cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Combined Smoking Cues Enhance Reactivity and Predict Immediate Subsequent Smoking

Introduction Cue reactivity (CR) research has reliably demonstrated robust cue-induced responding among smokers exposed to common proximal smoking cues (eg, cigarettes, lighter). More recent work demonstrates that distal stimuli, most notably the actual environments in which smoking previously occurred, can also gain associative control over craving. In the real world, proximal cues always occur within an environment; thus, a more informative test of how cues affect smokers might be to present these two cue types simultaneously. Methods Using a combined-cue counterbalanced CR paradigm, the present study tested the impact of proximal (smoking and neutral) + personal environment (smoking and nonsmoking places) pictorial cues, on smokers' subjective and behavioral CR; as well as the extent to which cue-induced craving predicts immediate subsequent smoking in a within-subjects design. Results As anticipated, the dual smoking cue combination (ProxS + EnvS) led to the greatest cue-induced craving relative to the other three cue combinations (ProxS + EnvN, ProxN + EnvS, and ProxN ± EnvN), ps < .004. Dual smoking cues also led to significantly shorter post-trial latencies to smoke, ps < .01. Overall CR difference score (post-trial craving minus baseline craving) was predictive of subsequent immediate smoking indexed by: post-trial latency to smoke [B = -2.69, SE = 9.02; t(143) = -2.98, p = .003]; total puff volume [B = 2.99, SE = 1.13; t(143) = 2.65, p = .009]; and total number of puffs [B = .053, SE = .027; t(143) = 1.95, p = .05]. Conclusions The implications of these findings for better understanding the impact of cues on smoking behavior and cessation are discussed. Implications This novel cue reactivity study examined smokers' reactivity to combined proximal and distal smoking cues. Exposure to a combination of two smoking cues (proximal and environment) led to the greatest increases in cue-induced craving and smoking behavior compared to all other cue combinations. Further, the overall magnitude of cue-induced craving was found to significantly predict immediate subsequent smoking. This work provides new insight on how exposure to various cues and cue combinations directly affect smokers' craving and actual smoking behavior, as well as the relationship between those two indices of reactivity.
Empirical Comparison of the Breslow Estimator and the Kalbfleisch Prentice Estimator for Survival Functions.

When analyzing time-to-event data in a non-parametric setting without considering covariates, the Kaplan-Meier estimator is widely used to estimate the survival function. When considering covariates, the Cox proportional hazards model is widely used to account for covariates effects. In this setting, for the baseline survival function, the most commonly used approach is the Breslow method, which estimates the baseline survival function as an exponential function of the cumulative baseline hazard function. However, an unnatural and undesirable feature of the Breslow es timator is that, its estimated survival probability will never reaches zero even if the last observation is an event. In this article, we consider an less commonly used alternative, the Kalbfleisch Prentice estimator for the baseline survival function. It is the counterpart of the Kaplan-Meier estimator in a setting with covariates, and thus similarly as the Kaplan Meier estimator, it will reach zero if the last observation is an event. To evaluate the usefulness of the Kalbfleisch Prentice estimator and its relative performance comparing with the Breslow estimator, we conduct simulation studies across a range of conditions by varying the true survival time distribution, sample size, censoring rate and covariate values. We compare the performance of the two estimators regarding bias, mean squared error and relative mean squared error. In most situations in our study, the Kalbfleisch Prentice estimator results in less bias and smaller mean squared error than the Breslow estimator. Their differences are especially clear at the tail of the distribution. The implications of such differences in applications are discussed. We advocate the use of Kalbfleisch Prentice estimator in practice, and further research on its properties.
In vitro effects of erlotinib and gemcitabine in erlotinib-resistant cells

