cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
TROG 96.01: TTBF and PSAdt as surrogates for disease specific mortality.

Prostate cancer is a common disease in men and the incidence is increasing due to the aging male population. While the majority of patients with localized prostate cancer can be cured with surgery or radiotherapy, patients with localized prostate cancer with poor risk features have an increased risk of recurrence and succumbing to their disease. In these patients, the time from diagnosis to disease progression and ultimate death from the prostate cancer can span a decade. Thus, our progress to develop better therapies and integrating novel drugs into this population has been severely hindered since prostate cancer-specific mortality has been held as the primary and only acceptable trial endpoint. The development of a valid surrogate marker(s) for prostate cancer specific mortality in this population would significantly improve the efficiency of clinical trials by shortening the follow-up time and ultimately reducing sample size, decreasing costs, and providing results to patients sooner. Prostate specific antigen (PSA) is an extensively studied biomarker in prostate cancer 1, and has been instrumental in improving early detection and in predicting pathologic stage 2. As a biologic marker of prostate cancer, PSA drives many treatment decisions in the hope that it would reflect benefit on prostate cancer specific mortality (PCSM). However, PSA has fallen short in its value as a surrogate for PCSM in several trials and in a meta-analysis by Collette et al 3 who applied the tools of “meta-analytic validation” 4 in the metastatic, non-metastatic, and castrate resistant settings. Interest turned to PSA elevation as a potential surrogate when the natural history of biochemical failure post-prostatectomy was described 5, although an elevated PSA alone was not sufficient to guide therapy 6. The use of PSA doubling time (PSAdt) and the time to biochemical failure (TTBF) has been explored as a possible surrogate marker by many investigators. D’Amico et al. performed a retrospective review of nearly 8700 patients treated for prostate cancer and hypothesized that PSAdt of 3 months could be a surrogate endpoint 7. They found that TTBF and PSAdt do correlate with true clinical outcome, however it is not clear if the net effect of intervention is fully reflected in these biomarkers. Before PSA can be a surrogate endpoint and replace PCSM, it must be formally validated in a trial. The process of validating a surrogate marker in cancer has caused many controversies amongst clinicians and statisticians. The four Prentice criteria has been traditionally been used for data from a single randomized trial that measures both the true endpoint (PCSM) and the potential surrogates prospectively 8. This is the challenge the authors of the TROG 96.01 trial took on quite successfully.
Crossbreds of Jersey × Holstein Compared with Pure Holsteins for Body Weight, Body Condition Score, Dry Matter Intake, and Feed Efficiency During the First One Hundred Fifty Days of First Lactation

Jersey x Holstein crossbred (JxH) cows (n = 24) were compared with pure Holstein cows (n = 17) for body weight, body condition score, dry matter intake (DMI), and feed efficiency during the first 150 d of first lactation. Cows were housed in the University of Minnesota dairy facility at the St. Paul campus and calved from September 2004 to January 2005. The JxH cows were mated by artificial insemination with Montbeliarde bulls, and Holstein cows were mated by artificial insemination with Holstein bulls. Cows were weighed and body condition was scored every other week. Cows were individually fed a TMR twice daily, and feed refusals were measured once daily. The DMI of cows was measured daily and averaged across 7-d periods. Milk production and milk composition were from monthly Dairy Herd Improvement records. Best Prediction was used to calculate actual production (milk, fat, protein) for each cow from the 4th to 150th day of first lactation. The JxH cows had significantly less body weight (467 vs. 500 kg) and significantly higher body condition scores (2.90 vs. 2.76) than pure Holstein cows. The JxH cows had significantly less milk production (4,388 vs. 4,644 kg) during the 4th to 150th day of lactation than did pure Holstein cows. However, fat plus protein production during the first 150 d of lactation was not significantly different for JxH (302 kg) and Holstein (309 kg) cows. The JxH and pure Holstein cows did not differ significantly for daily DMI (22.0 vs. 22.7 kg, respectively), and the JxH (4.7%) and pure Holstein (4.5%) cows consumed similar DMI based on percentage of body weight. Consequently, feed efficiency for the 4th to 150th day of lactation did not differ for JxH and pure Holstein cows.
Targeting heat shock proteins to modulate α-synuclein toxicity:

Parkinson's disease is a slowly progressive neurodegenerative disorder typically characterized by the loss of dopaminergic neurons within the substantia nigra pars compacta, and the intraneuronal deposition of insoluble protein aggregates chiefly comprised of α-synuclein. Patients experience debilitating symptoms including bradykinesia, rigidity and postural instability. No curative treatment currently exists and therapeutic strategies are restricted to symptomatic treatment only. Over the past decade a class of molecular chaperones called the heat shock proteins has emerged as a potentially promising therapeutic target. Heat shock proteins aid in the folding and refolding of proteins, and target denatured proteins to degradation systems. By targeting heat shock proteins through various means including overexpression and pharmacological enhancement, researchers have shown that α-synuclein aggregation and its associated cytotoxicity can be therapeutically modulated in an array of cell and animal models. This review highlights the relevant progress in this field and discusses the relevance of heat shock proteins as therapeutic modulators of α-synuclein toxicity to the rapidly evolving understanding of Parkinson's disease pathogenesis.
Golf courses as habitat for aquatic turtles in urbanized landscapes

