cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
One hundred-fold acceleration of DNA renaturation rates in solution.

Solvents which accelerate DNA renaturation rates have been investigated. Addition of NaCl or LiCl to DNA in 2.4M Et4NCl initially increases renaturation rates at 45°C and then leads to a loss of second-order behavior. The greatest accelerations are seen with LiCl and dilute DNA. Volume exclusion by dextran sulfate is the most effective method of accelerating DNA renaturation with concentrated DNA. Addition of dextran sulfate beyond 10-12% in 2.4M Et4NCl fails to increase the acceleration beyond approximately 10-fold. Accelerations of 100-fold may be achieved with 35-40% dextran sulfate in 1M NaCl at 70°C. No other mixed solvent system was found to be more effective, although acceleration may be achieved in solvents containing formamide or other denaturants. The acceleration in 2M NaCl occurs without loss of the normal concentration and temperature dependence of DNA renaturation and is also independent of dextran sulfate concentration if sufficient dextran sulfate is used. Dextran sulfate may be selectively precipitated by use of 1M CsCl.
Harvesting, post-harvest handling and live-transport of freshwater prawns in the United States

Freshwater prawn Macrobrachium rosenbergii aquaculture continues to expand in the United States though is still a relatively small industry. Innovations continue to improve efforts in harvesting with novel harvest basin designs and concrete internal pond aprons. Purging and holding strategies are more defined. Some producers are now investing in water re-use systems to extend holding times for many days, making prawns more readily available for market. The lucrative live-market, which historically has had many challenges, seems poised for success when following new protocols which address handling and oxygen stress.
Rough-wall turbulent boundary layers in the transition regime

An experimental investigation of turbulent boundary layers over two-dimensional spanwise groove and three-dimensional sandgrain roughnesses in the transition regime between hydraulically smooth and fully rough conditions is presented. It is found that a self-preserving state can be reached in boundary layers developing over both d-type groove and sandgrain roughnesses, and that the drag of a k-type rough wall can be reduced by lowering the spanwise aspect ratio of the roughness elements. The two roughness Reynolds numbers defining the boundaries of the transition regime of the k-type roughnesses are shown to decrease with increasing roughness-element spanwise aspect ratio, and the upper critical transition Reynolds number is shown to determine the roughness behavior in both the transition and fully rough regime.
Volumetric MRI and MRS provide sensitive measures of Alzheimer's disease neuropathology in inducible Tau transgenic mice (rTg4510)

The purpose of this study was to determine if in vivo high resolution 3D MRI and localized (1)H MR spectroscopy (MRS) can detect brain findings resembling Alzheimer's disease in a transgenic mouse model of Tau pathology. Seven double transgenic rTg4510 female mice and 7 age-matched wild-type (wt) female mice were evaluated at 5 months of age. To confirm the usefulness and consistency of in vivo MRI/S, we also scanned the brains of 14 male mice (7 rTg4510 and 7 age-matched wt) at 8 months of age. Mean hippocampal and cerebral cortex volumes in the female rTg4510 mice were 26.7% and 20.6% smaller than that in the wt controls (p<0.0001), respectively. Mean hippocampal and cerebral cortex volumes in the male rTg4510 mice were 18.4% and 16.9% smaller than that in the wt controls (p<0.00005), respectively. The mean volumes of the cerebellum were not statistically different between the rTg4510 and the wt groups. MRS assessment revealed that the myo-inositol to total creatine ratios (mIns/tCr), a measure of gliosis, were significantly higher in the hippocampus of rTg4510 mice relative to wt mice (p=0.03 for the females; p=0.005 for the males). Immunohistochemistry and histology in the same animals verified previously published data showing elevation of hyperphosphorylated Tau, glial activation and cortical and hippocampal neuronal loss. This study demonstrates that in vivo MRI/S can be a non-invasive biomarker to assess brain atrophy and related biochemical changes in the rTg4510 mouse model.
Declining US Hegemony and Rising Chinese Power: A Formula for Conflict?

AbstractIs declining US hegemony and China’s rising power a formula for regional and/or global conflict? In this article I address the present conditions and contradictions of US neo-imperialism and the role of China as a potential competitor to and challenger of US global hegemony. Given the entrenched interests of US military neo-imperialism such conflicts appear inevitable.
Nicotine signals through muscle-type and neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in both human bronchial epithelial cells and airway fibroblasts.

