cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Production Alternatives for Market Beef Cow Value Enhancement

Forty-eight market beef cows were assigned to short-term production strategies for value addition. Treatments were confinement feeding (FDL), blue grama pasture + mineral supplement (normal control; NC); NC + 926 g/d 38% CP supplement (PRO), or NC + 1,726 g/d 20% CP supplement (ENR). Cow initial body condition score and BW were used as co-variates and orthogonal contrasts were used to compare FDL vs. pasture treatments, NC vs. (PRO + ENR)/2, and PRO vs. ENR. Over the 49-d period, FDL resulted in greater BW gain than pasture treatments (P < 0.01). Supplementation tended to improve gain (P = 0.19), with little difference among supplements (P = 0.98). Weight gains were 98, 4, 10 and 10 (SE = 3.8) kg/cow for FDL, NC, ENR and PRO, respectively. Final body condition scores were 6.0, 4.3, 4.5 and 4.5 (SE = 0.04) for FDL, NC, ENR and PRO, respectively. Final condition was greater for FDL than pastured cows (P < 0.01), and for supplemented vs. NC (P < 0.01). Production responses resulted in differences in gross revenue, with FDL generating the most revenue (P < 0.01), NC tending to receive less than PRO and ENR (P = 0.14), and ENR tending to receive more than PRO (P = 0.12). Net returns ($/cow) were 52, 26, 15, and 15 (SE = 7.9) for FDL, NC, ENR and PRO, respectively. Net returns to FDL were greatest (P < 0.01); returns to NC were numerically higher than supplemented groups (P = 0.23), and PRO and ENR were similar (P = 0.99). Productivity and profits were maximized with intensive management of market cows. Cost management is critical for profitability of low-input strategies.
Root development and structure in seedlings of Ginkgo biloba

Premise of the study The popular, highly recognizable, well-known gymnosperm, Ginkgo biloba, was studied to document selected developmental features, which are little known in its primary root system from root tips to cotyledonary node following seed germination. Methods Using seedlings grown in soil, vermiculite, or a mixture, we examined sections at various distances from the root cap to capture a developmental sequence of anatomical structures by using standard brightfield, epifluorescence, and confocal microscopic techniques. Key results The vascular cylinder is usually a diarch stele, although modified diarchy and triarchy are found. Between exarch protoxylem poles, metaxylem usually develops into a complete disc, except near the transition region, which has irregularly arranged tracheary cells. The disc of primary xylem undergoes secondary growth on its metaxylem flanks with many tracheids added radially within a few weeks. Production of fibers in secondary phloem also accompanies secondary growth. In the cortex, endodermis produces Casparian bands early in development and continues into the upper transition region. Phi cells with phi-thickenings (bands of lignified walls) of a layer of inner cortex are often evident before endodermis, and then adjoining, additional layers of cortex develop phi cells; phi cells do not occur in the upper transition region or stem. An exodermis is produced early in root development and is continuous into the transition region and cotyledonary node. Conclusions Seedling root axes of Ginkgo biloba are more complex than the literature suggests, and our findings contribute to our knowledge of root structure of this ancient gymnosperm.
The Role of Schools in Educating Black Citizens: From the 1800s to the Present

Participatory citizenship among Black citizens in the United States has always been tied to access to quality education. In this literature review, I draw on scholarship analyzing the experiences of Black youth in the 19th, 20th, and early 21st centuries. I compare the historic and contemporary challenges facing Black citizens’ active participation in democratic processes and discuss how schools have the potential to create, or hinder, the road to active citizenship. I use Critical Race Theory as a theoretical model to explore the role that race plays in educating youth for citizenship. Collectively, the reviewed studies reveal that access to high-quality education was and is still determined by one’s race and affects many Black citizens’ ability to participate in democracy.
Repetitive acute intermittent hypoxia increases growth/neurotrophic factor expression in non-respiratory motor neurons.

Repetitive acute intermittent hypoxia (rAIH) increases growth/trophic factor expression in respiratory motor neurons, thereby eliciting spinal respiratory motor plasticity and/or neuroprotection. Here we demonstrate that rAIH effects are not unique to respiratory motor neurons, but are also expressed in non-respiratory, spinal alpha motor neurons and upper motor neurons of the motor cortex. In specific, we used immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence to assess growth/trophic factor protein expression in spinal sections from rats exposed to AIH three times per week for 10 weeks (3 × wAIH). 3 × wAIH increased brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), its high-affinity receptor, tropomyosin receptor kinase B (TrkB), and phosphorylated TrkB (pTrkB) immunoreactivity in putative alpha motor neurons of spinal cervical 7 (C7) and lumbar 3 (L3) segments, as well as in upper motor neurons of the primary motor cortex (M1). 3 × wAIH also increased immunoreactivity of vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA), the high-affinity VEGFA receptor (VEGFR-2) and an important VEGF gene regulator, hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α). Thus, rAIH effects on growth/trophic factors are characteristic of non-respiratory as well as respiratory motor neurons. rAIH may be a useful tool in the treatment of disorders causing paralysis, such as spinal injury and motor neuron disease, as a pretreatment to enhance motor neuron survival during disease, or as preconditioning for cell-transplant therapies.
Life history of Achyranthes japonica (Amaranthaceae): an invasive species in southern Illinois1