Abstract Golf courses host some of the only semi-natural aquatic habitats in urban areas. We assessed whether golf course wetlands could provide habitat refuges for freshwater turtles, which are threatened worldwide by wetland loss and degradation associated with urbanization. In 2009 and 2010 we examined populations of snapping turtles (Chelydra serpentina) and painted turtles (Chrysemys picta) and their habitats in 88 wetlands near Syracuse, New York, USA in golf courses, urban areas, and wildlife refuges. We tested two null hypotheses: (1) golf courses provide habitats comparable to nearby urban and protected areas, and (2) turtle populations in these contexts are comparable. Golf course wetlands were surrounded by low road density and were distinct from protected area wetlands only in that they were surrounded by less forest and grassland and had more homogenous aquatic plant communities. In terms of turtle populations, relative abundance was equivalent in protected area and golf course wetlands and female fraction was closer to parity in golf course wetlands. Painted turtles were of similar size across contexts and snapping turtles were smaller in urban and golf course contexts. Additionally, male turtles in golf courses were relatively heavier and both species had less severe indicators of poor health. Golf course wetlands apparently supported viable turtle populations similar to those observed in protected areas in the region. Nevertheless, turtle habitat on golf courses can be improved by increasing the area of wetlands, increasing their shape complexity, promoting vegetative diversity in and around wetlands, and increasing surrounding forest and grassland.
Optimal binary representation of mosaic floorplans and baxter permutations

A floorplan is a rectangle subdivided into smaller rectangular blocks by horizontal and vertical line segments. Two floorplans are considered equivalent if and only if there is a bijection between the blocks in the two floorplans such that the corresponding blocks have the same horizontal and vertical boundaries. Mosaic floorplans use the same objects as floorplans but use an alternative definition of equivalence. Two mosaic floorplans are considered equivalent if and only if they can be converted into equivalent floorplans by sliding the line segments that divide the blocks. The Quarter-State Sequence method of representing mosaic floorplans uses 4n bits, where n is the number of blocks. This paper introduces a method of representing an n -block mosaic floorplan with a (3n −3)-bit binary string. It has been proven that the shortest possible binary string representation of a mosaic floorplan has a length of (3n −o (n )) bits. Therefore, the representation presented in this paper is asymptotically optimal. Baxter permutations are a set of permutations defined by prohibited subsequences. There exists a bijection between mosaic floorplans and Baxter permutations. As a result, the methods introduced in this paper also create an optimal binary string representation of Baxter permutations.
Inhibition by Aspirin of the Enhanced Migration of Human Platelets in Response to Prostaglandin Precursors

Prostaglandins E1 and E2, and their biosynthetic precursors, 8,11,14-eicosatrienoic acid and arachadonic acid, respectively, enhance human platelet random migration in vitro by 100-200% as assessed in modified Boyden micropore filter chambers. Inhibitors of prostaglandin biosynthesis, such as 5,8,11,14-eicosatetraynoic acid, indomethacin, and aspirin blocked the enhancement of platelet migration by either precursor fatty acids or prostaglandins. Administration of 900 mg of aspirin to normal subjects 3-1/2 - 24 hr before harvesting their platelets also inhibited the capacity of precursors and prostaglandins to increase random migration in vitro.
Impact of Exchange Rate Regimes on Economic Growth

It has been a challenge to identify a direct correlation between exchange rate regimes and economic growth. One of the most important issues left unanswered in international finance is the debates over which type of exchange rate can best stimulate economic growth. The main hypothesis of this research is that fixed exchange rate regime will have positive correlation with GDP growth due to the stability factor it has to offer. Control variables used in this study include inflation rate, gross capital formation (%GDP), index of government spending, and index of human capital per person. After observing the data from 74 countries for year 2012, it is found that there is a positive and significant correlation between pegged exchange rate and growth in GDP.
Patterns of Industrial Innovation in China

This study uses a variety of indicators such as patent grants, new product sales, and R&D spending to examine the spatial patterns of industrial innovation in China during the 1990s. It is found that industrial innovation in China has been concentrated in the coastal areas, and the spatial concentration has been increasing in the 1990s, which is contrary to what Sun (2000) found on the patterns of all patent applications from 1985-1995. The study also reveals that large and medium-sized enterprises in China have experienced a switch in their modes of innovative behaviors in the late 1990s: from more spending on imported technologies to more in-house R&D, though expenditure on absorbing imported technologies has been marginal. Finally, enterprises are not well integrated with independent R&D institutes regarding their R&D efforts, which indicates that the national innovation system in China is still fragmented.
Liver Transplantation for Alcoholic and Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease: Pretransplant Selection and Posttransplant Management.

