cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Anecdotas y "coincidencias" de la Urología Americana: Hugh Hampton Young

Resumen es: Breve revision sobre la vida y logros de Hugh Hampton Young, inventor, defensor de las artes, gran cirujano y profesor ademas de gran innovador. Urologo ...
Analysis of TFAP2A mutations in Branchio-Oculo-Facial Syndrome indicates functional complexity within the AP-2α DNA-binding domain

Multiple lines of evidence indicate that the AP-2 transcription factor family has an important regulatory function in human craniofacial development. Notably, mutations in TFAP2A, the gene encoding AP-2α, have been identified in patients with Branchio-Oculo-Facial Syndrome (BOFS). BOFS is an autosomal-dominant trait that commonly presents with facial clefting, eye defects and branchial skin anomalies. Examination of multiple cases has suggested either simple haploinsufficiency or more complex genetic causes for BOFS, especially as the clinical manifestations are variable, with no clear genotype-phenotype correlation. Mutations occur throughout TFAP2A, but mostly within conserved sequences within the DNA contact domain of AP-2α. However, the consequences of the various mutations for AP-2α protein function have not been evaluated. Therefore, it remains unclear if all BOFS mutations result in similar changes to the AP-2α protein or if they each produce specific alterations that underlie the spectrum of phenotypes. Here, we have investigated the molecular consequences of the mutations that localize to the DNA-binding region. We show that although individual mutations have different effects on DNA binding, they all demonstrate significantly reduced transcriptional activities. Moreover, all mutant derivatives have an altered nuclear:cytoplasmic distribution compared with the predominantly nuclear localization of wild-type AP-2α and several can exert a dominant-negative activity on the wild-type AP-2α protein. Overall, our data suggest that the individual TFAP2A BOFS mutations can generate null, hypomorphic or antimorphic alleles and that these differences in activity, combined with a role for AP-2α in epigenetic events, may influence the resultant pathology and the phenotypic variability.
Subcellular fractionation of postmortem brain.

— Procedures used to separate subcellular organelles from fresh brain were applied to brains which had been removed from guinea pigs (1) immediately after death; (2) after the dead animal was maintained at room temperature for 3 h, followed by 16–17 h at 4°C; or (3) after the dead animal was maintained for 19–20 h at room temperature. Subcellular fractionation of the brains in 0.32 M sucrose was followed by discontinuous density gradient centrifugation of the crude mitochondrial fraction. After overnight storage of brains at room temperature, there was a moderate shift in succinate dehydrogenase activity from sub-fraction C (mitochondria) to subfraction B (synaptosomes). There was little change in the distribution of galactolipid among particulate subfractions. There was little change in distributions of monoamine oxidase or acetylcholinesterase activities. Under the less extreme postmortem conditions, there were no shifts in the subcellular distributions of brain enzymes. Ultrastructural changes were much more profound and consisted of losses of identifiable mitochondria and synaptosomes and a progressive increase in very dense bodies. Our results suggest that in spite of the marked morphological changes, meaningful separation of subcellular organelles can be achieved with postmortem tissue.
Experimental verification of RF power sensitivity of ferroelectric varactor shunt switches

Ferroelectric varactors placed in a resonant circuit to study the RF power level dependence. At zero-bias, and low microwave power levels, the high capacitance of the varactor results in the resonance of the shunted transmission line, attenuating the signal At higher power level, the ferroelectric varactor capacitance is reduced by the rf signal, detuning the resonance in the shunted stub, and reduces the attenuation level for the signal. The experimental power transfer curve clearly showed that the RF power dependence of the varactor is detectable.
Simpson's paradox in a synthetic microbial system.

The maintenance of “public” or “common good” producers is a major question in the evolution of cooperation. Because nonproducers benefit from the shared resource without bearing its cost of production, they may proliferate faster than producers. We established a synthetic microbial system consisting of two Escherichia coli strains of common-good producers and nonproducers. Depending on the population structure, which was varied by forming groups with different initial compositions, an apparently paradoxical situation could be attained in which nonproducers grew faster within each group, yet producers increased overall. We show that a simple way to generate the variance required for this effect is through stochastic fluctuations via population bottlenecks. The synthetic approach described here thus provides a way to study generic mechanisms of natural selection.
Benefits of emotional design in multimedia instruction

Emotional design of multimedia instruction involves making the essential elements in the lesson's graphics more appealing, such as by rendering them with human-like features and with distinct, appealing colors (Um, Plass, Hayward, & Homer, 2012). College students received an 8-slide multimedia lesson on how a virus causes a cold for 5 min (Experiment 1) or for as long as they wanted (Experiment 2). For the control group, the graphics consisted of simple black-and-white drawings in which the host cell was represented as a large circle, and the virus was represented as a small circle with small spikes on the outside and a rectangle on the inside. For the enhanced group, the graphics were redrawn to render the host cell as a red face with expressive eyes (registering surprise, fear, and sickness at various stages in the process), and the virus as a blue face with fierce eyes and with a green dot at the end of each of the blue tentacles surrounding the virus face. The enhanced group performed better than the control group on a subsequent learning test (d ¼ 0.69 in Experiment 1, d ¼ 0.65 in Experiment 2) and gave higher effort ratings in Experiment 1 (d ¼ 0.65) but not in Experiment 2 (d ¼� 0.10). The findings are generally consistent with the cognitive affective theory of learning with media, and point to the importance of incorporating motivation into cognitive theories of multimedia learning.
Jim Blinn's corner-a trip down the graphics pipeline: line clipping

