cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The political market for immigration restrictions: Model and test

Abstract A two-sector model of the destination economy is developed in order to determine the distributional effects of immigration. In one sector, native and immigrant workers are substitutes in production, while in the other they are complements. The two industries are assumed to draw immigrants from the same pool, whose size is exogenous to employers and set by politicians. A political market for an endogenous immigration quota arises as a consequence of the conflicting interests of the two native worker groups, as well as those of lobbying groups organized along non-labor market lines. A reduced form expression for the equilibrium quota is derived. The size of the quota is determined by the levels of product and labor demand in the two industries, lobbying costs of native workers, the degree of substitutability or complementarity in production between native and immigrant labor, the proportions in which the immigrant workforce is divided between the two industries, the wage elasticities of demand for ...
Wheat-related disorders reviewed: making a grain of sense

Wheat-related disorders have become a growing area of clinical and scientific interest and can be categorized broadly as: autoimmune-mediated; allergic; and non-autoimmune/non-allergic conditions. Non-celiac gluten sensitivity (NCGS) and non-celiac wheat sensitivity (NCWS) present on this spectrum as disorders associated with adverse gastrointestinal and extra-intestinal manifestations following exposure to gluten and/or other wheat-related constituents. NCGS/NCWS is increasingly considered in patients with unexplained symptoms after the exclusions of celiac disease and wheat allergy. As objective diagnostic data and specific biomarkers are lacking, response to a gluten-free/wheat-free diet can confirm the presence of NCGS/NCWS. An association with irritable bowel syndrome has been detected, and the effects of other food components, such as fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polyols, may contribute. Our organization and synthesis of extant knowledge pertaining to wheat-related disorders may advance current practice and research efforts toward an improved understanding of NCGS/NCWS as an evolving clinical entity.
Infrared Study of Ion-Irradiated Water-Ice Mixtures with Hydrocarbons Relevant to Comets

Abstract Ethane, methane, and acetylene were detected in Comets C/1996 B2 Hyakutake and C/1995 O1 Hale–Bopp. In order to investigate the possibility of condensed-phase synthesis of C2H6in interstellar ices, we have examined the role of CH4and C2H2in the radiation synthesis of C2H6in laboratory-formed low-temperature ices. Mixtures such as H2O + CH4, H2O + C2H2, H2O + CH4+ C2H2were irradiated. Many mixtures were investigated using different concentrations of hydrocarbons. Results showed that yields of C2H6from CH4due to dimerization, were similar to yields of C2H6from C2H2due to H-addition reactions. However, CH4was not a source of C2H2, suggesting that C2H2is part of the natal chemistry of these comets. Both CH3OH and C2H5OH were identified in our experiments along with CO, CO2, HCO, H2CO, and CH3CHO.
Persistent airway hyperresponsiveness and histologic alterations after chronic antigen challenge in cats.

We studied the effect of chronic immune sensitization on the airway reactivity and associated cytologic and histologic alterations in initially nonatopic cats, a species that spontaneously develops idiopathic asthma. Seven cats were sensitized by intramuscular injection of Ascaris suum antigen (AA) for 4 wk, and four other cats served as sham controls. Airway sensitization was demonstrated by an increased response to nebulized AA in sensitized animals (RL = 45.9 +/- 6.1 cm H2O/L/s, versus a baseline response of 24.7 +/- 1.5 cm H2O/L/s, p < 0.01), and hyperresponsiveness was demonstrated by an increased response to acetylcholine (ACh)-challenge 24 h after AA (approximately 1.0 log decrease in PD200, p < 0.01). The number of eosinophils in the sensitized animals' bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid increased 12-fold (p < 0.01 versus control) in response to AA challenge; 32 +/- 5% of the BAL eosinophils had a specific density < 1.050, versus 8 +/- 2% prior to AA challenge (p < 0.05). There was no change in ai...
Carbon(sp3) ? Fluorine Bond-Forming Reductive Elimination from Palladium(IV) Complexes

Pd(IV)-fluoride complexes, some of which are remarkably insensitive to water, have been synthesized and used in the title reaction, which proceeds with high selectivity to give the product of the C(sp(3))-F coupling. Preliminary mechanistic studies implicate a pathway involving dissociation of pyridine followed by direct C-F coupling at the Pd center.
Mobility control of ceramic grain boundaries and interfaces

Grain boundary mobility and grain-liquid boundary mobility in ceramics vary vastly from material to material. Their characteristics are sensitive to the crystal structure, the nature of bonding, orientation, stoichiometry and composition. More directly, mobility can be lowered by decreasing the interfacial energy and anisotropy or increasing solute drag, liquid viscosity, particle pinning and grain interlocking. Judicious doping and scavenging emerge as especially effective methods for mobility control. Static and dynamic grain growth data of zirconia, alumina, and silicon nitride are cited to support the above proposition.
RF/microwave switch considerations

