cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Impact of postoperative hemodynamics in patients with functional single ventricle undergoing Fontan completion before weighing 10 kg.

Background Although the Fontan procedure is now being performed in younger patients, the influence of the early timing of Fontan on midterm to long-term results remains unclear. We investigated whether the timing of Fontan completion affects subsequent hemodynamics in patients with functional single ventricle followed for more than 3 years. Methods Between January 1997 and December 2008, 163 patients with functional single ventricle underwent extracardiac total cavopulmonary connection (TCPC) at a single institution. The survivors routinely underwent postoperative catheterization at 1 year and then every 5 years after TCPC and were divided into group A (weight 10 kg; n=97), and retrospectively reviewed. Results Mean follow-up was 6.6 ± 3.7 years. Mean weight and conduit size were 8.5 ± 0.8 kg and 17.1 ± 1.2 mm for group A versus 20.2 ± 13.1 kg and 18.8 ± 1.9 mm for group B, respectively ( p p p p = 0.0037) and at 5 years ( p = 0.047) was significantly lower in group A compared with group B. Conclusions TCPC can be performed earlier with good intermediate results. Earlier unloading of a univentricular heart by means of TCPC might be advantageous for preservation of future ventricular function.
Tetrahydrobiopterin Restores Diastolic Function and Attenuates Superoxide Production in Ovariectomized mRen2.Lewis Rats

Chronic BH4 supplementation improves diastolic function, attenuates cardiac remodeling, and reduces oxidative stress in female mRen2.Lewis rats following the loss of ovarian hormones.
Rate-Independent and Rate-Dependent Models for Hysteretic Behavior of Elastomers

Rate-independent and rate-dependent models are presented for the hysteretic shear stress-strain behavior of elastomeric damping materials. A rate-independent hysteretic model, called the general asymptote and power function (GAPF) model, is presented that simulates different types of hysteretic behavior depending on the selected asymptote function. A rate-dependent hysteretic model, formed from a parallel combination of the GAPF model and a dashpot, is also presented which simulates loading frequency dependent behavior in addition to strain amplitude dependent behavior. Closed-form expressions for the shear stress as a function of shear strain are provided for each model. The models are calibrated for three different damping materials, and good correlation between experimental and analytical hysteretic behavior is observed. The models are investigated under variable cyclic loading. To prevent unrealistic stress values (overshooting) after a small strain reversal followed by reloading, a sequential asymptote model is introduced, based on the GAPF model. The hysteretic models were incorporated into a finite-element program within an elastomeric damper element, and the results of nonlinear time history analyses of a building structure with elastomeric dampers under simulated earthquake loading are presented to illustrate behavior of the hysteretic models under several loading histories.
Toward the Restoration of Hand Use to a Paralyzed Monkey: Brain-Controlled Functional Electrical Stimulation of Forearm Muscles

Loss of hand use is considered by many spinal cord injury survivors to be the most devastating consequence of their injury. Functional electrical stimulation (FES) of forearm and hand muscles has been used to provide basic, voluntary hand grasp to hundreds of human patients. Current approaches typically grade pre-programmed patterns of muscle activation using simple control signals, such as those derived from residual movement or muscle activity. However, the use of such fixed stimulation patterns limits hand function to the few tasks programmed into the controller. In contrast, we are developing a system that uses neural signals recorded from a multi-electrode array implanted in the motor cortex; this system has the potential to provide independent control of multiple muscles over a broad range of functional tasks. Two monkeys were able to use this cortically controlled FES system to control the contraction of four forearm muscles despite temporary limb paralysis. The amount of wrist force the monkeys were able to produce in a one-dimensional force tracking task was significantly increased. Furthermore, the monkeys were able to control the magnitude and time course of the force with sufficient accuracy to track visually displayed force targets at speeds reduced by only one-third to one-half of normal. Although these results were achieved by controlling only four muscles, there is no fundamental reason why the same methods could not be scaled up to control a larger number of muscles. We believe these results provide an important proof of concept that brain-controlled FES prostheses could ultimately be of great benefit to paralyzed patients with injuries in the mid-cervical spinal cord.
A Simulation of the Effect of Sun Reflections from Chrome Surfaces on Visual Performance in a Variety of Viewing Situations

A computer simulation was used to examine the effect of sun image reflections from satinized and curved bright chrome surfaces on the visual performance of the driver. The simulation showed curved bright chrome to be at least as effective as standard, flat satin chrome in reducing glare. Visual performance measured by reduction in perceived contrast was simulated in a variety of viewing situations representing several levels of severity. A maximum allowable reduction of preceived contrast in a criterion viewing situation is suggested as the basis for a reflectance standard for automotive chrome trim.
A survey on the light-fastness properties of organic-based Alaska Native artifacts