The standard computer graphics transform-clip-draw pipeline is described, and an overview of the clipping function is given. A simple algorithm for performing line clipping is presented. Homogeneous clipping, Z clipping, and global clipping using the algorithm are discussed. >
Hydrolysis of carbaryl by carbonate impurities in reference clay SWy-2.

The influence of clay preparation methods on the sorption and hydrolysis of carbaryl (1-naphthyl, N-methyl carbamate) by K+-saturated reference smectite SWy-2 was studied. Four methods were utilized: (1) The reference (or specimen) clay used as received was K+-saturated (hereafter referred to as whole clay). (2) High-speed centrifugation (3295g) of whole clay resulted in a pellet with three discrete bands. The upper, light-colored, low-density band was obtained by manual separation (light fraction). The high-density, dark-colored material comprising the lower band (heavy fraction) was also obtained manually. (3) SWy-2 was subjected to overnight gravity sedimentation to obtain the heavy fraction >> clay-sed. > light clay > clay-cent. The extent of 1-naphthol disappearance from solution, accompanied by a progressive darkening of the clay, followed the order whole clay > heavy fraction >>> light clay > clay-sed. > clay-cent. Using ring labeled [14C]carbaryl, approximately 61 and 15% of the total 14C activity added to the whole clay and light fraction, respectively, remained unextractable. X-ray diffraction of the heavy fraction revealed several peaks corresponding to minor impurities, including calcite and dolomite. Aqueous slurries of whole clay, light fraction, clay-sed., and heavy fraction were alkaline, whereas the pH of slurried clay-cent. was neutral. It was concluded that dissolution of inorganic carbonate impurities in SWy-2 caused alkaline conditions in the slurries leading to the hydrolysis of carbaryl. Dissolution of carbonates with sodium acetate buffer eliminated hydrolytic activity associated with SWy-2. None of the four preparation methods reliably removed inorganic carbonates. The use of commercial or reference smectites in surface chemistry studies should be accompanied by a treatment with acetate buffer to remove carbonate impurities.
Teaching Why Accuracy and Clarity are Ethics Issues

The teaching of ethics in engineering is a topic of much concern in engineering education. The purpose of this paper is to present an innovation in teaching ethics combined with accuracy of computation and clarity of documentation in a design setting.
Science and Society: Marine Reserve Design for the California Channel Islands

We explored the interaction of science and society in attempts to restore impaired marine ecosys- tems in Channel Islands National Park and National Marine Sanctuary, California. Deteriorating resource conditions triggered a community's desire to change public policy. Channel Islands National Park, one of 40 marine protected areas in the U.S. National Park System, was proclaimed a national monument in 1938 and expanded substantially in 1980 by an act of Congress. Collapse of marine life populations and loss of 80% of the giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) forests in the park between 1980 and 1998 showed that habitat and water quality protection alone had not secured sustainable ocean ecosystems or fisheries. The failed fishery management strategies and practices prompted formal community and agency requests in 1998 for a net- work of reserves protected from direct fishing impacts to serve as marine recovery areas. A 2-year attempt to build a community consensus based on science for a reserve network successfully identified recovery goals for fisheries, biodiversity, education, economics, and heritage values. Nevertheless, the community group failed to garner unanimous support for a specific reserve network to achieve those common goals. The group submitted ar ecommendation, supported by 14 of 16 members, to state and federal authorities in 2001 for action in their respective jurisdictions. California adopted the half of the network in state waters in 2003. This process exposed the socioeconomic factors involved in the design of marine protected areas that can be negotiated suc- cessfully among groups of people and factors determined by nature that cannot be negotiated. Understanding the differences among the factors was crucial in reaching consensus and changing public policy.
On Fundamental Solutions of Generalized Schrödinger Operators

Abstract We consider the generalized Schrodinger operator −Δ+μ, where μ is a nonnegative Radon measure in R n, n⩾3. Assuming that μ satisfies certain scale-invariant Kato conditions and doubling conditions we establish the following bounds for the fundamental solution of −Δ+μ in R n, ce − e 2 d ( x , y , μ ) | x − y | n −2 ⩽Γ μ (x, y)⩽ Ce − e 1 d ( x , y , μ ) | x − y | n −2 , where d(x, y, μ) is the distance function for the modified Agmon metric m(x, μ) dx2 associated with μ. We also study the boundedness of the corresponding Riesz transforms ∇(−Δ+μ)−1/2 on Lp( R n, dx).
The relative roles of contemporary and ancient processes in shaping genetic variation of a generalist fish in a catchment dominated by agriculture