Alcoholic fatty liver disease (ALD) and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) are common causes of chronic liver disease throughout the world. Although they have similar histologic features, a diagnosis of NAFLD requires the absence of significant alcohol use. ALD is seen commonly in patients with a long-standing history of excessive alcohol use, whereas NAFLD is encountered commonly in patients who have developed complications of obesity, such as insulin resistance, hypertension, and dyslipidemia. Lifestyle contributes to the development and progression of both diseases. Although alcohol abstinence can cause regression of ALD, and weight loss can cause regression of NAFLD, many patients with these diseases develop cirrhosis. ALD and NAFLD account for nearly 30% of liver transplants performed in the United States. Patients receiving liver transplants for ALD or NAFLD have similar survival times as patients receiving transplants for other liver disorders. Although ALD and NAFLD recur frequently after liver transplantation, graft loss from disease recurrence after transplantation is uncommon. Cardiovascular disease and de novo malignancy are leading causes of long-term mortality in liver transplant recipients with ALD or NAFLD.
Engine data analysis using decision trees

Monitoring systems on aircraft engines typically record many parameters, sampled frequently, over the duration of a flight. On some newer engines such data have been recorded, and stored, over hundreds of flights. But data alone are not sufficient, and are too unwieldy, to help the analyst understand the state of the engine's health. Automated data mining, for knowledge discovery, is being successfully used in several fields. One well-known technique is a decision tree, which is induced from a subset of a known training set of engine data and outcome. Since engine parameters are continuous-valued a splitting criterion, known as the minimum description length principle, is used to define the branch points of the tree. The decision tree is induced from a subset of a known training set of engine data and outcome. Issues such as overfitting the training data, and the problem of large, or randomly-chosen, training sets are also discussed in this paper. Copyright ©2000 by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc. All rights reserved. BACKGROUND Many airlines have invested in engine monitoring systems (EMS) on their newer aircraft. These systems record many parameters, such as temperatures, pressures, rotor speeds, fuel flow and others. The hope is that, by tracking the engines over hundreds of flights, one can discern component degradations which lead to diminished performance or safety. The large numbers of parameters, and the large volumes of time-series data, pose a challenge to the analyst sifting through the data. Simple checks such as minimum/maximum parameter bounds often lead to false alarms. Relaxing these bounds could lead to missed alerts. Several NASA Ames research efforts are directed at exploring ways of using computers to monitor the health of physical systems. In a previous paper [8] surveying aircraft engine health monitoring systems, various machine learning-based techniques, that are being researched for engine data analysis, were outlined. In this paper we focus on using the decision tree method for learning to classify engine's health based on its sensor data. (c)2000 American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics or Published with Permission of Author(s) and/or Author(s)' Sponsoring Organization.
Education and labor in tension: Contemporary debates about education in the US labor movement

This article examines the conflicting visions within the US labor movement about the proper function and implementation of labor education programs, and how educational programs are connected to union structure. While this article is primarily based on interviews with union officials, the article also draws on union documents and participant observation in union meetings and educational workshops. The author argues that an analysis of worker education programs is an appropriate entry point for drawing out the similarities and differences that exist about the goals, structure, and political values of different unions in the contemporary US labor movement.
Study on feasibility of measurement of children's skin thickness using high-frequency ultrasound

Objective To explore the practicability and reliability on measuring the skin thickness of children by 13 mHz high-frequency ultrasound.Methods The skin thicknesses of children in 7 locations of the body were measured by 13 mHz high-frequency ultrasound.Thirty-four cases of children without systemic disease and injury in skin were chosen as objects.Results The 13 mHz high-frequency ultrasound could reveal the structure of epidermis and dermis clearly.The skin in back and fundament was thicker than that in cheek.Conclusion The ultrasound of 13 mHz can show the structure of skin clearly,and it can be used reliably in the measurement of skin thickness as a non-invasive method.
Development, Anatomy, and Physiology of the Lungs

Because of the anatomic proximity of the upper airway and gastrointestinal (GI) tracts, there is a risk of lung injury through aspiration. A number of lines of defense counter penetration of gastric acid or meals into the airways, including laryngeal closure, swallowing apnea and cough. Nonetheless, the prevalence of aspiration is greatly increased in a number of chronic diseases including chronic cough, asthma, interstitial lung diseases, lung transplantation and others. A causal relationship between these disorders and aspiration is not established, neither is there a clear benefit to treating aspiration. In part, this relationship may be difficult to prove due to limitations in detection of aspiration. This chapter focuses on systems of protection against aspiration, methods to detect aspirations of meals into the upper and lower airways, common pulmonary disorders associated with increased risk of aspiration and responses of normal lung tissue to acidification of the distal esophagus.
CENTAUREA SPECIES AND EQUINE NIGROPALLIDAL ENCEPHALOMALACIA