Abstract Achyranthes japonica (Miq.) Nakai (Japanese chaff flower) is a relatively new, invasive species to the United States, with limited information on its life history characteristics. The purpose of this study was to assess the importance of seed survivorship in the soil of A. japonica and to compare survivorship, fecundity, and morphological characteristics within populations at two different sites, Chestnut Hills Nature Preserve (CH) and Bellrose Waterfowl Reserve (BWR), in southern Illinois. Plots were established at each site to determine seed viability by burying seed bags over each of three winters (2012 to 2014) to quantify seedling emergence in the latter 2 yr (2013 and 2014) and to monitor survival of three cohorts of 50 seedlings per site starting in 2012, 2013, and 2014. In addition, 20 reproductive adults were selected outside of the plots to determine average fecundity and to measure a suite of morphological characteristics. Environmental factors had a significant effect on seed viabilit...
EXPERIMENTAL STUDY ON PERIPIHERY SHEARING OF STEEL TUBE

In this paper , a new method of the tube shearing named periphery shearing is stud- ied. The principle of this method is based on the gradual shearing along the periphery of the steel tube. The process of the metal deformation during shearing is described by motion analysis. This method has been proved to be practical and the quality of the sheared section has been analysed by the experiments.
Localization and Manipulation of Small Parts Using GelSight Tactile Sensing

Robust manipulation and insertion of small parts can be challenging because of the small tolerances typically involved. The key to robust control of these kinds of manipulation interactions is accurate tracking and control of the parts involved. Typically, this is accomplished using visual servoing or force-based control. However, these approaches have drawbacks. Instead, we propose a new approach that uses tactile sensing to accurately localize the pose of a part grasped in the robot hand. Using a feature-based matching technique in conjunction with a newly developed tactile sensing technology known as GelSight that has much higher resolution than competing methods, we synthesize high-resolution height maps of object surfaces. As a result of these high-resolution tactile maps, we are able to localize small parts held in a robot hand very accurately. We quantify localization accuracy in benchtop experiments and experimentally demonstrate the practicality of the approach in the context of a small parts insertion problem.
The Kantian Aftermath: Reaction and Revolution in Modern German Philosophy

Kantianism In 1781, Kant, in his Critique of Pure Reason , delivered the bad news that the human mind can (even worse, must) pose important, unavoidable philosophical questions that it cannot possibly answer. These were distinct, perennial philosophical questions answerable, if at all, by pure reason alone, independent of any appeal to experience. (Kant thought the most important ones concerned freedom, the existence of God, and the immortality of the soul, but the scope of his critique also extended to issues such as the nature of the mind, the human good, the purpose of nature, or any attempt to know “things in themselves.”) While, according to Kant, we could at least settle once and for all just what those limits to knowledge were and why we were not able to cross such a boundary, that seemed small consolation. Metaphysics, the “queen of the sciences,” had understood itself as capable of knowing how things must be or could not be, and so had prided itself on the certainty of its claims and on a rigor in its method rivaled only by mathematics. So it was not for nothing that Kant became known as the “all-destroying.” The skeptical sentiment expressed in Kant's critical work was not, of course, isolated in Konigsberg. The latter half of the eighteenth century can be viewed as a collective debate about the nature and even future of rationalist philosophy, or philosophy as it had come to be understood since Plato (especially as the impact and advances of Newtonian physics were more and more felt) and about the right way to state the principles underlying an ever more popular empiricism.
Top-Down Proteomics

The field of proteomics, particularly top-down mass spectrometry (MS), holds great promise for cardiovascular research and diagnosis. Top-down MS provides a “bird’s eye view” of the entire protein. This is in contrast to bottom-up MS, which analyzes peptides. By studying intact proteins, more information can be gleaned. In particular, top-down proteomics provides valuable insights into what modifications are present on a protein of interest, including PTMs and sequence variations, even when a priori knowledge is lacking. PTMs, such as phosphorylation, have increasingly been linked to numerous cardiovascular diseases. Furthermore, changes in the expression levels of certain proteins have also been linked to disease. Top-down MS is able to quantify these changes, even when doing so necessitates distinguishing between various biologically relevant isoforms and proteoforms, which have proven difficult to differentiate using other methods. This chapter will explore how to prepare samples for top-down MS, the instrumentation required, data analysis, current applications, and future directions of this valuable technique.
Lasting Effects? Referrals and Career Mobility of Demographic Groups in Organizations:

While prior research has suggested that network-based hiring in the form of referrals can lead to better career outcomes, few studies have tested whether such career advantages differ across demogr...
“High Demand” Legislative Committees and Bureaucratic Output

Niskanen contended that “high demand” committee review increases bureaucratic output, and the bureau appropriates the entire gain from expansion. This is inconsistent with the political behavior un...
Theory of the Kerr Constant