To optimize performance and repeatability in a test system, test-system designers must address a multitude of RF/microwave switch challenges that may seem overwhelming. For companies that want to control lead times, costs, and the physical layout of a custom switch solution, these challenges must be overcome. The challenges arise from a group of performance- and repeatability-degrading devices that are situated between the test equipment and the device under test. These devices are the switches, cables, signal conditioners, and the signal path control interface. This paper will assist engineers in minimizing the negative effects of these devices by exploring factors that must be considered when creating a custom RF/microwave switch solution.
The Challenge of Using Future SWOT Data for Oceanic Field Reconstruction

AbstractConventional altimetry measures a one-dimensional profile of sea surface height (SSH) along the satellite track. Two-dimensional SSH can be reconstructed using mapping techniques; however, the spatial resolution is quite coarse even when data from several altimeters are analyzed. A new satellite mission based on radar interferometry is scheduled to be launched in 2020. This mission, called Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT), will measure SSH at high resolution along a wide swath, thus providing two-dimensional images of the ocean surface topography. This new capability will provide a large amount of data even though they are contaminated with instrument noise and geophysical errors. This paper presents a tool that simulates synthetic observations of SSH from the future SWOT mission using SSH from any ocean general circulation model (OGCM). SWOT-like data have been generated from a high-resolution model and analyzed to investigate the sampling and accuracy characteristics of the future SWOT ...
Observations Made During Stretching, Tearing, and Failure of NR and SBR Loaded with Various Amounts of Carbon Black

Abstract Using a 35-mm camera with macro attachments, and focused on the tip of a cut, the stretching, tearing, and failure of notched samples of NR and SBR were documented during continuous testing. The propagation of a cut occurs by the stretching, tearing, and collapsing of fine strands, which we propose consists of bundles of long unwinding molecular chains of the rubber. Two main cut-growth regions are identified: a slow-cut-growth region consisting of irregular-shaped nodules or cells of collapsed rubber strands along short tear paths and a fast-cut-growth region consisting of long intersecting tear or cleavage paths leading to catastrophic failure. Addition of 20.6 phr (15 wt.%) carbon black results in a coarsening of the stretching, tearing, and fracture morphologies relative to those seen with the gum rubbers. Addition of 64 phr (35 wt.%) of carbon black results in all these structures being very fine with the phenomenon of knotty, deviated tearing dominating in the slow-cut-growth region. The kn...
The state and public administration: have instruments of governance outrun governments? Introductory perspectives

These introductory perspectives set the scene for this Special Issue and companion Special Issue in March 2016. Several questions are raised about states, institutions, instruments and the ecology of governance as a forerunner to analyses in subsequent articles. Particularly pertinent are questions concerning instrument use and control, with significant implications for state capacity, legitimacy and trust as multi-nodalism becomes an ever-expanding reality in modern governance.
Normative agents for real-world scenarios

Norms are an important part of human social systems, governing many aspects of group decision-making. Yet many popularly used social models neglect to model normative effects on human behavior, relying on simple probabilistic and majority voting models of influence diffusion. Within the multi-agent research community, the study of norm emergence, compliance, and adoption has resulted in new architectures and standards for normative agents; however few of these models have been successfully applied to real-world public policy problems.During our research we introduced a new hybrid architecture, Cognitive Social Learners (CSL), that models bottom-up norm emergence through a social learning mechanism, while using BDI (Belief/Desire/Intention) reasoning to handle adoption and compliance. Our proposed cognitive architecture encompasses the interaction between rational thought, reward-based learning, and contagious social behaviors. The future plan is to employ this architecture for constructing normative agents to model human social systems; the aim of our research is to be able to study the effects of different public policy decisions on a community and studying the emergence of norms in real-world cases.
A discontinuity test for identification in triangular nonseparable models

This paper presents a test for the validity of control variable approaches to identification in triangular nonseparable models. Assumptions commonly imposed to justify such methods include full independence of instruments and disturbances and existence of a reduced form that is strictly monotonic in a scalar disturbance. We show that if the data has a particular structure, namely that the distribution of the endogenous variable has a mass point at the lower (or upper) boundary of its support, validity of the control variable approach implies a continuity condition on an identified function, which can be tested empirically.
Characterizing fluorotelomer and polyfluoroalkyl substances in new and aged fluorotelomer-based polymers for degradation studies with GC/MS and LC/MS/MS.

Fluorotelomer-based polymers (FTPs), the dominant product of the fluorotelomer industry, are antistaining and antiwetting agents that permeate the products and surfaces of modern society. However, the degree to which these materials expose humans and the environment to fluorotelomer and perfluorinated compounds, including recalcitrant and toxic compounds such as perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), is ill-defined. The design intent of FTPs, to minimize interaction with other substances, including solvents, heretofore has stymied efforts to develop robust methods to characterize the content of monomers and associated compounds of new commercial FTPs, as well as commercial FTPs that have been aged in environmental media for degradation testing. Here we show that FTPs can be exhausted of these compounds and quantitated by (i) drying the FTP on a suitable substrate at elevated temperature to achieve low, constant monomer concentrations; (ii) serial extraction with MTBE for fluorotelomer-monomer analysis by GC/MS in...
A novel membrane anchor for FtsZ is linked to cell wall hydrolysis in Caulobacter crescentus