Abstract A series of light-fastness tests were conducted on a group of ethnographic objects that will be on exhibit at the Smithsonian Institution Arctic Studies Center, a recent addition to the Anchorage Museum at Rasmuson Center in Alaska. The objects surveyed belong to the collections of the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History and the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian. This work was designed as a feasibility study on the use of a micro-fading tester as a non-contact and non-destructive technique to evaluate the light-stability of materials present in ethnographic collections. A broad range of objects containing a wide variety of materials were selected for the study. The materials investigated included a variety of dyes applied on silk, cotton, and wool substrates along with some unusual materials such as tanned skin and seal gut skin. The results from this investigation have allowed establishing exhibition recommendations taking into consideration the sensitivity of each object, light levels in the museum building, and estimated light exposures based on the duration of the exhibit. The micro-fading tester has proven to be a very useful tool for determining the light-stability of ethnographic materials without causing any harm to the objects. Objects containing equivalent materials are usually classified under a general category based on their probable sensitivity to light. However, micro-fading test results have permitted the detection of dissimilarities among some of these objects, which could be associated to variations in prior fading histories, the quality of raw materials, and different preparation methods.
Measurements, Causes, and Effects of Creativity

In this article, I express my appreciation for the Korean teacher who recognized my potential and my American mentors who helped me identify the creative energy in myself. I discuss how living a “wonderful” Korean life smothered the essence of my being. Next, the overview of my research in creativity is discussed in 3 categories: measurement of creativity, causes of creativity, and effects of creativity. One effect of creativity summarizes how creativity can manifest itself as either a gift or a curse. The article ends with affirming that individualism promotes creativity and a discussion of the direction of my future research, which centers on helping students and adults identify the creative energy in themselves.
Is Pulsatile Blood Flow No Longer Essential

The heart’s natural provision of pulsatile blood flow has been regarded as an essential requirement for normal organ function, especially critical organs such as the kidney, liver, and brain. However, in this issue of Circulation , Russell and colleagues1 have demonstrated that this tenet of medicine is no longer accurate. Their study examined the long-term impact of nonpulsatile blood flow as provided by a new generation of so-called continuous-flow left ventricular assist devices (LVADs), in this case the Heartmate II LVAD (Thoratec Corp, Pleasanton, Calif), on end-organ function in patients with refractory heart failure awaiting a heart transplant. These pumps draw blood from the left ventricle via a drainage cannula placed in the LV apex on a continuous basis and propel the blood by a rotary pump back into the circulation in a nonphasic flow pattern2 through a return cannula connected to the aorta. The major findings of the Heartmate II clinical trial, including both the primary cohort2 and a larger number of patients enrolled in the continuous-access protocol,3 have previously been reported. Article see p 2352 This study examined the biochemical markers of hepatic and kidney function over a 6-month period after implantation of the Heartmate II LVAD in a cohort of 309 patients who were enrolled in the Heartmate II trial.2,3 These patients all had severe heart failure at the time of …
Electron loss in MeV/u collisions between many-electron projectiles and targets

Abstract Ionization cross-sections have been measured for MeV/u, low-charge-state, heavy ions colliding with many-electron targets. Single and multiple electron removal from the projectile are compared for these low-charge-state ions with similar data obtained using more highly charged projectiles. It is shown that although there are large differences in magnitudes and behavior as a function of incoming charge state between the low and high charge state data, strong similarities exist when the charge state fractions are plotted as a function of the number and type of outermost subshell electrons.
Lesion Macrophages Are a Key Target for the Antiatherogenic Effects of LXR Agonists

The Liver X Receptors (LXRα and LXRβ) are members of the nuclear hormone receptor superfamily.1 These sterol-responsive transcription factors regulate the expression of a number of genes involved in intestinal cholesterol absorption, conversion of cholesterol to bile acids, and reverse cholesterol transport. Activation of LXRs blocks cholesterol absorption and induces cholesterol efflux from lipid-loaded cells such as macrophages. Because increased cholesterol efflux is predicted to limit the transformation of macrophages into atherosclerotic foam cells, LXR activity is predicted to be antiatherogenic. This hypothesis is supported by several studies using mice genetically deficient in LXR expression. Previous work from Tangirala and colleagues established that selective elimination of macrophage LXRα and LXRβ expression in the bone marrow compartment results in accelerated disease in both the spontaneous (ApoE−/−) and Western-diet inducible (LDLR−/−) models of atherosclerosis.2 Furthermore, LXRαβ double knockout mice fed a normal chow diet exhibit increased cholesterol accumulation in the macrophages of their arterial walls.2,3 In addition to their effects on cholesterol metabolism, activation of the LXRs by synthetic agonists has an inhibitory effect on inflammatory gene expression in macrophages, pointing to a second potential antiatherogenic mechanism of these receptors.4 Finally, recent studies suggest that the ability of microbial infections to modify the development of atherosclerosis may be accomplished in part through interference with the LXR signaling pathway and macrophage cholesterol metabolism.5 See page 135 Collectively, these studies point to LXRs as potential therapeutic targets for the treatment or prevention of atherosclerosis. However, it …
Expansion of the calcium hypothesis of brain aging and Alzheimer's disease: minding the store

