cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Differentiation of Ergosterol from Cholesterol

Ergosterol and cholesterol are sterols each containing in its molecule 3 benzene rings with the configuration found in phenanthrene, one 5-membered ring with a side chain and one secondary alcohol grouping. Ergosterol, however, has one more carbon atom than cholesterol, one hydrogen in the side chain being replaced by a methyl group, and it also has 3 double bonds instead of one double bond.The greater degree of unsaturation of ergosterol argues for its greater reactivity. Heilbron and Spring1 report that ergosterol yields a red color with antimony trichloride, but no reaction takes place with α- and β-dihydroergosterol, with α- and β-ergostenol (tetrahydroergosterol) with allo-α-ergostenol (hexahydroergosterol), or with cholesterol. They also report that the trichloracetic acid reaction with ergosterol, which is negative with cholesterol, is not given by partially or completely saturated derivatives of ergosterol.Several other tests reported for ergosterol fail to give responses with cholesterol. Among t...
Highly concentrated ceramic binder suspensions. stabilization, rheological properties, and the principle of rheotechnological correspondence

Stabilization of the maximum concentrated quartz glass suspensions exhibiting thixotropicdilatant flow is characterized by the existence of an optimum duration of the process; coagulation of the system occurs on exceeding it.
Renal extramedullary hematopoiesis: interstitial and glomerular pathology

Renal extramedullary hematopoiesis is rarely recognized in the antemortem setting. We identified 14 patients with renal extramedullary hematopoiesis on antemortem specimens from 1994 to 2015. The mean age was 68 years (range 47-87 years); males predominated (M:F=9:5). All presented with renal insufficiency, including five (36%) with acute kidney injury. The mean serum creatinine at biopsy was 2.9 mg/dl (range 1.2-7.3 mg/dl). All had proteinuria (mean 7.9 g/24 h; range 0.5-28; n=13), including 9 with ≥3 g/24 h. Renal extramedullary hematopoiesis appeared histologically as an interstitial infiltrate (n=12) and/or a perirenal infiltrate (n=3) or mass-like lesion (n=1). Five were misdiagnosed as interstitial nephritis. Concurrent glomerular disease was prevalent and included fibrillary-like glomerulonephritis (n=3), chronic thrombotic microangiopathy (n=5), focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (n=6), and diabetic glomerulosclerosis (n=2). All patients had an underlying hematologic malignancy: primary myelofibrosis in 9, myeloproliferative neoplasm not otherwise specified in 1, essential thrombocythemia in 1, polycythemia vera in 1, and plasma cell myeloma in 2. Clinical follow-up was available in 12 patients, mean of 29 months (range 4-120 months). In 10 patients for whom treatment history could be obtained, 9 were treated with chemotherapy, and 1 was treated with steroids. The mean creatinine at last follow-up was 2 mg/dl (range 1.2-3.9 mg/dl) (n=9). Ten patients died in the follow-up period from their underlying hematological disease and had persistent renal disease. The two remaining patients had persistent chronic kidney disease. Renal extramedullary hematopoiesis should be considered in the differential diagnosis of interstitial infiltrates, particularly in the presence of a glomerulopathy and a hematologic malignancy.
Does basic life support in a rural EMS system influence the outcome of patients with respiratory distress

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to determine whether basic life support, prehospital emergency medical care in a rural area affects the hospital course of patients with respiratory distress. METHODS Medical records for patients admitted from the emergency department with a discharge diagnosis related to respiratory disease were reviewed. Data collected included: 1) mode of arrival; 2) initial symptom; 3) vital signs; 4) prehospital interventions applied; 5) hospital days; 6) discharge status; and 7) principal diagnosis. Multiple logistic regression analysis was used to predict length of hospital stay. RESULTS Charts for 603 patients were reviewed. Complete data for all variables included in the logistic regression analysis were available for 471 patients (78.1%). Because 55 patients died, only 416 (69.0%) were included in the multiple regression analysis conducted to predict length of hospital stay. Logistic regression analysis demonstrated that patients who arrived by ambulance and older patients were more likely to die; patients with higher systolic blood pressures were more likely to survive. Only patient age predicted length of hospital stay, with older patients having longer stays. CONCLUSIONS Basic life support prehospital care in this rural emergency medical services system does not result in a lower mortality rate or a shorter hospital stay for a broad group of patients with respiratory distress who require hospital admission. Although this study is limited to a single population and a single emergency medical services system, it is one of only a few studies of outcome in basic life support systems.
A Summary of Recent Aircraft/Ground Vehicle Friction Measurement Tests

Tests were carried out to evaluate a variety of runway surface types and wetness conditions, using specially instrumented NASA B-737 and B-727 aircraft and several ground friction measuring devices. The performance data for aircraft braking on dry, wet, snow-covered, and ice-covered runway conditions are presented and compared to ground-vehicle friction data obtained under similar runway conditions. The relationships between ground vehicles and the aircraft friction data are identified, and the effects on friction of major test parameters, such as the speed, the tire characteristics, and the type of surface-contaminant are discussed. The results demonstrated that properly maintained and calibrated ground vehicles can be used to monitor the runway friction conditions.
Development of an Expectations Survey for Patients Undergoing Foot and Ankle Surgery.

