cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Quantification of uncertainty in first-principles predicted mechanical properties of solids: Application to solid ion conductors

Computationally-guided material discovery is being increasingly employed using a descriptor-based screening through the calculation of a few properties of interest. A precise understanding of the uncertainty associated with first-principles density functional theory calculated property values is important for the success of descriptor-based screening. The Bayesian error estimation approach has been built in to several recently developed exchange-correlation functionals, which allows an estimate of the uncertainty associated with properties related to the ground state energy, for example, adsorption energies. Here, we propose a robust and computationally efficient method for quantifying uncertainty in mechanical properties, which depend on the derivatives of the energy. The procedure involves calculating energies around the equilibrium cell volume with different strains and fitting the obtained energies to the corresponding energy-strain relationship. At each strain, we use instead of a single energy, an ensemble of energies, giving us an ensemble of fits and thereby, an ensemble of mechanical properties associated with each fit, whose spread can be used to quantify its uncertainty. The generation of ensemble of energies is only a post-processing step involving a perturbation of parameters of the exchange-correlation functional and solving for the energy non-self-consistently. The proposed method is computationally efficient and provides a more robust uncertainty estimate compared to the approach of self-consistent calculations employing several different exchange-correlation functionals. We demonstrate the method by calculating the uncertainty bounds for several materials belonging to different classes and having different structures using the developed method. We show that the calculated uncertainty bounds the property values obtained using three different GGA functionals: PBE, PBEsol, and RPBE. Finally, we apply the approach to calculate the uncertainty associated with the DFT-calculated elastic properties of solid state Li-ion and Na-ion conductors.
Astrometry with Small Telescopes

At the Quonoehontaug Observatory of the University of Rhode Island, we specialize in the development of simple seeing limited optical telescopes. Our main instrument is a heavy Serrier trussed f/10.7,.4-m astrometrie reflector which provided the last-minute astrometry in the successful prediction of the occultation of SAO 120774 by Herculina in 1978. It is similar in design to the U. S. Naval Observatory 1.5-m reflector. Its scale of 47.1″/mm makes it potentially more powerful than the Lick.5-m, f/7 astrograph. However, its field of view of 1.3° × 1.7° is insufficient to capture enough AGK3R reference stars which are needed to consistently provide tenth-of-a-second-of-arc accuracy. To solve this problem, a.24-.32-m, f/6.3 lensless Schmidt was developed to provide a 3.8° field at 135″/mm and is mounted on the.4-m telescope. It can be used by itself and/or to provide a secondary reference frame for the main instrument. The measures from the plates and film are reduced by a suite of interactive computer programs which allows one to choose the proper reduction model based on the Eichhorn criterion. Over 100 positions of stars, asteroids, comets and supernovae have been provided with these instruments, and a regular observing program including participation in the IHW is underway.
Visual motion detection and habitat preference in Anolis lizards

The perception of visual stimuli has been a major area of inquiry in sensory ecology, and much of this work has focused on coloration. However, for visually oriented organisms, the process of visual motion detection is often equally crucial to survival and reproduction. Despite the importance of motion detection to many organisms’ daily activities, the degree of interspecific variation in the perception of visual motion remains largely unexplored. Furthermore, the factors driving this potential variation (e.g., ecology or evolutionary history) along with the effects of such variation on behavior are unknown. We used a behavioral assay under laboratory conditions to quantify the visual motion detection systems of three species of Puerto Rican Anolis lizard that prefer distinct structural habitat types. We then compared our results to data previously collected for anoles from Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Central America. Our findings indicate that general visual motion detection parameters are similar across species, regardless of habitat preference or evolutionary history. We argue that these conserved sensory properties may drive the evolution of visual communication behavior in this clade.
Feedback and the use of land for parking

Land-use patterns are often the result of feedback effects in which one agent's decision both influences and is influenced by urban form. This paper argues that such feedback---of a positive or negative kind---could plausibly arise in the provision of off-street parking. A stylized model is used to illustrate feedback in the case of bundled parking, to note how such feedback may change a neighborhood in the long run and to analyze several policies. A theme is that feedback opens the door to surprising effects that are hard to predict from the status quo.
A cleansing fire: Moral outrage alleviates guilt and buffers threats to one’s moral identity

Why do people express moral outrage? While this sentiment often stems from a perceived violation of some moral principle, we test the counter-intuitive possibility that moral outrage at third-party transgressions is sometimes a means of reducing guilt over one’s own moral failings and restoring a moral identity. We tested this guilt-driven account of outrage in five studies examining outrage at corporate labor exploitation and environmental destruction. Study 1 showed that personal guilt uniquely predicted moral outrage at corporate harm-doing and support for retributive punishment. Ingroup (vs. outgroup) wrongdoing elicited outrage at corporations through increased guilt, while the opportunity to express outrage reduced guilt (Study 2) and restored perceived personal morality (Study 3). Study 4 tested whether effects were due merely to downward social comparison and Study 5 showed that guilt-driven outrage was attenuated by an affirmation of moral identity in an unrelated context.
Systemanweisungen für den Aktiven Arbeitsbereich

