cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A Methodology for Estimating the Cost of Educating Military Physicians at the Uniformed Services University

Introduction The Department of Defense (DoD) operates a large, multi-channeled physician accession pipeline to maintain a professional workforce of over 10,000 active duty physicians. The Uniformed Services University (USU) operates the nation's only federal medical school providing trained doctors to the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Public Health Service. Although the school serves an essential purpose, policymakers question the cost of operating the University's medical school. One challenge is to develop reproducible and transparent costing methods that can be used to evaluate the University's value and efficiency. Methods This work proposes a replicable methodology for estimating the cost per student-year at USU. Using detailed data from USU encompassing facility use, budgeting and expenditures, and faculty and student rosters, we break out and attribute costs to the University's component schools. Using faculty and staff time-use surveys, we further break out education-related personnel costs from other University activities such as research and service. We can then calculate the School of Medicine's annual cost to educate a uniformed physician. Results In Fiscal Year 2017, it cost the DoD approximately $253,000 per year (more than $1 million dollars total over a 4-year curriculum) to directly educate a physician though the USU School of Medicine. Data from the following Fiscal Year show that education costs grew a modest 2.1% per student-year. Conclusions This work provides a foundational framework and approach to estimate the costs of accessioning a physician at USU. This methodology can be replicated for subsequent value analyses of physician accession and retention as budgetary pressures change to match the DoD operating environment. Uniformed Services University's costs should be periodically reassessed against those of alternative accession sources.
Personality Types in Learning Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Systems

This research explores the influence of personality types on ERP system learning performance in a university setting. Four personality types (labeled Type 1 to 4) were identified using cluster anal...
A phantom study comparing radial trajectories for accelerated cardiac 4D flow MRI against a particle imaging velocimetry reference

Purpose Radial sampling is one method to accelerate 4D flow MRI acquisition, making feasible dual-velocity encoding (Venc) assessment of slow flow in the left ventricle (LV). Here, two radial trajectories are compared in vitro for this application: 3D radial (phase-contrast vastly undersampled isotropic projection, PC-VIPR) versus stack of stars (phase-contrast stack of stars, PC-SOS), with benchtop particle imaging velocimetry (PIV) serving as a reference standard. Methods The study contained three steps: (1) Construction of an MRI- and PIV-compatible LV model from a healthy adult's CT images. (2) In vitro PIV using a pulsatile flow pump. (3) In vitro dual-Venc 4D flow MRI using PC-VIPR and PC-SOS (two repeat experiments). Each MR image set was retrospectively undersampled to five effective scan durations and compared with the PIV reference. The root-mean-square velocity vector difference (RMSE) between MRI and PIV images was compared, along with kinetic energy (KE) and wall shear stress (WSS). Results RMSE increased as scan time decreased for both MR acquisitions. RMSE was 3% lower in PC-SOS images than PC-VIPR images in 30-min scans (3.8 vs. 3.9 cm/s) but 98% higher in 2.5-min scans (9.5 vs. 4.8 cm/s). PIV intrasession repeatability showed a RMSE of 4.4 cm/s, reflecting beat-to-beat flow variation, while MRI had intersession RMSEs of 3.8/3.5 cm/s for VIPR/SOS, respectively. Speed, KE, and WSS were overestimated voxel-wise in 30-min MRI scans relative to PIV by 0.4/0.3 cm/s, 0.2/0.1 μJ/mL, and 36/43 mPa, respectively, for VIPR/SOS. Conclusions PIV is feasible for application-specific 4D flow MRI protocol optimization. PC-VIPR is better-suited to dual-Venc LV imaging with short scan times.
Experimental tests of functional molecular regeneration via a standard framework for coordinating synthetic cell building

Abstract The construction of synthetic cells from lifeless ensembles of molecules is expected to require integration of hundreds of genetically-encoded functions whose collective capacities enable self-reproduction in simple environments. To date the regenerative capacities of various life-essential functions tend to be evaluated on an ad hoc basis, with only a handful of functions tested at once and only successful results typically reported. Here, we develop a framework for systematically evaluating the capacity of a system to remake itself. Using the cell-free Protein synthesis Using Recombinant Elements (PURE) as a model system we apply our framework to evaluate the capacity of PURE, whose composition is completely known, to remake 36 life-essential functions. We find that only 23 of the components can be well tested and that only 19 of the 23 can be remade by the system itself; translation release factors remade by PURE are not fully functional. From both a qualitative and quantitative perspective PURE alone cannot remake PURE. We represent our findings via a standard visual form we call the Pureiodic Table that serves as a tool for tracking which life-essential functions can work together in remaking one another and what functions remain to be remade. We curate and represent all available data to create an expanded Pureiodic Table in support of collective coordination among ongoing but independent synthetic cell building efforts. The history of science and technology teaches us that how we organize ourselves will impact how we organize our cells, and vice versa.
Clinical characteristics and long-term outcomes of catheter ablation in young adults with atrial fibrillation.