Summary Conversion of land for agriculture has led to the channelisation of headwater streams and reduced water quality. Resident fish populations are expected to be challenged under such conditions and may experience declines that lead to a loss of neutral genetic variation. However, species-specific responses to recent ecological changes in stream condition and/or range expansion following glacial retreat can also influence the pattern of genetic variation found within and among contemporary populations. To evaluate the relative roles of contemporary and ancient scenarios that are hypothesised to affect the genetics of populations in streams, we studied the creek chub (Semotilus atromaculatus), a common species that is tolerant of stream degradation. We screened eight microsatellite loci on 308 individuals originating from ditches and streams surrounded by agricultural and forested land cover within the St. Joseph River catchment in north-eastern Indiana and southern Michigan, U.S.A. We found weak population structure associated with land cover and, in contrast to expectation, higher allelic richness in agricultural streams. Using Bayesian coalescent modelling, the strongest pattern found within the data set was evidence of a population decline throughout the catchment that most likely preceded stream channelisation and land conversion. The results illustrate the complexity of using neutral genetic variation of populations to assay stream quality. Tolerant species may have increased gene flow in channelised streams that leads to an increase in genetic variation. Meanwhile, post-glacial landscape change and subsequent colonisation of nascent freshwater streams appears to shape genetic variation regardless of contemporary land use.
Experimental allergic encephalomyelitis. Frequent sampling of blood alters disease course

Previous studies have shown that Strain 13 guinea pigs sensitised for experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE) as adults usually develop an acute, fatal form of disease while animals inoculated as juveniles usually display a chronic relapsing form. The present study reports that following repeated short-interval blood sampling by cardiac puncture for the estimation of lymphocyte populations, some adult Strain 13 guinea pigs sensitised for acute EAE unexpectedly survived and developed chronic EAE, while a group of juveniles sensitised for chronic EAE and bled under the same conditions, developed a more severe, acute form of EAE. It is suggested that this reversal of disease course was related to the depletion of circulating factors.
Prior blood feeding effects on susceptibility of Anopheles gambiae (Diptera: Culicidae) to infection with cultured Plasmodium falciparum (Haemosporida: Plasmodiidae).

We examined the relative susceptibilities of Anopheles gambiae Giles of different physiological ages to infection with cultured Plasmodium falciparum (Welch). Cohorts of mosquitoes were divided into three groups; one was fed uninfected blood on day 3 after emergence (i.e., one prior blood meal); another on days 3 and 7 after emergence (i.e., two prior blood meals); and a control group was maintained on sucrose. On days 10 to 12 after emergence, mosquitoes were fed human blood containing P. falciparum gametocytes. Prior blood feeding accelerated digestion of the infective blood meals and subtly altered susceptibility to infection with P. falciparum . When gametocyte cultures were highly fertile, all experimental groups were equally susceptible to infection. However, when gametocyte fertility was low, accelerated digestion had a detrimental effect on the transition of ookinetes to oocysts. Accelerated digestion may raise the threshold density of ookinetes required for the successful conversion of ookinetes to oocysts.
Leadership Aspirations of Asian American Academic Librarians

ABSTRACTThis study, a portion of a larger study, explores the leadership aspirations of Asian American academic librarians in academic libraries in the United States. Asian American academic librarians, who entered the library profession between 2007 and 2012, were sought for this inquiry. It is a Web-based survey, made up of 10 questions, containing multiple choice questions and short essay-type answers. The topics covered in this survey include: gender, age, education, institutional types, public and professional service, mentorship, and leadership aspirations. The study population was comprised of approximately 150 Asian Americans who entered the profession between 2007 and 2012. Thirty-one participants responded to the survey: 24 women and seven men. The results revealed, among other things, that a significant number of Asian Americans aspire to become academic library administrators/leaders.
411 CO-OCCURING BIRTH DEFECTS AMONG INFANTS WITH AUTOSOMAL ANOMALIES

Background Trisomy 21, 18, and 13 are the three most commonly diagnosed autosomal trisomies in liveborn infants. Affected infants frequently have serious or fatal comorbid birth defects. Published rates of comorbid birth defects among trisomies are dated and based on very limited numbers of infants. Research Objective To use a large national hospital discharge database to characterize comorbidities associated with trisomy 21, 18, and 13 among U.S. newborns. Design/Methods Analyses are based on hospital discharges from 1988 through 2002. All newborn discharges with ICD-9 diagnoses for trisomy 21, 18, and 13 were selected from the annual National Inpatient Survey (NIS) or Kids9 Inpatient Database (KID), which are both products of the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP). The NIS is based on a 20% sample of short-term and community hospital discharges from participating states for a particular year. The KID is an 80% sample of all pediatric discharges for 1997 and 2000 from participating states. Percentages of infants with any of 43 commonly reported comorbid birth defects were calculated. To avoid double counting, only those hospitalizations occurring during the first 10 days of life were included, and hospital transfers were excluded. Results Population rates for the three trisomy conditions were comparable to or slightly lower than previous estimates. Trisomy 21 was identified in 14,650 newborns. The most common comorbidities were heart defects 41% (PDA 22%, ASD 16%, VSD 12%, endocardial cushion defect 10%). Trisomy 18 was identified in 1,776 newborns. The most common comorbidities were heart defects 50% (VSD 32%, PDA 23%, ASD 12%), and musculoskeletal defects 11%. Trisomy 13 was identified in 1,177 newborns. The most common comorbidities were heart defects 42% (PDA 20%, VSD 18%, ASD 11%, TOF 7%), orofacial defects 26% (cleft lip 21%, cleft palate 5%), and musculoskeletal defects 22%. Among infants with trisomy 21, 3% died prior to discharge. Among trisomy 18 newborns, 54% died in the hospital, and among trisomy 13, 56% died prior to discharge. Conclusions Common comorbid diagnoses of trisomies 21, 18, and 13 include serious and readily identifiable disorders that are associated with increased morbidity and mortality. This updated and more complete information on comorbid conditions can be used to inform clinical decision making and help providers better prepare families for infants with trisomies.
Abstract B16: NR5A2 as a potential therapeutic target for hepatoblastoma

