cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Therapeutic studies in hyperthyroidism: sodium 5-iodo-2-thiouracil.

IT HAS been previously suggested (1) that the ideal treatment of hyperthyroidism will result in a restoration of the thyroid to normal physiologic relationships and normal histologic structure. The fact that subtotal thyroidectomy seems to accomplish this in some cases may be explained by supposing that the reaction to surgery induces an inhibiting mechanism. This theory of an inhibiting mechanism receives support from the reported effect of the adrenal steroids on thyroid function (2). The antithyroid thiouracil drugs, however, do not result in restoration of thyroid parenchyma to normal (3). The synthetic combination of iodine and thiouracil1 (Barrett, et al. (4)) raised the possibility that involution to normal histologic structure, prevention of goitrogenicity, and induction of normal physiologic relationship might be accomplished. The advantages of sodium 5-iodo-2-thiouracil (hereafter called iodothiouracil) are based on the following theoretical considerations: 1. The hyperthyroid gland has a great ...
The Von Sallmann Lecture 1996: An Ophthalmological Explanation of REM Sleep

The hypothesis is advanced that the purpose of the eyeball movements during REM sleep is to stir the aqueous humor behind the closed lids and so avoid the risk that its stagnation could cause corneal anoxia. The relevance of the hypothesis to evolutionary biology and intensive care nursing is discussed.
On the global mean structure of the thermosphere

A self-consistent model of the global mean structure of the thermosphere is used to examine the ionospheric and thermospheric processes that control the structure of the thermosphere for solar minimum and maximum conditions during geomagnetic quiet periods. The model includes the physical and chemical processes believed to be dominant in the thermosphere and ionosphere. The total solar energy input available in the extreme ultraviolet and in the Schumann-Runge continuum portion of the solar spectrum is 14.1 x 10 to the 11th W and 21.5 x 10 to the 11th W for solar minumum and maximum, respectively. The calculated exospheric temperature is too small if maintained only by radiative processes, and an auroral heat source is necessary to bring the calculated global mean structure into agreement with the MSIS-83 empirical model for both solar minimum and maximum conditions. These results support the consensus that there is high-latitude heat source present at all times.
THE REPRESENTATION OF INCONSISTENT INFORMATION IN A DYNAMIC MODEL-THEORETIC SEMANTICS

Model-theoretic semantics provides a computationally attractive means of representing the semantics of natural language. However, the models used in this formalism are static and are usually infinite. Dynamic models are incomplete models that include only the information needed for an application and to which information can be added. Dynamic models are basically approximations of larger conventional models, but differ is several interesting ways.The difference discussed here is the possibility of inconsistent information being included in the model. If a computation causes the model to expand, the result of that computation may be different than the result of performing that same computation with respect to the newly expanded model (i. e. the result is inconsistent with the information currently in the dynamic model). Mechanisms are introduced to eliminate these local (temporary) inconsistencies, but the most natural mechanism can introduce permanent inconsistencies in the information contained in the dynamic model. These inconsistencies are similar to those that people have in their knowledge and beliefs. The mechanism presented is shown to be related to both the intensional isomorphism and impossible worlds approaches to this problem.
Metal contact double injection in GaAs

Recent studies on the GaAs injection laser have indicated certain problems associated with the localization of the region of population inversion to the immediate vicinity of the p-n junction. It has also been pointed out that very heavy doping is necessary of laser action. However, in heavily doped material the absorption of light is large, raising the threshold current for laser action. These problems can be overcome simultaneously by using a metal-GaAs-metal structure operating in the double injection mode described by Lampert. A metal of low work function is used to inject electrons at one surface and one of high work function to inject holes at the opposite surface. When sufficient double injection occurs to neutralize the bulk between the electrodes, the voltage required to sustain the current drops to a low value.
Quantitative, FFT-based, Kramers-Krönig analysis for reflectance data

Kramers-Kronig analysis (KK) has been used for many years by spectroscopists to relate dissipative and dispersive processes. Traditionally, the equations have been numerically integrated according to Simpson's or Maclaurin's method, with suitable series approximations for integrating around the poles and extrapolations added to the experimentally limited data set. This implementation is usually performed on a mini or mainframe computer due to the length of the calculation, which scales as the square of the number of data points. However, the advent of 25-MHz 80386 microprocessors and Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) algorithms implemented in powerful array processing languages now allow the KK analysis to be easily performed on personal computers. The application of FFTs to KK analysis is vastly superior in computational efficiency to numerical integration, but quantitative KK analysis incorporates several subtleties, and its implementation is not straightforward. This paper discusses our implementation of quantitatively accurate FFT-based KK analysis on a 80386 processor with a 1-min run time and its performance when applied to a test function consisting of a set of Lorentz oscillators.
Subplots facilitate assessment of corn yield losses from weed competition in a long-term systems experiment