2147 Erlotinib (Tarceva) inhibits the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase by competing with ATP to inhibit phosphorylation of the kinase. Erlotinib was recently approved for use in combination with gemcitabine for advanced pancreatic cancer. However, in vitro evidence to support the use of erlotinib with gemcitabine as anticancer therapy is lacking. To address this gap, we created 2 erlotinib-resistant pools of A-431 cells, an EGFR-overexpressing, erlotinib-sensitive epidermoid cancer cell line, and assessed them for dose-response and cell cycling in response to erlotinib and gemcitabine. The resistant pools were developed by continuously exposing A-431 cells to erlotinib (pool 1, 3 μM for 1 mo, 5 μM for 1 mo, and 10 μM for 4 mo; pool 2, 3 μM for 1 mo and 5 μM for 5 mo). Basal expression of EGFR was no different among the 3 cell types, and erlotinib blocked EGF signaling in both resistant pools (as evidenced by EGFR phosphorylation after EGF stimulation). Intracellular concentrations of erlotinib (measured by LC/MS/MS) after a 24-h exposure were 0.98 ± 0.04 ng/ml for parental cells, 3.03 ± 0.97 ng/ml for pool 1, and 1.88 ± 0.47 ng/ml for pool 2, confirming that erlotinib penetrated the cell membrane in both pools. Next, parental cells (IC50 1.67 μM) and erlotinib-resistant cells (IC50 17.6 or 13.2 μM) were treated with 2-fold serial dilutions of erlotinib (0.125-16 μM), gemcitabine (0.000436-0.056 μM), or both. Combination indices (CI) for the 2 drugs were derived by using Calcusyn (Biosoft, Cambridge, UK). Drug synergy is indicated by a CI 1.0. In the parental cells, synergy between erlotinib and gemcitabine was noted (CI = 0.68 at IC50); strong synergy was also maintained in the erlotinib-resistant pools (CI = 0.69 for pool 1 and 0.56 for pool 2 at their respective IC50s) despite their being resistant to erlotinib. This synergism was confirmed by trypan blue exclusion. Flow cytometric cell-cycle analysis showed substantial increases in proportions of subdiploid (apoptotic) cells. These results suggest that synergistic effects between erlotinib and gemcitabine in cancer cells may not require sensitivity to erlotinib as a single agent at the concentration used as long as EGFR phosphorylation is blocked by erlotinib. Further studies are warranted to explore the use of erlotinib as a gemcitabine chemosensitizer in cancer cells that overexpress EGFR.
Derived Relational Responding and Intelligence: Assessing the Relationship Between the PEAK-E Pre-assessment and IQ with Individuals with Autism and Related Disabilities

The present study evaluated the relationship between derived relational responding demonstrated by 64 individuals with developmental or intellectual disabilities (90.63% of which had an autism diagnosis) and their corresponding performance on standardized IQ assessments. Participants’ relational abilities were assessed using the Promoting the Emergence of Advanced Knowledge Equivalence Pre-Assessment (PEAK-E-PA), and IQ was assessed using either the WISC-IV Short Form assessment or the WPPSI-III Short Form assessment. The data indicated a strong, significant correlation between participant scores on the PEAK-E-PA and IQ both in terms of raw IQ (r = .843, p < .01), as well as full scale IQ (r = .804, p < .01), which is further analyzed in terms of each of the four subtests of the PEAK-E-PA (reflexivity, symmetry, transitivity, and equivalence). The obtained results have implications for a behavior analytic understanding of factors that relate to the development of intelligent behavior in individuals with disabilities.
IceCube: A Kilometer-Scale Neutrino Observatory at the South Pole

Solving the century-old puzzle of how and where cosmic rays are accelerated mostly drives the design of high-energy neutrino telescopes. It calls, along with a diversity of science goals reaching particle physics, astrophysics and cosmology, for the construction of a kilometer-scale neutrino detector. This led to the IceCube concept to transform a kilometer cube of transparent Antarctic Ice, one mile below the South Pole, into a neutrino telescope.
Why Should the First Amendment Protect Government Speech When the Government Has Nothing to Say

It is an uncontroversial fact of political life that the government sometimes must communicate with the public. For several years, however, the Supreme Court has used this uncontroversial fact as a justification for developing a First Amendment doctrine of government speech. This new doctrine does more than simply recognize the government's authority to speak out on matters of public policy; as envisioned by the Supreme Court, the doctrine also allows the government to silence or coerce the speech of those in the private sector who wish to speak out against the government. In much the same way that private speakers have long been given a First Amendment right to fend off government control of their speech, the government now has been afforded a First Amendment "right" to free speech as well. The question is whether this new "right" is necessary. Both the facts and theory of the Court's new government speech cases suggest that the answer to this question is no. For the most part, the cases in which the Court has resorted to its new government speech doctrine involve situations in which the government's ability to communicate with the public would not have been inhibited in any way if such a doctrine did not exist. The Court has even relied on its new government speech doctrine in several cases in which the government either was communicating ambiguously or not at all. It is a mystery why the government should be allowed to employ a First Amendment "right" to government speech against private speakers when the government has nothing to say. This Article addresses the Court's new government speech doctrine. After reviewing the cases in which the Court develops this doctrine, the Article concludes that these cases do not support the Court's increasingly expansive conception of government speech. These cases indicate instead that all of the legitimate purposes of government speech would be served just as effectively by a much more truncated conception of the government speech doctrine than by the broader version being developed by the Court. The Article concludes by proposing, in the alternative, that the government speech doctrine could be eliminated entirely without harming a single one of the government's legitimate objectives. It may be, in other words, that from a First Amendment perspective, the best government speech doctrine is no doctrine at all.
A Shot-noise Model of Streamflow

A version of the classical shot-noise process is adopted in this paper as a streamflow model. We discuss some of its basic properties which may have a potential interest in applications. Among the features investigated here are its covariance function, the duration of its excursions above a certain threshold level, X0, and its extreme values. We obtained the distribution function of its maximum value in an arbitrary time interval [o, t] in a simple form. Our principal concern here is the physical base for application of the shot-noise process as a streamflow model. We discuss, in some detail, the climatic conditions and geomorphological features of a watershed which suggest that the shot-noise model may be feasible. In this respect, of central importance is the set of the discontinuity points of the process, which represents the building blocks of the entire structure. Their importance stems from the fact that they represent the occurrence times of those rainfall events which are capable of generating an effective runoff. Section 3 provides a physically plausible explanartion of why this set of points represents a nonhomogeneous poisson point process.
Valid and efficient formula for free energy difference from nonequilibrium work