We aim to describe the long-term safety and efficacy of catheter ablation (CA) in young patients ( 30 years, mean age: 58±10 years). From January 2000 to January 2019, a 1st CA (radiofrequency energy n=72, cryoballoon n=10), was performed in 82 patients (mean age 26±4 years, paroxysmal n=61, persistent n=14, longstanding persistent n=7), among 6336 consecutive patients with AF. During a follow-up of 5±5 years, 56% and 30% of the patients with paroxysmal and non-paroxysmal AF were arrhythmia free without antiarrhythmic drug (AAD) therapy after a single CA (P=0.02). After 1.5±0.8 CA procedures, 76% and 75% of the patients with paroxysmal AF and non-paroxysmal AF were arrhythmia free without AADs (P=0.54). Compared to a propensity-matched group of older patients, young patients were as likely to remain in sinus rhythm after CA (P=0.47), however after fewer repeat CAs (1.5±0.8 vs 1.9±0.9, P<0.009). There were no long-term adverse outcomes associated with CA. CA is a safe and effective treatment of AF in young patients with comparable outcomes to the older patients, however after fewer procedures.
Case 11-2021: A 39-Year-Old Woman with Fever, Flank Pain, and Inguinal Lymphadenopathy

A Woman with Fever, Flank Pain, and Inguinal Lymphadenopathy A 39-year-old woman presented with tender inguinal lymphadenopathy, flank pain, and abdominal pain associated with fever, night sweats, ...
Electrospun polyimide fiber membranes for separation of oil-in-water emulsions

Abstract The separation of emulsified oils from water represents a significant challenge for water reclamation and clean-up, because such droplets remain suspended for long periods of time. Membrane technology offers a solution to such separations, but its major drawback is the requirement for frequent cleaning to remove foulants, which reduces membrane lifetime and incurs additional economic and environmental costs. To address this shortcoming, we examine the separation performance of fibrous membranes of P84 polyimide, a copolymer known for its thermal stability and chemical resistance, fabricated by electrospinning technology. The P84 membranes were challenged by surfactant-stabilized emulsions of dodecane or motor oil in a constant pressure dead-end configuration. The P84 membranes exhibited moderate oil rejections between 85 and 90%, while subsequent foulant removal by heat treatment restored permeate fluxes to essentially 100% of their original values. A comparison of P84 membranes to other common membrane polymers with respect to robustness against fouling shows that the P84 membranes have some advantages, which we attribute to the oleophobic nature of the P84 membrane, as well as the ease of membrane regeneration. These results indicate that the electrospun P84 membrane is a promising candidate for microfiltration of water contaminated by emulsified oil.
A Single-Phase GaN Totem-Pole PFC with Active Power Decoupling

In this paper, a single-phase Power Factor Correction (PFC) approach employing a GaN Totem-Pole topology with an H-Bridge Active Power Decoupling (APD) stage is discussed. With the addition of APD stage coupled with closed loop control the DC-Link capacitor size is shown to decrease. The proposed topology is composed of three GaN high switching frequency legs (100 kHz) and one low (line) frequency leg (60 Hz). The H-Bridge APD circuit consists of two of the high switching frequency legs (100 kHz) with four GaN FETs, a decoupling capacitor and an inductor. Simulations and experimental results show the effectiveness of the proposed approach.
Educational debt and the gender gap: Understanding factors influencing orthodontists’ career decisions

Introduction Orthodontic residents face challenges unparalleled to their predecessors, including competitive marketplaces, rising debt burdens, and changing demographics that have contributed to the shift in initial career choice from owner to employee. We aim to understand factors important to orthodontists at different career stages and the impact on job satisfaction through a sequential mixed methodology study. Methods Semistructured interviews were conducted with 25 orthodontic residents and practitioners. A survey was developed from qualitative findings that explored career decision-making of orthodontic residents and practicing orthodontists, with descriptive and bivariate statistical analyses (n = 343 orthodontists and 185 residents). Results Graduating orthodontic residents are choosing employment over ownership as their initial job, prioritizing high income to offset the educational debt. The majority of residents report thinking about their debt very often to all of the time and find it very to extremely stressful. Current residents have long-term goals of ownership, whereas practicing doctors of both genders became owners at equal frequencies. However, on average, women earn $119,000 less per year and report being the primary family caretaker more often than men. Conclusions Excellent patient care, work-life balance, and sufficient income are the most important drivers for career choices and job satisfaction for orthodontists of all ages. Despite debt, most residents and working orthodontists report a high level of job satisfaction and would recommend the field of orthodontics to others.
The Beacon Collaborative: A Journey to Excellence.

