cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Identification of the Thyrotropin-Releasing Hormone Precursor, Its Processing Products, and Its Coexpression with Convertase 1 in Primary Cultures of Hypothalamic Neurons: Anatomic Distribution of PC1 and PC2*

The processing of pro-TRH, has been extensively studied in our laboratory using a corticotropic cell line, AtT20, transfected with the pro-TRH gene. We have also demonstrated that the convertases PC1 and PC2 process pro-TRH to cryptic peptides in vitro. However, although these processing pathways have been well characterized in vitro, little is known about the processing and subcellular distribution of pro-TRH and its derived peptides in hypothalamic neurons, an endogenous source of pro-TRH and PC enzymes. In this study we used multiple approaches to identify, both biochemically and anatomically, the presence and localization of pro-TRH (26 kDa) and its processing products. We also investigated the presence of PC1 and PC2 enzymes and the coexpression of pro-TRH and PC1 messenger RNAs. Identification of the TRH precursor was demonstrated by 1) Western blot analysis of cellular extracts, 2) immunoprecipitation of radiolabeled pro-TRH followed by analysis on acrylamide gel electrophoresis, 3) fluorescence immunocytochemistry, and 4) immunoelectron microscopy. The presence of the convertases PC1 and PC2 was determined by Western blot analysis of cellular extracts and fluorescence immunocytochemistry. The coexpression of pro-TRH with PC1 was shown by double in situ hybridization. Our findings support three main conclusions. First, this primary culture system of hypothalamic neurons is suitable for characterizing pro-TRH processing as well as identifying the anatomical location of its processing products. Second, prohormome processing takes place during axonal transport after removal of the signal peptide in the endoplasmic reticulum, and subsequent cleavages of the prohormone occur as intermediate peptides move down the axon toward the nerve terminal. This coupled transport-processing phenomenon may provide the necessary mechanism to ensure flexibility in differential processing of specific protein sequences that are determined by the secretory needs of cells. It appears that certain intermediate peptides differ in their subcompartmental distribution, suggesting the possibility of a differential processing and maturation of pro-TRH-derived peptides. Thirdly, the 87-kDa form of PC 1 may initiate the processing of pro-TRH at the Golgi complex level, which then continues to be processed by PC1 and PC2 in later stages of the secretory pathway.
Comparison of medical care costs between successful radiofrequency catheter ablation and surgical ablation of accessory pathways in the pediatric age group

Short-term follow-up of radiofrequency catheter ablation (RFCA) has shown that it is a safe and effective procedure for the treatment of medically resistant supraventricular tachycardia in both adults and children. 1–3 Before the advent of RFCA, the most common technique for ablation of supraventricular substrates involved open-chest surgery. An important advantage of RFCA over surgical ablation (SA) is the anticipated reduction in medical costs associated with a catheter procedure versus an open-chest surgical procedure. This study compares the cost of radiofrequency catheter ablation with those of surgical ablation for the treatment of supraventricular tachycardia in a pediatric population.
50 GFlops molecular dynamics on the Connection Machine-5

The authors present timings and performances numbers for a new short range three dimensional (3-D) molecular dynamics (MD) code, SPaSM, on the Connection Machine-5 (CM-5). They demonstrate that runs with more than 10/sup 8/ particles are now possible on massively parallel MIMD computers. To the best of their knowledge this is at least an order of magnitude more particles than what was previously been reported. Typical production runs show sustained performance (including communication) in the range of 47-50 GFlops on a 1024 node CM-5 with vector units (VUs). The speed of the code scales linearly with the number of processors and with the number of particles and shows 95% parallel efficiency in the speedup.
Pre- and postpartum sex steroids in female marmosets (Callithrix kuhlii): is there a link with infant survivorship and maternal behavior?

Abstract Recent studies in primates have suggested that pre- and peripartum sex steroid hormones may be important determinants of maternal behavior and motivation, since higher levels of prepartum estrogen are associated with maternal competency and infant survivorship. To test the cross-species generality of this finding, we monitored excreted profiles of estradiol (E 2 ), progesterone metabolites (pregnanediol glucuronide; PdG), and E 2 :PdG ratios throughout pregnancy in black tufted-ear marmosets ( Callithrix kuhlii ). Additionally, we wanted to determine the extent to which variability in maternal carrying effort was related to hormonal factors and relative levels of maternal experience. For six females, hormonal profiles were determined by enzyme immunoassay for two pregnancies, one in which infants survived at least 2 weeks postpartum and one in which infants did not survive. Our within-subjects analyses revealed significant differences in mean prepartum E 2 levels for females in the different infant survival conditions. In contrast to previous findings, however, females exhibited significantly higher prepartum E 2 levels when their infants did not survive a minimum of 2 weeks postpartum, relative to when their infants did survive. Maternal carrying effort was also negatively and significantly correlated with prepartum E 2 levels. Unlike previous reports in callitrichid primates, then, our data suggest that high concentrations of prepartum E 2 in callitrichid primates are not necessarily associated with competent maternal behavior and may instead be associated with poor infant survivorship and inadequate maternal care. Further, our results appear to be convergent with research focusing on human mothers and may represent a common underlying mechanism linking prepartum estrogen and postpartum affect and behavior in some primates.
Decoding the precision of historical temperature observations