Die Systemanweisungen in diesem Kapitel befassen sich mit dem Inhalt des aktiven Arbeitsbereiches; Mit den Gegenstanden und den Unterbrechungsdaten.
Acceptability and feasibility of physician-based activity counseling: The PAL project

Abstract Background: The continued prevalence of sedentary behavior in older adults underscores the need for physical activity promotion. Physician-delivered activity counseling may be an important avenue of promoting physical activity for these individuals. The Physically Active for Life (PAL) project was a randomized study of the effects of brief physician counseling plus follow-up on physical activity behaviors in older adults. Method: Twelve practices were randomized to the intervention group and 12 to standard care. Physicians in the intervention group participated in a 1-hour training session and received support materials for exercise counseling. Pre-assessment and post-assessment of self-reported exercise counseling behaviors and confidence in providing exercise counseling were obtained from physicians in the study. Patient evaluations of the exercise counseling and support materials were also obtained. Results: Results showed that physicians favorably endorsed the training and the support materials, and reported adherence to delivery of the intervention protocol. Comparisons between the two groups showed significant improvements in confidence for intervention-group physicians, but no significant changes in physician reports of exercise counseling provided to all patients. Patients reported satisfaction with the exercise counseling and support materials. Conclusions: Physicians and patients indicated the PAL project offered an acceptable and feasible approach to promote physical activity in older adults.
Term Validation for Vocabulary Construction and Key Term Extraction

We extract new terminology from a text by term validation in a dictionary. Our approach is based on estimating probabilities for previously unseen terms, i.e. not present in a dictionary. To do this we apply several probabilistic models previously not used for term recognition and propose a new one. We apply restriction of domain similarity on terms used for probability estimation and vary the parameters of the models. Performance of our approach is demonstrated using Wikipedia titles vocabulary.
Affordability of Fertility Treatments and Multiple Births in the United States

Background Affordability plays an important role in the utilisation of in vitro fertilisation (IVF) and non-IVF fertility treatments. Fertility treatments are associated with increased risk of multiple births. The objective of this study was to investigate the association between the affordability of fertility treatments across US states and the percentage of multiple births due to natural conception, non-IVF treatments, and IVF, and the association between these percentages and state-specific multiple birth rates. Methods State-specific per capita disposable personal income and state-specific infertility insurance mandates were used as measures of affordability. Maternal age-adjusted percentages of multiple births due to natural conception, non-IVF treatments, and IVF were estimated for each state using birth certificate and IVF data. Scatter plots and regression analysis were used to explore associations between state-level measures of affordability, the percentage of multiple births due to natural conception and fertility treatments, and state-specific multiple birth rates. Results In 2013, age-adjusted contributions of natural conception, non-IVF fertility treatments, and IVF to multiple births in US were 58.2, 22.8, and 19.0% respectively. States with greater affordability of fertility treatments had higher percentages of multiples due to IVF and lower percentages due to natural conception. Higher percentages of multiples due to IVF and lower percentages due to natural conception were associated with higher state-specific multiple birth rates. Conclusion Increasing affordability of fertility treatments may increase state-specific multiple birth rates. Policies and treatment practices encouraging single-gestation pregnancies may help reduce multiple births resulting from these treatments.
Freshwater stingrays, Potamotrygon spp.: failure to concentrate urea when exposed to saline medium.

Abstract South American freshwater stingrays, which lack the high urea content characteristics of all marine and euryhaline elasmobranchs, fail to build up their urea concentration appreciably even when exposed to a saline environment gradually increased to a concentration approaching that of full strength sea water over a period of as much as six days. In a hypertonic external medium, osmolality of body fluid rises somewhat, but largely by an increase of sodium chloride rather than by urea accumulation.
Sexual risk among African American girls seeking psychiatric care: A social-personal framework.

OBJECTIVE This study examined individual and social factors associated with sexual risk behavior among African American girls seeking outpatient mental health services across 2 years and key developmental transitions. METHOD African American females 12-16 years old (M = 14.5; SD = 1.15; n = 266) were recruited from eight outpatient mental health clinics and completed interviewer-administered and computer-assisted measures at baseline, 12, and 24 months. Analyses tested individual attributes (externalizing and internalizing problems) and family context (maternal acceptance-rejection, mother-daughter communication about sex) at baseline, peer influences (peer support of substance use, girlfriend dating behavior) and partner relationship characteristics (rejection sensitivity, partner risk communication frequency and openness) at 12 months, and girls' sexual behavior at 24 months. RESULTS At baseline, 32% of girls reported having had vaginal/anal sex compared with 60% at 24 months. Data analyses revealed robust associations between externalizing problems and maternal acceptance-rejection and mother-daughter risk communication during early adolescence, peer support of substance use and girlfriend dating behavior 1 year later, and girls' sexual risk taking 2 years later. CONCLUSION Findings support a social-personal framework (SPF) of sexual risk for African American girls seeking mental health care, underscoring the potential benefits of early intervention to reduce externalizing problems while strengthening mother-daughter communication and relationships to prevent subsequent sexual risk and associated negative outcomes. (PsycINFO Database Record
Decreasing deceased donor transplant rates among children (≤6 years) under the new kidney allocation system.

