cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Nascent Hairpins in Proteins: Identifying Turn Loci and Quantitating Turn Contributions to Hairpin Stability.

Many factors influence the stability of hairpins that could appear as foldons in partially folded states of proteins; of these, the propensity of certain amino acid sequences to favor conformations that serve to align potential β-strands for antiparallel association is likely the dominant feature. Quantitating turn propensities is viewed as the first step in developing an algorithm for locating nascent hairpins in protein sequences. Such nascent hairpins can serve to accelerate protein folding or, if they represent structural elements that differ from the final folded state, as kinetic traps. We have measured these “turn propensities” for the two most common turn types using a series of model peptide hairpins with four- and six-residue loops connecting the associated β-strands. Loops of four to six residues with specific turn sequences containing only natural l-amino acids and glycine can provide as much as 15 kJ/mol of hairpin stabilization versus loops lacking the defined turn loci. Single-site mutation...
The receptor for insulin-like growth factor II mediates an insulin-like response.

Abstract Insulin-like growth factor II (IGF-II) shares sequence homology and predicted three-dimensional structure with insulin and IGF-I. IGF-II can bind, therefore, to a limited extent with the receptors for these two other hormones, as well as to a distinct receptor for IGF-II. Previous studies have been unable to attribute a particular response of IGF-II through its own receptor. In the present studies, the IGF-II receptor is shown to mediate the stimulation of glycogen synthesis in human hepatoma cells since: (i) IGF-II is found to be capable of stimulating a response at concentrations in which it would primarily interact with its own receptor; (ii) the response to IGF-II was not blocked by monoclonal antibodies which inhibit the responses of cells through the insulin and IGF-I receptors; and (iii) polyclonal antibodies to the IGF-II receptor were found to mimic the ability of IGF-II to stimulate glycogen synthesis. These results indicate that the IGF-II receptor mediates a particular biological response--stimulation of glycogen synthesis in hepatoma cells. Furthermore, a monovalent Fab fragment of the polyclonal antibody to the IGF-II receptor was also shown to stimulate glycogen synthesis in these cells. These data indicate that clustering of the IGF-II receptor is not required to stimulate a biological response.
A liquid scintillator fast neutron double-scatter imager

A liquid scintillator fast neutron imager based on double-scatter neutron detection is in development for the purpose of identifying and locating special nuclear materials. A prototype instrument is being tested consisting of two planes of four 1 m × 5 cm × 5 cm liquid scintillator detectors each viewed at either end by a photomultiplier tube. The instrument is capable of reconstructing energy and location of a source of fast neutrons via time-of-flight and neutron double-scatter techniques. Pulse shape discrimination is utilized to separate neutron signals from gamma-ray background.
Increased Health Information Technology Adoption and Use Among Small Primary Care Physician Practices Over Time: A National Cohort Study

PURPOSE Implementation and meaningful use of health information technology (HIT) has been shown to facilitate delivery system transformation, yet implementation is far from universal. This study examined correlates of greater HIT implementation over time among a national cohort of small primary care practices in the United States. METHODS We used data from a 40-minute telephone panel survey of 566 small primary care practices having 8 or fewer physicians to investigate adoption and use of HIT in 2007–2010 and 2012–2013. We used generalized estimating equations (GEE) to estimate the association of practice characteristics and external incentives with the adoption and use of HIT. We studied 18 measures of HIT functionalities, including record keeping, clinical decision support, patient communication, and health information exchange with hospitals and pharmacies. RESULTS Overall, use of 16 HIT functionalities increased significantly over time, whereas use of 2 decreased significantly. On average, compared with physician-owned practices, hospital-owned practices used 1.48 (95% CI, 1.07–1.88; P CONCLUSIONS The new Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) will provide payment incentives and technical support to speed HIT adoption and use by small practices. We found that external incentives were, indeed, positively associated with greater adoption and use of HIT. Our findings also support a strategy of targeting assistance to smaller physician practices and those that are physician owned.
A MATLAB Toolbox for Estimating the Second Moments of Earthquake Ruptures

ABSTRACT I present a set of routines in MATLAB for estimating the second‐degree moments of an earthquake’s rupture from far‐field body waves. The second moments describe the length, width, duration, and directivity of a rupture. The second‐moments approach is particularly useful when a seismic dataset is dense enough to resolve the primary finite‐source properties but the geodetic data needed for a well‐resolved finite‐fault inversion are not available. In particular for M w 3–6 earthquakes, this approach can be a useful way to estimate rupture area without the assumptions of typical corner‐frequency approaches. The provided software utilizes empirical Green’s function deconvolution to isolate the apparent source time function (ASTF) for each station and phase. The spatial variations in the duration of the ASTF are quantified and inverted for the second moments. The inverse problem is solved using MATLAB’s convex optimization routines for systems of linear matrix inequalities. An error analysis using the jackknife and bootstrap methods is included. An example M w 4.7 earthquake from the San Jacinto fault is used to demonstrate the method.
The Cybernetic Approach and the Past

This chapter seeks to apply the cybernetic approach elaborated in the last chapter to an international environment of the past. If the cybernetic approach is useful, it should help improve our understanding of the past. Because we have a great amount of information about past events, the cybernetic approach can help us organize that information. The use of the cybernetic approach should also help us appreciate past events in relationship to current international conditions.
Notes on Cenozoic Muricidae from the Western Atlantic Region, with Descriptions of New Taxa

Nine new species-groups assigned to the subfamilies Muricinae and Tritonaliinae are described and one new subgenus lviiocenebra (Tritonaliinae) is proposed. Two additional species are refigured and reassigned.
Abstract 641: Renal Denervation does not Lower Blood Pressure in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats Treated with a Beta-1 Adrenergic Receptor Antagonist.