Hepatoblastoma (HB) is the most common malignant liver tumor in very young children. Because of multidrug resistance and severe side effects of anti-HB drugs during HB chemotherapy, it is urgent and important to develop new effective therapeutic agents with less toxicity for the treatment of pediatric patients with liver cancer. Nuclear Receptor Subfamily 5 Group A Member 2 (NR5A2; LRH-1) has been linked to various types of malignancies, and it is an emerging therapeutic target for many cancers. However the role of NR5A2 in liver cancer remains elusive. In this study, we found that both mRNA and protein expression levels of NR5A2 were significantly higher in HepG2 and HuH6 human HB cell lines and mouse orthotopic HB liver than the normal liver cell and normal liver tissue. Lentiviral-Mediated Short Hairpin RNA (shRNA) knockdown of NR5A2 inhibited HepG2 and HuH6 cell proliferation and colony formation compared with control cells. Furthermore, we found that silencing of NR5A2 induced downregulation of cell cycle gene CCND1 and the regulator gene c-myc. Similar to the effects of shRNA, we found the NR5A2 antagonist treatment also inhibited the proliferation of human HB cell lines (HepG2, HuH6 and HepT1 cells), reduced colony formation and CCND1 and c-Myc expression. Finally, flow cytometry results showed that the NR5A2 antagonist treatment induced a decreased percentage of cells in S phase which resulted in a significant decrease in the rate of cell proliferation and tumorigenicity, and induced an increased number of cells in the G2/M phase, leading to HB cell cycle arrest at G2/M phase. Collectively, our results suggest that NR5A2 play an important role in HB cancer cell proliferation. Interference of NR5A2 by shRNA or the NR5A2 antagonist inhibits HB cell proliferation and colony formation by inhibiting the cell cycle process through downregulation of CCND1 and c-Myc expression. By targeting NR5A2 signaling pathway, NR5A2 antagonist has promising therapeutic potential in the treatment of HB cancer. Note: This abstract was not presented at the conference. Citation Format: Jingling Jin, Roma Patel, Nan Ge Jin, Yan Shi, Wenjing Sun, Jianhua Yang, Jed G. Nuchtern, Sanjeev A. Vasudevan. NR5A2 as a potential therapeutic target for hepatoblastoma. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Advances in Pediatric Cancer Research: From Mechanisms and Models to Treatment and Survivorship; 2015 Nov 9-12; Fort Lauderdale, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(5 Suppl):Abstract nr B16.
Effect of Smoking on the Outcomes of Cancer Patients After Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation

Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of death in the United States. Recent research in Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant (HSCT) populations has begun to examine smoking cigarettes as a risk factor for adverse transplant outcomes. Based on these early studies, estimated prevalence rates vary widely. Lifetime history of smoking among HSCT patients likely approximates that of the general population, while current use appears less than the general population. Smoking has been associated with multiple adverse HSCT outcomes, including shorter duration of disease-free and overall survival; higher treatment related mortality; higher pulmonary infection and respiratory failure rates; higher rates of disease recurrence; increased risk for cardiovascular events; and longer duration of hospitalization. Potential mechanisms are likely many, and include impaired bone marrow hematopoiesis, inflammation, impaired pulmonary function, and also significant associations with other maladaptive health behaviors know to adversely affect general population health outcomes, but understudied in HSCT populations. Future directions for tobacco research in HSCT should focus on use of behavior science methodology to minimize biases common to self-report methodology, and analyzing the effects of both current and lifetime use. Current use is a modifiable risk factor. Cancer diagnosis and HSCT serve as “teachable moments” during which patient motivation to quit tobacco use is increased. Survivor care plans serve as a timely platform for integration of evidence-based tobacco dependence treatment into a comprehensive care plan that targets all known significant risk factors to optimize HSCT outcomes.
The Differential Ability of Porcine Follicular Fluid to Suppress Serum FSH in Female Rats from 6 Days of Age to Adulthood