The Kidney Allocation System (KAS) was implemented in December 2014 with unknown impact on the pediatric waitlist. To understand the effect of KAS on pediatric registrants, deceased donor kidney transplant (DDKT) rate was assessed using interrupted time series analysis and time-to-event analysis. Two allocation eras were defined with an intermediary washout period: Era 1 (01/01/2013-09/01/2014), Era 2 (09/01/2014-03/01/2015), and Era 3(03/01/2015-03/01/2017). When using Cox proportional hazards, there was no significant association between allocation era and DDKT likelihood as compared to Era 1 (Era 3: aHR: 1.07, 95% CI: 0.97-1.18, P = .17). However, this was not consistent across all subgroups. Specifically, while highly sensitized pediatric registrants were consistently less likely to be transplanted than their less sensitized counterparts, this disparity was attenuated in Era 3 (Era 1 aHR: 0.04, 95%CI: 0.01-0.14, P < .001; Era 3 aHR: 0.33, 95% CI: 0.21-0.53, P < .001) whereas the youngest registrants aged 0-6 experienced a 21% decrease in DDKT likelihood in Era 3 as compared to Era 1 (aHR: 0.79, 95% CI: 0.64-0.98, P = .03). Thus, while overall DDKT likelihood remained stable with the introduction of KAS, registrants ≤ 6 years of age were disadvantaged, warranting further study to ensure equitable access to transplantation.
Hybrid.JSON: High-velocity parallel in-memory polystore JSON ingest

Hybrid.poly is an in-memory polystore data management system, able to ingest various kinds of data and run complex analytical workloads on the ingested data [Gubanov, 2017], [Podkorytov et al., 2017]. Hybrid.JSON, a part of [Gubanov, 2017] focuses on ingesting and querying JSON documents in the polystore.
A Stable and Electrocatalytic Iron Electrode for Oxygen Evolution in Alkaline Water Electrolysis

Iron electrodes disintegrate in alkali at the anodic potentials needed for oxygen evolution. Hence, relatively expensive nickel-based electrodes and substrates have been the workhorse of materials for industrial water electrolysis. We report here a novel surface-modification method that transforms iron into an electrocatalytically-active and robust oxygen evolution electrode for alkaline water electrolysis. This surface modification consists of an electrochemical oxidation step followed by a thermal decomposition step. The electrochemical oxidation of the iron substrate in alkali transformed the surface to high surface area iron(II) hydroxide with a coral-like morphology that converted to magnetite upon heat treatment. On this high-surface area substrate an electrocatalytic layer of amorphous nickel hydroxide was produced by the thermal decomposition step. Such a surface-modified iron electrode exhibited an extremely low overpotential of 195 mV at 10 mA/cm2 and a low Tafel slope of 43 mV/decade. The electrochemical oxidation step during preparation results in doubling of the electrochemically active area. Even after 1500 h of oxygen evolution at 10 mA/cm2, there was no noticeable change in the electrode potential, morphology, or surface composition of these iron electrodes. This durability was attributed to the conductive oxide layer of magnetite that protects iron surface at the anodic potentials of oxygen evolution. The remarkable electrocatalytic activity was attributed to the amorphous layer of nickel hydroxide. Development of such a robust and electrochemically-active iron electrode presents a unique opportunity for the advancement of alkaline water electrolysis.
Glycogen synthase kinase 3 inhibition lowers PD-1 expression, promotes long-term survival and memory generation in antigen-specific CAR-T cells.

Abstract Successful remission in hematological cancers by CAR-T cell immunotherapy has yet to be replicated in solid tumors like GBM. A significant impediment of CAR-T immunotherapy in solid tumors is poor exposure of T cells to tumor antigens resulting in suboptimal CAR-T cell activation, which ultimately fails to induce a robust anti-tumor immune response. Costimulatory moieties in advanced-generation CARs, along with additional IL2 therapy has been shown to be insufficient to overcome this hurdle and have its cytotoxic limitations. GSK3 is constitutively active in naive T cells and is transiently inactivated during T cell activation resulting in rapid T cell proliferation. Pharmacologic inhibition of GSK3 in GBM-specific CAR-T cells reduced FasL expression, increased T cell proliferation and reduced exhaustion by lowering PD-1 levels resulting in the development of CAR-T effector memory phenotype. Treatment with GSK3-inhibited CAR-T cells resulted in 100% tumor elimination during the tumor-rechallenge experiment in GBM-bearing animals and increased accumulation of memory CAR-T cells in secondary lymphoid organs. These adjuvant-like effects of GSK3 inhibition on activated CAR-T cells may be a valuable adjunct to a successful implementation of CAR-T immunotherapy against GBM and other solid tumors.
Principles of Embedding and Common Protocols