Historical observations of temperature underpin our ability to monitor Earth's climate. We identify a pervasive issue in archived observations from surface stations, wherein the use of varying conventions for units and precision has led to distorted distributions of the data. Apart from the original precision being generally unknown, the majority of archived temperature data are found to be misaligned with the original measurements because of rounding on a Fahrenheit scale, conversion to Celsius, and re-rounding. Furthermore, we show that commonly used statistical methods including quantile regression are sensitive to the finite precision and to double-rounding of the data after unit conversion. To remedy these issues, we present a Hidden Markov Model that uses the differing frequencies of specific recorded values to recover the most likely original precision and units associated with each observation. This precision-decoding algorithm is used to infer the precision of the 644 million daily surface temperature observations in the Global Historical Climate Network database, providing more accurate values for the 63% of samples found to have been biased by double-rounding. The average absolute bias correction across the dataset is 0.018 °C, and the average inferred precision is 0.41 °C, even though data are archived at 0.1 °C precision. These results permit better inference of when record temperatures occurred, correction of rounding effects, and identification of inhomogeneities in surface temperature time series, amongst other applications. The precision-decoding algorithm is generally applicable to rounded observations–including surface pressure, humidity, precipitation, and other temperature data–thereby offering the potential to improve quality-control procedures for many datasets.
Using Performance Measures for Federal Budgeting: Proposals and Prospects

The political system, the popular press, and the public have recently been concerned about measuring government performance. This concern for measuring performance should imply a concern for measuring it correctly. With this in mind, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) recently conducted an analysis of the use of performance measures in the budget process. The study attempts to review the issues raised by performance budgeting in the context of past and current efforts to link performance measures and budgeting. This article focuses on two portions of that study: The status of the current federal performance measurement efforts and specific observations designed to inject a note of caution into the current debate about performance measurement and budgeting.
Role of the Urokinase Plasminogen Activator Receptor in Mediating Impaired Efferocytosis of Anti-SSA/Ro–Bound Apoptotic Cardiocytes. Implications in the Pathogenesis of Congenital Heart Block

Rationale:Binding of maternal anti-Ro/La antibodies to cognate antigen expressed on apoptotic cardiocytes decreases clearance by healthy cardiocytes, which may contribute to the development of autoimmune associated congenital heart block and fatal cardiomyopathy. Objective:Given recent evidence implicating the urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) as a “don't eat me” signal during efferocytosis, experiments addressed whether surface bound anti-Ro antibodies inhibit apoptotic cell removal via an effect on the expression/function of the urokinase-type plasminogen activator protease uPA/uPAR system. Methods and Results:As assessed by flow cytometry and confocal microscopy, uPAR colocalizes and interacts with Ro60 on the surface of apoptotic human fetal cardiocytes. Blocking of uPAR enhances phagocytosis of apoptotic cardiocytes by healthy cardiocytes and reverses the anti-Ro60–dependent impaired clearance of apoptotic cardiocytes. Binding of anti-Ro60 antibodies to apoptotic cardiocytes results in ...
Nonreplicating Cultures of Frog Gastric Tubular Cells

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the structure, function, and longevity of the mammalian gastric mucosal chief and oxyntic cells and their amphibian counterpart, the frog gastric tubular cells. The acid secretory cell of the frog gastric mucosa, usually referred to as the oxyntic or parietal cell, is the phylogenetic precursor of the mammalian chief and oxyntic cells as it has the capacity to secrete both pepsinogen and acid. This frog counterpart of the mammalian gastric secretory cells has some distinct advantages as an experimental model for studying the control of cellular function. By stage XX, gland-like structures develop beneath the surface of the mucosa. The cells of these structures have large nuclei and scanty cytoplasm, and the ribosomes lie either free in the cytosol or are part of the rough-surfaced endoplasmic reticulum. The cells of these gland-like structures also contain a relatively simple Golgi apparatus but little smooth-surfaced endoplasmic reticulum. However, it might be possible to use contact-inhibited or serum-deprived nonreplicating cell cultures for in vitro models, such systems may not be truly analogous to the in vivo situation.
The Future of Same-Sex Marriage

While written for a symposium over three years ago, this article nonetheless assumed that the Hawaii referendum would pass and that the amended state constitution would be construed as not protecting same-sex marriage. The article suggests that the analysis in Baehr v. Lewin has equal force in establishing that same-sex marriage bans trigger heightened scrutiny under the Federal Constitution, since the criteria to determine whether a classification is sex-based are the same whether one is considering the guarantees offered by the United States Constitution or, instead, the Hawaii Constitution. The article further suggests that states will be unable to meet the requisite burden to establish that their same-sex marriage bans are sufficiently closely tailored to promote sufficiently important state interests.
L3Cs: Bringing Change or in Need of Change?

