cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Finite memory-length linear multiuser detection for asynchronous CDMA communications

Decorrelating, linear, minimum mean-squared error (LMMSE), and noise-whitening multiuser detectors for code-division multiple-access systems (CDMA) are ideally infinite memory-length (referred to as IIR) detectors. To obtain practical detectors, which have low implementation complexity and are suitable for CDMA systems with time-variant system parameters (e.g., the number of users, the delays of users, and the signature waveforms), linear finite-memory-length (referred to as FIR) multiuser detectors are studied in this paper. They are obtained by truncating the IIR detectors or by finding optimal FIR detectors. The signature waveforms are not restricted to be time-invariant (periodic over symbol interval). Thus, linear multiuser detection is generalized to systems with spreading sequences longer than the symbol interval. Conditions for the stability of the truncated detectors are discussed. Stable truncated detectors are shown to be near-far resistant if the received powers are upper bounded, and if the memory length is large enough (but finite). Numerical examples demonstrate that moderate memory lengths are sufficient to obtain the performance of the IIR detectors even with a severe near-far problem.
Macro Consumption Patterns of Black American Households

This paper compares the similarities and differences in macro consumption patterns between Black and non-black households. The analysis is based on data recently made available by the Bureau of Labor Statistics for 1984. The data indicate that Black households own less, earn less, and spend less than non-black households. However, despite the absolute differences, the data also reveal surprising similarities within categories of the relative income and purchasing patterns of Black and non-black households.
The Role of Catalysis in Industrial Waste Reduction

Millions of tons of hazardous waste are generated each year in the United States, and the direct costs of managing these materials are in the tens of billions of dollars. As public pressure for reduced, or even zero discharge grow, waste management costs are likely to further escalate, and conventional end-of-pipe treatment measures will become cost prohibitive. A new approach to waste management will be required, which stresses the elimination or reduction of wastes at their source, rather than capture after their formation. This new approach to waste management has been called waste reduction, pollution prevention and source reduction. The approach offers both challenges and opportunities. The challenge is to control the costs of environmental stewardship so that products produced in an environmentally benign manner can remain competitive in global markets. If this challenge is met successfully, then the clean technologies that are developed have the opportunity to dominate world markets.
Birth Weight Predicts Scores on the ADHD Self-Report Scale and Attitudes towards Casual Sex in College Men: A Short-Term Life History Strategy?:

Early development can have long-term effects on physiology and behavior. While severe disturbances predictably lead to dysfunction, recent work in humans and animals has led to a growing appreciati...
Molecular Fossils from Microorganisms Preserved in Glacial Ice

The study of microbial evolution is hindered by the fact that microbial populations leave few fossils. We hypothesized that bacterial cells preserved in ancient ice could be used as a molecular fossil record if their DNA could be extracted and sequenced. Channels formed along triple junctions of ice crystals contain liquid “veins” in which microbial cells may be preserved intact. Since vertical motion through the ice matrix is impossible, microbes found in ice cores are representative of microbes present at the time the ice was formed. We detected chlorophyll fluorescence in intact ice cores taken from Greenland and Antarctica. Flow cytometric analysis localized at least some of this fluorescence to particles < 1 μm in diameter. Metagenomic analysis of meltwater indeed revealed sequences similar to modern strains of the picocyanobacterial genera Synechococcus and Prochlorococcus, and some of these sequences were distinct from any sequences known from modern oceans or glacial environments. Our study is a first proof-of-concept of the use of ice cores as records of microbial evolution, and we suggest that future genetic studies with higher vertical resolution in the cores might shed light on the pace and character of evolution of these ecologically important cells.
Hemodynamic effects of inhibitors of the renin-angiotensin system.

PURPOSE To review the hemodynamic effects of the various classes of inhibitors of the renin-angiotensin system. DATA PRESENTATION: First, hemodynamic alterations related to inhibition of the renin-angiotensin system were defined. Second, some comparative studies on the various types of inhibitors were examined. RESULTS Angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors have been well studied in both hypertension and heart failure and have been shown to produce both arteriolar and venous dilation. Renin inhibitors have been shown to achieve equipotent blood pressure reductions to those induced by ACE inhibitors in experimental studies; the mechanism of blood pressure reduction was related to a decrease in systemic resistance, without altering the heart rate or cardiac output. Angiotensin II antagonists are still being studied. CONCLUSIONS It may be still too early to predict how useful the renin inhibitors and the angiotensin II antagonists will be for the therapy of cardiovascular diseases, compared with ACE inhibitors.
WHY SO SERIOUS?: on philosophy and comedy

The Western philosophical tradition shows a marked fondness for tragedy. From Plato and Aristotle, through German idealism, to contemporary reflections on the murderous violence of the twentieth century, philosophy has often looked to tragedy for resources to make suffering, grief, and death thinkable. But what if, in showing this preference, philosophical thought has unwittingly and unknowingly aligned itself with a form of thinking that accepts injustice without protest? What if tragedy, and the philosophical thinking that mobilizes it, gives a tacit assent to injustice?This collection explores possibilities for philosophical thinking that are revealed by deliberately refusing the tragic model of thought, by turning instead to its often-overlooked companion: comedy. Comprising a series of experiments ranging across the philosophical tradition, the essays in this volume propose to break, or at least suspend, the use of tragedy as an index of truth and philosophical worth. In so doing, they explore new co...
Beverage-specific patterns of 5+ alcoholic drink consumption by young adults in the U.S.

