cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Timber harvest and drought interact to impact oak seedling growth and survival in the Central Hardwood Forest

Oak (Quercus) is a dominant component of the overstory in the Central Hardwood Forest region, but is currently failing to regenerate throughout much of its range. Loss of oak as a canopy dominant species would be devastating to the numerous species of wildlife that rely on acorns as a food resource. Intolerance to shade, competitive interactions, and herbivory (especially by deer) all contribute to oak regeneration failure by suppressing oak seedling growth and reducing survival. Timber harvest is one way to create light conditions favorable for shade-intolerant oak seedlings, but other biotic factors, especially competition and herbivory, continue to play a role in oak seedling growth and survival following harvest. We experimentally planted oak seedlings in several timber harvesting treatments and under varying conditions of herbivory and interspecific competition to assess the relative importance of these drivers of early oak life history and their interaction with timber harvest. Overall, seedling survival over the 4-yr study was negatively related to competition but not herbivory, and growth was negatively related to herbivory but not competition. Herbivore pressure was generally mild across the study area. Abiotic factors also played an important role: Severe drought during the first two growing seasons (2011–2012) had a negative effect on both growth and survival, especially for seedlings in harvest openings and on southwestern-facing slopes (sites that should normally favor shade-intolerant oak). Meanwhile, a partial harvesting technique (shelterwood harvest) increased available light for oak regeneration while appearing to buffer against the effects of the drought. More extreme weather conditions, brought on by climate change, will likely present challenges for forest managers seeking to regenerate oak via timber harvest. Phased harvesting systems like shelterwoods, in addition to their other advantages, may mitigate the impacts of drought while still encouraging oak seedling growth.
QOL-19PROSPECTIVE EVALUATION OF CARDIOPULMONARY FITNESS IN NEWLY DIAGNOSED GLIOBLASTOMA PATIENTS RECEIVING AN ANTI-ANGIOGENIC REGIMEN

Anti-angiogenics, such as bevacizumab, a humanized monoclonal antibody to vascular endothelial growth factor, are now commonly used in patients with glioblastoma (GBM). With increased use of anti-angiogenics and the importance of maintaining physical function in patients with cancer, including GBM, we sought to evaluate the cardiopulmonary fitness of GBM patients on bevacizumab-containing treatment regimens. In this prospective cohort study, we recruited 18 newly diagnosed GBM patients initiated on a bevacizumab-containing treatment regimen with standard chemoradiation. Cardiopulmonary fitness was assessed using a physician-supervised cardiopulmonary exercise testing with EKG monitoring leads in order to measure relativeVO2 peak, a measure of cardiopulmonary fitness. Study assessments were planned at baseline, after concurrent chemoradiation, after 6 cycles of adjuvant chemotherapy, and after 12 cycles of adjuvant chemotherapy. In this study, 10 of the 18 patients completed baseline testing and at least one follow-up study assessment. Majority of patients were male (70%) and all had gross total resection. KPS ranged from 70-90 with a majority having a KPS = 90 (60%). Mean age at testing was 51.4 years (sd = 13.3 years). Baseline relative VO2 peak was 22.2 mL/kg/min (sd = 6.3 mL/kg/min). After concurrent chemoradiation with bevacizumab, eight patients had testing and relative VO2 peak was 23.1 mL/kg/min (sd = 8.7 mL/kg/min). Five of 10 patients underwent assessment after 6 cycles of adjuvant chemotherapy and there was a non-significant minor increase in relative VO2 peak compared to baseline scores for these 5 patients. One key limitation was maintaining regular testing for patients enrolled, and this was challenging due to disease progression and associated treatment toxicities that precluded use of an anti-angiogenic regimen and/or cardiopulmonary exercise testing. From this study, we can conclude that some GBM patients can undergo cardiopulmonary exercise testing and that, in this small cohort of patients, cardiopulmonary fitness remained relatively intact during treatment regimen with anti-angiogenic therapy.
Video Games in Job Interviews: Using Algorithms to Minimize Discrimination and Unconscious Bias

As the number of applicants for many job openings grows into the thousands, employers have searched for methods to efficiently sort through these applications and compile a shorter list of individuals to interview for open positions. One method growing in popularity is using algorithms to analyze statistical information and determine the candidates that will perform the best if hired based on factors such as cognitive ability, management skills, and workplace performance. Predictive analytics involving algorithms are being used by 8% of companies in the United States. Some of these employers have had applicants play video games created by developers that use these algorithms to analyze their performance and select the best candidates for the job. Scholars have argued that the use of algorithms in general and in video games may lead to discrimination in the workplace. Although any type of employment practice can cause discrimination, this article argues that the use of algorithms in video games to evaluate job candidates may be a cost-effective and beneficial business method that can help avoid discrimination. If created and administered carefully, video games using algorithms have the ability to minimize human bias, including unconscious bias, from the initial job hiring process.
Interactive Biology Cloud Lab Enables Authentic Inquiry-Based Science Learning At MOOC Scale