It has been speculated that there is a non-steroidal ovarian hormone which acts as a negative feedback signal for FSH (1). Recent data from our own laboratory (2,3,4) as well as others (5,6,7) suggest that this hormone, folliculostatin or female inhibin, can be found in charcoal extracted porcine or bovine follicular fluid. In the adult (67–80 days old) female rat ovariectomized (ovax) at 0800h on the day of metestrus, serum FSH is elevated by 9h post-ovax (1700h). As little as 150 µl of porcine follicular fluid (PFF) injected at 1130h (3.5h post-surgery) can suppress this rise (3). Furthermore, this same amount of PFF injected into a sham-operated adult will suppress the basal levels of FSH (3). Since FSH has been implicated in the neonatal development of the ovary (8,9,10,11,12), it was of interest to determine if PFF could selectively suppress serum FSH in the neonatal and prepuberal female rats. Thus, the purpose of the following experiments performed in neonatal and prepuberal rats was to see if PFF could suppress FSH without altering LH and thus lead to a model for investigating the role of FSH in neonatal ovarian development.
Topology inference of directed graphs using nonlinear structural vector autoregressive models

Linear structural vector autoregressive models constitute a generalization of structural equation models (SEMs) and vector autoregressive (VAR) models, two popular approaches for topology inference of directed graphs. Although simple and tractable, linear SVARMs seldom capture nonlinearities that are inherent to complex systems, such as the human brain. To this end, the present paper advocates kernel-based nonlinear SVARMs, and develops an efficient sparsity-promoting least-squares estimator to learn the hidden topology. Numerical tests on real electrocorticographic (ECoG) data from an Epilepsy study corroborate the efficacy of the novel approach.
Comprehensive Nicotine Regulation to End the Combustible Tobacco Epidemic

In late July 2017, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced a new plan for tobacco regulation that focuses on regulating nicotine itself to reduce the nicotine content of cigarettes to nonad...
Surgical resident technical skill self-evaluation: increased precision with training progression

Abstract Background Surgical resident ability to accurately evaluate one's own skill level is an important part of educational growth. We aimed to determine if differences exist between self and observer technical skill evaluation of surgical residents performing a single procedure. Materials and methods We prospectively enrolled 14 categorical general surgery residents (six post-graduate year [PGY] 1-2, three PGY 3, and five PGY 4-5). Over a 6-month period, following each laparoscopic cholecystectomy, residents and seven faculty each completed the Objective Structured Assessment of Technical Skills (OSATS). Spearman's coefficient was calculated for three groups: senior (PGY 4-5), PGY3, and junior (PGY 1-2). Rho (ρ) values greater than 0.8 were considered well correlated. Results Of the 125 paired assessments (resident-faculty each evaluating the same case), 58 were completed for senior residents, 54 for PGY3 residents, and 13 for junior residents. Using the mean from all OSATS categories, trainee self-evaluations correlated well to faculty (senior ρ 0.97, PGY3 ρ 0.9, junior ρ 0.9). When specific OSATS categories were analyzed, junior residents exhibited poor correlation in categories of respect for tissue (ρ −0.5), instrument handling (ρ 0.71), operative flow (ρ 0.41), use of assistants (ρ 0.05), procedural knowledge (ρ 0.32), and overall comfort with the procedure (ρ 0.73). PGY3 residents lacked correlation in two OSATS categories, operative flow (ρ 0.7) and procedural knowledge (ρ 0.2). Senior resident self-evaluations exhibited strong correlations to observers in all areas. Conclusions Surgical residents improve technical skill self-awareness with progressive training. Less-experienced trainees have a tendency to over-or-underestimate technical skill.
Efficacies of Cabotegravir and Bictegravir against drug-resistant HIV-1 integrase mutants

Integrase strand transfer inhibitors (INSTIs) are the class of antiretroviral (ARV) drugs most recently approved by the FDA for the treatment of HIV-1 infections. INSTIs block the strand transfer reaction catalyzed by HIV-1 integrase (IN) and have been shown to potently inhibit infection by wild-type HIV-1. Of the three current FDA-approved INSTIs, Dolutegravir (DTG), has been the most effective, in part because treatment does not readily select for resistant mutants. However, recent studies showed that when INSTI-experienced patients are put on a DTG-salvage therapy, they have reduced response rates. Two new INSTIs, Cabotegravir (CAB) and Bictegravir (BIC), are currently in late-stage clinical trials. Both CAB and BIC had much broader antiviral profiles than RAL and EVG against the INSTI-resistant single, double, and triple HIV-1 mutants used in this study. BIC was more effective than DTG against several INSTI-resistant mutants. Overall, in terms of their ability to inhibit a broad range of INSTI-resistant IN mutants, BIC was superior to DTG, and DTG was superior to CAB. Modeling the binding of CAB, BIC, and DTG within the active site of IN suggested that the “left side” of the INSTI pharmacophore (the side away from the viral DNA) was important in determining the ability of the compound to inhibit the IN mutants we tested. Of the two INSTIs in late stage clinical trials, BIC appears to be better able to inhibit the replication of a broad range of IN mutants. BIC retained potency against several of the INSTI-resistant mutants that caused a decrease in susceptibility to DTG.
Rapid Induction and Microwave Heat-Up Syntheses of CdSe Quantum Dots

The production of nanoparticles on an industrial scale requires an approach other than the widely used hot-injection method. In this work, two heat-up methods are applied to nanoparticle synthesis. The induction heating method produces CdSe quantum dots with ultrasmall properties in seconds. Initial flow-through experiments demonstrate that induction heating continuously produces quantum dots. These results are compared with those from microwave synthesis, which produces quantum dots on a longer timescale but provides fast, continuous heating. Both methods can produce quantum dots within seconds because of rapid heating. In addition, different precursors, single source and separate source, give different results, ultimately providing a handle to control quantum dot properties.
Future warming increases probability of globally synchronized maize production shocks.

