cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Power-Efficient Real-Time Routing Protocal for Wireless Sensor Networks

This paper indicates a Power-efficient Real-Time(PRT)Routing Protocal,in which the dynamic sink node algorithm,message group mechanism,one-hop delay guardance based on Genetic Algorithm improve the uniformity of power consumption,and the back-off rerouting is adopted to decrease the traffic of the networks.Simulation and experiment improve that this protocol is power-efficient and real-time.
The influence of feedback on predictions of future memory performance

Kornell and Rhodes (Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied, 19, 1-13, 2013) reported that correct answer feedback impairs the accuracy of prospective memory judgments. The current experiments explored the boundaries of this effect. In Experiment 1, participants studied Lithuanian-English word pairs, took an initial test, and were either given correct answer feedback or no feedback at all. They then made a judgment of learning (JOL) regarding the likelihood of correctly recalling the English translation on a later test. Presenting the correct answer as feedback increased average JOLs but impaired relative accuracy on a final test. Therefore, Experiments 2-4 aimed to specifically ameliorate impairments in relative accuracy following feedback. Participants in Experiment 2 were exposed to right/wrong feedback, no feedback, and correct answer feedback while making JOLs. Using such a within-subjects design did not improve relative accuracy following correct answer feedback. Experiment 3 showed that previous exposure to a test-feedback-test cycle did not improve relative accuracy. In Experiment 4, feedback was scaffolded such that the correct answer was progressively revealed. Participants corrected more errors if they could generate the correct response with fewer letter cues. However, relative accuracy did not improve in comparison to the previous experiments. Accordingly, the current experiments suggest that participants may understand that feedback is beneficial, but receiving feedback diminishes prediction accuracy for specific items and participants do not appreciate the magnitude of the benefits of feedback.
A systematic study of the catalytic durability of Pd@Pt2−3L nano-sized octahedra toward oxygen reduction

Abstract We have systemically evaluated the catalytic durability of Pd@Pt2−3L octahedra of 21 nm in size toward the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) by examining their elemental, structural, and morphological changes in response to repeated potential cycling between 0.6–1.1 VRHE. When supported on carbon, the Pd@Pt2−3L octahedra exhibited greatly improved durability relative to the commercial Pt/C catalyst because of the enlarged particle size (21 nm vs. 3 nm). The Pd in the core could also be sacrificed during the accelerated durability test to hinder the oxidation and dissolution of Pt in the shell. Even after the Pd cores had been removed up to 10,000 cycles of potential sweeping, the {111} facets on the Pt shells were still well preserved to retain the specific activity at a level of 1.6 mA cm−2 (0.9 VRHE). Due to the creation of additional catalytic sites on the inner surface, the hollowing out of Pd@Pt2−3L octahedra actually increased the specific electrochemical surface area. As such, the mass activity of the Pd@Pt2−3L/C catalyst kept increasing up to 10,000 cycles of repeated sweeping and then started to decline upon further cycling. In contrast, the mass activity of the Pt/C dropped quickly with repeated potential cycling, which could be largely attributed to severe aggregation of the nanoparticles, as well as the loss of Pt due to detachment and/or dissolution.
Otolaryngology sleep medicine curriculum objectives as determined by sleep experts.

Abstract Purpose (1) Ascertain the most important concepts and topics for otolaryngology resident education in sleep medicine and surgery, as determined by faculty who teach sleep medicine to otolaryngology residents. (2) Create learning objectives within the area of otolaryngologic sleep medicine in order to design a sleep medicine curriculum for otolaryngology residents. Materials and methods Two web-based surveys were sent to 163 academic otolaryngologists who teach sleep medicine. The first survey determined the topics, and their relative importance, considered most vital to learn during otolaryngology training. Using the Delphi method, the second clarified questions regarding topics determined by the first survey. Sleep medicine learning objectives for residents were ascertained from responses. Results The response rate of first and second surveys were 24.5% and 19%, respectively. Topics ranked most important for resident education included upper airway anatomy, polysomnogram interpretation, and understanding the range of medical and surgical therapies used to treat sleep disorders. Respondents listed surgical therapy as the most critical topic that most residents do not understand well. The second survey clarified the specific anatomic features, surgical techniques, and polysomnography data points deemed most critical for resident learning. Conclusions Academic otolaryngology sleep experts hold opinions regarding relative value of different topics for teaching sleep medicine, which is useful in creating a curriculum for otolaryngology residents. Otolaryngology learning objectives related to sleep medicine identified during this study are being used to create an online curriculum to supplement resident education.
Haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis post liver transplantation