The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and other national frameworks are calling for much more sophisticated approaches to STEM education, centered around the integration of complex experimentation (including real labs, not just simulations), data collection and analysis, modeling, and data-driven argumentation, i.e., students can behave like real scientists. How to implement such complex approaches in scalable ways is an unsolved challenge - both for presential and distance education. Here we report on the iterative design and large-scale deployment of an open online course with a “biology cloud experimentation lab” (using living cells) that engaged remote learners (> 300 students) in the scientific practices of experimentation, modeling and data analysis to investigate the phototaxis of a microorganism. We demonstrate (1) the robustness and scalability of the cloud lab technology (> 2, 300 experiments run), (2) the design principles and synergistic integration of multiple UI and learning activities and suitable data formats to facilitate NGSS-aligned science activities, and (3) design features that leverages the natural variability of real biology experiments to instigate authentic inquiry. This platform and course content are now suited for large-scale adaptation in formal K-16 education; and we provide recommendations for inquiry-based science learning in general.
أثر الركود الاقتصادي على الاعتمادات المستندية: دراسة حالة البنوك المصرية خلال (2012-2013)

Administration of letters of credit in the Egyptian Banks was suffered from a strong recession, during the period (2012-2013) because of rising US dollar against the Egyptian pound, which has increased fears of investors and importers, of imported products and high commodity prices, which is rejected by the Egyptian market during this period that suffer of strong recession at the economic level and at the level of the monthly income of the Egyptian citizen. Moreover, political tensions in Egypt have led during that period to increase the decline of demand for import operations until the clarity of the political vision for Egypt. The reduction of Egypt's credit rating the local economy by Standard & Poor's to -B negative long-term perspective, to deepen the wounds of Activity letters of credits to banks, which suffered from the fluctuation of foreign exchange rates against the pound and the decline in business problems. Key words : Economic Recession, Letters of Credit, Egyptian
The prognostic importance of CXCR3 chemokine during organizing pneumonia on the risk of chronic lung allograft dysfunction after lung transplantation.

Rationale Since the pathogenesis of chronic lung allograft dysfunction (CLAD) remains poorly defined with no known effective therapies, the identification and study of key events which increase CLAD risk is a critical step towards improving outcomes. We hypothesized that bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) CXCR3 ligand concentrations would be augmented during organizing pneumonia (OP) and that episodes of OP with marked chemokine elevations would be associated with significantly higher CLAD risk. Methods All transbronchial biopsies (TBBX) from patients who received lung transplantation between 2000 to 2010 were reviewed. BALF concentrations of the CXCR3 ligands (CXCL9, CXCL10 and CXCL11) were compared between episodes of OP and “healthy” biopsies using linear mixed-effects models. The association between CXCR3 ligand concentrations during OP and CLAD risk was evaluated using proportional hazards models with time-dependent covariates. Results There were 1894 bronchoscopies with TBBX evaluated from 441 lung transplant recipients with 169 (9%) episodes of OP and 907 (49%) non-OP histopathologic injuries. 62 (37%) episodes of OP were observed during routine surveillance bronchoscopy. Eight hundred thirty-eight (44%) TBBXs had no histopathology and were classified as “healthy” biopsies. There were marked elevations in BALF CXCR3 ligand concentrations during OP compared with “healthy” biopsies. In multivariable models adjusted for other injury patterns, OP did not significantly increase the risk of CLAD when BAL CXCR3 chemokine concentrations were not taken into account. However, OP with elevated CXCR3 ligands markedly increased CLAD risk in a dose-response manner. An episode of OP with CXCR3 concentrations greater than the 25th, 50th and 75th percentiles had HRs for CLAD of 1.5 (95% CI 1.0–2.3), 1.9 (95% CI 1.2–2.8) and 2.2 (95% CI 1.4–3.4), respectively. Conclusions This study identifies OP, a relatively uncommon histopathologic finding after lung transplantation, as a major risk factor for CLAD development when considered in the context of increased allograft expression of interferon-γ inducible ELR- CXC chemokines. We further demonstrate for the first time, the prognostic importance of BALF CXCR3 ligand concentrations during OP on subsequent CLAD risk.
Membrane organization and differentiation in the guinea-pig spermatozoon

Studied in extensive morphological detail, the plasma membrane of the guinea-pig spermatozoon (1–11) — like those of all other mammalian sperm — is divided into structural regions (macrodomians) closely correlating with the functional segments of the cell (2, 12–15). In each macrodomian, plasmalemmal, cytoplasmic, and functional diversities exist. Moreover, the membrane macrodomains themselves contain microdomains, thus contributing to further heterogeneity in the major vicinities of the cell. The parameters in which the primary sectors differ — that is, the acrosomal cap of the head, the equatorial and postacrosomal segments, and the midpiece, annulus, and principal-piece of the tail — involve many factors. These include the surface coat (morphology, antibody-specificity, lectin binding, surface-charge); the plasma membrane (intramembranous particle numbers and configurations, and the lining of the membrane); and possibly membrane sterol content, anionic-lipid asymmetry, and lipid-phase state. Similar forms of heterogeneity (6, 9) are provided in several internal organelles, particularly the nuclear envelope and the mitochondrion.
Proactive Use of High-Flow Nasal Cannula With Critically Ill Subjects.