Weeds can limit crop yield, particularly in organic systems where herbicide technologies are unavailable. Weedy and weed-free subplots were established within the full plots of a long-term Farming Systems Project at Beltsville, Maryland, USA, to determine the effect of weed competition on corn yields in six of the first ten years of an experiment designed to compare conventional and organic cropping systems. Weed abundance was determined in two ways, by sampling above-ground biomass and by estimating percent of soil area covered by weeds. Percent weed cover was shown to be linearly related to weed biomass but was more comprehensive than biomass sampling for determining the overall weed abundance in the larger full plots. The relationship between corn yield and weed cover estimates in subplots was used to estimate corn yield losses to weed competition and weed-free yield in the full plots. Weed competition reduced corn grain yield in all years in subplots, however, the degree of yield reduction ranged from 4 to 76%. This considerable variability was explained by rainfall whereby the highest yield loss occurred in years with below-average rainfall and the lowest yield loss occurred in years with above-average rainfall. Estimation of full-plot corn yield loss to weed competition demonstrated that yield differences between the conventional and organic systems were explained not only by weed competition but also by nitrogen availability. Results suggested that, in years with above-average rainfall, nitrogen availability was more limiting to organic corn yield than weed competition, but that, in years with below-average rainfall, weed competition was more limiting than nitrogen availability.
Nonstandard Employment Relations: Part-time, Temporary and Contract Work

Nonstandard employment relations—such as part-time work, temporary help agency and contract company employment, short-term and contingent work, and independent contracting—have become increasingly prominent ways of organizing work in recent years. Our understanding of these nonstandard work arrangements has been hampered by inconsistent definitions, often inadequate measures, and the paucity of comparative research. This chapter reviews the emerging research on these nonstandard work arrangements. The review emphasizes the multidisciplinary nature of contributions to this field, including research by a variety of sociologists, economists, and psychologists. It also focuses on cross-national research, which is needed to investigate how macroeconomic, political, and institutional factors affect the nature of employment relations. Areas for future research are suggested.
Characterization and purification of a bovine Bence-Jones protein.

Abstract A Bence-Jones protein isolated from the urine of a 10-yr-old Holstein cow was shown by thermosolubility tests, sedimentation properties and antigenic composition, to be a bovine counterpart of human and mouse Bence-Jones protein.
Beyond halo mass: galactic conformity as a smoking gun of central galaxy assembly bias

Quenched central galaxies tend to reside in a preferentially quenched large-scale environment, a phenomenon that has been dubbed galactic conformity. Remarkably, this tendency persists out to scales far larger than the virial radius of the halo hosting the central. Therefore, conformity manifestly violates the widely adopted assumption that the dark matter halo mass Mvir exclusively governs galaxy occupation statistics. This paper is the first in a series studying the implications of the observed conformity signal for the galaxy-dark matter connection. We show that recent measurements of conformity on scales R ~1-5 Mpc imply that central galaxy quenching statistics cannot be correctly predicted with the knowledge of Mvir alone. We also demonstrate that ejected (or `backsplash') satellites cannot give rise to the signal. We then invoke the age matching model, which is predicated on the co-evolution of galaxies and halos. We find that this model produces a strong signal, and that central galaxies are solely responsible. We conclude that large-scale `2-halo' conformity represents a smoking gun of central galaxy assembly bias, and indicates that contemporary models of satellite quenching have systematically over-estimated the influence of post-infall processes.
Diagnostic Value of Intestinal Alkaline Phosphatase in Horse Serum

Summary Antiserum directed against equine intestinal Alkaline Phosphatase (ALP) was produced in rabbits and used to develop a sensitive and quantitative assay for the detection of intestinal ALP in equine serum. This assay was then used to measure the half-life of intravenously injected intestinal ALP and to determine if the intestinal ALP was present in normal horse sera, sera from horses presented for lesions not involving the gastrointestinal tract and sera from horses presented with lesions involving the gastrointestinal tract. The results suggest that intestinal ALP is not likely to appear in equine serum even when gastrointestinal disease is present and, therefore, appears to be of no diagnostic value
Rapid, Sensitive Assay for Staphylococcal Enterotoxin A by Reversed Immuno-osmophoresis

Reversed immuno-osmophoresis using phenylsulfonated immune gamma(2)-globulin is a rapid sensitive method of assaying for staphylococcal enterotoxin A. The technique is compared with other serological methods.
Binge-type eating induced by limited access in rats does not require energy restriction on the previous day.