The low-profit, limited liability company (“L3C”) is a hybrid social and business entity not entirely for-profit or entirely not-for-profit. Referred to as a “for-profit with the nonprofit soul,” an L3C is a “specifically branded LLC” governed by a state’s Limited Liability Company (“LLC”) laws. The L3C model is enabled by a definitional addition to LLC statutes, imposing additional state-law obligations. The L3C model is an attempt to enable socially responsible businesses to access funding previously unavailable to charities. As the L3C model is more regularly adopted, it is important to understand the benefits and drawbacks associated with operating as one.
Cellular muscle actuators with variable resonant frequencies

This paper presents the design and analysis of a novel variable stiffness and variable resonance actuator based on a cellular arrangement of piezoelectric devices. The cellular muscle actuator design concept is presented followed by a general dynamic model for establishing the theoretical bounds on achievable resonant frequencies. A model that is specific to the proposed design is then formulated to include the effects of parasitic dynamics. The resonance characteristics of a three cell prototype system are identified experimentally. The theoretical model and experimental results agree over a large frequency range and illustrate the variable resonance concept.
Protein Quality in the First Thousand Days of Life

The aim of this article is to provide an overview of the role of protein quality within the first 1000 days of life. The article outlines the importance of protein quality in pregnancy and early growth and examines the potential of high-quality protein in prevention of stunting and treatment of severe and moderate acute malnutrition. The article also provides a summary of the recent changes in protein quality evaluation and the development of a new index, the Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score, examining the opportunities and challenges this new methodology presents in assessing protein quality.
The Autonomy System Architecture

This paper introduces, and summarizes the development of, the Autonomy System Architecture (ASA) as a component based representation for developing and deploying highly autonomous and automated space exploration missions. As part of verification of ASA representation, we compare the components of ASA to widely-adopted supervisory and control architectures for decision-making and mechanisms for system operations, in order to illustrate these constructs support and map into the ASA architecture. The paper also outlines a 7-step framework for employing ASA with existing methods and processes to constructs models and analyses for trade space exploration for autonomy and automation within system-of-systems challenges, and then also compares this framework to two existing NASA tools and methodologies. The paper concludes with an outline of an ASA application problem example from the Constellation Program Lunar Outpost plans and briefly discusses the applicability of ASA to domains outside of space exploration.
Impact of Co-firing Coal and Biomass on Mixed Char Reactivity under Gasification Conditions

This work focuses on the gasification behaviors of the chars formed during devolatilization when co-firing coal/biomass blends. In this experimental and modeling investigation, Wyodak coal, a sub-bituminous coal from the Powder River Basin, was the coal employed and corn stover was the biomass. Torrefied corn stover was also used in selected tests. Chars were produced by injecting pulverized fuel particles into a laboratory-scale entrained flow reactor, in which a reducing environment was established at ∼1550 K (1277 °C) and 1 atm. The injected fuel was either pure coal, pure biomass, or a premixed blend of the two. Char particles were extracted from the reactor just subsequent to devolatilization and then analyzed for specific surface areas and reactivity to CO2, H2O, and O2. The results indicated that the specific surface areas of the mixed chars were lower than the specific surface areas of the chars produced from the pure fuels. The mixed char reactivities were also outside the bounds of the reactivit...
Regenerative medicine: The clinical benefit of stem cells in cartilage regeneration

The results of a recent randomized, controlled study suggest than intra-articular injection of autologous stem cells collected from peripheral blood might improve the outcome of surgical approaches to regeneration of articular cartilage after injury. However, questions remain regarding the clinical benefit and feasibility of such an approach.
Sustained-Release Bolus for Horn Fly (Diptera: Muscidae) Control: Effects of Methoprene and Diflubenzuron on Some Nontarget Species

Dung from cattle treated with sustained-release boluses containing either methoprene or diflubenzuron was bioassayed biweekly for 27 wk with the horn fly, Haematobia irritans (L.); two species of dung-burying beetles, Onthophagus gazella (F.) and Sisyphus rubrus Paschalidis; and two species of dung-inhabiting predators, Philonthus flavolimbatus Erichson and P. longicornis Clark. When reared on dung from a steer treated with the methoprene bolus, emergence of adult horn flies was reduced 37.5–99.4% during the first 25 wk and 8.3% at 27 wk when compared with emergence of horn flies reared on untreated dung. Adult horn fly emergence, when reared on dung from a steer that received the diflubenzuron bolus treatment, was reduced 82.9–100% over a 21-wk period, but there was no reduction at 27 wk. Emergence of adult O. gazella and S. rubrus from brood balls made with dung from a steer treated with a diflubenzuron bolus was reduced for 7 wk after treatment. Dung from the methoprene-treated animal had no apparent effect on the reproduction of either dung beetle species. There was no apparent effect on P. flavolimbatus and P. longicornis when reared on dung from steers treated with either methoprene or diflubenzuron.
Four Critical Years: Effects of College on Beliefs, Attitudes, and Knowledge