INTRODUCTION: It has been suggested that use of a high-flow nasal cannula (HFNC) could be a first-line therapy for patients with acute hypoxic respiratory failure. The purpose of this study was to determine if protocolized use of HFNC decreases unplanned intubation and adverse outcomes in an ICU population. METHODS: The study was a prospective evaluation of 2 cohorts who received HFNC per protocol. Control groups were retrospective selections of subjects who received HFNC in the pre-protocol period. Cohort 1 ( n = 88) received mechanical ventilation for ≥ 24 h and was extubated directly to HFNC following strict protocol criteria. Cohort 2 ( n = 83) were placed on HFNC when oxygen requirements escalated (>4 L/min). RESULTS: Cohort 1 did not differ from its control group in mortality, hospital stay, or ICU days, but there were significant decreases in incidence of Gram-negative pulmonary infection (30% vs 9%, P = .001) and use of bronchodilator therapy (81% vs 61%, P = .008). Failed extubation rates were nearly identical across groups, but time to re-intubation was shorter in the protocol group (24 vs 13 h, P = .19). Cohort 2 did not differ significantly from its control group in intubation rates or mortality, but subjects managed by protocol experienced significant decreases in ICU days (4 vs 3 d, P = .03) and hospital days (12 vs 8 d, P = .007). There was a trend toward fewer hours on HFNC (33 vs 24 h, P = .10) and faster time to intubation when HFNC failed (19 vs 9 h, P = .08). CONCLUSIONS: Extubation to HFNC led to a significant decrease in pulmonary infections and bronchodilator therapy in Cohort 1 but did not reduce length of stay or rates of failed extubation. When HFNC was used early and per protocol (Cohort 2), ICU and hospital lengths of stay were reduced and HFNC was initiated more quickly when the need for respiratory support escalated.
Repeated High Rate Facet Capsular Stretch at Strains That are Below the Pain Threshold Induces Pain and Spinal Inflammation With Decreased Ligament Strength in the Rat

Repeated loading of ligamentous tissues during repetitive occupational and physical tasks even within physiological ranges of motion has been implicated in the development of pain and joint instability. The pathophysiological mechanisms of pain after repetitive joint loading are not understood. Within the cervical spine, excessive stretch of the facet joint and its capsular ligament has been implicated in the development of pain. Although a single facet joint distraction (FJD) at magnitudes simulating physiologic strains is insufficient to induce pain, it is unknown whether repeated stretching of the facet joint and ligament may produce pain. This study evaluated if repeated loading of the facet at physiologic nonpainful strains alters the capsular ligament's mechanical response and induces pain. Male rats underwent either two subthreshold facet joint distractions (STFJDs) or sham surgeries each separated by 2 days. Pain was measured before the procedure and for 7 days; capsular mechanics were measured during each distraction and under tension at tissue failure. Spinal glial activation was also assessed to probe potential pathophysiologic mechanisms responsible for pain. Capsular displacement significantly increased (p = 0.019) and capsular stiffness decreased (p = 0.008) during the second distraction compared to the first. Pain was also induced after the second distraction and was sustained at day 7 (p < 0.048). Repeated loading weakened the capsular ligament with lower vertebral displacement (p = 0.041) and peak force (p = 0.014) at tissue rupture. Spinal glial activation was also induced after repeated loading. Together, these mechanical, physiological, and neurological findings demonstrate that repeated loading of the facet joint even within physiologic ranges of motion can be sufficient to induce pain, spinal inflammation, and alter capsular mechanics similar to a more injurious loading exposure.
Science, Religion, and the New Biology

Science has been defined as, “intelligence in action with no holds barred.”1 It began as the simple pursuit of truth, but today is fast becoming incompatible with veracity, quite simply because complete veracity leads to a form of complete scientific skepticism.2 Science was originally recognized, and indeed valued, as a method to know and understand the world.3 Ever since the time of the Arabs, “science has had but two simple functions: to enable us to know and learn about things and to thereby assist us in doing things.”4 Now, as a consequence of the development of the scientific method and the triumph of technique, since it is viewed as a means of changing the world.5 Probabilities are at the center of scientific inquiry. As such, an absolute form of truth is not within its scope of realization. Yet, science can yield such a high degree of probability that it becomes a certainty for all practical purposes.6
A 54-Year Old Woman with Pain and Stiffness of Hands and Tendon Friction Rubs

Tendon friction rubs (TFR) are a grating, “squeaking” sensation detected on passive or active motion of the affected tendon in systemic sclerosis (SSc). TFR are associated with the presence of diffuse cutaneous SSc (dSSc). In addition, TFR are also associated with more severe dSSc – greater skin thickening, joint contractures, greater physical disability, higher prevalence of cardiac or renal involvement, and decreased survival. TFR are a frequent physical finding in patients with early dSSc that should be routinely assessed when a patient presents with a constellation of signs and symptoms that suggest SSc, including recent onset arthritis, Raynaud’s phenomenon and puffy, swollen fingers.
Birth by caesarian section alters postnatal function of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis in young pigs.

