cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Molecular regulation of T-cell anergy

The activation of T cells is tightly controlled by many positive and negative regulatory processes. This fine-tuning allows productive immunity to pathogens while minimizing the risk of autoimmunity. One negative regulatory mechanism is clonal anergy, which is a hyporesponsive state that occurs when T cells are activated through the T-cell antigen receptor in the absence of appropriate co-stimulatory signals. Recent studies have confirmed a crucial role for defective Ras activation in mediating this hyporesponsive state. Diminished Ras activation can, in part, be explained by the upregulated expression of diacylglycerol kinases (DGKs), which phosphorylate diacylglycerol and restrict Ras guanyl releasing protein 1 (RasGRP1)-dependent activation of Ras. Increased expression of DGKs is probably transcriptional and is accompanied by augmented expression of additional negative regulators, including the transcription factors early growth response (Egr) 2 and Egr3, and the E3 ubiquitin ligases known as gene related to anergy in lymphocytes (GRAIL) and Casitas B-cell lymphoma-b (Cbl-b). A model is emerging for how these factors are regulated to control T-cell responsiveness.
Retrieval of Raindrop Size Distribution from Simulated Dual-Frequency Radar Measurements

Abstract Observations of raindrop size distributions (DSDs) have validated the use of three-parameter distribution functions in representing the observed spectra. However, dual-frequency radar measurements are limited to retrieving two independent parameters of the DSD, thus requiring a constraint on a three-parameter distribution. In this study, disdrometer observations from a variety of climate regions are employed to develop constraints on the gamma distribution that are optimized for dual-frequency radar rainfall retrievals. These observations are composited by reflectivity, and then gamma parameters are fit to the composites. The results show considerable variability in shape parameter between regions and within a region at different reflectivities. Most notable is that oceanic regions exhibit maxima in shape parameter at 13.6-GHz reflectivities between 40 and 50 dBZ, in contrast to continental regions. The shape parameter and slope parameter of all composite DSDs are poorly correlated. Thus, constra...
Activation of Guinea Pig Herpesvirus Antigen in Leukemic Lymphoblasts of Guinea Pig

Herpesvirus (GPHV) antigen is either present in very small amounts, or absent in leukemic lymphoblasts taken directly from strain 2 guinea pigs. However, after maintenance in tissue culture for 72 hr, almost 100% of these lymphoblasts contained GPHV antigen. The expression of GPHV antigen could be demonstrated by indirect immunofluorescent technique as well as by the direct (125)I labeled antibody technique. However, infectious virus or virus capsids could not be detected in these cells either by infectivity tests or electron microscopy.
Modelling and verification of interworking between SIP and H.323

There are currently two standards for signaling and control of Internet telephone calls, namely ITU-T Recommendation H.323 and the IETF session initiation protocol (SIP). Both protocols provide similar functionality using different mechanisms. Both H.323 and SIP provide interoperability, flexibility and scalability in different aspects and environments. Interworking between SIP and H.323 is essential to ensure full end-to-end connectivity through the network, although the current number of deployed commercial SIP endpoints is relatively small compared to widely deployed H.323 endpoints.To formally specify the SIP-H.323 Interworking, this paper gives a new system model for interworking between SIP and H.323. Five main components of this system are modeled using system description language and message sequence chart: H.323 endpoint, H.323 gatekeeper, SIP-H.323 Interworking facility, SIP server, SIP endpoint. We design and define the internal structure and behavior for each component, which is established for simulating and verifying interworking between SIP and H.323. Under two different configurations that both protocols work within the same administrative domain and that both protocols are operating in separate administrative domains, we use a series of scenarios to show that our model meets the functional specifications outlined in the SIP-H323-Interworking specification documents.
Reactivity of a series of isostructural cobalt pincer complexes with CO2, CO, and H(+).

The preparation and characterization of a series of isostructural cobalt complexes (Co(t-Bu)2P E Py E P(t-Bu)2(CH3CN)2)- (BF4)2 (Py = pyridine, E = CH2, NH, O, and X = BF4 (1a−c)) and the corresponding one-electron reduced analogues (Co(t-Bu)2P E Py E P(t- Bu)2(CH3CN)2)(BF4)2 (2a−c) are reported. The reactivity of the reduced cobalt complexes with CO2 ,C O, and H + to generate intermediates in a CO2 to CO and H2O reduction cycle are described. The reduction of 1a−c and subsequent reactivity with CO2 was investigated by cyclic voltammetry, and for 1a also by infrared spectroelectrochemistry. The corresponding CO complexes of (2a−c) were prepared, and the Co−CO bond strengths were characterized by IR spectroscopy. Quantum mechanical methods (B3LYP-d3 with solvation) were used to characterize the competitive reactivity of the reduced cobalt centers with H + versus CO2. By investigating a series of isostructural complexes, correlations in reactivity with ligand electron withdrawing effects are made.
The Fate of Inner Suburbs: Evidence From Metropolitan Baltimore