Haemophagocytic syndromes are rare but often-fatal conditions characterised by an inappropriate and sustained activation of the cellular immune system leading to accumulation of activated macrophages and a cytokine storm. Familial haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (FHLH) is an autosomal recessive condition, which presents in infancy and childhood whereas Reactive Haemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (RHLH) occurs at any age and the genetic contribution remains uncertain. Presentation of RHLH is characterised by a sepsis like syndrome with cytopenia, coagulation and lipid abnormalities. We report on the haematological abnormalities and the clinical course of 37 patients who received liver transplantation and developed RHLH between 1998 and 2003. 15/37 patients had been transplanted for acute liver failure(7 drug induced, 7 seronegative hepatitis, 1 Budd Chiari syndrome) and the remaining 22 patients had chronic liver disease(Viral hepatitis 7, Primary bilary cirrhosis 7, Alcohol related liver disease 2, others 7). 34/37 patients presented with thrombocytopenia( 9 /l, median 30x10 9 /l), 34/37 were lymphopenic( 9 /l, median 0.5x10 9 /l), median transfused haemoglobin was 8.3 g/dl, median ferritin was 1294ug/l. Hypertriglyceridemia(>2 mmol/l) and hypofibrinogenemia( All patients displayed morphological features of RHLH on bone marrow examination, (> 2% macrophages, with tri-lineage histiophagocytosis). Screening for potential infectious triggers revealed contemporaneous positive cytomegalovirus (CMV) serology in 48% (18/37) patients with RHLH compared to annual incidence of CMV post transplant of 4.5% at the same centre. None of these patients received a CMV mismatched organ. Bacterial cultures were positive in 6/18 patients that did not develop CMV. Following PCR amplification and sequencing, one patient was identified as having a single nucleotide base substitution at 272 of exon 2 of PRF1 , resulting in an alanine to valine amino acid substitution. This mutation has previously been reported but is felt to be a RFLP. All patients received multiorgan support, targeted anti viral/antibiotic therapy, human immunoglobulin and GM-CSF was reserved for those with severe pancytopenia. In addition all transplant recipients received Tacrolimus and prednisolone. Actuarial one year survival was significantly worse for those who developed RHLH post liver transplant than those that did not (45% vs. 85% p Our findings suggest that cytopenia post liver transplantation are often associated with RHLH and this population represents a unique group, in whom the histiocyte society criteria for RHLH may not be appropriate and histological diagnosis by bone marrow examination may be required to establish the diagnosis of RHLH. CMV infection is a common trigger of RHLH but is not associated with the poor outcome associated with RHLH.
Revenue, time horizon, and land allocation in China

How do local governments allocate land between sectors of the economy in China? The study demonstrates that the revenue structure and the time horizon of local politicians impact the sectoral allocation of local resources. The industrial and tertiary sectors display systematic differences in the way they contribute to local revenue: the former generates a steadier revenue stream in the long run, while the latter generates more sizable and more immediate revenue in the short run. Two institutional constraints, the tenure limit and the age-based retirement for government officials, create variation in the individual time horizon, which in turn influences the way local governments extract revenue. Based on fieldwork and analysis of an original dataset of 120 cities, it finds that local politicians with longer time horizons allocate more land to the industrial sector and accordingly less to the tertiary sector. The results suggest that the distortion in land allocation lies in the institutional design of the revenue structure and the personnel management system in China.
Womanist–Lesbian Pastoral Ethics: A Post-Election Perspective

For those whose vocation calls them to respond to policies and practices that marginalize those already on the edges, these are challenging days and even frightening days. As a womanist and practical theologian, my vocation demands that I listen not just to the horror stories that I hear from my students, colleagues, or the texts we read (or from within) but it also demands I listen for the ways that the past and present converge to expose a way forward. This push toward the way forward is an ethical demand to act on the teaching that all humanity is created good and welcome. In this article I am suggesting groundwork for a womanist lesbian pastoral ethics, and this focused attempt arises out the urgency exposed by our current political situation.
Contingent Labor and Higher Education

Over the past 30 years, the profession of college professor in the US has been changing from a high-status occupation, where faculty have extensive control over their job responsibilities, to a low-status contingent job in the peripheral labor market. This change mirrors the drift toward nonstandard employment in other sectors of the economy. Contingent and part-time faculty have grown at 10 times the rate of growth for tenure-track faculty, leading to a fundamental transformation in the nature of the professoriate. We review data related to these changes as well as the conventional explanations for this transformation. We conclude that the current system of academic labor is best understood within the core–periphery model of nonstandard employment. We conclude with some brief prospects for the future of the academic labor market and higher education.
Synthesis of hardware sandboxes for Trojan mitigation in systems on chip

In this work, we propose a design flow for automatic generation of hardware sandboxes purposed for IP security in trusted system-on-chips (SoCs). Our tool CAPSL, the Component Authentication Process for Sandboxed Layouts, is capable of detecting trojan activation and nullifying possible damage to a system at run-time, avoiding complex pre-fabrication and pre-deployment testing for trojans. Our approach captures the behavioral properties of non-trusted IPs, typically from a third-party or components off the shelf (COTS), with the formalism of interface automata and the Property Specification Language's sequential extended regular expressions (SERE). Using the concept of hardware sandboxing, we translate the property specifications to checker automata and partition an untrusted sector of the system, with included virtualized resources and controllers, to isolate sandbox-system interactions upon deviation from the behavioral checkers. Our design flow is verified with benchmarks from Trust-Hub.org, which show 100% trojan detection with reduced checker overhead compared to other run-time verification techniques.
Finite cell-size effects on protein variability in Turing patterned tissues.