Evidence accumulated over more than two decades has implicated Ca2+ dysregulation in brain aging and Alzheimer's disease (AD), giving rise to the Ca2+ hypothesis of brain aging and dementia. Electrophysiological, imaging, and behavioral studies in hippocampal or cortical neurons of rodents and rabbits have revealed aging-related increases in the slow afterhyperpolarization, Ca2+ spikes and currents, Ca2+ transients, and L-type voltage-gated Ca2+ channel (L-VGCC) activity. Several of these changes have been associated with age-related deficits in learning or memory. Consequently, one version of the Ca2+ hypothesis has been that increased L-VGCC activity drives many of the other Ca2+-related biomarkers of hippocampal aging. In addition, other studies have reported aging- or AD model-related alterations in Ca2+ release from ryanodine receptors (RyR) on intracellular stores. The Ca2+-sensitive RyR channels amplify plasmalemmal Ca2+ influx by the mechanism of Ca2+-induced Ca2+ release (CICR). Considerable evidence indicates that a preferred functional link is present between L-VGCCs and RyRs which operate in series in heart and some brain cells. Here, we review studies implicating RyRs in altered Ca2+ regulation in cell toxicity, aging, and AD. A recent study from our laboratory showed that increased CICR plays a necessary role in the emergence of Ca2+-related biomarkers of aging. Consequently, we propose an expanded L-VGCC/Ca2+ hypothesis, in which aging/pathological changes occur in both L-type Ca2+ channels and RyRs, and interact to abnormally amplify Ca2+ transients. In turn, the increased transients result in dysregulation of multiple Ca2+-dependent processes and, through somewhat different pathways, in accelerated functional decline during aging and AD.
Three-reflection halfwave and quarterwave retarders using dielectric-coated metallic mirrors.

A design procedure is described to determine the thicknesses of single-layer coatings of a given dielectric on a given metallic substrate so that a specified net phase retardance (and/or a net relative amplitude attenuation) between the p and s polarizations is achieved after three reflections from a symmetrical arrangement of three mirrors that maintain collinearity of the input and output beams. Examples are presented of halfwave and quarterwave retarders (HWR and QWR) that use a ZnS–Ag film–substrate system at the CO2-laser wavelength λ = 10.6 μm. The equal net reflectances for the p and s polarizations are computed and found to be high (above 90%) for most designs. Sensitivity of the designs (deviation of the magnitude and phase of the ratio of net complex p and s reflection coefficients from design specifications) to small film-thickness and angle-of-incidence errors is examined, and useful operation over a small wavelength range (10–11 μm) is demonstrated.
Evolution, insights and challenges of the PHY layer for the emerging ieee 802.11n amendment

IEEE 802.11n is a newly emerged WLAN standard capable of providing dramatically increased throughput, as well as improved range, reduced signal fading, over the existing IEEE 802.11a/g WLAN standards. These benefits are achieved through use of MIMO (multiple-input,multiple-output). The latest draft for IEEE 802.11n describes rates up to 600 Mbps, exceeding the maximum rate with the 11a/g standards by more than ten times. In addition, techniques such as space-time block coding and beamforming provide the potential of increasing signal strength at the receiver with optimal efficiency, based on the diversity order used. In this paper, a comparative analysis of the physical (PHY) layers in the original main proposals for the 11n amendment (the TGn Sync, WWiSE and TGn Joint proposals) is presented. The key architectural differences governing the performance of these proposals are outlined. In addition, insights are provided into the choices leading to the TGn Joint proposal, which reflects the PHY architecture described in the 11n standard. The insights and challenges described relate to the choices made in the TGn Joint proposal regarding the areas of channel estimation (considering the use of beamforming, channel smoothing), bit interleaving techniques (for maximizing coding gain under channels with high frequency diversity), space-time block coding (STBC) options (designed in an effort to achieve a good balance between achieving high diversity gain and low receiver design complexity), and pilot tone selection (for a reasonable tradeoff of robustness and link-level performance). Performance curves (based on simulation models developed in MATLAB/SIMULINK) are used to verify the analysis presented. This paper also includes a discussion of some of the future challenges for the 11n amendment.
The effect of energy and seasonality on avian species richness and community composition.

Abstract: We analyzed geographic patterns of richness in both the breeding and winter season in relation to a remotely sensed index of seasonal production (normalized difference vegetation index [NDVI]) and to measures of habitat heterogeneity at four different spatial resolutions. The relationship between avian richness and NDVI was consistent between seasons, suggesting that the way in which available energy is converted to bird species is similar at these ecologically distinct times of year. The number and proportion of migrant species in breeding communities also increased predictably with the degree of seasonality. The NDVI was a much better predictor of seasonal richness at finer spatial scales, whereas habitat heterogeneity best predicted richness at coarser spatial resolutions. While we find strong support for a positive relationship between available energy and species richness, seasonal NDVI explained at most 61% of the variation in richness. Seasonal NDVI and habitat heterogeneity together expl...
The limits of international organization: systematic failure in the management of international relations