This paper analyzes the transformation of Baltimore's inner suburbs from 1980 to 2000. After developing a geographic definition of inner suburbs, we then spatially analyze them using census place-level data. The analysis shows evidence of socioeconomic decline in Baltimore's inner suburbs, but the extent of this decline varies among these suburbs. Since 1980, many declining inner suburbs had difficulty attracting new residents, White flight was the prevailing trend, and the housing stock was outdated relative to the outer suburbs. The analysis suggests three major influences on decline among the inner suburbs of Baltimore: labor market restructuring, the nature of the local housing market, and income and racial segregation. This paper concludes with a classification of Baltimore's inner suburbs based on our understanding of the processes of suburban decline in the region.
Mind: the brain’s leaky organ

What were you doing the afternoon of 15 January 2014? Chances are, unless it was highly meaningful, you probably do not remember. Memories are made and recalled because of their emotional valence. On 15 January 2014, I was serving as a visiting professor at the Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar (IITGN). It was the final day of the annual kite flying festival of the city of Ahmedabad, the temporary home of IITGN. That afternoon, I had returned to the campus, and there was a beautiful sky collage of kites in a myriad of colours: India’s flag (green, white, and saffron), chrome, all of the primaries and pastels. It was a mildly warm day, and I had previously flown a few kites (Miami, Florida) in my time, so I sought the shade of a plumeria tree ( frangipani , we called it in Miami) while watching the campus crowd. College students, faculty, staff, and many children were all joyfully flying kites. The colourful flock of kites swirled above us in the air. Some higher and some lower: some kites dangling close to the trees and some so high they could barely be perceived. But I did not enjoy the shade of the plumeria alone: the wife of a senior administrator of IITGN also sought refuge in the shade. I watched as the crowd, as equally colourful as the kites, blended and danced amongst each other, flying their kites. As we watched the kites and their participants, an older august Indian gentleman left the fray to join his wife, standing with me under the plumeria tree. ‘Did you see,’ he said excitedly to his wife, ‘I had the highest kite in the sky!’ Later, as I drove my Indian bicycle home from the campus, the two, way too short, kilometres, again I was …
Improved rejection of multiply scattered photons in confocal microscopy using dual-axes architecture

We perform Monte Carlo simulations to show that the dual-axes (DA) confocal architecture has superior rejection of multiply scattered photons in tissue to that of single axis. As a result, the DA configuration provides improved signal-to-noise ratio and dynamic range, and thus is sensitive to ballistic photons from deeper within tissue, features that are particularly useful for performing vertical cross-sectional reflectance images in tissue.
Extra Dimensions and Their Implications for Neutrino Physics

In this talk, I discuss recent developments concerning the possibility of large extra space-ime dimensions and their relation to neutrino physics. After briefly reviewing how such dimensions can lower the fundamental GUT, Planck, and string scales, I then outline how these scenarios lead to a new higher-dimensional seesaw mechanism for generating neutrino oscillations — perhaps even without neutrino masses. I also discuss how neutrino flavor oscillations can occur in a higher-dimensional theory even if the Standard Model on the brane is flavor-diagonal, the bulk theory is flavor-neutral, and the brane/bulk couplings are flavor-blind. This talk reports on work done in collaboration with Emilian Dudas, Tony Gherghetta, and Ina Sarcevic.
Modeling dielectrophoretic force for manipulating carbon nanotubes (CNTs)

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are good candidates for many electronics and sensing applications. These applications will require moving (deposit) and orienting carbon nanotubes to specific location, and separating CNTs with semiconducting and metallic band structure. The use of dielectrophoresis (DEP) has been established as a course towards the efficient separation of metallic carbon nanotubes from semiconducting carbon nanotubes. It is also a method for controlled assembly of the CNTs on microstructures that have the plausibility to be scaled to wafer-level manufacturing. For this reason, in this paper, a new mathematical model for dielectrophoretic for applied to nanotubes have been developed. Simulation results are presented in the paper to verify the developed dielectrophoretic force model. The developed model can significantly improve the separation of semiconducting and metallic band structure carbon nanotubes, ultimately providing a critical and major step towards the use of carbon nanotubes in the manufacturing of electronics and sensors for potential use in electrical circuits, as fiber and film, computer circuits, light bulb filament, ultracapacitors, combat jackets, etc.
ON ROBUSTNESS OF THE SHIRYAEV-ROBERTS CHANGE-POINT DETECTION PROCEDURE UNDER PARAMETER MISSPECIFICATION IN THE POST-CHANGE DISTRIBUTION