Herein we present a framework to characterize different sources of protein expression variability in Turing patterned tissues. In this context, we introduce the concept of granular noise to account for the unavoidable fluctuations due to finite cell-size effects and show that the nearest-neighbours autocorrelation function provides the means to measure it. To test our findings, we perform in silico experiments of growing tissues driven by a generic activator–inhibitor dynamics. Our results show that the relative importance of different sources of noise depends on the ratio between the characteristic size of cells and that of the pattern domains and on the ratio between the pattern amplitude and the effective intensity of the biochemical fluctuations. Importantly, our framework provides the tools to measure and distinguish different stochastic contributions during patterning: granularity versus biochemical noise. In addition, our analysis identifies the protein species that buffer the stochasticity the best and, consequently, it can help to determine key instructive signals in systems driven by a Turing instability. Altogether, we expect our study to be relevant in developmental processes leading to the formation of periodic patterns in tissues.
Impact of protein O-GlcNAcylation on neural tube malformation in diabetic embryopathy

Diabetes mellitus in early pregnancy can cause neural tube defects (NTDs) in embryos by perturbing protein activity, causing cellular stress, and increasing programmed cell death (apoptosis) in the tissues required for neurulation. Hyperglycemia augments a branch pathway in glycolysis, the hexosamine biosynthetic pathway (HBP), to increase uridine diphosphate-N-acetylglucosamine (UDP-GlcNAc). GlcNAc can be added to proteins by O-GlcNAc transferase (OGT) to regulate protein activity. In the embryos of diabetic mice, OGT is highly activated in association with increases in global protein O-GlcNAcylation. In neural stem cells in vitro, high glucose elevates O-GlcNAcylation and reactive oxygen species, but the elevations can be suppressed by an OGT inhibitor. Inhibition of OGT in diabetic pregnant mice in vivo decreases NTD rate in the embryos. This effect is associated with reduction in global O-GlcNAcylation, alleviation of intracellular stress, and decreases in apoptosis in the embryos. These suggest that OGT plays an important role in diabetic embryopathy via increasing protein O-GlcNAcylation, and that inhibiting OGT could be a candidate approach to prevent birth defects in diabetic pregnancies.
Ecomorphological analysis of bovid mandibles from Laetoli Tanzania using 3D geometric morphometrics: Implications for hominin paleoenvironmental reconstruction.

Abstract The current study describes a new method of mandibular ecological morphology (ecomorphology). Three-dimensional geometric morphometrics (3D GM) was used to quantify mandibular shape variation between extant bovids with different feeding preferences. Landmark data were subjected to generalized Procrustes analysis (GPA), principal components analysis (PCA), and discriminant function analysis (DFA). The PCA resulted in a continuum from grazers to browsers along PC1 and DFA classified 88% or more of the modern specimens to the correct feeding category. The protocol was reduced to a subset of landmarks on the mandibular corpus in order to make it applicable to incomplete fossils. The reduced landmark set resulted in greater overlap between feeding categories but maintained the same continuum as the complete landmark model. The DFA resubstitution and jackknife analyses resulted in classification success rates of 85% and 80%, respectively. The reduced landmark model was applied to fossil mandibles from the Upper Laetolil Beds (∼4.3–3.5 Ma) and Upper Ndolanya Beds (∼2.7–2.6 Ma) at Laetoli, Tanzania in order to assess antelope diet, and indirectly evaluate paleo-vegetation structure. The majority of the fossils were classified by the DFA as browsers or mixed feeders preferring browse. Our results indicate a continuous presence of wooded habitats and are congruent with recent environmental studies at Laetoli indicating a mosaic woodland-bushland-grassland savanna ecosystem.
Intranasal Therapy to Stop Status Epilepticus in Prehospital Settings.