We have used the SHR as an animal model to understand how renal denervation (RDN) lowers blood pressure. In order to determine how concomitant antihypertensive drug therapy could affect the blood pressure response to RDN, we performed RDN both before and after chronic (several days) treatment via the drinking water with the selective alpha-1 adrenergic antagonist prazosin and the selective beta-1 adrenergic antagonist atenolol. In the presence of prazosin treatment, RDN (n=7) significantly (p
Social Risk and Resilience Factors in Adolescent Chronic Pain: Examining the Role of Parents and Peers.

Objective The current study focuses on social risk and resilience in an adolescent population with chronic pain. Prior research identifies parental cognitions and behaviors as influential in youths' experiences of chronic pain and pain-related disability. Adolescent development is characterized by greater autonomy from parents and an increased emphasis on peer relationships. Study aims explore the potential protective effect of high-quality adolescent peer relationships on associations between parent and adolescent cognitive and behavioral responses to pain. Method 238 adolescents with mixed-etiology chronic pain and their parents completed Pediatric Collaborative Health Outcomes Information Registry (Peds-CHOIR) electronic questionnaires prior to their initial visit to a tertiary pediatric pain clinic. Variables in this study include parent catastrophizing, parent protective behavior, adolescent peer relationship quality, adolescent catastrophizing, adolescent functional impairment, and demographic and pain characteristics. Results As expected, associations between parent and adolescent cognitive and behavioral pain responses were moderated by peer relationship quality. Contrary to expectations, for adolescents endorsing low-quality peer relationships, maladaptive adolescent outcomes were elevated across levels of parental cognitions and behaviors. For adolescents endorsing high-quality peer relationships, adolescent and parent pain responses were linearly related. Conclusions This study highlights the salience of both family and peer processes in functional outcomes among adolescents with chronic pain. Results suggest that adolescents' adaptive responses to chronic pain may be best supported by the simultaneous presence of adaptive parenting and high-quality peer relationships. Understanding the larger social context in which an adolescent exists is informative in specifying models that predict adaptive outcomes or magnify risks.
Simulation of thin-film battery response to periodic loading by a transition matrix approximation using boundary and nonlinearity error analysis

Abstract Simulating repeating loading events on dynamic systems can be challenging when large timescale disparities exist coupled with aperiodic effects. Batteries driving switched/pulsed loads represent one such situation. Large timescale disparity can be experienced by solid-state batteries driving switching microactuators or microelectronics, due to extremely short transient response times of microscale systems relative to some of the battery’s own dynamics. Projecting state changes over a long series of fast-timescale loading events using a transition matrix approach was shown previously to significantly reduce numerical expense of simulation compared to full modeling. Here we develop an approach for further accelerated simulation of a battery driving a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) actuator that quantifies errors and addresses overhead expenses in projecting battery states across multiple fast events. This is done with a definition of system states that allows efficient transition matrix generation, and an analysis of key errors associated with projection. This error analysis enables targeted modification to the transition matrix during projection. A case study explores these modeling approaches in a capacitively loaded, battery usage scenario of a piezoelectrically-driven microrobot where the proposed improvements reduce the numerical cost (function calls) by over 44x from the prior approach. Conditions for further simplified modeling are discussed.
Abstract TMP98: Could Mobile Health be an Effective Strategy for Enhancing Stroke Prevention?

Background: The overwhelming majority of strokes can be prevented via optimal vascular risk factor control. However, there remains an evidence practice gap with regard to treatment of vascular risk factors. With the rapid growth worldwide in cell-phone use, Internet connectivity, and digital health technology, mobile health (mHealth) technology may offer a promising approach to bridge these treatment gaps and reduce the global burden of stroke. Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of mHealth in vascular risk factor control through a systemic review and meta-analysis. Methods: We searched PubMed from January 1, 2000 to May 17, 2016 using keywords: mobile health, mhealth, short message, cellular phone, mobile phone, stroke prevention and control, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, hyperlipidemia and smoking cessation. We performed a meta-analysis of all eligible randomized control clinical trials that assessed the long-term (at 6 months) effect of mHealth. Results: Of 79 articles identified, 13 of them met eligibility criteria (6 for glycemic control and 7 for smoking cessation) and were included for the final meta-analysis. There were no eligible studies for dyslipidemia or hypertension. mHealth resulted in greater HbA1c reduction at 6 months (6 studies; 663 subjects; SMD: -0.44; 95% CI: [-0.82, -0.06], P =0.02; Mean difference of decrease in HbA1c: -0.39%; 95% CI: [-0.74,-0.04], P =0.03). mHealth also led to relatively higher smoking abstinence rates at 6 months (7 studies; 9,514 subjects; OR: 1.54; 95% CI: [1.24, 1.90], P Conclusion: Use of mHealth improves glycemic control and smoking abstinence rates, two factors that may lead to better stroke outcomes. Future mHealth studies should focus on modifying premier vascular risk factors like hypertension, specifically in people with or at risk of stroke.
A Finite Element-Based Injury Metric for Pulmonary Contusion: Investigation of Candidate Metrics Through Correlation with Computed Tomography