The gist of the quickest change-point detection problem is to detect the presence of a change in the statistical behavior of a series of sequentially made observat ions, and do so in an optimal detection-speedvs.-“false-positive”-risk manner. When optimality is understood either in the generalized Bayesian sense or as defined in Shiryaev’s multi-cyclic setup, the so- called Shiryaev‐Roberts (SR) detection procedure is known to be the “best one can do”, provided, however, that the observations’ pre- and post-change distributions are both fully specified. We cons ider a more realistic setup, viz. one where the post-change distribution is assumed known only up to a parameter, so that the latter may be “misspecified”. The question of interest is the sensitivity (or robus tness) of the otherwise “best” SR procedure with respect to a possible misspecification of the post-chan ge distribution parameter. To answer this question, we provide a case study where, in a specific Gaussia n scenario, we allow the SR procedure to be “out of tune” in the way of the post-change distribution parameter, and numerically assess the effect of the “mistuning” on Shiryaev’s (multi-cyclic) Sta tionary Average Detection Delay delivered by the SR procedure. The comprehensive quantitative robustness characterization of the SR procedure obtained in the study can be used to develop the respective theory as well as to provide a rational for practical design of the SR procedure. The overall qualitative conclusion of the study is an expected one: the SR procedure is less (more) robust for less (more) contrast changes and for lower (higher) levels of the false alarm risk.
Surprises of the genome and "personalized" medicine.

The genome continues to fascinate and humble its enthusiasts. Any major step in the ladder of scientific discoveries taken toward understanding the genome is soon overshadowed by newer discoveries. The large monotonous macromolecule that Friedrich Miescher, the discoverer of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), called the “nuclein,” has only 4 randomly repeating letters (1). This apparent simplicity misled scientists for about 75 years until the surprising discovery that the 4 randomly repeating nucleotides contained Johann Gregor Mendel's “elements of hereditary” (2). It was just as fascinating to discover that the “elements of hereditary” comprised <2% of over 3 billion nucleotide pairs in the genome. The rest was considered “junk DNA.” Then we were humbled to learn that there simply was no “junk DNA” but that signals were posted in every corner of the genome. The discovery of microribonucleic acids, transcribed from introns and intergenic regions, and demonstration of their role in regulating cardiac function are powerful evidence of the significance of the “junk DNA” (3–5). Moreover, the information conveyed by the genome is not restricted to its nucleotide sequence but also comprises an extra layer of complexity imparted by the epigenetic mechanisms (6).
Suppression of Superfluid Film Flow in the XRS Helium Dewar

Superfluid helium dewars for space missions use a porous plug phase separator to retain the bulk liquid while releasing boiloff vapor. Although the thermomechanical force is quite effective in holding the liquid against the internal vapor pressure, van der Waals forces will lead to a leakage of helium through the porous plug to feed the flow of a superfluid film in the vent line. Since the latent heat is generally not extracted from the remaining liquid, the film poses a serious problem for space missions such as the X-Ray Spectrometer (XRS) which have extremely low heat load budgets. A design for the XRS porous plug and vent system is presented which keeps film losses below 2 µg/s through a combination of a heat exchanger, to evaporate the film, and a knife-edge device. Tests of the vent have been conducted in a minus 1g configuration. At the expected on-orbit tank temperature of 1.22 K, film losses are negligible, but rise to 4 µg/s at the maximum tank temperature of 1.30 K. Design parameters and performance tests are discussed.
Abstract 4548: Identify novel molecular structures targeting X-Linked Inhibitor of Apoptosis Protein by ligand-based virtual screening.