Background:Many authors have reported on patient satisfaction from foot and ankle surgery, but rarely on expectations, which may vary widely between patients and strongly affect satisfaction. In this study, we aimed to develop a patient-derived survey on expectations from foot and ankle surgery.Methods:We developed and tested our survey using a 3-phase process. Patients with a wide spectrum of foot and ankle diagnoses were enrolled. In phase 1, patients were interviewed preoperatively with open-ended questions about their expectations from surgery. Major concepts were grouped into categories that were used to form a draft survey. In phase 2, the survey was administered to preoperative patients on 2 occasions to establish test-retest reliability. In phase 3, the final survey items were selected based on weighted kappa values for response concordance and clinical relevance.Results:In phase 1, 94 preoperative patients volunteered 655 expectations. Twenty-nine representative categories were discerned by quali...
Categorical Discrimination of Sequential Stimuli: All S Δ Are Not Created Equal

Pigeons were exposed to a novel variation of a stimulus discrimination task previously used with rats as a slot machine analog. We sought to replicate and extend characterizations of structural characteristics of responding, determine relations between those characteristics and identify predictors of individual differences in performance. Pecking during a “collect” phase produced food if and only if the keylight was red for the entire sample phase. In other trial types, the keylight was green, or started red and turned green after one or two pecks. The opportunity to respond was available for 5 s in all collect phases, permitting multiple responses per trial. Pigeons were less likely to peck in collect phases when sample stimuli were not all red, and when they did peck, it was at a lower rate. However, consistent with reactions to near wins in other slot machine tasks, there was more responding in collect phases that followed sample phases when the red keylight turned green after two pecks. Among initial response characteristics, response rate in trials that resembled near wins was the best predictor of terminal responding. Supporting their characterization as measures of stimulus control, collect proportions were negatively correlated with response times in the sample phase. Supporting their characterization as measures of conditioned reinforcing value, latency and response rate in collect phases were positively correlated, but neither was systematically correlated with proportion or sample phase response times. Ultimately, isolating measures of stimulus control and conditioned reinforcement may help determine the mechanisms responsible for near-win effects.
Assessment of Patient Knowledge of Longitudinal Melanonychia: A Survey Study of Patients in Outpatient Clinics.

Importance: Subungual melanoma (SM) is a rare subtype of cutaneous melanoma but carries a worse prognosis than similarly staged cutaneous melanomas. Assessing pat
Broadband Imaging Through an Omni-Resonant Optical Micro-Cavity

We demonstrate broadband imaging through an optical micro-cavity in which omni-resonance is achieved by angularly-multiplexed phase-matching. We create a 60-nm-wide spectral transmission window starting from 0.7-nm-wide resonances.
The Explanation of Behavior

Even when psychology thoroughly endorsed the stimulus-response (S-R) formula, it was rather negligent of behavior per se. The S-R association gave the semblance of explaining behavior while shifting the major focus of attention to the search for controlling stimuli. Behavior itself was neglected. More recently, as all of psychology has moved in a cognitive direction, and learning theory has moved to an S-S formula, the explanation of behavior has become really neglected. There are virtually no acceptable explanatory response mechanisms. It is proposed here that the search for such mechanisms should start with the simplest motor coordinations, the reflexes, oscillators, and feedback devices recently emphasized by Gallistel (1980). It appears that a lot of behavior, especially the details of behavior, can be explained by such locally autonomous coordination mechanisms.
Proximity and Terrorism News in Social Media: A Construal-Level Theoretical Approach to Networked Framing of Terrorism in Twitter

This study investigates networked framing of terrorism news in Twitter by distinguishing three proximity effects (geographic, social, and temporal proximity) on audience and media institutional frames (i.e., episodic/thematic and space frames), based on construal-level theory. An analysis of tweets during the Boston Marathon bombing and the Brussels Airport attack finds that institutional and audience frames show similarity but do not always converge on Twitter. Similarities in the audience and institutional frames are attributed to a universal human tendency for social categorization, inherent in the minds of not only ordinary citizens but also journalists. Proximity effects, however, were more salient on audience frames than on institutional frames.
PROBE: A Placement, Routing, Back-End-of-Line Measurement Utility

In advanced technology nodes, correctly choosing among available back-end-of-line (BEOL) stack options is important to meet stringent design quality of results requirements. However, it is nontrivial to evaluate BEOL stack options since the routing outcomes highly depend on the input design (e.g., netlist, placement, etc.). In this paper, we propose a systematic framework to measure routing capacity of a BEOL stack as well as inherent capability of routers. Based on our experimental results, we observe consistent results across mesh-like placement and placements from various placers. Also, our proposed framework enables new insights into important questions regarding BEOL stack options. Using our framework, we further study the relation between the routing hotspot size and routing failure empirically. Lastly, we present an analytical study based on exponentiation of a Markov transition matrix about the impact of design size on routing failure.
Lysosomal nucleic acid and phosphate metabolism and related metabolic reactions.