Meeting the global food demand of roughly 10 billion people by the middle of the 21st century will become increasingly challenging as the Earth’s climate continues to warm. Earlier studies suggest that once the optimum growing temperature is exceeded, mean crop yields decline and the variability of yield increases even if interannual climate variability remains unchanged. Here, we use global datasets of maize production and climate variability combined with future temperature projections to quantify how yield variability will change in the world’s major maize-producing and -exporting countries under 2 °C and 4 °C of global warming. We find that as the global mean temperature increases, absent changes in temperature variability or breeding gains in heat tolerance, the coefficient of variation (CV) of maize yields increases almost everywhere to values much larger than present-day values. This higher CV is due both to an increase in the SD of yields and a decrease in mean yields. For the top four maize-exporting countries, which account for 87% of global maize exports, the probability that they have simultaneous production losses greater than 10% in any given year is presently virtually zero, but it increases to 7% under 2 °C warming and 86% under 4 °C warming. Our results portend rising instability in global grain trade and international grain prices, affecting especially the ∼800 million people living in extreme poverty who are most vulnerable to food price spikes. They also underscore the urgency of investments in breeding for heat tolerance.
9 – Developments in the thermal processing of carpets

: During carpet manufacturing, yarn twist setting, wet processing (dyeing, printing, washing, finishing and drying) and backcoating (drying/ curing) utilize predominately thermal energy. These processes for tufted carpet along with energy requirements are discussed in this chapter. Energy management of tufted carpet manufacturing processes and the future in thermal energy conservation are also presented.
Audio Enhancement and Authentication

This article presents the current techniques and latest developments in the enhancement and authentication of forensic audio. While recorded audio may exist in either analog or digital form, care must be taken in the handling of evidence and a clear understanding of audio recording technology, acoustics, and signal processing must be possessed. In addition to providing a general methodology for audio enhancement, this article presents an introduction and resources for further reading regarding audio authentication.
Long-Term Effects from a School-Based Trial Comparing Interpersonal Psychotherapy-Adolescent Skills Training to Group Counseling.

Adolescence represents a vulnerable developmental period for depression and an opportune time for prevention efforts. In this study, 186 adolescents with elevated depressive symptoms (M age = 14.01...
Deep Learning-Based Intrusion Detection With Adversaries

Deep neural networks have demonstrated their effectiveness in most machine learning tasks, with intrusion detection included. Unfortunately, recent research found that deep neural networks are vulnerable to adversarial examples in the image classification domain, i.e., they leave some opportunities for an attacker to fool the networks into misclassification by introducing imperceptible changes to the original pixels in an image. The vulnerability raises some concerns in applying deep neural networks in security-critical areas, such as intrusion detection. In this paper, we investigate the performances of the state-of-the-art attack algorithms against deep learning-based intrusion detection on the NSL-KDD data set. The vulnerabilities of neural networks employed by the intrusion detection systems are experimentally validated. The roles of individual features in generating adversarial examples are explored. Based on our findings, the feasibility and applicability of the attack methodologies are discussed.
Maturation of Bile Acid Uptake in Freshly Isolated Hepatocytes from Fetal and Newborn Rabbits

Previous studies have demonstrated that hepatic uptake of bilirubin and bile acids show the characteristic features of a carrier-mediated transport and have suggested that maturation of this system may in part account for the developmental immaturity of the hepatic excretory system (Scharschmidt et al, 1975; Iga and Klaassen, 1982; Suchy and Balistreri, 1982). Clinically, impaired uptake of bile acids is supported by the finding of elevated serum concentrations of cholylglycine and conjugates of chenodeoxycholate during the first months of life (Barbara et al, 1980). This elevation in serum bile acid concentration is considered especially striking in light of the probable inefficiency of intestinal bile acid reabsorption in the first months of life, which would tend to blunt the increase in serum bile acids. In animal studies Belknap et al (1981) have demonstrated that serum concentrations of total cholate conjugates are markedly elevated in the serum of suckling and weaning rats.
Evidence of Large-Scale Social Interactions in Mammography in the United States