Abstract Young adult binge drinking prevalence has been widely researched. However, beverage-specific binge drinking rates for beer, liquor, wine, and wine coolers have not yet been documented for this age group. This study examines consumption of specific beverages (i.e., 5+ drinks in a row in the past two weeks) by young adults aged 19/20. Data from the national Monitoring the Future study were collected one or two years after high school from 2004 to 2014 ( n = 2004). Logistic regression was used to examine associations between beverage-specific 5+ drinking and gender, race/ethnicity, parent education, college status, and cohort year. Overall 5+ drinking in the past two weeks was reported by 31.4% of young adults. Beverage-specific 5+ drinking was most common with liquor (22.6%) and beer (22.4%), followed by wine (4.5%) and wine coolers (3.0%). Men were more likely than women to engage in 5+ drinking with beer and liquor; women were more likely than men to do so with wine and wine coolers. Beverage-specific patterns differed by college attendance. Compared to four-year college students, two-year college/votech students were less likely to have 5+ drinks of liquor or wine, and more likely to have 5+ wine coolers; those not in college were less likely to have 5+ drinks of liquor and more likely to have 5+ wine coolers. Differences in beverage-specific 5+ drinking by gender and college enrollment suggest that intervention efforts should focus on the beverages that are most commonly consumed at high levels within specific early young adult populations.
The Importance of Subthreshold Fission Phenomena in Certain Applications of Fission Threshold Detectors: An Example of Neptunium-237 for Nondestructive Assay

A calculational study was made of the response of 237Np in a “threshold” fission detector to be used in a system for measuring the fissile content of spent fuel subassemblies by nondestructive assa...
Exploration of Peptide Free Energy Surfaces

The Conformational Free Energy Thermodynamic Integration (CFTI) method, a new multidimensional approach for conformational free energy simulations, is presented. The method is applied to two problems of biochemical interest: exploration of the free energy surfaces of helical alanine (Ala) and α-methylalanine (Aib) homopeptides in vacuum and the cost of pre-organization of the opioid peptide Tyr-D-Pen-Gly-Phe-D-Pen (DPDPE) peptide for disulfide bond formation. In the CFTI approach a single molecular dynamics simulation with all o and ψ dihedrals kept fixed yields the complete conformational free energy gradient for the studied peptides. For regular structures of model peptides (Ala)n and (Aib)n where n=6,8,10 and Aib is a-methylalanine in vacuum, free energy maps in the helical region of o- ψ space are calculated, and used to roughly locate stable states. The locations of the free energy minima are further refined by the novel procedure of free energy optimization by steepest descent down the gradient, leading to structures in excellent agreement with experimental data. The stability of the minima with respect to deformations is studied by analysis of second derivatives of the free energy surface. Analysis of free energy components and molecular structures uncovers the molecular mechanism for the propensity of Aib peptides for the 310-helix structure in the interplay between the quality and quantity of hydrogen bonds. For the linear form of the DPDPE peptide in solution, free energy differences are calculated between four conformers: Cyc, representing the structure adopted by the linear peptide prior to disulfide bond formation, β c and β E, two slightly different β-turns previously identified as representative, stable structures of the peptide, and Ext, an extended structure. The simulations indicate that β E is the most stable of the studied conformers of linear DPDPE in aqueous solution, with β c , Cyc and Ext having free energies higher by 2.3, 6.3, and 28.2 kcal/mol, respectively. The free energy differences of 4.0 kcal/mol between β c and Cyc, and 6.3 kcal/mol between β E and Cyc, reflect the cost of pre-organizing the linear peptide into a conformation conducive for disulfide bond formation. Such a conformational change is a pre-requisite for the chemical reaction of S-S bond formation to proceed.
Outer region scaling using the freestream velocity for nonuniform open channel flow over gravel

Abstract The theoretical basis for outer region scaling using the freestream velocity for nonuniform open channel flows over gravel is derived and tested for the first time. Owing to the gradual expansion of the flow within the nonuniform case presented, it is hypothesized that the flow can be defined as an equilibrium turbulent boundary layer using the asymptotic invariance principle. The hypothesis is supported using similarity analysis to derive a solution, followed by further testing with experimental datasets. For the latter, 38 newly collected experimental velocity profiles across three nonuniform flows over gravel in a hydraulic flume are tested as are 43 velocity profiles previously published in seven peer-reviewed journal papers that focused on fluid mechanics of nonuniform open channel over gravel. The findings support the nonuniform flows as equilibrium defined by the asymptotic invariance principle, which is reflective of the consistency of the turbulent structure's form and function within the expanding flow. However, roughness impacts the flow structure when comparing across the published experimental datasets. As a secondary objective, we show how previously published mixed scales can be used to assist with freestream velocity scaling of the velocity deficit and thus empirically account for the roughness effects that extend into the outer region of the flow. One broader finding of this study is providing the theoretical context to relax the use of the elusive friction velocity when scaling nonuniform flows in gravel bed rivers; and instead to apply the freestream velocity. A second broader finding highlighted by our results is that scaling of nonuniform flow in gravel bed rivers is still not fully resolved theoretically since mixed scaling relies to some degree on empiricism. As researchers resolve the form and function of macroturbulence in the outer region, we hope to see the closing of this research gap.
Isolation and Purification of Th9 Cells for the Study of Inflammatory Diseases in Research and Clinical Settings