Lysosomes are a major intracellular site for the degradation of nucleic acids. Under conditions of nutritional deprivation, for example, approximately 65% of total rat liver cytoplasmic RNA is degraded per day, with 70–85% of this turnover occurring within the lysosomal compartment (Lardeux and Mortimore, 1987; Lardeux et al., 1987, 1988; Heydrick et al., 1991). Lysosomes contain an active repertoire of hydrolytic enzymes capable of completely degrading large amounts of nucleic acids to their basic constituents. In this chapter, the properties of the enzymes involved in lysosomal metabolism of nucleic acids and phosphates are described. The reader is also referred to earlier reviews by Barrett (1972) and Vaes (1973). In addition to the enzymes involved in lysosomal nucleic acid and phosphate metabolism, the role of lysosomes in the metabolism of cobalamin, folic acid polyglutamate, and coenzyme A are also discussed.
Looking behind the score: Skill structure explains sex differences in skilled video game performance.

Some have explained large sex differences in visuospatial abilities by genetic adaptations to different roles in primitive hunter-gatherer societies and the interaction of innate biological differences and environmental factors. We explored the extent to which variations in behavior and acquired skills can provide alternative accounts for sex differences in the performance of a complex spatially-demanding video game (Space Fortress). Men and women with limited video game experience were given 30 hours of training, and latent curve analyses examined the development of their ship control performance and behavior. Men had significantly better control performance than women before and after training, but differences diminished substantially over the training period. An analysis of participants’ joystick behaviors revealed that initially men and women relied on different patterns of control behaviors, but changes in these behaviors over time accounted for the reduced sex differences in performance. When we controlled for these differences in behavior, sex effects after training were no longer significant. Finally, examining the development of control performance and control behaviors of men and women categorized as initially high and low performers revealed the lower-performing women may have been controlling their ship using an approach that was very different from the men and higher-performing women. The potential problems of analyzing men and women’s spatial performance as homogenous groups are discussed, as well as how these issues may account for sex differences in skilled video game performance and perhaps other domains involving spatial abilities.
Analysis of the microRNA signature driving adaptive right ventricular hypertrophy in an ovine model of congenital heart disease

This study describes a novel microRNA signature of adaptive right ventricular hypertrophy, with particular attention to miR-199b and miR-29a.
Integrated Microwave Photonics for High Performance RF Receiver Frontends

A high performance RF Receiver frontend desires a large dynamic range to pick up weak signals from background noise and interference. However, inherent nonlinear distortions of electronic amplifiers and mixers often bottleneck the receiver's dynamic range performance. In this paper, we present a solution to the RF receiver frontend that is based on integrated microwave photonics. It contains a chip-level integrated high dynamic range RF photonic link with an optical-domain frequency down-con-verter. The design and measurements of the integrated circuit are discussed. An approach of extending the IC chip to a fiber-optic fed RF receiver frontend is also presented.
Mapping the complex context(s) of use: editorial

Usability involves connecting design to need. Individuals need to achieve an objective; if the design of an item meets that need, the item is usable. If not, it is not. So, usability depends on how well the design of an item addresses the need of the user. The need to hold two items together, for example, can prompt individuals to design a fastener in order to meet that need. The usability of the resulting design, however, is a matter of how effectively the individual can use it to hold items in place.
Implementing Measurement-Based Care in Behavioral Health: A Review

Importance Measurement-based care (MBC) is the systematic evaluation of patient symptoms before or during an encounter to inform behavioral health treatment. Despite MBC’s demonstrated ability to enhance usual care by expediting improvements and rapidly detecting patients whose health would otherwise deteriorate, it is underused, with typically less than 20% of behavioral health practitioners integrating it into their practice. This narrative review addresses definitional issues, offers a concrete and evaluable operationalization of MBC fidelity, and summarizes the evidence base and utility of MBC. It also synthesizes the extant literature’s characterization of barriers to and strategies for supporting MBC implementation, sustainment, and scale-up. Observations Barriers to implementing MBC occur at multiple levels: patient (eg, concerns about confidentiality breach), practitioner (eg, beliefs that measures are no better than clinical judgment), organization (eg, no resources for training), and system (eg, competing requirements). Implementation science—the study of methods to integrate evidence-based practices such as MBC into routine care—offers strategies to address barriers. These strategies include using measurement feedback systems, leveraging local champions, forming learning collaboratives, training leadership, improving expert consultation with clinical staff, and generating incentives. Conclusions and Relevance This narrative review, informed by implementation science, offers a 10-point research agenda to improve the integration of MBC into clinical practice: (1) harmonize terminology and specify MBC’s core components; (2) develop criterion standard methods for monitoring fidelity and reporting quality of implementation; (3) develop algorithms for MBC to guide psychotherapy; (4) test putative mechanisms of change, particularly for psychotherapy; (5) develop brief and psychometrically strong measures for use in combination; (6) assess the critical timing of administration needed to optimize patient outcomes; (7) streamline measurement feedback systems to include only key ingredients and enhance electronic health record interoperability; (8) identify discrete strategies to support implementation; (9) make evidence-based policy decisions; and (10) align reimbursement structures.
Kinematic Metrics from a Wireless Stylus Quantify Tremor and Bradykinesia in Parkinson’s Disease