Eight crossbred sows were selected for the present study (n = 4 vaginal delivery and n = 4 Caesarian section [C-section]). Gestation length did not differ between vaginal delivery and C-section pigs (113.6 +/- .1 and 113.2 +/- .3 d, respectively; P > .16). Blood and tissue samples from 38 pigs were collected at birth. All remaining pigs were sustained with vaginal-delivery sows until 2 wk of age (n = 39). At 2 wk of age, remaining pigs were catheterized for blood sample collection to assess pituitary-adrenal responsiveness to an injection of corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH; 10 microg/kg). Blood samples were collected at -30, -15, 0, 5, 10, 20, 40, 60, and 90 min; pigs received CRH or saline at time 0. Pigs were killed and tissue samples were collected immediately following the last blood sample. Serum concentrations of ACTH and cortisol (CS) were measured. Total RNA was isolated from the pituitary and adrenal glands to evaluate gene expression for mRNA specific for pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) and for the ACTH receptor. Centrifuged clot:blood ratio was reduced in the C-section pigs at birth (P .99) between the two groups of pigs following the CRH challenge. However, serum concentration of CS was greater (P .73); however, there was a developmental increase (P < .001) from birth to 2 wk of age. These data indicate that the birth process plays an important role in postnatal function of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis in young pigs.
TMIC-10. AUTOPSY STUDY ON THE EFFECTS OF TUMOR TREATMENT FIELDS IN RECURRENT GLIOBLASTOMA: PRELIMINARY RESULTS

BACKGROUND Treatment of recurrent glioblastoma using tumor treatment fields (TTFields) has recently been approved. This resulted from a recent clinical trial that showed better quality of life and comparable overall survival. Low-intensity, alternating frequency electric fields, known as TTFields, have been shown to disrupt cell division and subsequently tumor growth. Apoptosis and cell cycle arrest have been seen in vitro, and shown in mice and rabbit tumor models. Glioblastoma patients who have undergone TTField therapy have not yet been assessed at autopsy to determine both the pathological signature of TTField therapy, and the pattern of failure.
Web-Based Professional Development Model to Enhance Teaching of Strategies for Online Academic Research in Middle School

AbstractHigh-quality professional development is needed to prepare teachers to help students learn how to conduct online academic research and meet Common Core State Standards for English Language ...
Recurrent glucose deprivation leads to the preferential use of lactate by neurons in the ventromedial hypothalamus.

Increased GABAergic output in the ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH) contributes to counterregulatory failure in recurrently hypoglycemic (RH) rats, and lactate, an alternate fuel source in the brain,...
Menstrual Reactivity: The Role of Gender-Specificity, Anxiety Sensitivity, and Somatic Concerns in Self-Reported Menstrual Distress

To determine the impact of gender roles, anxiety sensitivity, and somatic concerns on self-reported menstrual distress, two studies were conducted. In the first study using 278 primarily Caucasian college females, anxiety-sensitivity level, not current menstrual cycle phase, influenced reports of menstrual symptom severity and depression. Regardless of cycle phase at the time of self-report, women high in anxiety sensitivity reported significantly more depressed mood, trait anxiety, and retrospective menstrual symptoms. In the second study of 158 primarily Caucasian college females varying in anxiety sensitivity levels, adherence to sex role stereotypes, feminist beliefs, and illness attitudes were examined. Participants also completed measures of general premenstrual, most-recent premenstrual, and current menstrual symptoms. Women high in anxiety sensitivity reported the highest levels of sex-specificity, feminist embeddedness, and illness attitudes, with sex-specificity accounting for significant variance in current menstrual symptoms. Results are discussed within the context of the menstrual reactivity hypothesis, which proposes that beliefs surrounding the menstrual cycle and body sensations expectancies contribute to self-reports of greater menstrual distress. Women high in anxiety sensitivity appear to represent one subgroup vulnerable to menstrual reactivity.
Energy propagation through dense granular systems