Non-neuronal cells, including those derived from lung, are reported to express nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChR). We examined nAChR subunit expression in short-term cultures of human airway cells derived from a series of never smokers, ex-smokers, and active smokers. At the mRNA level, human bronchial epithelial (HBE) cells and airway fibroblasts expressed a range of nAChR subunits. In multiple cultures of both cell types, mRNA was detected for subunits that constitute functional muscle-type and neuronal-type pentomeric receptors. Two immortalized cell lines derived from HBE cells also expressed muscle-type and neuronal-type nAChR subunits. Airway fibroblasts expressed mRNA for three muscle-type subunits (α1, δ, and e) significantly more often than HBE cells. Immunoblotting of HBE cell and airway fibroblast extracts confirmed that mRNA for many nAChR subunits is translated into detectable levels of protein, and evidence of glycosylation of nAChRs was observed. Some minor differences in nAChR expression were found based on smoking status in fibroblasts or HBE cells. Nicotine triggered calcium influx in the immortalized HBE cell line BEAS2B, which was blocked by α-bungarotoxin and to a lesser extent by hexamethonium. Activation of PKC and MAPK p38, but not MAPK p42/44, was observed in BEAS2B cells exposed to nicotine. In contrast, nicotine could activate p42/44 in airway fibroblasts within five minutes of exposure. These results suggest that muscle-type and neuronal-type nAChRs are functional in airway fibroblasts and HBE cells, that prior tobacco exposure does not appear to be an important variable in nAChR expression, and that distinct signaling pathways are observed in response to nicotine.
After the Collapse of Communism: Comparative Lessons of Transitions

After the Collapse of Communism: Comparative Lessons of Transitions. Edited by Michael McFaul and Kathryn Stoner-Weiss. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2004. 272p. $60.00. Michael McFaul and Kathryn Stoner-Weiss's edited volume constitutes a useful introduction to important research frontiers in the analysis of postcommunist polities. The editors explicitly set the contributors the task of transcending conventional (post-)Soviet Studies and contributing to a social science analysis of formerly communist polities. Through that lens, “legacies” of the old regimes are important inasmuch as causal mechanisms can be spelled out that show their continuing relevance for the dynamic reconfiguration of politics in the region.
A Pragmatic Perspective toward Treating Children with Phobia and Anxiety Problems

I fear it will always be as if we are walking on infirm or swampy ground and this is good because if the ground were firm, we’d have no reason to go anywhere.
Sex‐specific fitness effects of unpredictable early life conditions are associated with DNA methylation in the avian glucocorticoid receptor

Organisms can adapt to variable environments by using environmental cues to modulate developmental gene expression. In principle, maternal influences can adaptively adjust offspring phenotype when early life and adult environments match, but they may be maladaptive when future environments are not predictable. One of the best-studied 'maternal effects' is through modification of the offspring's hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, the neuroendocrine system that controls responses to stress. In addition to the direct transfer of glucocorticoids from mother to offspring, offspring HPA function and other phenotypes can also be affected by epigenetic modifications like DNA methylation of the glucocorticoid receptor promoter. Here we examine how among-year variation in rainfall is related to DNA methylation during development and fitness in adulthood in the superb starling (Lamprotornis superbus), which lives in a climatically unpredictable environment where early life and adult environments are unlikely to match. We found that DNA methylation in the putative promoter of the glucocorticoid receptor gene is reduced in chicks - particularly in males - born following drier prebreeding periods. Additionally, DNA methylation is lower in males that become breeders than those that never breed. However, there is no relationship in females between DNA methylation and the likelihood of dispersing from the natal group to breed elsewhere. These results suggest that early life conditions may positively affect fitness in a sex-specific manner through chemical modification of an HPA-associated gene. This study is the first to show that epigenetic modifications during early life may influence the fitness of free-living organisms adapted to unpredictable environments.
On Miller, Mini-Fujis, and the Meaning of Access

This Epilogue reflects on the Oregon Law Review's Spring 2012 Symposium, "Miller's Courts: Media, Rules, Policy, and the Future of Access to Justice." The Symposium honored Professor Arthur R. Miller with high-profile jurists, practitioners, and academics who, by presenting papers and sitting on panels, participated in an intense and substantive discussion of the challenges facing our media-saturated, increasingly restrictive civil justice system.
Optimum Wing Shape of Highly Flexible Morphing Aircraft for Improved Flight Performance

In this paper, optimum wing bending and torsion deformations are explored for a mission adaptive, highly flexible morphing aircraft. The complete highly flexible aircraft is modeled using a strain-based geometrically nonlinear beam formulation, coupled with unsteady aerodynamics and 6-dof rigid-body motions. Since there are no conventional discrete control surfaces for trimming the flexible aircraft, the design space for searching the optimum wing geometries is enlarged. To achieve high performance flight, the wing geometry is best tailored according to the specific flight mission needs. In this study, the steady level flight and the coordinated turn flight are considered, and the optimum wing deformations with the minimum drag at these flight conditions are searched by utilizing a modal-based optimization procedure, subject to the trim and other constraints. The numerical study verifies the feasibility of the modal-based optimization approach, and shows the resulting optimum wing configuration and its sensitivity under different flight profiles.
Abstract 477: CD49fhi/CD90lo from primary human osteosarcoma cells are enriched for tumor initiating property