A fundamental challenge in the clinical care of Parkinson disease (PD) is the current dependence on subjective evaluations of tremor and bradykinesia. New technologies offer the ability to evaluate motor deficits using purely objective measures. The aim of this study was to develop and evaluate the efficacy of a wireless stylus (Cleveland Clinic Stylus) with an embedded motion sensor to quantitatively assess tremor and bradykinesia in patients with PD with subthalamic nucleus (STN) deep brain stimulation (DBS). Twenty-one subjects were tested in various on and off DBS conditions while holding the Cleveland Clinic Stylus while at rest, maintaining a postural hold, and during a movement task. Kinematic metrics were calculated from the motion sensor data, including 3D angular velocity and 3D acceleration data, and were compared between the on and off conditions. Generalized estimating equations (GEEs) were used to determine the relationship between kinematic metrics and MDS-Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale Motor III (UPDRS-III) subscores. Kinematic metrics from the rest and postural tasks were significantly related to the UPDRS-III subscores of tremor ( for all metrics), and kinematic metrics from the movement task were significantly related to the UPDRS-III subscore of bradykinesia ( for 3/7 metrics). Kinematic metrics (7/9) showed a significant effect of stimulation setting (range: ) across the three tasks, indicating significant improvements from DBS in these measures. The Cleveland Clinic Stylus provided quantitative kinematic measures of tremor and bradykinesia severity and detected significant improvements in these measures from medication and DBS therapy. This low-cost, easy-to-use tool can provide objective measures that will improve clinical care of PD patients by providing a more reliable and objective evaluation of movement symptoms, disease progression, and effects of therapy in and outside the clinical setting.
Pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic modeling of gut hormone peptide YY(3-36) after pulmonary delivery.

Peptide YY(3–36) (PYY(3–36)) is an endogenous appetite suppressing peptide. The present research was to perform pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) analysis for predicting the concentration- an...
Hardware Complexity Analysis of Deep Neural Networks and Decision Tree Ensembles for Real-time Neural Data Classification

A fast and low-power embedded classifier with small footprint is essential for real-time applications such as brain-machine interfaces (BMIs) and closed-loop neuromodulation for neurological disorders. In most applications with large datasets of unstructured data, such as images, deep neural networks (DNNs) achieve a remarkable classification accuracy. However, DNN models impose a high computational cost during inference, and are not necessarily ideal for problems with limited training sets. The computationally intensive nature of deep models may also degrade the classification latency, that is critical for real-time closed-loop applications. Among other methods, ensembles of decision trees (DTs) have recently been very successful in neural data classification tasks. DTs can be designed to successively process a limited number of features during inference, and thus impose much lower computational and memory overhead. Here, we compare the hardware complexity of DNNs and gradient boosted DTs for classification of real-time electrophysiological data in epilepsy. Our analysis shows that the strict energy-area-latency trade-off can be relaxed using an ensemble of DTs, and they can be significantly more efficient than alternative DNN models, while achieving better classification accuracy in real-time neural data classification tasks.
Cultural Macroevolution and Social Change

The debate between the cultural-evolutionist and cultural-historicist views of long-term social change is discussed, and cultural macroevolutionism is presented as a contemporary theoretical framework that combines traditional and newer concepts from evolutionary anthropology with recent thinking in evolutionary biology and the physics of phase transitions. An examination of archaeological sequences from Mexico and Venezuela finds that these data are more consistent with the cultural-macroevolutionist framework than the cultural-historicist view.
Damping Analysis: An Historical Perspective

The history of damping measurement, analysis, and enhancement is examined mainly from an engineering viewpoint but with some reference to the contributions of materials science. The contributions from 1784 to 1920 were mostly by physicists and mathematicians. From 1920 to 1940 most of the pertinent work was done by application-oriented engineers. While materials scientists have used damping measurements as a microstructural research tool for almost 200 years, only recently have the basic principles of materials science been used to optimize the damping of engineering structures.
Unoriented links and the Jones polynomial

The Jones polynomial is an invariant of oriented links with n≥1 components. When n=1, the choice of orientation does not affect the polynomial, but for n>1, changing orientations of some (but not all) components can change the polynomial. Here we define a version of the Jones polynomial that is an invariant of unoriented links; i.e., changing orientation of any sublink does not affect the polynomial. This invariant shares some, but not all, of the properties of the Jones polynomial. The construction of this invariant also reveals new information about the original Jones polynomial. Specifically, we show that the Jones polynomial of a knot is never the product of a nontrivial monomial with another Jones polynomial.
Methods for studying human sirtuins with activity-based chemical probes