This study was designed to determine if a limited access feeding protocol would induce binge-type eating when energy intake on the day before the binge was not reduced. Rats were assigned to four groups; all groups had continuous access to chow and water throughout the 4 wk study. In addition, access to optional shortening was provided as follows: (1) Control (C): no access to shortening, (2) Regular Shortening Access-7 (RSA7): 2-h access everyday, (3) Regular Shortening Access-3 (RSA3): 2-h access every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, (4) Irregular Shortening Access (ISA): 2-h access on various days, such that the number of shortening access (binge) sessions equaled that of RSA3, but the last three sessions were each separated by 4 days. On the days prior to the last two binge sessions, RSA3 consumed significantly less energy than any other group (p<0.05), but ISA intakes equaled those of Control and RSA7. During the last two binge sessions, intakes of RSA3 and ISA did not differ, and both groups consumed significantly more than RSA7 or Control (p<0.05). These results demonstrate that binge-type eating can be induced by limiting access to an optional fatty food, and does not depend upon undereating on the previous day.
Agronomy In The Southwest United States

Publisher Summary Availability of water determines the nature of economy and agriculture. Urban and industrial demands reduce the amount of water available for irrigation. This decline is offset by the development of new sources of water and a better utilization of existing water supplies. Irrigated acreages are expected to be reduced only slightly in urban areas and agriculture continues to be an important source of income. High-value cash crops—such as cotton, oilseed, forage seed, fruits, and vegetables—can bear increasing costs of water for irrigation. Other crops—such as the feed grains and hay—are more seriously affected by water shortage. Nonirrigated (dry land) cropland will probably remain relatively constant but will continue to deteriorate in quality and carrying capacity unless increased efforts are made toward range improvement.
CLUSTERING AND INTERRELATIONSHIPS OF CORONARY HEART DISEASE RISK FACTORS IN SCHOOLCHILDREN, AGES 6–19

Clustering and interrelationships of common and easily identifiable risk factors in 951 children (ages 6-19) from the Cincinnati Lipid Research Clinic's Princeton School of District Study were assessed. Several patterns of partial correlation coeffieients appeared after multiple regression analysis with adjustment for age, sex, Quetelet index, and race. Systolic blood pressure (SBP) was positively correlated with plasma cholesterol and triglyceride, and with saturated fat intake. Plasma high density lipoprotein cholesterol (C-HDL) was positively associated with occupation of the head of the household and inversely associated with cigarette smoking and sucrose intake. Using multiple regression equations, from 29-41% of the variance for SBP and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) could be explained by the measured variables, with age, skinfold thickness, Quetelet, occupation, and education of the head of the household recurrently appearing in the regression equatons. Low density lipoprotein cholesterol (C-HDL) was the variable for which the lowest amount of variance could be explained in the four race-sex groups. Discriminant function analysis allowed an assessment of interrelationships of C-LDL-C-HDL aggregate groups to other risk factor mean residuals. The variables which contributed significantly to the discrimination between lipoprotein groups were Quetelet index, skinfold thickness, and DBP. Children in the highest C-LHL-lowest C-HDL quintile group had by far the highest residual Quetelet index and skinfold thickness, along with above average SBP, while those in The lowest C-LDL-highest C-HDL quintile group had the lowest residual Quetelet index, skinfold thickness, and SBP. Common risk and anti-risk factors for coronary heart disease (CHD) in children cluster, allowing identification of groups of children putatively at relatively high and low CHD risk as adults.
Epidural pressure changes following caudal blockade: a prospective, observational study.

Recent case reports raise the question as to whether anesthetic agents injected into the epidural space could lead to a ‘compartment syndrome’ and neurovascular sequelae. Single-shot caudal epidural anesthesia has been established as a safe technique, but changes in pressure in the caudal epidural space have not been described. Our aim was to study pressure changes to provide preliminary information for future studies design. We prospectively measured the pressure changes in the caudal epidural space in 31 pediatric patients. The pressures were measured at loss of resistance, immediately after the bolus dose of local anesthetic (1 ml/kg), and at 15-s intervals up to 3 min. The pressure at loss of resistance was 35.6 ± 27.8 mmHg. A pulsatile waveform was observed once the epidural space was accessed. The pressure after administration of the local anesthetic bolus (1 ml/kg 0.2 % ropivacaine/bupivacaine with 1:200,000 epinephrine) was 192.5 ± 93.3 mmHg. The pressure decreased to 51.5 ± 39.0 mmHg at 15 s, 26.9 ± 9.9 mmHg after 2 min, and 24.7 ± 11.7 after 3 min. The return to baseline occurred at approximately 45–60 s. Following the administration of the local anesthetic into the caudal epidural space, there was a marked, but transient, increase in the pressure within the epidural space. It appears unlikely that a slow epidural catheter infusion could lead to a sustained increase in epidural pressure.
PARTIAL BALANCES IN BATCH ARRIVAL BATCH SERVICE AND ASSEMBLE-TRANSFER QUEUEING NETWORKS

Recently Miyazawa and Taylor (1997) proposed a new class of queueing networks with batch arrival batch service and assemble-transfer features. In such networks customers arrive and are served in batches, and may change size when a batch transfers from one node to another. With the assumption of an additional arrival process at each node when it is empty, they obtain a simple product-form steady-state probability distribution, which is a (stochastic) upper bound for the original network. This paper shows that this class of network possesses a set of non-standard partial balance equations, and it is demonstrated that the condition of the additional arrival process introduced by Miyazawa and Taylor is there precisely to satisfy the partial balance equations, i.e. it is necessary and sufficient not only for having a product form solution, but also for the partial balance equations to hold.
Time-Dependent Viscoplastic Model for Dislocation Generation During the Cooling Process in the Silicon Ingot