(1979). Four Critical Years: Effects of College on Beliefs, Attitudes, and Knowledge. The Journal of Higher Education: Vol. 50, No. 3, pp. 353-356.
Service analytics for IT service management

Outsourcing enterprise IT service management is an increasingly challenging business. On one hand, service providers must deliver with respect to customer expectations of service quality and innovation. On the other hand, they must continuously seek competitive reductions in the costs of service delivery and management. These targets can be achieved with integration of innovative service management tools, automation, and advanced analytics. In this paper, we focus on service analytics, the subset of analytics problems and solutions concerning specific service delivery and management performance and cost optimization. The paper reviews various service analytics methods and technologies that have been developed and applied to enhance IT service management. We use our industrial experience to highlight the challenges faced in the development and adoption of service analytics, and we discuss open problems.
Abstract 1064: Sloan-Kettering Institute (Ski) protein plays distant roles in activation of Smad proteins in response to nodal and TGF-β in prostate cancer cells

Transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) acts as a tumor suppressor in the early stages of epithelial cancers by inhibiting proliferation and inducing apoptosis. However, in the later stages of the disease, TGF-β acts as a tumor promoter and is associated with aggressive forms of cancer due to its effects on angiogenesis, immune suppression, and metastasis. Previously, we have demonstrated that Nodal, another member of the TGF-β superfamily and its receptors are expressed in prostate cancer cell lines. Nodal and TGF-β exerted differential effects on prostate cancer cells; both inhibited proliferation in WPE, RWPE1, and DU145 cells while neither had effect on the proliferation of LNCaP and PC3 cells. On the other hand, Nodal and TGF-β induced migration in PC3 cells, but had no effect on cell migration in DU145 cells. Nodal primarily employs Smad2 for intracellular signaling while TGF-β is essential for both Smad2/3 phosphorylations. In the present study, we have determined the expression and role of Ski in Nodal and TGF-β signaling in prostate cancer cells. Ski is a co-repressor of the Smad-mediated TGF-β signaling. Ski was originally classified as an oncogene based on its ability to transform chicken and quail fibroblasts. RT-PCR analysis showed comparable mRNA levels of Ski in several established prostate cell lines; however, high levels of Ski protein were only detected in prostate cancer cell lines and Ski protein levels were very low or absent in normal cells. Ski protein levels were also high in prostate cancer tissue samples compared to normal prostate tissues. Treatment with Nodal and TGF-β had no effects on Ski mRNA levels; however, Nodal had no effect on Ski protein levels while TGF-β induced degradation of Ski protein levels mediated by the proteasome pathway. Reduced Ski levels correlated with increased basal and TGF-β-induced Smad2/3 phosphorylation. Knockdown of endogenous of Ski reduced proliferation in DU145 prostate cancer cells and enhanced migration of PC3 cells. We conclude that high level of Ski expression in prostate cancer cells may be responsible for repression of TGF-β and Smad2/3 signaling, but Ski protein levels do not influence Nodal effects. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2012 Mar 31-Apr 4; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 1064. doi:1538-7445.AM2012-1064
Tensor Network Theory of the Central Nervous System and Sensorimotor Modeling

Brain theory is quickly developing into a central focus among disciplines as varied as Neuroscience (Reichardt and Poggio 1981), Machine Intelligence and Robotics (Marr 1982, Palm 1982, Loeb 1983), Computer Science and Mathematics (Grimson 1981), Health Care and Rehabilitation (Mann 1981), and Philosophy and Humanities (Churchland 1985). The unifying power of brain theory, however, is not a recent discovery: the assumption that all brain functions can be more coherently represented once the functioning of the brain itself is basically understood, is as old as brain theory. The desire for a unified view goes back to Plato’s idea that the external world is reflected by forming a single image in the darkness of a cave.
Sequence-Modified Antibiotic Resistance Genes Provide Sustained Plasmid-Mediated Transgene Expression in Mammals

Conventional plasmid vectors are incapable of achieving sustained levels of transgene expression in vivo even in quiescent mammalian tissues because the transgene expression cassette is silenced. Transcriptional silencing results from the presence of the bacterial plasmid backbone or virtually any DNA sequence of >1 kb in length placed outside of the expression cassette. Here, we show that transcriptional silencing can be substantially forestalled by increasing the An/Tn sequence composition in the plasmid bacterial backbone. Increasing numbers of An/Tn sequences increased sustained transcription of both backbone sequences and adjacent expression cassettes. In order to recapitulate these expression profiles in compact and portable plasmid DNA backbones, we engineered the standard kanamycin or ampicillin antibiotic resistance genes, optimizing the number of An/Tn sequence without altering the encoded amino acids. The resulting vector backbones yield sustained transgene expression from mouse liver, providing generic DNA vectors capable of sustained transgene expression without additional genes or mammalian regulatory elements.
Metabolites, Metabolic Hormones and Hematological Profiles in Mountain Goats Before the Breeding Season and During the First Trimester of Pregnancy