The dynamics of biomolecules, however, is Langevin stochastic in nature. The frictional force in the Langevin equation breaks the time reversal symmetry and renders the dynamics microscopically irreversible, even though detailed balance holds true. The inaccuracy of JE has largely been attributed to the fact that one cannot sample a large enough number of unfolding paths in a given study, experimental or computational.
Paradigms in Educational Science: Different Meanings and Purpose to Theory.

The intent of this essay is to initiate a dialogue that reconsiders the possibilities of educational inquiry as a source of human understanding. Education science is defined as a particular occupat...
Abstract 2381: Loss of S6K2 perturbs redox balance and fatty acid metabolism, leading to oxidative cell death

Oncogenes often upregulate nutrient sensing and utilizing pathways, leading to altered metabolism in tumor cells. RAS-driven tumors typify cancers undergoing marked metabolic reprogramming. In melanoma, RAS signaling is often deregulated; while activating mutations in NRAS are present in >25% of tumors, RAS-driven tumors account for almost 50% of cases. However, there are no effective therapies for this type of tumors. Although oncogenic NRAS activates the MAPK pathway, inhibition of this pathway alone has limited antitumor efficacy and most NRAS-mutant tumors are resistant to MAPK inhibitor (MAPKi) monotherapy. We discovered that NRAS-mutant melanomas resistant to MAPKi are highly dependent on the ribosomal protein S6 kinase 2 (S6K2). We demonstrate that loss of S6K2, a signaling effector of the mTORC1 nutrient-sensing pathway, triggers cell death selectively in NRAS-mutant melanoma resistant to MAPKi. Acute depletion of S6K2 enhanced ROS production, lipid synthesis and accumulation of intracellular unsaturated fatty acids. ROS susceptible (poly)-unsaturated fatty acids sensitized cells to ROS, resulting in lipid peroxidation and oxidative cell death. We further determined that S6K2 depletion was coupled to increased expression of markers of apoptosis and ferroptosis, suggesting that S6K2 blockade could trigger multiple forms of cell death, including apoptotic and a ferroptotic-like cell death. Notably, co-inhibition of S6K1 (a S6K isoform that is co-regulated by mTORC1) together with S6K2 diminished the effects of S6K2 blockade, suggesting that selective inhibition of S6K2 is required to induce cell death. Indeed, while silencing of S6K2 triggered lipid peroxidation and oxidative cell death and S6K1 silencing had negligible effects, concomitant depletion of S6K1 and S6K2 attenuated lipid peroxidation and cell death. Mimicking the effects of S6K2 loss by combining an ROS-inducing agent with unsaturated fatty acids or treating tumor cells with lipid peroxidation inducers restrained NRAS-mutant melanoma growth in vitro and in vivo. Taken together, our studies have identified a critical vulnerability of NRAS-mutant melanoma by uncoupling S6K1 and S6K2 to trigger metabolic dysfunction and tumor cell death. This strategy is remarkably distinct from using PI3K/mTOR inhibitors, which concurrently suppress S6K1 and S6K2 and are often cytostatic. We propose that this paradigm could be exploited to develop therapeutic approaches targeting NRAS-mutant tumors and overcome resistance to MAPKi in the context of oncogenic NRAS. Citation Format: Hsin-Yi Chen, Minu Samanta, Patricia Reyes-Uribe, Andrew V. Kossenkov, Xiangfan Yin, Yiling Lu, Mark Axelrod, Michael J. Weber, Qin Liu, Gordon B. Mills, Jessie Villanueva. Loss of S6K2 perturbs redox balance and fatty acid metabolism, leading to oxidative cell death [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2018; 2018 Apr 14-18; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2018;78(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 2381.
Hydration, methylene blue, and thiamine as a prevention regimen for ifosfamide-induced encephalopathy.

Ifosfamide is an alkylating chemotherapeutic agent used in the treatment of many malignancies. Ifosfamide-induced encephalopathy is one potential side effect that represents a major drawback to ifo...
Chapter 3 – Field Effect Transistors: FETs and HEMTs

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the principles of operation and applications of field effect transistors (FET). Field effect transistors, specifically high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) or modulation-doped field-effect transistors are extensively used in low-noise and power amplifiers at microwave and millimeter-wave frequencies. The chapter describes the mechanisms of current voltage and charge control in HEMTs. It also provides an overview of small-signal and large-signal equivalent circuit models of FET that are used in circuit design. The chapter also discusses the issues related to device scaling and operation of FETs as low-noise and power amplifier devices. The emergence of crystal growth techniques including molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) and metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) has enabled the fabrication of HEMTs using a variety of material systems. The selection of a material system depends on application and operating frequency. The performance of these devices as low-noise and power amplification devices is summarized. These devices have demonstrated their ability for insertion in high-volume commercial applications such as wireless and optical communication systems. This chapter also focuses on the various design issues involving power amplifiers for wireless handsets and the suitability of GaAs pHEMTs for this application. The AlInAs/GalnAs HEMT with its high-current density and superior high-frequency performance has enabled the fabrication of digital circuits operating at 80 Gb/s. The various issues related with application of AlInAs/GalnAs HEMT for digital circuits are also discussed.
Neuroactive Steroids and GABAergic Involvement in the Neuroendocrine Dysfunction Associated With Major Depressive Disorder and Postpartum Depression.