Sirtuins are unique posttranslational modification enzymes that utilize NAD+ as the co-substrate to remove acyl groups from lysine residues. The deacylation events result in profound biological consequences, from transcription silencing to metabolism regulation. This article focuses on a newly developed technology using activity-based chemical probes to report sirtuin functional state in various settings. These chemical probes, thioacyllysine peptides carrying photo-cross-linker as well as bioorthogonal functionality, target the active site of sirtuins to form stalled reaction intermediate. Subsequently, the probe forms covalent adduct with the protein through photocrosslinking. Ultimately, the active sirtuin can be visualized via "click" chemistry-mediated conjugation to a fluorescent tag. Here, we describe the labeling protocols on recombinant protein, whole cell lysate, and in situ labeling.
Effects of opting-out from federal nurse anesthetists' supervision requirements on anesthesiologist work patterns.

Objective To estimate the impact of opting-out from Medicare supervision requirements for certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNAs) on anesthesiologists' work patterns. Data sources/study setting Secondary data from two national surveys of anesthesiologists and the Area Health Resource File. Study design We use a matching difference-in-difference regression which contrasts the change in work patterns for anesthesiologists in California, which dropped supervision requirements, to the change for similar anesthesiologists. Key outcome variables include the number of weekly hours worked, the type of work done, and type of care delivery teams. Data collection/extraction methods Self-reported national survey data drawn from members of the American Society of Anesthesiologists. Principal findings Anesthesiologists in California saw no change in time spent working or time spent supervising CRNAs. There was a decrease in direct care clinical work hours along with a shift in working more in intraoperative care, a decrease in postoperative care, and an increase in the percentage of cases supervising residents. Conclusions Anesthesiologists had small but real responses to California's decisions to opt-out of the physician supervision requirement for CRNAs, doing more work in intraoperative care and less outside of the operating room. Total hours worked saw no change.
Chapter 5 – Surface plasmons and gain media

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the demonstrated enhancement of localized surface plasmons (SPs) oscillation in the aggregate of silver (Ag) nanoparticles by optical gain in the surrounding dye. It also discusses the demonstrated enhancement of spontaneous and stimulated emission of rhodamine 6G (R6G) laser dye by Ag aggregate. The absorption spectrum of Ag aggregate has one structureless band covering the whole visible range and extending to near-infrared. The chapter demonstrates that by adding the solution of aggregated silver nanoparticles to the solution of rhodamine 6G laser dye, one can enhance the efficiency of the spontaneous and the stimulated emission. It attributes the increase of the spontaneous emission intensity of dye to the increase of the absorption efficiency caused by the field enhancements in metallic nanostructures associated with SPs. The chapter observes the compensation of loss in metal by gain in interfacing dielectric in the mixture of aggregated silver nanoparticles and rhodamine 6G laser dye. The demonstrated sixfold enhancement of the Rayleigh scattering is the evidence of the quality factor increase of the SP resonance. This paves the road for numerous applications of nanoplasmonics, which currently suffer from strong damping caused by absorption loss in metal.
An Experimental Study of Mass Transfer coefficient of CO2 absorption using Different Amines in a Packed Column

In this work, an absorption technology was used actually to investigation the mass transfer coefficient of carbon dioxide from a gaseous mixture (air, carbon dioxide) in blended solution Monoethanolamine (MEA) and Diethanolamine (DEA) and Triethanolamine (TEA) in a packed column reactor (PCR) . The packed column was made of Plexiglas with 75 cm high and 10 cm inside diameter .The overall mass transfer coefficient (KGa) was evaluated at different operating conditions , gas flow rate, air Flow rate ,liquid flow rate .Where the gas flow rates were 5, 10 and 15 L /min , air flow rate 80,90 and 100 L/h , liquid flow rate 400 ,450,500 mL /min . This experiment by using semi-continuous process with helping centrifugal pump . High-performance gas chromatographic (GC) was performed to evaluate CO2 loading during absorption experiment . The experimental results showed that loading CO2 in the range of 0.461–9.541 (mole CO2 /mole amine), and the maximum value of overall mass transfer coefficient (KGa) was 0.0354 S^-1
Low-density, W-free Co–Nb–V–Al-based superalloys with γ/γ’ microstructure