We discuss affine and non-affine components of particle dynamics in the context of energy propagation through dense granular matter as a consequence of externally imposed boundary perturbation. Earlier work (Kondic et al. in Phys Rev E 79:041304, 2009) has shown that the frequency and the wavenumber of the imposed perturbations strongly influence propagation, and in particular that the frequencies and wavenumbers that lead to well-defined propagation are limited from above. The present work shows that strong non-affine component of particle dynamics is associated with dispersion and loss of coherence.
Optimization for statistical tolerance allocation

Abstract We present a scheme for tolerance allocation in any dimensions based on a statistical tolerance model. People commonly use tolerances to account for uncertainty and errors in the modeling and manufacturing process. Tolerance allocation refers to the process of arranging tolerance values across an object in order to meet some overall requirements. Statistical tolerance models treat variations as some form of statistical distribution. We treat allocation as an optimization problem where we need to define both constraints and an objective function. With the statistical tolerance model, the calculation of the tolerance stack-up through the cascading of tolerance zones is straightforward. Constraints can be defined on the cascaded result. We present a general approach to optimization that allows different objective functions to be used to achieve different goals. Specific objective functions are described as examples. Finally, we present an effective method for solving the allocation problems in our scheme with these different functions. We demonstrate how the scheme works and its advantages on a small set of examples.
Unique water scarcity footprints and water risks in US meat and ethanol supply chains identified via subnational commodity flows

Within the US, supply chains aggregate agricultural production and associated environmental impacts in specific downstream products and companies. This is particularly important for meat and ethanol, which consume nearly half of global crop production as feed and feedstocks. However, lack of data has thus far limited the ability to trace inputs and impacts of commodity crops through domestic supply chains. For the first time, we use a commodity-flow model to link spatially distributed water resource impacts of corn and soy to individual meat and ethanol processing facilities. This creates transparency in the supply chains, illuminating substantial variation in embedded irrigation water and water scarcity footprints among meat and ethanol processed at different facilities. By calculating unique blue water scarcity footprints for end-products, we show that beef processed in Iowa or Illinois, for example, has fewer water impacts than chicken processed in California and pork processed in Oklahoma. We find that over 75% of irrigated feed embedded in meat is consolidated in six companies and 39% of irrigated feedstock for ethanol is consolidated in five companies, with potentially negative impacts to supply costs and risk management. This subnational variation and consolidation of impacts in key supply chains creates opportunities for producers and consumers of agriculture-based products to make management, investment, and sustainability decisions about those products.
Plasticity of ether lipids promotes ferroptosis susceptibility and evasion

Ferroptosis—an iron-dependent, non-apoptotic cell death process—is involved in various degenerative diseases and represents a targetable susceptibility in certain cancers1. The ferroptosis-susceptible cell state can either pre-exist in cells that arise from certain lineages or be acquired during cell-state transitions2–5. However, precisely how susceptibility to ferroptosis is dynamically regulated remains poorly understood. Here we use genome-wide CRISPR–Cas9 suppressor screens to identify the oxidative organelles peroxisomes as critical contributors to ferroptosis sensitivity in human renal and ovarian carcinoma cells. Using lipidomic profiling we show that peroxisomes contribute to ferroptosis by synthesizing polyunsaturated ether phospholipids (PUFA-ePLs), which act as substrates for lipid peroxidation that, in turn, results in the induction of ferroptosis. Carcinoma cells that are initially sensitive to ferroptosis can switch to a ferroptosis-resistant state in vivo in mice, which is associated with extensive downregulation of PUFA-ePLs. We further find that the pro-ferroptotic role of PUFA-ePLs can be extended beyond neoplastic cells to other cell types, including neurons and cardiomyocytes. Together, our work reveals roles for the peroxisome–ether-phospholipid axis in driving susceptibility to and evasion from ferroptosis, highlights PUFA-ePL as a distinct functional lipid class that is dynamically regulated during cell-state transitions, and suggests multiple regulatory nodes for therapeutic interventions in diseases that involve ferroptosis. The cellular organelles peroxisomes contribute to the sensitivity of cells to ferroptosis by synthesizing polyunsaturated ether phospholipids, and changes in the abundances of these lipids are associated with altered sensitivity to ferroptosis during cell-state transitions.
Cardiac Stromal Cell Patch Integrated with Engineered Microvessels Improves Recovery from Myocardial Infarction in Rats and Pigs