Resistance to apoptosis is believed as one of the mechanism underlying a number of human malignancies notorious resistances to current chemotherapeutics. The X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis protein (XIAP) inhibits apoptosis by directly binding and deactivating caspase-9, caspase-3/7. Elevated XIAP expression in tumor tissue is closely associated with metastatic progression. Mimicking the XIAP-binding motif of second mitochondria-derived activator of caspase (SMAC) is the most widely used strategy to discover or design therapeutic agents targeting XIAP. Here we screened a large database of 362K compounds (the University of Cincinnati9s Drug Discovery Center Library) in silico to find molecules with novel structures that can strongly interact with the third BIR domain of XIAP. We chose AVPI tetrapeptide from the SMAC as the lead structure and run the shape similarity search using program Canvas, version 1.4 (Schrodinger, LLC, New York, USA). Then top 10,000 structures of the similarity rank were docked into SMAC binding sites in two different SMAC-BIR3 domain complexes crystal structure (PDB ID: 1TW1 and 1G73) separately. The highest docking score of the screened structures is up to -9.0 in both of complexes while the SMAC AVPI tetrapeptide showed docking score at -9.4. Considering the docking scores in both complexes and the flexibility of chemical scaffolds, we manually selected 72 compounds with docking scores varied from -8.4 to -5.5 for in vitro anti-proliferation and caspase functional testing. Four compounds which haven9t been reported with any anti-cancer activity, inhibited the cell growth by over 70% in two human melanoma cell lines (A375 and MDA-MB-435) and two human prostate cell lines (PC-3 and LNCap) at the concentration of 10uM after 48hr incubation. IC50 values of those compounds were at least 4 folds smaller than that of Embelin, a well-recognized XIAP inhibitor, in all four cell lines tested. The best of them, compound 402112, have IC50 values of 650nM to 2.5uM against the four tested cancer cell lines. Caspase functional assay showed that compound 402112 activates capase-9 activity at 4 μM, significantly better than Embelin did at a 10-fold higher concentration (40 μM) after 48hr treatment in PC-3 and A375 cells. Taken together, our study identified novel molecule structures which are amicable to further extensive modification for the development of high potent XIAP inhibitors. Citation Format: Jin Wang, Charles B. Duke, Wei Li. Identify novel molecular structures targeting X-Linked Inhibitor of Apoptosis Protein by ligand-based virtual screening. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 104th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2013 Apr 6-10; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2013;73(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 4548. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2013-4548
Characterization of the Probiotic Yeast Saccharomyces boulardii in the Healthy Mucosal Immune System.

The probiotic yeast Saccharomyces boulardii has been shown to ameliorate disease severity in the context of many infectious and inflammatory conditions. However, use of S. boulardii as a prophylactic agent or therapeutic delivery vector would require delivery of S. boulardii to a healthy, uninflamed intestine. In contrast to inflamed mucosal tissue, the diverse microbiota, intact epithelial barrier, and fewer inflammatory immune cells within the healthy intestine may all limit the degree to which S. boulardii contacts and influences the host mucosal immune system. Understanding the nature of these interactions is crucial for application of S. boulardii as a prophylactic agent or therapeutic delivery vehicle. In this study, we explore both intrinsic and immunomodulatory properties of S. boulardii in the healthy mucosal immune system. Genomic sequencing and morphological analysis of S. boulardii reveals changes in cell wall components compared to non-probiotic S. cerevisiae that may partially account for probiotic functions of S. boulardii. Flow cytometry and immunohistochemistry demonstrate limited S. boulardii association with murine Peyer’s patches. We also show that although S. boulardii induces a systemic humoral immune response, this response is small in magnitude and not directed against S. boulardii itself. RNA-seq of the draining mesenteric lymph nodes indicates that even repeated administration of S. boulardii induces few transcriptional changes in the healthy intestine. Together these data strongly suggest that interaction between S. boulardii and the mucosal immune system in the healthy intestine is limited, with important implications for future work examining S. boulardii as a prophylactic agent and therapeutic delivery vehicle.
Characterization of the Phosphoprotein Profile in Spontaneously Beating Cultured Rat Heart Cells

AbstractCulture of neonatal rat hearts yields a fairly homogeneous population of synchronous and spontaneously beating myocardial cells. Incubation of the culture with [32P]-orthophosphate followed by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and autoradiography yields a reproducible profile of both high- and low-molecular-weight phosphoproteins. This phosphoprotein profile is clearly distinct from that observed with mesenchymal cells, the major contaminant of the heart cell cultures. By comparison with purified standard proteins, and by copurification with neonatal rat myosin, we have identified one of these phosphoproteins as the 20,000-dalton myosin light chain. The demonstration of phosphoproteins in intact contracting myocardial cells provides a system to study the complex interaction of the phosphoproteins involved in the control of cardiac contractility.
An assessment of the reliability of melt inclusions as recorders of the pre-eruptive volatile content of magmas