In most bacteria, the tubulin-like GTPase FtsZ forms an annulus at midcell (the Z-ring) which recruits the division machinery and regulates cell wall remodeling. Although both activities require membrane attachment of FtsZ, few membrane anchors have been characterized. FtsA is considered to be the primary membrane tether for FtsZ in bacteria, however in Caulobacter crescentus, FtsA arrives at midcell after stable Z-ring assembly and early FtsZ-directed cell wall synthesis. We hypothesized that additional proteins tether FtsZ to the membrane and demonstrate that in C. crescentus, FzlC is one such membrane anchor. FzlC associates with membranes directly in vivo and in vitro and recruits FtsZ to membranes in vitro. As for most known membrane anchors, the C-terminal peptide of FtsZ is required for its recruitment to membranes by FzlC in vitro and midcell recruitment of FzlC in cells. In vivo, overproduction of FzlC causes cytokinesis defects whereas deletion of fzlC causes synthetic defects with dipM, ftsE and amiC mutants, implicating FzlC in cell wall hydrolysis. Our characterization of FzlC as a novel membrane anchor for FtsZ expands our understanding of FtsZ regulators and establishes a role for membrane-anchored FtsZ in the regulation of cell wall hydrolysis.
Glitazones and the cardiovascular system.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW To chart recent progress on molecular mechanisms of rosiglitazone and pioglitazone in the cardiovascular system. RECENT FINDINGS Several classes of oral antidiabetic drugs are available to treat type 2 diabetes, but glitazones offer the unique promise of insulin-sensitizing ability coupled with potential to reverse cardiovascular abnormalities associated with insulin resistance. Currently the two drugs used are rosiglitazone and pioglitazone, marketed as Avandia and Actos. Recent results of different metaanalyses were inconclusive as to whether rosiglitazone caused real adverse effects of myocardial ischemia. Thus, the US Food and Drugs Administration placed a black box warning on Avandia to signal potential of myocardial infarction and heart-related deaths, as a precautionary measure until analyses of all available data provide clarity. Also unresolved is the extent to which the two compounds share modes of action. SUMMARY Type II diabetes affects more than 160 million people, approximately 5% of the world's population (http://www.who.org). Recently, questions have been raised about the cardiovascular safety of glitazone antidiabetic drugs. Clearly, there is an urgency to define molecular mechanisms of rosiglitazone and pioglitazone and understand how these drugs may impact patients.
Modular organization of the multipartite central pattern generator for turtle rostral scratch: knee-related interneurons during deletions

Central pattern generators (CPGs) are neuronal networks in the spinal cord that generate rhythmic patterns of motor activity in the absence of movement-related sensory feedback. For many vertebrate rhythmic behaviors, CPGs generate normal patterns of motor neuron activities as well as variations of the normal patterns, termed deletions, in which bursts in one or more motor nerves are absent from one or more cycles of the rhythm. Prior work with hip-extensor deletions during turtle rostral scratch supports hypotheses of hip-extensor interneurons in a hip-extensor module and of hip-flexor interneurons in a hip-flexor module. We present here single-unit interneuronal recording data that support hypotheses of knee-extensor interneurons in a knee-extensor module and of knee-flexor interneurons in a knee-flexor module. Members of knee-related modules are not members of hip-related modules and vice versa. These results in turtle provide experimental support at the single-unit interneuronal level for the organizational concept that the rostral-scratch CPG for the turtle hindlimb is multipartite, that is, composed of more than two modules. This work, when combined with experimental and computational work in other vertebrates, does not support the classical view that the vertebrate limb CPG is bipartite with only two modules, one controlling all the flexors of the limb and the other controlling all the extensors of the limb. Instead, these results support the general principle that spinal CPGs are multipartite.
Drugs for Primary Prevention of Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease: An Overview of Systematic Reviews.