I. ABSTRACT Prolonged ingestion of Centaurea solstitialis or C. repens produces a nervous disease in horses called equine nigropallidal encephalomalacia with rather sterotyped lesions and signs. Only horses are affected by feeding. Younger animals are especially involved. There is an unexplained biphasic seasonal prevalence of the disease. While the actual toxin remains unknown, the circumstances of poisoning and the pathogenesis of the disease are becoming clearer. The onset of the disease is abrupt, following a feeding period of some weeks without signs. All lesions in any one horse are usually of the same age and do not enlarge. The initial lesions are simply foci of pannecrosis which subsequently undergo slow cleanup of the dead tissue. The signs appear to be due to a dopamine deficiency following the specific destruction of the nigrostriatal tract in the globus pallidus and substantia nigra of the brain.
Typology of Indentured Indians and Their Plantation Experience

This chapter underscores that although the majority of indentured Indians were landless peasants and were from Northeastern India, they differed in their overall status. They were from the low and middle caste as well as from Hindu and Muslim religions. Men were the majority, and women were the minority. A third of the laborers were teenagers. The chapter also reveals that the experience of Indians during their five years of contract labor was notoriously bad. Their wages were cut, their rations were delayed and medical attendance and housing were inadequate; this was coupled with poor supervision, neglect and ill-treatment on the estates from the planter class. Indentured Indians relied on their own strength, such as the reconstruction of their culture and the practice of their religion, to cope with plantation life.
Stay or Go Home? International STEM Students in the United States are Up for Grabs after Graduation

If current trends continue, international students will comprise half of U.S. science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) PhD graduates by 2020.The proportion of international PhD-level students on temporary visas to study STEM subjects in the United States has doubled over the past thirty years. Further, these students are much more likely than domestic students to major in and graduate with STEM-related doctoral degrees and to pursue careers in high-tech firms. The United States stands to lose its significant investment in these highly qualified students — and their potential contributions to U.S. entrepreneurship and innovation — if they return to their home countries after completing their degrees or post-doctoral work.We explore why foreign graduate students choose to study in the United States and what compels them to either remain in the country or return home after earning their degrees. We also compare their future plans with those of domestic graduate students.
African Roots, Brazilian Rites: Cultural and National Identity in Brazil by Cheryl Sterling (review)

Sterling, Cheryl. African Roots, Brazilian Rits: Cultural and National Identity in Brazil . New York: Palgrave MacMillan, 2012. Review by Jennifer L. Cullison.
Social regulation of allostasis: Commentary on “Mentalizing homeostasis: The social origins of interoceptive inference” by Fotopoulou and Tsakiris

The paper by Fotopoulou and Tsakiris proposes that the most fundamental features of a human (e.g. the minimal self), including sensation, interoception and affect, develop in a relational manner, and rely on self-related concepts (e.g. mentalizing homeostasis) learned in a social context. Indeed, a growing body of literature supports this theory and emphasizes the role of social regulation during development. In support of Fotopoulou and Tsakiris, we too propose that the brain is fundamentally designed for allostasis, and that all feeling, thinking and perceiving proceeds with allostasis, its sensory consequences (interoception) and their low dimensional features (affect) at the core. We propose that infants depend on their caretakers for survival, such that social dyads keep the infant alive by promoting learning of a conceptual system for how to make sense of the body in the world. Within social dyads, infants’ brains learn to conceptualize interoceptive and other perceptual information in the service o...
Oral Health Interventions During Pregnancy

Oral health is a fundamental component of health and physical and mental well-being. Oral health is influenced by an individual's physiologic and psychosocial attributes and cumulative oral health experiences. The perinatal period is a critical time when health and oral health determinants set in and thus an important time for intervention. Recognition of the importance of oral health intervention during pregnancy and oral health infrastructures have substantially grown over the last several years. This article reviews the current state of knowledge and practice of oral health intervention during pregnancy with a focus on individual- and population-based strategies, and summarizes key agendas for advancing prenatal oral health.
Will This Get Me a Job? Gender, Employment and College Attainment, Before and After the Mancession.