This paper examines the extent of social interactions in an individual’s decision to undergo mammography. Using Behavioral Risk Factors Surveillance System surveys from 1993 to 2016, the effect of other female screening behavior on an individual’s decision to have a routine breast cancer screening was measured by calculating the size of a so called “social multiplier” in mammography. A vector of social multipliers was estimated in the use of mammograms in the past 1–2 years by taking the ratio of group-level effects of exogenous explanatory variables to individual-level effects of the same variables. Peer groups were defined as same-aged women living in the same state. Three age groups of women were considered: 40–49, 50–74, and 75 and older. Several econometric approaches were used to analyze the effect of social interactions on mammography use, including ordinary least squares, fixed effects, and split-sample instrumental variable. For all women, evidence was found of social interactions associated with individual’s education, employment, and poor health. In addition, number of age-group-specific social multipliers was found. The strongest evidence of spillover in mammography was found for women ages 75 and older. Policy makers should be aware that, in the presence of a social multiplier, the value of any type of screening intervention is higher than the one that would be measured at the individual-level.
Trust in the Work Environment and Cardiovascular Disease Risk: Findings from the Gallup-Sharecare Well-Being Index.

This study examined associations between trust, an important aspect of workplace social capital, with seven cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors (American Heart Association Life’s Simple 7 (LS7)): smoking, obesity, low physical activity, poor diet, diabetes, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure. Data are from the U.S. Gallup-Sharecare Well-Being Index (2010–2012), a nationally representative telephone survey of U.S. workers (n = 412,884). The independent variable was the response to a work environment (WE) question as to whether their supervisor always creates an open and trusting environment. Regression models were adjusted for demographic characteristics with each of the LS7 CVD risk factors as dependent variables. Twenty-one percent of workers reported that their supervisor did not create an open and trusting environment. Trust was associated with increased adjusted odds of having many of the LS7 CVD risk factors. Among those workers whose supervisor created a mistrustful environment, the odds ratios were greatest (>20%) for having four or more of the LS7 CVD risk factors.
A machine learning based delta-radiomics process for early prediction of treatment response of pancreatic cancer.

Changes of radiomic features over time in longitudinal images, delta radiomics, can potentially be used as a biomarker to predict treatment response. This study aims to develop a delta-radiomic process based on machine learning by (1) acquiring and registering longitudinal images, (2) segmenting and populating regions of interest (ROIs), (3) extracting radiomic features and calculating their changes (delta-radiomic features, DRFs), (4) reducing feature space and determining candidate DRFs showing treatment-induced changes, and (5) creating outcome prediction models using machine learning. This process was demonstrated by retrospectively analyzing daily non-contrast CTs acquired during routine CT-guided-chemoradiation therapy for 90 pancreatic cancer patients. A total of 2520 CT sets (28-daily-fractions-per-patient) along with their pathological response were analyzed. Over 1300 radiomic features were extracted from the segmented ROIs. Highly correlated DRFs were ruled out using Spearman correlations. Correlation between the selected DRFs and pathological response was established using linear-regression-models. T test and linear-mixed-effects-models were used to determine which DRFs changed significantly compared with first fraction. A Bayesian-regularization-neural-network was used to build a response prediction model. The model was trained using 50 patients and leave-one-out-cross-validation. Performance was judged using the area-under-ROC-curve. External independent validation was done using data from the remaining 40 patients. The results show that 13 DRFs passed the tests and demonstrated significant changes following 2–4 weeks of treatment. The best performing combination differentiating good versus bad responders (CV-AUC = 0.94) was obtained using normalized-entropy-to-standard-deviation-difference-(NESTD), kurtosis, and coarseness. With further studies using larger data sets, delta radiomics may develop into a biomarker for early prediction of treatment response.
22FDX™ Technology and Add-on-Functionalities

Through Add-Ons implemented on 22FDX™ FDSOI technology from Globalfoundries unique characteristics suitable to serve complex communication, mobile and automotive systems can be supported, with the required balance between ultralow power operation at adequate performance. The talk summarizes special characteristics of 22FDX™ FDSOI technology and explains which and why extended functionality is best suited to serve the application needs from today and beyond tomorrow.
Halophyte ion regulation traits support saline adaptation of Lepidium latifolium, L. draba, and L. alyssoides

Identification of saline resistance traits of invasive plants has received little study and could reveal how some plant species utilize salt to encroach upon salinized landscapes. We conducted a 3-mo greenhouse study to identify saline resistance mechanisms of three North American invasive Brassicaceae species, Lepidium latifolium, L. draba, and L. alyssoides, in response to increasing salinity. Seedlings of central and southern New Mexico, USA populations were exposed to NaCl irrigation solutions at 0, − 0.1, and − 0.2 MPa (0, 24, and 48 mM, respectively). Saline resistance of these populations was attributable to salt tolerance behavior commonly observed as signature traits of halophytes, including a combined Na and Cl accumulation in leaves of up to 13% of dry weight with no injury, dominance of leaves as the salt accumulation site, leaf tissue water Na and Cl at ≈ 300–400 mM, leaf K:Na molar ratio of less than 1, and the development of leaf succulence. In saline environments, high salt loads in shoots may increase soil salinity through annual litter fall and potentially alter vegetation community structure. A broader implication of this study is in the need to detect salt resistant traits of additional plant species to broaden the narrow understanding of how salinity affects vegetation communities.
Multi-targeted management of upland game birds at the agroecosystem interface in midwestern North America