Embedding techniques were first developed in the mid 1800s in response to the significant improvements in light microscopy. As the resolution of microscopy increased, so did the need for improved quality of the tissue specimens to be analyzed. The specimens needed to be cut in much thinner slices, which could only be done if embedded in a suitable medium supporting the material and providing the hardness required for thinner sectioning. Edwin Klebs introduced the paraffin-embedding methodology in 1869.18 However, at that time, the material was not completely infiltrated with paraffin and the sections were cut freehand with a razor.
Chlorella algal viruses.

Eukaryotic algae play a significant role in aquatic environments, both as primary producers and as potential pollutants. Some algae such as Chlamydomonas spp. and Chlorella spp. have also served as model systems for studying such diverse subjects as photosynthesis, cell cycle regulation, cell motility, and non-Mendelian (chloroplast) inheritance, Eukaryotic algae are also potential food sources for animals and humans (15). However, except for a few ultrastructural reports indicating that some isolates of eukaryotic algae contain virus-like particles (VLPs), almost no information exists on viruses in this important plant group (for reviews, see Ref. 5, 6, 9, 16, and 21).
Phase I/II trial of dasatinib and osimertinib in patients with advanced EGFR-mutant non-small cell lung cancer.

TPS9113Background: Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations are one of the most common driver oncogenes in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). While the presence of these mutations predict...
Modeling Neural Adaptation in Auditory Cortex

Neural responses recorded from auditory cortex exhibit adaptation, a stimulus-specific decrease that occurs when the same sound is presented repeatedly. Stimulus-specific adaptation is thought to facilitate perception in noisy environments. Although adaptation is assumed to arise independently from cortex, this has been difficult to validate directly in vivo. In this study, we used a neural network model of auditory cortex with multicompartmental cell modeling to investigate cortical adaptation. We found that repetitive, non-adapted inputs to layer IV neurons in the model elicited frequency-specific decreases in simulated single neuron, population-level and local field potential (LFP) activity, consistent with stimulus-specific cortical adaptation. Simulated recordings of LFPs, generated solely by excitatory post-synaptic inputs and recorded from layers II/III in the model, showed similar waveform morphologies and stimulus probability effects as auditory evoked responses recorded from human cortex. We tested two proposed mechanisms of cortical adaptation, neural fatigue and neural sharpening, by varying the strength and type of inter- and intra-layer synaptic connections (excitatory, inhibitory). Model simulations showed that synaptic depression modeled in excitatory (AMPA) synapses was sufficient to elicit a reduction in neural firing rate, consistent with neural fatigue. However, introduction of lateral inhibition from local layer II/III interneurons resulted in a reduction in the number of responding neurons, but not their firing rates, consistent with neural sharpening. These modeling results demonstrate that adaptation can arise from multiple neural mechanisms in auditory cortex.
LGBTQ+ Youth’s Experiences and Engagement in Physical Activity: A Comprehensive Content Analysis

Research suggests that sexual and gender minority (e.g., lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning; LGBTQ+) youth report avoiding physical activity settings (e.g., physical education class, locker rooms, and sport fields) due to feeling both unsafe and uncomfortable. These feelings and experiences might deter LGBTQ+ youth from achieving well-documented physical, cognitive, and social-emotional benefits that are often associated with physical activity and sport involvement. A 20-year (1998–2018) content analysis methodology was employed to obtain a more detailed understanding of LGBTQ+ youth’s participation and engagement in physical activity and sport. Minimal literature was obtained (n = 13 studies), along with an overall pattern that sexual minority youth engage in less physical activity than other populations of students. This disparity was more conclusive for sexual minority males then sexual minority females. One study was inclusive of transgender youth and suggested that transgender youth participated in sport to a similar degree as their cisgender peers; though overall, transgender youth felt less safe in typically gender-segregated spaces such as bathrooms and locker rooms. This review shines light on discrepancies of engagement and feelings of safety in the physical activity and sport context among LGBTQ+ youth. This review further delineates methodological characteristics of the yielded studies as a means to comprehensively review this body of literature.
Complete Genome Sequence of Salmonella enterica Serovar Heidelberg Myophage Meda.