TOPIC The development of the Critical Care Beacon Collaborative to achieve meaningful recognition. CLINICAL RELEVANCE Recognizing nurses for contributions to their work environment and care delivery is important for their professional and personal fulfillment, job satisfaction, and retention; such recognition can occur at the individual, unit, or organizational level. The American Nurses Credentialing Center's Magnet Recognition Program acknowledges nursing excellence at the organizational level. It would, however, be difficult for an organization to achieve Magnet designation without nursing excellence at the unit level. To recognize excellence at the unit level, the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses developed the Beacon Award in 2003. OBJECTIVE To describe one academic medical center's journey toward winning Beacon Awards across 8 units within the adult critical care service. CONTENT COVERED The Critical Care Beacon Collaborative resulted in a Beacon Award for each unit and important staff outcomes. This article describes the organization, the process before the Critical Care Beacon Collaborative convened and the desired state, and the methods used to achieve our goal. It also discusses unit- and service-level stakeholder involvement. The successes, lessons learned, sustainability, and growth of the Critical Care Beacon Collaborative are shared to assist readers who aspire to pursue a Beacon Award.
Single molecule Förster resonance energy transfer studies of the effect of EndoS deglycosylation on the structure of IgG

The bacterial enzyme EndoS specifically cleaves glycans bound to immunoglobulin G (IgG) molecules. Because this deglycosylation procedure leads to a diminished immune response, this enzyme has potential applications as a therapeutic for autoimmune disorders. Although the diminished immune response is attributed to a structural change in the Fc region of IgG antibodies, the specific nature of this structural change is not known due to the variety of results obtained by different experimental approaches. In order to better understand how EndoS deglycosylation impacts the structure of the Fc region of IgG antibodies, we have conducted single molecule Forster resonance energy transfer (FRET) studies of dye-labeled, freely diffusing antibodies. A comparison of the FRET efficiency histograms obtained for glycosylated and EndoS deglycosylated antibodies indicates that the Fc region can take on a wider variety of structures upon deglycosylation. This is demonstrated by the presence of additional peaks in the FRET efficiency histogram for the deglycosylated case.
A Review of “Caring for Those in Crisis: Facing Ethical Dilemmas With Patients and Families”: Kenneth P. Mottram. (Grand Rapids, MI: Brazos Press 2007). 160 pp. Paperback, $17.99, ISBN 978-1-5874-3191-3

As an experienced chaplain working in clinical settings, Kenneth Mottram writes to both ordained and lay Christian ministers to help them better comprehend the nature of ethnical dilemmas that ofte...
Dynamic Scheduling via Polymatroid Optimization

Dynamic scheduling of multi-class jobs in queueing systems has wide ranging applications, but in general is a very difficult control problem. Here we focus on a class of systems for which conservation laws hold. Consequently, the performance space becomes a polymatroid - a polytope witha matroid-like structure, withall the vertices corresponding to the performance under priority rules, and all the vertices are easily identified. This structure translates the optimal control problem to an optimization problem, which, under a linear objective, becomes a special linear program; and the optimal schedule is a priority rule. In a more general setting, conservation laws extend to so-called generalized conservation laws, under which the performance space becomes more involved; however, the basic structure that ensures the optimality of priority rules remains intact. This tutorial provides an overview to the subject, focusing on the main ideas, basic mathematical facts, and computational implications.
Cheating at mental poker

We review the “mental poker” scheme described by Shamir, Rivest and Adleman [SRA]. We present two possible means of cheating, depending on careless implementation of the SRA scheme. One will work if the prime p is such that p-1 has a small prime divisor. In the other scheme, the names of the cards “TWO OF CLUBS” have been extended by random-looking bits. chosen by the cheater.
Inequity in the Performance Evaluation Process: How You Rate Me Affects How I Rate You

The current study examined issues of leniency in the ratings provided by students for their instructors. Based on equity theory from the psychological literature, we proposed that individuals would consider the evaluations that they expect to receive in concurrent classes when evaluating the effectiveness of a given instructor. Our results suggest that individuals may form a mental comparison between how they expect to be graded in a given class with how they have been rated or expect to be rated in other classes. This comparison then leaves the individual either satisfied or dissatisfied, thus influencing the ratings that they provide for their superiors. Limitations of the current results are discussed, and recommendations for future research are advanced.
Mutational and biophysical studies suggest RC3/neurogranin regulates calmodulin availability.

Abstract RC3/neurogranin is a forebrain-enriched, postnatal-onset, thyroid hormone-dependent, protein kinase C substrate of dendritic spines that interacts with calmodulin. These characteristics suggest a prominent role within the Ca(2+)-mediated second messenger cascades associated with neonatal synaptogenesis and adult neural plasticity. To understand the molecular interactions between RC3 and calmodulin, we characterized recombinant RC3 and four sequence variants: Ser-36-->Ala, Ser-36-->Asp, Ser-36-->Lys, and Phe-37-->Trp. Interactions between CaM and variant Phe-37-->Trp can be monitored by fluorescence spectroscopy, allowing us to determine, by competitive assays, the relative affinities of the wild-type and variant proteins for calmodulin. The effects of salt and Ca2+ on the rank order of these affinities permit partial dissection of hydrophobic, ionic, and structural components of the RC3-CaM interaction and suggest that it is bimodal. We demonstrate that RC3 binds preferentially to CaM when Ca2+ is absent and that the addition of a negative charge to residue 36 is sufficient to disrupt all detectable RC3-CaM interactions. We propose a model wherein a Ca(2+)-"sensitive," bimodal interaction between RC3 and CaM regulates the transduction of postsynaptic Ca2+ fluxes into physiological responses through the modulation of Ca2+/CaM availability.
Revisiting Science in Culture: Science as Story Telling and Story Revising.