Kerr effect data on gases and liquids provided important results in studies of molecular structure as mentioned in the Chapter concerning the history of molecular electro-optics (the first Chapter of this book). The development of theories of the Kerr constant of gases, liquids, solutions and suspensions was very closely involved with that of the theories of the dielectric constant. Here, however, we describe highlights of theoretical developments of only the Kerr constant. In this, as in other areas of physical chemistry, there has been a strong interplay between experimental studies guided by theoretical concepts and the selection of physical models with their mathematical treatments. The theory of the Kerr constant is relatively complete and rigorous for dilute gases, where the complications of molecular interactions are absent (1). It is also in quite a good state for most liquids and dilute solutions of solutes in nonpolar solvents, but not so complete for polar molecules -- especially hydrogen bonding ones, which interact strongly in liquids.
Family Context Moderates the Association of Maternal Postpartum Depression and Stability of Infant Temperament.

Maternal postpartum depression, maternal sensitivity, and family functioning were examined as predictors of the stability of observed infant temperament over the first 30 months of life (N = 147 families). Eight observations at 8, 15, and 30 months postpartum were used to assess infant temperament. Structured clinical interviews were used to assess maternal depression, and observational assessments were used to assess family functioning and maternal sensitivity. Family context moderated the effect of maternal depression on change in infant temperament. Maternal depression was associated with change in infant temperament when maternal sensitivity was low but not when maternal sensitivity was high. Family functioning similarly moderated these links. Results underscore the centrality of the family context in shaping child behavior over time.
The Micropolitics of Student Teachers’ Professional Vulnerability During Teaching Practicums: A Chinese Perspective

This research examines Chinese student teachers’ professional vulnerability through the lens of micropolitical theory. First, this research illustrates the participants’ five aspects of professional vulnerability during teaching practicums, which includes establishing professional relationships, negotiating the feasibility and ethics of different pedagogical approaches, conflicting commitment and responsibilities, peripheral positions and conflicting interests, and the politics of practicum implementation. Second, this study reveals how the participants navigate the hierarchical power dynamics embedded in the teaching practicums. Third, this study demonstrates that the micropolitical realities of the teaching practicums affect the Chinese STs’ professional vulnerabilities. The implications for improving teaching practicums, especially student teaching in China and beyond, are discussed.
Hypoparathyroidism due to 22Q11 Deletion Syndrome Presenting as Acute Cardiomyopathy

ABSTRACT Objective: Discuss a unique presentation of hypoparathyroidism, an orphan disease with an estimated prevalence of 37 per 100,000 person-years in the United States. Methods: Describe the cl...
Development and Status of Hypothermia for Brain Injury: National Acute Brain Injury Study: Hypothermia

After laboratory studies of moderate hypothermia (30°–33°C) in rodent models, clinical studies were organized to investigate the potential application of moderate systemic hypothermia in patients after severe brain injury. These preliminary clinical studies indicated improved neurologic outcome and low toxicity in patients. Accordingly, the multicenter, randomized trial. National Acute Brain Injury Study: Hypothermia (NABIS:H) was funded by the National Institutes of Health. This study is designed to test the hypothesis that systemic hypothermia to 32°-33°C, if rendered within 6h of injury, improves the Glasgow Outcome Score (GOS) at 6 months after injury in patients with severe brain injury in the range of Glasgow Coma Scale (CCS) 3–8. Five hundred patients are to be tested in an intent-to-treat protocol with randomization stratified by GCS. Power is 80% and is set to detect a 10%-12% absolute shift in the percentage of patients in the good outcome category using dichotomized GOS (good results/moderate disability vs. severe disability/vegetative/dead). This chapter presents a summary of the trial as of April 1998.
Phosphotyrosyl-protein phosphatases. I. Separation of multiple forms from bovine brain and purification of the major form to near homogeneity.

Seven Tyr-protein phosphatase activities were isolated from bovine brain using phosphotyrosyl-casein as a model substrate. The activities were resolved from the cytosolic fraction by a three-step procedure employing successive DEAE-cellulose, phosphocellulose, and gel permeation chromatography steps. The seven activities accounted for 70% of the Tyr-protein phosphatase activity in bovine brain extracts and were distinct from type 1 and type 2 Ser/Thr-protein phosphatases and from the major alkaline phosphatase activities. Apparent molecular weights of the activities by gel permeation chromatography were: phosphotyrosyl-protein phosphatase (PTP)-1A (Mr 86,000), PTP-1B (Mr 24,000), PTP-2 (Mr 88,000), PTP-3 (Mr 90,000), PTP-4 (Mr 80,000), PTP-5 (Mr 48,000), and PTP-6 (Mr 104,000). PTP-5 was the major activity accounting for 26% of total while the remaining activity was divided rather evenly among the other six activities. PTP-5 was further purified to near homogeneity by additional chromatographies on Affi-Gel Blue, heparin-agarose, and Mono S giving an overall purification of 50,000-fold and a yield of 5.8%. One of two major polypeptides (Mr 46,000) in the preparation was identified as PTP-5 since it alone expressed protein phosphatase activity when protein-staining bands were eluted from sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gels and renatured. PTP-5 had a neutral pH optimum, and using phosphotyrosyl-casein as substrate it had a Km of 130 nM and a Vmax of 10 mumol Pi released.min-1.mg protein-1. These kinetic parameters are well within the range of values obtained for other pure protein phosphatases. PTP-5 also dephosphorylated pp60v-src (autophosphorylated at Tyr-416) at 10% of the rate observed with phosphotyrosyl-casein. Additionally the ratio of phosphotyrosyl-casein/pp60v-src phosphatase activity was relatively constant throughout the PTP-5 purification procedure. These results indicate that PTP-5 is able to bind and efficiently dephosphorylate phosphotyrosyl-proteins and suggest that it is a physiologically relevant Tyr-protein phosphatase.
Airlicking and Cold Licking in Rodents