Status epilepticus (SE) is a medical emergency characterized by uncontrolled, prolonged seizures with rapid and widespread neuronal damage. Patients that suffer from longer episodes of SE are more likely to have poorer clinical outcomes and a higher cost of healthcare. Understanding novel molecular mechanisms that regulate inhibitory and excitatory neurotransmission that initiate SE and the necessary medical infrastructure to stop SE could help identify targets for early intervention. Intranasal administration of benzodiazepines may shorten the time between initiation and cessation of seizures when compared to other routes of administration. Current pharmaceutical administration guidelines are appropriate for sporadic incidences of SE, but exploring other approaches is necessary to prepare for situations involving multiple patients outside of a hospital, such as a massive chemical weapons attack. Intranasal drug delivery helps to circumvent the blood–brain barrier and offers a noninvasive way to quickly administer drugs in settings that require an immediate response, such as nerve agent exposure. In addition, examining the intranasal delivery of new drugs, such as nanotherapeutics, may lead to more effective, noninvasive, scalable, and portable methods of treating SE.
Noise propagation in a class of metabolic networks

A metabolic pathway made of a cascade of biochemical reactions is considered, with a substrate which is eventually transformed into the final product by means of a sequence of reactions, each catalyzed by the same enzyme. The amount of the enzyme varies according to discrete noisy processes of production and elimination. A feedback acts on the final product clearance rate, exerted by the final product accumulation itself: higher final product levels lead to a faster dynamics. The aim of this note is to investigate how the noise scales with the length of the cascade and how the feedback impacts on the noise propagation. To this end, a Stochastic Hybrid System (SHS) formulation is exploited, with the enzyme production/clearance processes constituting the noise source. The noise propagation is measured in terms of the square of the coefficient of variation of the final product, and computations are carried out by means of the equations of moments, which are estimated in closed form after linearizing the SHS. Analytical solutions allow to infer information and to relate the noise propagation to the model parameters. Similarly to recent results occurring in other types of enzymatic reactions, the results highlight the influential role of feedback in noise reduction.
Recent Progress on Modeling Slip Deformation in Shape Memory Alloys

This paper presents an overview of slip deformation in shape memory alloys. The performance of shape memory alloys depends on their slip resistance often quantified through the Critical Resolved Shear Stress (CRSS) or the flow stress. We highlight previous studies that identify the active slip systems and then proceed to show how non-Schmid effects can be dominant in shape memory slip behavior. The work is mostly derived from our recent studies while we highlight key earlier works on slip deformation. We finally discuss the implications of understanding the role of slip on curtailing the transformation strains and also the temperature range over which superelasticity prevails.
Image-Based Computational Fluid Dynamics for Patient-Specific Therapy Design and Personalized Medicine

Recent advances in quantitative imaging allow unprecedented views into organ function and cellular chemistry of whole organisms in vivo. Novel imaging modalities enable the quantitative investigation of spatio-temporal reaction and transport phenomena in the living animal or the human body. Quantitative imaging modalities enable quantitative analysis with image-based computational fluid dynamics (iCFD). This methodology integrates medical imaging modalities with rigorous computational fluid dynamics. The future potential of patient-specific therapy design with iCFD will be illustrated with three case studies. This chapter will highlight the growing opportunities of patient-specific therapy design made possible by the advancement of quantitative medical imaging modalities in combination with mathematical modeling. Conclusions will emphasize on future steps towards individualized medicine using iCFD methods.
CONFLICT, COOPERATION, COMPETITION, AND CUPID

Publisher Summary This chapter focuses on four concepts: (1) cooperation, (2) conflict, (3) exploitation, and (4) competition. The degree to which one individual ( I 2 ) cooperates or conflicts with another individual ( I 1 ) does not have to equal the degree to which I 1 cooperates or conflicts with I 2 . Thus, two individuals may affect each other differently. This difference is the essence of exploitation. The one who benefits the most can be said to be a benevolent exploiter. This is the type of exploitation that most colonial powers have claimed for themselves if they have admitted to exploiting their colonies at all. This type of exploitation has also been used to characterize most employer-employee relations. The one who suffers least is the malevolent exploiter; for example, one who is willing to suffer if he can make another suffer more. This is usually the case where revenge is involved. Most wars have been examples of malevolent exploitation.
Giant Mitochondria (Megamitochondria)

Mitochondria are extremely sensitive indicators of the health of their host cells. Even slight perturbations in cellular metabolism can evoke morphological alterations in these organelles. One way in which mitochondria respond to metabolic disturbances is by increasing in size, often to a point where they outstrip the cell nucleus in diameter. Such outsize organelles are also referred to as megamitochondria, a term that appears to have found increasing favor. Hepatic megamitochondria can measure,14 μm, giving them a volume >1400 mm 3 , compared to the volume of 0.5 mm 3 exhibited by typical liver mitochondria. Enlarged mitochondria can be induced by various nutritional and pharmacological manipulations. They occur naturally in certain human disease states and in a few cell types in exotic organisms; for example, the larger of the paired mitochondria in the spermatozoan tail of the hemipteran Gerris has a volume of 10 000 mm 3 .
Rediscovering Pascal's Mystic Hexagon