Osteosarcoma (OS) is one of the most prolific forms of cancer among adolescents, resulting in a severe decrease in life expectancy unless detected early. Though several previous studies have suggested various tumor-initiating properties of osteosarcoma, major limitations for understanding have been observed due the OS9s restrictive ability to expand in in vivo models. In this study, we are reporting the use of primary osteosarcoma cells for characterizing the tumor initiating property. Human OS samples were collected during biopsies or surgeries, expanded in vitro, phenotyped for multiple cell-surface markers by Fluorescence Activated Cell Sorting (FACS) analysis and then injected subcutaneously into nu/nu mice. We observed that cells showing an expression of the CD49fhi/CD90lo cell surface marker produced a more aggressive tumor. In vitro treatment of this cell population with amiloride, a potassium-sparing diuretic, decreased the cells ability to express the CD49f protein. In vivo, amiloride treatment also dramatically decreased tumor growth when injected into nu/nu mice when compared to controls, indicating that CD49fhi/CD90lo is an important marker in tumor initiation. The transfection of CD49fhi cells with a shCD49f lentiviral construct showed a 20% decrease in their overall ability to migrate in a trans-well assay, and experienced a two-fold decrease in their capability to form colonies (CFU assay). Subcutaneous injections of the transfected cells expressing shRNA for CD49f reduced tumor growth by 30% compared to controls. In conclusion, our data suggests that the CD49fhi/CD90lo cell population is linked to a more aggressive osteosarcoma tumor growth and that this cell surface marker could be a potential candidate for the characterization of TICs in osteosarcoma. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 102nd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2011 Apr 2-6; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2011;71(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 477. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2011-477
Utility of speckle tracking echocardiography in measuring systemic right ventricular systolic function for patients with d-transposition of the great arteries status post atrial switch procedure: a comparison with cardiac magnetic resonance imaging

Background Patients with d-transposition of the great arteries (D-TGA), status post atrial switch, are at risk for developing systemic right ventricular (RV) dysfunction. Echocardiographic (Echo) assessment of RV function is subjective because complex RV geometry does not allow accurate determination of ejection fraction (EF). RVEF measured by cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is the gold standard for quantitative assessment of systemic RV function. New Echo measures of ventricular deformation allow for quantitative assessment of RV function. The primary aim was to explore the correlation of global peak longitudinal strain (GPLS) of the systemic RV with MRI RVEF for patients with D-TGA status post atrial switch. The secondary aim was to characterize MRI and clinical findings in this population.
THU0337 Evaluation of High-Throughput Platforms for Digital Antinuclear Antibody (ANA) Indirect Immunofluorescence (IFA) Screening

Background ANA screening is a gateway test in the laboratory evaluation of autoimmunity. High-throughput enzyme immunoassays (EIAs) have largely replaced traditional IFA methods but have raised concerns about the limited number of antigen specificities included on immunobeads and about batch variation of antigen content in cell lysate based EIAs. A return to traditional, manual ANA IFA is impeded by labor intensity, lack of standardization, interobserver variation, and the need for highly-trained technical staff. Objectives A high-throughput IFA method with observer consistency and ease of quality control and monitoring is desirable. To find such a method, we evaluated the performance of 3 commercial platforms for digital ANA IFA image acquisition and analysis. Methods The 3 digital ANA IFA platforms each employed proprietary HEp-2 slides and antihuman IgG fluorescein conjugates. Results were compared with those obtained using manual IFA on a proprietary HEp-2 cell substrate that used an antihuman polyvalent immunoglobulin conjugate. Results were interpreted by a single senior laboratory scientist. Results Normal donor (n=120) and ≥153 patient samples submitted for testing were evaluated by manual ANA IFA and on each digital platform. Initial platform screening using the original factory settings indicated the need to adjust the instrument threshold of positivity to approximate the performance of the manual method, which we used as the gold standard. For platform 1, fluorescence intensity positive threshold values of 66, 147, 180, 219, and 280 Units yielded sensitivities of 98%, 90%, 90%, 86%, and 83%, and specificities of 33%, 71%, 78%, 86%, and 92%, respectively. Digital platform specificity was low before we adjusted the threshold for positivity. After detection thresholds were optimized, all 3 platforms were evaluated against the manual IFA (Table). Aligning the platform threshold for positivity with that of the manual method improved specificity without significantly altering sensitivity. Discordant samples tended to have low titer by digital or manual methods. Samples negative by the digital methods but positive by the manual method tended to have nucleolar ANA patterns, several with moderate titers. Conclusions Thresholds based on total field intensity units may fail to recognize more discrete patterns such as nucleolar or nuclear dots. Technologists should review all images generated on digital platforms to confirm positivity versus negativity and identify patterns that may be overlooked by digital analysis algorithms. Disclosure of Interest F. Zarabpouri Employee of: Quest Diagnostics Nichols Institute, M.-L. Zambales Employee of: Quest Diagnostics Nichols Institute, V. Miralles Employee of: Quest Diagnostics Nichols Institute, T. Pizarro Employee of: Quest Diagnostics Nichols Institute, J. Popov Employee of: Quest Diagnostics Nichols Institute, S. Naides Employee of: Quest Diagnostics Nichols Institute
Biatrial Tachycardia: Distinguishing Between Active and Passive Activation.