Th9 cells are associated with atopic and inflammatory diseases, and their increased levels and function correlate with the severity of symptoms in various inflammatory disorders including asthma, food allergy, atopic dermatitis, ulcerative colitis, and psoriatic arthritis. Thus, clinical trials are warranted to evaluate the role of Th9 cells in allergic diseases with the goal of controlling these ailments.Circulating T cells (naive or memory CD4+ T cells) purified from human blood and expanded using anti-CD3 and anti-CD28 antibodies can be treated with appropriate cytokines in order to polarize them to the Th9 phenotype as evidenced by their production of IL-9. When treated in vitro with cholecalciferol or 1,25(OH)2 vitamin D3, cells polarized under Th9 conditions significantly downregulate production of IL-9. The percentage of polarized Th9 memory cells from patients treated with steroids or other modalities can be monitored during clinical trials and compared to control populations.
The Impact of Big Data on the Physician

Over the past few years technology has evolved to integrate itself into a myriad of aspects of every day life, including healthcare access and delivery. One way in which technology has begun to truly transform healthcare is with big data and big data analytics. Using sophisticated tools to capture, aggregate, and translate data across multiple sources, ranging from traditional electronic health records to non-traditional consumer devices, big data has the potential to transform the practice of medicine at both the level of the patient-physician relationship as well as in clinical decision-making and treatment. Already apparent are intriguing examples of increased patient engagement, improved evidence-based physician decision-making, and multi-faceted tools for more individualized patient care. As big data becomes more and more incorporated into the practice of medicine, issues regarding systems interoperability, privacy and security, and legal and regulatory boundaries will need to be resolved. This chapter is intended to be an overview of big data applications and potential challenges as they relate to the patient and physician.
Life cycle net energy and greenhouse gas emissions of photosynthetic cyanobacterial biorefineries: Challenges for industrial production of biofuels

Abstract The net energy ratios (NERs) and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of a Photosynthetic Cyanobacterial Biorefinery (PSBR) were evaluated using a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach. This study assessed engineered cyanobacterium cultures in which biosynthetic biofuels are directly secreted. Biofuels researched in this study include bisabolane, a biosynthetic substitute for D2 diesel; heptadecane, a substitute for diesel; and ethanol, a substitute for gasoline. Results demonstrate that cyanobacteria-based ethanol has higher yields, lower NER, and lower GHG emissions than bisabolane and heptadecane products in Synechocystis sp. PCC6803. By performing a sensitivity analyses of the life cycle NER and GHG emissions responses of the system, we derived the improvements in system biology, metabolic engineering, and process engineering that would be required to minimize the environmental impacts at an industrial scale. The NER and GHG emissions of the biofuel products were found to be the most sensitive to organism-level biofuel productivities, the energy consumption of vapor compression and distillation, and the energy consumption of culture mixing. This LCA will serve as a baseline for stakeholders; including policy makers, cyanobacterial refineries, and researchers, to establish the goals to engineer cyanobacteria and sustainable bioprocesses.
Performance of Parbhani District Central Co-operative Bank

The finding of the study facilitated in depth understanding of the performance of Parbhani District Central Co-operative Bank (DCCB) in relation to the supply of short term and medium term loan to agriculture. For analysis of data statistical tools viz., averages, coefficient of variation (C.V.) and growth rates (G.R.), etc, were employed to arrive at meaningful conclusion. From the study it was revealed that in overall period the number of branches, number of borrowers, C/D ratio, percentage of advance to non-agriculture sector, percentage of recovery, per cent of agricultural recovery to agricultural. Sector and borrowings were non-significant / negatively significant. On the contrary, the share capital, funds, deposits, owned funds, advances recovery, over dues, percentage of over dues, advances of agriculture sector, percentage of advances to agricultural sector, advances to non-agricultural sector, percentage of agricultural recovery to non Agric. sector and percentage of NPA were positively significant.
Tm-doped fiber laser resonantly diode-cladding-pumped at 1620 nm

We report the first demonstration of an efficient, high power, resonantly (in-band) diode-cladding-pumped Tm-doped fiber laser operating on the 3F4 3H6 transition of Tm3+ ion. The laser, pumped by a fiber coupled laser diode module at ~1620 nm, delivered ~15 W of power at 1930 nm with a slope efficiency of 67% versus the absorbed pump power. This presents, to the best of our knowledge, the highest slope efficiency and the highest output power reported so far for resonantly diode-cladding-pumped 2 µm fiber lasers based on double-clad Tm-doped silica fibers. These very preliminary results, obtained with commercial double-clad Tm-doped fibers, unoptimized for in-band pumping at the peak of resonant absorption, indicate a very high potential of resonantly diode-cladding-pumped Tm fiber lasers for major power scaling unaffected by photodarkening. Fiber optimization for resonant pumping at the maximum of the Tm3+ 3H6 3F4 absorption band in silica (1610–1710 nm) can lead to a new generation of Tm fiber lasers with power and wall-plug efficiency, competing with those of high power tandem-pumped Tm-doped fiber lasers, but potentially with a lighter weight and smaller dimensions.
Engineering the Mechanical Properties of Polymer Networks with Precise Doping of Primary Defects.