Importance The Million Hearts initiative emphasizes ABCS ( a spirin for high-risk patients, b lood pressure [BP] control, c holesterol level management, and s moking cessation). Evidence of the effects of drugs used to achieve ABCS has not been synthesized comprehensively in the prevention of primary atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD). Objective To compare the efficacy and safety of aspirin, BP-lowering therapy, statins, and tobacco cessation drugs for fatal and nonfatal ASCVD outcomes in primary ASCVD prevention. Evidence Review Structured search of the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects (DARE), Health Technology Assessment Database (HTA), MEDLINE, EMBASE, and PROSPERO International Prospective Systematic Review Trial Register to identify systematic reviews published from January 1, 2005, to June 17, 2015, that reported the effect of aspirin, BP-lowering therapy, statin, or tobacco cessation drugs on ASCVD events in individuals without prevalent ASCVD. Additional studies were identified by searching the reference lists of included systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and health technology assessment reports. Reviews were selected according to predefined criteria and appraised for methodologic quality using the Assessment of Multiple Systematic Reviews (AMSTAR) tool (range, 0-11). Studies were independently reviewed for key participant and intervention characteristics. Outcomes that were meta-analyzed in each included review were extracted. Qualitative synthesis was performed, and data were analyzed from July 2 to August 13, 2015. Findings From a total of 1967 reports, 35 systematic reviews of randomized clinical trials were identified, including 15 reviews of aspirin, 4 reviews of BP-lowering therapy, 12 reviews of statins, and 4 reviews of tobacco cessation drugs. Methodologic quality varied, but 30 reviews had AMSTAR ratings of 5 or higher. Compared with placebo, aspirin (relative risk [RR], 0.90; 95% CI, 0.85-0.96) and statins (RR, 0.75; 95% CI, 0.70-0.81) reduced the risk for ASCVD. Compared with placebo, BP-lowering therapy reduced the risk for coronary heart disease (RR, 0.84; 95% CI, 0.79-0.90) and stroke (RR, 0.64; 95% CI, 0.56-0.73). Tobacco cessation drugs increased the odds of continued abstinence at 6 months (odds ratio range, 1.82 [95% CI, 1.60-2.06] to 2.88 [95% CI, 2.40-3.47]), but the direct effects on ASCVD were poorly reported. Aspirin increased the risk for major bleeding (RR, 1.54; 95% CI, 1.30-1.82), and statins did not increase overall risk for adverse effects (RR, 1.00; 95% CI, 0.97-1.03). Adverse effects of BP-lowering therapy and tobacco cessation drugs were poorly reported. Conclusions and Relevance This overview demonstrates high-quality evidence to support aspirin, BP-lowering therapy, and statins for primary ASCVD prevention and tobacco cessation drugs for smoking cessation. Treatment effects of each drug can be used to enrich discussions between health care professionals and patients in primary ASCVD prevention.
Synthesis and conclusion

Summary of the situation underlying 1 Thessalonians In our analysis of the situation underlying 1 Thessalonians in Part 2, we concluded that the Thessalonian community had been deeply perturbed by the deaths of fellow-community members on account of their failure to think in terms of a resurrection of saints, probably because of ignorance concerning it (4:13–18). Without such a hope for their dead, they seem to have inferred that the deceased would not be able to participate in the salvation of the parousia. With regard to 5:1–11, we proposed that the unexpected deaths may have raised doubts about the status and destiny of the whole community before God, for if some of their number had by their deaths proved to be non-elect, the foundation of the others' hope became suspect. Indeed, we suggested that the deaths may ultimately have been perceived to be a prodigium , causing the Thessalonians to wonder whether the Day of the Lord qua judgment was about to come upon them. The rest of 1 Thessalonians confirmed and developed our hypothesis about the eschatological aspect of the situation underlying 4:13–5:11. The readers needed to be reassured regarding their destiny (1:10c; 2:12; 5:24), were without hope (3:6), were lacking in some fundamentals of their faith (3:10) and could be described as ‘faint-hearted’ and ‘weak’ (5:14).
Redescription and New Host Records for Parancylodiscoides macrobaculum n. comb. (Monogenoidea: Dactylogyridae) from Groupers (Serranidae: Epinephelinae) in the Gulf of Mexico

ABSTRACT: Haliotrema macrobaculum Zhukov, 1983 is transferred to Parancylodiscoides as P. macrobaculum (Zhukov, 1983) n. comb. (Monogenoidea: Dactylogyridae). The species is redescribed from the gills of gag Mycteroperca microlepis and is newly recorded from scamp Mycteroperca phenax and yellowmouth grouper Mycteroperca interstitialis (all Serranidae: Epinephelinae: Epinephelini) in the northern Gulf of Mexico. The transfer of H. macrobaculum to Parancylodiscoides is based on the presence of a dorsal bar with bifurcated ends, the hook morphology, the germarium lying to the right of the anterior end of the testis, and by the absence of an accessory piece in the copulatory complex. The generic diagnosis of Parancylodiscoides is emended to include species having a dextroventral or dextrolateral vaginal aperture.
Design of flexible layouts for manufacturing systems

In this paper, we address the problem of designing flexible plant layouts for manufacturing facilities where product demands are subject to variability. We extend existing procedures for layout design by: (1) explicitly capturing the stochastic nature of product demands and the resulting material variability in flows between different processing departments; (2) allowing for the possibility of multiple processing departments of the same type to exist in the same facility; and (3) letting material flows between pairs of individual departments be determined simultaneously with the layout and as function of the demand scenarios.
A comparative study of 2 imaging techniques for the diagnosis of condylar fractures in children: Discussion