Between 1981 and 2008, US college attainment rates rose faster for young women than men. However, after the 2008 “Mancession,” male attainment rose faster than female attainment. The most widely supported explanations for women’s domination of the pre-2008 college expansion (improved contraceptive and household technologies, no-fault divorce laws, and young women’s greater college readiness), do not readily explain the post-2008 reversal in gendered attainment trends. We show, in a variety of ways, that sharp differences in female and male employment trends before and after 2008 offer a plausible account for the post-2008 reversal of gendered attainment trends. Pre-2008, a rapid increase in the representation of women in high wage occupations increased the incentive for women to go to college. Post-2008, this trend disappeared, and men, driven by receding opportunities in traditionally male sectors, were incentivized to go to college seeking access to service jobs, especially those whose wages are institutionally shielded from labor market competition. These results indicate some convergences in the ways that men and women capitalize on their college educations in the labor market.
Utilización del transporte intermodal para mejorar la competitividad y el desarrollo: corredor Bogotá-Belencito

The department of Boyaca is known for the diversity of its territory thanks to its geographical position, which has allowed it to have an agricultural vocation, in which family-type production predominates. The region has comparative and competitive advantages, which at the same time, are limited by various problems, which is why an inventory of agricultural potentialities was made in order to establish policy and transport proposals, that lead the farming sector to increase its productivity and competitiveness, without ignoring the heterogeneity and diversity that characterizes this department.
A novel nanoparticle delivery system for targeted therapy of noise-induced hearing loss

Hearing loss is the most prevalent sensory disability worldwide and may be caused by age, drugs or exposure to excessive noise. We have previously developed a minimally-invasive nanohydrogel drug delivery system that successfully delivers nanoparticles into the inner ear. We have substantially extended this technique by functionalizing the nanoparticles and introducing a targeting peptide which recognizes prestin, a transmembrane electromotile protein uniquely expressed in outer hair cells (OHCs) of the inner ear. We demonstrate the successful delivery of molecules and plasmids specifically to OHCs. When compared to untargeted nanoparticles, the delivery of a c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) inhibitor, D-JNKi-1, to OHCs by targeted nanoparticles improved protection from noise induced hearing loss (NIHL). This is the first demonstration of a protection from NIHL using a novel safe and controllable delivery system which is minimally-invasive to the inner ear and, as such, is an extremely appealing technique for use in many clinical applications.
Childhood collecting in nature: quality experience in important places*

A need for a more specific understanding of childhood geographies has motivated an investigation of one activity, childhood collecting in nature. This study examined collecting behavior, places of ...
Review of Real Earnings Management Literature

This paper summarizes the growing body of literature on the unique aspects of real earnings management as compared with accruals earnings management. Unlike accruals earnings management, real earnings management involves real business activities, consumes resources, and potentially affects future operating performance. This paper identifies studies that investigate earnings management via the manipulation of operating, investing and financing activities. This paper also discusses the associated costs and consequences of these manipulations, reviews investors’ reactions to real earnings management, and discusses the relations between accruals and real earnings management.
U.S. Stock Returns and VIX Futures Curve

The authors investigate the question of whether the VIX futures term structure curve can detect inflection points in the U.S. stock market. They find that transformations of the slope of the VIX futures term structure, such as exponential moving average of past slopes, curvature, and polynomial fitting, outperform the simple slope and can be used as factors to improve probabilistic models that predict downturns in the U.S. stock market.
A retrospective analysis of the use of lokivetmab in the management of allergic pruritus in a referral population of 135 dogs in the western USA

BACKGROUND Lokivetmab neutralizes IL-31, a cytokine that plays an important role in the pathogenesis of atopic dermatitis (AD) in dogs. OBJECTIVE To review experience of one year of treatment with lokivetmab for the control of pruritus in dogs with allergic dermatitis. ANIMALS Eighty dogs diagnosed with AD, ten with concurrent adverse food reaction and AD and 45 with allergic dermatitis of undetermined cause. Three dogs were lost to follow- up. METHODS AND MATERIALS Retrospective analysis of medical records of dogs with allergic dermatitis treated with lokivetmab from November 2015 to October 2016. Treatment success for owner-assessed pruritus was empirically defined as ≥2 cm reduction in Visual Analog Scale (pVAS) from baseline. A ≥50% reduction in pVAS also was recorded. RESULTS Pruritus improvement was achieved in 116 of 132 dogs (87.8%) following initial lokivetmab administration at 1.8 to 3.7 mg/kg (P < 0.001). A pVAS reduction of ≥50% was recorded in 104 dogs (77.0%). Dogs with severe/very severe pruritus prior to treatment and large/giant sized dogs, had 2.7 and 2.8 times higher odds of treatment success, respectively. There were no significant associations between treatment success and age of onset of clinical signs, disease chronicity, lokivetmab dosage or age at initial lokivetmab administration. Dogs that did not previously respond to oclacitinib were less likely to respond to lokivetmab. Adverse effects including lethargy, vomiting, hyperexcitability, pain at injection site and urinary incontinence were reported in 11 of 132 dogs. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE Lokivetmab at labelled dosages was a fast, safe and efficacious therapy for the control of pruritus in dogs with allergic dermatitis.
Genomic profiling of melanomas of unknown primary.

e21048Background: Approximately 2-10% of metastatic melanoma patients present without an identifiable primary melanocytic lesion. These melanomas of unknown primary (MUP) are clinically classified ...
Experimental and Analytical Characterization of Firebrand Ignition of Home Insulation Materials