Stress and previous adverse life events are well-established risk factors for depression. Further, neuroendocrine disruptions are associated with both major depressive disorder (MDD) and postpartum depression (PPD). However, the mechanisms whereby stress contributes to the underlying neurobiology of depression remains poorly understood. The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, which mediates the body’s neuroendocrine response to stress, is tightly controlled by GABAergic signaling and there is accumulating evidence that GABAergic dysfunction contributes to the impact of stress on depression. GABAergic signaling plays a critical role in the neurobiological effects of stress, not only by tightly controlling the activity of the HPA axis, but also mediating stress effects in stress-related brain regions. Deficits in neuroactive steroids and neurosteroids, some of which are positive allosteric modulators of GABAA receptors (GABAARs), such as allopregnanolone and THDOC, have also been implicated in MDD and PPD, further supporting a role for GABAergic signaling in depression. Alterations in neurosteroid levels and GABAergic signaling are implicated as potential contributing factors to neuroendocrine dysfunction and vulnerability to MDD and PPD. Further, potential novel treatment strategies targeting these proposed underlying neurobiological mechanisms are discussed. The evidence summarized in the current review supports the notion that MDD and PPD are stress-related psychiatric disorders involving neurosteroids and GABAergic dysfunction.
Lexical Influences on Errors in Masked Speech Perception in Younger, Middle-Aged, and Older Adults

Purpose In situations with a competing talker, lexical properties of words in both streams affect the recognition of words in the to-be-attended target stream. In this study, we tested whether these lexical properties also influence the type of errors made by listeners across the adult life span. Method Errors from a corpus collected by Helfer and Jesse (2015) were categorized as phonologically similar to words in the target and/or masker streams. Younger, middle-aged, and older listeners had produced these errors when trying to identify key words from a target stream while ignoring a single-talker masker. Neighborhood density and lexical frequency of target words and masker words had been manipulated independently. Results Lexical properties of target words influenced all types of errors. With higher frequency maskers, the probability of responding with a masker word increased and the phonological influence of target words decreased. Lower levels of lexical competition for maskers increased the probabili...
Decentralized Information Processing in the Theory of Organizations

Although models with bounded rationality — defined broadly to mean those in which agent behaviour departs from the paradigm of effortless full rationality — are appearing in every field of economics, only in the theory of organizations has bounded rationality been an important theme throughout the history of the field. There is a reason for this difference. The classical model of rational choice has been a good approximation and powerful tool in studying consumer and producer theory, markets and price determination, imperfect competition, trading in financial markets, and most other topics in economics. Only recently have fields matured enough that some outstanding open questions require more accurate models of human decision-making. In the thoery of organizations, on the other hand, the rational model leads to uninteresting models of organizations, in which one manager or entrepreneur can run a firm or economy of arbitrary size. Without bounds on information processing capacity, it is impossible to explain the sharing of information processing tasks that is such an important part of the interaction between members of organizations, and to explain the existence and functioning of the administrative apparatus that are such important components of organizations (as documented for example by Chandler, 1966 and 1990).
Consequence of Hapten Stereochemistry: An Efficacious Methamphetamine Vaccine

Recent trends in methamphetamine (METH) misuse and overdose suggest society is inadvertently overlooking a brewing METH crisis. In the past decade, psychostimulant-related lethal overdoses and hospitalizations have skyrocketed 127 and 245%, respectively. Unlike the opioid crisis, no pharmaceutical interventions are available for treating METH use disorder or reversing overdose. Herein, we report the first active vaccine that offers protection from lethal (+)-METH challenge in male Swiss Webster mice. This vaccine formulation of (S)MLMH-TT adjuvanted with CpG ODN 1826 + alum successfully raised anti-METH antibodies in high titers, reduced (+)-METH distribution to the brain, and lowered (+)-METH-associated stereotypies in a hyperlocomotion assay. A comparison of enantiomeric haptens and the racemate elucidated the importance of employing (S)-stereochemistry in METH hapten design for optimal protection.
A TUBULAR RECYCLE PHOTOBIOREACTOR FOR MACROALGAL SUSPENSION CULTURES