Purpose: We sought to compare the sensitivity and specificity of panoramic radiographs with those of coronal computed tomography (CT) scans in the diagnosis of mandibular condylar fractures in the pediatric population. Methods: Medical, dental, and radiographic records of patients who presented between 1995 and 2000 were evaluated for injuries involving the mandibular condyle. The sample included 22 males and 15 females with ages ranging from 2 to 15 years (mean, 8 years). Control subjects were added and matched by age and gender. The panoramic radiographs were blocked to allow separate evaluation of each condyle. Representative images from the CT scans were selected and individually photographed for projection. Both sets of images were evaluated by 4 groups of examiners: oral and maxillofacial (OMF) surgeons who regularly deal with pediatric trauma (n = 2), community OMF surgeons who had been out of training for at least 5 years (n = 6), OMF radiologists (n = 3), and OMF surgery residents (n = 6). Each image was shown for 20 seconds and the examiners were given 3 options to choose: 1) fracture, 2) no fracture, and 3) uncertain. Results: The overall diagnostic accuracy of CT scanning was 90% (sensitivity, 92%; specificity, 87%), and that of panoramic radiographs was 73% (sensitivity, 70%; specificity, 77%). Of interest, the most experienced clinicians were also those most likely to respond that panoramic films were not diagnostic. Statistical analysis of the results was performed using X 2 analysis. The differences for sensitivity measurements using the CT scan were not statistically significant (P >.1). However, the differences in sensitivity measurements using the panoramic radiographs and the specificity measurements using both the CT and panoramic radiographs were statistically significant (P <.05). Conclusions: CT scans provide consistently greater accuracy of diagnosis, sensitivity, and specificity than panoramic radiographs in the assessment of children suspected of having condylar fractures. In view of the high rate of false-negative and false-positive results associated with panoramic radiographs, coronal CT scans should be considered routine investigation in these patients.
Redox Stress Defines the Small Artery Vasculopathy of Hypertension: How Do We Bridge the Bench-to-Bedside Gap?

Although convincing experimental evidence demonstrates the importance of vascular reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (RONS), oxidative stress, and perturbed redox signaling as causative processes in the vasculopathy of hypertension, this has not translated to the clinic. We discuss this bench-to-bedside disparity and the urgency to progress vascular redox pathobiology from experimental models to patients by studying disease-relevant human tissues. It is only through such approaches that the unambiguous role of vascular redox stress will be defined so that mechanism-based therapies in a personalized and precise manner can be developed to prevent, slow, or reverse progression of small-vessel disorders and consequent hypertension. Considering the high prevalence of hypertension worldwide, the excess heart disease and stroke that it predisposes to, and the fact that it is the strongest modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular disease, it is not surprising that the American Heart Association funded a Strategically Focused Research Network on hypertension and that the Lancet commissioned a call-to-action and a life-course strategy to address the global burden of raised blood pressure (BP).1 Despite significant advances in understanding the pathophysiology of hypertension and the availability of numerous effective drugs, suboptimal BP control remains the primary predisposing factor for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. This Hypertension Paradox of more uncontrolled hypertension despite improved therapies, defined by Chobanian,2 is multifactorial and may relate largely to the still unknown genetic basis and elusive causal molecular mechanisms of hypertension. Genetics plays some role in human primary hypertension as evidenced in twin studies and monogenetic forms of hypertension where the kidney is a key target. Genome-wide association studies have been disappointing and have failed to identify specific genes that underpin hypertension. Few loci have been validated or translated into therapeutic targets, with multiple genes and their variants collectively accounting for <2.5% of BP variation. In one of …
Interventions to Facilitate Shared Decision Making to Address Antibiotic Use for Acute Respiratory Tract Infections in Primary Care.

Interventions to facilitate shared decision making reduce the prescribing of antibiotics for acute respiratory tract infections in the short term (within six weeks of the consultation) without increasing return visits or decreasing patient satisfaction (number needed to treat [NNT] = 6).
EFFECTS OF ANTENNECTOMY AND A JUVENILE HORMONE ANALOG ON PHEROMONE PRODUCTION IN THE BOLL WEEVIL (COLEOPTERA: CURCULIONIDAE)

Aggregation pheromone production by male boll weevils, Anthonomus grandis grandis Boheman can be stimulated by both antennectomy and topical application of a juvenile hormone analog (JHA, methopren...
Chapter 8 More Evidence for a Common, Central Constraint on Speed of Processing

Children typically execute cognitive processes more slowly than do adults. One explanation for this age difference is that processing speed is limited by a general factor common to performance on many tasks. Consistent with this view, speed of many different cognitive processes (e.g., mental rotation, memory search) seems to change with age at a common rate. Also consistent with this view, (a) the correlation across conditions between children's response times and adults' response times approximates 1.0, and (b) the slope of the function relating children's response times to adults' response times declines with age at a common rate. Possible candidates for the hypothetical limiting factor are discussed.
Small cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder: a clinicopathological and immunohistochemical analysis of 81 cases.