The vascularized cardiac patch strategy is promising for ischemic heart repair after myocardial infarction (MI), but current fabrication processes are quite complicated. Vascularized cardiac patches that can promote concurrent restoration of both the myocardium and vasculature at the injured site in a large animal model remain elusive. The safety and therapeutic benefits of a cardiac stromal cell patch integrated with engineered biomimetic microvessels (BMVs) were determined for treating MI. By leveraging a microfluidic method employing hydrodynamic focusing, we constructed the endothelialized microvessels and then encapsulated them together with therapeutic cardiosphere-derived stromal cells (CSCs) in a fibrin gel to generate a prevascularized cardiac stromal cell patch (BMV-CSC patch). We showed that BMV-CSC patch transplantation significantly promoted cardiac function, reduced scar size, increased viable myocardial tissue, promoted neovascularization, and suppressed inflammation in rat and porcine MI models, demonstrating enhanced therapeutic efficacy compared to conventional cardiac stromal cell patches. BMV-CSC patches did not increase renal and hepatic toxicity or exhibit immunogenicity. We noted a significant increase in endogenous progenitor cell recruitment to the peri-infarct region of the porcine hearts treated with BMV-CSC patch as compared to those that received control treatments. These findings establish the BMV-CSC patch as a novel engineered-tissue therapeutic for ischemic tissue repair.
Design and Characterization of Rapid Optogenetic Circuits for Dynamic Control in Yeast Metabolic Engineering

The use of optogenetics in metabolic engineering for light-controlled microbial chemical production raises the prospect of utilizing control and optimization techniques routinely deployed in traditional chemical manufacturing. However, such mechanisms require well-characterized, customizable tools that respond fast enough to be used as real-time inputs during fermentations. Here, we present OptoINVRT7, a new rapid optogenetic inverter circuit to control gene expression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The circuit induces gene expression in only 0.6 h after switching cells from light to darkness, which is at least 6 times faster than previous OptoINVRT optogenetic circuits used for chemical production. In addition, we introduce an engineered inducible GAL1 promoter (PGAL1-S), which is stronger than any constitutive or inducible promoter commonly used in yeast. Combining OptoINVRT7 with PGAL1-S achieves strong and light-tunable levels of gene expression with as much as 132.9 ± 22.6-fold induction in darkness. The high performance of this new optogenetic circuit in controlling metabolic enzymes boosts production of lactic acid and isobutanol by more than 50% and 15%, respectively. The strength and controllability of OptoINVRT7 and PGAL1-S open the door to applying process control tools to engineered metabolisms to improve robustness and yields in microbial fermentations for chemical production.
Far Infrared — Submillimeter Phased Arrays

The concept of a phased array of far infrared or submillimeter waveguide lasers that can be scanned electronically is presented. Grating lobe reduction by computer analysis is shown. The application in a low angle track-while-scan radar is discussed.
Inverted U-shaped permeability enhancement due to thermally induced desorption determined from strain-based analysis of experiments on shale at constant pore pressure

Abstract We explore the impact of thermally induced desorption on permeability evolution in shale at constant pore pressure. Permeability loss due to thermal expansion of mineral aggregates competes with permeability enhancement due to thermal desorption and shrinkage with increasing temperature. In experiments using core plugs of Marcellus shale, permeability increases 20% from 296 to 322 K for a pre-fractured sample and 11% from 304 to 334 K for an intact sample. Dynamic bulk modulus decreases from 14.6 to 11.8 GPa when permeability increases from 2.8 to 3.1·10−21 m2, suggesting that pore volume is expanding due to desorption. We develop a model for thermal-sorptive permeability enhancement that accounts for pore evolution due to overprinted but competitive thermal and sorptive strains. A scaling factor between 0 and 1 is included to account for the volumetric boundary condition ranging from free boundary expansion to fixed bulk volume. The change in fracture aperture is directly impacted by fracture density. While permeability evolution in shales is generally characterized by a “U” shaped behavior with increasing pore pressure, our model shows that thermally induced permeability evolution at constant pore pressure is characterized as an inverted “U”. This is due to permeability enhancement at temperatures close to the reference temperature and permeability loss at higher temperatures. We attribute this to larger changes in adsorbed volume at lower temperatures competing with linear thermal strain that then outpaces desorption at higher temperatures. Both thermal and sorptive strains are modulated by the mineral distribution within the shale. Discretized images of mineral distribution suggest that there may be a larger local permeability enhancement than predicted by bulk strain measurements alone, due to the concentration of porosity near sorptive components. Our results include a novel analysis of permeability evolution due to desorption at constant pore pressure.
Using reinforcement learning to forecast the spread of COVID-19 in France

In December 2020, a new strain of coronavirus was found in Wuhan, China. The virus causes COVID-19, a severe respiratory illness. Up to date, the virus has spread rapidly to many countries, and more than 103 million cases and 2 million death has been reported worldwide. France is one of the European Union countries that has reported more than 3 million cases and 76 thousand death. Prediction of the COVID-19 pandemic growth is essential to enable governments to put new measures to slow down the spread of the virus. Due to the virus’s novelty, providing an efficient method to predict pandemic growth is a challenging task. This research applies a recent reinforcement learning-based algorithm to a recently developed model to simulate the COVID-19 pandemic in France. We provide essential information about the pandemic growth in the country in every period in which the government of France has taken action to limit the pandemic or relaxed existing restrictions. We derive the values of the pandemic parameters, including reproduction rate, which gives us essential information about the pandemic. This information will help policymakers and healthcare professionals to plan for future measures limiting community transmission. Besides, we performed sensitivity analyses to determine the most critical parameters that accelerate the pandemic.
Stability of front solutions in a model for a surfactant driven flow on an inclined plane