Pulmonary contusion (PC) is the most common thoracic soft tissue injury following non-penetrating blunt trauma and has been associated with mortality rates as high as 25%. This study is part of an ongoing effort to develop a finite element based injury criteria for PC. The aims of this study are two fold. The first is to investigate the use of computed tomography (CT) to quantify the volume of pathologic lung tissue in a prospective study of PC. The second is to use a finite element model (FEM) of the lung to investigate several mathematical predictors of contusion to determine the injury metric that best matches the spatial distribution of contusion obtained from the CT analysis. PC is induced in-situ utilizing male Sprague Dawley rats (n = 24) through direct impact to the right lung at 5.0 ms(-1). Force vs. deflection data are collected and used for model validation and optimization. CT scans are taken at 24 hours, 48 hours, 1 week, and 1 month post contusion. A numerical simulation is performed using an FEM of the rat lung and surrounding structures. Injury predictors investigated include maximum first principal strain, maximum shear strain, triaxial mean strain, octahedral shear stress, and maximum shear stress. Strain rate and the product of strain and strain rate are evaluated for all listed strains. At each post-impact time point, the volume of contused lung is used to determine the specific elements representing pathologic lung. Through this method, a threshold is determined for all listed metrics. The spatial distribution of the elements exceeding this threshold is compared to the spatial distribution of high-radiopacity lung tissue in the CT through a three dimensional registration technique to determine the predictor with the best correlation to the outcome. Impacts resulted in a mean energy input to the lung of 8.74 +/- 2.5 mJ. Segmentation of the imaging data yielded a mean unilateral high-radiopacity tissue estimate of 14.5% by volume at 24 hours with decreasing high-radiopacity lung volume at later time points. Significant differences in the volume of high radiopacity (HR) tissue were noted at 1 week and 1 month post contusion. The best fit injury metric at the 24 hour time point was the product of maximum principal strain and strain rate, with a value of 28.5 sec(-1). The maximum principal strain, and the maximum principal strain rate also characterized the distribution of pathology well with the proposed threshold for injury at 24 hours post-insult being 15.4 % and 304 sec(-1) respectively. This study quantifies pulmonary contusion via CT, an attractive modality due to its sensitivity to this lesion and widespread use in trauma centers. The study also presents a novel spatial validation technique for correlation of mathematical predictors to volumetric contusion data; a technique that may be extended to other injuries and modalities as well.
Radiative Association: Summary of Workshop Presentations

It became evident early in the meeting that a number of people had been thinking about radiative association of ions with neutral molecules, and the workshop gave a timely opportunity to bring some of these thoughts together. The groups of Bartmess, Dunbar, McMahon and Ridge have all gathered data on radiative association reactions in the ICR ion trap. The theoretical scheme presented by the author suggests a semiquantitative framework for interpretation, correlation and prediction of radiative association reactions of this type, involving fairly large molecules near room temperature. Gerlich’s work represents some of the work being done on smaller systems of particular astrophysical interest, and Bierbaum’s results consider the possible importance of radiative processes under flowing-afterglow conditions.
From Multi-Rate Circuit Switching to Fast Packet Switching

In practice, many large capacity switching systems have switching networks with more than three stages. The complexity of the control algorithm is a major bottleneck on the rate at which circuits can be established. The circuit rearrangement algorithms studied in chapter 3 require excessive computation. Circuit rearrangement algorithms are seldom used in practice. Instead a depth-first-search circuit hunting algorithm is usually employed. This is described in section 5.1.
Plasma vitamin K1 level is decreased in primary biliary cirrhosis.