Both science itself, and the human culture of which it is a part, would benefit from a story of science that encourages wider engagement with and participation in the processes of scientific exploration. Such a story, based on a close analysis of scientific method, is presented here. It is the story of science as story telling and story revising. The story of science as story suggests that science can and should serve three distinctive functions for humanity: providing stories that may increase (but never guarantee) human well-being, serving as a supportive nexus for human exploration and story telling in general, and exemplifying a commitment to skepticism and a resulting open-ended and continuing exploration of what might yet be. Some practical considerations that would further the development and acceptance of such a story of science as a widely shared nexus of human activity are described.
How Bacteria Respire Minerals

Some bacteria respire minerals; that is, they harvest energy from minerals through using them as electron acceptors. Many details of this respiration process have remained obscure. In her Perspective, Newman highlights the study by Lower et al., who have used a customized atomic force microscope to observe bacteria during mineral respiration.
Transient thermal entrance heat transfer in laminar pipe flows with step change in pumping pressure

Analysis is made for the transient heat transfer phenomena in the thermal entrance region of laminar pipe flows. The transient results from both the change in flow field, a step change in pressure gradient from zero to a fixed value, and the change in thermal field, a step change in the inlet temperature. An exponential scheme has been employed to solve the energy equation with the presence of axial heat conduction in the fluid. In order to demonstrate the results more clearly, a modified Nusselt number is introduced. The unsteady axial variations of conventional Nusselt number, modified Nusselt number, bulk fluid temperature and pipe wall temperature are presented for water and air over a wide range of outside heat transfer coefficients. It is observed that the outside heat transfer coefficient has a significant influences on the transient heat transfer processes. The results can be comprehensively interpreted by the interactions among the axial convection, axial diffusion, and radial diffusion.
Performance-Based Usability Testing: Metrics That Have the Greatest Impact for Improving a System's Usability

Usability testing methods and results have evolved over the last 35 years. With new advancements being introduced every year, it is important to understand the present state of the field and opportunities for further improvement. This paper will detail the research-based methods and metrics which are being used to ensure that usability recommendations are data-driven and performance-based. By focusing on the types of usability metrics being captured during usability tests, we will attempt to illustrate how usability researchers can quantifiably measure the performance of a system, use these measurements to make meaningful changes, and subsequently illustrate the improvements in user effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction.
Xavier de Souza Briggs, Susan J. Popkin and Jon Goering 2010: Moving to Opportunity: The Story of an American Experiment to Fight Ghetto Poverty. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press. Jim Silver 2011: Good Places to Live: Poverty and Public Housing in Canada. Winnipeg: Fernwood Publishing.

The article reviews the books "Moving to Opportunity: The Story of an American Experiment to Fight Ghetto Poverty," by Xavier de Souza Briggs, Susan J. Popkin, and Jon Goering, and "Good Places to Live: Poverty and Public Housing in Canada," by Jim Silver.
Software orchestration of instruction level parallelism on tiled processor architectures

Projection from silicon technology is that while transistor budget will continue to blossom according to Moore's law, latency from global wires will severely limit the ability to scale centralized structures at high frequencies. A tiled processor architecture (TPA) eliminates long wires from its design by distributing its resources over a pipelined interconnect. By exposing the spatial distribution of these resources to the compiler, a TPA allows the compiler to optimize for locality, thus minimizing the distance that data needs to travel to reach the consuming computation. This thesis examines the compiler problem of exploiting instruction level parallelism (ILP) on a TPA. It describes Rawcc, an ILP compiler for Raw, a fully distributed TPA. The thesis examines the implication of the resource distribution on the exploitation of ILP for each of the following resources: instructions, registers, control, data memory, and wires. It designs novel solutions for each one, and it describes the solutions within the integrated framework of a working compiler. Performance is evaluated on a cycle-accurate Raw simulator as well as on a 16-tile Raw chip. Results show that Rawcc can attain modest speedups for fine-grained applications, as well speedups that scale up to 64 tiles for applications with such parallelism. (Copies available exclusively from MIT Libraries, Rm. 14-0551, Cambridge, MA 02139-4307. Ph. 617-253-5668; Fax 617-253-1690.)
Minimally invasive surgery for esophageal cancer

Background: Esophageal cancer is among the most deadly cancers worldwide, and esophagectomy remains the standard of care in trying to cure this. Efforts to decrease the incidence of complications in esophagectomy without compromising the efficacy of the procedure have stimulated interest in minimally invasive esophagectomy (MIE), and a wide variety of MIE techniques have been refined by surgeons at specialized centers worldwide. Data sources: Systematic PubMed searches identified articles related to MIE technique, complications, and outcomes. Conclusions: Several techniques have been developed for MIE, none of which has been deemed superior, but as a whole, they represent a safe alternative to open surgery. Available results from case series and comparative studies suggest trends towards improved short-term outcomes with equivalent efficacy but without definitive advantages.
Subject Speech Rates as a Function of Interviewer Behaviour