Abstract Previously-reported metastable γ′-L12 Co3(Nb0.65V0.35) precipitates in the Co–6Nb–6V (at. %) ternary alloy are stabilized by additions of Al, Ti, Ni and Cr to the alloy. We identify two such multinary γ/γ′ alloys - with compositions of Co–10Ni–6Ti–5Al-xCr-3Nb–3V-0.04B at.% (with x = 0 and 4% Cr) - with γ′-precipitates remaining stable for up to 1000 h at 850 °C, with no additional phases present. Decreasing the Ti concentration from 6 to 2%, two more γ/γ′ superalloys - Co–10Ni–5Al-xCr-3Nb–3V–2Ti-0.04B (with x = 4 and 8% Cr) – are created with stable γ′-precipitates (measured for 168 h at 850 °C) with morphologies more cuboidal than for the first two alloys with 6%Ti. These submicron cuboidal γ′ precipitates are arranged into crystallographically-oriented sheets with small (
TERRESTRIAL SNAIL COMMUNITIES OF THE LOWER RIO GRANDE VALLEY ARE AFFECTED BY HUMAN DISTURBANCE AND CORRELATE WITH VEGETATION COMMUNITY COMPOSITION

The lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas (LRGV) contains a unique, subtropical, semiarid floodplain with most of the few remaining Tamaulipan thorn forests in the United States. Less than 2% of Tamaulipan thorn forest remains, with urban and agricultural conversion potentially threatening diverse plant and animal communities native to the habitat. We performed vegetative community surveys and conducted a comprehensive survey of terrestrial snail communities in intact (refugia sites, minimally altered in recent times) and altered (previously cleared and regrown or restored) Tamaulipan thorn forest habitats of the LRGV. In a comparison of intact and altered sites that have comparable vegetation (paired sites), we found that intact sites had a less species-rich snail community than their altered counterparts, but this difference was not statistically significant. This counterintuitive result, in part reflects the fact that the most species-rich, intact snail communities (i.e., Sabal Palm Forest) have no altered (restored or regrown) counterparts and so were not included in the paired comparisons. A nestedness analysis supports this, finding that these unique intact sites, which have the highest species richness and no comparable restored sites, contain the largest pool of species in South Texas. Species richness of snails significantly correlated with a precipitation gradient. A general linear model incorporating mean canopy cover, mean plant height, plant abundance, and plant species richness shows a significant correlation with snail communities. This study is the only comprehensive survey of the snail communities of the lower Rio Grande Valley.
Evaluation of sustainability strategies—a water quantity and quality perspective

Abstract The word “sustainability” finds its root in the Latin word “sustinere” (to hold). The important definitions include the words support, endure, and maintain. However, in the recent past, specific definitions hinting toward human sustainability on planet Earth have been popular. Sustainability is a method and an approach to create and maintain conditions under which humans can coexist in harmony with nature while fulfilling economic, social, and other requirements of present and future generations. It represents a multifaceted approach to managing our environmental, economic, and social resources for the long term. Most of the literature and guidance manuals available on sustainability agree that the biggest challenge in evaluating sustainability strategies is lack of sufficient understanding and clear vision of the interdependencies of economic, social, and environmental aspects. Most researchers also agree that evaluation of sustainability strategies within plans, legislations, policies, and projects is essential for a sound, all-inclusive, and informed decision-making process. Evaluation of sustainable strategies needs to broaden its scope to incorporate interrelations and interdependencies of the three realms. It should also attempt to look at the synergistic and cumulative impacts of management practices to provide guidelines on a comprehensive level that will assure better clarity, transparency, and accountability in decision-making. This chapter attempts to introduce the reader to the concept of sustainability and sustainable development. It also presents the evaluation of sustainability strategies with a water perspective. Important topics covered include methods for evaluation of sustainable strategies (strategic environmental assessment, integrated assessment, decision-aiding techniques available for the evaluation of sustainability strategies, multicomponent analysis, and other methods) and a water perspective on moving toward a sustainable future.
Roost Use and Movements of Northern Long-Eared Bats in a Southeast Nebraska Agricultural Landscape

Bats are important bio-indicators of ecosystem health and provide a number of ecosystem services. White-nose Syndrome and habitat loss have led to the decline of many bat species in eastern North America, including the federally threatened northern long-eared bat, Myotis septentrionalis. White-nose Syndrome was only recently found in Nebraska, which lies on the western extent of this species geographic range. To better understand how this forest-dependent species persists in an agriculturally dominated landscape amid a growing number of pressures, we investigated the roosting habits of this bat at the Homestead National Monument of America, located in southeast Nebraska. We mist-netted bats on eight nights in 2019 (16 August–26 August) and caught 55 bats across five species, including five juvenile northern long-eared bats. We located five unique roosts between two juvenile radio-tracked bats; most of the female roosts were in anthropogenic structures and tree cavities within 0.23 km of capture, while most of the male roosts were in snags and tree cavities as far as 2.73 km from the capture site. Fence cavities were also used by other undocumented northern long-eared bats. We recorded three radio-tagged bats that commuted between roosting sites and capture sites within hours after sunset. Our results provide evidence that at the distributional edge for this species, wooded areas, riparian zones, and human-built structures in an intensively managed agricultural landscape are used by this imperiled species.
Synthesis of helical branched carbodiimide polymers with liquid crystalline properties