Macrophytic marine algae are a rich source of pharmacologically active compounds. Cell and tissue suspension cultures established from macrophytic marine algae have the potential to biosynthesize these compounds in a controlled environment within bioreactor systems at a scale required for further product development or commercial production. Toward this end, we recently developed a tubular recycle photobioreactor that integrates the best features of tubular, stirred-tank, and air-lift bioreactor configurations into one system. The tubular recycle photobioreactor consisted of a tubular section, stirred aeration tank, and recycle line with a peristaltic pump to move the culture between the tubular section and the aeration tank. In the tubular section, 39 m of silicone tubing of 0.8-cm inner diameter (1.9-L culture volume) was wrapped around a 30.5-cm diameter cylindrical frame. The tubular section was radially illuminated by two 20-W fluorescent lamps positioned at the center of the coil to provide an incident light intensity of 18 µE m−2s−1. The culture was pumped through the tubular section at a rate of 125 mL min−1 to provide residence times of 15 min in the tubular section and 6 min in the aeration tank. An air flow rate of 1.5 vvm in the aeration tank provided all the CO2/O2 gas exchange requirements for the culture. Air was also injected directly into the tubular section at 2 L min−1 for 90 sec every 90 min to remove cell mass attached to the tubing wall. Under these conditions, gametophyte cell suspension cultures of the macrophytic brown alga Laminaria saccharina achieved a specific growth rate of 0.1 day−1 and a maximum cell density exceeding 1000 mg DCW L−1 over a 30-day cultivation period. The efficient delivery of light to the suspension culture makes this system an attractive alternative to externally illuminated stirred-tank or air-lift bioreactors for the production of photosynthetic biomass.
Chemometric methods for fatty acid compositions of fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.) and black cumin (Nigella sativa L.) seeds at different maturity stages

Abstract This study was conducted to determine the effects of seed maturity stages depending on different harvest dates on fatty acid compositions of fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.) and black cumin (Nigella sativa L.) with the aid of chemometric methods. Principal component analysis (PCA) and Agglomerative Hierarchical Clustering (AHC) analysis were used to assess and compare fatty acid compositions of fenugreek and black cumin seeds. Experiments for fenugreek and black cumin plants were separately conducted side-by side. For both plant species, 9 different harvest dates at 3 seed maturity stages (immature, premature, and full mature) were experimented. Following the harvests, plant height, single plant weight, crude oil content and fatty acid compositions were determined. Plant heights varied between 45.10-63.37 cm for fenugreek and between 34.57-43.67 cm for black cumin; crude oil contents varied between 4.01-4.95% for fenugreek and between 18.42-40.35% black cumin. Present findings revealed that immature stage had positive effects on crude oil content of fenugreek seeds and premature stage on crude oil contents of black cumin seeds. Also, 9 fatty acid components were identified in fenugreek and 7 in black cumin seeds. In both plant species, linoleic acid (C18:2) was the major component. With the greatest UFA (total unsaturated fatty acids) and the lowest SFA (total saturated fatty acids) ratios, F8 (19 July 2019) harvest date could be recommended for fenugreek plants and B4 (17 July 2019) for black cumin plants. PCA and AHC analysis revealed that with regard to fatty acid composition, F3 (08 July 2019) harvest date was different from the others in fenugreek and B1 (10 July 2019) in black cumin plants. It was concluded based on present findings that seed maturity stages had significant effects on fatty acid composition of fenugreek and black cumin seeds.
Optical Properties of Materials

The most apparent properties of metals, their luster and their color, have been known to mankind since materials were known. Because of these properties, metals were already used in antiquity for mirrors and jewelry. The color was utilized 4000 years ago by the ancient Chinese as a guide to determine the composition of the melt of copper alloys: the hue of a preliminary cast indicated whether the melt, from which bells or mirrors were to be made, already had the right tin content.
Diagnosis Threat Related to Disclosure of Alzheimer Disease Biomarkers and a Discussion of the Ethics in Clinical and Research Settings

Diagnosis threat occurs when individuals have a negative expectation of behaviors or symptoms associated with a proposed diagnosis. For example, a member of a group may change their behavior or cognitive functioning because they are aware that such changes are typically expected of individuals in that group. In dementia, people may experience diagnosis threat because they have a reasonable expectation of how behavior or cognitive functioning changes in these conditions. Studies on diagnosis threat have demonstrated that by simply knowing of an increased risk of dementia, people will display declines in cognitive function and will self-report more memory concerns. However, studies demonstrate that not all individuals with a risk of dementia will develop the clinical manifestation of the disease. With increased medical advances in genetics and neuroimaging, people have increasing access to knowledge about their genetic risks and vulnerabilities, and doctors sometimes reveal these vulnerabilities to asymptomatic patients. This chapter reviews the important aspects of diagnosis threat correlated with revealing the risk of dementia in an asymptomatic population and how disclosures in this population might cause diagnosis threat and impact psychological well-being. Additional discussion includes clinical and research practice standards for the appropriate and ethical use of genetic and neuroimaging data associated with dementia risk.
The Longitudinal Effects of Moderate Alcohol Use on Mood and Cognition in Late Life Depression