While the path to mathematical discovery is often intuitive and not simply reducible to the application of a method, neither is it in most cases entirely haphazard. Certain kinds of questions and c...
An undergraduate laboratory module that uses the CRISPR/Cas9 system to generate frameshift mutations in yeast

The CRISPR/Cas9 system is a powerful tool for gene editing and it has become increasingly important for biology students to understand this emerging technique. Most CRISPR laboratory teaching modules use complex metazoan systems or mammalian cell culture which can be expensive. Here, we present a lab module that engages students in learning the fundamentals of CRISPR/Cas9 methodology using the simple and inexpensive model system, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Students use CRISPR/Cas9 and nonhomologous end joining to generate frameshift insertion and deletion mutations in the CAN1 gene, which are easily selected for using media plates that have canavanine. DNA sequencing is also performed to determine what type of mutation occurred in gene-edited cells. This easy to implement set of experiments has been run as both a 5-week and a shorter 3-week lab module. Learning assessments demonstrate increased understanding in CRISPR-related concepts as well as increased confidence using molecular techniques. Thus, this CRISPR/Cas9 lab module can be added to an existing Genetics, Microbiology, or Molecular Biology lab course to help undergraduate students learn current gene editing techniques with limited effort and cost. © 2019 International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 47(5):573-580, 2019.
Local strong solution to the compressible viscoelastic flow with large data

Abstract The existence and uniqueness of local in time strong solution with large initial data for the three-dimensional compressible viscoelastic flow is established. The strong solution has weaker regularity than the classical solution. The Lax–Milgram theorem and the Schauder–Tychonoff fixed-point argument are applied.
Decreasing the Rate of Invalid Newborn Screening Samples in the Newborn Nursery

Aim statement: To decrease the rate of invalid newborn screening samples to < 4.0% by 6 months post-intervention. Background: Each year, millions of newborns across the United States are routinely screened via newborn screening (NBS) programs for genetic and metabolic conditions. Such conditions may have serious, and even fatal consequences, especially if diagnosis is delayed. Submission of invalid samples may contribute to delayed diagnosis and treatment, as well as incur additional costs and cause parental anxiety. In our region, the invalid NBS sample rate is 4.7%. Objectives: To decrease the rates …
Modified silica gels as recyclable adsorbents of aqueous polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), a class of toxic organic molecules containing multiple fused aromatic rings, are found in air, soil and water as a by-product from the incomplete combustion...
The Global local planes of English needs in Indonesian contexts

ABSTRACT This article reports one part of a larger study, exploring the global and local English needs in nine secondary level schools in several Indonesian contexts (i.e. Sumatera, Sulawesi, and East Nusa Tenggara). The study investigates: 1) teachers and students perceived understanding of the existence of English in their local contexts; 2) opinions of their current local and global needs of English in today’s globalized era; and 3) their opinion on the teaching and learning of English. Data were collected from questionnaires and interviews. The results show that students in different contexts have slightly different views and perceptions of English use and how it needs to be learned and taught for their current and future needs of English. Although slightly different in their perceptions of needs, there seems to be a coordinated understanding of English needs between the students and teachers. The findings also indicate that there is a growing awareness of the need to teach the communicative aspects of English in relation to students’ activities online. Therefore, the teaching of English needs to be conducted by providing more English exposure, integrating blended learning, adopting English for Specific Purposes approach, and teaching pragmatics knowledge and intercultural skills.
Magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles for imaging, targeting and treatment of primary and metastatic tumors of the brain

Abstract Magnetic nanoparticles in general, and iron oxide nanoparticles in particular, have been studied extensively during the past 20 years for numerous biomedical applications. The main applications of these nanoparticles are in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), magnetic targeting, gene and drug delivery, magnetic hyperthermia for tumor treatment, and manipulation of the immune system by macrophage polarization for cancer treatment. Recently, considerable attention has been paid to magnetic particle imaging (MPI) because of its better sensitivity compared to MRI. In recent years, MRI and MPI have been combined as a dual or multimodal imaging method to enhance the signal in the brain for the early detection and treatment of brain pathologies. Because magnetic and iron oxide nanoparticles are so diverse and can be used in multiple applications such as imaging or therapy, they have attractive features for brain delivery. However, the greatest limitations for the use of MRI/MPI for imaging and treatment are in brain delivery, with one of these limitations being the brain-blood barrier (BBB). This review addresses the current status, chemical compositions, advantages and disadvantages, toxicity and most importantly the future directions for the delivery of iron oxide based substances across the blood-brain barrier for targeting, imaging and therapy of primary and metastatic tumors of the brain.
Histories, meanings and representations of the modern hotel: by Kevin J. James, Bristol, Channel View Publications, 2018, 168 pp., $129.95 (hardback), ISBN 9781845416591

In January 1952, Egyptians took to the streets of Cairo to protest decades of colonial rule. Violence and looting against British citizens and their businesses raged across the city. One of the mai...
Community-based recruitment and exome sequencing indicates high diagnostic yield in adults with intellectual disability.