ABSTRACT Salmonella enterica serovar Heidelberg is a multidrug-resistant foodborne pathogen that originated from poultry and cattle. Bacteriophages isolated for this pathogen may be used as biocontrol agents in food products or animals for preventing Salmonella foodborne diseases. Here, we present the complete genome sequence of Salmonella Heidelberg phage Meda.
Dynamic Omnidirectional Texture Synthesis for Photorealistic Virtual Content Creation

We present a dynamic omnidirectional texture synthesis (DOTS) approach for generating real-time virtual reality content captured using a consumer-grade RGB-D camera. Compared to a single fixed-viewpoint color map, view-dependent texture mapping (VDTM) techniques can reproduce finer detail and replicate dynamic lighting effects that become especially noticeable with head tracking in virtual reality. However, VDTM is very sensitive to errors such as missing data or inaccurate camera pose estimation, both of which are commonplace for objects captured using consumer-grade RGB-D cameras. To overcome these limitations, our proposed optimization can synthesize a high resolution view-dependent texture map for any virtual camera location. Synthetic textures are generated by uniformly sampling a spherical virtual camera set surrounding the virtual object, thereby enabling efficient real-time rendering for all potential viewing directions.
Towards a compilation paradigm for computational applications on the information power grid

The Information Power Grid (IPG) refers to the world-wide infrastructure of computers and their interconnections. We are only at the very beginning of exploring applications and system software that can exploit these resources effectively and, at the same time, provide adequate interfaces to the programmer and end-user. In this paper we discuss compiler technology that serves this purpose. The core consists of methods and services that enable an application to adapt flexibly to the dynamically changing nature of the IPG. We present several applications that demonstrate performance opportunities in such scenarios. We then present and evaluate new compiler techniques and services that allow an application to be dynamically re-optimized as the execution environments change. One very important property of such system support is that the overheads of dynamic re-optimizations are kept small. We will show that this is the case for the presented techniques. The resulting applications can run close to the best performance that could be obtained with prior knowledge of the runtime situations.
The Edge-ification of the Internet: Implications for the Wireless Edge

With the shift toward Cloud computing, the phrase "the Cloudification of the Internet" was coined; services were out-sourced to large warehouse-sized datacenters that were often co-located near hydro-electric plants. Those services included compute, storage, networking, data management, control, etc. The pendulum however has swung back in the other direction. Cloud computing has been upended by the emergence of Edge computing. This disruption, "the Edge-ification of the Internet", is due in part to the growth of the Internet of Things (IoT) and the many IoT use cases for which the Cloud infrastructure is ill-suited or unusable. While the network is still evolving to support a closer partnership between back-end datacenter Clouds and local Edge resources, there is the longer-term ambition to offer a seamless continuum of Edges at varying distances from end devices and to enable their self-organization. At the same time, the ever-increasing number of wireless IoT devices far surpasses the number of people on Earth, the number of mobile devices eclipses the number of fixed hosts, and ever more network traffic originates from wireless and mobile devices. Wireless devices and networks would seem to have come into their own. Thus in this talk, I examine the impact of Edge-ification on next generation wireless networks. From an industry perspective, I highlight technologies that are pivotal to this network transformation, including: private networks that leverage carrier-free connectivity; time-sensitive networks that deliver determinism not easily obtainable in the wide-area Internet; and programmable networks that question the need for standards altogether. From a cross-layer perspective, I touch on up-the-stack concerns that figure strongly in the Edge narrative: in-network computation, joint optimization algorithms, data stewardship, and interoperability standards. From an eco-system perspective, I speculate that there are different business models that challenge the status quo. Finally, I raise the urgent concern that we as an industry should be role modeling Climate leadership and what that might look like for Edge deployments.
H-SIMO: A Hybrid Single-Inductor Multi-Output 5-Level Thin-Oxide Power Management Unit Achieving 91.4% Efficiency from Li-ion Battery Voltages in 28nm FD-SOI

This paper presents a miniaturized Li-ion-compatible 5-level hybrid single-inductor multi-output (H-SIMO) power management unit (PMU) in 28nm FD-SOI for powering IoT devices. Miniaturization is achieved by combining the benefits of SIMO converters with the benefits of hybrid multi-level converters. The PMU is implemented in 28nm FD-SOI in an arrangement that naturally exploits the required transistor stacking of a 5-level converter to enable full coverage of the 2.8-4.2V Li-ion battery voltage range using only 1V thin-oxide transistors. The 0.42mm2 die independently regulates three different outputs over 0.4-0.9V from 10µW to 40mW using a single 1.28mm3 inductor with 91.4% peak efficiency.
Residency Program Reputation Influences the American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons Match Results.