Wildland firebrands are known to ignite materials in attic spaces of homes. To clarify the effects of choices in attic insulation materials for homes located at the wildland urban interface, this study seeks to characterize the effects of firebrand characteristics on the ignition propensity of several common insulation materials: polyurethane foam, expanded polystyrene (EPS), extruded polystyrene (XPS), flame retarded and non-flame retarded denim, and flame retarded and non-flame retarded loosefill cellulose. An experimental system was developed to explore the effects of firebrand heating, air flow, and firebrand configuration on ignition. For an equal initial mass of wooden material, two firebrand configurations were generated: a single whole firebrand and multiple (five) fragmented firebrands. Relative to whole firebrands, the fragmented firebrands were found to more reliably ignite the insulation materials. Thermoplastic insulation material would only ignite in a temporary flash flame, but did not support sustained burning. Following the flash flame, the firebrands would melt through the synthetic polymer material (XPS and EPS) and cease smoldering. Cellulosic insulation materials would ignite in a sustained fire provided that there was adequate air flow. A simple heat and mass transfer model was developed to describe the ignition process due to firebrand deposition. Traditional lab-scale experiments, thermogravimetric analysis and cone calorimetry, were performed to parameterize the model. Results followed experimentally observed firebrand temperature patterns. There was an average error of approximately 8.5% between firebrand temperature model predictions and experimental measurements. Also, consistent with the experimental results, the model predicted that increasing air flow increased ember temperature and reduced the time to ignition for cases in which ignition occurs.
Quantitative spectroscopy of collagen and water in infrared windows I, III, and IV as an aid to targeted application of skin therapeutics

We are currently investigating a non-invasive technique to determine collagen content and hydration in the skin by the optical methods of absorption, fluorescence and Raman spectroscopy for imaging. A major barrier to the effective use of skin therapies is the difficulty of quantifying existing collagen content and water content. Absorption of near infrared light by skin depends both on the concentration of collagen and the amount of water in the skin. In the near infrared (NIR window I) collagen and water have similar absorption profiles. However, because the infrared spectrum of collagen and water from 900 nm to 1700 nm (window II and III) are significantly different, it allows us to quantify collagen relative to water content. The ratio of the absorption of collagen normalized to water at 1700 nm and at 1950 nm (window III and window IV) is linear in collagen concentration. This can be used to discriminate between tissues by absorption imaging. We compare these results to Raman spectroscopy and native fluorescence. Our goal is to generate data that can be used for qualitative imaging allowing for improvement in assessing the effectiveness of skin-treatment therapies for the health care field to develop a device for home and medical office which can answer the age-old question: “Mirror, Mirror on the wall, where exactly should I apply skin therapeutics for maximum effectiveness and minimal side-effects?”
Interprofessional pedagogy in community settings: An autoethnographic study:

The Council for Social Work Education has made a commitment to participate in interprofessional education and interprofessional curriculum building. Across medical professions, there is a common co...
Aflatoxin Biosynthesis: Regulation and Subcellular Localization

Aflatoxins are polyketide-derived secondary metabolites synthesized by specific Aspergillus species when they grow on a variety of susceptible plants, including economically important crops such as corn, cotton seed, peanuts, and tree nuts. Human aflatoxin exposure is strongly associated with liver and lung cancer, stunted growth, and immune suppression and these impacts generate strong pressure to reduce or eliminate aflatoxin contamination in food and feed. Initially, we provide a brief review of aflatoxin biosynthesis and toxicity. Then, we review how and where aflatoxin is synthesized in the mold and provide details of regulation of this process at the level of transcription and subcellular localization. We also explore the regulatory network that enables A. parasiticus to co-regulate diverse cellular functions including secondary metabolism, conidiospore development, and stress response. This review focuses significant attention on recent work from our laboratory but draws on the work of others to illustrate key concepts related to regulation of aflatoxin biosynthesis at the level of transcription and subcellular localization.
Identification of a Novel Homozygous Multi-Exon Duplication in RYR2 Among Children With Exertion-Related Unexplained Sudden Deaths in the Amish Community