Background Establishing a genetic diagnosis for individuals with intellectual disability (ID) benefits patients and their families as it may inform the prognosis, lead to appropriate therapy, and facilitate access to medical and supportive services. Exome sequencing has been successfully applied in a diagnostic setting, but most clinical exome referrals are pediatric patients, with many adults with ID lacking a comprehensive genetic evaluation. Methods Our unique recruitment strategy involved partnering with service and education providers for individuals with ID. We performed exome sequencing and analysis, and clinical variant interpretation for each recruited family. Results All five families enrolled in the study opted-in for the return of genetic results. In three out of five families exome sequencing analysis identified pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants in KANSL1, TUSC3, and MED13L genes. Families discussed the results and any potential medical follow-up in an appointment with a board certified clinical geneticist. Conclusion Our study suggests high yield of exome sequencing as a diagnostic tool in adult patients with ID who have not undergone comprehensive sequencing-based genetic testing. Research studies including an option of return of results through a genetic clinic could help minimize the disparity in exome diagnostic testing between pediatric and adult patients with ID.
Impact of Diabetes on the Gut and Salivary IgA Microbiomes.

ABSTRACT Mucosal surfaces like those present in the lung, gut, and mouth interface with distinct external environments. These mucosal gateways are not only portals of entry for potential pathogens but also homes to microbial communities that impact host health. Secretory immunoglobulin A (SIgA) is the single most abundant acquired immune component secreted onto mucosal surfaces and, via the process of immune exclusion, shapes the architecture of these microbiomes. Not all microorganisms at mucosal surfaces are targeted by SIgA; therefore, a better understanding of the SIgA-coated fraction may identify the microbial constituents that stimulate host immune responses in the context of health and disease. Chronic diseases like type 2 diabetes are associated with altered microbial communities (dysbiosis) that in turn affect immune-mediated homeostasis. 16S rRNA gene sequencing of SIgA-coated/uncoated bacteria (IgA-Biome) was conducted on stool and saliva samples of normoglycemic participants and individuals with prediabetes or diabetes (n = 8/group). These analyses demonstrated shifts in relative abundance in the IgA-Biome profiles between normoglycemic, prediabetic, or diabetic samples distinct from that of the overall microbiome. Differences in IgA-Biome alpha diversity were apparent for both stool and saliva, while overarching bacterial community differences (beta diversity) were also observed in saliva. These data suggest that IgA-Biome analyses can be used to identify novel microbial signatures associated with diabetes and support the need for further studies exploring these communities. Ultimately, an understanding of the IgA-Biome may promote the development of novel strategies to restructure the microbiome as a means of preventing or treating diseases associated with dysbiosis at mucosal surfaces.
A machine learning approach to modeling PTSD and difficulties in emotion regulation

Despite evidence for the association between emotion regulation difficulties and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), less is known about the specific emotion regulation abilities that are most relevant to PTSD severity. This study examined both item-level and subscale-level models of difficulties in emotion regulation in relation to PTSD severity using supervised machine learning in a sample of U.S. adults (N=570). Participants were recruited via Amazon's Mechanical Turk (MTurk) and completed self-report measures of emotion regulation difficulties and PTSD severity. We used five different machine learning algorithms separately to train each statistical model. Using ridge and elastic net regression results in the testing sample, emotion regulation predictor variables accounted for approximately 28% and 27% of the variance in PTSD severity in the item- and subscale-level models, respectively. In the item-level model, four predictor variables had notable relative importance values for PTSD severity. These items captured secondary emotional responding, experiencing emotions as out-of-control, difficulties modulating emotional arousal, and low emotional granularity. In the subscale-level model, lack of access to effective emotion regulation strategies, lack of emotional clarity, and emotional nonacceptance subscales had the highest relative importance to PTSD severity. Results from analyses modeling a probable diagnosis of PTSD based on DERS items and subscales are presented in supplemental findings. Findings have implications for developing more efficient, targeted emotion regulation interventions for PTSD.
A simulation model of back-projection based non-line-of-sight imaging (NLOS) for resolution analysis

The problem to image around a corner for objects that are invisible from direct line-of-sight is intriguing as its solution may provide the basis for new methods in various fields. However, most current researches are based on back-projectionrelated methods, of which a quantitative analysis of resolution is missing. This paper provides a simulation-based study of the spatial resolution of such methods. We present a criterion of discretion in Non-Line-Of-Sight (NLOS) systems inspired by full width half maximum (FWHM) in traditional optical systems and analyze the horizontal and vertical resolutions of a back-projection-based NLOS system. According to our model, uncertainty in horizontal directions is dominant in NLOS systems. By utilizing this conclusion, we present some potential improvements in spatial resolution by rearranging sampling points, adding a weighting factor, and achieving more than 50% decrease in spatial uncertainty.
eQTpLot: a user-friendly R package for the visualization of colocalization between eQTL and GWAS signals