Objective: To measure directly plasma vitamin K 1 in patients with primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) and to examine the relationship between vitamin K 1 level, prothrombin time, other fat-soluble vitamin levels, and severity of cholestasis. Methods: We directly measured levels of vitamin K 1 (phylloquinone) in the plasma of 77 patients with PBC using reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography, along with serum levels of vitamins A, E, and 25-OH vitamin D. Results: Median plasma vitamin K 1 level was significantly lower in PBC patients compared with 255 normal subjects (0.65 nmol/L; range, 0.05-4.13, vs 0.95 nmol/L; range, 0.2-4.92; p < 0.0001). Of 77 PBC patients, 18 (23%) patients had levels below the normal range for plasma vitamin K 1 (<0.3 nmol/L). Only 1 of the 18 patients with decreased vitamin K 1 had a prolonged prothrombin time. There was no correlation between vitamin K 1 level and prothrombin time in the PBC patients (p = 0.75); there was also no difference in prothrombin time between PBC patients with low vitamin K 1 level and PBC patients with normal vitamin K 1 level (10.3 vs 10.0 seconds; p = 0.28). PBC patients with decreased vitamin K 1 levels had significantly lower vitamin A and vitamin E levels, and significantly higher serum bilirubin levels than those with normal vitamin K 1 levels. Conclusion: Decreased plasma vitamin K 1 level is common in PBC, and is associated with decreased serum levels of vitamins A and E. However, the majority of PBC patients with decreased plasma vitamin K 1 levels have normal prothrombin times. Although the prothrombin time is an insensitive marker of vitamin K 1 status in PBC patients, clinically important vitamin K deficiency seems uncommon.
The Role of Autoimmunity in the Pathogenesis of Obliterative Bronchiolitis

Many risk factors and post-transplant events have been linked to the development of bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome. Evolving research suggests that the development of cell-mediated and humoral reactivity to self-antigens (collagen V, K-α1 tubulin) in the lung allograft may play a very significant role in the bronchiolar inflammation and fibrosis that lead to obliterative bronchiolitis and progressive graft dysfunction and loss. Alloimmune and autoimmune mechanisms likely work together to mediate chronic lung allograft rejection. This chapter examines the role of autoimmunity in bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome with a focus on the role of Th17 lymphocytes, IL-17, and immune regulatory mechanisms in the development and progression of obliterative bronchiolitis.
The Impact of Film Deposition Temperature and Bottom Liner on the Hardness and Grain Size of Al Films Investigated Using Nanoindentation and SEM Techniques

Materials characterization at micro- and nano- scale is important for developing robust processes in wafer fabrication. In this paper, the techniques of nanoindentation and SEM imaging are employed to study the material hardness and grain size of Al films grown under different conditions. The methodology developed by Oliver and Phar is used for Al hardness measurements while ASTM International Standard E112-12 was followed in estimating the Al grain size. It will be shown that deposition temperature of Al thin film is the bigger factor in influencing the grain size of the resulting Al film as compared to changes made to its underlying bottom liner (TiN). However, in terms of film hardness, the elimination of the bottom liner exerts a greater influence as compared to deposition temperature.
Do analyst teams issue higher quality forecasts? Evidence from analyst reports

Despite significant regulatory and academic interest in sell-side analyst forecasts and an extensive literature demonstrating the impact of teamwork in general, we lack evidence of the effect of teamwork on analyst forecasts. In 2005 analyst teams issued nearly three-fourths of analyst reports for a sample of 89 large, heavily followed companies. Over a twelve-year period 86 of those companies had more reports issued by analyst teams than by individual analysts. Using a hand-collected sample of more than 17,000 analyst reports, I document that forecasts issued by analyst teams systematically differ from the forecasts of individual analysts in ways predicted by team literature. I find that prior to the year 2000 analyst teams issue forecasts that are less accurate and more biased than forecasts issued by individual analysts. Beginning in 2000, the relative benefit of analyst teamwork strengthens, consistent with changes due to Regulation Fair Disclosure, brokerage closures, and other regulatory interventions. In addition I find that, within company-year, team-issued forecasts are less pessimistically biased but not less optimistically biased than the forecasts issued by individual analysts. Lastly, the benefits of teamwork vary with the size of the team and over the life of the team, following an inverted u-shaped pattern. My results inform regulators as they consider factors that impact analyst forecast accuracy and bias.
Percutaneous Assist Devices as Salvage from Cardiogenic Shock

Cardiogenic shock is a result of inadequate tissue perfusion due to reduced cardiac output. There are multiple causes of cardiogenic shock, including acute ischemia, structural heart issue, valvular dysfunction, or chronic ventricular dysfunction. Regardless of the etiology, there is significant morbidity and mortality associated with cardiogenic shock. A number of percutaneous devices have been developed and utilized in the treatment and stabilization of patients with cardiogenic shock. These devices include intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP), Impella, TandemHeart and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). Choice of which percutaneous ventricular device to use in specific situations will result from consideration of a number associated clinical factors.
They watch for color: mixed-status couples experience with the police

ABSTRACTThis research qualitatively examines experiences with the police for 42 interracial mixed-status couples, living or originating mainly from the Southern United States. Race-based policing o...
Implementing a Standardized Clinical Pathway Leads to Reduced Asthma Admissions and Health Care Costs.