Objectives were to evaluate the relationships among energy-related metabolites, hormones, and hematological variables in mountain goats (Oreamnos Americans) before the breeding season and during the 1st trimester of pregnancy. Does were from herds in the Palisades (PAL) and NE Yellowstone (NEY) areas. Samples were collected from July to Aug. (before breeding season) and mid-Jan. (1st trimester of pregnancy). Sera was assayed for insulin (I), thyroxine (T4), triiodothyronine (T3), b-OH-butyrate (bOHB), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), and total protein (TP). Concentrations of TP did not differ (P > 0.05) between pregnant (P) and non-breeding season (NB) does. bOHB, I, BUN, and T3 concentrations, and the T3:T4 ratios were greater (P < 0.05) in NB does than in P does. Whereas, T4 concentrations were greater (P < 0.05) in P does than in NB does. Obviously, NB does have a different profiles of metabolites, metabolic hormones and select hematological variables compared to P does. In conclusion, these differences may be related to P does utilizing and partitioning nutrients to support placental and fetal growth and development. These differences may also be related to the effect of season, since there were no non-pregnant does were sampled in Jan. Another factor that may be important for interpretation of these differences is location. All NB does were sampled in the PAL, while all P does were sampled in the NEY.
Interpretation of Field-Ion Microscope Images of Point and Line Defects

It has been recognized for some time now that field-ion microscopy offers a unique possibility for examining crystalline defects at the atomic level. To some degree this potential has been realized, but progress has been mixed to date.
Named Entity Recognition in the Medical Domain with Constrained CRF Models

This paper investigates how to improve performance on information extraction tasks by constraining and sequencing CRF-based approaches. We consider two different relation extraction tasks, both from the medical literature: dependence relations and probability statements. We explore whether adding constraints can lead to an improvement over standard CRF decoding. Results on our relation extraction tasks are promising, showing significant increases in performance from both (i) adding constraints to post-process the output of a baseline CRF, which captures “domain knowledge”, and (ii) further allowing flexibility in the application of those constraints by leveraging a binary classifier as a pre-processing step.
Metáforas visuais: significado, interpretação e cultura

This paper outlines an approach to meaning in visual imagery through metaphor, relying on the recent embodiment or neurological account of metaphor. It outlines this account of metaphor and discusses through the use of examples some of the ways in which metaphors work in visual images. It stresses the need for interpretation and the dependence of interpretation on cultural context.
CHAPTER 40 – Mammalian Toxicity of Microbial Pest Control Agents

Concern for the safety of agricultural workers and the public, as well as for the integrity of ecosystems, has fueled an interest in the use of microbes as pest control agents. This is evident from high increase in products listing microbial pest control agents (MPCAs) as active ingredients, thus greater human exposure to MPCAs under both occupational and nonoccupational scenarios is a reasonable expectation. This chapter reviews the current regulatory system in the United States for assessing the potential for toxicity, infectivity, and pathogenicity of Microbial Pest Control Agents (MPCAs) in humans. The requirements for toxicity testing of these agents in the United States under Subdivision M of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act are designed to provide a fast and efficacious means to identify problematic MPCAs, while moving the rest toward registration. The chapter presents toxicological overviews for several prominent or proposed MPCAs, including Bacillus thuringiensis, Bacillus cereus, Burkholderia Cepacia, Beauveria bassiana, Gliocladium virens, Lagenidium Giganteum, Baculoviruses, Rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) , and Metarhizium Anisopliae . These overviews are directed primarily at toxicity and pathogenicity issues arising from exposure to viable microbial organisms, though individual microbial toxins are considered in some cases.
Fabrication and characterization of reactive multilayer films and foils

Abstract: This chapter explores exothermic, self-propagating formation reactions within multilayer films and foils, and it describes how the average chemistries and microstructures of the materials impact their measured reaction heats, ignition thresholds and reaction velocities. The chapter also reviews recent attempts to identify the very rapid phase transformations that occur within the layered materials, as well as the unsteady propagation of reactions at slower velocities. Lastly, commercial applications are described.
The Five Platonic Solids

The regular polygons played the staring rolls in our study of symmetry among two-dimensional bounded objects. Though not as symmetric as a circle, they did pretty well considering they were built out of straight lines. Each corner looked the same as each other corner, and each edge looked the same as each other edge. The three-dimensional analog of a regular polygon is called a “regular polyhedron” or a “Platonic solid”:
Dielectric and Scaling Effects on Electromigration for Cu Interconnects