Distinctions have been made between two speech rate measures. Previously these measures have been studied only in naturalistic settings. Also, methodological problems in prior studies generated que...
Mounting Evidence for Vitamin D as an Environmental Factor Affecting Autoimmune Disease Prevalence

Low vitamin D status has been implicated in the etiology of autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus, and inflammatory bowel disease. The optimal level of vitamin D intake required to support optimal immune function is not known but is likely to be at least that required for healthy bones. Experimentally, vitamin D deficiency results in the increased incidence of autoimmune disease. Mechanistically, the data point to a role for vitamin D in the development of self-tolerance. The vitamin D hormone (1,25-dihydroxy vitamin D(3)) regulates T helper cell (Th1) and dendritic cell function while inducing regulatory T-cell function. The net result is a decrease in the Th1-driven autoimmune response and decreased severity of symptoms. This review discusses the accumulating evidence pointing to a link between vitamin D and autoimmunity. Increased vitamin D intakes might decrease the incidence and severity of autoimmune diseases and the rate of bone fracture.
Uniquely localized intra-molecular amino acid concentrations at the glycolytic enzyme catalytic/active centers of Archaea, Bacteria and Eukaryota are associated with their proposed temporal appearances on earth.

The distributions of amino acids at most-conserved sites nearest catalytic/active centers (C/AC) in 4,645 sequences of ten enzymes of the glycolytic Embden-Meyerhof-Parnas pathway in Archaea, Bacteria and Eukaryota are similar to the proposed temporal order of their appearance on Earth. Glycine, isoleucine, leucine, valine, glutamic acid and possibly lysine often described as prebiotic, i.e., existing or occurring before the emergence of life, were localized in positional and conservational defined aggregations in all enzymes of all Domains. The distributions of all 20 biologic amino acids in most-conserved sites nearest their C/ACs were quite different either from distributions in sites less-conserved and further from their C/ACs or from all amino acids regardless of their position or conservation. The major concentrations of glycine, e.g., perhaps the earliest prebiotic amino acid, occupies ≈ 16 % of all the most-conserved sites within a volume of ≈ 7-8 A radius from their C/ACs and decreases linearly towards the molecule's peripheries. Spatially localized major concentrations of isoleucine, leucine and valine are in the mid-conserved and mid-distant sites from their C/ACs in protein interiors. Lysine and glutamic acid comprise ≈ 25-30 % of all amino acids within an irregular volume bounded by ≈ 24-28 A radii from their C/ACs at the most-distant least-conserved sites. The unreported characteristics of these amino acids: their spatially and conservationally identified concentrations in Archaea, Bacteria and Eukaryota, suggest some common structural organization of glycolytic enzymes that may be relevant to their evolution and that of other proteins. We discuss our data in relation to enzyme evolution, their reported prebiotic putative temporal appearances on Earth, abundances, biological "cost", neighbor-sequence preferences or "ordering" and some thermodynamic parameters.
Reactivity of (3-chloro-2-methylenecycloalkyl)palladium chloride dimers: pd-allyl cleavage, synthesis of (±)-13-methyltridecanolide.

Abstract The reactions of the title compounds under cleavage conditions affords the corresponding cycloalkenes as the major product. This methodology was used in the synthesis of 13-methyltridecanolide from cyclododecene.
A kinetic treatment of glass formation V: Surface and bulk heterogeneous nucleation

Abstract An analytical method is described for calculating the detailed distribution of crystallite sizes in a supercooled liquid, and the changes in this distribution as a function of temperature (time) while the liquid is cooled from above the melting point. This method, termed the analysis of crystallization statistics, is applied to the calculation of continuous cooling curves for anorthite and o -terphenyl as representative of inorganic and organic systems. In addition to homogeneous nucleation, bulk as well as surface heterogeneous nucleation are considered. The effects of distributions of heterogeneities with contact angles between 40 and 100° as well as overall concentrations of heterogeneities between 10 3 and 10 9 cm −3 are considered. Heterogeneities with contact angles higher than about 100° are shown not to have an effect on the critical cooling rate for typical concentrations of heterogeneities. For liquids containing distributions of heterogeneities, the nucleation behavior is dominated by small concentrations of heterogeneities having small contact angles. Theoretical log ( I v η ) versus ( T r 3 ΔT r 2 ) −1 curves have been constructed for homogeneous nucleation + heterogeneous nucleation with a single type of heterogeneity and for homogeneous nucleation + heterogeneous nucleation with the heterogeneities distributed with regard to contact angle. In the former case, the curve is composed of two linear portions; and in the latter case, the curve shows pronounced curvature. The curvature reflects a continous change in the frequency of heterogeneous nucleation. Surface heterogeneous nucleation was assumed to originate at discrete surface heterogeneities and was shown to give rise to continuous cooling curves similar to those calculated for bulk heterogeneous nucleation.
Structural analysis of kinetic folding intermediates for a TIM barrel protein, indole-3-glycerol phosphate synthase, by hydrogen exchange mass spectrometry and Gō-model simulation