BACKGROUND No data evaluate the impact that an applicant's residency program reputation has on the outcome of the American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons (AAHKS) fellowship match. This study sought to determine if an applicant's residency program ranking was associated with where the applicant matched on their rank list. METHODS We included all the US applicants from the "San Francisco Match" regarding AAHKS applicant data and match results from 2014 to 2018. Residency programs were divided into 5 tiers based on 2018 Doximity ranking of Orthopedic Residency Programs. Statistical analysis consisted of descriptive statistics, chi-squared tests, and analysis of variance. RESULTS In total, 656 applicants met inclusion criteria (620 males; 36 females). Tier 1 applicants applied to an average of 10 fewer programs than applicants from all other tiers. Eighteen percent of applicants from tier 1 residencies were offered interviews at 80%+ of their applied programs compared to 5% or less of the applicants from all other tiers. Applicants from top tier residencies matched at a significantly higher place on their rank list than other tiers (P < .05) and ranked into one of their first 2 choices 72% of the time. The mean fellowship rank position for tier 1 applicants was 5.96 compared to 7.04, 7.85, 7.78, and 8.10 for subsequent tiers, respectively (P < .05). CONCLUSION The fellowship match process represents a high-stakes and expensive process. This study found that applicants from more prestigious residency programs apply to fewer programs, gain more interviews, and match higher on their rank list than applicants from other residency programs.
Platelet mediated TRAIL delivery for efficiently targeting circulating tumor cells

Several studies have demonstrated the role of platelets in promoting cancer metastasis. Platelets bind to and protect circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from hemodynamic forces and immune cells, and also promote tumor cell arrest in the vasculature and extravasation. Thus, platelets represent a promising vehicle to deliver anticancer therapeutic agents to CTCs. In this study, we developed a novel platelet-mediated TNF-related apoptosis inducing ligand (TRAIL) delivery system to target CTCs and hinder metastasis via “in situ” platelet modification. This platelet-mediated TRAIL delivery significantly reduced the viability of colorectal and breast cancer cells circulating in flowing blood under physiological shear conditions. TRAIL-coated platelets significantly killed over 60% of CTCs in flowing blood from a variety of primary metastatic cancer samples. Platelets have been considered an important player in the regulation of metastasis due to their interaction with cancer cells in the circulation; the current study supports the idea of using platelet-based TRAIL delivery as a promising CTC-targeted cancer therapy.
Using machine learning for real-time BAC estimation from a new-generation transdermal biosensor in the laboratory.

Abstract Background Transdermal biosensors offer a noninvasive, low-cost technology for the assessment of alcohol consumption with broad potential applications in addiction science. Older-generation transdermal devices feature bulky designs and sparse sampling intervals, limiting potential applications for transdermal technology. Recently a new-generation of transdermal device has become available, featuring smartphone connectivity, compact designs, and rapid sampling. Here we present initial laboratory research examining the validity of a new-generation transdermal sensor prototype. Methods Participants were young drinkers administered alcohol (target BAC = .08 %) or no-alcohol in the laboratory. Participants wore transdermal sensors while providing repeated breathalyzer (BrAC) readings. We assessed the association between BrAC (measured BrAC for a specific time point) and eBrAC (BrAC estimated based only on transdermal readings collected in the immediately preceding time interval). Extra-Trees machine learning algorithms, incorporating transdermal time series features as predictors, were used to create eBrAC. Results Failure rates for the new-generation prototype sensor were high (16 %–34 %). Among participants with useable new-generation sensor data, models demonstrated strong capabilities for separating drinking from non-drinking episodes, and significant (moderate) ability to differentiate BrAC levels within intoxicated participants. Differences between eBrAC and BrAC were 60 % higher for models based on data from old-generation vs new-generation devices. Model comparisons indicated that both time series analysis and machine learning contributed significantly to final model accuracy. Conclusions Results provide favorable preliminary evidence for the accuracy of real-time BAC estimates from a new-generation sensor. Future research featuring variable alcohol doses and real-world contexts will be required to further validate these devices.
The impact of coronavirus 2019 on general surgery residency: A national survey of program directors

Abstract Background Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has had a widespread impact on graduate medical education. This survey aims to assess how general surgery residency programs adapted to the initial wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States (US). Materials and methods General surgery program directors (PDs) in the US were invited to partake in a 16-question survey between April 17 and May 1, 2020. The survey included questions about basic program information, clinical practice changes, changes to education structure, surgery resident clinical duties, and perceived impact on resident operative experience and future career choices. Results Forty-eight PDs completed the survey in the designated two-week period. Almost all (44/48, 91.7%) programs changed their didactic education to an online video conference-based format. Thirteen programs (27.1%) decreased the amount/frequency of formal education, and 13 (27.1%) reported canceling didactic education for some period of time. The majority of PDs (26/48, 54.2%) felt these changes had no impact on resident didactic participation, 14 (29.2%) reported an increase in participation, and 8 (16.7%) reported decreased participation. Ten programs (20.8%) redeployed residents to non-surgical services at the time of this survey, 30 (62.5%) have not redeployed residents but plan to if needed, and 8 (16.7%) did not have any plans to redeploy residents. Conclusions The outbreak of COVID-19 has required general surgery residency PDs to change numerous aspects of resident education and clinical roles. Future inquiry is needed to assess if these changes lead to appreciable differences in resident preparedness and career selection.
Differential responses to therapy in Hispanic NSCLC patients with EGFR, KRAS, or TP53 mutations.

e21027Background: Hispanic (H) patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) tend to have more advanced disease at time of diagnosis and less likely to receive treatment compared to non-Hispanic...
Language changes medical judgments and beliefs