In summary, multi-link statistical test structures were used to study the dielectric and scaling effects on EM reliability for Cu interconnects. Experiments were performed on dual-damascene Cu interconnects integrated with oxide, CVD low-k, porous MSQ, and organic polymer ILD. The EM activation energy for Cu structures was found to be between 0.8 and 1.0 eV, indicating mass transport is dominated by diffusion at the Cu/SiNx cap-layer interface, independent of ILD. Compared with oxide, the decrease in lifetime and (jL)c observed for low-k structures can be attributed to less dielectric confinement in the low-k structures. An effective modulus B obtained by finite element analysis was used to account for the dielectric confinement effect on EM. The scaling effect was investigated using a statistical approach as a function of line width and barrier thickness for three line widths: 0.25, 0.175, and 0.125 µm corresponding to the 180-, 130-, and 90 nm nodes. Results revealed an intrinsic scaling effect based on the observed line width dependence of the strong-mode EM statistics, which is as expected. However, process-related issues were observed leading to decreasing early failure lifetime and reliability degradation for the 0.125-µm interconnects. The jLc product was found to decrease with decreasing barrier thickness and the trend can be attributed to a decreasing confinement effect, which was estimated using an effective elastic modulus.
Water, Wine and the Sacred, an Anthropological View of Substances Altered by Intentioned Awareness, Including Objective and Aesthetic Effects

This paper discusses the ancient anthropological linkage of water and wine with sacred rituals after these substances have been the focus of nonlocal perturbation. The paper reports the changes produced can be both physical, as well as a subjective aesthetic reaction arising when individuals have a sensorial interaction with such treated substances. In making this argument the paper presents and discusses research done by others, as well as the author including reporting the results of a 12 part series of experiments in which groups of seven people tasted wine from one 750 ml bottle that had been decanted into two identical 375 ml carafes. The histories of the carafes were the same except that one, before the tasting, had been the focus of intentioned awareness by meditators, while the other was a control. Twelve sessions were conducted, 11 resulted in a majority preferring the treated wine, and one resulted in a tie. Using an exact binomial test, the p -value is ( 0.5 ) 11 = 1 2048 = 0.00049 . Therefore, with 95% confidence we can say that the probability that a majority would prefer the treated wine is at least 0.76. The paper in its conclusion discusses the implications of the totality of this research.
CHAPTER 12 – Molecular Phylogeny of the Fundulidae (Teleostei, Cyprinodontiformes) Based on the Cytochrome b Gene

This chapter gives an overview of the major phylogenetic issues relevant to the Fundulidae family and presents molecular data that addresses some of these issues. It presents sequence data from all fundulid genera and one outgroup, Profundulus , and discusses the phylogenetic implications derived from these results. Fundulids have been the subject of several conflicting phylogenetic analyses making them a system of choice for molecular studies. Hypotheses based on morphology, behavior, and allozymic studies can be compared with molecular data, and the differences can be statistically tested. It further evaluates phylogenetic relationships and the results obtained from this evaluation address some important questions. The West Coast Fundulus species, previously assigned to the “other species” group, seems to form a monophyletic sister clade to all other fundulids. For both species the branch length is less than the average branch length of other taxa making this possibility unlikely. If West Coast Fundulus is a sister clade to all other Fundulidae, as data suggest, some taxonomic revisions concerning these two species may have to be considered.
On John Portman's Atria: Two Exercises in Hotel Composition

Two formal exercises in hotel composition are presented. In both, the hospitality work of the architect John Portman is the focus. His language of hollow forms is addressed following his unique claim on the organizing principles found in his 1964 house, Entelechy I. The first exercise outlines a generative specification for his atrium hotel language in a parametric shape grammar informed by the logic of the house that generates an atrium hotel prototype. The second exercise speculates with a sketch on how transformation grammars can yield various configurations to explore Portman’s atrium hotel language for a series of initial shapes.
How Many there Are Isn’t

A world where there exists exactly n concrete things is a count-determinate world. The orthodox assumption is that count-determinacy is necessary; if to be is to be the value of a variable and the domain of quantification is enumerable, count-determinacy follows (Schaffer 2009, Van Inwagen 2002, 2009). Against this I argue how many there are can be indeterminate; count-indeterminacy, I argue, is metaphysically possible and likely actual- even assuming existence is determinate. Notably, the argument includes rebuttals of Evans’ reductio against indeterminate identity and the Lewis/Sider ‘argument from vagueness’. Count-indeterminacy should therefore be recognized as another basic form of genuine metaphysical indeterminacy, in addition to types recently defend by Barnes (2013, 2014), Williams (2008), and Wilson (2013, 2016).
Environmental drivers of paralytic shellfish toxin producing Alexandrium catenella blooms in a fjord system of northern Southeast Alaska.