Many studies have used melt inclusions (MI) to track the pre-eruptive volatile history of magmas. Often, the volatile contents of the MI show wide variability, even for MI hosted in the same phenocryst. This variability is usually interpreted to represent trapping of a volatile-saturated melt over some range of pressures (depths) and these data are in turn used to define a magma degassing path. In this study, groups of MI that were all trapped at the same time (referred to as a melt inclusion assemblage or MIA) based on petrographic evidence, were analyzed to test the consistency of the volatile contents of MI that were all trapped simultaneously from the same melt. MIA hosted in phenocrysts from White Island (New Zealand) and from the Solchiaro eruption on the Island of Procida (Italy) were analyzed by secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS). In most MIA, H2O, F, and Cl abundances for all MI within the MIA are consistent (relative standard errors <27%, with the exception of two MIA), indicating that the MI all trapped a melt with the same H2O, F, and Cl concentrations and that the composition was maintained during storage in the magma as well as during and following eruption. In several MIA, S abundances are consistent (relative standard errors <33%, with the exception of five out of 28 MIA). Conversely, CO2 (White Island and Solchiaro MIA) showed wide variability in several MIA. The result is that some MIA display a wide range in CO2 content at approximately constant H2O. Similar trends have previously been interpreted to represent degassing paths, produced as volatile-saturated melts are trapped over some significant pressure (depth) range in an ascending (or convecting) magma body. However, the CO2 vs. H2O trends obtained in this study cannot represent degassing paths because the MI were all trapped at the same time (same MIA). This requires that all of the MI within the MIA trapped a melt of the same composition (including volatile content) and at the same temperature and pressure (depth). The cause of the variable concentration of CO2 within some MIA is unknown, but may reflect micrometer-scale heterogeneities within the melt during trapping, heterogeneities within individual MI, post-entrapment crystallization within the MI, or C-contamination during sample preparation. These results suggest that trends showing variable CO2 and relatively uniform H2O obtained from MI may not represent trapping of volatile-saturated melts over a range of pressure, and care must be taken when interpreting volatile contents of MI to infer magma degassing paths. Results of this study have been used to estimate the uncertainties in volatile concentrations of MI determined by SIMS analysis. The H2O, F, and Cl contents have an average estimated uncertainty of 11, 9, and 12%, respectively, which is consistent with the SIMS analytical error. In contrast, the S and CO2 contents have an average estimated uncertainty of 24 and 69%, respectively, which is considerably larger than the SIMS analytical error.
Acoustic behavior of Amblycorypha parvipennis (Orthoptera : Tettigoniidae)

The sounds made by Amblycorypha parvipennis Stal (Tettigoniidae: Phaneropterinae) consist of sequences of phrases produced at rates of 7-9/min with phrases 4-5 s long consisting of an average of 24 phonatomes (20-25°C). Phonatomes consisting of three or four pulse trains generated during a single wingstroke were produced at average rates of 4.5-5.5/s. Adjacent singing males alternate and overlap phrases and, where phrases overlap, phonatomes are synchronized. Although males of several phaneropterine species alternate production of phrases, and one species has been reported occasionally synchronizing lisps, no other orthopteran is known to alternate overlapped phrases and to synchronize phonatomes. Male song phrase intervals are longer during paired chorusing than when males sing alone; this suggests that phrase alternation is the result of one male being inhibited during most of the phrase of another singing katydid. Phaneropterine females typically produce single, short sounds (“ticks”) at species-identifying intervals of 17-1,130 ms following male phrases. Females of A. parvipennis are unique in producing an average of 3.2 ticks/male phrase (range, 1-17; mode, 1) and ticks falling between the phonatomes of male phrases. The only or last female tick usually falls just before (49%) or after (46%) the last phonatome of a male phrase. Sequences of female ticks fall between male phonatomes, and ticks are initiated an average of 120 ms following initiation of the previous male phonatomes. Male phonatome synchrony may have evolved so that females could time their responses and males could perceive female responses.
Evoked Potentials Reflecting the Rule State during the Wisconsin Card Sort (P01.192)

Objective: To test a cognitive-dynamics theory (CDT) of decision-making utilizing EEG measurements during the Wisconsin Card Sort Task. Background Decision-making is an essential component of cognitive function that can be represented using a CDT approach. Decision-making is modelled as rule application to internal state models and to various choice states to achieve a desired outcome. The Wisconsin Card Sort Task (WCST) provides an ideal paradigm for measuring decision-making. In the WCST users learn a rule then adapt as the rule is changed unexpectedly. Design/Methods: Electroencephalographic data was collected from nine healthy adults using a NeuroScan NuAmps amplifier with a 32 lead EEG cap. Subjects completed 10 consecutive correct rule applications during 6 rounds of the Wisconsin Card Sort Task. EEG data were analyzed using Matlab with EEGLab extension. Results: The decision-making component of the EEG record was defined as the time immediately following card presentation. The "first-correct-decision" epochs were averaged and compared with the eight consecutive "post-decision" epochs that followed this decision turning point: A positive wave of 15 uV appeared at approximately 350 ms in both cases. In contrast, the "first-orrect-decision" potential remained positive for 400-1000 ms at 15 uV but this persistent positivity is absent in the "post-decision" waveforms. Conclusions: A robust signal has been identified representing the rule discovery component of decision-making. Cognitive computation is reflected in the late positive wave demonstrated at 400-1000 ms during which the subject is making a decision but is not yet sure of the correct rule. This wave disappears as the rule is learned. The strong positive wave at around 350 ms is apparent in both cases and may reflect the dynamics and network interactions of the decision making process. These signals confirm that the cognitive dynamics model can be interrogated using these psychophysical tools. Disclosure: Dr. Farrar has nothing to disclose. Dr. Bergethon has nothing to disclose.
Early Extubation: A Proposed New Metric.