BACKGROUND Genomic studies increasingly integrate expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) information into their analysis pipelines, but few tools exist for the visualization of colocalization between eQTL and GWAS results. Those tools that do exist are limited in their analysis options, and do not integrate eQTL and GWAS information into a single figure panel, making the visualization of colocalization difficult. RESULTS To address this issue, we developed the intuitive and user-friendly R package eQTpLot. eQTpLot takes as input standard GWAS and cis-eQTL summary statistics, and optional pairwise LD information, to generate a series of plots visualizing colocalization, correlation, and enrichment between eQTL and GWAS signals for a given gene-trait pair. With eQTpLot, investigators can easily generate a series of customizable plots clearly illustrating, for a given gene-trait pair: 1) colocalization between GWAS and eQTL signals, 2) correlation between GWAS and eQTL p-values, 3) enrichment of eQTLs among trait-significant variants, 4) the LD landscape of the locus in question, and 5) the relationship between the direction of effect of eQTL signals and the direction of effect of colocalizing GWAS peaks. These clear and comprehensive plots provide a unique view of eQTL-GWAS colocalization, allowing for a more complete understanding of the interaction between gene expression and trait associations. CONCLUSIONS eQTpLot provides a unique, user-friendly, and intuitive means of visualizing eQTL and GWAS signal colocalization, incorporating novel features not found in other eQTL visualization software. We believe eQTpLot will prove a useful tool for investigators seeking a convenient and customizable visualization of eQTL and GWAS data colocalization. AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION the eQTpLot R package and tutorial are available at https://github.com/RitchieLab/eQTpLot.
Furniture and television tip-over injuries to children treated in United States emergency departments.

BACKGROUND Furniture and television tip-over injuries are an important source of injury to children, especially those younger than 6 years old. A current epidemiologic evaluation of tip-over injuries is needed, especially considering changes in the voluntary safety standard for clothing storage units (CSUs) and the shift in the consumer market from cathode ray tube to flat-screen televisions (TVs), and a decline in household TV ownership during recent years. The objective of this study is to update our understanding of the epidemiologic characteristics and trends of furniture (especially CSU) and TV tip-over injuries treated in United States emergency departments among children < 18 years old. METHODS This study retrospectively analyzed data from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System from 1990 to 2019. Trends in population-based rates were evaluated with regression techniques. All numbers of cases are expressed as national estimates. RESULTS An estimated 560,203 children < 18 years old were treated in United States emergency departments for furniture or TV tip-over injuries during the 30-year study period, averaging 18,673 children annually. CSUs were involved in 17.2% (n = 96,321) of tip-overs, and TVs accounted for 41.1% (n = 230,325), which included 16,904 tip-overs (3.0%) that involved both a CSU and TV. The rate of furniture and TV tip-over injuries among children < 18 years old increased by 53.8% (p < 0.0001) from 1990 to 2010, and then decreased by 56.8% (p < 0.0001) from 2010 to 2019. Almost half (47.0%) of injuries occurred to the head/neck; 3.4% of children were admitted to the hospital. Children < 6 years old accounted for 69.9% of furniture and TV tip-over injuries overall; they accounted for 82.5% of CSU-related and 74.7% of TV-related tip-over injuries. CONCLUSIONS Despite the decline in tip-over injuries since 2010, more should be done to prevent these injuries, especially among children < 6 years old, because the number of injuries remains high, outcomes can be life-threatening, and effective prevention strategies are known. Safety education, warning labels, and promotion and use of tip restraint devices, while important, are not a substitute for strengthening and enforcing the stability requirements for CSUs and TVs.
Zen and the Art of Teaching Methods Without a Methods Course

What is the fundamental purpose of methods courses in political science, especially when methods courses are not offered? Methods courses teach a systematic way of thinking about complex political phenomenon, and this type of methodological thinking can be imparted in any political science course when no methods courses are offered. Students can learn methodological thinking as a tool to understand their complex political realities and to develop their own political power. When civic engagement or civically engaged research is added to these methodological skills, students are empowered with how to champion their interests and influence government actors throughout the policymaking process as well.
Shank promotes action potential repolarization by recruiting BK channels to calcium nanodomains