Contributors to the literature on international organization (IO) have traditionally been overly optimistic about the ability of multilateral management to stabilize in-ternational relations and have tended to ignore the destabilizing effects of IO. While recent revisionist scholarship has acknowledged both the potential for organizational failure and the conditionality of management, it has tended to focus on how IO fails within specific issue-areas and institutions. This article offers a typology of the inherent (systematic) failures of IO across issue-areas and institutions and thereby seeks to bridge the gaps in our understanding of why many different institutions and managerial schemes have adverse effects. It argues that IO is prone to failure (1) when it attempts to manage complex, tightly coupled systems of relations and issues; (2) when it serves as a substitute either for more substantive and long-term resolutions to international problems or for responsible domestic or foreign policy; (3) when it intensifies international disputes; and (4) when it generates moral hazard. In offering a general theoretical approach to understanding the destabilizing effects of IO, the analysis is intended to serve both as a focal point for understanding critical approaches to the study of IO and as an alternative rationale for eliminating the excesses of multilateral management.
Association Rule Data Mining Applications for Atlantic Tropical Cyclone Intensity Changes

AbstractThis study applies a data mining technique called association rule mining to the analysis of intensity changes of North Atlantic tropical cyclones (TCs). The “best track” data from the National Hurricane Center and the Statistical Hurricane Intensity Prediction Scheme databases were stratified into tropical depressions, tropical storms, and category 1–5 hurricanes based on the Saffir–Simpson hurricane scale. After stratification, the seven resulting groups of TCs plus two additional aggregation groups were further separated into intensifying, weakening, and stable TCs. The analysis of the stratified data for preprocessing revealed that faster northward storm motion (the meridional component of storm motion) favors tropical storm intensification but does not favor the intensification of hurricanes. Intensifying tropical storms are more strongly associated with a higher convergence in the upper atmosphere (200-hPa relative eddy momentum flux convergence) than weakening tropical storms, while intensi...
Synthesis and control of whole-body behaviors in humanoid systems

A great challenge for robotic systems is their ability to carry on complex manipulation and locomotion tasks while responding to the changing environment. There is a strong need to develop new control architectures that can provide advanced task capabilities and interactive skills for human environments. These architectures must be effective in coordinating whole-body behaviors for various control objectives while complying with balance stability, contact stance, and other dynamic constraints. In this thesis, we present a control methodology for the synthesis of realtime whole-body control behaviors in humanoid systems. The work is presented in three parts. First, we establish mathematical foundations that characterize the kinematic and dynamic behaviors of task and postural criteria under balance and contact stability constraints. We identify the dynamic behavior of postural tasks operating in the null space of operational tasks and we develop task-oriented controllers in postural space. These controllers are used to accomplish secondary goals and to optimize postural criteria without affecting priority tasks. Based on task and posture control decompositions we define recursive structures with multiple priority levels. These structures allow us to create controllers for all aspects of motion while ensuring that critical tasks are accomplished first. Exploiting prioritization, we address the control of dynamic constraints as priority tasks and we project operational tasks and postural criteria in the null space of all acting constraints. This strategy prevents lower priority tasks from violating the acting constraints. Second, we develop a variety of controllers to address the different aspects of the robot's motion. We propose position and force controllers to control the various task effectors of the robot. We use potential fields to handle dynamic constraints such as balance stability, joint limits, obstacle avoidance, and self-collisions. We develop posture controllers to enhance overall performance in terms of available workspace, resemblance to human poses, and optimization of actuation effort. Third, we tackle the synthesis of complex whole-body behaviors. To facilitate the creation of behaviors we develop control and behavioral abstractions that encapsulate behavior representation and action mechanisms. These abstractions are designed to be instantiated and coordinated by high level decision and perceptual processes.
Response of plankton to nutrients, planktivory and terrestrial organic matter: a model analysis of whole-lake experiments.

Terrestrial organic matter can be assimilated by aquatic consumers but implications for biomass and production are unresolved. An ecosystem model was fit to estimate effects of phosphorus (P) load, planktivory, and supply rate of terrestrial particulate organic carbon (TPOC) on phytoplankton and zooplankton in five whole-lake experiments. Phytoplankton biomass increased with P load and planktivory and decreased with TPOC supply rate. Zooplankton biomass increased with P load and responded weakly to planktivory and TPOC supply rate. Zooplankton allochthony (proportion of carbon from terrestrial sources) decreased with P load and planktivory and increased with TPOC supply rate. Lakes with low allochthony ( 0.3) had low biomass and production of both phytoplankton and zooplankton. In summary, terrestrial OC inhibits primary production and is a relatively low-quality food source for zooplankton.
CRITICAL CARE NURSING OF OLDER ADULTS: BEST PRACTICES (3rd.) Edited by Marquis D. Foreman, Koen Milisen, & Terry T. Fulmer

Critical Care Nursing of Older Adults: Best Practices (3rd ed.) includes major clinical issues for nursing professionals working with older patients at critical care settings, including critical ca...
Collective Space-Sensing Coordinates Pattern Scaling in Engineered Bacteria