Introduction Alcohol use disorder interferes with antidepressant treatment in older adults with major depression (LLD) and is associated with suicidal ideation. Less is known about the effects of moderate alcohol use in LLD on mood and cognitive outcomes over time. Much of the evidence on alcohol use and cognition and mood stems from epidemiological research and not clinical studies of depressed older adults. The purported benefits of moderate alcohol use on older adults’ cognitive functioning have often been reported. Yet, not all studies report a positive association between moderate alcohol use and cognitive functioning, and there is also other evidence to suggest moderate alcohol use is correlated with markers of poorer brain health in older adults (e.g., atrophy). In respect to mood, epidemiological research suggests little to no association between moderate alcohol use and depression in older adults or even an inverse association with increased social interactions as a mediator. Given the times at conflicting evidence and the lack of longitudinal studies in well-defined clinical samples, we hypothesized that depressed older adults who were moderate drinkers would experience greater cognitive decline compared to depressed non-drinkers. We also hypothesized that moderate alcohol use would have a detrimental effect on depression illness course in older adults with LLD. Methods This study used data from Neurocognitive Outcomes of Depression in the Elderly (NCODE) study. NCODE participants underwent annual neuropsychological evaluations with the Consortium to Establish a Registry of Alzheimer's Disease (CERAD) cognitive battery as well as other tests of executive functioning and processing speed (e.g., Trail Making Test). Participants also underwent annual depression severity ratings with a geriatric psychiatrist using the Montgomery Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS). We used patients self-reported alcohol use at the time of study entry and characterized them as either abstainers (n=81) and moderate drinkers (n=30). We were also able to define a small sample of risky drinkers (n=10) and included this group for exploratory reasons. Alcohol use was based upon NIAAA guidelines for older adult alcohol consumption. Risky alcohol use exceeded NIAAA alcohol consumption guidelines for older adults (meaning >=3 drinks per day or >=8 drinks per week) and moderate alcohol use was defined as Results In terms of cognition, we found that the total CERAD score of moderate and heavy drinkers significantly declined compared to no alcohol use patients (e.g.,moderate alcohol use x time interaction term estimate = -.00410, DF = 898, t = -5.02, p Conclusions Moderate alcohol consumption appears to have a beneficial impact on depression severity and a detrimental impact on cognitive functioning in LLD patients followed for upwards of five years. Larger samples are needed to confirm the findings in this small and exploratory study.
Adherence to Ketogenic and Mediterranean Study Diets in a Crossover Trial: The Keto-Med Randomized Trial.

Adherence is a critical factor to consider when interpreting study results from randomized clinical trials (RCTs) comparing one diet to another, but it is frequently not reported by researchers. The purpose of this secondary analysis of the Keto–Med randomized trial was to provide a detailed examination and comparison of the adherence to the two study diets (Well Formulated Ketogenic Diet (WFKD) and Mediterranean Plus (Med-Plus)) under the two conditions: all food being provided (delivered) and all food being obtained by individual participants (self-provided). Diet was assessed at six time points including baseline (×1), week 4 of each phase when participants were receiving food deliveries (×2), week 12 of each phase when participants were preparing and providing food on their own (×2), and 12 weeks after participants completed both diet phases and were free to choose their own diet pattern (×1). The adherence scores for WFKD and Med-Plus were developed specifically for this study. Average adherence to the two diet patterns was very similar during both on-study time points of the intervention. Throughout the study, a wide range of adherence was observed among participants—for both diet types and during both the delivery phase and self-provided phase. Insight from this assessment of adherence may aid other researchers when answering the important question of how to improve behavioral adherence during dietary trials. This study is registered at clinicaltrials.gov NCT03810378.
The classification of relict extraterrestrial chrome spinels using STEM techniques on silicate inclusions

Remnant extraterrestrial chrome spinels from terrestrial sediments provide information on how the mixture of meteoritic materials falling to Earth has changed over Earth’s history. The parent meteorite type of each grain can be identified by characteristic elemental and oxygen-isotope abundances. Some meteorite types can be difficult to classify because their chrome-spinel compositional ranges overlap. Silicate inclusions within chrome spinels of modern ordinary chondrites have been shown to have discriminating power among meteorite subclasses. We employed energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy in a scanning electron microscope (SEM) and in a (scanning) transmission electron microscope (S/TEM) to investigate inclusions in chrome-spinel grains from Ordovician and Jurassic sediments. Unaltered Ordovician inclusions allowed us to establish the size limits for reliable SEM analysis of inclusions. The Jurassic grains were more altered, but the use of STEM techniques on small inclusions (<3 μm diameter at their polished surfaces) allowed us to determine chemical compositions and mineral structures of inclusions in three chrome spinels. The parent meteorite type was determined for one Jurassic grain based on its inclusion compositions. Our study confirms that silicate inclusions can be used to classify parent meteorite types of chrome-spinel grains, but the size of the inclusions and the complex effects of terrestrial alteration must be taken into account. During our study, we also found some interesting exsolution phenomena in the host chrome-spinel grains. (Less)
Examining existing policy to inform a comprehensive legal framework for agrivoltaics in the U.S.