Polymer networks are extensively utilized across numerous applications ranging from commodity super-absorbent polymers and coatings to high performance microelectronics and biomaterials. For many applications, desirable properties are known, however, achieving them has been challenging. Additionally, the accurate prediction of elastic modulus has been a longstanding difficulty due to the presence of loops. By tuning the pre-polymer formulation through precise doping of monomers, specific primary network defects can be programmed into an elastomeric scaffold, without alteration of their resulting chemistry. The addition of these monomers that respond mechanically as primary defects, is used both to understand their impact on the resulting mechanical properties of the materials, and as a method to engineer the mechanical properties. Indeed, these materials exhibit identical bulk and surface chemistry, yet vastly different mechanical properties. Further, we have adapted the Real Elastic Network Theory (RENT)...
Echocardiographic measures of right ventricular function poorly correlate with changes in contractility and coupling in treatment naïve patients with pulmonary artery hypertension before and after therapy

Right ventricular (RV) contractility and RV-pulmonary artery (RVPA) coupling are major determinates of adaptation to increasing afterload in pulmonary artery hypertension (PAH). We seek to correlate echocardiographic quantitative measurements of RV function to directly measured RVPA coupling in PAH. We integrated catheterization and cardiac MRI to use single beat analysis to prospectively measure RV contractility (Ees, end-systolic elastance), afterload (Ea, pulmonary arterial elastance), and RVPA coupling ratio (Ees/Ea) at baseline and after 3 months of vasoactive therapy in 31 treatment naive, functional class IV patients with WHO Group I PAH. We simultaneously measured isovolumetric acceleration (IVA), TAPSE, fractional area change (FAC), RV myocardial performance index (MPI), and TAPSE/PA systolic pressure (Pes). Patients demonstrated a drop from baseline to 3 months in both Ees (3.2±1.8 to 1.8±1.6 mmHg/ml, p= Echocardiographically derived measures of RV function show a poor relationship to RV contractility and RVPA coupling. Measures corrected for load (e.g. TAPSE/Pes) show promise for further research.
Complementing single-cell RNA-seq using bulk transcriptional profiles

While high-throughput single cell technologies enable in depth examination of specific cell subsets, these experiments lack the context of these subsets in other cell types and diseases. We compared novel dendritic and monocyte signatures from single cell RNAseq with bulk transcriptome of immune cells to show that the gene signatures for the novel cell subsets are also up-regulated in functionally related but non-parental cell populations. We extended utility of these signatures by demonstrating their consistent down-regulation in cancers, up-regulation in autoimmune diseases, and signature-specific effects in infections. We encourage other researchers to similarly complement their experiments and analyses using existing, publicly available datasets.
The Pathology of Non-epithelial Tumors of the Prostate

Non-epithelial tumors of the prostate encompass numerous and diverse tumors and tumorlike conditions, including those of mesenchymal and hematopoietic origin. Still they constitute only a small fraction of all prostatic neoplasms encountered in practice. This chapter discusses mesenchymal tumors of the prostate, including tumors of specialized prostatic stroma, leiomyosarcoma, rhabdomyosarcoma, inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor, solitary fibrous tumor, and other less frequent entities. Hematopoietic malignancies, including chronic lymphocytic leukemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma as well as diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, are also discussed.
Project Outcome results in action

ABSTRACTThe Public Library Association’s performance measurement initiative, Project Outcome, is a free online toolkit designed to help public libraries understand and share the impact of essential...
Quantitative Solid Phase Radioimmunoassay of Allergen-Specific IgG

Methods for the quantitation of nanogram quantities of allergen-specific IgG in human sera include the antigen-binding technique of Minden and Farr [1], radioimmunoprecipitation assays [2,3], and solid phase radioimmunoassays [4]. The radioimmunoprecipitation (double-antibody) method has been applied to the study of IgG specific for ragweed antigen E [5], bee venom allergens [6], and the penicilloyl hapten [7]. Because of its precision and the possibility of standardization of antibody content, the radioimmunoprecipitation method is considered the procedure of choice for detection of IgG responses to purified allergens. However, when the radioimmunoprecipitation assay is applied to the study of crude allergen mixes, problems arise. These include variable reproducibility in the radioiodination of protein mixes, differential labeling of constituent proteins, and sometimes a rapid decline in immunoreactivity following the labeling procedure. Evaluation of alternative methods which would minimize these problems appears warranted. A solid phase radioimmunoassay for human IgG would be especially attractive since an analogous system, the radioallergosorbent test (RAST) is currently the procedure of choice for measurement of allergen-specific IgE antibody [8,9].
Dreaming as a Function of Chaos-Like Stochastic Processes in the Self-Organizing Brain