Scale invariance refers to the maintenance of a constant ratio of developing organ size to body size. Although common, its underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. Here, we examined scaling in engineered Escherichia coli that can form self-organized core-ring patterns in colonies. We found that the ring width exhibits perfect scale invariance to the colony size. Our analysis revealed a collective space-sensing mechanism, which entails sequential actions of an integral feedback loop and an incoherent feedforward loop. The integral feedback is implemented by the accumulation of a diffusive chemical produced by a colony. This accumulation, combined with nutrient consumption, sets the timing for ring initiation. The incoherent feedforward is implemented by the opposing effects of the domain size on the rate and duration of ring maturation. This mechanism emphasizes a role of timing control in achieving robust pattern scaling and provides a new perspective in examining the phenomenon in natural systems.
Investigation on the intestinal microflora in the elderly

Objective To investigate the characteristics of intestinal microflora of the elderly.Methods All 104 cases were assigned into two groups:control group(healthy adults,age60 years,n=36)and elderly group(the healthy elderly,age≥60 years,n=68).Feces samples of all cases were cultured under both aerobic and anaerobic conditions for the 6 bacteria(4 kinds of anaerobes and 2 kinds of aerobes)and the yeasts,and the ratio of B/E was calculated.The serum endotoxin was also measured.Results Compared with control group,the number of fecal bifidobacteria and B/E ratio in elderly group significantly decreased[fecal bifidobacteria:(10.17±0.81)lgCFU/g vs(9.08±1.13)lgCFU/g,P0.01;B/E ratio:1.24±0.18 vs 1.02±0.14,P0.01];the numbers of Enterobacteria and Enterococcus significantly increased in geriatric group[Enterobacteria:(8.19±0.68)lgCFU/g vs(9.17±1.29)lgCFU/g,P0.05;Enterococcus:(7.07±1.58)lgCFU/g vs(8.47±1.39)lgCFU/g,P0.05].Conclusion The elderly is characterized by the decreased number of fecal bifidobacteria,the increased number of Enterobacteria and Enterococcus and the decreased colonization resistance.
Elevated plasma levels of β-endorphin in a group of women with polycystic ovarian disease *

The relationship of endogenous opiates in patients with polycystic ovarian disease (PCOD) and their influence on body weight was studied. The study group consisted of 19 women with PCOD. They were amenorrheic, hirsute, and hyperandrogenic, and their average weight was 124% of the ideal body weight. They had luteinizing hormone/follicle-stimulating hormone ratios≥2. The control group consisted of ten women with regular ovulatory menses. Plasma β -endorphin ( β -EP) was measured by using a very specific radioimmunoassay. β -Lipotropin ( β -LPH) was entirely removed from the sample by preincubation of the plasma with rabbit anti- β -LPH/Sepharose complex (Pharmacia, New Brunswick, NJ). The mean±standard deviation of the plasma β -EP in the control group was 70.18±18.06pg/ml, and the mean±standard deviation of β -EP in the study group was 185.6±93.4pg/ml, which was significantly higher than the control levels ( P β -EP level and the patient's weight in the PCOD group ( r =0.462, P =0.025). The data from this study suggest that the elevated levels of endogenous opiates may be involved in the pathophysiology of PCOD and be related to inappropriate secretion of gonadotropins influencing body weight.
Summer Acceptance Program: A Viable Option For Provisional Students Entering a Private University.

(1980). Summer Acceptance Program: A Viable Option for Provisional Students Entering a Private University. Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the Western College Reading Association: Vol. 13, Proceedings of the Twelfth Annual Conference of the WCRA. The 1980's: New Sources of Energy for Learning, pp. 70-75.
Routine invasive versus selective invasive strategies for Non-ST-elevation acute coronary syndromes: An Updated meta-analysis of randomized trials.

Objectives To perform an updated systematic review comparing a routine invasive strategy with a selective invasive strategy for patients with non-ST-elevation acute coronary syndromes (NSTE-ACS) in the era of stents and antiplatelet therapy. Background Recent meta-analyses comparing both strategies have shown conflicting results. Methods Electronic databases were searched for randomized trials that compared a routine invasive strategy (i.e., routine coronary angiography +/− revascularization) versus a selective invasive strategy (i.e., medical stabilization and coronary angiography +/− revascularization if objective evidence of ischemia or refractory ischemia) in patients with NSTE-ACS. Summary odds ratios (OR) were primarily constructed using Peto's model. Results Twelve trials with 9,650 patients were included. Compared with a selective invasive strategy, a routine invasive strategy was associated with a reduction in the composite of all-cause mortality or myocardial infarction (MI) [OR: 0.86, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.77-0.96] at a mean follow-up of 39 months, primarily due to a reduction in the risk of MI (OR: 0.78, 95% CI: 0.68-0.88). The risk of all-cause mortality was non-significantly reduced with a routine invasive strategy (OR: 0.88, 95% CI: 0.77-1.01). The risk of recurrent angina was reduced with a routine invasive strategy (OR: 0.55, 95% CI: 0.49-0.62), as well as the risk of future revascularization procedures (OR: 0.35, 95% CI: 0.30-0.39). Conclusion In patients with NSTE-ACS, a routine invasive strategy reduced the risk of ischemic events, including the risk of mortality or MI. Routine invasive therapy reduced the risk of recurrent angina and future revascularization procedures. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
PIPES: a language and compiler for task-based programming on distributed-memory clusters