Introduction Asthma exacerbations are 1 of the leading causes of hospital admissions in children in the United States. High volumes in the emergency department can lead to delayed treatment. Several studies have shown that implementation of a standardized clinical pathway can improve adherence to evidence-based standards. The purpose of our quality improvement project was to develop a standardized pathway of care for children with asthma exacerbations to improve time to treatment and reduce admissions. Methods The team used process mapping to review the current process of care for patients with asthma exacerbations presenting to the Emergency Department. After identification of several barriers, the team used plan-do-study-act cycles to develop a standardized clinical pathway of care for children based on their respiratory clinical score. Further interventions occurred after data collection and analyzation through run charts. Results Implementation of a standardized clinical pathway for children with asthma presenting to the Emergency Department resulted in treatment with steroids in less than 60 minutes. Overall admissions were decreased from an average of 24% to 17% throughout the intervention period. We estimated cost savings for the institution at over $230,000 for the 2 years after implementation of the pathway. Conclusions Using a multidisciplinary team approach to develop a standardized clinical pathway for a common childhood illness like asthma can result in reduced time to treatment and admissions.
The Bridge from Research to Practice in the Treatment of Criminal Justice-Involved Clients in California

The forty-first and forty-second semiannual meetings of the Substance Abuse Research Consortium in the spring and fall of 2010 brought together two segments of the alcohol and other drug (AOD) prev...
The Experience and Health-Related Quality of Life after Haploidentical Stem Cell Transplantation for Adults with Sickle Cell Disease.

Haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) from partially matched first-degree relatives (e.g., parent, sibling, child) is the newest therapy available to reverse symptoms of adu...
A critical point approach to multiplicity results for a fractional boundary value problem

In this article, we establish criteria for the existence of at least three solutions of a fractional differential equation with Dirichlet boundary condition using variational methods and critical point theory. We discuss some consequences of our main results. Our work complements existing results in the literature.
The Life Of José María Sobral

Mary R. Tahan. Cham, Switzerland: Springer Verlag, 2018The Life of Jose Maria Sobral: Scientist, Diarist, and Pioneer in Antarctica, by Mary R. Tahan, is really a first-person encounter with an ear...
Check-in Kiosks in the Outpatient Clinical Setting: Fad or the Future?

OBJECTIVES Check-in kiosks are increasingly used in health care. This project aims to assess the effects of kiosk use upon check-in duration, point of service (POS) financial returns, and patient satisfaction. METHODS Six kiosks were implemented in a large academic orthopedic clinic, and check-in duration for 8.5 months following implementation and POS returns for 10.5 months before and after implementation were analyzed. Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems Clinician and Group survey and self-devised surveys recorded patient satisfaction. RESULTS Cumulatively, 28,636 kiosk-based patient encounters were analyzed. Compared with historical norms, check-in duration decreased 2 minutes, 47 seconds (P < 0.001). Daily gross and individual POS returns increased $532.13 and $1.89, respectively (P < 0.001). Satisfaction surveys were completed by 719 of 1376 consecutive patients (52% response rate), revealing 12% improvement (P < 0.001), but Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems Clinician and Group survey responses demonstrated no change (P = 0.146, 0.928, and 0.336). CONCLUSIONS Kiosks offer to reduce check-in duration and increase POS revenue without negatively affecting patient satisfaction.
Targeted Osmotic Lysis of Highly Invasive Breast Carcinomas Using Pulsed Magnetic Field Stimulation of Voltage-Gated Sodium Channels and Pharmacological Blockade of Sodium Pumps.

Concurrent activation of voltage-gated sodium channels (VGSCs) and blockade of Na+ pumps causes a targeted osmotic lysis (TOL) of carcinomas that over-express the VGSCs. Unfortunately, electrical current bypasses tumors or tumor sections because of the variable resistance of the extracellular microenvironment. This study assesses pulsed magnetic fields (PMFs) as a potential source for activating VGSCs to initiate TOL in vitro and in vivo as PMFs are unaffected by nonconductive tissues. In vitro, PMFs (0–80 mT, 10 msec pulses, 15 pps for 10 min) combined with digoxin-lysed (500 nM) MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells stimulus-dependently. Untreated, stimulation-only, and digoxin-only control cells did not lyse. MCF-10a normal breast cells were also unaffected. MDA-MB-231 cells did not lyse in a Na+-free buffer. In vivo, 30 min of PMF stimulation of MDA-MB-231 xenografts in J/Nu mice or 4T1 homografts in BALB/c mice, concurrently treated with 7 mg/kg digoxin reduced tumor size by 60–100%. Kidney, spleen, skin and muscle from these animals were unaffected. Stimulation-only and digoxin-only controls were similar to untreated tumors. BALB/C mice with 4T1 homografts survived significantly longer than mice in the three control groups. The data presented is evidence that the PMFs to activate VGSCs in TOL provide sufficient energy to lyse highly malignant cells in vitro and to reduce tumor growth of highly malignant grafts and improve host survival in vivo, thus supporting targeted osmotic lysis of cancer as a possible method for treating late-stage carcinomas without compromising noncancerous tissues.
Prognostic implication of proteomic profiles in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