This paper argues that dream experiences owe both their structure and meaning to stochastic self-organizing properties of the brain during sleep. Several lines of evidence support the notion that the dreaming brain can be understood as a process system that exhibits chaos-like stochastic properties that are highly sensitive to internal influences. This sensitivity is due, first, to the fact that the dreaming brain gates out external input, thus operating without the stabilizing influences of waking feedback. Second, the pre-frontal cortex in both REM and non-REM (NREM) sleep is only minimally activated, thus the brain operates with weakened volition, reduced logic, and diminished self-reflection. Third, there is a reduction of neuromodulatory inhibition during sleep, which is most pronounced during REM sleep, allowing the brain to respond to minute internal stimulation. Finally, the REM sleeping brain is subject to powerful intermittent cholinergic PGO activity that may provide vigorous stimulation for complex dream activity. Taken in overview, this conception of dreaming offers a common meeting ground for brain-based studies of dreaming and psychological dream theory.
Directional control of narrow-band thermal emission from nanoantennas

We investigate the directional control of narrow-band perfect thermal emission using a nanoscale Yagi–Uda antenna. Although Yagi–Uda antennas were demonstrated to achieve directional control in the optical and radio frequency regimes, they have not been applied for thermal infrared emission. Here, by coupling a nanoscale thermal emitter into a Yagi–Uda antenna, we demonstrate strong directional control of thermal emission with a narrow-band spectrum at the nanoscale. By exploring the effects of the reflector and the director of a Yagi–Uda antenna, the forward emission enhancement factor up to 8.3 is achieved through geometry optimization.
Invasive Burmese pythons ( Python bivittatus ) are novel nest predators in wading bird colonies of the Florida Everglades

Invasive Burmese pythons have been shown to have population-level effects on native mammals in southern Florida. Tens of thousands of long-legged wading birds (of multiple species in Ciconiiformes, Pelecaniformes) breed in aggregations, known as colonies, on tree islands in the Everglades. Burmese pythons may pose a threat to these colonies because pythons are semi-aquatic and commonly use tree islands and arboreal habitat. However, python predation on nests of wading birds has not previously been documented or quantified. We used trail cameras to monitor nests at colonies in Everglades National Park and Water Conservation Area 3 in 2014, and 2016–2017. We did not detect Burmese python predation at monitored nests in 2014 (23 nests in 2 colonies) or 2016 (59 nests in 4 colonies). In 2017 (125 nests in 7 colonies), we detected three individual pythons consuming nestlings, fledglings, and eggs in a minimum of 7.9% (5 nests, n = 63) of monitored nests at a colony in Everglades National Park. In 2017, the overall predation rate of Burmese pythons at all monitored nests (5 of 125 nests, or 4%), was five times the native predator rate (1 of 125 nests, or 0.8%). Our study confirms that Burmese pythons are acting as predators in wading bird colonies at nontrivial rates and provides a baseline to which future studies can refer.
Silicon-Chip-Based F-2F Interferometer

Using a single silicon-nitride waveguide, we demonstrate an f-2f interferometer for carrier-envelope-offset frequency (f CEO ) detection by simultaneous supercontinuum generation and second-harmonic generation. We measure a $f$ CEO beatnote with a 27-dB SNR with 62-pJ pulse energies. © 2019 The Author (s)
Ophthalmic Artery Occlusion From Injection of Heroin Into the Forehead

Purpose:To report a case of ophthalmic artery occlusion after injection of heroin into the forehead.Methods:Retrospective case report.Results:A 27-year-old patient with a history of intravenous her...
A common phytoene synthase mutation underlies white petal varieties of the California poppy

The California poppy (Eschscholzia californica) is renowned for its brilliant golden-orange flowers, though white petal variants have been described. By whole-transcriptome sequencing, we have discovered in multiple white petal varieties a single deletion leading to altered splicing and C-terminal truncation of phytoene synthase (PSY), a key enzyme in carotenoid biosynthesis. Our findings underscore the diverse roles of phytoene synthase in shaping horticultural traits, and resolve a longstanding mystery of the regaled golden poppy.
Epidemiological and Microbiome Associations Between Klebsiella pneumoniae and Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus Colonization in Intensive Care Unit Patients