Shorter intubation periods after cardiac surgery are associated with decreased morbidity and mortality. Although the Society of Thoracic Surgeons uses a 6-hour benchmark for early extubation, the time threshold above which complications increase is unknown. Using an institutional Society of Thoracic Surgeons database, we identified 3007 adult patients who underwent 1 of 7 index cardiac operations from 2010-2014. Patients were stratified by the duration of time to extubation after surgery—0-6, 6-9, 9-12, and 12-18 hours. Aggregate outcomes were compared among time-to-extubation cohorts. Primary outcomes included operative mortality and a composite of major postoperative complications; secondary outcomes included prolonged postoperative hospital length of stay (PLOS) (> 14 days) and reintubation. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to control for case mix. In results, extubation percentages in each time cohort were hours 0-6—36.4%, 6-9—25.6%, 9-12—12.5%, and 12-18—10.5%. Patients extubated in hours 12-18 vs
Unburdening the self: a therapeutic study of Kamala Das’s “Composition”

ABSTRACTOf all the Indian English Poets, Kamala Das (1934–2009) has achieved a significant position as a pioneer confessional poet writing in the same vein like her American counterparts like Sylvia Plath and Anne Sexton. She suffered a mismatched marital life leading her even to an attempt to commit suicide. Her husband, instead of providing a romantic ambience, engages himself in the continuous distancing by maintaining a cold relationship towards her. He considered her just as an object of carnal gratification. This attitude completely frustrated her. However, it will be my endeavor to show that it was the act of writing poems which helped her to get out of that claustrophobic situation. Poems gave her a therapeutic relief. In the presentation of this study, I have chosen a major poem “Composition” in this regard. She has used the mode of confession in her poems to achieve therapeutic value.
Problems of College English Teaching Reform and Coping Strategies

The essay emphasizes the disadvantages of conventional teaching method,the puzzle on teachers' role,and the irrationality of teaching arrangement through the analysis on status quo of college English teaching reform and teaching practice.Effective coping strategies are put forward.
Aspect-oriented secure connectors for implementation of secure software architecture

This paper describes aspect-oriented secure connectors for implementing secure software architecture for distributed business applications. A secure connector for secure software architecture can be designed separately from application business components by considering different communication patterns between the components as well as security services required by application components. In this paper, the secure connector is implemented as an aspect-oriented secure connector separately from application business components. The aspect-oriented secure connector is structured with both a security service aspect and a communication pattern aspect that are separated from each other. Once aspect-oriented secure connectors are implemented, they can be reused for different applications with the security service and communication pattern aspects required between application components. In this paper, aspect-oriented secure connectors are used to implement an electronic commerce application.
Free-Floating, Pigmented Cysts in the Anterior Chamber Causing Ocular Hypertension.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to describe the clinical and histopathological features of a 36-year-old male with hundreds of recurrent, unilateral, free-floa
Excess positional mutual information predicts both local and allosteric mutations affecting beta lactamase drug resistance.

MOTIVATION Bacterial resistance to antibiotics, particularly plasmid-encoded resistance to beta lactam drugs, poses an increasing threat to human health. Point mutations to beta-lactamase enzymes can greatly alter the level of resistance conferred, but predicting the effects of such mutations has been challenging due to the large combinatorial space involved and the subtle relationships of distant residues to catalytic function. Therefore we desire an information-theoretic metric to sensitively and robustly detect both local and distant residues that affect substrate conformation and catalytic activity. RESULTS Here, we report the use of positional mutual information in multiple microsecond-length molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to predict residues linked to catalytic activity of the CTX-M9 beta lactamase. We find that motions of the bound drug are relatively isolated from motions of the protein as a whole, which we interpret in the context of prior theories of catalysis. In order to robustly identify residues that are weakly coupled to drug motions but nonetheless affect catalysis, we utilize an excess mutual information metric. We predict 31 such residues for the cephalosporin antibiotic cefotaxime. Nine of these have previously been tested experimentally, and all decrease both enzyme rate constants and empirical drug resistance. We prospectively validate our method by testing eight high-scoring mutations and eight low-scoring controls in bacteria. Six of eight predicted mutations decrease cefotaxime resistance greater than 2-fold, while only one control shows such an effect. The ability to prospectively predict new variants affecting bacterial drug resistance is of great interest to clinical and epidemiological surveillance. AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION Excess mutual information code is available at https://github.com/kassonlab/positionalmi CONTACT: kasson@virginia.edu.
“Your Sexual Revolution Is Not Ours”: French Feminist “Moralism” and the Limits of Desire