Hendry and Rasche (1961) accidentally discovered that when water-deprived rats are exposed to a stream of air, they will lick the stream persistently (Figure 1). To the naive observer, airlicking (AL) looks very much like water drinking, and both behaviors generate similar interlick-interval histograms (Oatley and Dickinson, 1970). Since the discovery of AL, a number of experiments have been published concerning its reinforcing and satiating effects and the organismic and airstream parameters that govern its occurrence.
Studying the Individual in an Individualized Course in Arithmetic at a Community College: A Report on Four Case Studies

category of students (a clear majority of those enrolled) benefited greatly from the course, whereas the latter students benefited little from it. Included in the study were case studies of seven participants in the course. Con densed versions of four of these case studies are given here. The subjects of these four case studies were students who needed more than a review; that is, they needed more than what the course offered. Thus, the case studies presented here are examples of only one side of the story? the failure side?the side that should be told. The major purpose of the article is to point out the injustices that these four students experienced, and based on this and other evidence, to draw a general inference concerning arithmetic courses at community colleges that should invoke reaction. It is hoped that community col leges will analyze their arithmetic courses and, if the author's inference is upheld, make changes so that the success side of their arithmetic stories will be, except for isolated instances, the whole story. A secondary purpose of the article is to present the reactions of four students to the specific mode of instruction that was used (individualized, self-paced), and then present a case for its continued use in some modified form.
Opioid Use After Open Resection or Video-Assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery for Early-Stage Lung Cancer.

This population-based study compares opioid use in patients with non–small cell lung cancer who underwent open resection vs video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery.
Gendered cognitions: a socio-cognitive model of how gender affects entrepreneurial preferences

This research explores the social-cognitive factors which lead both women and men to pursue ventures consistent with their gendered social identity, therefore, reinforcing the gender gap in entrepr...
Supersaturation for subgraph counts

The classic extremal problem is that of computing the maximum number of edges in an $F$-free graph. In the case where $F=K_{r+1}$, the extremal number was determined by Turan. Later results, known as supersaturation theorems, proved that in a graph containing more edges than the extremal number, there must also be many copies of $K_{r+1}$. Alon and Shikhelman introduced a broader class of problems asking for the maximum number of copies of a graph $T$ in an $F$-free graph. In this paper, we determine some of these generalized extremal numbers and prove supersaturation results for them.
Concepts of courage and resilience in nursing: A proposed conceptual model

Background: To overcome the challenges of delivering patient care in the twenty-first century, it is essential to foster the professional and personal qualities of courage and resilience in the nursing workforce. The logical place to do so is in nursing education and training.Objectives/Hypotheses: This paper discusses the constructs of courage and resilience in nursing and the application of the constructs in nursing education.Design: This is a discussion article drawing on the relevant literature and the professional experiences of the authors to develop a conceptual model for teaching courage and resilience.Results: To promote nursing students' coping strategies and their general well-being, nurse educators should foster resilience and courage through various educational interventions.Conclusion: The proposed conceptual model shows that nurse educators should train nurses to be more resilient and courageous in order to promote patient safety, handle the demands of the profession, and function as advocates for the discipline.
Effects of intraoperative temperatures on postoperative infections in infants and neonates.

Abstract Background Perioperative hypothermia has been shown to increase surgical site infection (SSI) rates in adults. We sought to characterize whether intraoperative hypothermia or hyperthermia is associated with postoperative infections in infants. Methods We conducted a retrospective review of patients ≤ 6 months old who underwent surgical procedures from November 2013 to October 2015 at a Level I ACS Children's Surgical Center. The outcome was infections within 30 days after operation, with particular attention to SSI. Data obtained included weight and age at surgery, American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) physiologic status, wound class, case length, blood transfusion within 72 h of surgery, and administration of prophylactic antibiotics. Temperatures were classified as hypothermia (T Results The 885 patients had 25 SSIs (2.8%) and 11 nonsurgical site infections (1.2%). On univariate analysis, weight at surgery, higher ASA, perioperative transfusions, and longer case length were associated with higher rate of SSI. Higher median Thigh, higher median T low, and any hyperthermia were associated with higher rate of SSI. On multivariable logistic regression adjusted analyses, hyperthermia at any time during the case was associated with SSI (OR 3.47, [95% CI 1.34, 9.04], p = 0.011). Transfusions were also associated with higher SSI rates (OR 3.60 [95% CI, 1.28, 10.3], p = 0.016). Conclusions Intraoperative hyperthermia is associated with increased SSI rates in infants. Level of Evidence III.
The importance of exosomal PDL1 in tumour immune evasion