Background Prior colonization by Klebsiella pneumoniae and vancomycin-resistant Enterococci (VRE) is associated with subsequent infection, particularly in intensive care unit (ICU) populations. Screening for VRE colonization, but not K. pneumoniae, is routinely performed in some health care systems. Identification of patient factors associated with K. pneumoniae colonization could enable infection prevention. Methods ICU patients were screened for VRE and K. pneumoniae by rectal swab culture over 2 time periods: July-October 2014 (n = 1209) and January-May 2016 (n = 1243). Patient demographics, baseline laboratory data, comorbidities, and outcomes were analyzed. 16S rRNA gene-based analysis was performed on a subset of patients (n = 248) to identify microbiota characteristics associated with VRE and K. pneumoniae colonization. Results K. pneumoniae colonization (17.3% of patients in the 2014 cohort, 7.3% in 2016) was significantly associated with VRE colonization in multivariable analysis (P = .03 in 2016; P = .08 in 2014). VRE colonization was associated with poor underlying health, whereas K. pneumoniae colonization was associated with advanced age. The most prevalent operational taxonomic units were Escherichia coli /Shigella spp., Klebsiella, and Enterococcus, consistent with high rates of detectable K. pneumoniae and VRE by culture. Microbial community structure in noncolonized patients was significantly different from those with VRE, K. pneumoniae, or both, attributable to differences in the relative abundance of Klebsiella and Enterococcus. Conclusions K. pneumoniae co-colonizes with VRE and is a predominant taxon in ICU patients, but colonization was not associated with significant comorbidities. Screening for K. pneumoniae and VRE simultaneously could be an efficient approach for novel infection prevention strategies.
Creating the Future

During the earliest days of developing the CyberKnife, it was never obvious to me how the technology might impact neuroradiosurgery. Embracing the innovative spirit of Silicon Valley, my Stanford team and I were simply embarking on a mission to free stereotactic radiosurgery from “stereotactic frame”-based immobilization and targeting, primarily with the goal of enabling this procedure to be performed almost anywhere in the human body. However, in time, the late 1980s and early 1990s, it became clear that the practice of neuroradiosurgery was too often dictated by the practical realities of stereotactic frames and not radiobiological or clinical considerations. Moreover, reimbursement at the time (and still largely today) reinforced the existing paradigms of therapeutic radiation, whether single-fraction Gamma Knife SRS or the fractionation schema of conventional radiation therapy. How ironic that two fields of clinical medicine that pride themselves on their scientific roots, and who proudly proclaim to embrace innovation, were so heavily influenced (or blinded) by dogma and money. Regardless, these practical realities have formed the headwinds into which the modern practice of neuroradiosurgery with the CyberKnife has evolved over the past two decades.
"A Menace to the Public Health" - Contact Tracing and the Limits of Persuasion.

“A Menace to the Public Health” In the 1800s, the U.K. created a vast workforce of sanitary inspectors, part of an infectious disease surveillance system of notification, isolation, disinfection, a...
Whose pedagogy is it anyway? Decolonizing the syllabus through a critical embrace of difference:

The higher-education student body in the United States is increasingly diverse. Diversity and transnationalism are present in the classroom through the increased numbers of students and instructors...
Meja Tulis Adjustable dengan Konsep Smart Furniture

Keterbatasan ruang menjadi salah satu permasalahan dalam ruangan lingkup tempat tinggal. Salah satu faktor yang memicu keterbatasan ruang adalah furnitur yang digunakan memakan ruang yang cukup besar, dengan fungsi furnitur yang sangat terbatas. Smart furniture merupakan desain furnitur yang bersifat multifungsi dan dibuat dengan tujuan menghemat ruang namun tetap memaksimalkan fungsinya. Aplikasi smart furniture di Indonesia masih sangat sedikit dan belum dikenal secara umum, sehingga furnitur di Indonesia umumnya masih menghabiskan banyak ruang. Dengan demikian muncul ide untuk membuat furnitur berupa meja tulis dengan fitur tinggi yang adjustable dan mengandung konsep smart furniture. Fitur adjustable pada meja tulis tersebut menggunakan mekanisme batang ulir yang diputarkan dengan motor DC torsi tinggi 12v-24v dan dikendalikan oleh pengguna menggunakan tombol untuk mengatur ketinggiannya, sehingga memungkinkan untuk dimanfaatkan sebagai standing desk. Dengan konsep smart furniture, desain alat ini dibuat minimalis sehingga dapat menghemat ruang, namun memiliki fungsi maksimal. Bentuk fisik alat ini dipertimbangkan agar tetap memberikan kenyamanan bagi pengguna. Hasil yang diharapkan dengan realisasi alat ini adalah masyarakat menjadi lebih mengenal konsep smart furniture dan memanfaatkannya sebagai solusi untuk masalah keterbatasan ruang, misalnya dalam tempat tinggal minimalis seperti apartemen.
Maintaining Connections: An Exploratory Analysis of the Predictors of Prison Visitation with Children and the Post-Release Plans of Incarcerated Mothers

Parental incarceration has been found to negatively impact families and communities. This study examined characteristics that impact receiving in-person visits among a sample of incarcerated mother...
Utopian Visions Toward a Grand Unified Global Income Tax

