with both 1-photon and 2-photon excitation, the latter providing higher penetration depth in scattering tissue. Additionally, our implementation allows recording a high resolution, optically-sectioned 3D image of the same sample, in addition to the light-field-reconstructed volumetric, but low-resolution, image. Having both the high-resolution/low-speed, and low-resolution/high-speed image data of the same sample facilitates optimized observation of dynamical processes, and provides the potential for using the high-resolution image data to help speed up and constrain the reconstruction of the light field data.
Rapid Excitation of 7 T- & 4 T- Refrigerator Cooled Bi2223 Superconducting Magnets

We have successfully fabricated 7 T & 4 T refrigerator cooled magnets using silver-sheathed Bi2223 superconducting wires, and furthermore tried the faster excitations. A 7 T magnet was able to stably generate up to 7 T at a ramp rate of 7 T / min. AC losses in the magnet were investigated. The analysis proved that the dominant loss was the hysteresis loss under the condition that an external field is applied in phase with a transport current.
New Oral Anticoagulants

Jawed Fareed is a Professor of Pathology & Pharmacology and Director of the Hemostasis & Thrombosis Research Laboratories at Loyola University Medical Center. He also serves as a consultant to the Department of Laboratory Science at Hines Veterans Administration in Hines, IL, USA. He received his initial graduate training at the University of London, England and at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada. His doctorate degree was completed at Loyola University Chicago in the areas of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics in 1974 and is currently pursuing research, teaching and service activities. In June 1996, Dr. Fareed received the degree of Doctor Honoris Causa from the University of Bordeaux in France. He has received numerous awards from various national and international organizations. His main area of interest is research in the development of novel anticoagulant and antithrombotic drugs. He has devoted much of his activities to the initial studies on lowmolecular-weight heparins and he has contributed to the development of several newer antithrombotic drugs such as hirudin and tissue factor pathway inhibitor. Currently he has embarked upon a program on the objective study of newer antiplatelet drugs such as glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors and ADP receptor antagonists. In addition he has also initiated a program on molecularly designed drugs with multiple targets. More recently he has initiated the development of an integrated program on molecular hemostasis and thrombosis. His professional affiliations include membership of the expert panel on biologicals for the World Health Organization in Geneva, Switzerland. He acts as an advisor to several regulatory agencies. He is a recipient of several national and international awards, including the Sam Natelson Award of the American Association of Clinical Chemistry and the IUA 2002 Lectureship. He is an elected fellow of the International Union of Angiology and the American College of Angiology. In October 1997 Dr. Fareed received the distinguished services award from the South Asian Society of Thrombosis. He is currently the President of the International South Asian Society of Atherosclerosis (SASAT). Together with Professor Hans Klaus Breddin of Germany, he founded the International Institute of Blood and Vascular Disorders located in Frankfurt, Germany. He also serves at the Chair of the Scientific Committee of the IUA. He also serves as the Vice President of the Academy of Clinical and Applied Thrombosis and Hemostasis in Dallas, Texas. He is also an elected member of the Medical Academy of Erfurt, Germany. He is also active in the educational scientific activities of various professional societies including the International Union of Angiology, American Society of Hematology, International Society of Fibrinolysis and Proteolysis and The American Heart Association.
The Differential Effects of Alzheimer's Disease and Lewy Body Pathology on Cognitive Performance: a Meta-analysis.

Differential diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) from normal aging and other dementia etiologies is imperative for disease specific treatment options and long-term care planning. Neuropathological confirmation is the gold standard for neurodegenerative disease diagnosis, yet most published studies examining the use of neuropsychological tests in the differential diagnosis of dementia rely upon clinical diagnostic outcomes. The present study undertook a meta-analytic review of the literature to identify cognitive tests and domains that allow for the differentiation of individuals with AD pathology from individuals with dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB) pathology and pathology-free individuals. A comprehensive literature search yielded 14 studies that met the inclusion criteria for the present meta-analysis. Six studies comprised 222 decedents with AD compared to 433 normal controls, and eight studies comprised 431 cases of AD compared to 155 decedents with DLB. Results revealed that the effect of having neuropathologically confirmed AD versus DLB lowered performance in the memory domain, and having DLB decreased performance in the visuospatial domain. No single test differed significantly across the AD and DLB groups. For the AD and pathology free comparison, results indicated that that AD was associated with poorer performance on the memory and language domains. With respect to specific cognitive tests, AD produced lower scores on list learning tests, category fluency, and the Digit Symbol substitution test. The limited number of studies meeting inclusion criteria warrants formulation of guidelines for reporting in clinico-pathological studies; suggested guidelines are provided.
Fully convolutional neural network for removing background in noisy images of uranium bearing particles