Silicon growth is a process in which a silicon ingot is solidified from the melted and then cooled to the room temperature through the control of multi-heater. Dislocation densities are generated in the ingot by excessed thermal stresses caused by the nonuniform temperature field in the ingot. The generation of the dislocation density is considered as s a process of viscoplastic deformation. A three dimensional transient finite element model based on the Haasen viscoplastic constitutive model (HAS) is developed to evaluate the dislocation densities generated in silicon ingots grown by directional solidification process. The stress fields and dislocation densities generated in silicon ingots are the two major parameters for the evaluation of ingot quality. These two results calculated by HAS model are compared with those obtained from CRSS model. The result demonstrates that HAS model is more accurate than CRSS model for the calculation of dislocation densities and stresses during the cooling process of silicon ingot because of the consideration of time-dependent viscoplastic deformation in HAS model.
Abstract A129: Declining incidence of breast cancer since 2002 in the United States: How much is explained by the decrease in postmenopausal hormone use?

The striking decline in breast cancer incidence since 2002 in the United States has been widely attributed to discontinuation of postmenopausal hormone use following the results of the Women9s Health Initiative (WHI) randomized trial. However, very little analysis has been conducted to quantify the contribution of cessation of hormone use to the observed decline in breast cancer incidence. We used literature‐based estimates of the change in the prevalence of hormone use and the relative risk associated with hormone use to estimate the impact of cessation of hormone use on the observed decline in breast cancer incidence between 2002 and 2003 among women aged 40–79 years old. For the base case of a 46% decline in hormone use and a relative risk for current use of 1.5, we estimate that 42% of the decline in incidence was attributable to cessation of hormone use. By exploring a range of parameter values we found that high, unlikely values of the relative risk (i.e., ≥2.25) and/or the percent decline in hormone use (i.e., ≥75%) would be required to account for 100% of the observed decline in breast cancer incidence. We conclude that cessation of postmenopausal hormone use following the announcement of the results of the WHI is unlikely to account for more than half of the observed decline in breast cancer incidence among women aged 40–79 years old. The potential contributions of other factors should be examined in future studies, especially the role of the recent plateau in screening utilization. Citation Information: Cancer Prev Res 2010;3(1 Suppl):A129.
Justice Potter Stewart on Church and State

Justice Potter Stewart was appointed to the United States Supreme Court in October 1958 by President Dwight D. Eisenhower and served twenty-three years, resigning at the end of the Court's 1981 term. Thus he sat on the Court during the formative years of the Supreme Court's development of current church-state doctrines, writing a total of eleven majority, concurring, and dissenting opinions. For this rea son alone, exploring his positions on church and state would be helpful in understanding the development of the Supreme Court's doctrine in this area.
Female response to computer-simulated male drumming call variations in Pteronarcella badia (Plecoptera: Pteronarcyidae)

Pteronarcella badia (Hagen), a western stonefly, was examined for population variation in male drumming signals and female response to computer-generated variation in male signals. Female response to a wide range of variation in number of beats (3–11) and call duration (57–154% of typical) encompassed observed variation in male signals, indicated a definitive window of recognition, and conformed to an all-or-none pattern. Male five-beat calls convey minimal information necessary for substantial female response, and longer calls, including the mode natural seven-beat calls, seem to have the minimal calls embedded in them. The pattern of variation in the second call interval suggests that extant calls have been derived from minimal five-beat calls by adding beats to the beginning, which accommodates mechanical error (failure to strike the substrate on either end of the call) and variable thermal regimes.
Abstract 692: Identifying genes that regulate bladder cancer progression and invasion

Transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) is the most common type of bladder cancer and can be categorized as either non-muscle invasive (Ta-T1) or muscle invasive (≥T2). Approximately 50% of bladder cancers are T1 at initial diagnosis; however, the recurrence rate for these tumors is high and they may progress into T2. In this study, we aimed to determine if there are specific gene expression differences between T1 vs. T2 bladder cancer that can help identify key regulators in bladder cancer progression and invasion. T1 and T2 bladder cancer tissues were subjected to RNA-Seq to evaluate for differences among these stages. Additionally, the Oncomine database was examined to further narrow down potential candidates that differentiate T1 from T2. These efforts led to the identification of an extracellular matrix glycoprotein, fibulin-3 (FBLN3), as being highly expressed in T2 compared to T1 tissues. To validate these findings, FBLN3 expression was measured using qRT-PCR from formalin fixed and paraffin embedded tissues from patient bladder samples ranging from stages Ta-T4. These studies confirmed that FBLN3 expression was elevated in muscle-invasive compared to non-muscle invasive bladder cancer. Consistent with these findings, FBLN3 expression level correlated with the invasive ability of several bladder cancer cell lines. Specifically, FBLN3 expression was determined using both qRT-PCR and western blotting amongst the T24, UMUC-13, UMUC-3, RT4, and 5637 bladder cancer cell lines. The most invasive cell lines, T24 and UMUC-13, demonstrated the highest FBLN3 expression. In contrast, the least invasive cells, RT4 and 5637, demonstrated the least FBLN3 expression. To determine a functional role for FBLN3 in bladder cancer invasion, we knocked down or increased FBLN3 expression in bladder cancer cell lines using lentiviral transduction. Knockdown of FBLN3 expression in the T24 and UMUC-13 cells inhibited the invasion and migration of these bladder cancer cells; whereas, FBLN3 overexpression in the 5637 cells promoted the invasiveness of the bladder cancer cells. Furthermore, cell viability and growth rates were not affected by manipulation of FBLN3 expression. Our results indicate that FBLN3 serves as a pro-invasive factor in bladder cancer. These findings suggest that FBLN3 could serve as (1) a biomarker to differentiate T1 from T2 bladder cancers and (2) a promising therapeutic target. Citation Format: Amy L. Han, Brendan Veeneman, Scott A. Tomlins, Evan T. Keller. Identifying genes that regulate bladder cancer progression and invasion. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2016 Apr 16-20; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(14 Suppl):Abstract nr 692.
The Official Rules of Modern Warfare

In 1863, at the height of the Civil War and at the behest of the War Department, the distinguished political scientist Francis Lieber undertook a codification of existing international law on the rules of land warfare. The War Department published Lieber’s work as A Code for the Government of Armies in the Field and instructed Union soldiers to conduct themselves according to its conclusions. The code’s guiding principle was as follows: “Men who take up arms against one another in public war do not cease on this account to be moral beings, responsible to one another and to God.”
Early striatal amyloid deposition distinguishes Down syndrome and autosomal dominant Alzheimer's disease from late-onset amyloid deposition.

Abstract Introduction The objective of this study was to evaluate amyloid β (Aβ) deposition patterns in different groups of cerebral β amyloidosis: (1) nondemented with amyloid precursor protein overproduction (Down syndrome); (2) nondemented with abnormal processing of amyloid precursor protein (preclinical autosomal dominant Alzheimer disease); (3) presumed alteration in Aβ clearance with clinical symptoms (late-onset AD); and (4) presumed alterations in Aβ clearance (preclinical AD). Methods We performed whole-brain voxelwise comparison of cerebral Aβ between 23 Down syndrome, 10 preclinical autosomal dominant Alzheimer disease, 17 late-onset AD, and 16 preclinical AD subjects, using Pittsburgh Compound B–positron emission tomography. Results We found both Down syndrome and preclinical autosomal dominant Alzheimer disease shared a distinct pattern of increased bilateral striatal and thalamic Aβ deposition compared to late-onset AD and preclinical AD. Conclusion Disorders associated with early-life alterations in amyloid precursor protein production or processing are associated with a distinct pattern of early striatal fibrillary Aβ deposition before significant cognitive impairment. A better understanding of this unique pattern could identify important mechanisms of Aβ deposition and possibly important targets for early intervention.
Comparison of Two Doses of Antithymocyte Globulin (ATG) in Reduced Intensity Conditioning (RIC) Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant (alloHSCT)

Introduction: The appropriate dose of antithymocyte globulin (ATG) to be used in reduced-intensity conditioning (RIC) allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) is yet to be determined. In our previous retrospective analysis we compared two dosing schedules of ATG (7.5 mg/kg vs 6 mg/kg) in 136 patients who had undergone RIC allo-HSCT, and found no significant differences in the incidence of acute or chronic graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), non-relapse mortality (NRM), relapse, progression-free survival (PFS) or overall survival (OS). As of October 2013, our ATG dosing was lowered from 6.5 to 4.5 mg/kg. We now compare the outcomes of patients who received ATG at a dose of 4.5 mg/kg (r-ATG) to 6 mg/kg (R-ATG) Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the outcomes of patients who underwent unrelated or mismatch related RIC allo HSCT for hematologic malignancies and received r-ATG (40 patients) vs R-ATG (216 patients) at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center between October 2007 and September 2014. Cumulative incidences of GVHD, infection, NRM, and relapse were analyzed using Gray9s test, accounting for competing risks. PFS and OS were analyzed using the log-rank test. Results: Patients with hematologic malignancies included AML/MDS (53%), NHL/Hodgkin9s (19%), CLL (12%), and other hematologic malignancies including ALL (16%). There was a significant association between disease group and ATG dose (p Conclusions While there was an increase in grade II-IV acute GVHD with r-ATG, there was no significant difference in acute GVHD grade III-IV, relapse, NRM, PFS and OS between the two cohorts. r-ATG resulted in a lower proportion of CMV reactivation, but in a higher proportion of other competing risks. Given the increasing use of RIC allo-HSCT for treating malignant hematologic conditions, the correct dose and schedule of ATG administration should be defined by prospective randomized controlled trials. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
Shaping the MPC Cost Function for Superior Automated Glucose Control