The approach to successful ablation of arrhythmias is based on elucidating the underlying mechanism and relative dimensions of the tachycardia circuit. Activation mapping readily distinguishes macroreentry from focal arrhythmias, the latter of which have centrifugal spread. When macroreentrant atrial tachycardia is suspected, entrainment maneuvers with atrial overdrive pacing at various anatomic sites help differentiate right-sided from left-sided circuits. Based on the difference between the postpacing interval (PPI) and tachycardia cycle length (TCL), the proximity of the pacing site to the reentrant circuit can be assessed.1 However, even in a reentrant tachycardia, a short PPI–TCL interval (< 30 ms) may not always reliably identify whether the pacing site is within the tachycardia circuit, particularly when widely disparate locations seem to be “in the circuit”. In these cases, it is important to return to the fundamental principles of entrainment and to recognize the subtle changes in antidromic and orthodromic wavefronts in response to overdrive pacing that help to correctly identify the tachycardia circuit. See Editor’s Perspective by Asirvatham and Stevenson A 57-year-old man with a history of hypertension, hyperlipidemia, coronary artery disease, rheumatic heart disease, and 5 previous surgeries for mechanical aortic and mitral valve replacements and coronary artery bypass grafting presented with 6 months of worsening dyspnea on exertion that correlated with the onset of persistent atrial tachycardia (Figure 1). In the electrophysiology laboratory, the patient’s clinical atrial TCL was 360 ms. Diagnostic catheters were placed to encircle the tricuspid annulus within the coronary sinus (CS) and at the superior margin of the tricuspid annulus to record the His bundle (Figure 2A). Entrainment mapping demonstrated a short PPI–TCL from the cavotricuspid isthmus (CTI; Figure 2B), the proximal CS (Figure 2C), and the superior tricuspid annulus (Figure 2D). Entrainment from the distal CS also showed a PPI–TCL of 0 ms (Figure …
A Comparative Study of Open Surgical and Percutaneous Renal Biopsies

AbstractPercutaneous renal biopsy was performed on 171 patients during the same interval as an open surgical biopsy was done on 100 patients in the same hospital. Patients who underwent an open biopsy had more severe renal dysfunction and hypertension than those who had a percutaneous biopsy. Tissue adequate for diagnosis was obtained in 100 per cent of the open biopsies. The kidney was reached in 88 per cent of all percutaneous biopsies with tissue adequate for diagnosis in 82.5 per cent. Of 87 patients biopsied with image-amplification fluoroscopy renal tissue was obtained in 97 per cent with tissue adequate for diagnosis in 92 per cent. No nephrectomies were done and no deaths occurred in either group. Our complications and yield by percutaneous biopsy compared favorably to those of other series. Further, open biopsy in a high risk population was associated with a high yield of tissue adequate for diagnosis with no increase in complications. Procurement of renal tissue need rarely be denied a patient i...
Skeletal Actions of Insulin

Insulin and the insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) are among the most familiar and widely studied growth factors. These related molecules evolved from a common precursor system comprised of a single receptor and multiple ligands that functioned in lower animals to enable a broad range of physiologic processes, including smell, food consumption, metabolism, growth, reproduction, and dormancy. In higher organisms, including mammals, the insulin and IGF ligands and their receptors evolved more circumscribed functions: IGFs are viewed as central to cell proliferation, survival, and organism growth, and insulin serves primarily in the regulation of fuel accumulation, storage, and energy expenditure. Such a simplistic paradigm, however, overlooks the fact that insulin and IGF-1 continue to exert overlapping roles in several physiologic processes. Indeed, recent studies have identified new skeletal actions of insulin, which suggest that insulin-responsive bone cells participate in the regulation of global energy homeostasis. Such findings raise new questions on the nature of the fuel sensing and processing mechanisms in bone and their relative importance to overall energy homeostasis in mammals. This chapter reviews our current understanding of insulin’s role in bone in the context of these recent findings and identifies key areas where additional work is needed.
New Paradigms in Securing Software Vulnerabilities – An Institutional Analysis of Emerging Bug Bounty Programs and Their Implications for Cybersecurity

This working paper applies institutional economics theory (North, 1990) to examine the recent developments of bug bounty programs. A software vulnerability, commonly referred to as a bug, is a security flaw in computer code. Until the bug is fixed with a software patch, it presents a security loophole and may be exploited in a cyber attack. Major software companies, among them Microsoft, Adobe, and Oracle, received considerable media attention in 2013 and 2014 for severe security issues and breaches. Some of their widely used applications were in danger of being exploited based on previously unknown code vulnerabilities. Given software companies’ incentives to fix vulnerabilities in their software, major software vendors significantly adapted their approaches in recent years by more openly incorporating externally gathered vulnerability information. Google, Microsoft, and Facebook, for instance, created structured programs where bug hunters can submit their digital prey, in exchange for a bounty. Depending on the severity and significance of a security vulnerability, the bounty price may range from a few hundred US dollars up to USD 100,000.
Properties of the Visible Light Phototaxis and UV Avoidance Behaviors in the Larval Zebrafish.