Aims and objectives:How health risks are communicated can have a substantial impact on medical judgments and choice. Here, we examine whether the language used to process health-related information...
Minimax Bounds for Blind Network Inference

We take the first step towards understanding the fundamental limits of blind wireless network inference performed by a distributed network of single-antenna adversary nodes. The distributed adversary nodes are assumed to be blind to the protocol parameters as well as the modulation, coding and encryption schemes used by the network being monitored. Focusing on the special case of inferring the channel access probabilities of the monitored nodes, we derive minimax bounds for blind inference. We show that blind inference is possible with similar sample complexity (asymptotically) as non-blind inference given certain network connectivity conditions are satisfied.
A field theoretic approach to the analysis of practical coupled dielectric resonators

Conventional methods for the analysis of dielectric resonators utilize the mode-matching technique. Other methods have also been used. However, most of the analysis exists for analysis of single resonators. However, for practical dielectric resonators (when more than one loaded cavity is used) there may be apertures coupling one resonator to the other. In addition there may be probes coupling one resonator to the other to carry out response shaping or even cancel out the effects of the higher order modes. Also, probes may be utilized to couple energy into and out of the resonators. The high dielectric constant resonator is generally placed on top of a low dielectric constant material for support. Hence an effective analysis modeling is necessary which will predict the actual experimental data accurately if the appropriate material properties are correctly specified for coupled multiple dielectric resonators. This includes analysis of dielectric resonators with aperture couplings along with probe feeds.
Information Structure in Subordinate and Subordinate-Like Clauses

While information structure has traditionally been viewed as a single partition of information within an utterance, there are opposing views that identify multiple such partitions in an utterance. The existence of alternative proposals raises questions about the notion of information structure and also its relation to discourse structure. Exploring various linguistic aspects, this paper supports the traditional view by arguing that there is no information structure partition within a subordinate clause.
Study of a numerical simulation for computing to accurate cutting with high-velocity waterjet

This paper aims at using a numerical simulation method to discuss the influence of the differences in designs of orifice geometries on coherent of the waterjets while cutting accurately with the high velocity waterjets system. In the study process, we set up the numerical models of standard waterjets including the water container of the pressure, orifice housing, and focusing tube at first. Then, infer the governing equations system that institute of computing needs (Two-dimensional axisymmetry system). Finally, according to the different conditions to simulate the influences on velocity distributions of waterjets when the designs of the orifice produce the centre line offset and lead edge cutting distance asymmetrically. The above-mentioned results of study are not only contributing to understanding the high velocity waterjets applying to practical accurate cuttings, but also it can be references on shipbuilding and relevant industries to develop and to design on watejets orifices.
Temperature-dependent material characterizations for thin epoxy FR-4/ E-Glass woven laminate

A rapid and flexible material characterization system is presented. With this computerized testing module, thermally expansional and monotonic tests have been conducted to determine the elastic behavior of thin epoxy FR-4/ E-Glass woven laminates under different temperature levels. In this research the electrical resistance strain gauge technique is used to evaluate the test methods for different material properties. This includes two main steps for each temperature level. First is to test thermal expansions under stress-free conditions and then to test linear elastic constants in two dimensional cases. The thin laminates are assumed to be linear and orthogonal. The temperature-dependent properties of interest are coefficients of thermal expansion (CTEs), Young's moduli, shear moduli, and Poisson's ratio. The temperature levels ranged between 23/spl deg/C and 150/spl deg/C, which is higher than the glass transition temperature (T/sub g/), 125/spl deg/C, of the tested material. The setup, the features and the capabilities of the automated material testing system are also discussed. >
Causal cosmological perturbations and implications for the Sachs-Wolfe effect

Gravitational perturbations in a Robertson-Walker (RW) universe induce fluctuations $\frac{\ensuremath{\delta}T}{T}$ in the microwave background due to the Sachs-Wolfe effect. We find that in RW spacetimes there exist general-relativistic generalizations of energy-momentum conservation for perturbations; perturbations must satisfy certain integral constraints. When the constraint conditions are applied to causal perturbations, there is a decrease in the predicted magnitude of the Sachs-Wolfe effect, of the order ${(1+z)}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$. Here $z$ is the red-shift when the universe becomes matter dominated. Exact solutions in position space of the perturbation variables are found by construction of a Green's function. In this form the solutions are manifestly causal.
A Marfan syndrome gene expression phenotype in cultured skin fibroblasts.