Abstract The properties of an objective function are fundamental to the functionality of a model predictive controller (MPC). In automated glucose control, avoidance of hypo- and hyperglycemia introduces significant challenges in the design of this cost function. We present a new formulation of the cost function for an MPC based on clinical requirements, and validate the algorithm under in silico and advisory mode assessments. The proposed formulation exhibits significant improvements in avoiding hypoglycemia, compared to clinically validated controllers, and can also mitigate hyperglycemia, across a wide range of in silico scenarios as well as glucose responses seen in actual clinical settings.
Improving the performance of the quantized biorthogonal 9/7 wavelet filters

The biorthogonal 9/7 wavelet is used for lossy compression in the JPEG2000 image coding standard. A hardware implementation of the standard must consider the accuracy and the efficiency with which the quantized filter coefficients are represented; filter structure is also an important design consideration. A high precision representation ensures compression performance close to the unquantized, infinite precision filter bank, but this comes at the cost of increased hardware resources and processing time. This paper proposes a gain compensation method that significantly improves the performance of the quantized filters without sacrificing efficiency. Our best new method achieves performance close to the unquantized filter case while also realizing a fast, efficient hardware implementation.
Electro-optical observations and measurements of distorted high-intensity electric fields

The electrostatic field between high-voltage electrodes immersed in a dielectric liquid is often distorted by the presence of free charges in the liquid.1 Since these so-called “space charges” are believed to be, at least in part, ionic impurities present in the liquid before imposition of the field, sophisticated methods2,3 for achieving a high degree of purity have been developed. However, in spite of use of several of the more effective purification techniques, recent studies4,5 indicate continued distortion in the field distribution, particularly when high-intensity dc fields (>15 kV/cm) are applied.
Cultural evolution and the social sciences: a case of unification?

This paper addresses the question of how to understand the relationship between Cultural Evolutionary Science (CES) and the social sciences, given that they coexist and both study cultural change. I argue that CES is best understood as having a unificatory or integrative role between evolutionary biology and the social sciences, and that it is best characterized as a bridge field; I describe the concept of a bridge field and how it relates to other non-reductionist accounts of unification or integration used in the philosophy of science literature.
Measuring Focused Attention Using Fixation Inner-Density

Examining user reactions via the unobtrusive method of eye tracking is becoming increasingly popular in user experience studies. A major focus of this type of research is accurately capturing user attention to stimuli, which is typically established by translating raw eye movement signals into fixations, that is, ocular events characterized by relatively stable gaze over a specific stimulus. Grounded in the argument that inner-density of gaze points within a fixation represents focused attention, a recent study has developed the fixation-inner-density (FID) methodology, which identifies fixations based on the compactness of individual gaze points. In this study we compare the FID filter with a widely used method of fixation identification, namely the I-VT filter. To do so we use a set of measures that investigate the distribution of gaze points at a micro-level, that is, the patterns of individual gaze points within each fixation. Our results show that in general fixations identified by the FID filter are significantly denser and more compact around their fixation center. They are also more likely to have randomly distributed gaze points within the square box that spatially bounds a fixation. Our results also show that fixation duration is significantly different between the two methods. Because fixation is a major unit of analysis in behavioral studies and fixation duration is a major representation of the intensity of attention, awareness, and effort, our results suggest that the FID filter is likely to increase the sensitivity of such eye tracking investigations into behavior.
Proteomic Dissection of Dome Formation in a Mammary Cell Line

The study of the development of the mammary gland at the molecular level in animals is difficult because of the complex tissue organization. This review introduces a proteomic approach to investigate mammary gland development in a cell culture system that we have previously developed as an in vitro model for studying mammary cell differentiation. The model is based on two cell lines, one of which is able to differentiate spontaneously and produce hemispherical blisters, called domes, when confluent. Through proteomic dissection of dome-forming cells, two types of key regulatory genes have been identified: genes inducing cellular structural modifications and genes related to functional modifications. We identified several genes in the pathway leading to dome formation in vitro and showed that the functional and structural changes taking place in dome-forming cells correspond to cellular changes occurring in vivo when tubules and alveoli are developed in the mammary gland at pregnancy.
Overlooked Correlation in Finite Population Inference