For many organisms, color is an essential source of information from visual scenes. The larval zebrafish has the potential to be a model for the study of this topic, given its tetrachromatic retina and high dependence on vision. In this study we took a step towards understanding how the larval zebrafish might use color sensing. To this end, we used a projector-based paradigm to force a choice of a color stimulus at every turn of the larva. The stimuli used spanned most of the larval spectral range, including activation of its Ultraviolet (UV) cone, which has not been described behaviorally before. We found that zebrafish larvae swim towards visible wavelengths (>400 nm) when choosing between them and darkness, as has been reported with white light. However, when presented with UV light and darkness zebrafish show an intensity dependent avoidance behavior. This UV avoidance does not interact cooperatively with phototaxis towards longer wavelengths but can compete against it in an intensity dependent manner. Finally, we show that the avoidance behavior depends on the presence of eyes with functional UV cones. These findings open future avenues for studying the neural circuits that underlie color sensing in the larval zebrafish.
Cooperation, co-optation, competition, conflict: international bureaucracies and non-governmental organizations in an interdependent world

ABSTRACTInternational bureaucrats employed in inter-governmental organizations (IGOs) have a stake in the solidification and expansion of traditional global governance structures. Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) often are thought to be threats to IGOs. But international bureaucracies regularly seek cooperation with NGOs that can help in ‘cross-national layering’: the creation of formal or informal international institutions that overlay domestic institutions, seeking to replace or subsume them over time. This article develops a ‘4Cs taxonomy’ in which shared/unshared resource bases and shared/unshared values translate into cooperative, co-optative, competitive, or conflictual relations between NGOs and international bureaucracies. It then examines the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) over a 70-year period, showing how different mixes of resources and values help to explain why FAO bureaucrats have cycled through different relationships with NGOs. This exemplifies themes of the New Interdepend...
Conrad and the Imaginative Shades

Norman Sherry’s valuable research on the sources of the Greenwich bombing has influenced generations of Conradian commentary, but some of the underlying assumptions—that Conrad researched his sources intensively where he was not drawing directly on memory or experience, and that where Conrad diverges from documentary source material he shows his conservative authorial bias—are challenged here with an examination of some of Sherry’s assumptions in The Set of Six short stories, focusing especially on “An Anarchist.”
Power Grid State Estimation Following a Joint Cyber and Physical Attack

This paper focuses on joint cyber and physical attacks on power grids and presents methods to retrieve the grid state information following such an attack. We consider a model where an adversary attacks a zone by physically disconnecting some of its power lines and blocking the information flow from the zone to the grid's control center. We use tools from linear algebra and graph theory and leverage the properties of the linearized power flow model to develop methods for information recovery. Using information observed outside the attacked zone, these methods recover information about the disconnected lines and the phase angles at the buses . We identify sufficient conditions on the zone structure and constraints on the attack characteristics such that these methods can recover the information. We also show that it is NP-hard to find an approximate solution to the problem of partitioning the power grid into the minimum number of attack-resilient zones. However, since power grids can often be represented by planar graphs, we develop a constant approximation partitioning algorithm for these graphs and numerically demonstrate its performance on real power grids.
Management of Percutaneous Coronary Intervention Complications

With the recent increase in complex coronary interventions including percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for chronic total occlusions and complex higher risk (and indicated) patients, the spectrum of potential periprocedural complications and their prompt management has become even more relevant. Vascular access-related problems remain the most prevalent of all PCI complications and with randomized controlled trial data from over 20,000 patients supporting the superiority of radial over femoral access in reducing bleeding and vascular complications, a default radial strategy should be promoted. The European Society of Cardiology guidelines have acknowledged this by giving a class 1 (level of evidence: A) recommendation for a radial approach for PCI. The US society guidelines, however, have thus far lagged behind. Each individual patient undergoing a PCI should be risk-stratified objectively using available risk prediction models based on patient comorbidities and anatomical and procedural complexities. Customized informed consent should therefore be provided to all patients and should include the potential risks from radiation injury. Here, we review the current data related to common periprocedural complications related to PCI.
Solid-state circuits: Gallium arsenide spawns speed: Monolithic digital circuits employing `MESFET¿ devices promise multigigabit and higher data rates