The interaction of programmed cell death 1 ligand 1 (PDL1) with its receptor programmed cell death 1 (PD1) inhibits T cell responses, and blockade of this interaction has proven to be an effective immunotherapy for several different cancers. PDL1 can be expressed on the surface of tumour cells, immune cells and other cells in the tumour microenvironment but is also found in extracellular forms. Recent studies have explored the importance of different forms of extracellular PDL1, such as on exosomes or as a freely soluble protein, and have shown that PDL1-expressing exosomes can inhibit antitumour immune responses. In patients with melanoma, exosomal PDL1 is also a marker of immune activation early after initiation of therapy with PD1-blocking antibodies and predicts a clinical response to PD1 blockade. In this Progress article, we highlight recent insights into the role of exosomal PDL1 in immune oncology and how it may be useful as a biomarker for the management of cancer or to define a subset of patients who would benefit from therapeutics that block exosome production. Freeman and colleagues draw our attention to the existence of different forms of PDL1 — cell bound and various extracellular forms. Recent studies show that PDL1 on exosomes can inhibit antitumour immune responses and may be a useful biomarker for the management of cancer immunotherapy.
Germline alterations in patients with biliary tract cancers: A spectrum of significant and previously underappreciated findings.

BACKGROUND With limited information on germline mutations in biliary tract cancers, this study performed somatic and germline testing for patients at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center with known biliary tract carcinoma with the aim of determining the frequency and range of pathogenic germline alterations (PGAs). METHODS Patients with biliary tract carcinoma were consented for somatic tumor and matched blood testing of up to 468 genes via the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center Integrated Mutation Profiling of Actionable Cancer Targets next-generation sequencing platform. A germline variant analysis was performed on a panel of up to 88 genes associated with an increased predisposition for cancer. Demographic and diagnostic details were collected. RESULTS Germline mutations were tested in 131 patients. Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma was the most common cancer (63.4%), and it was followed by gallbladder adenocarcinoma (16.8%), extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (16%), and otherwise unspecified biliary tract cancer (3.8%). Known and likely PGAs were present in 21 patients (16.0%), with 9.9% harboring a PGA in a high/moderate-penetrance cancer predisposition gene. Among high-penetrance cancer susceptibility genes, PGAs were most commonly observed in BRCA1 and BRCA2 (33.3%), which made up 5.3% of the entire cohort, and they were followed by PALB2, BAP1, and PMS2. Mutations in ATM, MITF, and NBN, moderate-penetrance cancer susceptibility genes, were identified in 1 patient each. There was no observed difference in the types of mutations among the subtypes of biliary tract cancer. CONCLUSIONS The frequency of PGAs found was comparable to existing data on the prevalence of germline mutations in other solid tumor types with matched tumor analysis. This provides support for the role of the BRCA1/2, ATM, and BAP1 genes in biliary tract cancer susceptibility.
Coimmunoprecipitation with MYR1 Identifies Three Additional Proteins within the Toxoplasma gondii Parasitophorous Vacuole Required for Translocation of Dense Granule Effectors into Host Cells.

ABSTRACT Toxoplasma gondii is a ubiquitous, intracellular protozoan that extensively modifies infected host cells through secreted effector proteins. Many such effectors must be translocated across the parasitophorous vacuole (PV), in which the parasites replicate, ultimately ending up in the host cytosol or nucleus. This translocation has previously been shown to be dependent on five parasite proteins: MYR1, MYR2, MYR3, ROP17, and ASP5. We report here the identification of several MYR1-interacting and novel PV-localized proteins via affinity purification of MYR1, including TGGT1_211460 (dubbed MYR4), TGGT1_204340 (dubbed GRA54), and TGGT1_270320 (PPM3C). Further, we show that three of the MYR1-interacting proteins, GRA44, GRA45, and MYR4, are essential for the translocation of the Toxoplasma effector protein GRA16 and for the upregulation of human c-Myc and cyclin E1 in infected cells. GRA44 and GRA45 contain ASP5 processing motifs, but like MYR1, processing at these sites appears to be nonessential for their role in protein translocation. These results expand our understanding of the mechanism of effector translocation in Toxoplasma and indicate that the process is highly complex and dependent on at least eight discrete proteins. IMPORTANCEToxoplasma is an extremely successful intracellular parasite and important human pathogen. Upon infection of a new cell, Toxoplasma establishes a replicative vacuole and translocates parasite effectors across this vacuole to function from the host cytosol and nucleus. These effectors play a key role in parasite virulence. The work reported here newly identifies three parasite proteins that are necessary for protein translocation into the host cell. These results significantly increase our knowledge of the molecular players involved in protein translocation in Toxoplasma-infected cells and provide additional potential drug targets.
Goodness-of-fit test for hazard rate