Marfan syndrome (MFS) is a heritable connective tissue disorder caused by mutations in the fibrillin-1 gene. This syndrome constitutes a significant identifiable subtype of aortic aneurysmal disease, accounting for over 5% of ascending and thoracic aortic aneurysms. We used spotted membrane DNA macroarrays to identify genes whose altered expression levels may contribute to the phenotype of the disease. Our analysis of 4132 genes identified a subset with significant expression differences between skin fibroblast cultures from unaffected controls versus cultures from affected individuals with known fibrillin-1 mutations. Subsequently, 10 genes were chosen for validation by quantitative RT-PCR. Differential expression of many of the validated genes was associated with MFS samples when an additional group of unaffected and MFS affected subjects were analyzed (p-value < 3 × 10-6 under the null hypothesis that expression levels in cultured fibroblasts are unaffected by MFS status). An unexpected observation was the range of individual gene expression. In unaffected control subjects, expression ranges exceeding 10 fold were seen in many of the genes selected for qRT-PCR validation. The variation in expression in the MFS affected subjects was even greater.
Form birefringence of layered media and volume gratings

We investigate the reflection at the interface between a homogeneous medium and a semi-infinite periodic layered medium. The result provides independent confirmation of the form birefringence of the periodic layered medium. In addition, our result shows a fundamental difference between the reflection at the interface between a homogeneous medium and a semi-infinite periodic layered medium and that of a Bragg reflector that consists of a large number of layers. We analyze the form birefringence induced by volume index gratings in a homogeneous medium. The extension of our analysis to multiple volume index gratings provides an explanation of the relationship between birefringence and crystal symmetry.
Raising the bar: cell phones the GGC way

Georgia Gwinnett College is the newest 4-year campus in the University System of Georgia. It opened its doors in August 2006 with a mission to maximize the use of technology toward enhancing instruction, collaboration, and student engagement. To that end, a cell phone program was initiated that provided a data capable smart phone to every faculty member and qualifying staff. Faculty were not responsible for holding office hours but instead were instructed to develop a "Technology Covenant" with their students. This Covenant indicated methods and times of proper communication that included text messaging, phone calling, and appointment scheduling. Since that time, the GGC Cell Phone Program has equipped over 600 cell phones or phone stipends to faculty and staff for enhancing student engagement and communications across campus. This paper will present outcomes, pros, and cons of supporting this initiative.
Progress in corrosion resistant materials for supercritical water reactors

Supercritical water reactors (SCWRs) are a kind of high-temperature, high-pressure water-cooled reactors that operate above the thermodynamic critical point of water (374 °C, 22.1 MPa). Corrosion and degradation of materials used in supercritical water environments are determined by several environment- and material-dependent factors. In particular, irradiation-induced changes in microstructure and microchemistry are major concerns in a nuclear reactor. Many structural materials including alloys and ceramics have been proposed for use as SCWR components or materials for applying protective coatings in SCWRs. Various surface modification processes are also explored to change the chemical composition and microstructure of the near surface regions. This article aims to provide an overview of recent materials developments for supercritical water reactors focusing mainly on the nuclear reactor applications. The emphasis is placed on the corrosion and degradation mechanisms and the selection criteria of materials. In addition, the development of new processes for surface modification of materials in SCWRs is also briefly reviewed. Finally, some perspectives on the direction of future research in this area are also outlined.
d-Amphetamine antagonizes prostaglandin E1-induced hyperthermia and suppression of fixed interval operant behavior in rats.

The experiments reported herein were designed to study the effects of prostaglandin F2a (PGE1 and PGE1 on operant behavior and rectal temperature of rats. A solution containing PGF2α or PGE1 was infused intracerebroventricularly into rats trained to press a lever for food reward on a fixed interval 75 second (FI 75 sec) schedule. PGF2α (10, 100 or 1000 ng/min) had no effect on FI 75 sec operant behavior. Only the highest dose increased temperature. PGE1 (100 ng/min) had no effect, whereas higher doses (250 and 500 ng/min) produced a rate-dependent effect on behavior, increasing low rates and decreasing high rates. The two higher doses also produced convulsions after about 25 min or 20 min infusions, respectively. PGE1 also increased temperature in a dose-dependent manner. Systemic administration of a low dose of d-amphetamine (0.5 mg/kg IP) had little or no effect on behavior or temperature. d-Amphetamine did not alter hyperthermia induced by the highest dose of PGF2α, but antagonized the PGE1-induced hyperthermia. d-Amphetamine also antagonized all of the behavioral effects of PGE1, including convulsions. The results are discussed in relation to the actions of PGs and d-amphetamine on catecholamine neurons in the central nervous system.
Aspiring to Greatness: WVU Since World War II and the Struggle for Self-Governance

This lecture was presented by WVU professor of history emeritus Ronald L. Lewis on November 5, 2013, as part of the Festival of Ideas Lecture Series at West Virginia University. In 1966, when David C. Hardesty was student body president, he inaugurated the series as a forum for new and innovative ideas. Newly appointed WVU president Hardesty brought the series back to life in 1995. The lecture is taken from Professor Lewis’s research for his book, Aspiring to Greatness: West Virginia University Since World War II (Morgantown: West Virginia University Press, 2013), the first study of the university in the modern era. Unless otherwise cited, all information presented in this lecture is cited in or quoted from Aspiring to Greatness .