The sexual revolution and the social movements of gender contestation associated with it—feminism and gay liberation—were never unified phenomena. Although feminists and some male activists often had great reason to find common cause with one another in attacking the sexual and gender “old order,” such solidarity did not always materialize. Advocates of sexual and gender liberation certainly encountered limits to their intentional projects from without (religious, middle class, and/or patriarchal). They also encountered limits within generally consonant and sometimes conflicting sexual and gender liberation movements, as various parties struggled among themselves to define what the sexual revolution promised and what it could deliver. Ironically, sexual politics sometimes fought other sexual politics all in the name of liberation.
Uncertainty Analysis of Step-Selection Functions: The Effect of Model Parameters on Inferences about the Relationship between Animal Movement and the Environment

As spatio-temporal movement data is becoming more widely available for analysis in GIS and related areas, new methods to analyze them have been developed. A step-selection function (SSF) is a recently developed method used to quantify the effect of environmental factors on animal movement. This method is gaining traction as an important conservation tool; however there have been no studies that have investigated the uncertainty associated with subjective model decisions. In this research we used two types of animals – oilbirds and hyenas – to examine how systematically altering user decisions of model parameters influences the main outcome of an SSF, the coefficients that quantify the movement-environment relationship. We found that user decisions strongly influence the results of step-selection functions and any subsequent inferences about animal movement and environmental interactions. Differences were found between categories for every variable used in the analysis and the results presented here can help to clarify the sources of uncertainty in SSF model decisions.
6. Cummings' Anyone Lived in a Pretty How Town

(1952). 6. Cummings' Anyone Lived in a Pretty How Town. The Explicator: Vol. 11, No. 2, pp. 13-15.
Septin-Associated Protein Kinases in the Yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Septins are a family of eukaryotic GTP-binding proteins that associate into linear rods, which, in turn, polymerize end-on-end into filaments and further assemble into other, more elaborate super-structures at discrete subcellular locations. Hence, septin-based ensembles are considered elements of the cytoskeleton. One function of these structures that has been well-documented in studies conducted in budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae is to serve as a scaffold that recruits regulatory proteins, which dictate the spatial and temporal control of certain aspects of the cell division cycle. In particular, septin-associated protein kinases couple cell cycle progression with cellular morphogenesis. Thus, septin-containing structures serve as signaling platforms that integrate a multitude of signals and coordinate key downstream networks required for cell cycle passage. This review summarizes what we currently understand about how the action of septin-associated protein kinases and their substrates control information flow to drive the cell cycle into and out of mitosis, to regulate bud growth, and especially to direct timely and efficient execution of cytokinesis and cell abscission. Thus, septin structures represent a regulatory node at the intersection of many signaling pathways. In addition, and importantly, the activities of certain septin-associated protein kinases also regulate the state of organization of the septins themselves, creating a complex feedback loop.
Design of Phase-Locked Loop Circuit Based on Ant Colony Optimization Algorithm

In order to optimize the parameters of phase-locked loop circuit, an analysis of the stability and principle of phase-locked loop circuit is put forward by intelligent control theory, and its mathematical model and transfer function are established. And then, a parameter optimization method based on ant colony algorithm is proposed. The experimental results show that the phase-locked loop circuit designed in this method can supply a stable and accurate trigger signal. So this method can be applied into the phase-locked loop circuit for a great synchronous sampling required.
Extending rhetorical criticism’s engagement

Robert L. Ivie, “The Social Relevance of Rhetorical Scholarship,” Quarterly Journal of Speech 81, no. 2 (1995)I doubt any rhetorical critic would consider what they do socially irrelevant; we see o...
High spatial resolution performance of pixelated scintillators