Applications running on clusters of shared-memory computers are often implemented using OpenMP+MPI. Productivity can be vastly improved using task-based programming, a paradigm where the user expresses the data and control-flow relations between tasks, offering the runtime maximal freedom to place and schedule tasks. While productivity is increased, high-performance execution remains challenging: the implementation of parallel algorithms typically requires specific task placement and communication strategies to reduce internode communications and exploit data locality. In this work, we present a new macro-dataflow programming environment for distributed-memory clusters, based on the Intel Concurrent Collections (CnC) runtime. Our language extensions let the user define virtual topologies, task mappings, task-centric data placement, task and communication scheduling, etc. We introduce a compiler to automatically generate Intel CnC C++ run-time, with key automatic optimizations including task coarsening and coalescing. We experimentally validate our approach on a variety of scientific computations, demonstrating both productivity and performance.
Tenacious D: Symbiodinium in clade D remain in reef corals at both high and low temperature extremes despite impairment.

Reef corals are sensitive to thermal stress, which induces coral bleaching (the loss of algal symbionts), often leading to coral mortality. However, corals hosting certain symbionts (notably some members of Symbiodinium clade D) resist bleaching when exposed to high temperatures. To determine whether these symbionts are also cold tolerant, we exposed corals hosting either Symbiodinium C3 or D1a to incremental warming (+1°C week-1 to 35°C) and cooling (-1°C week-1 to 15°C), and measured photodamage and symbiont loss. During warming to 33°C, C3 corals were photodamaged and lost >99% of symbionts, while D1a corals experienced photodamage but did not bleach. During cooling, D1a corals suffered more photodamage than C3 corals but still did not bleach, while C3 corals lost 94% of symbionts. These results indicate that photodamage does not always lead to bleaching, suggesting alternate mechanisms exist by which symbionts resist bleaching, and helping explain the persistence of D1a symbionts on recently bleached reefs, with implications for the future of these ecosystems.
A replacement name for Isodactylus Hedges, Duellman, and Heinicke, 2008

If it had not happened so many times in the last two and a half centuries, we would be embarrassed to admit that we created a new homonym, but such is the case. We (Hedges, Duellman & Heinicke 2008:108) proposed the generic name Isodactylus with the type species Eleutherodactylus elassodiscus Lynch (Anura: Strabomantidae) and included in the genus 13 species: Isodactylus adercus (Lynch), I. araiodactylus (Duellman & Pramuk), I. babax (Lynch), I. brunneus (Lynch), I. dolops (Lynch & Duellman), I. elassodiscus (Lynch), I. fallaciosus (Duellman), I. latens (Lynch), I. lucida (Cannatella), I. lundbergi (Lehr), I. mantipus (Boulenger), I. nigrovittatus (Andersson), and I. peraccai (Lynch).
Genome-Wide Association Studies of Chemotherapeutic Toxicities: Genomics of Inequality

With an estimated global population of cancer survivors exceeding 32 million and growing, there is a heightened awareness of the long-term toxicities resulting from cancer treatments and their impact on quality of life. Unexplained heterogeneity in the persistence and development of toxicities, as well as an incomplete understanding of their mechanisms, have generated a growing need for the identification of predictive pharmacogenomic markers. Early studies addressing this need used a candidate gene approach; however, over the last decade, unbiased and comprehensive genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have provided markers of phenotypic risk and potential targets to explore the mechanistic and regulatory pathways of biological functions associated with chemotherapeutic toxicity. In this review, we provide the current status of GWAS of chemotherapeutic toxicities with an emphasis on examining the ancestral diversity of the representative cohorts within these studies. Persistent calls to incorporate both ancestrally diverse and/or admixed populations into genomic efforts resulted in a recent rise in the number of studies utilizing cohorts of East Asian descent; however, few pharmacogenomic studies to date include cohorts of African, Indigenous American, Southwest Asian, and admixed populations. Through comprehensively evaluating sample size, composition by ancestry, genome-wide significant variants, and population-specific minor allele frequencies as reported by HapMap/dbSNP using NCBI PubMed and the NHGRI-EBI GWAS Catalog, we illustrate how allele frequencies and effect sizes tend to vary among individuals of differing ancestries. In an era of personalized medicine, the lack of diversity in genome-wide studies of anticancer agent toxicity may contribute to the health disparity gap. Clin Cancer Res; 23(15); 4010-9. ©2017 AACR.
The Season Novel, 1806–1824: A Nineteenth-Century Microgenre

This essay examines a set of two dozen or so novels published between 1806 and 1824 that, taken together, constitute a microgenre or highly specific subgenre, the ‘season novel’. From A Winter in London (1806) to A Winter in Washington (1824), season novels depict fashionable life in a particular locale for a limited span of time. The essay uses these texts as a case study to examine the processes of generic creation and extinction at close range, looking at the interplay of imitation and variation that helps propel artistic creation, the role of reviewers, and circulating library data.
The Southern African unipolarity