In the prediction approach to finite population inference, probability models play a central role. Here we consider linear regression models and study how errors in specifying a model’s covariance structure affect variance estimators and the corresponding large sample confidence intervals for the population mean or total. We focus on local correlation in the form of either serial correlation or clustering. We find that overlooked serial correlation introduces little bias in variance estimators which consist of linear combinations of squared residuals when (i) the sampling fraction is small and (ii) the sample units are well dispersed in the population. Samples that are not well dispersed can produce badly biased variance estimators and misleading confidence intervals. When the sampling fraction is not negligible it is in general impossible to state verifiable sample conditions ensuring that serial correlation effects are unimportant. Clustering which is overlooked in the model can introduce severe biases in variance estimators when more than one unit is selected from each sample cluster, even when the sample is large and the sampling fraction small.
A nation of families: traditional indigenous kinship, the foundation for Cheyenne sovereignty:

One of the major destructive forces to American Indian peoples were the assimilation-based policies that destroyed traditional kinship systems and family units. This destruction contributed to the ...
Effects of presentation rate and onset time on auditory brainstem responses in Northern saw-whet owls (Aegolius acadicus).

Monitoring auditory brainstem responses (ABRs) is a common method of assessing auditory processing in non-model species. Although ABRs are widely used to compare auditory abilities across taxa, the extent to which different features of acoustic stimuli affect the ABR is largely unknown in most non-mammalian species. The authors investigated the effects of varying presentation rate and onset time to determine how different features of acoustic stimuli influence the ABR in Northern saw-whet owls (Aegolius acadicus), a species known for their unique auditory adaptations and hunting abilities. At presentation rates ranging from 21.1 to 51.1 s−1, there were no differences in the size or synchrony of ABRs, suggesting that stimuli can be presented at a relatively rapid rate to maximize the number of observations recorded for analysis. While increasing onset time was associated with a decrement in response size and synchrony, tonebursts with 1 ms onset times produced overgeneralized neural responses as a result of spectral splatter. This suggests that 2 to 3 ms onset times may balance the trade-off between response synchrony and frequency specificity when comparing relative neural recruitment across frequencies. These findings highlight the importance of considering stimulus parameters when interpreting ABR data.Monitoring auditory brainstem responses (ABRs) is a common method of assessing auditory processing in non-model species. Although ABRs are widely used to compare auditory abilities across taxa, the extent to which different features of acoustic stimuli affect the ABR is largely unknown in most non-mammalian species. The authors investigated the effects of varying presentation rate and onset time to determine how different features of acoustic stimuli influence the ABR in Northern saw-whet owls (Aegolius acadicus), a species known for their unique auditory adaptations and hunting abilities. At presentation rates ranging from 21.1 to 51.1 s−1, there were no differences in the size or synchrony of ABRs, suggesting that stimuli can be presented at a relatively rapid rate to maximize the number of observations recorded for analysis. While increasing onset time was associated with a decrement in response size and synchrony, tonebursts with 1 ms onset times produced overgeneralized neural responses as a result o...
A hypergraph-based method for large-scale dynamic correlation study at the transcriptomic scale.

The biological regulatory system is highly dynamic. Correlations between functionally related genes change over different biological conditions, which are often unobserved in the data. At the gene level, the dynamic correlations result in three-way gene interactions involving a pair of genes that change correlation, and a third gene that reflects the underlying cellular conditions. This type of ternary relation can be quantified by the Liquid Association statistic. Studying these three-way interactions at the gene triplet level have revealed important regulatory mechanisms in the biological system. Currently, due to the extremely large amount of possible combinations of triplets within a high-throughput gene expression dataset, no method is available to examine the ternary relationship at the biological system level and formally address the false discovery issue. Here we propose a new method, Hypergraph for Dynamic Correlation (HDC), to construct module-level three-way interaction networks. The method is able to present integrative uniform hypergraphs to reflect the global dynamic correlation pattern in the biological system, providing guidance to down-stream gene triplet-level analyses. To validate the method’s ability, we conducted two real data experiments using a melanoma RNA-seq dataset from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and a yeast cell cycle dataset. The resulting hypergraphs are clearly biologically plausible, and suggest novel relations relevant to the biological conditions in the data. We believe the new approach provides a valuable alternative method to analyze omics data that can extract higher order structures. The software is at https://github.com/yunchuankong/HypergraphDynamicCorrelation .
Reducing Nicotine Without Misleading the Public: Descriptions of Cigarette Nicotine Level and Accuracy of Perceptions About Nicotine Content, Addictiveness, and Risk