Summary Small cell carcinoma (SmCC) of the bladder is a rare disease. We retrospectively studied a large series of bladder SmCC from a single institution. The patients included 69 men and 12 women with a mean age of 68 years. Most bladder SmCCs were presented at advanced stage, with tumors invading the muscularis propria and beyond (n = 77). SmCC was pure in 27 cases and mixed with other histologic types in 54 cases, including urothelial carcinoma (UC) (n = 32), UC in situ (n = 26), glandular (n = 14), micropapillary (n = 4), sarcomatoid (n = 4), squamous (n = 3), and plasmacytoid (n = 1) features. Most SmCCs expressed neuroendocrine markers synaptophysin (41/56), chromogranin (26/55), and CD56 (39/41); however, they did not express UC luminal markers CK20 (0/17), GATA3 (1/30), and uroplakin II (1/22). Some SmCCs showed focal expression of CK5/6 (9/25), a marker for the basal molecular subtype. Furthermore, expression of the retinoblastoma 1 (RB1) gene protein was lost in most of the bladder SmCCs (2/23). The patients' survival was significantly associated with cancer stage but did not show a significant difference between mixed and pure SmCCs. Compared with conventional UC at similar stages, SmCC had a worse prognosis only when patients developed metastatic diseases. In conclusion, bladder SmCC is an aggressive disease that is frequently present at an advanced stage. A fraction of SmCCs show a basal molecular subtype, which may underlie its good response to chemotherapy. Inactivation of the RB1 gene may be implicated in the oncogenesis of bladder SmCC.
Quantitatively analyzing stealthy communication channels

Attackers in particular botnet controllers use stealthy messaging systems to set up large-scale command and control. Understanding the capacity of such communication channels is important in detecting organized cyber crimes. We analyze the use of domain name service (DNS) as a stealthy botnet command-and-control channel, which allows multiple entities to pass messages stored in DNS records to each other.We describe and quantitatively analyze new techniques that can be used to hide malicious DNS activities both at the host and network levels. We also present and experimentally evaluate statistical contentanalysis techniques as a countermeasure, which require deep packet inspection. Our techniques are beyond the specific DNS security problem studied. We give a formal definition for the perfect stealth of a communication channel; point out the fundamental limits in achieving it, as well as the practical issues in the detection. We perform comprehensive statistical analysis that makes use of a two-month-long 4.6GB campus network dataset and 1 million domain names obtained from alexa.com.
Aging, Obesity, and the Incidence of Diverticulitis: A Population-Based Study.

Abstract Objective To understand why the population-based incidence of diverticulitis has increased over time, we studied temporal changes in age, body mass index (BMI), and diverticulitis in Olmsted County, Minnesota. Participants and Methods We compared the BMIs of 2967 patients with diverticulitis and 9795 people without diverticulitis from January 1, 1980, through December 31, 2007. Because BMI is a surrogate for adipose tissue, computed tomographic estimations of abdominal fat content were compared between 381 diverticulitis cases and 381 age- and sex-matched controls. Results Between 1980 and 2007, the prevalence of obesity increased from 12% to 49% in the population and from 19% to 40% in patients with diverticulitis (P Conclusion Aging, increasing obesity, and the increased incidence of diverticulitis in people with normal BMI account for the temporal increase in diverticulitis. Rather than BMI per se, increased abdominal visceral and subcutaneous fat are independently associated with diverticulitis. The incidence of diverticulitis, which is among the most common gastrointestinal diagnoses in hospitalized patients, has increased markedly since 2000. This study suggests that aging, increasing obesity, and the increased incidence of diverticulitis in people with normal BMI account for the temporal increase in diverticulitis.
Non-Isothermal Sublimation Kinetics of 2,4,6-Trinitrotoluene (TNT) Nanofilms.

Non-isothermal sublimation kinetics of low-volatile materials is more favorable over isothermal data when time is a crucial factor to be considered, especially in the subject of detecting explosives. In this article, we report on the in-situ measurements of the sublimation activation energy for 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) continuous nanofilms in air using rising-temperature UV-Vis absorbance spectroscopy at different heating rates. The TNT films were prepared by the spin coating deposition technique. For the first time, the most widely used procedure to determine sublimation rates using thermogravimetry analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) was followed in this work using UV-Vis absorbance spectroscopy. The sublimation kinetics were analyzed using three well-established calculating techniques. The non-isothermal based activation energy values using the Ozawa, Flynn–Wall, and Kissinger models were 105.9 ± 1.4 kJ mol−1, 102.1 ± 2.7 kJ mol−1, and 105.8 ± 1.6 kJ mol−1, respectively. The calculated activation energy agreed well with our previously reported isothermally-measured value for TNT nanofilms using UV-Vis absorbance spectroscopy. The results show that the well-established non-isothermal analytical techniques can be successfully applied at a nanoscale to determine sublimation kinetics using absorbance spectroscopy.
Characterization of Piezoelectric Cantilever Beams for use in Roadside Vibration Energy Harvesting

This paper investigates a method of characterizing piezoelectric cantilever beams for applications in roadside energy harvesting. Research to date studies piezoelectric harvesting units embedded in pavement, which has a host of logistical issues. Other previous implementations have focused on adhering piezoelectric elements to a substrate that acts as the beam. This paper focuses on an implementation using only the piezoelectric material as the cantilever beam and an initial investigation into the feasibility of harvesting electricity from a cantilever beam system on the roadside. A Piezoelectric element was tested by clamping it to the vibration table and observing the open-circuit voltage over a frequency range of 1 - 200 Hz at approximately 1 G. The test samples had a prominent but narrow-banded resonance at between 20 - 200 Hz, outputting roughly 2.45 - 6.22V rms , resulting in between 63.6 - 289 µW. These preliminary results show that with the usage of multiple piezoelectric elements and careful considerations in the choice of harvesting circuitry, a usable amount of energy could be generated for some low power applications.
Bias varies for bioimpedance analysis and skinfold technique when stratifying collegiate male athletes’ fat-free mass hydration levels