Abstract Background and objective Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is one of the malignant cancers with poor prognosis. However, clinicopathologic and histological criteria were finite to predict the prognosis of HNSCC. We aimed to characterize the proteomic profile of prognosis from HNSCC patients. Material and methods Reverse phase protein array (RPPA) data in HNSCC were downloaded from The Cancer Proteome Atlas (TCPA). Independent prognostic-related proteins (IPP) were screened by Cox regression model and Kaplan-Meier methods. IPP signature (IPPS) including selected proteins was conducted for prognostic prediction for HNSCC. Protein-protein network analysis and gene ontology (GO) enrichment were used to identify related functional proteins and pathways. Results Based on the IPP, IPPS for HNSCC was constructed: risk score = (1.541* IRF1) + (1.460 * SMAD4) + (1.396 * LKB1) + (0.746* Cyclin E2) + (0.618* Paxillin) + (0.499* p-PEA-15 (Ser116)). The IPPS in HNSCC showed good predictive performance (area under curve = 0.779) with moderate sensitivity and specificity. Protein-protein network analysis and functional enrichment indicated an implication of response to decreased oxygen levels in HNSCC. Conclusion The identified proteomic signature might function as a prognostic tool for the management of HNSCC and provide novel target for the treatment of HNSCC.
Freestanding self-assembled sulfonated pentablock terpolymer membranes for high flux pervaporation desalination

Abstract Pervaporation desalination has several advantages over competing desalination technologies, most notably an ability to select for or against volatile organic compounds and the ability to process high salinity feeds at a low transmembrane pressure. Pervaporation has not been commercialized for desalination applications because of its energy intensity. However, emerging processes such as hydraulic fracturing produce high total dissolved solids (>30–45 g L−1) byproduct streams that exceed the operational limits of traditional reverse osmosis and could be treated by pervaporation. Here, we demonstrate free-standing pervaporation membranes with excellent permeance and high salt removal based on a partially sulfonated pentablock terpolymer with the tradename Nexar™. Pervaporation membranes were easily cast from this material with desalination performances comparable or superior to commercially available membranes. We found that the polymer degree of sulfonation and casting solvent polarity had a significant impact on the membranes’ water uptake but only a modest impact on the pervaporation desalination performance. Membranes with a degree of sulfonation of 52% (2.0 meq g−1 IEC) and a casting solution composed of 50 wt% n-propanol and 50 wt% toluene achieved a water flux of 3.32 kg m−2 h−1 (permeance 135 kg m−2 h−1 bar−1) with 99.5% salt removal in pervaporation from a 32 g L−1 sodium chloride feed solution at room temperature. We demonstrated that dense, non-porous Nexar™ pervaporation membrane permeance and salt separation performance were superior to commercial pervaporation membranes and equivalent to commercial membrane distillation membranes, which have much larger pores. This study demonstrates that commercially available sulfonated pentablock terpolymers are excellent membranes for pervaporation desalination because of their ease of casting and excellent performance.
H2O windows and CO2 radiator fins: a clear-sky explanation for the peak in ECS

Recent explorations of the state-dependence of Earth's equilibrium climate sensitivity (ECS) have revealed a pronounced peak in ECS at a surface temperature of approximately 310 K. This ECS peak ha...
Corrosion in Liquid Cooling Systems with Water-Based Coolant – Part 2: Corrosion Reliability Testing and Failure Model

This paper reports the corrosion mechanism active in microchannel cold plates used in a liquid cooling system and proposes a kinetic model describing the rate of corrosion-induced failure as a function of testing conditions. The corrosion failure mechanism investigated in this paper is galvanic corrosion because the cold plate is typically made of Cu and is assembled using brazing alloys and there exists a galvanic potential between the Cu and the brazed area. A series of experimental characterizations indicates that the brazed joint is subjected to galvanic attack when exposed to a coolant, a mixture of water and propylene glycol (PG), with a galvanic potential sufficient to dissolve the braze component with an accelerated rate. Various testing on the galvanic corrosion finds that the braze (a ternary alloy of Cu, Ag, and P) becomes an anode in the galvanic pair and loses the component element by the process of dissolution. This type of galvanic corrosion is found to exist even with corrosion inhibitors present in the coolant, necessitating the corrosion assessment methodology that can predict the rate of cold plate failure with the use of the "accelerated testing" and the prediction model. Our research leads to the development of the micro-galvanic cell testing as well as the zero resistance ammeter (ZRA) methodologies. Our investigation with these testing methodologies presents clear evidence showing that the galvanic corrosion is the most active and serious form of corrosion in the cold-plate with the galvanic pair exerting as high as ~0.3V anodic potential on the brazed joint. It is also found that the rate of corrosion can be further accelerated with temperature and the external potential purposely applied across the Cu and the braze. The resulting galvanic corrosion kinetics collected in the form of current may be used to predict the corrosion rate at use conditions as they are found to follow the form of an Arrhenius-type kinetics model with a consideration of the corrosion acceleration factor.
COVID-19: A Way for the States to Increase the Number of Available Physicians