Abstract Advances in solar photovoltaic applications demonstrate the viability of combining agriculture and solar energy production in a system known as agrivoltaics. Because scarce consideration has been given to the socio-political context of development, this study applies Legal Framework Analysis to identify barriers and opportunities for a comprehensive legal infrastructure to enable agrivoltaics in the U.S. The State of Massachusetts is used as a case study to understand what elements of their regulatory regime contribute to their novel agrivoltaic policy program, while also considering the surrounding federal and local government dynamics in which this state program is embedded. Based on the analysis results, a comprehensive legal framework for agrivoltaics should arguably include a combination of federal and state energy financing mechanisms coupled with favorable state and local land use policies. Specifically, a state-level feed-in tariff and local government allowances for mixed land use between solar and agriculture will be the key features of an enabling legal framework. The results demonstrate that multi-level, multi-sector policy integration is imperative for advancing agrivoltaics and that strategic measures to align solar energy and agricultural land use regimes can catalyze the diffusion of this promising technology in the U.S.
Stock Markets and the Costs of Banking Crises

This paper investigates Alan Greenspan’s claim that capital markets can serve as a financial “spare tire” in the event of a banking crisis. We test the impact of stock market capitalization and activity on the output losses of 76 banking crises in 66 countries over the period of 1975-2008. Our results indicate that stock markets can mitigate the effect of such crises on economic activity. There is also evidence that foreign equity holdings lower output costs. In addition, larger output losses are associated with lower pre-crisis economic growth, increased private credit and whether there is a simultaneous currency crisis.
STATE GOVERNMENT State Printing and Documents: Change the Definition of Agency

The Act amends the Code section relating to public access to and inspection of public records. It broadens the term agency as used in that Code section to include a corporation that has membership composed of counties or political subdivisions of counties and that derives substantial parts of its operating budgets from counties. It provides that all records of the agency shall be open to inspection by the public unless prohibited by law or court order.
Models of biochemical reaction systems

We introduce the most common stochastic model for biochemical reaction systems. These models are used extensively in cell biology, with applications ranging from gene interaction and protein regulatory networks, to virology, to neural networks. The models are most useful when the abundances of the constituent molecules of a biochemical system are low, in which case the standard deterministic models do not provide a good representation of the behavior of the system.
Academic Language Development through Technology: English Learners in a Fifth Grade Science Class

University of Minnesota Ph.D. dissertation. February 2013. Major: English as a Second Language. Advisor: Dr. Martha H. Bigelow. 1 computer file (PDF); viii, 182 pages, appendix p. 182.
Scarcity and Choice: The Poverty Problem

The poverty problem is a serious one in the United States. It affects between 10% and 20% of the population—depending on the poverty measure used. Absolute poverty has been reduced in the United States in recent years, but relative poverty remains about the same. Poverty strikes most groups to some extent. Blacks, women, the old, and the young bear a disproportionate poverty burden. Unemployment, poor education, and discrimination are the causes of poverty in these groups. Governments use many types of policies to reduce poverty. Transfer payments give money to the poor. Minimum wage laws attempt to increase incomes artificially by propping up wage rates. Training programs try to make the poor's labor more valuable. Public employment programs offer an employer a last resort. Anti-poverty programs force trade-offs. The poor, the government, employees, and employers face the problem of scarcity and deal with the opportunity costs that result.
Hepatitis associated with disseminated lupus erythematosus.

Summary Two young women with probable disseminated lupus erythematosus and hepatitis are described. One had chronic hepatitis progressing to death from postnecrotic cirrhosis; the other patient had severe acute hepatitis. Both responded favorably to treatment with adrenal cortical steroids.
Athena: a new efficient automatic checker for security protocol analysis

We propose an efficient automatic checking algorithm, Athena, for analyzing security protocols. Athena incorporates a logic that can express security properties including authentication, secrecy and properties related to electronic commerce. We have developed an automatic procedure for evaluating well-formed formulae in this logic. For a well-formed formula, if the evaluation procedure terminates, it will generate a counter example if the formula is false, or provide a proof if the formula is true. Even when the procedure does not terminate when we allow any arbitrary configurations of the protocol execution, (for example, any number of initiators and responders), termination could be forced by bounding the number of concurrent protocol runs and the length of messages, as is done in most existing model checkers. Athena also exploits several state space reduction techniques. It is based on an extension of the Strand Space Model (Thayer et al., 1998) which captures exact causal relation information. Together with backward search and other techniques, Athena naturally avoids the state space explosion problem commonly caused by asynchronous composition and symmetry redundancy. Athena also has the advantage that it can easily incorporate results from theorem proving through unreachability theorems. By using the unreachability theorems, it can prune the state space at an early stage, hence, reduce the state space explored and increase the likelihood of termination. As shown in our experiments, these techniques dramatically reduce the state space that needs to be explored.
Spectrophotofluorometric Determination of Porphyrins in Urine