This study evaluated the accuracy of bioimpedance analysis (BIA)- and skinfold (SF)-based body fat percentage estimates in collegiate athletes with varying fat-free mass (FFM) hydration levels. Sub...
Measuring Individual Battery Dimensional Changes for State-of-Charge Estimation using Strain Gauge Sensors

This investigation has studied the correlation of Lithium-Ion battery dimensional changes (e.g., strain measurement) to the real-time State-of-Charge (SOC) by mounting strain gauges on the cases of battery cells. Strain gauges are used to determine whether the measured strain profiles during constant-current-constant-voltage (CCCV) cycles contain useful information that can be correlated with the SOC. Attention has been focused on investigating the battery dimensional change polarization following a current event to determine whether it holds promise for increasing the battery pack’s total energy throughput by avoiding the rest time required when using the open-circuit voltage for SOC estimation. The experimental results confirm that the strain gauges generate output voltages that track the SOC profile during dynamic charge/discharge events. The results also demonstrate that tracking battery dimensional changes holds potential for significantly reducing the rest time that is currently required for estimating SOC in many applications.
Innovation Lessons From the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Abstract On December 31, 2019, Chinese authorities reported the first case of what would become known as COVID-19 to the World Health Organization (WHO), which declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern one month later. In the ensuing weeks, health care organizations, industry partners, and government agencies worldwide have quickly come together to address pandemic challenges such as scaling high-quality laboratory tests, conducting treatment research, and enabling virtual health care in a time of social distancing. What we have accomplished together to date demonstrates the opportunity for future cross-sector partnerships in science and technology to fight the disease, while simultaneously creating the new digital health care solutions that our world greatly needs.
Clarification of creep deformation mechanism in heat-affected zone of 9Cr steels with In Situ experiments

Abstract This work quantified nonuniform creep deformation across the heterogeneous heat-affected zone (HAZ) of Grade 91 steel with sophisticated experiments, including an electric-thermal finite element model–assisted Gleeble thermomechanical simulation and a high-temperature creep testing with in situ digital image correlation (DIC). High temperature creep properties of HAZ sub-zones were quantitatively measured by the DIC. By utilizing peak temperature, hardness, local creep strain, and underlying microstructures, creep deformation mechanisms in HAZ were further understood. DIC measurements reveal a creep-vulnerable zone (CVZ) exposed to a peak temperature of 932°C (close to AC3) in the intercritical HAZ experienced the fastest creep strength degradation instead of the soft zone with the lowest hardness prior to creep. The significantly reduced precipitation strengthening from misplacement of undissolved and coarsened M23C6 carbides led to a faster recrystallization of tempered martensite in the CVZ. Weak untransformed tempered martensite (ferrite grains) stabilized by local Cr enrichment from dissolved M23C6 also harmed the CVZ's creep resistance.
“Time and distance in the Bourbon landscape:: the strategic illogicality of the gardens of Versailles”

In the foreground of Israel Silvestre’s drawing of the ‘perspective laterele du rond d’Eau’ of Vaux-le-Vicomte sit two women. [Figure 1] Fashionably dressed and seated together, the women are typic...
Investigating the Assimilation of Leaf Area Index Products at Different Temporal Resolutions in a Land Surface Model

Remote sensing observations of vegetation derived from satellite retrievals provide spatially comprehensive measurements that are well-suited for data assimilation in land surface modeling over large areas. However, the temporal intervals of such satellite-based observations are usually multi-daily or monthly, which may not be frequent enough to perform an effective data assimilation procedure. One way that can potentially improve the assimilation performance is to apply temporal interpolation to the satellite observations before merging them with the model estimates. This study assimilates satellite leaf area index (LAI) products in a land surface model with two methods: i) assimilation of satellite LAI products at their original temporal resolution, and ii) temporal interpolation of the satellite LAI to a finer resolution before assimilation. Results show that both LAI assimilation methods are effective to improve the model performance. In addition, the simulation assimilated with the temporally interpolated LAI observations performs better than the simulation assimilated with the original LAI observations in terms of the model estimated LAI and evapotranspiration estimates.
For Want of a Chair: Teaching Price Formation Using a Cap and Trade Game

The tradable or transferable permit system, “cap and trade”, is one of the most innovative policy options developed by environmental economists. Over the last 40 years, cap and trade programs have been used around the globe by some of the world’s biggest economies. By placing a cap on a bad, whether a pollutant or excess fish mortality, and then allowing firms to buy and sell the right to generate it, policy makers combine government intervention with market-based incentives in order to improve welfare and internalize the externality. Such programs represent a great opportunity for economics instructors to show students how economic theory can be used in the real world by policy makers while teaching foundational economic concepts. By using an in-class game that utilizes a mobile app or paper-based interaction to create a market for a pollutant (or another rival but non-excludable resource), students can learn several important tenants of economics. These include how prices are formed and how price-based incentives lead to voluntary, as if cooperative, behavior by agents. This active learning method engages students while improving their comprehension of price formation, gains from trade, voluntary response to incentives, and an important environmental economics policy.
Strong within-host selection in a maternally inherited obligate symbiont: Buchnera and aphids