A fully convolutional neural network (FCN) was developed to supersede automatic or manual thresholding algorithms used for tabulating SIMS particle search data. The FCN was designed to perform a binary classification of pixels in each image belonging to a particle or not, thereby effectively removing background signal without manually or automatically determining an intensity threshold. Using 8000 images from 28 different particle screening analyses, the FCN was trained to accurately predict pixels belonging to a particle with near 99% accuracy. Background eliminated images were then segmented using a watershed technique in order to determine isotopic ratios of identified particles. A comparison of the isotopic distributions of an independent data set segmented using the neural network with a commercially available automated particle measurement (APM) program developed by CAMECA was performed. This comparison highlighted the necessity for effective background removal to ensure that resulting particle identification is not only accurate, but preserves valuable signal that could be lost due to improper segmentation. The FCN approach improves the robustness of current state-of-the-art particle searching algorithms by reducing user input biases, resulting in an improved absolute signal per particle and decreased uncertainty of the determined isotope ratios.
International Organizations and International Regulatory Cooperation: Exploring the Links

This paper, a contribution to an OECD research project, outlines recent trends in international regulatory cooperation (IRC), the roles that international organizations (IOs) play in IRC, and how we might assess the effects of IO involvement. The trends are clear and striking: there has been an explosion of IRC, including diverse forms of international rule-making that often involve IOs; as a result, many issue areas now feature multiple organizations engaged in IRC, including international, transgovernmental and transnational institutions. However, we know far too little about the precise roles that IOs play, as forums and as standard-setters, and especially about the outcomes and impacts of IRC efforts within IOs. The paper reviews these issues and considers approaches for enhancing our understanding of IO participation in IRC.
Copper transmission for multi-gigabit hybrid copper-fiber access networks

A high performance copper-based transmission technology can enable fiber to the building and fiber to the home installations in a cost-effective copper/fiber hybrid network [1]. ITU has started a project for multi-gigabit copper access (MGfast [2]), as a successor of the G.fast [3] technology with the goal to serve symmetric services with 10 Gbit/s aggregated rate for each subscriber. This paper discusses network topologies for the hybrid network and technology options for copper transmission to achieve the target rate and reach. Possible approaches are channel bonding, full duplex transmission and an increase of the used bandwidth from 212 MHz in G.fast to 424 MHz or 848 MHz.
Problem solving chatbot for data structures

Intelligent chatbot, is a system which can interact with humans and answers questions on a certain domain. Today, the challenge is to build a system which will resemble human brain. Generally, the brain stores the memory in a decentralized manner across the brain with the help of neuron as opposed to a centralized manner in computer file system. There are short term and long-term memory storage with different priority based on variety of situation. The system can take inputs in written or voice format and respond the question from a knowledge base. In most cases a chat bot does not have problem solving capabilities. Our system can solve data structure problems using deep neural network (DNN). With a given dataset the system can provide services to access data in format such as arrays, stacks, queues and trees. Based on these data structures we can solve problems like traversing lists, reversing numbers and translating language of syntactic divergences. The learning service is not an algorithmic program rather a trained model using DNN. With the implementation of problem solving chatbot, it will understand how to organize and retrieve data based on user's data structure choice. We used Neural Stack Machine (NSM) with Recurrent Neural Network (RNN) as the controller.
Determination of the steady-state intracellular chloride concentration in capacitated human spermatozoa.

Chloride channels participate in the mammalian sperm acrosome reaction (AR). However, the mechanism by which sperm regulate intracellular Cl concentration ([CI ] i ) is not known. The steady-state [Cl ] i has also never been reported for mammalian spermatozoa. Therefore, using chloride-sensitive fluorescent dyes, we sought to determine the steady-state [CI ] i of capacitated human spermatozoa by a null-point measurement technique. We found that the [Cl ] i was sufficiently elevated (a conservative estimate of ≥41 mM) such that the opening of chloride channels should result in a Cl efflux and, hence, in depolarization. Moreover, the [Cl ], does not remain constant under varying extracellular Cl concentrations ([Cl ] o ).
Large Scale Multinomial Inferences and Its Applications in Genome Wide Association Studies

Statistical analysis of multinomial counts with a large number K of categories and a small number n of sample size is challenging to both frequentist and Bayesian methods and requires thinking about statistical inference at a very fundamental level. Following the framework of Dempster-Shafer theory of belief functions, a probabilistic inferential model is proposed for this “large K and small n” problem. Using a data-generating device, the inferential model produces probability triplet (p,q,r) for an assertion conditional on observed data. The probabilities p and q are for and against the truth of the assertion, whereas r = 1- p − q is the remaining probability called the probability of “don’t know”. The new inference method is applied in a genome-wide association study with very-high-dimensional count data, to identify association between genetic variants to a disease Rheumatoid Arthritis.
Multi-modality canonical feature selection for Alzheimer's disease diagnosis.