Despite the tectonic changes that have taken place in Southern Africa since the demise of apartheid, South Africa is still widely considered a hegemonic regional power by scholars, practitioners an...
P190 Bortezomib desensitization efficacy in pediatric cardiac transplantation: A single center study

Aim Bortezomib (BTZ) is a short-lived proteasome inhibitor, having the ability to lyse plasma cells responsible for the production of antibodies (Ab). It has been reported to have inconsistent success when used as a desensitization treatment for the reduction of HLA Ab in the context of pre and post solid organ transplantation. Furthermore, a variety of undesirable toxic side effects associated with this drug have been reported. In this work we assessed the efficacy of desensitization treatment using BTZ in a small pediatric cardiac transplant cohort. Methods Pre, during and post BTZ desensitization treatment sera were screened for HLA Ab using One Lambda LabScreen Single Antigen Beads (SAB) according to manufacturer’s instructions. SAB was performed with neat sera and dilutions in PBS. Analysis was performed using Fusion v.3.0 software. Results 10 cardiac transplant patients, 2 pre and 8 post, were monitored for BTZ desensitization efficacy by assessing HLA Ab surrounding the time of treatment. For the two pre-transplanted patients no significant change in HLA Ab profile was observed before and after treatment. Among the 8 post- transplanted patients analyzed, 4 demonstrated an increase in several HLA Ab for both Class I and II, whether DSA or not, while no significant change in HLA Ab profile was noted in 3 of these patients. One post-transplanted patient had a single DSA positive DQ7 demonstrating 11,000 MFI pre-treatment which decreased to become negative after BTZ treatment. Overall, BTZ treatment did not appear successful in lowering the level of HLA Ab in 9 out of the 10 patients. Conclusions BTZ treatment does not appear to have significant impact on long or short term reduction of HLA Class I or II Ab in this pediatric transplant patient cohort. Further studies need to be performed to determine the ability of BTZ to reduce HLA Ab in transplant patients. Moreover, these studies will further demonstrate or challenge the proposed mechanisms of action described for this drug and perhaps will help to discover currently unidentified mechanisms by which it exerts its actions.
Approximating resolutions by cell-like maps with codimension-three point inverses

Abstract Let X be a resolvable generalized n -manifold and M be a (PL) n -manifold, where n ≥ 6 . We claim every resolution from M to X can be approximated, arbitrarily closely, by cell-like maps with ( n − 3 ) -dimensional point preimages. The key instrument of the proof is the disjoint Pontryagin disks property.
Effects of constructing, critiquing, and revising arguments within university classrooms

Abstract Fifty-seven students in mathematics content and secondary mathematics methods classrooms at four universities participated in an instructional sequence to communally generate criteria defining a valid proof. Participants were asked to complete a proof-related task before class, work together in small groups to evaluate fellow students’ arguments, communally agree upon criteria for evaluating said arguments based on their evaluations, and then rate and revise their original argument to satisfy the communal criteria after class. We used a modified analytical categorization of arguments to compare students’ before-class and after-class work. Results demonstrated that students’ self-rating aligned positively with the argument categories, but two critical challenges were also observed: (1) students’ self-rating of their arguments was not positively correlated with the class-acceptance rate of those arguments indicating that individual and communal perceptions of proof varied; and (2) students struggled to revise their arguments to align with the communal criteria.
Monolithic ultra-high-Q lithium niobate microring resonator

We demonstrate an ultralow loss monolithic integrated lithium niobate photonic platform consisting of dry-etched subwavelength waveguides with extracted propagation losses as low as 2.7 dB/m and microring resonators with quality factors up to 107.
Measuring the Effects of a Cognitive Aid in Deep Space Network Operations

Cognitive aids have long been used by industries such as aviation, nuclear, and healthcare to support operator performance during nominal and off-nominal events. The aim of these aids is to support decision-making by providing users with critical information and procedures in complex environments. The Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL) is exploring the concept of a cognitive aid for future Deep Space Network (DSN) operations to help manage operator workload and increase efficiency. The current study examines the effects of a cognitive aid on expert and novice operators in a simulated DSN environment. We found that task completion times were significantly lower when cognitive aid assistance was available compared to when it was not. Furthermore, results indicate numerical trends that distinguish experts from novices in their system interactions and efficiency. Compared to expert participants, novice operators, on average, had higher acceptance ratings for a DSN cognitive aid, and showed greater agreement in ratings as a group. Lastly, participant feedback identified the need for the development of a reliable, robust, and transparent system.
Overview of Current and Future Adjuvant Therapy for High-Risk Localized Renal Cell Carcinoma