SIGNIFICANCE The public incorrectly believes very low nicotine content (VLNC) cigarettes are less carcinogenic than current cigarettes, a belief associated with lower motivation to quit under a VLNC standard. We examined how different descriptions of the nicotine level in VLNC cigarettes affect the accuracy of the public's perceptions about nicotine content, addictiveness, and cancer risk. METHODS Participants were a national convenience sample of 1353 US adults (22% smokers). In an online experiment, we randomized participants to a VLNC description using (1) concise language; (2) a percentage; (3) an interpretation; (4) a percentage and interpretation; (5) a percentage and a pictograph; or (6) a percentage, interpretation, and pictograph; or to a control description using (7) FDA's "minimally or nonaddictive" phrasing. We assessed accuracy of perceived nicotine content, addictiveness, and cancer risk compared to current cigarettes. RESULTS Compared to control, the percentage description resulted in more accurate perceptions about nicotine content (76% vs. 49% accuracy) and addictiveness (44% vs. 34%), but less accurate perceptions about cancer risk (56% vs. 68%; all ps < .05). Adding interpretation or pictographs to the percentage description did not increase accuracy. The concise language description reduced accuracy of perceived nicotine content and addictiveness but increased accuracy of cancer risk (all ps < .05). CONCLUSIONS Stating that 95% of nicotine would be removed more accurately conveyed the nicotine content and addictiveness of VLNC cigarettes. However, descriptions that better conveyed nicotine content and addictiveness misled people about cancer risk. IMPLICATIONS Implementation of a VLNC standard should include plans for a communication campaign that conveys that VLNC cigarettes will be less addictive but equally toxic to smoke. Stating the percent reduction in nicotine is likely to more clearly communicate reduced addictiveness but may also exacerbate risk misperceptions. VLNC communication requires further study to ensure the public accurately understands a VLNC standard.
Molecular Dynamics Simulations Based on Newly Developed Force Field Parameters for Cu2+ Spin Labels Provide Insights into Double-Histidine-Based Double Electron-Electron Resonance.

Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) in combination with the recently developed double Histidine (dHis) based Cu(II) spin labeling has provided valuable insights into protein structure and conform...
Temperature regulation for thermoplastic micro-forming of bulk metallic glass: Robust control design using buck converter

Abstract This article presents the design, identification, simulation, and control of a buck converter implemented for bulk metallic glass thermoplastic micro-forming. In manufacturing of multi-faceted bulk metallic glass knife edge, the temperature of the micro-forming sample is critical to the thermoplastic deformation, which determines the quality of the blade edge shape. We propose a nested inner-current outer-temperature control system for high-fidelity temperature regulation. The inner-current control loop is implemented on a modified buck converter, which allows high-power rectified AC input and outputs current that can be regulated with a precision of 2 % over a bandwidth of 5 Hz. We use switch-averaged electrical model together with feedback linearization to address complex nonlinear dynamics that describe a buck converter, and to enable it using linear control design methods. The outer-temperature control design ensures temperature regulation of a heater by prescribing real-time reference power that the current-control loop should provide. The challenge of nonlinear relationship between the required reference power and the regulated current is addressed by exploiting the high-bandwidth of the inner-current loop. The control objectives of regulation performance and robustness to modelling uncertainties are posed and solved in an optimal control (H∞) framework. Experimental results demonstrate that our control design achieved the required temperature regulation at 673 K within 0.03 K. An improvement of over 5000 % is demonstrated when compared with previously implemented control designs. Moreover, the buck converter-based system enables regulation accuracies that were not possible with other popular existing methods such as TRIAC and traditional relay switches.
Synchronized attachment and the Darwinian evolution of Coronaviruses CoV-1 and CoV-2

CoV2019 has evolved to be much more dangerous than CoV2003. Experiments suggest that structural rearrangements dramatically enhance CoV2019 activity. We identify a new first stage of infection that precedes structural rearrangements by using biomolecular evolutionary theory to identify sequence differences enhancing viral attachment rates. We find a small cluster of mutations which show that CoV-2 has a new feature that promotes much stronger viral attachment and enhances contagiousness. The extremely dangerous dynamics of human coronavirus infection is a dramatic example of evolutionary approach of self-organized networks to criticality. It may favor a very successful vaccine. The identified mutations can be used to test the present theory experimentally.
The Hertz Maneuver (and the Limits of Bankruptcy Law)

On June 11, 2020, the Hertz Corporation attempted to become the first corporate debtor to finance a bankruptcy proceeding by issuing new shares of common stock to the public. Though many thought Hertz’s equity was worthless, its stock was trading at a positive value on the secondary markets, and Hertz was attempting to tap into that market value. When the bankruptcy court blessed the plan, many observers responded with outrage on behalf of retail investors who, they argued, were being duped into a worthless investment. They suggested that the law should prevent retail investors from buying these shares. Ultimately, the Securities Exchange Commission signaled that it had similar concerns and effectively killed the proposal. This essay explores the questions raised by this incident. It argues that commentators were focused on the wrong bankruptcy problem. Contrary to the view of the commentators, Hertz’s bankruptcy does not show that retail investors require bankruptcy-specific protections. The Hertz maneuver does, however, highlight distortions created by bankruptcy law’s distribution rule, known as the absolute priority rule. That rule cuts off future opportunities for those holding equity (or junior claims) in a debtor firm and makes it difficult for stockholders and unsecured creditors to make long-term investments in the firm’s future value. From this perspective, existing proposals to alter bankruptcy’s priority rules begin to look like a form of investor protection that could facilitate investment in a firm’s long-term value.