Feature selection has been commonly regarded as an effective method to lessen the problem of high dimension and low sample size in medical image analysis. In this paper, we propose a novel multi-modality canonical feature selection method. Unlike the conventional sparse Multi-Task Learning (MTL) based feature selection method that mostly considered only the relationship between target response variables, we further consider the correlations between features of different modalities by projecting them into a canonical space determined by canonical correlation analysis. We call the projections as canonical representations. By setting the canonical representations as regressors in a sparse least square regression framework and by further penalizing the objective function with a new canonical regularizer on the weight coefficient matrix, we formulate a multi-modality canonical feature selection method. With the help of the canonical information of canonical representations and also a canonical regularizer, the proposed method selects canonical-cross-modality features that are useful for the tasks of clinical scores regression and multi-class disease identification. In our experiments on the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) dataset, we combine Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and Positron Emission Tomography (PET) images to jointly predict clinical scores of Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale-Cognitive subscale (ADAS-Cog) and Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and also identify multi-class disease status for Alzheimer’s disease diagnosis.
Discrimination of Contributing Factors to Bone Fragility Using vQCT In Vivo

The most serious manifestations of osteoporosis are proximal femoral fractures, affecting over 250,000 elderly in the United States each year and 890,000 in the European Union in the year 2000 alone. The impact on public health and the resultant cost to the health care system highlight the urgency to identify those parameters significant to accurately predict bone quality and fracture risk at the proximal femur. Determinations of the proximal femur are employed to illustrate relevant applications of vQCT with the potential to be extrapolated to other skeletal sites and the research and development of novel biomaterials that could contribute to the restoration or improvement of bone function. We explain the underpinning of parameters for bone mass, BMD, and bone geometry, as well as the structural indices discriminated by vQCT. We further clarify the benefit of sub-regional analysis (trochanteric region separate from femoral neck region) and of compartmental analysis (cortical bone separate from trabecular bone). In order to gain insight into how these factors contribute to bone fragility, we show how vQCT information combined with finite element modeling (FEM) information, a structural analysis tool, allows for estimation of fracture load under various loading conditions including impact from a fall. We typify unique results obtained from studies on aging, drugs with bone impact, and spaceflight, which is difficult to reveal in vivo without vQCT. We show in vivo how aging results in heterogeneous effects in the trochanteric and femoral neck region and how the impact of long-term spaceflight differs between trabecular and cortical bone. We suggest future directions for vQCT, such as the improvement of accuracy and precision for longitudinal studies, the FEM analysis integration into individual patient evaluation for in vivo assessment of simulated fracture conditions, and the development of additional variables for enhancement of bone fragility evaluations.
Dark photon dark matter from a network of cosmic strings

We study the production of ultralight dark photons from a network of near-global, Abelian-Higgs cosmic strings. We find that dark photons produced in this way are nonrelativistic today and can make up all of the dark matter for dark photon masses as small as ${m}_{A}\ensuremath{\sim}1{0}^{\ensuremath{-}22}\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{eV}$.
Resistance is futile: Centering forces yield for asymmetric cell division.

Asymmetric cell division relies on microtubule-based forces to asymmetrically position the mitotic apparatus. In this issue, Salle et al. (2019. J. Cell Biol. https://doi.org/10.1083/jcb.201807102) use magnetic tweezers to induce asymmetric division in sea urchin zygotes, demonstrating that asymmetry could arise from a time-dependent weakening of centering forces.
Sexual Precedent’s Effect on Sexual Consent Communication