Monolithic digital circuits employing `MESFET' devices promise multigigabit and higher data rates. The basic operation of MESFET is described.
Flap Basics II: Advancement Flaps

A mastery of advancement flap design, selection, and execution greatly aids the surgeon in solving reconstructive dilemmas. Advancement flaps involve carefully planned incisions to most efficiently close a primary defect in a linear vector. Advancement flaps are subcategorized as unipedicle, bipedicle, V-to-Y, and Y-to-V flaps, each with their own advantages and disadvantages. When selecting and designing an advancement flap, the surgeon must account for primary and secondary movement to prevent distortion of important facial structural units and boundaries.
I’ve Got My Family and My Faith: Black Women and the Suicide Paradox:

Although existing suicide literature proposes black women’s strong religious ties and social networks protect them against suicide, few studies offer black women’s perceptions. The present study ex...
Sequential monte carlo in probabilistic planning reachability heuristics

The current best conformant probabilistic planners encode the problem as a bounded length CSP or SAT problem. While these approaches can find optimal solutions for given plan lengths, they often do not scale for large problems or plan lengths. As has been shown in classical planning, heuristic search outperforms CSP/SAT techniques (especially when a plan length is not given a priori). The problem with applying heuristic search in probabilistic planning is that effective heuristics are as yet lacking. In this work, we apply heuristic search to conformant probabilistic planning by adapting planning graph heuristics developed for non-deterministic planning. We evaluate a straight-forward application of these planning graph techniques, which amounts to exactly computing the distribution over reachable relaxed planning graph layers. Computing these distributions is costly, so we apply Sequential Monte Carlo to approximate them. We demonstrate on several domains how our approach enables our planner to far out-scale existing (optimal) probabilistic planners and still find reasonable quality solutions.
ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL ASPECTS OF BIO-ENERGY PRODUCTIVITY

ABSTRACT Human economy is closely interlinked with the natural development. Any developmental and economic activity is followed by the consumption of energy and subsequent waste generation thereof. In this regard, bio-energy has to be accorded full priority as it stimulates our body and brain and also provides physical forms of energy which is economically viable and environmentally benign. In fact, for the majority of the third world population, bio-energy is the key source of their livelihood. Hence, bio-energy productivity has to be enhanced by research and development so as to ensure it's vital role.
Eyes on the Skies

Much of what we know about the universe at large has come to us in the form of light—from stars, planets, galaxies, and other collections of luminous and illuminated matter. Light is just a small portion of a continuous spectrum of electromagnetic radiation—a portion to which our eyes happen to be sensitive and which our brains can distinguish as separate colors. Electromagnetic radiation is emitted by matter. Later we shall see in some detail how that comes about.
Discerning the Meaning of Humanae Vitae

The landmark encyclical Humanae Vitae is frequently viewed in isolation from its context. This essay addresses this lapse by understanding the encyclical in light of the history which preceded its ...
Initial Outcomes of an Online Continuing Education Series Focused on Post-treatment Cancer Survivorship Care.

There is a growing number of post-treatment cancer survivors in the USA. Cancer survivors can have a variety of care needs and health care professionals must be prepared to meet these needs. The American Cancer Society (ACS) and the George Washington University (GW) Cancer Center developed The Cancer Survivorship E-Learning Series for Primary Care Providers (E-Learning Series) to address the need for cancer survivorship training and education among health care professionals with a focus on primary care. The GW Cancer Center analyzed evaluation data from 1341 learners who voluntarily completed a module pre- and post-assessment between April 15, 2013, and December 31, 2017, to assess differences in self-rated confidence, on a five-point Likert scale, to meet learning objectives. Descriptive statistics characterize the sample and paired samples t tests were used to assess any statistically significant differences from pre to post (p < 0.05). Most learners were nurses (75.19%) and a majority of learners worked in oncology (74.68%) followed by primary care (11.60%). At pre-assessment, the module with the lowest mean self-confidence rating was 3.16 (SD = 0.81) and the highest was 3.60 (SD = 0.73). At post-assessment, module means in self-confidence rating ranged from 4.08 (SD = 0.46) to 4.26 (SD = 0.56). All differences were statistically significant (p < 0.0001). Results highlight gaps in confidence among health care professionals regarding cancer survivorship care and the need for continuing education. There is also a need for additional uptake of the E-Learning Series among primary care providers. Results suggest that the E-Learning Series is an effective educational tool that increases learners’ confidence in providing cancer survivorship care.
Patron-Driven Acquisition (PDA)

This article outlines the issues and challenges of libraries working with patron-driven acquisition (PDA) or demand-driven acquisitions. Several suggestions are made to improve PDA for librarians a...
Reducing Aggressive Behaviors in Special and Regular Class Settings by Training Alternative Social Responses

The study investigated the relationship between setting events and the performance of aggressive behaviors by two junior high school special education students in three public school settings. The ...
Does the source matter? Social support and suicide attempts among homeless youth