Abstract The structures of partially folded states appearing during the folding of a (βα)8 TIM barrel protein, the indole-3-glycerol phosphate synthase from Sulfolobus solfataricus (sIGPS), was assessed by hydrogen exchange mass spectrometry (HX-MS) and Gō model simulations. HX-MS analysis of the peptic peptides derived from the pulse-labeled product of the sub-millisecond folding reaction from the urea-denatured state revealed strong protection in the (βα)4 region, modest protection in the neighboring (βα)1–3 and (βα)5β6 segments and no significant protection in the remaining N and C-terminal segments. These results demonstrate that this species is not a collapsed form of the unfolded state under native-favoring conditions nor is it the native state formed via fast-track folding. However, the striking contrast of these results with the strong protection observed in the (βα)2–5β6 region after 5 s of folding demonstrates that these species represent kinetically distinct folding intermediates that are not identical as previously thought. A re-examination of the kinetic folding mechanism by chevron analysis of fluorescence data confirmed distinct roles for these two species: the burst-phase intermediate is predicted to be a misfolded, off-pathway intermediate, while the subsequent 5 s intermediate corresponds to an on-pathway equilibrium intermediate. Comparison with the predictions using a Cα Gō model simulation of the kinetic folding reaction for sIGPS shows good agreement with the core of the structure offering protection against exchange in the on-pathway intermediate(s). Because the native-centric Gō model simulations do not explicitly include sequence-specific information, the simulation results support the hypothesis that the topology of TIM barrel proteins is a primary determinant of the folding free energy surface for the productive folding reaction. The early misfolding reaction must involve aspects of non-native structure not detected by the Gō model simulation.
Frequency and correlates of suicidal ideation in pediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder.

This study examined the frequency and sociodemographic and clinical correlates of suicidal ideation in a sample of children and adolescents with obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD). Fifty-four youth with OCD and their parent(s) were administered the Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Age Children-Present and Lifetime, Children’s Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale, and Children’s Depression Rating Scale-Revised. Children completed the Suicidal Ideation Questionnaire-Junior (SIQ-JR), Child Obsessive Compulsive Impact Scale-Child, and Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children; parents completed the Child Obsessive Compulsive Impact Scale-Parent, Swanson, Nolan, and Pelham-IV Parent Scale, and Young Mania Rating Scale-Parent Version. Seven youth endorsed clinically significant levels of suicidal ideation on the SIQ-JR. Suicidal ideation was significantly related to clinician-rated depressive symptoms, age, child-rated impairment and anxiety symptoms, and symmetry, sexuality/religiosity and miscellaneous symptom dimensions. There was no significant association between suicidal ideation and obsessive–compulsive symptom severity, comorbidity patterns, or several parent-rated indices (e.g., impairment, impulsivity). These results provide initial information regarding the frequency and correlates of suicidal ideation in treatment-seeking youth with OCD. Clinical implications are discussed, as well as directions for future research.
Pirate attacks affect Indian Ocean climate research

[1] Pirate attacks in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean off the coast of Somalia nearly doubled from 111 in 2008 to 217 in 2009 [International Maritime Bureau, 2009, International Maritime Bureau, 2010]. Consequently, merchant vessel traffic in the area around Somalia significantly decreased. Many of these merchant vessels carry instruments that record wind and other weather conditions near the ocean surface, and alterations in ship tracks have resulted in a hole sized at about 2.5 million square kilometers in the marine weather-observing network off the coast of Somalia. The data void exists in the formation region of the Somali low-level jet, a wind pattern that is one of the main drivers of the Indian summer monsoon. Further, a stable, multidecadal record has been interrupted, and consequently, long-term analyses of the jet derived from surface wind data are now showing artificial anomalies that will affect efforts by scientists to identify interannual to decadal variations in the climate of the northwestern Indian Ocean.
Theoretical characterization of reaction dynamics in the gas phase and at interfaces

Reaction dynamics is a central topic in physical chemistry, and tremendous progress has been made in theoretical characterization of gas phase and surface scattering processes. Here, an overview is given on several important frontiers represented by the following articles.
Melanocytic differentiation in a solid pseudopapillary tumor of the pancreas.

Solid pseudopapillary tumor of the pancreas (SPT) is an uncommon neoplasm of low malignant potential, generally occurring in young women. The tumor is indolent, usually with long survival, even in the presence of extension into adjacent organs and metastases. Pathological features include solid, cellular, and cystic regions and degenerative pseudopapillae formation. Despite its distinctive morphology and cytological features, the cell lineage of this entity is unclear. Here we report a case of solid pseudopapillary tumor in a 48-year-old man with 10-year follow-up in which melanin pigment was found within the tumor cells. The tumor cells stained positive not only for melanocytic markers including S-100, HMB-45, and Fontana, but also other well-established markers for this kind of neoplasm such as alpha-antitrypsin (Α-AT), anti-alpha-chymotrypsin (AACT), NSE, CD10, cyclin D1, and beta-catenin. Electron microscopy confirmed the formation of premelanosomes and melanosome granules in the tumor cells. To our knowledge, this is the first report in which melanosomes were produced by SPT. Because melanocytes are derived from neurocrest, we hypothesize that the histogenesis of SPT is of neurocrest origin. This phenomenon may also be explained by ongoing research in which it has been shown that Wnt signaling/beta-catenin intranuclear localization promotes pigment cell formation by medial crest cells in embryos.
The Innovative Economy: Synergistic Partnerships, Workforce Demands, and Global Competition.