Sexual consent is one’s voluntary, sober, and conscious willingness to engage in a particular sexual behavior with a particular person within a particular context. Sexual precedent theory posits that people believe that engaging in consensual sex at one point in time implies consent to later sexual encounters with that person. By assuming consent once a sexual precedent is set, people may rely less on communication cues. We sought to provide quantitative support for the claim that sexual precedent influences sexual consent in people’s sexual relationships. To capture variability across sexual experiences, we collected daily sexual behavior data from each participant (n = 84) over a period of 30 days. We found a curvilinear relationship between sexual history with a partner and how people perceived consent during sexual activity with that partner (p = .003, ∆R2 = .089). A piecewise regression revealed that participants were less likely to report consent communication cues as sexual precedent increased until about 575 previous sexual behaviors (p = .003, R2 = .122); after this point, participants were more likely to report consent communication cues as sexual precedent increased (p = .028, R2 = .179). Overall, we provide the first quantitative evidence that consent conceptualization varies both within the person and across relationships regarding sexual precedent. In our discussion, we emphasize that sexual consent is contextual and cannot be assumed even after previous sexual encounters.
The Value of National Institutes of Health (NIH) Registry-Based Research in Identifying Childhood Cardiac Disease Outcomes: The Pediatric Cardiomyopathy Registry Experience

Cardiomyopathy is a serious, but rare, disease of the heart muscle. Cardiomyopathy commonly results in heart failure and is the leading cause of heart transplantation in children older than 1 year of age. The Pediatric Cardiomyopathy Registry (PCMR), which has been funded by the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (NHBLI) since 1994, has enrolled and followed more than 3,500 children with cardiomyopathy in the US and Canada. Results from the registry have established the incidence of pediatric cardiomyopathy in North America, determined the prevalence of heart failure, have identified causes of cardiomyopathy, as well as transplant and survival patterns. In this chapter, we will describe the design and operation of the PCMR and present a summary of results. The PCMR is an example of how a well-designed and well-conducted patient registry can provide important insights into the etiologies, clinical course, and patient outcomes for a rare disease, in this case cardiomyopathy in children.
Thermohydrological Effects on a Nonreactive Aqueous Species in Unsaturated Fractured Geologic Materials

The chemical and mineralogical conditions of the near-field, i.e., that area in the vicinity of the waste materials, may be significantly altered from ambient conditions by thermohydrological processes resulting from the placement of heat-generating radioactive materials in a geologic repository. Models are developed linking the thermohydrological effects simulated with TOUGH2 to a nonreactive aqueous species (chloride). Perturbations in near-field chemistry from the ambient conditions may have potential impacts on engineered barrier system (EBS) performance, waste-form degradation processes, and radionuclide transport. The results of thermohydrological simulations with TOUGH2 utilizing various conceptual models for fracture representation are coupled to simple chemical models (density and osmotic effects are neglected) to demonstrate the complexity and potential magnitude of thermohydrochemical (T-H-C) processes. The concentration of chloride in solution returning to the EBS following dryout, in extreme cases, is predicted to exceed 100 000 mg/l. The dimensionality of the problem and the rate at which the tuffaceous rocks rewet significantly affect the magnitude of the thermohydrological impact on chloride redistribution. A process metric (initial rewetting rate and distribution) that is ignored when evaluating thermohydrological response is very important when a more complex coupling (T-H-C) is considered.
Fungal Necrotizing Skin and Soft Tissue Infections

This review summarizes the medical literature regarding fungal necrotizing skin and soft tissue infections (NSTI). The available epidemiologic, microbiologic, treatment, and outcome data are presented by the most common causal organisms of this disease process. With the exception of cutaneous mucormycosis, which often progresses to necrotizing infection, clinical data for other fungal NSTI are largely limited to case reports and small case series. Fungal NSTI are rare but some data suggests that incidence may be increasing. These infections occur in both immunocompromised and immunocompetent hosts, especially following trauma. Mortality varies by host factors, organism, and extent of disease. Foundations of treatment include targeted antifungal therapy and aggressive surgical debridement. Fungal NSTI is a rarely described clinical entity associated with a high mortality. More study is needed to better understand the epidemiology and optimal management of these infections.
Digital Redlining: Poor Rural Communities’ Access to Fintech and Implications for Financial Inclusion

Financial technologies (fintech) are proposed to expand access to financial services in rural communities as bank branches decline; however, poor rural communities and rural communities of color ha...
Microengineered 3D pulmonary interstitial mimetics highlight a critical role for matrix degradation in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis

Abstract Fibrosis is often untreatable and is characterized by aberrant tissue scarring from activated myofibroblasts. Although the extracellular matrix becomes increasingly stiff and fibrous during disease progression, how these physical cues impact myofibroblast differentiation in 3D is poorly understood. Here we describe a multicomponent hydrogel that recapitulates the 3D fibrous structure hallmark to the interstitial tissue regions where idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) initiates. In contrast to findings on 2D hydrogels, myofibroblast differentiation in 3D was inversely correlated with hydrogel stiffness, but positively correlated with matrix fiber density. Employing a multi-step bioinformatics analysis of IPF patient transcriptomes and in vitro pharmacologic screening, we identify matrix-metalloprotease activity to be essential for 3D but not 2D myofibroblast differentiation. Given our observation that compliant degradable 3D matrices amply support fibrogenesis, these studies demonstrate a departure from the established relationship between stiffness and myofibroblast differentiation in 2D, and provide a new 3D model for studying fibrosis.
Three-Dimensional-Printed Liver Model Helps Learners Identify Hepatic Subsegments: A Randomized-Controlled Cross-Over Trial.