Abstract Paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) is a persistent problem that threatens human health and the availability of shellfish resources in Alaska. Regular outbreaks of marine dinoflagellates in the genus Alexandrium produce paralytic shellfish toxins (PSTs) that make shellfish consumption unsafe, and impose economic hardships on Alaska’s shellfish industry. Phytoplankton and environmental monitoring spanning 2008–2016, and a pilot benthic cyst survey in 2016, were focused in the Juneau region of Southeast Alaska to investigate Alexandrium catenella distributions and conditions favorable to bloom development. Overwintering Alexandrium cysts were found in near-shore sediments throughout the study region. Alexandrium catenella cells were present in the water column across a range of sea surface temperatures (7–15 °C) and surface salinities (S = 4–30); however, an optimal temperature/salinity window (10–13 °C, 18–23) supported highest cell concentrations. Measurable levels of PSTs were associated with lower concentrations (100 cells L−1) of A. catenella, indicating high cell densities may not be required for shellfish toxicity to occur. Several interacting local factors were identified to support A. catenella blooms: 1) sea surface temperatures ≥7 °C; 2) increasing air temperature; 3) low to moderate freshwater discharge; and 4) several consecutive days of dry and calm weather. In combination, these bloom favorable conditions coincide with toxic bloom events during May and June in northern Southeast Alaska. These findings highlight how integrated environmental and phytoplankton monitoring can be used to enhance early warning capacity of toxic bloom events, providing more informed guidance to shellfish harvesters and resource managers in Alaska.
The K-completion of E6

We compute the 2-primary V 1 -periodic homotopy groups of the K-completion of the exceptional Lie group E 6 . This is done by computing the Bendersky-Thompson spectral sequence of E 6 . We conjecture that the natural map from E 6 to its K-completion induces an isomorphism in V 1 -periodic homotopy, and discuss issues related to this conjecture.
Why Internet Companies Can't Stop Awful Content

This essay considers the widely held perception that the Internet is filled with awful content. That perception often overlooks (1) the pervasiveness of awful content offline, and (2) why content moderation efforts to control awful content will never be satisfactory. As a result, regulatory efforts to eliminate awful content online are doomed. In contrast, the existing immunity provided by 47 USC 230 has the surprising potential to lower the amount of awful content online below the offline content baselines.
Corrections to “Inertial Sensor-Based Centripetal Acceleration as a Correlate for Lateral Margin of Stability During Walking and Turning”

In [1] , the centripetal accelerations, ac, in Figures 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 are presented in units of g , not m/s2 (1 g = 9.80665 m/s2).
The Pain of Invisibility: A Perspective on the Treatment of Pediatric Chronic Pain:

Although chronic pain can be debilitating and severely impacting, it can also be an affliction many take on privately. For many chronic pain patients and their families, the toll of symptom invisibility is often a prominent concern. The article expounds upon the theme of "symptom invisibility" and the need for and practice of developing a validating provider-family relationship in the treatment of children and adolescents with chronic pain. Suggestions for therapeutic pathways to building adaptive validation are provided.
Risk of Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis in Stage 4 and 5 Chronic Kidney Disease Following Group II Gadolinium-based Contrast Agent Administration: Subanalysis by Chronic Kidney Disease Stage.

The risk of nephrogenic systemic fibrosis in patients with stage 4 or 5 chronic kidney disease (CKD) who receive a group II gadolinium-based contrast agent is very low, including in patients with e...
Dilution of Labour Laws: Hidden Exploitation of Migrant Labourers Before Lockdown, Increase after Lockdown

Migrant workers are beneficial and important factors for the economy where as their life is full of scarce, vulnerable and exploitation. In Globalization, profit motive capitalism emerged through which overuse of resources and worker exploitation occurs. For maintaining dignity and reducing the exploitation over labours government intervention took place by introducing labour laws. But due to the upcoming scenario Covid-19 pandemic affects the economy. Production becomes stagnant. So to maintain the pace of the economy the government has removed various labour laws which may affect the life of migrant labourers. Definitely it has seen the economy is somehow dependent on labourers. But now the economy is going to be stable at the cost of migrant workers. This study is an attempt to analyse the extent of labour laws followed in the grassroot level before lockdown and in which way it has increased after lockdown and unlock condition.
Can some microbes promote host stress and benefit evolutionarily from this strategy

Microbes can influence host physiology and behavior in many ways. Here we review evidence suggesting that some microbes can contribute to host stress (and other microbes can contribute to increased resilience to stress). We explain how certain microbes, which we call "stress microbes," can potentially benefit evolutionarily from inducing stress in a host, gaining access to host resources that can help fuel rapid microbial replication by increasing glucose levels in the blood, increasing intestinal permeability, and suppressing the immune system. Other microbes, which we term "resilience microbes," can potentially benefit from making hosts more resilient to stress. We hypothesize that "stress microbes" use a fast life history strategy involving greater host exploitation while "resilience microbes" use a slow life history strategy characterized by more aligned evolutionary interests with the host. In this paper, we review the evidence that microbes affect host stress and explain the evolutionary pressures that could lead microbes to manipulate host stress, discuss the physiological mechanisms that are known to be involved in both stress and microbial activity, and provide some testable predictions that follow from this hypothesis.
Towards a Circular Economy Calculator for Measuring the “Circularity” of Companies