This article depicts the dual triumphs achieved by York Technical College and business/industry in creating a win-win solution to address workforce needs and shortages. The unique approach to partnership described is called “The Innovative Economy.” It allows local companies and the college to maximize assets by providing exemplary showrooms with cutting-edge technology and demonstration tests sites that also serve as training centers.
Solution structure and dynamics of a heat shock protein assembly probed by hydrogen exchange and mass spectrometry.

The solution conformation and dynamics of the 16.9 kDa small heat shock protein from wheat have been studied using a combination of hydrogen/deuterium exchange, proteolytic digestion, and mass spectrometry. At room temperature, HSP16.9 exists as a dodecameric assembly. Regions of HSP16.9 that form extensive and essential intersubunit contacts in the assembly, including residues 1−40 and 131−151, show little or no protection against hydrogen/deuterium exchange after incubation in D2O for 5 s. The high levels of hydrogen/deuterium exchange indicate that these regions have experienced large conformational fluctuations in solution, breaking intersubunit contacts and exposing buried amide hydrogens to solvent. When HSP16.9 is pulse labeled for 10 ms, residues 1−40 and 131−151 are substantially more protected than they are after 5 s. Thus, the breaking of intersubunit contacts occurs on a time scale between 10 milliseconds and 5 s. At 42 °C, HSP16.9 exists in a suboligomeric form. When the intrinsic temperature...
Interruptible tasks: treating memory pressure as interrupts for highly scalable data-parallel programs

Real-world data-parallel programs commonly suffer from great memory pressure, especially when they are executed to process large datasets. Memory problems lead to excessive GC effort and out-of-memory errors, significantly hurting system performance and scalability. This paper proposes a systematic approach that can help data-parallel tasks survive memory pressure, improving their performance and scalability without needing any manual effort to tune system parameters. Our approach advocates interruptible task (ITask), a new type of data-parallel tasks that can be interrupted upon memory pressure---with part or all of their used memory reclaimed---and resumed when the pressure goes away.To support ITasks, we propose a novel programming model and a runtime system, and have instantiated them on two state-of-the-art platforms Hadoop and Hyracks. A thorough evaluation demonstrates the effectiveness of ITask: it has helped real-world Hadoop programs survive 13 out-of-memory problems reported on StackOverflow; a second set of experiments with 5 already well-tuned programs in Hyracks on datasets of different sizes shows that the ITask-based versions are 1.5--3x faster and scale to 3--24x larger datasets than their regular counterparts.
Cultivating Emerging and Black Swan Technologies

Emerging technologies, defined as contemporary cutting-edge developments in various fields of technology, are generally associated with the potential for large impact on society. In a recent op-ed, “The coming Tech-led Boom” (Wall Street Journal, January 30, 2012), Mills and Ottino list three grand technological transformations — big data, smart manufacturing, and the wireless revolution — poised to transform this century as much as telephony and electricity did in the 20th century. This list is by no means comprehensive and most likely misses technologies that are not yet recognized, but may still carry an extreme impact — i.e., the so-called Black Swans, as defined by New York Times best-selling author, Nassim Nicholas Taleb, in his book, The Black Swan. Taleb cites the example of three recently implemented technologies that most impact our world today — the Internet, the computer, and the laser — and notes that all three were unplanned, unpredicted, and unappreciated upon their discovery, and remained unappreciated well after initial use.In this paper, we will examine several emerging technologies, present a methodology to create a breeding ground for potential Black Swans, and finally discuss the societal and ethical aspects of these technologies.Copyright © 2012 by ASME
Status of and plans for the synchrotron radiation dedicated facilities at LSU-CAMD

Abstract Louisiana State University has been operating the synchrotron light source at CAMD for two years now. There are presently nine installed bending magnet beamlines covering a wide range of photon energies and applications. The synchrotron presently provides light to the beamlines for 40 h per week. The nominal electron energy for ring operations is 1.3 GeV. It has been operated at energies up to 1.5 GeV with reasonable lifetimes. The ring has achieved full design power, but has not yet achieved the full design current of 400 mA at 1.2 GeV. The maximum current stored to date is 311 mA at 1.3 GeV. We plan to add insertion devices in our two open straight sections and to double our RF power to achieve more flux; this will increase the effective photon-energy range. The full operational status of the synchrotron is discussed along with more detailed plans for the light source.
Warm Laser Shock Peening Driven Nanostructures and Their Effects on Fatigue Performance in Aluminum Alloy 6160