The impact of social support on suicide is understudied among youth experiencing homelessness (YEH). This is problematic because assumptions about the protectiveness of relationships may not generalize to conflictive YEH environments. This study, which included 1047 YEH, used path modeling with a logistic regression estimator to examine associations between social support from family, home-based friends, and street-based friends and past-year suicide attempt. Social support from home-based friends but not family or street-based friends decreased suicide attempt risk. Moreover, social support from home-based friends moderated the association between depression and attempt risk. Targeted programming strengthening home-based-friend relationships represents a valuable endeavor.
Characterization of biomaterials

Goals After reading this chapter the student will understand the following. The principles underlying various instruments typically used for the characterization of biomaterials. The use of different instruments for biomaterials characterization. During the development phase of any medical devices or implants, it is essential that the biomaterials used are thoroughly characterized. The material’s surface properties are important because it is the implant’s surface where the body’s biology and the material first interact. On the other hand, the bulk properties of the material determine its mechanical and physical behavior and its long-term viability. Of course, the material’s chemical properties influence its stability, biocompatibility, and the body’s reaction to it. Since a material possesses different physical and chemical properties, the analytical instruments used for characterizing these properties can be broadly classified under the following three categories: surface characterization, bulk characterization, and chromatographic analysis. The use of multiple characterization techniques is essential for complete analysis of the surface and bulk properties of a biomaterial. When a material is implanted in the body, protein adsorption almost instantaneously occurs on the material surface. Hence, the cells do not directly interact with the material surface but only through the layer of proteins adsorbed on the surface. This adsorption of proteins is governed by a combination of different surface characteristics of the material including surface energy, surface chemistry, surface texture, and surface roughness. The use of contact angle measurement provides information about the material’s surface energy, whereas Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) provide information on the material’s surface chemistry at different depths. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) provides details about the material’s surface texture, whereas atomic force microscopy (AFM) allows for measurement of the material’s surface roughness. Thus, data collection using different analytical instruments provides in-depth information regarding the material’s surface and assists in predicting how surface properties would influence the biological outcome.
Household responses to escalating violence in Mexico

Despite catastrophic fallout from the Mexican drug war, headlines fail to capture the full cost to civilians. Using three waves of survey data on the same households, conducted between 2002 to 2012...
Complex bubble deformation and break-up dynamics studies using interface capturing approach

The dynamics of bubble deformation has significant impacts on two-phase flow fundamentals such as bubble induced turbulence and flow regime transition. Despite the significant progress achieved by experimental studies on bubble deformation, certain limitations still exist especially for wide-range datasets. To significantly expand the flow conditions available from experiments, direct numerical simulation (DNS) is utilized to study the bubble-liquid interactions using finite-element solver with level-set interface capturing method. Different from conventional investigations of bubble rising and deforming in stagnant liquids, a proportional-integral-derivative (PID) bubble controller is leveraged to maintain the bubble location in uniform liquid flow. This paper evaluates the reliability and reproducibility of the PID bubble controller for complex bubble deformation studies through a comprehensive set of verification and validation studies. An improved bubble deformation map is developed, based on Weber number and bubble Reynolds number, showing six zones for different deformation and break-up mechanisms. This research aims at producing virtual experiment level data source using interface resolved DNS and shedding light into the physics of interface dynamics. The insights obtained can be further incorporated in improved multiphase CFD models to guide the engineering designs and industrial processes where bubble deformation and break-up play a pivotal role.
Ancillary testing including barostat, SPECT, and satiety testing

Abstract Gastroparesis presents with cardinal symptoms suggesting a gastroduodenal origin and is diagnosed by demonstrating delayed gastric emptying. However, most patients with gastroparesis symptoms exhibit normal emptying and alternatively are given diagnoses of functional gastroduodenal disorders. This observation along with poor correlation of gastric emptying with symptom severity suggest that symptom generation results from other factors, including hypersensitivity to distention and altered gastric accommodation to meal ingestion. Selected ancillary tests have been proposed to quantify abnormal sensitivity and accommodation in suspected gastroparesis, but none have been adopted in widespread clinical practice. Barostat methods glean reliable measures of both parameters but are invasive and uncomfortable, while single photon emission tomography is better tolerated but is hampered by radiation exposure and limited availability. Satiety tests are simple to perform, however their physiologic meaning remains uncertain. Future investigation is required to validate ancillary testing in routine evaluation of unexplained symptoms suggestive of gastroparesis.
Semantically Augmented Range Queries over Heterogeneous Geospatial Data