Abstract We consider a model for the flow of a thin liquid film down an inclined plane in the presence of a surfactant. The model is known to possess various families of traveling wave solutions. We use a combination of analytical and numerical methods to study the stability of the traveling waves. We show that for at least some of these waves the spectra of the linearization of the system about them are within the closed left-half complex plane.
One Sided Inspection for Elastic Constant Determination of Advanced Materials

Knowledge of mechanical properties of a composite material is prerequisite to good engineering design. The problem of theoretically predicting the mechanical properties of a composite material as a function of the properties of its constituents has been thoroughly investigated by many authors [1–2]. In one general class of techniques, termed “effective modulus” theories, the composite is viewed as a homogeneous anisotropic material with “effective” elastic constants that are determined by the elastic constants of the constituent materials. All of these theories remove the microstructure of the composite from consideration and, as a result, cannot be expected to predict accurately the properties of the composite material over a wide range of deformation scales. One limitation which comes about from this “smearing” of the microstructure into a homogeneous continuum is that the effective modulus theories, and hence materials which are assumed to have “effective elastic constants”, are incapable of predicting frequency dispersion of waves, which is sometimes very pronounced in composite materials [3].
Operating Mode Shapes of Electronic Assemblies Under Shock Input

Modeling the dynamic response of electronic assemblies is critical to predicting both the reliability and survivability of systems in harsh environments. However, a large number of unknowns are typically faced when simulating electronic response in any given scenario, including new/unknown materials, non-ideal interfaces, and uncertainty in input forces. In order to support the verification and validation of these models, the dynamic response of electronic assemblies to input shock loads are experimentally measured using a variety of instrumentation: accelerometers, strain gages, and laser vibrometers. The experimental operating mode shapes are compared with both implicit (i.e., computational modal analysis) and explicit (i.e., transient response) predictions. Finally, the models are then shown to more accurately predict the dynamic response and partitioning of vibrational energy under a variety shock loads.
Laser-Generated Jets and Megagauss Magnetic Fields

An intense laser pulse interacting with plasma (a gas of ionized matter) can generate enormous magnetic fields. In his Perspective, Stamper discusses work recently published in Physical Review Letters in which fields in the range of millions of gauss have been observed. The findings are important both for fundamental plasma physics and for evaluating the feasibility of novel laser fusion strategies.
An in silico pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic model of agonist self-administration behavior in rats (1053.8)

Rats trained to maintain self-administration of dopamine (DA) receptor agonists do so with mathematically predictable regularity. The goal of this research is to model a proposed receptor-based mechanism underlying the satiety threshold model of maintained self-administration. MATLAB Simbiology was used to construct a multi-compartment pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic model with a receptor population that exhibits mutually exclusive binding with either an agonist or a competitive antagonist according to the law of mass action. This model also incorporates drug distribution and elimination rate constants. Self-administration events are programmed to occur only if the amount of agonist-receptor complexes is at or below a threshold above which no further self-administration events occur. Simulations show that the inter-event interval is proportional to the unit dose, competitive antagonists decrease the inter-event interval until they are eliminated from the system, and reducing the population of receptors vi...
Lattice Subalgebras of Strongly Regular Vertex Operator Algebras

We prove a sharpened version of a conjecture of Dong–Mason about lattice subalgebras of a strongly regular vertex operator algebra V, and give some applications. These include the existence of a canonical conformal vertex operator subalgebra W ⊗ G ⊗ Z of V, and a generalization of the theory of minimal models.
On Low Expectations Exceeded; or, The Genomic Salvation of the Y Chromosome*

Receiving the Curt Stern Award makes me think of the year 1956, when Stern, an extraordinary Drosophila geneticist with broad-ranging interests, became president of the American Society of Human Genetics. It’s also the year I was born. During the first year of my life, Stern presided over the Society’s 10th annual meeting, in Ann Arbor. There, he delivered a presidential address entitled “On porcupine skin and hairy ears; or, the alleged sins of the Y chromosome.” As usual, the editor of the American Journal of Human Genetics sanitized the title of Stern’s address prior to publication (“The problem of complete Y-linkage in man” [Stern 1957]).
Audio-video based character recognition for handwritten mathematical content in classroom videos

Recognizing handwritten equations is a challenging problem, and even more so when they are written in a classroom environment. However, since videos of the handwritten text and the accompanying audio refer to the same content, a combination of video and audio based recognition has the potential to significantly improve the recognition accuracy. In this paper, using a combination of video and audio based recognizers, we focus on improving the character recognition accuracy for handwritten mathematical content in videos using audio and propose an end-to-end recognition system. The system includes components for video preprocessing, selecting the characters that may benefit from audio-video based combination, establishing a correspondence between handwritten and the spoken content, and finally combining the recognition results from the audio and video based recognizers. The current implementation of the system makes use of a modified open source text recognizer and a commercially available phonetic word spotter. For evaluation purposes, we use videos recorded in a classroom-like environment and our experiments demonstrate the significant improvements in character recognition accuracy that can be achieved using our techniques.
Accounting and the public interest: All the world's a stage