Warm laser shock peening is an innovative manufacturing process that integrates laser shock peening and dynamic aging to improve materials' fatigue performance. Compared to traditional laser shock peening (LSP), warm laser shock peening (WLSP) - i.e., LSP at elevated temperatures - provides better performance in many aspects. WLSP can induce nanoscale precipitation and high density dislocation arrangement, resulting in higher surface strength and lower surface roughness than LSP, which are both beneficial for fatigue life improvement. Due to pinning of the dislocation structure by nanoscale precipitates - so-called dislocation pinning effects - the relaxation of residual stress and surfaces dislocation arrangement is significantly reduced. In this study, AA6061 alloy is used to evaluate the WLSP process. It is found that the fatigue life improvements after WLSP are not only caused by large compressive residual stress and high density dislocations but also by the higher stability of the residual stresses and surface strength during cyclic loading.
Homing in on intron-encoded endonucleases

The crystal structure of l-Crel offers the first view of an intron-encoded endonuclease. The structure differs from known endonuclease structures, revealing an elongated saddle shaped molecule ideally suited for binding a long DNA sequence.
WebAIM: an online aspiration-level interactive method

Summary: The Aspiration Level Interactive Method (AIM) is a useful decision tool that takes advantage of the concepts of satisficing as well as other concepts of multiple criteria decision making. In this paper we describe an internet version of AIM, WebAIM. It may be accessed via the internet using simple instructions. WebAIM is a natural extension of the earlier DOS version of AIM. It has been developed using Visual Studio.NET and is programmed in Visual Basic. It is available on a website at the University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany: http://www.ibl.unihohenheim.de/webaim. An example of house selection is used to illustrate the use of the program. In our presentation, we also explore other aspects of AIM and its application.
The structure and electrochemistry of imidazolebis(1-10 phenanthroline)copper(II) nitrate

Abstract [Cu(phen) 2 (imidazole)](NO 3 ) 2 crystallizes in the triclinic space group P 1(No.2) with a =8.807(2), b =8.941(4), c =17.135(4) A, α =100.95(2), β =90.95(1), γ =100.187(9)°, and Z =2. The structure consists of discrete [Cu(phen) 2 (imidazole)] 2+ ions with a distorted square pyramidal geometry about the copper. One of the cis -phenanthroline ligands is asymmetrically coordinated to the axial (CuN phen =2.225(6) A) and equatorial (CuN phen =2.050(5) A) sites, while the second phenanthroline (CuN phen =2.027(5) A and CuN phen =2.021(5) A) and the imidazole (CuN im =1.980(6) A), occupy the remaining equatorial sites. The reversible one electron reduction potential of [Cu(phen) 2 (imidazole)] 2+ , ( E 1/2 =0.10 V) in methanol, is more negative than that observed for [Cu(phen) 2 ](NO 3 ) 2 , ( E 1/2 =0.16 V). The relationship between the structure of [Cu(phen) 2 (imidazole)](NO 3 ) 2 and the corresponding dimer [Cu 2 (phen) 4 (imidazolate)](NO 3 ) 3 is discussed, and the electrochemistry is compared to the negative shift in redox potential which is observed when the nuclease [Cu(phen) 2 ] 2+ binds to CT DNA.
Vitamin D status in children and young adults with perinatally acquired HIV infection

Summary Background & aims To assess vitamin D (Vit-D) [serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25-OHD) concentrations] in children and young adults with perinatally acquired HIV compared to geographically similar healthy children. Methods 25-OHD in children and young adults with HIV was compared to a healthy group. Vit-D deficiency and insufficiency were defined as 25-OHD Results Children with HIV (n = 81), mean age 13.8 ± 4.1 years, 48% female, 83% Black, were compared to healthy subjects (n = 372), mean age 12.4 ± 3.4 years, 51% female, 37% Black. For the HIV group, 84% were on HAART, 54% had plasma HIV RNA Conclusions Vit-D deficiency was increased in subjects with perinatally acquired HIV and may be associated with disease severity.
THE HISTORY OF THE BROOKHAVEN NATIONAL LABORATORY PROJECT IN ARCHAEOLOGICAL CHEMISTRY, AND APPLYING NUCLEAR METHODS TO THE FINE ARTS

This paper traces the events leading up to the formation of a project in 1954, in the Chemistry Department at Brookhaven National Laboratory, dedicated to the application of those new developments that were rapidly transforming postwar nuclear science to the parallel humanistic disciplines of archaeology and the fine arts. The further evolution of this effort involved the enlightened support of the Department of Energy (then AEC and ERDA) coupled with the lively interests of the archaeological, fine-arts and art-historical communities, their professional academics and the many graduate and undergraduate students who participated in the Brookhaven project. But more than new scientific methodologies, concepts and instrumentation were deployed. What developed was a large-scale, truly interdisciplinary effort, where scholars of the humanities and sciences worked side by side in a remarkable way, each led by the other, to the mutual benefit and increase of their knowledge and understanding. A paradigm of co-operation between arts and sciences was initiated: this paper presents a record of the process and its outcome, a novel blending of science and humanism that is very much taken for granted by research workers today.