Mutations altering the scaffolding protein Shank are linked to several psychiatric disorders, and to synaptic and behavioral defects in mice. Among its many binding partners, Shank directly binds CaV1 voltage activated calcium channels. Here we show that the C. elegans SHN-1/Shank promotes CaV1 coupling to calcium activated potassium channels. Mutations inactivating SHN-1, and those preventing SHN-1 binding to EGL-19/CaV1 all increase action potential durations in body muscles. Action potential repolarization is mediated by two classes of potassium channels: SHK-1/KCNA and SLO-1 and SLO-2 BK channels. BK channels are calcium-dependent, and their activation requires tight coupling to EGL-19/CaV1 channels. SHN-1’s effects on AP duration are mediated by changes in BK channels. In shn-1 mutants, SLO-2 currents and channel clustering are significantly decreased in both body muscles and neurons. Finally, increased and decreased shn-1 gene copy number produce similar changes in AP width and SLO-2 current. Collectively, these results suggest that an important function of Shank is to promote nanodomain coupling of BK with CaV1.
Formation of spatial thinking skills through different training methods

Spatial training can be durable and transferable if the training involves cognitive process-based tasks. The current study explored different spatial training methods and investigated the sequences of process-based mental simulation that was facilitated by various structures of external spatial representation, 3D technology, spatial cues, and/or technical languages. A total of 115 Columbia University's students were conducted through three experiments using a between-subjects design to examine the effects of spatial training methods on spatial ability performance. The conditions for training environments included 3D-virtual and 3D-physical interactions with abstract (nonsense-geometric) and concrete (everyday-object) contents. Overall, learners in the treatment conditions improved in their spatial skills significantly more than those in the control conditions. Particularly, 3D-direct-manipulation conditions in the third experiment added promising results about the specific sequences during spatial thinking formation processes.
Perspectives on Improving the Gender Composition of Computing

Collective action at the local and national levels is needed if we wish to achieve women's full participation as creators of computing technology. This paper reviews themes from research on the gender composition of computing with particular emphasis on the United States. The author highlights evidence that both culture and social structures contribute to creating and maintaining women’s underrepresentation in this increasingly influential field.
Erysiphe trifolii– a newly recognized powdery mildew pathogen of pea

Diversity of powdery mildew pathogens infecting pea (Pisum sativum) in the US Pacific Northwest was investigated using both molecular and morphological techniques. Phylogenetic analyses based on rDNA ITS sequences, in combination with assessment of morphological characters, defined two groups of powdery mildews infecting pea. Group I (five field samples and three glasshouse samples) had ITS sequences 99% similar to those of Erysiphe pisi in GenBank and exhibited simple, mycelioid type of chasmothecial appendages typical of E. pisi. Erysiphe pisi is normally considered as the powdery mildew pathogen of pea. Group II (four glasshouse samples and two field samples) had ITS sequences 99% similar to those of E. trifolii and produced chasmothecia with dichotomously branched appendages similar to those of E. trifolii. There are fourteen nucleotide differences in the ITS region between the two groups. The correlation of rDNA ITS sequences with teleomorphic features for each of the two groups confirms their identity. Repeated samplings and artificial inoculations indicate that both E. pisi and E. trifolii infect pea in the US Pacific Northwest. Erysiphe trifolii is not previously known as a pathogen of pea. The existence of two distinct powdery mildew species infecting pea in both glasshouse and field environments may interfere with the powdery mildew-resistance breeding programmes, and possibly explains putative instances of breakdown of resistance in previously resistant pea breeding lines.
CCE: A Process-Calculus Based Formalism for Specifying Multi-Object Coordination

Coordination, the act of imposing a desired behavior on a group of autonomous, independently conceived agents, has been an important issue in the design and development of software systems, both process-based and object-based. In this paper, the Calculus of Coordinating Environments (CCE) is proposed to study coordination as the behavioral union of coordinated and coordinating agents. In CCE, the behavior of coordinated objects is expressed as agents in the Calculus of Communicating Systems (CCS) and the behavior of coordinating objects is expressed as agents (called CE agents) of an extension of CCS. Two composition rules are provided that capture the interaction among CE agents and CCS agents. The applicability of the new formalism is shown by specifying two simple coordination problems in CCE.
Ageing of SRC II middle distillate from Illinois No. 6 coal: 1. In presence of copper and oxygen

Abstract The middle distillate from Illinois No. 6 solvent-refined coal (SRC II) is relatively stable to ageing by direct oxygenation at 335 K. Metallic copper accelerates oxygen ageing as is evident from an increase in viscosity and formation of pentane-insoluble components, I.r. spectra of aged samples show a significant reduction in the intensity of the free hydroxyl band. FT-i.r. spectra show that oxygen-containing compounds of the coal are concentrated in the pentane-insoluble fraction and that oxygen bubbled into the coal liquid is incorporated into the structure of this fraction. Gel permeation chromatograms also show the formation of aggregates of large molecular-size during ageing. 600-MHz n.m.r. spectra of the aged pentane-soluble fraction are similar to those of the unaged acid-free fraction. These results suggest that copper catalysis in the ageing reaction of the middle distillate involves the polymerization of acidic, phenolic compounds. The aged pentane-soluble fraction possesses the same viscosity as the original coal liquid, but contains less nitrogen and oxygen.