Each level of government has its own peculiar responsibilities to address the COVID-19 pandemic. The states are responsible for licensing physicians who can treat the affected people. Each year, a large number of American and foreign medical school graduates do not find a residency position in the United States. Medical school graduates who have passed the qualifying examination have acquired a considerable amount of education and training during their medical studies, far more than physician assistants, nurses, military corpsmen and medics, and civilian paramedics or emergency medical technicians. They comprise a pool of talent that could be immensely useful in ameliorating the shortage of physician care throughout the country during the pandemic. State lawmakers should allow those graduates to receive a provisional license so that they can provide emergency medical care under the supervision of a licensed physician to help treat the ever-increasing number of COVID-19 patients we will see throughout the near future, or those patients who suffer from more common illnesses and injuries.
Perspectives on fair housing, by Vincent J. Reina, Wendell E. Pritchett and Susan M. Wachter (eds.): Philadelphia, PA, University of Pennsylvania Press, 2021

Several collections of essays on fair housing and particularly the 1968 federal Fair Housing Act (FHA) have been published in recent years commemorating more than 50 years of fair housing activity....
Collective locomotion of two-dimensional lattices of flapping plates. Part 2. Lattice flows and propulsive efficiency

We study propulsion of rectangular and rhombic lattices of flapping plates at decreases, the lattices’ efficiency advantage increases further.
On the impingement of supersonic jet on a normal flat surface

An improved method, based on one strip approximation of the method of integral relations which was reported originally by Belov, Ginzburg and Shub (1973), is presented for the calculation of flow parameters in the impingement region of a supersonic, underexpanded jet striking a normal surface located within the first cell. The results are presented for two impingement conditions and found to be in good agreement with the experimental data.
Midnight Regulations and Regulatory Review

The term "midnight regulations" describes the dramatic spike of new regulations promulgated at the end of presidential terms, especially during transitions to an administration of the opposite party. As commentators have pointed out, this phenomenon is problematic because it is the result of a lack of presidential accountability during the midnight period -- the time after the November election and before Inauguration Day. Midnight regulations, however, present another problem that receives little attention. It is the prospect that an increase in the number of regulations promulgated in a given time-period could overwhelm the institutional review process that serves to ensure that new regulations have been carefully considered, are based on sound evidence, and can justify their cost. The regulatory review process that every president since Richard Nixon has used to check his own administration's regulations is now operated by the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), which is charged with reviewing all proposed new significant regulations. The problem is that while the number of regulations proposed spikes during the midnight period, the resources available to OIRA remain constant. Although the problem is perennially highlighted in the press, few satisfactory solutions to the phenomenon have been proposed. One possible solution to address the effects of midnight regulation on regulatory review might be to cap the number of regulations agencies may submit to OIRA for review during a given time-period.
Regulating Post-Bid Embedded Defenses: Lessons from Oracle versus PeopleSoft

This article shows that courts should not adopt a rule of strict shareholder choice that requires managers to obtain shareholder consent for actions taken post-bid that could deter a hostile acquisition. Managers need to be able to act unilaterally to protect the target when a hostile bid threatens its value. Such threats require managerial action, unfettered by a shareholder approval requirement, when the target needs to be able to respond quickly. The conclusion that shareholders can benefit from granting managers unilateral authority to adopt some takeover defenses, even when shareholders are well-informed, is well-illustrated by the Oracle-PeopleSoft contest. PeopleSoft's shareholders would have been worse off had their managers not been able to defend the firm from the threat posed by Oracle's bid because PeopleSoft's shareholders could not have acted sufficiently quickly to preserve the firm's value. In addition, this article shows that shareholder choice proponents cannot remedy the over-regulation problem by amending the rule to grant managers authority to adopt some post-bid defenses. Such a rule would create a zone of weakly regulated low-cost defenses within a strict shareholder choice regime, thereby encouraging managers to employ substitute defenses that may be more costly for the firm than are traditional takeover defenses.
"Why can't we share?": applying a stakeholder model to investigate implementing inter-governmental networks

"Why can't we share?" This was a question posed by a coalition of U.S. justice agency members who organized meetings in 2004 to discuss issues related to inter-governmental coordination and communication (p. 1) [1]. This question is the basis of this exploratory phase of a study on intergovernmental agency collaboration designed to increase information sharing through the implementation of a communication technology platform. Grounded in the perceptions of government leaders whose departments are pursuing federally sponsored initiatives to improve and dramatically transform inter-agency information sharing, this study explores the bases upon which these leaders make decisions about the implementation of the program. Specifically, this study expands on a stakeholder framework first introduced by Lewis in 2007 [2] that models organizational change. I propose to broaden this model's scope and refinement of its propositions in light of information sharing change and the government context during the early planning phase.
Selective decay of Escherichia coli dnaG messenger RNA is initiated by RNase E.