Geospatial data integration combines two or more data layers to facilitate advanced querying, analysis, reasoning, and visualization. In general, different layers (e.g., ZIP codes, census blocks, school districts, and land use parcels) have different spatial partitions and different types of associated semantic descriptors. In addition, geospatial data may contain errors (e.g., due to imprecision in the measurements or to representation constraints) causing uncertainty that needs to be incorporated and quantified in the query answers. In this paper, we leverage semantic descriptors in heterogeneous information layers to build a data structure that enables efficient processing of geospatial range queries by returning an estimate of the answer together with an error bound. We present the processing algorithms and evaluate our approach by means of experiments that encompass large datasets, demonstrating the benefits of our approach.
Keeping Black Girls in School: A Systematic Review of Opportunities to Address Exclusionary Discipline Disparity:

A punitive legacy of the responses to school shootings in the United States is the expansion of exclusionary discipline. Black girls have disproportionately experienced this form of punishment as c...
Textile-Grade Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Polycarbonate Composites: Effect of Epoxy Sizing

Epoxy-sized textile-grade polyacrylonitrile (PAN) carbon fiber (TCF) with 450 K filaments (CFTF, ORNL) was reinforced in the polycarbonate (PC) matrix using a compression molding technique. The epo...
Biofilm self-patterning: mechanical force landscaping drives a collective reorientation cascade

Abstract During development, cells often self-organize into distinctive patterns with long-range orientational order. However, the mechanism by which long-range order emerges through complex interactions, particularly in the prokaryotic domain, remains elusive. Here we report, in growing Vibrio cholerae biofilms, a reorientation cascade consisting of cell verticalization in the core and radial alignment in the rim, generating a pattern reminiscent of a blooming aster. Single-cell imaging combined with agent-based simulations reveal that cell verticalization and radial alignment are spatiotemporally coupled, each generating the driving force for the other, to cause a dynamic cascade of differential orientational ordering. Such self-patterning is absent in nonadherent mutants but can be restored through opto-manipulation of growth. A two-phase active nematic model is developed to elucidate the mechanism underlying biofilm self-patterning, which offers insights into the control of organization in complex bacterial communities. One-Sentence Summary Bacterial biofilms robustly pattern themselves through orientation-dependent, growth induced flows.
Master of Deception: The Wartime Adventures of Peter Fleming

This work hones in on an understudied aspect of World War II deception that fell under the purview of the South East Asia Command (SEAC). Though many are aware of the work of the London Controlling...
Effect of neutral salts on the formation and dissociation of protein aggregates

A theoretical framework is presented for the treatment of solvent-mediated behavior observed with polymerizing systems. It has been found that the surface tension and the bulk dielectric constant of the medium play a major role in determining the energetics of the polymerization or depolymerization process. The effect of salt is accounted for by specific binding, by electrostatic effects, which are treated on the basis of the Debye-Huckel theory, and by salt-induced changes in the surface tension. Literature data on the effect of various salts on the depolymerization of apo-D(—)-β-hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase observed chromatographically, on the actin G-F equilibrium, and in flagellin polymerization show the theoretically predicted behavior. The influence of organic solvents in the medium can be treated in a similar fashion as demonstrated by observed dependence of the activation energy of actin-F polymerization on the concentration of ethanol.
Organizational Resilience: How Learning Sustains Organizations in Crisis, Disaster, and Breakdown

Preface Introduction: Learning as the Source of Resilience Part I: Experience as the Source of Learning in Organizations Chapter 1: Learning from Experience Chapter 2: The Structure of Learning in Organizations Chapter 3: Learning versus Performance in the Air France Flight 447 Disaster Part II: The Breakdown of Learning Chapter 4: A Review of Failure in Organizations Chapter 5: From Failure to the Breakdown of Learning Chapter 6: How Optimism and Positive Thinking Can Limit Learning Chapter 7: Goal Setting as an Unlikely Threat to Learning Chapter 8: Experience and Decision Making Part III: Building Resilience through Learning Chapter 9: Case Study: Learning From the Search for Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq Chapter 10: Revisiting the Universal Dilemma of Learning in Policy, Government, and Organizational Culture Chapter 11: Building Learning in Organizations References Index
SiGe MMICs and flip-chip MICs for low-cost microwave systems

Recent Progress in SiGe device technology has improved cutoff frequencies of these devices to beyond 200 GHz. This work describes two approaches for implementing distributed structures with Si substrates: microstrip transmission lines using thick polyimide over a ground plane on the substrate (polyimide MMIC) and small Si devices or chips flip-chip mounted onto a microwave circuit board containing the distributed elements (flip-chip MIC). Microwave circuits such as amplifiers, oscillators, mixers, and frequency dividers have been demonstrated using both techniques.
Classification of ideal homomorphic threshold schemes over finite Abelian groups

Threshold schemes allow any t out of l individuals to recompute a secret (key). General sharing schemes are a generalization. In homomorphic sharing schemes the "product" of shares of the keys gives a share of the product of the keys. We prove that there exist infinitely many Abelian groups over which there does not exist an ideal homomorphic threshold scheme. Additionally we classify ideal homomorphic general sharing schemes. We discuss the potential impact of our result on the construction of general sharing schemes.