Importance The exome molecular autopsy may elucidate a pathogenic substrate for sudden unexplained death. Objective To investigate the underlying cause of multiple sudden deaths in young individuals and sudden cardiac arrests that occurred in 2 large Amish families. Design, Setting, and Participants Two large extended Amish families with multiple sudden deaths in young individuals and sudden cardiac arrests were included in the study. A recessive inheritance pattern was suggested based on an extended family history of sudden deaths in young individuals and sudden cardiac arrests, despite unaffected parents. A family with exercise-associated sudden deaths in young individuals occurring in 4 siblings was referred for postmortem genetic testing using an exome molecular autopsy. Copy number variant (CNV) analysis was performed on exome data using PatternCNV. Chromosomal microarray validated the CNV identified. The nucleotide break points of the CNV were determined by mate-pair sequencing. Samples were collected for this study between November 2004 and June 2019. Main Outcomes and Measures The identification of an underlying genetic cause for sudden deaths in young individuals and sudden cardiac arrests consistent with the recessive inheritance pattern observed in the families. Results A homozygous duplication, involving approximately 26 000 base pairs of intergenic sequence,RYR2’s 5′UTR/promoter region, and exons 1 through 4 ofRYR2, was identified in all 4 siblings of a family. Multiple distantly related relatives experiencing exertion-related sudden cardiac arrest also had the identicalRYR2homozygous duplication. A second, unrelated family with multiple exertion-related sudden deaths and sudden cardiac arrests in young individuals, with the same homozygous duplication, was identified. Several living, homozygous duplication–positive symptomatic patients from both families had nondiagnostic cardiologic testing, with only occasional ventricular ectopy occurring during exercise stress tests. Conclusions and Relevance In this analysis, we identified a novel, highly penetrant, homozygous multiexon duplication inRYR2among Amish youths with exertion-related sudden death and sudden cardiac arrest but without an overt phenotype that is distinct fromRYR2-mediated catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia. Considering that no cardiac tests reliably identify at-risk individuals and given the high rate of consanguinity in Amish families, identification of unaffected heterozygous carriers may provide potentially lifesaving premarital counseling and reproductive planning.
Images in COPD: Idiopathic Emphysema in a Never Smoker.

Smoking is an important risk factor for the development of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). This risk includes exposure to secondhand smoking. However, it is estimated that 10% of patients with emphysema have either rarely or never smoked.1 In this population, depending on the clinical picture, further consideration should be given to other potential causes for emphysema such as idiopathic, alpha-1-antitrypsin deficiency (AATD), heritable connective tissue disorders, intravenous drug abuse, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hypocomplementemic urticarial vasculitis syndrome (HUVS), and environmental exposures.
Neuromelanin formation exacerbates HAA-induced mitochondrial toxicity and mitophagy impairments

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that is a major public health concern due in part to prevalence, debilitating symptoms, and links to environmental exposures. Much research has focused on environmental factors that may lead to dopaminergic neurotoxicity that occurs in PD. In the study of neuronal uptake and neurotoxicity, critical species differences have been observed. For example, neuromelanin is a molecule formed in part by the breakdown products of dopamine metabolism, along with lipid and protein components. Interestingly, human catecholaminergic neurons contain readily detectable amounts of neuromelanin, while rodent models form far lower levels of neuromelanin that is barely detectable. This discrepancy is potentially an important translational weakness. Recently, we showed that neuromelanin formation modulates heterocyclic aromatic amine (HAA)-induced neurotoxicity in cellular models. HAAs are dietary toxins that have primarily been studied as carcinogens, with emergent literature on selective neurotoxicity. The goal of the present study was to identify whether mitochondria in neuromelanin forming cells may be especially sensitive to HAAs. Here, we exposed galactose-supplemented SH-SY5Y cells to HAAs and tested mitochondrial function and mitophagy. The ectopic formation of neuromelanin was found to increase mitochondrial oxidative stress, decrease membrane potential, increase mitochondrial bioenergetic impairments, and impair mitophagy relative to HAA-treated cells that do not form neuromelanin. These results suggest that neuromelanin has a critical role in HAA toxicity and adverse effects on mitochondria. The data also further cement the need to conduct both mechanistic and risk assessment studies on PD-relevant neurotoxicity in models that form neuromelanin.
Risk Assessment of Smart Buildings Equipped with Solar Generation Using Information Gap Decision Theory

This paper focuses on evaluation of the effect of uncertainties in anticipated fluctuations of solar generation on the operating cost of a smart building. By utilizing Information Gap Decision Theory (IGDT), a model is developed to assess the associated uncertainty under risk-averse and risk-seeking strategies. A cost analysis is performed on the energy management of a smart building considering different uncertainty occurrence times throughout the day. The simulation results show that not only the intensity of uncertainty, but also its occurrence time directly impacts the total operation cost of the smart building. The results of this study are useful for decision makers to evaluate risks and opportunities, recognize priorities, and make informed decisions about uncertainty management in smart buildings equipped with solar generation.
Stigma & dirty work: In-group and out-group perceptions of essential service workers during COVID-19

Abstract The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on essential service workers has given rise to their newfound “hero” status, resulting in a dramatic shift of their occupational value. Service work has been long envisioned as “dirty work”, and further, stigmatized by members of society (the Out-Group), until recently. This study utilized occupational stigma theory to identify the mechanisms under which both essential service workers and society at large came to unify around the importance of perceived dirty work in the United States. Critical discourse analysis was employed as a qualitative methodology, particularly examining the In- and Out-Group’s coping mechanisms for coming to terms with the value of “dirty” service work heroes. Theoretical implications include the utilization of stigma theory for Out-Groups, and revealed a previously undetected Out-Group coping tactic. Practical implications include the urgency for keeping the “hero” story alive so that all service workers benefit from the movement.
Asymmetric crossing of the attractive and repulsive magnetic potential by Abrikosov vortices