Despite its imperative, biodiversity conservation is chronically underfunded, a deficiency that often forces management agencies to prioritize. Single-species recovery thus becomes a focus (often with socio-political implications), whereas a more economical approach would be the transition to multi-targeted management (= MTM). This challenge is best represented in Midwestern North America where biodiversity has been impacted by 300+ years of chronic anthropogenic disturbance such that native tall-grass prairie is now supplanted by an agroecosystem. Here, we develop an MTM with a population genetic metric to collaboratively manage three Illinois upland gamebirds: common pheasant (Phasianus colchicus; pheasant), northern bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus; quail), and threatened-endangered (TE prairie chicken). We first genotyped our study pheasant at 19 microsatellite DNA loci and identified three captive breeding stocks (N = 143; IL Department of Natural Resources) as being significantly bottlenecked, with relatedness >1st-cousin (μR = 0.158). ‘Wild’ (non-stocked) pheasant [N = 543; 14 Pheasant-Habitat-Areas (PHAs)] were also bottlenecked, significantly interrelated (μR = 0.150) and differentiated (μFST = 0.047), yet distinct from propagation stock. PHAs that encompassed significantly with larger areas also reflected greater effective population sizes (μNE = 43; P<0.007). We juxtaposed these data against previously published results for prairie chicken and quail, and found population genetic structure driven by drift, habitat/climate impacts, and gender-biased selection via hunter-harvest. Each species (hunter-harvested or T&E) is independently managed, yet their composite population genetic baseline provides the quantitative criteria needed for an upland game bird MTM. Its implementation would require agricultural plots to be rehabilitated/reclaimed using a land-sharing/sparing portfolio that differs markedly from the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), where sequestered land decreases as agricultural prices escalate. Cost-savings for an MTM would accrue by synchronizing single-species management with a dwindling hunter-harvest program, and by eliminating propagation/stocking programs. This would sustain not only native grasslands and their resident species, but also accelerate conservation at the wildlife-agroecosystem interface.
Auger Recombination in Strained Mid-Infrared Quantum Wells

We measure effect of strain on Auger recombination from compositional and applied biaxial stress using time-resolved photoluminescence and pump-probe spectroscopy. Results suggest that straining by composition, but not external stress, can tune the Auger coefficient.
Solar-Terrestrial Data Science: Prior Experience and Future Prospects

Acquisition of relatively large data sets based on measurements in the interplanetary medium, throughout Earth’s magnetosphere, and from ground-based platforms has been a hallmark of the heliophysics discipline for several decades. Early methods of time series analysis with such datasets revealed key causal physical relationships and led to successful forecast models of magnetospheric substorms and geomagnetic storms. Applying neural network methods and linear prediction filtering approaches provided tremendous insights into how solar wind-magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling worked under various forcing conditions. Some applications of neural net and related methods were viewed askance in earlier times because it was not obvious how to extract or infer the underlying physics of input-output relationships. Today, there are powerful new methods being developed in the data sciences that harken back to earlier successful specification and forecasting methods. This paper reviews earlier work and looks at new prospects for heliophysics prediction methods.
Consolidation of Cancer Registry and Administrative Claims Data on Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment in the US Military Health System

PURPOSELinked cancer registry and medical claims data have increased the capacity for cancer research. However, few efforts have described methods to select information between data sources, which ...
Economics at the FTC: Fertilizer, Consumer Complaints, and Private Label Cereal

Staff in the FTC’s Bureau of Economics perform economic analyses to support the Commission’s missions to protect consumers and maintain competition. Staff contributions include both original economic research and theoretical and empirical analysis in specific matters where the Commission has to decide whether to take enforcement actions. This article describes: retrospective research of a consummated merger in the fertilizer industry; a novel analysis of the government’s consumer complaint data to understand how frauds affect different demographic groups; and casework that supported a decision to challenge a merger of private label ready-to-eat cereal manufacturers.
Local and State Policy Action Taken in the United States to Address the Emergence of E-Cigarettes and Vaping: A Scoping Review of Literature.

IntroductionIn response to rising rates of youth vaping and e-cigarette use, states and localities in the United States have adopted various tobacco control policies and have extended their utility...
Unit Test Smells and Accuracy of Software Engineering Student Test Suites

With an increasing emphasis on unit testing in computer science curricula, we examined students' work on testing assignments to investigate their adoption of test smells---practices that indicate potential problems in unit tests. We discovered three common causes of test smells in students' unit tests: multiple member function calls, multiple assertions, and conditional logic. We also explored how each might be associated with test inaccuracies. In a quasi-experimental study, we evaluated the quality of students' unit tests by evaluating test accuracy---tests' reliability in distinguishing between a corpus of acceptable production code and a separate corpus containing faults. Correlational and comparative analyses revealed that unit tests with calls to multiple member functions and/or conditional logic were associated with worse test accuracy. However, no relationship was found between test accuracy and whether or not unit tests contained multiple assertions.