Abstract Circular Economy (CE) aims to solve resource, waste, and emission challenges confronting society by creating a production-to-consumption total supply chain that is restorative, regenerative, and environmentally benign. A method for evaluating and comparing the “circularity” of different companies or scenarios is vital for effective decision making. A variety of metrics has been developed for measuring different aspects of CE. Despite the availability of metrics, CE has only been measured at the national/regional or product level with the main focus on material flows, while no metric is currently applicable at the company or product supply chain level. This work aims to address this research gap and provide i) a set of indicators and metrics with sector-specific dimensions, ii) a quantitative CE metric, iii) media for data visualization and analysis of CE indicators, and iv) an analytical tool to assess the multi-scale, multi-faceted and interconnected CE supply chains. Companies are able to track their transition towards CE, conduct temporal analysis, and compare their performance against their peers. The applicability and the capabilities of the developed CE methodology is demonstrated through a case study, where the Overall “Circularity” Index and the corresponding “Circularity” sub-indices of an industrial gas company are calculated over a period of 5 years.
Viscoadaptation Controls Diffusion and Reaction Rates in Response to Heat and Energy Availability

Cells must precisely orchestrate thousands of reactions in both time and space. Yet reaction kinetics are highly dependent on uncontrollable environmental conditions such as temperature and energy availability. Here, we uncover a mechanism by which budding yeast counteract these environmental fluctuations by modulating viscosity to control the rate of cellular processes. This “viscoadaptation” is achieved via two carbohydrates, trehalose and glycogen, whose regulated production varies the viscosity of the intracellular environment, slowing the motion of individual proteins while maintaining their solubility. Viscoadaptation functions as both an acute stress response and a homeostatic mechanism, allowing cells growing from 22℃ to 40℃ to maintain constant rates of intracellular diffusion and diffusion-controlled chemical reactions. Multiple conditions that lower ATP trigger viscoadaptation, linking energy availability to reaction rate control. Viscoadaptation reveals viscosity to be a tunable property by which cells regulate diffusion-controlled processes dynamically in response to a changing environment.
Prospects for Rapid Identification of Spiroplasmas in Plants and Animals

Mycoplasmas are cell wall-less prokaryotic organisms. Placed in the class Mollicutes (soft skinned), mycoplasmas represent a diverse collection of microbes (Tully and Razin, 1977). These organisms are unique in that they each are surrounded solely by a single biological membrane. A complete taxonomie scheme exists for mycoplasmas (Ghosh and Raychaudhuri, 1972). The plant pathogenic mycoplasmas primarily belong to the taxonomic family, Spiroplasmataceae (commonly called spiroplasmas) (Maramorosch, 1980). Members of the family Mycoplasmataceae are generally known for being etiologic agents of animal disease (e.g. Mycoplasma pneumoniae causes primary atypical pneumonia in man). Members of the family Acholeplasmataceae are generally considered saprophyted (e.g. Acholeplasma laidlawii). However, as shall be noted later, all 3 taxonomic families may have members capable of causing plant disease.
Writing and Reading Binary Files

This chapter covers the basics of writing and reading binary files. Binary input and output has the advantage of speed and simplicity. It has the disadvantage of obscurity and limited portability. The files are obscure because a binary file tells nothing about its contents, and a text editor generally cannot help. Binary files have limited portability because different computer systems use different binary representations for integers or floating-point numbers. One common problem is that different computers store the bits within each byte in different orders. Interactive Data Language (IDL) has keywords to swap “endian-ness,” but any scientific programmer who has worked with binary data files can describe the hassle issues in trying to read a binary file from another system. There are several alternatives for writing and reading binary files that avoid many of these problems. Nowadays people very rarely write a plain binary file. However, it is useful to know the method for reading and writing binary files.
Modeling requirements for transmission lines in multi-gigabit systems

As computer clock speeds continue to increase at a rate dictated by Moore's Law, the system buses must also scale in proportion to the processor speed. As data rates approach 8 to 10 Gb/s, the traditional methods used to model transmission lines start to break down and become inadequate for the proper prediction of signal integrity. Specifically, the approximations made in traditional transmission line models, while perfectly adequate for slower speeds, violate conservation of energy principles and produce non-causal waveforms in the time domain responses. This work is discuss the problems associated with accurately predicting transient responses at multi-gigabit data rates and provide a simple and practical solution that accurately predicts transient responses for multi-gigabit channel design.
Intuitionistic rough sets for database applications

We introduce the intuitionistic rough set and intuitionistic rough relational and object oriented database models. The intuitionistic rough set database models draw benefits from both the rough set and intuitionistic techniques, providing greater management of uncertainty for databases applications in a less than certain world. We provide the foundation for the integration of intuitionistic rough sets into modeling of uncertainty in databases. This builds upon some of our previous research [2,3] with integrating fuzzy and rough set techniques for uncertainty management in databases.