In Pharmacokinetic (PK) and Pharmacodynamic (PD), the hazard rate functions play a central role in modelling time-to-event data. In the context of assessing the appropriateness of a given parametri...
Conceptualizing the Vertebrate Sterolbiome

Vertebrates synthesize a diverse set of steroids and bile acids that undergo bacterial biotransformations. The endocrine literature has principally focused on the biochemistry and molecular biology of host synthesis and tissue-specific metabolism of steroids. Host-associated microbiota possess a coevolved set of steroid and bile acid modifying enzymes that match the majority of host peripheral biotransformations in addition to unique capabilities. The set of host-associated microbial genes encoding enzymes involved in steroid transformations is known as the sterolbiome. This review focuses on the current knowledge of the sterolbiome as well as its importance in medicine and agriculture.
Gastric Ewing Sarcoma identified on a Meckel's scan.

Abstract Ewing Sarcoma is a malignant small round blue cell tumor most commonly found in bones and soft tissues of the axial skeleton and extremities. The Ewing family of tumors, including peripheral neuroectodermal tumor, represent the second most common malignancy in the pediatric population and second most common primary bone tumor after osteosarcoma. In a majority of Ewing Sarcoma cases, there is a translocation between chromosomes 11 and 22. Extraskeletal Ewing Sarcoma of the stomach is exceptionally rare, with only a handful of case reports. Here we report a case of primary Ewing Sarcoma of the stomach found initially as a filling defect in the stomach on technetium-99m pertechnetate scintigraphy to evaluate for gastrointestinal bleeding.
Reproductive Health Care Utilization by Women Who Inject Drugs and Exchange Sex in the Seattle Area.

Few data exist regarding reproductive health needs of women who inject drugs (WWID) and exchange sex. This group is at increased risk of unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (ST...
Measuring the Prevalence of the Password Authentication Vulnerability in SSH

Securing and hardening network protocols and services is a resource-consuming and continuous effort. Thus, it is important to question how prolific known, mitigable features of those protocols are. The Secure Shell (SSH) protocol is a good example due to its known vulnerability in using password based authentication. We take a closer look at these configurations to identify how prevalent the use of password authentication is at an internet scale. We show that current scanning tools and services provide a starting point in evaluating prevalence, but need to be validated for specific implementations. We also demonstrate that it is possible to augment some of these tools and services to determine the prevalence of password authentication in SSH specifically. As part of our evaluation, we propose a novel method for probing an SSH service to establish if password authentication is allowed, without being intrusive or causing harm to the host. Finally, we show that our analysis has resulted in determining that more than 65% of the over 20 million SSH servers on the public internet allow password authentication.
Projected climate change impacts in the Tahoe Basin: Recent findings from global climate models

Abstract Since 2002, the Tahoe Environmental Research Center has been studying the effects of climate change in the Tahoe Basin. We are using the output from four General Circulation Models downscaled by the method of Localized Constructed Analogues and provided by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO). The daily data were used by SIO to drive the Variable Infiltration Capacity (VIC) model and derive a suite of 24 hydrologic and climate variables at a 1/16° (ca. 6 km) grid scale, for two Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP 4.5 and 8.5). Here we focus on trends in the return levels of extreme climatic events, including annual maximum daily discharge of six basin streams, maximum and total annual kinetic energy (KE) of raindrops falling on snow-free ground, basin-wide climatic water deficit, and wind speed. To analyze time trends in historic and modeled future extreme values, we applied the program extRemes, based on the Generalized Extreme Value (GEV) distribution. Values of KE on snow-free ground were derived by statistically disaggregating daily rainfall to hourly, and using literature values to convert rainfall intensity (mm/hr) for days without snowpack to KE (Joules/m2/hr). We found strong upward trends in extreme values, with most of the effect due to loss of snowpack, but a significant effect of increasing rainfall for one model. To estimate future trends in maximum annual daily discharge of six streams, we adjusted the modeled future annual maximum runoff to the distribution of gage data, using regression of gage data on modeled historic runoff at equal return intervals. The GEV results for the six streams, averaged across the four models, indicate an increase in the 20-year flood of 65–117 percent. Climatic water deficit showed strong upward trends for three of the four models, with a maximum at mid-century for one model. Averaged across the basin and across the four models, average and maximum seasonal winds under RCP 8.5 are projected to decrease slightly in all seasons. The trends in averages and extreme values that we found will have important effects on vegetation, wildfire severity, flood hazards and the clarity of Lake Tahoe.
Spectral analysis of line edge and line width roughness using wavelets