Purpose – Seeks to explore the interplay of accounting and the broad social roles and contexts in which it is manifested.Design/methodology/approach – By mapping the origins of our current place in the world, a cacophony of ideas and philosophies emerge, and thus many possible trajectories for our future. Why (for example) are we witnessing “corporate” crime, environmental degradation, and mal‐distributions of wealth? As these are the complicated acts of individual people while simultaneously the interactions of broad social histories, we see two pieces of this puzzle – one “grand,” one “small,” and view accounting as a part of these social practices creating relationships, collaborations, and conflicts. The micro piece of the puzzle is the inner psyche of each person, while the macro aspect appeals to the legacy of critical theory * we are socially constructed and inexorably linked to our social environment. In this paper, we link these two pieces of our puzzle illustrating with examples that the persona...
Systems Engineering for High Performance Computing Software: The HDDA/DAGH Infrastructure for Implementation of Parallel Structured Adaptive Mesh

This paper defines, describes and illustrates a systems engineering process for development of software systems implementing high performance computing applications. The example which drives the creation of this process is development of a flexible and extendible program development infrastructure for parallel structured adaptive meshes, the HDDA/DAGH package. The fundamental systems engineering principles used (hierarchical abstractions based on separation of concerns) are well-known but are not commonly applied in the context of high performance computing software. Application of these principles will be seen to enable implementation of an infrastructure which combines breadth of applicability and portability with high performance.
A class of nonintegrable singular electromagnetic fields

The source-free Maxwell equations are solved in a conformally flat space-time to give a class of nonintegrable singular electromagnetic fields. These solutions have the property that the associated electromagnetic waves do not possess wave-fronts. The properties of these solutions are investigated and a physical interpretation is proposed.
Gas Chromatograph—Mass Spectrometer—Computer System for Detection and Identification of Abnormal Metabolic Products in Physiological Fluids

A gas chromatograph—mass spectrometer—computer system was developed to rapidly separate and identify metabolic products of low molecular weight in microliter quantities of physiological fluids. For sample preparation, the silyl derivative extraction method was used, in which extraction, derivative formation, and concentration are achieved in a single step, and components with widely different chemical structures can be analyzed in a single run. Gas-chromatographic peaks were identified by the computer output of high-resolution mass measurements or low-resolution fragmentation patterns. Application is illustrated by a case of inborn metabolic error. The system appears well suited for screening for metabolic disorders.
Assessment of full color image quality with singular value decomposition

ABSTRACT In subjective evaluation of distorted images, human observers usually consider the type of distortion, the amount of distortion, and the distribution of error. We recently proposed an image quality measure, M-SVD, for gray-scale images that can be used as a graphical tool to predict the distortion based on these three factors, and also as a numerical tool to assess the overall visual quality of the distorted image. It performs better than two state-of-the-art metrics, Q and MSSIM, especially when we compute the correlation with mean opinion score across different types of noise. The test image was degraded using six types of noise (JPEG, JPEG 2000, Gaussian blur, Gaussian noise, sharpening and DC-shifting), each with five different levels of intensity. In this paper, we extend M-SVD to full color images using a color model which decouples the color and gray-scale information in an image. Our experiments show that using only the luminance component, the measure outperforms Q and MSSIM. When we also use the two chrominance layers, the performance of M-SVD becomes slightly higher whereas the performance of Q and MSSIM is degraded. This indicates that the colo r components may also contribute to the performance of the proposed measure. Keywords: image quality, objective measures, subjective evaluation, PSNR, local error measurement, human visual system, visual threshold, singular value decomposition
Pacemaker contact sensitivity: Clinical recognition and management

We report a patient in whom vesicular lesions of the skin developed overlying the pacemaker at intervals of 3 to 8 months after each of three consecutive insertions. Patch skin tests were positive for titanium and polyurethane sensitization. Although pacemaker contact sensitivity is rare, its recognition is of vital importance to the pacemaker-dependent patient.
Comment-Subjective Probability and the Theory of Games: Comments on Kadane and Larkey's Paper

The normative solution concepts of game theory try to provide a clear mathematical characterization of what it means to act rationally in a game where all players expect each other to act rationally. Kadane and Larkey reject the use of these normative solution concepts. Yet, this amounts to throwing away an important piece of information to the effect that the players are rational and expect each other to be rational. Even in situations where the players do not expect each other to act with complete rationality, normative game theory can help them heuristically to formulate reasonable expectations about the other players' behavior.