Abstract The rpsU-dnaG-rpoD operon messenger RNA that encodes S21, primase, and sigma-70 is cleaved under normal physiological conditions. The dnaG coding portion of the mRNA is then rapidly degraded. An endonuclease activity has been isolated from wild type Escherichia coli cells that cleaves dnaG mRNA. This activity has been identified as RNase E, and the identity confirmed by the accumulation of the unprocessed operon polycistronic mRNA in RNase E mutants, rne-3071 and ams-1, when incubated at nonpermissive temperatures. Extracts prepared from RNase E mutant strains failed to cleave dnaG mRNA in vitro. The dnaG mRNA RNase E cleavage site (5'-AAGUGAUUUA-3') is only 50% homologous to the ribosomal RNA RNase E cleavage site. By using computer programs predicting secondary structure, the dnaG RNase E cleavage site appears to be in a single stranded RNA loop.
Relativistic BCS–OHR Model

ABSTRACT We show that the simple one-dimensional BCS-Ohr model of fracture can be generalized to relativistic steady state motion and can serve as very simple and analytic zero order approximation for dynamic fracture and crack arrest problem.
The Legacy of LEO: Lessons Learned from an English Tea and Cake Company's Pioneering Efforts in Information Systems ∗

LEO is the acronym for the Lyons Electronic Office, a business-oriented computer system created by J. Lyons & Co. Ltd. Founded in 1887, the company’s teashops had become a British institution. It was a family owned and run organization in the catering, tea-and-cake shop, bakery, ice-cream and restaurant businesses. As such it was an unlikely enterprise to undertake such a far-reaching innovation. The company was better known for its Red and Green Label tea, foil-wrapped Kup Kakes, Lyons Maid ice cream and, of course, its exceedingly popular “nippies,” those speedy, efficient waitresses adorned in black blouses and starched white aprons who provided stellar service in its over 250 teashops. Lyons’ restaurants set standards of “service to customers” and “sumptuousness of surroundings that astonished and delighted
Formation and Excitation of Molecular Hydrogen

The observational data from the Copernicus satellite on the relative abundances of atomic and molecular hydrogen are generally consistent with a theory that postulates an equilibrium between formation of H2 on grain surfaces and destruction by fluorescent dissociation induced by the interstellar radiation field.
Dual-frequency acoustic camera: a candidate for an obstacle avoidance, gap-filler, and identification sensor for untethered underwater vehicles

The Dual-Frequency Identification Sonar (DIDSON) is a forward-looking sonar that can mount on an untethered underwater vehicle (UUV). It performs three important tasks. In the low-frequency mode, it ensonifies the gap between the coverage of two side-scan sonars during surveys and can serve as an obstacle avoidance sonar. In the high-frequency mode, its very high resolution allows the identification of objects in turbid water where optical systems fail. The sonar is small, light, and requires only 30 watts to operate. DIDSON currently is used on three UUVs (two swimmers and one crawler) as part of the Office of Naval Research Undersea, Autonomous Operation Capabilities Program. DIDSON has a 29/spl deg/ field of view and operates at either 1.0 MHz or 1.8 MHz. The Woods Hole REMUS vehicle, in its dual side-scan sonar configuration, has a 6-m to 8-m gap in its coverage. This gap is filled by DIDSON when looking down-range at distances greater than 16 m. The Bluefin Robotics UUV operated by the Coastal Systems Station swims in deeper water, flies higher off the bottom and has a side-scan gap up to 20 m wide. A modified DIDSON that operates at 750 kHz (DIDSON-LR) is proposed for this application. It should image at ranges in excess of 40 m. When operating as a gap-filler, DIDSON collects data at a constant frame rate and stores that data during the duration of the mission. An analysis application is being written to sift through the gigabytes of stored data, locate objects on the seafloor and score them with respect to their mine-like characteristics. Operation efficiency will dramatically increase when UUVs can identify mines autonomously and act upon these identifications. Algorithms are being developed to perform this autonomous identification. The process starts with image processing to extract salient object features. The current approach compares these features to a knowledge base of object features, allowing for object rotation and interaction with the environment. Intelligent algorithms will be developed to associate the object under consideration to objects in the knowledge base in a statistically significant way.
Practice Effects and Stability of Neuropsychological and UHDRS Tests Over Short Retest Intervals in Huntington Disease

Background In Huntington disease (HD), cognitive changes due to disease-progression or treatment are potentially confounded by "practice effects" (PE)--performance improvement from prior exposure to test materials. Objective A practice run-in ("dual baseline") was used in an HD cognitive trial to determine if PE could be minimized and evaluate performance trajectories over multiple visits. Methods Non-depressed adults (N = 36) with mild to moderate HD-related cognitive deficits participated in a clinical trial to examine the efficacy of citalopram to enhance cognition. Cognitive tests were administered at three visits (2 weeks separating each visit), before active treatment randomization. Some tests were also administered at screening. Therefore 3-4 pre-treatment repetitions were available. We examined test improvement using repeated-measures ANOVAs with planned pairwise comparisons. Results Despite the practice run-in and use of alternate test forms, results indicated ongoing improvements over at least three test sessions on all three UHDRS cognitive tests. Trails A and B showed improvements between the third and fourth session, which suggests that one pre-baseline visit may not be effective in reducing practice on this important and commonly used test. Conclusions Overall, 7 out of 13 variables showed some degree of short-term PE, even after multiple sessions and alternate forms. Tests assessing processing speed and memory may be particularly confounded by ongoing PE across at least 2-3 sessions. Practice run-in periods and alternate forms may help minimize the impact of such effects in HD clinical trials but awareness of which tests are most susceptible to PE is important in clinical trial design.