Although line edge and line width roughness (LER/LWR) have been key metrology challenges over the last 15 years, the advent of extreme-ultraviolet lithography (EUV) has increased the importance of its measurement and control. Lithographically printed features are now small enough that randomness in resist chemistry and in EUV photon during exposure results in noise in the patterned resist. This not only affects LER/LWR, but also defect density, including missing holes, shifted features, bridged lines and holes, and line shorts, among others. Well before these stochastic induced roughness variations, there have existed various techniques to analyze roughness. These include power spectral density algorithms, methods to account for instrument bias in the data, identify and filter noise, and specify measurement uncertainty. In this work, analysis methods to evaluate LER and LWR spatial wavelengths, including partitioning and filtering out instrument errors, such as noise and probe effects are presented. Our approach is based on wavelet-transform multiresolution analysis. One of the key advantages of wavelet transform over other signal processing techniques are its spatial-frequency localization and multi-scale view of the components of a profile or surface. This allows decomposing the data into different bands based on specific cutoffs and evaluating different approximations and surface-details at each cutoff band. A priori noise and probe information are used to determine and remove instrument-effects from the data, before calculating the unbiased roughness. The strength of this approach is that is it targeted only to specific spatial wavelengths that are associated with instrument noise or artifacts.
Resilience: Directions for an Uncertain Future following the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract The concept of resilience is multi-faceted. This commentary builds upon the analytical distinctions of resilience provided by Urquiza et al. (2021) https://doi.org/10.1029/2020EF001508. In response to this article, we emphasize several distinctions between resilience and other systems concepts. These include distinctions between resilience, risk, and vulnerability, the tradeoff between resilience and efficiency, resilience contrasted with robustness, the relationship between resilience and sustainability, and finally methods for building resilience-by-design or resilience-by-intervention. Improving understanding of these concepts will enable planners to select resilience strategies that best support their system goals. We use examples from the 2020-2021 coronavirus pandemic to illustrate the concepts and the juxtapositions between them.
Fictional Dune Worlds

Since human civilization requires water, and dunes imply dry conditions, there is a generally an anticorrelation of human population with dune population, and thus dunefields are an exotic, but recognizable, realm for most of us. It is therefore no surprise that dune-filled deserts figure in science fiction; indeed Arthur C. Clarke’s first novel was entitled The Sands of Mars.
Resource Management of Precious Corals

. Precious corals as a group consist of a variety of species which belong to several classes of Anthozoan corals. In general, all are long lived, slow growing and are characterized by slow rates of annual recruitment and adult mortality. In favorable environments, where large beds of commercial quantity exist, their life history parameters often approximate steady state. In such instances, fishery management models in which the assumption of steady state is explicit, can be applied to their management. In this paper, the history and ecology of precious corals are reviewed in light of modern attempts of resource management using fishery models. In Hawaii, the BEVERTON and HOLT model has been adapted for the management of black, pink and gold coral species. The application of this model as it applies to precious corals is described and an example is given illustrating that it can also be used for shallow water reef building corals which form discrete colonies.
An Algebra of Fault Tolerance

Every system of any significant size is created by composition from smaller sub-systems or components. It is thus fruitful to analyze the fault-tolerance of a system as a function of its composition. In this paper, two basic types of system composition are described, and an algebra to describe fault tolerance of composed systems is derived. The set of systems forms monoids under the two composition operators, and a semiring when both are concerned. A partial ordering relation between systems is used to compare their fault-tolerance behaviors.
Active and Passive Joints for Damping Augmentation of Large Space Structures

This paper discusses the development and analysis of improved joints for large space structures. The joints are designed so that the normal force to a frictional interface is varied yielding a connecting joint with increased damping performance without significantly increasing the structure's weight or complexity. A single-degree-of-freedom joint and a system consisting of two elastic beams connected by a single active/passive joint are considered. It is shown that these new joint designs are able to enhance the energy dissipation from LSS in a relatively simple and robust way. Numerical simulation results are presented and discussed.
Ontogeny of the Bovine Immune Response