Introduction The purpose of this study was to find out whether 3-dimensional (3D)-printed models improved the learners' ability to identify liver segments. Methods A total of 116 physicians from 3 disciplines were tested in a cross-over trial at baseline and after teaching with 3D models and 2-dimensional (2D) images. Adjusted multilevel-mixed models were used to compare scores at baseline and after 3D and 2D. Results Accuracy in identifying hepatic segments was higher with 3D first than 2D (77% vs 69%; P = 0.05) and not significantly improved by a combination of 3D and 2D. Increased confidence in segment identification was highest in trainees after 3D (P = 0.04). Discussion 3D-printed models facilitate learning hepatic segmental anatomy.
Performativity in Postmodernity

The collapse of the distinction between appearance and essence is characteristic of postmodernity. In ontology it gives rise to reductive materialism: matter is all that appears, therefore matter is all that exists. If applied to human beings, it announces the death of the soul. In linguistics and economics alike, the collapse of essence into appearance abolishes the polarity between signifier and signified, thus rendering both systems non-referential. With regard to human identity, the loss of essence gives rise to the manifold forms of the ‘post-human,’ and today such developments are often applauded as politically progressive. This chapter questions that assumption, reading such theorists as J. L. Austin, Judith Butler, Jacques Derrida, and Donna Haraway in order to raise questions about the political ethics of performative representation.
Optimizing P300 speller performance using language models for character and word prediction

Neurodegenerative diseases such as Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) restrict an individual’s ability to fully engage with their surroundings by interrupting crucial cell signaling processes between the brain and the peripheral nervous system. In such cases, brain-computer interfaces (BCI) such as the P300 speller use electroencephalography (EEG) to capture subject brain signals which are decoded to provide an alternate channel for communication. This paper develops new and sophisticated BCI techniques combining language models, probabilistic flashboard design, and optimal scanning techniques which together with smoothing algorithms and word suggestions can be effectively utilized as a form of predictive spelling. Detailed offline simulations based on subject EEG data allowed for testing a variety of methods on a large subject population producing extensive output text including both in vocabulary and out of vocabulary words. Significant performance gains were seen when applying language models to classification and optimizing the interface for stimulus presentation. The results demonstrate that feed-forward techniques with appropriate flashboard design and word completion algorithms can achieve similar or better performance as more complex feedback schemes. Consequently, one can employ lower complexity flashboard as well as control and yet achieve the performance gains offered by more complex techniques
Gender differences in the PTSD symptoms of polytraumatized youth during isolated phases of trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy.

Objective Gender differences in the development and severity of PTSD have long been observed, but much less is known about gender differences within the context of trauma-focused treatment. This study investigated gender differences in the PTSD symptoms of polytraumatized youth during Trauma-focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT). Method The sample included child welfare-involved youth ages 7-18 (N = 138) who experienced a mean of 4.78 types of trauma and received TF-CBT at a trauma treatment clinic. Mixed ANOVA analyses assessed gender differences in PTSD symptoms from baseline to termination of treatment. PTSD symptoms were then mapped according to the phase of treatment, and factorial ANOVAs examined gender differences during isolated phases of TF-CBT. Potential interactions with sexual violence history were considered. Results Significant reductions in overall PTSD, intrusive, avoidance and arousal symptoms were found from baseline to termination of TF-CBT for the entire sample, although females reported higher symptom levels across all PTSD symptom domains. Significant gender differences were also revealed during some, but not all, phases of treatment, with variations among PTSD symptom domains noted. Conclusions Findings suggest TF-CBT is effective in reducing PTSD in youth with poly-trauma exposure, irrespective of gender. Gender differences in symptom severity were revealed, however, and indicate the need to attend to gender within the context of treatment. Findings also suggest the use of measurement-based care, and specifically attending to symptom fluctuation in PTSD symptom domains during treatment, can help inform clinical decision making and individualize treatment. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).