Over the past several decades, many countries that historically relied on progressive taxes on income, wealth, and decedents’ estates for much governmental revenue have shifted to less progressive and regressive taxes on labor and consumption. Reasons for the shift are many but include international tax competition as world economies have become increasing global. This paper assumes that progressive taxes remain the best and fairest choice for providing governmental revenue, so that a fundamental change in the scope of the progressive income tax is essential to protect progressivity.The paper argues that the rapid growth of international cooperation on economic and tax matters makes a shift to a unified global income tax possible. A GUGIT would make far better sense than separate national income taxes. The paper goes on to describe a vision of a GUGIT with a global taxing authority and a uniform tax base. For business entities, the GUGIT would apportion the uniform tax base among countries in which a taxpayer is active based upon a four factor formula that includes sales, property but not intangible property with respect to which physical location has little meaning, labor based upon adjusted payroll that eliminates the distortions of wage differentials or upon person hours, and beneficial ownership. The GUGIT would include a robust related taxpayer definition in order to prevent taxpayers from artificially shifting income to countries that choose to impose lower rates of tax on their shares of the uniform base through transfer pricing and similar devices. At individual level, the GUGIT would allocate income to the jurisdiction into which the taxpayer intends his or her services to have their impact or upon relative periods of residence during the year. Either method diminishes the benefit of expatriation to avoid taxes but a continuation tax or exit tax may remain necessary to combat tax expatriation.
The Atacama Cosmology Telescope Project: A Progress Report

The Atacama Cosmology Telescope is a project to map the microwave background radiation at arcminute angular resolution and high sensitivity in three frequency bands over substantial sky areas. Cosmological signals driving such an experiment are reviewed, and current progress in hardware construction is summarized. Complementary astronomical observations in other wavebands are also discussed.
Attachment in retrospect and prospect

This Special Issue of Attachment and Human Development on “Attachment in Retrospect and Prospect” has grown out of the recent publication of the book Cornerstones of Attachment Research1 (2020; her...
Analysis of Overweight Truck Permit Policy in New Jersey

The roadway infrastructure constantly deteriorates because of environmental conditions, but other factors such as exposure to heavy trucks exacerbates the rate of deterioration. Therefore, decision...
“If I Hadn’t Had that Support System, I Think I Would Have Dropped Out by Now”: Parental Support in College and its Implications for Student Adjustment:

Understanding college students’ perceptions of parental support and its impact on student adjustment have important implications for maximizing retention rates within higher education institutions....
Strategies for Implementing Social-Emotional Learning in Adapted Physical Education

Benefits of developing SEL skills can include improved academic success, emotional health, increased patience for problem solving, and enhanced emotional control and regulation (Ciotto & Gagnon, 20...
The relationship between performance on the medical genetics and genomics in-training and certifying examinations

Abstract Purpose The American Board of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ABMGG) certifying examinations (CEs) are designed to assess relevant basic knowledge, clinical knowledge, and diagnostic skills of board-eligible candidates in primary specialty areas. The ABMGG in-training examinations (ITEs) provide formative feedback regarding knowledge and learning over time and assess readiness to attempt board certification. This study addresses the validity of the ABMGG ITE by evaluating its relationship with performance on CE utilizing established psychometric approaches. Methods Statistical analysis included bivariate Pearson correlation coefficients and linear regression to evaluate the strength of associations between ITE scores and CE scores. Logistic regression was used to assess the association between ITE scores and the probability of passing each CE. Results Logistic regression results indicated that ITE scores accounted for 22% to 44% of the variability in CE outcomes. Across 3 certification cycles, for every 1-point increase in ITE scores, the odds ratio for earning a passing score increased by a factor of 1.12 to 1.20 for the general CE, 1.14 to 1.25 for the clinical CE, and 1.12 to 1.20 for the laboratory CEs. Conclusion The findings show a positive correlation between performance on the ITE examination and performance on and passing the ABMGG CE.
Determination of molecular stereochemistry using optical rotatory dispersion, vibrational circular dichroism and vibrational Raman optical activity

Publisher Summary This chapter describes three chiroptical methods for determining molecular stereochemistry. All three methods represent useful and powerful stereochemical approaches. Instrumentation is inexpensive for optical rotator dispersion (ORD) measurements. Also, ORD is easy to measure and easy to calculate using available quantum mechanical programs. However, to obtain reliable predictions it may be necessary to obtain predictions at the higher levels of theory (such as B3LYP functional and aug-cc-pVDZ basis set). Vibrational circular dichroism (VCD) also became easy to measure with the availability of commercial instrumentation, but the instrumentation is more expensive than that of ORD. Available quantum mechanical programs can be used for routine VCD predictions, but here some background in spectroscopy would be appropriate. Nevertheless, satisfactory VCD predictions can be obtained at a moderate level of theory (such as B3LYP functional and 6-31G* basis set). For vibrational Raman optical activity (VROA), introduction of commercial instrumentation made the measurements easier, but still measurements are a bit more involved than those for ORD or VCD. VROA instrumentation is more expensive than that of either ORD or VCD. Quantum mechanical programs are also available for VROA predictions but VROA calculations are more involved than those of either ORD or VCD. More expertise is needed for ORD or VCD for both, experimental measurements and theoretical calculations. These comments help newcomers to choose one or more of the three methods for their research in molecular stereochemistry.
SYNERGISTIC VALIDATION METHODOLOGY FOR KNOWLEDGE-BASED ENGINEERING SYSTEMS