The ontogenesis of the bovine immune response was studied in three embryos (<40 days) and 106 fetuses of various ages. In the absence of overt antigenic stimulation, fetuses had lymphoid development of the thymus at 42 days of gestation, the spleen was structurally present at 55 days, and certain peripheral lymph nodes were present at 60 days. Mesenteric lymph nodes were structurally present by 100 days of gestation, and lymphoid tissue of the gastrointestinal tract, particularly the lower ileum, was observed in histologic sections of a 175-day fetus with a bacterial infection. Pyroninophilic cells, plasma cells, and germinal centers were present in lymph node sections of antigenically stimulated fetuses. Lymphoid tissue developed more rapidly in fetuses with bacteria, viral antigens, or apparent maternal red-blood-cell antigens than in the normal fetus. Thymic and splenic indices reached maximal values in the 205- to 220-day fetal age group. Immunoglobulin M (IgM)-containing cells were first observed, by immunofluorescence, in a single fetus at 59 days of gestation. Immunoglobulin G (IgG)-containing cells were observed at 145 days of gestation in one fetus with a bacterial and viral infection. IgM-containing cells were observed in 36 fetuses and IgM and IgG cells were present in seven fetuses. Spleen, lymph nodes, thymus, bone marrow, and liver of one fetus from a dam with lymphosarcoma had immunoglobulin-containing cells. Hemal lymph nodes, blood (buffy coat), Peyer patches, and heart and lung sections from fetuses with immunoglobulin-containing cells in spleen or lymph node did not have immunoglobulin-containing cells. Antigens of the virus of bovine virus diarrhea-mucosal disease (BVD) were detected in one fetus, and antigens of infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR) virus were detected in three fetuses; however, viruses were not isolated in primary bovine embryonic kidney cells. Two of the three fetuses with IBR virus antigens had neutralizing serum antibody titers to IBR virus. Bacteria including Escherichia coli, Lactobacillus sp. and Mima polymorpha var. oxidans were isolated from four fetuses. Antibodies that caused the agglutination of maternal red blood cells were present in 8 of 20 bovine fetal serum samples. The antibodies were 2-mercaptoethanol sensitive and partially heat resistant (56 C for 30 min). The ontogeny of the bovine immune response and human immune response were compared, and it was suggested that the similarities were primarily due to the two species having the same approximate gestation period of 280 days.
A robust vocoder with pitch-adaptive spectral envelope estimation and an integrated maximum-likelihood pitch estimator

This paper describes a low bit-rate vocoder designed for improved speech reproduction quality and robustness. The vocoder includes a new algorithm, the Spectral Envelope Estimator, which forms the nucleus of the spectral analyzer. In addition to estimating the speech spectrum, the spectral analyzer also allows determination of a continuous estimate of the background noise spectrum which may be used for noise suppression. A maximum-likelihood pitch estimator, which shares the signal processing of the spectral envelope estimator, has been integrated into the vocoder to yield accurate pitch estimates of noisy speech. This system yields high quality speech reproduction at bit rates of 2.4 and 8.8 kbps.
The Relationship Between Owner Characteristics and Use of Bootstrap Financing Methods

Abstract Bootstrap finance methods are important to small firms because these techniques provide access to capital, appeal to funding preferences, are widely-used, and are often cost-effective. Despite the wide use of bootstrap financing methods among small firms, little is known about the relationship between owner traits and bootstrap financing. This study used a sample of 247 small firms to examine the relationship between education, age and gender relative to six groups of bootstrap financing methods identified through factor analysis as internally-, socially-, or subsidy-oriented. The analysis identified significant differences between owners grouped by their personal characteristics and the bootstrap approaches they chose. The results may be used by small firm owners, educators, and advisors to find better mixes of financial resources.
Synthesis and characterization of polymers and copolymers of vinylruthenocene

Homopolymers of vinylruthenocene and its copolymers with methyl acrylate, styrene, and n-vinylpyrrolidinone have been prepared by free-radical polymerization. No evidence for the electron transfer termination mechanism postulated for polymerization of vinylferrocene was observed. Yields of soluble polymers were 40–90% with Mw (4–25) × 103 and Mw/Mn = 3.0–13.2. TGA analysis showed little weight loss up to 300°C but rapid decomposition above 300°C. Polyvinylruthenocene is a highly brittle material with Tg above 250°C. Torsional braid analysis of the copolymer samples showed Tg in the range 90–130°C which in some samples increased upon cooling and reheating. Several samples showed weak thermal transitions occurring prior to or following Tg. The rise in Tg upon cooling and reheating is indicative of possible decomposition, crosslinking, or realignment of the polymer chains.
Modeling the seasonal autochthonous sources of dissolved organic carbon and nitrogen in the upper Chesapeake Bay

In this paper we investigate the seasonal autochthonous sources of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and nitrogen (DON) in the euphotic zone at a station in the upper Chesapeake Bay using a new mass-based ecosystem model. Important features of the model are: (1) carbon and nitrogen are incorporated by means of a set of fixed and varying C:N ratios; (2) dissolved organic matter (DOM) is separated into labile, semi-labile, and refractory pools for both C and N; (3) the production and consumption of DOM is treated in detail; and (4) seasonal observations of light, temperature, nutrients, and surface layer circulation are used to physically force the model. The model reasonably reproduces the mean observed seasonal concentrations of nutrients, DOM, plankton biomass, and chlorophyll a. The results suggest that estuarine DOM production is intricately tied to the biomass concentration, ratio, and productivity of phytoplankton, zooplankton, viruses, and bacteria. During peak spring productivity phytoplankton exudation and zooplankton sloppy feeding are the most important autochthonous sources of DOM. In the summer when productivity peaks again, autochthonous sources of DOM are more diverse and, in addition to phytoplankton exudation, important ones include viral lysis and the decay of detritus. The potential importance of viral decay as a source of bioavailable DOM from within the bulk DOM pool is also discussed. The results also highlight the importance of some poorly constrained processes and parameters. Some potential improvements and remedies are suggested. Sensitivity studies on selected parameters are also reported and discussed.