We present studies of Abrikosov vortex motion across the magnetically charged edges of long thin ferromagnetic stripes placed above or under a thin superconducting film. The magnetic charges at the stripe edges form attractive or repulsive potential wells for vortices. Using a relatively small in-plane magnetic field to polarize the stripe edges and normal-to-plane magnetic field to induce up or down polarized vortices, we tune the attractive or repulsive stripe-vortex interactions. Imaging of the vortex dynamics reveals that the repulsive magnetic potential ${{U}_{m}}^{+}$ acts as a robust vortex pinning barrier, while the attractive ${{U}_{m}}^{\ensuremath{-}}$ has practically no effect on the vortex motion irrespective of the position of the stripes located above or underneath the superconducting film. We analyze the observed asymmetry using equations of the overdamped vortex motion. The formal analytical solution yields an asymmetry, but the numerical modeling with and without noise terms does not confirm it. Instead, we find that the asymmetry is caused by the creation of spontaneous vortices at the maxima of ${U}_{m}$, which depends on the edge polarity and suppress ${{U}_{m}}^{\ensuremath{-}}$. Furthermore, our experiment and time-dependent Ginzburg-Landau simulations demonstrate that magnetic pinning dominates over vortex pinning due to corrugations of the superconducting layer deposited on top of the ferromagnetic stripes.
A psychological approach to Bitcoin usage behavior in the era of COVID-19: Focusing on the role of attitudes toward money

Abstract During and after the COVID-19 pandemic, consumers are more likely to adapt and use Bitcoin for their daily transactions. Responding to this trend, this study examines the antecedents (i.e., perceived behavioral control, subjective norm, and financial self-efficacy) and consequence (i.e., behavioral intention to use Bitcoin) of general consumers’ attitudes toward money (i.e., power-prestige, retention-time, distrust, quality, and anxiety) based on the theory of planned behavior. This study employed three waves of data collection from general consumers in the United States who were interested in Bitcoin. The findings revealed that perceived behavioral control had significant influences on power-prestige, retention-time, distrust, quality, and anxiety. The results also indicated that subjective norm had a significant impact on retention-time, distrust, and anxiety. The outcomes addressed that financial self-efficacy significantly affected power-prestige, retention-time, distrust, quality, and anxiety. Lastly, the results found that behavioral intention to use Bitcoin was significantly influenced by power-prestige, retention-time, and distrust. Based on the empirical findings, this research proposes theoretical and practical implications for the cryptocurrency context.
Transposon Screen of Surface Accessibility in S. aureus

Bacterial cell walls represent one of the most prominent targets of antibacterial agents. These agents include natural products (e.g., vancomycin) and proteins stemming from the innate immune system (e.g., peptidoglycan-recognition proteins and lysostaphin). Among bacterial pathogens that infect humans, Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) continues to impose a tremendous healthcare burden across the globe. S. aureus has evolved countermeasures that can directly restrict the accessibility of innate immune proteins, effectively protecting itself from threats that target key cell well components. We recently described a novel assay that directly reports on the accessibility of molecules to the peptidoglycan layer within the bacterial cell wall of S. aureus. The assay relies on site-specific chemical remodeling of the peptidoglycan with a biorthogonal handle. Here, we disclose the application of our assay to a screen of a nonredundant transposon mutant library for susceptibility of the peptidoglycan layer with the goal of identifying genes that contribute to the control of cell surface accessibility. We discovered several genes that resulted in higher accessibility levels to the peptidoglycan layer and showed that these genes modulate sensitivity to lysostaphin. These results indicate that this assay platform can be leveraged to gain further insight into the biology of bacterial cell surfaces. Table of Contents Figure O_FIG_DISPLAY_L [Figure 1] M_FIG_DISPLAY C_FIG_DISPLAY
Multiple crossbar network-a switched high speed local network

A description is given of the multiple crossbar network (MCN), a prototype high-speed local network. It will interconnect supercomputers, network servers, and workstations from various commercial vendors at the Los Alamos National Laboratories. The MCN can also serve as a backbone for message traffic between local area networks. The MCN is a switched local network of switching nodes called cross-point stars (CP*). Hosts and CP*s are connected by 800-Mbit/s (100-Mbyte/s) point-to-point ANSI high-speed channels. CP*s include RISC-based network protocol processors called crossbar interfaces and a switching core called the crossbar switch. Protocols include physical, data link, intranet, and network access functionality. Various internet and transport protocols are intended to run above the MCN protocol suite. A network management and simple naming service is also included within the Los Alamos network architecture. Immediate applications include visualization. The MCN is intended to also serve as a framework for multicomputer applications. >