Numerous animal lineages have maternally inherited symbionts that are required for host reproduction and growth. Endosymbionts also pose a risk to their hosts because of the mutational decay of their genomes through genetic drift or to selfish mutations that favor symbiont fitness over host fitness. One model for heritable endosymbiosis is the association of aphids with their obligate bacterial symbiont, Buchnera. We experimentally established heteroplasmic pea aphid matrilines containing pairs of closely related Buchnera haplotypes and used deep sequencing of diagnostic markers to measure haplotype frequencies in successive host generations. These frequencies were used to estimate the effective population size of Buchnera within hosts (i.e., the transmission bottleneck size) and the extent of within-host selection. The within-host effective population size was in the range of 10 to 20, indicating a strong potential for genetic drift and fixation of deleterious mutations. Remarkably, closely related haplotypes were subject to strong within-host selection, with selection coefficients as high as 0.5 per aphid generation. In one case, the direction of selection depended on the thermal environment and went in the same direction as between-host selection. In another, a new mutant haplotype had a strong within-host advantage under both environments but had no discernible effect on host-level fitness under laboratory conditions. Thus, within-host selection can be strong, resulting in a rapid fixation of mutations with little impact on host-level fitness. Together, these results show that within-host selection can drive evolution of an obligate symbiont, accelerating sequence evolution.
Diffuse Cerebral Air Emboli After an Esophagogastroduodenoscopy One Month Post Left Atrial Ablation for Atrial Fibrillation

We present a case of a patient who presented to the emergency department with vague abdominal pain one month after undergoing a left atrial ablation procedure for atrial fibrillation. While in the emergency department, the patient started to have episodes of hematemesis. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) was performed and the patient become hypotensive and unresponsive after. Imaging confirmed atrioesophageal fistula and widespread cerebral air emboli and diffuse ischemia. Air emboli were likely introduced through the fistula during the EGD.
Early Propranolol Is Associated With Lower Risk of Venous Thromboembolism After Traumatic Brain Injury.

BACKGROUND Traumatic brain injury (TBI) results in an elaborate systemic cascade of secondary injury elicited in part by an intrinsic catecholamine response, which ultimately leads to changes in inflammation and coagulopathy. Attenuation of this catecholamine response with agents such as propranolol confers a survival advantage. The related impact of propranolol on venous thromboembolism (VTE) after TBI is largely unknown. STUDY DESIGN A single institution retrospective review was conducted of all TBI patients requiring intensive care unit (ICU) admission with an injury severity scale (ISS) ≥ 25 from January 2013 to May 2015. Patients who received at least one dose of propranolol within 24 hours of admission (PROP) were compared to patients who did not receive any doses of propranolol (NPROP) during their hospitalization. RESULTS Of the 131 patients analyzed, 31 (23.7%) patients received propranolol. The PROP cohort was more severely injured overall (ISS 29 vs 26.5, P = .02). While unadjusted VTE rates were similar (16.1% vs 19.0%, P = .72), the adjusted VTE rate was lower in the PROP cohort (AOR 0.20 (95% CI 0.04-0.97), adjusted P-value < .05). CONCLUSION Propranolol use in TBI patients who have sustained critical injuries may mitigate the risk of VTE. The mechanism by which this outcome is achieved requires further investigation.
The adoption and diffusion of computing and internet technologies in historically black colleges and universities

The rapid growth of technologies is providing the opportunity for innovative design and delivery of curriculum and instructional materials to college students; yet many college faculty members, especially in historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU), are not using this technology. With a widening gap in access to technologies for minorities, this is a significant issue. In this study, specific research questions focused on HBCU faculty's current use of technology, desire to incorporate new technology, view of organizational support, and potential gender or age differences. Surveys were conducted at five HBCU with established records of leadership in education. Using quantitative statistics, the results showed there is a strong willingness of HBCU faculty to incorporate new technology. Faculty members, however, were handicapped by the lack of organizational support, access to computing resources, and availability of technology support staff. The result did not show gender or age differences in the adoption of technology in the classroom. It is recommended that HBCU consider upgrading aging computing and network infrastructures. Sustainable technology-related training and professional development workshops should also be made available to the faculty members. These initiatives could help faculty in HBCU move to increased use of technology to deliver instructions, encourage the use of technology by minorities, and foster the growth of online instruction in this important segment of our society.
The Yang-Mills Equations

From now on we deal with a certain orbit space M. This “moduli space” is the set of solutions to the self-dual Yang-Mills equations, but divided out by a natural equivalence. The self-dual Yang-Mills equations are an elliptic (except along orbits of the group of gauge transformations) system of partial differential equations for a connection on a vector bundle over a smooth 4-manifold. The group of gauge transformations is the group of natural equivalences in the vector bundle, hence the natural equivalence in the problem, and so it acts on the space of solutions to the self-dual Yang-Mills equations.