Carbodiimide polymers are synthetic helical polymers that display unique properties depending on the functional groups attached to the polymer backbone. The amidine groups of the backbone present a...
Modulation of Glial Function in Health, Aging, and Neurodegenerative Disease

In the central nervous system (CNS), glial cells, such as microglia and astrocytes, are normally associated with support roles including contributions to energy metabolism, synaptic plasticity, and ion homeostasis. In addition to providing support for neurons, microglia and astrocytes function as the resident immune cells in the brain. The glial function is impacted by multiple aspects including aging and local CNS changes caused by neurodegeneration. During aging, microglia and astrocytes display alterations in their homeostatic functions. For example, aged microglia and astrocytes exhibit impairments in the lysosome and mitochondrial function as well as in their regulation of synaptic plasticity. Recent evidence suggests that glia can also alter the pathology associated with many neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD). Shifts in the microbiome can impact glial function as well. Disruptions in the microbiome can lead to aberrant microglial and astrocytic reactivity, which can contribute to an exacerbation of disease and neuronal dysfunction. In this review, we will discuss the normal physiological functions of microglia and astrocytes, summarize novel findings highlighting the role of glia in aging and neurodegenerative diseases, and examine the contribution of microglia and astrocytes to disease progression.
Generative AI Design and Exploration of Nucleoside Analogs

Nucleosides are fundamental building blocks of DNA and RNA in all life forms and viruses. In addition, natural nucleosides and their analogs are critical in prebiotic chemistry, innate immunity, signaling, antiviral drug discovery and artificial synthesis of DNA / RNA sequences. Combined with the fact that quantitative structure activity relationships (QSAR) have been widely performed to understand their antiviral activity, nucleoside analogs could be used to benchmark generative molecular design. Here, we undertake the first generative design of nucleoside analogs using an approach that we refer to as the Conditional Randomized Transformer (CRT). We also benchmark our model against five previously published molecular generative models. We demonstrate that AI-generated molecules include nucleoside analogs that are of significance in a wide range of areas including prebiotic chemistry, antiviral drug discovery and synthesis of oligonucleotides. Our results show that CRT explores distinct molecular spaces and chemical transformations, some of which are similar to those undertaken by nature and medicinal chemists. Finally, we demonstrate the potential application of the CRT model in the generative design of molecules conditioned on Remdesivir and Molnupiravir as well as other nucleoside analogs with in vitro activity against SARS-CoV-2. One-Sentence Summary: Generative design of nucleoside analogs relevant to antiviral drug discovery, prebiotic chemistry and synthetic biology.
Cardiac Stroke Volume Index Is Associated With Early Neurological Improvement in Acute Ischemic Stroke Patients

Early neurological improvement as assessed with the NIH stroke scale(NIHSS) at 24 hours has been associated with improved long-term functional outcomes following acute ischemic stroke(AIS). Cardiac dysfunction is often present in AIS, but its association with outcomes is incompletely defined. We performed a pilot study to evaluate the association between noninvasively measured cardiac parameters and 24-hour neurological improvement in prospectively enrolled patients with suspected AIS who presented within 12 hours of symptom-onset and had an initial systolic blood pressure>140 mm Hg. Patients receiving thrombolytic therapy or mechanical thrombectomy were excluded. Noninvasive pulse contour analysis was used to measure mean arterial blood pressure(MAP), cardiac stroke volume index(cSVI), cardiac output(CO) and cardiac index(CI). Transcranial Doppler recorded mean middle cerebral artery flow velocity(MFV). We defined a decrease of 4 NIHSS points or NIHSS≤1 at 24-hours as neurological improvement. Of 75 suspected, 38 had confirmed acute ischemic stroke and did not receive reperfusion therapy. Of these, 7/38(18.4%) had neurological improvement over 24 hours. MAP was greater in those without improvement(108, IQR 96-123 mm Hg) vs those with(89, IQR 73-104 mm Hg). cSVI, CO, and MFV were similar between those without and with improvement: 37.4(IQR 30.9-47.7) vs 44.7(IQR 42.3-55.3) ml/m2; 5.2(IQR 4.2-6.6) vs 5.3(IQR 4.7-6.7) mL/min; and 39.9(IQR 32.1-45.7) vs 34.4(IQR 27.1-49.2) cm/s, respectively. Multivariate analysis found MAP and cSVI as predictors for improvement(OR 0.93, 95%CI 0.85-0.98 and 1.14, 95%CI 1.03-1.31). In this pilot study, cSVI and MAP were associated with 24-hour neurological improvement in AIS.
Several Centuries of Centrality

As Carolyn Bertozzi mentioned in her inaugural editorial, the relationship of “Central Science” to “Chemistry” became popularized over 40 years ago with the publication of the first edition of Brown and LeMay’s Chemistry: The Central Science, now in its 13th edition. Yet as late as 2003, Prof. Sason Shaik at The Hebrew University claimed “popularization of chemistry remains scant.” He goes on to share [his] “own experience of popularizing chemistry by delivering the following universal message of our science, that Chemistry is the window given to Mankind to glimpse into its material essence.”
Dark matter at the pseudoscalar Higgs resonance in the phenomenological MSSM and SUSY GUTs