High-risk localized renal cell carcinoma represents a therapeutic challenge with high recurrence rates and poor survival with nephrectomy alone. Multiple agents targeting angiogenic and immunologic pathways have demonstrated remarkable efficacy in the metastatic setting but have failed to replicate similar successes in localized disease. Study results with adjuvant anti-angiogenic therapies may have been compromised by the high incidence of treatment discontinuations or dosage reductions secondary to intolerable side effects. Improving patient selection could play a major role in improving outcomes. Multiple models exist to predict survival but require improved accuracy in identifying recurrence to justify exposing patients to therapies that could significantly impair quality of life. Further understanding of pathological and molecular mechanisms of recurrence is required. Novel tools like gene recurrence scores are emerging to improve prognostication for patient selection. Immunotherapeutic approaches using check point inhibition have the potential to achieve sustained remissions with a significantly improved toxicity profile. Amplifying the immune response with a combination of neoadjuvant and adjuvant therapy to exploit the larger antigenic burden prior to nephrectomy has the biologic potential for making significant improvements in efficacy.
Pluripotency factors functionally premark cell-type-restricted enhancers in ES cells

Enhancers for embryonic stem (ES) cell-expressed genes and lineage-determining factors are characterized by conventional marks of enhancer activation in ES cells1-3, but it remains unclear whether enhancers destined to regulate cell-type-restricted transcription units might also have distinct signatures in ES cells. Here we show that cell-type-restricted enhancers are 'premarked' and activated as transcription units by the binding of one or two ES cell transcription factors, although they do not exhibit traditional enhancer epigenetic marks in ES cells, thus uncovering the initial temporal origins of cell-type-restricted enhancers. This premarking is required for future cell-type-restricted enhancer activity in the differentiated cells, with the strength of the ES cell signature being functionally important for the subsequent robustness of cell-type-restricted enhancer activation. We have experimentally validated this model in macrophage-restricted enhancers and neural precursor cell (NPC)-restricted enhancers using ES cell-derived macrophages or NPCs, edited to contain specific ES cell transcription factor motif deletions. DNA hydroxyl-methylation of enhancers in ES cells, determined by ES cell transcription factors, may serve as a potential molecular memory for subsequent enhancer activation in mature macrophages. These findings suggest that the massive repertoire of cell-type-restricted enhancers are essentially hierarchically and obligatorily premarked by binding of a defining ES cell transcription factor in ES cells, dictating the robustness of enhancer activation in mature cells.
Towards a 1.1 mm 2 free-floating wireless implantable neural recording SoC

A 1.1 mm2 sized free-floating wireless implantable neural recording (FF-WINeR) system-on-a-chip (SOC) is designed and tested in vitro toward developing stand-alone neural probes in the form of small untethered pushpins (1 mm3) to be distributed across the areas of interest in the brain. Pre-recorded single unit activity (SUA) from neurons injected in saline solution are recorded through the probe single tungsten electrode, amplified by a low noise amplifier (LNA) with 53 dB gain, and filtered within 0.1–12 kHz band. The amplified SUA signals are digitized by a 10 bits voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) based analog-to-digital converter (ADC), and transmitted to an external data receiver (Rx) through an inductive link shared for power transmission using an impulse radio (IR)-based near-field uplink data telemetry at 800 kbps data rate and <0.3 mW power budget.
Calmodulin Regulates Thromboxane and Prostacyclin Biosynthesis and Metabolism

Calmodulin, a low molecular weight (16,700 dalton), heat-stable acidic protein, has been identified and isolated from a wide variety of tissues [1]. The protein displays multi-functions, controlling the activities of cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase [2, 3], adenylate cyclase [4, 5], Ca2+-ATPase [6, 7], myosin light chain kinase [8, 9], NAD kinase [10], phosphorylase kinase [11], and quanylate cyclase [12]. In addition, it regulates Ca2+ transport in erythrocytes and sarcoplasmic reticulum [13], phosphorylation of membrane proteins [14],and disassembly of microtubules [15]. Recently we have presented preliminary evidence suggesting that the stimulation of phospholipase A2, by Ca2+ in human blood platelet is mediated through calmodulin [16]. Phospholipase A2, controls the intracellular level of arachidonic acid, which is rate-limiting for the synthesis of thromboxane A2, a potent inducer of platelet aggregation and release reaction [17]. Thus, calmodulin may play an important role in platelet function.
Who is the Political Actor? An Existential Phenomenological Approach

Two dangers seem to plague many attempts to talk about the political philosophically. One is the danger of overestimation, epitomized in the claim that “everything is political,” hence that only political criteria of judgment can be employed without bad faith. The other is the danger of underestimation, failure to distinguish what is properly political from concomitant phenomena such as economic calculation, social engineering, or individual psychology. The tricky thing is to get the political clearly in view, to distinguish it from other facets of life with which it is always entangled and often confused, and to keep the terms that articulate it from becoming a “final vocabulary” or ultimate arbiter in nonpolitical matters as well.
Lens Determination and Induction

The lens has provided a relatively simple structure in which to study mechanisms of development. Since the optic cup ablation experiments of Spemann in 1901, we have understood that the optic cup provides signals to the surface ectoderm that induce lens formation. After more than a decade of contemporary molecular genetic analysis, a complex model for the regulation of lens induction and development has emerged. This article gives an overview of our current understanding.