A methodology for validation is provided for the architecture of Knowledge based Engineering KBE applications. A standard approach to validation is introduced, followed by the Synergistic Validation Methodology SVM, which addresses four key aspects of KBE system validation: a software architecture, b product design process, c artificial intelligence, and d knowledge acquisition. The synergistic methodology is introduced as a comprehensive approach to validation of Knowledge-based engineering systems. This SVM approach is shown to be divided into four target divisions addressing multiple areas each, which correspond to well-defined methodologies in terms of general standards, techniques, and methods utilized. The five-tier pre-validation and post-validation process is intended to verify and validate reconfigurable, modular, and scalable KBE systems.
Interbus in safety critical applications

The introduction of bus systems in automation technology marked the beginning of a revolution for system operators. The new technology provided the user with new opportunities, which had previously been impossible using conventional technologies. Since its market launch in 1987, INTERBUS has gradually replaced parallel cabling. Alongside savings in extremely heavy wiring harnesses and intermediate terminal connections, customers now also benefit from, for example, diagnostic messages about the status of their systems. INTERBUS is a bus system which currently enables the user to network anything from basic sensors and actuators to complex control systems using a single bus cable, and it is now actively supported by several hundred manufacturers. It has always been possible to integrate new features into the system, so that even the earliest devices can still be used in systems today. For INTERBUS, compatibility is not just a word; it is a reality. INTERBS Safety, which will soon be available for use in safety-oriented applications, will also be compatible with existing INTERBUS networks, so that any investments already made will be secure for the future. It is even possible to integrate safety applications into operating INTERBUS systems retrospectively without major changes. This article highlights the basic implementation methods for INTERBUS Safety and provides an outlook for the future applications of INTERBUS Safety in safety technology.
Biochemical Studies of Bacterial Sporulation and Germination X. RIBOSOMES AND NUCLEIC ACIDS OF VEGETATIVE CELLS AND SPORES OF BACILLUS MEGATERIUM

Abstract The ribosomal particles and nucleic acid components of Bacillus megaterium log phase cells and spores were isolated and compared. Analysis of the total RNA indicated that 23 S, 16 S, and 4 S components were present, in the same relative proportions in both cases. Soluble RNA was 19% of vegetative cell RNA and 21% of spore RNA. Particles sedimenting at values greater than 100 S and sensitive to pancreatic ribonuclease were present in lysates of both vegetative cells and spores. Although the spore particles were small in size and quantity and were relatively unstable, they suggest the existence of polysomes and associated messenger RNA in spores. Ribosomes purified from either source were mainly 70 S and 100 S particles and were quantitatively dissociated into 50 S and 30 S subunits in each case. Isolation of RNA from purified ribosomes yielded 23 S and 16 S material in a ratio of about 2:1. Although thermal denaturation profiles of ribosomal RNA isolated from both sources were identical, spore ribosomes melted at a lower temperature than vegetative cell ribosomes, possibly because of the presence of nuclease. DNA isolated from either vegetative cells or spores had a buoyant density in CsCl of 1.698 g per cc, and no satellite DNA was evident. These results indicate that the ribosome and nucleic acid components of log phase cells and spores are similar in relative amounts and physicochemical properties.
Radical Cartesianism: The French Reception of Descartes

Preface A note on citation and translation List of abbreviations Introduction: radical Cartesianism in context Part I. Robert Desgabets: 1. Desgabets's Considerations, Arnauld and Cartesianism Part II. Three Radical Doctrines: 2. The creation doctrine: indefectible material substance and God 3. The intentionality doctrine: ideas and extra-mental objects 4. The union doctrine: temporal human thought and motion Part III. Pierre-Sylvain Regis: 5. Huet's Censura, Malebranche and Platonism Conclusion: 'a forgotten branch of Cartesianism' Works cited Index.
Chromium: Inorganic & Coordination Chemistry

The element chromium (Cr, atomic number 24) belongs to the first row of the transition metals, the properties of which are marked by partial occupation of their 3d orbitals. Together with molybdenum (Mo), tungsten (W), and unstable seaborgium (Sg), it makes up group 6 of the periodic table. Chromium is relatively abundant, occurring naturally in various oxide minerals (notably chromite, FeCr2O4). Because of its resistance to reaction with air and water, thin coatings of chromium are used to protect other metals against corrosion. Chromium features a great variety of accessible oxidation states; among these the +VI, +III, and +II states are of prime importance. Octahedral coordination compounds of Cr(III) are very stable and numerous; they have played a prominent role in the development of coordination chemistry. Hexavalent chromium is a very strong oxidant. It has traditionally been used in organic synthesis, but the inevitable metal wastes have discouraged its use as a stoichiometric oxidant. Cr(VI) is a known carcinogen, but there are no indications of adverse health effects of Cr(III); the latter is indeed an essential trace mineral implicated in glucose metabolism. Heterogeneous chromium catalysts play an important role in the catalysis of ethylene polymerization. Keywords: transition metals; chromite; coordination compounds; metal toxicity; glucose tolerance factor; metal–metal bonds; magnetism; oxidant; polymerization catalysis