We study dark matter at the MSSM pseudoscalar Higgs resonance (A funnel), which is one of the few remaining MSSM thermal dark matter candidates in the 100--1000 GeV range safe from direct detection constraints. To illustrate the various factors at play, this study is performed in two contrasting setups: a bottom-up phenomenological MSSM (pMSSM) approach that allows significant freedom and the top-down, highly constrained Yukawa unified $SO(10)$ GUT model. In the pMSSM, for $\ensuremath{\mu}g0$, the entire parameter space lies above the coherent neutrino background and mostly within reach of XENON1T and LZ, while blind spots exist at ${m}_{A}g800\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{GeV}$ for $\ensuremath{\mu}l0$; the strongest constraints come from $A/H\ensuremath{\rightarrow}\ensuremath{\tau}\ensuremath{\tau}$ searches at the LHC. For Yukawa unified models, the confluence of ${B}_{s}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}{\ensuremath{\mu}}^{+}{\ensuremath{\mu}}^{\ensuremath{-}}$ constraints, fits to the bottom quark and Higgs masses, and gluino mass bounds from the LHC result in a prediction: realizing the pseudoscalar resonance requires gaugino mass nonuniversality, with a mass ratio that is determined to within a small range.
Pathophysiology of Deep Vein Thrombosis and Pulmonary Embolism: Beyond Virchow’s Triad

Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE) result from a combination of pathophysiological states including endothelial injury, stasis, inflammation, and hypercoagulability. The extent of the PE, the patient’s underlying cardiopulmonary reserve, and compensatory neurohumoral adaptations determine the overall hemodynamic impact. The right ventricle (RV) plays a central role in PE pathophysiology. A sudden increase in RV afterload due to PE can lead to RV dilation and hypokinesis, RV ischemia, and ultimately acute RV failure.
Initial study of quasi-monochromatic X-ray beam performance for X-ray computed mammotomography

We evaluate the feasibility, benefits, and operating parameters of a quasimonochromatic beam for a newly developed x-ray cone beam computed mammotomography application. The value of a near monochromatic x-ray source for fully 3D dedicated mammotomography is the expected improved ability to separate tissues with very small differences in attenuation coefficients while maintaining dose levels at or below that of existing dual view mammography. In previous studies, simulations for a range of tungsten tube potentials, K-edge filter materials, filter thicknesses, and a 12 cm uncompressed breast, with a digital flat-panel CsI(Tl) detector model, indicated that thick, rare earth filter materials may provide optimized image quality. Figures of merit computed included: lesion contrast under different filtering conditions; ratio of measured lesion contrast with and without filtering; and exposure efficiency (SNR/sup 2//exposure). Initial experiments are performed with a custom built x-ray mammotomography system, cerium foil filters, and plastic breast and lesion tissue-equivalent slabs. Simulation results showed that tube potentials of 50-70 kVp with filters of Z=57-63 yielded quasimonochromatic x-ray spectra with improved FOMs. Initial experimental measurements corroborate simulation results in that, relative trends and rank order of contrast ratios and exposure efficiency were in agreement. These studies show that this approach can be implemented practically with simple hardware and yield improved exposure efficiency versus the unfiltered or minimally filtered case.
Weakly ionized cosmic gas: Ionization and characterization

Since collective plasma behavior may determine important transport processes (e.g., plasma diffusion across a magnetic field) in certain cosmic environments, it is important to delineate the parameter space in which weakly ionized cosmic gases may be characterized as plasmas. In this short note, we do so. First, we use values for the ionization fraction given in the literature, wherein the ionization is generally assumed to be due primarily to ionization by cosmic rays. We also discuss an additional mechanism for ionization in such environments, namely, the photoelectric emission of electrons from cosmic dust grains in an interstellar Far Ultra Violet (FUV) radiation field. Simple estimates suggest that under certain conditions this mechanism may dominate cosmic ray ionization, and possibly also the photoionization of metal atoms by the interstellar FUV field, and thereby lead to an enhanced ionization level.
Splicing Systems: Regularity and Below

The motivation for the development of splicing theory is recalled. Attention is restricted to finite splicing systems, which are those having only finitely many rules and finitely many initial strings. Languages generated by such systems are necessarily regular, but not all regular languages can be so generated. The splicing systems that arose originally, as models of enzymatic actions, have two special properties called reflexivity and symmetry. We announce the Pixton-Goode procedure for deciding whether a given regular language can be generated by a finite reflexive splicing system. Although the correctness of the algorithm is not demonstrated here, two propositions that serve as major tools in the demonstration are stated. One of these is a powerful pumping lemma. The concept of the syntactic monoid of a language provides sharp conceptual clarity in this area. We believe that there may be yet unrealized results to be found that interweave splicing theory with subclasses of the class of regular languages and we invite others to join in these investigations.