A rapid procedure has been developed in which an anion-exchange resin and spectrophotofluorometry are used to determine total porphyrins in urine. After porphyrins are eluted from the resin with 3N HCl, their fluorescence at 646 nm is measured with an Aminco-Bowman Spectrophotofluorometer. About 10 min are required per analysis by a skilled technician. Added to urine specimens, 95.3 ± 4.9% of uroporphyrin and 94.7 ± 9.6% of coproporphyrin, were accounted for. Eighteen normal urine samples contained an average of 0.063 µmol of porphyrin per liter (range, 0.028-0.176 µmol/liter). The coefficient of variation, 2.9%, indicates the precision to be very satisfactory.
Effects of Voucher System on the Respite Care Service in South Korea: In the View of Social Exchange Theory

The purpose of this study is to apply the social exchange theory as a theoretical lens to analyze how the voucher system affects the respite care service in South Korea. Since 2007, the Korean government adopted the voucher system in the care service to increase the quality of care service by using competition among the service agencies in the market. In the care setting, the voucher system adjusts power differentials between care service workers and service users, increases flexibility and uncertainty in workplaces, and motivates the workers to have more dedicated behaviors and pay more attention to the users.
MicroRNA-125b Represses IRF4 to Induce Acute Myeloid Leukemia

MicroRNA-125b (miR-125b) is upregulated in a variety of neoplastic blood disorders. We previously showed that miR-125b expression is enriched in hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs), and that upregulation of miR-125b in the mouse hematopoietic system causes an aggressive acute myeloid leukemia. Here we elucidate the molecular mechanism by which miR-125b causes acute myeloid leukemia.
Acoustic Band-Gap Formulation in Infinite Periodic Porous Media With a Multi-Layered Unit Cell: Multi-Scale Asymptotic Method

This article introduces a numerical formulation for studying frequency band structure in multi-periodic acoustic composite structures. Herein, multi-periodic acoustic composite structures are defined as periodically-layered acoustic media wherein each layer is composed of periodically-repeated unit fluid cells, especially those arising from the study of rigid-frame porous materials. Hence, at least two periodic scales (microscopic and mesoscopic, respectively) comprise the macroscopic acoustic media. Under the Floquet-Bloch’s condition, exploitation of the multi-periodicity allows for efficient generation of dispersion curves via a multi-scale asymptotic method (for homogenizing the mesoscale) coupled to original acoustic transfer matrix methods (for the macroscale). The combined numerical formulation results in a general analysis procedure for evaluating complex dispersion relationships. The dispersion curves can be used to reveal frequency stop bands wherein the wave vector is highly imaginary—i.e., plane waves experience rapid attenuation. The formulation is applied to four infinite, multi-periodic acoustic composite structures in order to demonstrate the formulation’s utility and to reveal novel properties, particularly those which can be influenced by design of the mesoscopic unit cell.Copyright © 2009 by ASME
A theoretical analysis of random packing densities of mono-sized spheres in two and three dimensions

A new approach using random triclinic primitive cells as the building blocks for three dimensional random packings is suggested. This can be used to investigate the geometric properties of random packings which are useful in sintering studies and in the study of structure of liquids and metallic glasses. This approach has been used here, to calculate the expected packing factors for two dimensional random arrays of equal sized circles and three dimensional loose and dense random packing of monosized spheres. The packing factors obtained in all cases are in excellent agreement with the values obtained experimentally, both by mechanical means and by computer simulation.
Evolution of the surgical approach for replacement of degenerated mitral bioprostheses

Background. Primary tissue failure is the most frequent indication for reoperation in patients with a mitral bioprosthetic valve (MBPV). Complete excision of the bioprosthesis is time-consuming and may be complicated by cardiac rupture at the atrioventricular junction or the posterior left ventricular wall where a strut is embedded, injury to the circumflex coronary artery, or late perivalvular leak. A new approach to avoid these complications by excision of only the bioprosthetic tissue and attachment of a St. Jude valve (SJV) to the intact stent has been developed and evaluated. Methods. The results of replacement of failed MBPV with SJV in 71 consecutive patients between September 1992 and December 1994 were analyzed; 57 patients had the valve replaced after complete excision and 14 with stent preservation. The demographic and clinical profiles of the two groups were similar. Results. Among patients undergoing complete excision of the MBPV, operative mortality was 14% (8 of 57), with 12 late deaths and a 5-year survival of 75% and three late perivalvular dehiscences requiring another operation. No operative deaths occurred in the intact stent group and one late death (cancer), and all the remaining patients are doing well without perivalvular leaks or other complications. Conclusions. Leaving the MBPV stent intact eliminates the need for extensive dissection, thus shortening and simplifying the procedure and diminishing its attendant mortality and morbidity. It offers a safe and logical approach to replacement of a degenerated MBPV with a SJV of comparable size.