In indirect conversion flat panel detectors (FPDs) for digital X-ray imaging, scintillating materials such as Terbiumdoped Gadolinium Oxysulfide (Gadox) convert X-ray into visible light, and an amorphous silicon (a-Si) photodiode array converts the light into electrons. It is, however, desired that the detector spatial resolution is improved because the light spreading inside scintillator causes crosstalk to next a-Si photodiode pixels and the resolution is degraded compared with direct conversion FPDs which directly convert X-ray into electrons by scintillating material such as amorphous selenium. In this study, the scintillator was pixelated with same pixel pitch as a-Si photodiode array by barrier rib structure to limit the light spreading, and the detector spatial resolution was improved. The FPD with pixelated scintillator was manufactured as follows. The barrier rib structure with 127μm pitch was fabricated on a substrate by a photosensitive organic-inorganic paste method, and a reflective layer was coated on the surface of the barrier rib, then the structure was filled up with Gadox particles. The pixelated scintillator was aligned with 127μm pixel pitch of a-Si photodiode array and set as a FPD. The FPD with pixelated scintillator showed high modulation transfer function (MTF) and 0.94 at 1cycle/mm and 0.88 at 2cycles/mm were achieved. The MTF values were almost equal to the maximum value that can be theoretically achieved in the FPD with 127μm pixel pitch of a-Si photodiode array. Thus the FPD with pixelated scintillators has great potential to apply for high spatial resolution applications such as mammography and nondestructive testing.
Differential Response to Exercise in African Americans with High Levels of Inflammation

Purpose: Systemic inflammation, measured by C-reactive protein (CRP), is an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and mortality. We investigated whether aerobic exercise training (AEXT) affects African Americans with high inflammation (HI) the same way it does African Americans with low inflammation (LI) in terms of CVD risk factors. Methods: 23 African Americans with CRP levels <3 mg/L (LI) and 14 African Americans with CRP ≥3 mg/L (HI) underwent six months of AEXT. Participants were sedentary, non-diabetic, non-smoking, with clinical blood pressure <160/100 mm Hg, were non-hyperlipidemic, had no signs of cardiovascular, renal, or pulmonary disease, and were not on medication. Measures included CD62E+ endothelial microparticles (EMPs), a measure of early stage endothelial dysfunction, as well as lipid and glucose profile, aerobic fitness, body composition, and blood pressure. Results: The LI group improved aerobic fitness by 10%, body mass index by 3%, and plasma triglycerides by 20%, with no change being observed in HI group for these variables. The HI group improved fasting plasma glucose levels by 10%, with no change occurring in the LI group. Both groups improved CD62E+ EMPs by 38% and 59% for the LI and HI group, respectively. Conclusions: A standard AEXT intervention differentially affected CVD risk factors among African Americans with high and low inflammation. This may indicate that, in African Americans with high inflammation, AEXT alone may not be enough to reap the same benefits as their low-inflammation peers in terms of CVD risk modification. Ethn Dis. 2017;27(3):233-240; doi:10.18865/ed.27.3.233
Taking Word Clouds Apart: An Empirical Investigation of the Design Space for Keyword Summaries

In this paper we present a set of four user studies aimed at exploring the visual design space of what we call keyword summaries: lists of words with associated quantitative values used to help people derive an intuition of what information a given document collection (or part of it) may contain. We seek to systematically study how different visual representations may affect people's performance in extracting information out of keyword summaries. To this purpose, we first create a design space of possible visual representations and compare the possible solutions in this design space through a variety of representative tasks and performance metrics. Other researchers have, in the past, studied some aspects of effectiveness with word clouds, however, the existing literature is somewhat scattered and do not seem to address the problem in a sufficiently systematic and holistic manner. The results of our studies showed a strong dependency on the tasks users are performing. In this paper we present details of our methodology, the results, as well as, guidelines on how to design effective keyword summaries based in our discoveries.
The Role of the Electrostatic Potential in Modeling Hydrogen Bonding and Other Non-Covalent Interactions

One of the goals of the theoretical chemist is to correctly model the complex processes of chemistry. In the case of intermolecular forces, he has various models from which he can choose, from very simple point-multipole classical models to sophisticated quantum mechanical calculations. It is the thesis of this chapter that the electrostatic potential has provided the most useful “simple model” in understanding non-covalent intermolecular interactions. Detailed quantum mechanical calculations, particularly those employing the Morokuma component analysis,1 have enabled one to critically assess the strengths and failings of the electrostatic potential model; and, thus, have greatly aided its development.
Acute Management of Atrial Fibrillation : From Emergency Department to Cardiac Care Unit

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common tachyarrhythmia encountered in clinical practice. One-third of hospitalizations in the United States are attributed to AF, with increasing rates in the past decade. Significant morbidity and mortality, including ∼15% to 20% of all ischemic strokes, result from AF. AF is associated with many causes and comorbidities. Hallmarks of acute AF management are accurate diagnosis, clinical stabilization, symptom relief through rate or rhythm control, thromboembolic stroke risk modification, and treatment of underlying causes. Meticulous and individualized acute evaluation based on these goals facilitates successful transition to long-term collaborative optimization of outcomes.
Stiglitz, Externality and Government

Joseph Stiglitz shared the Nobel Prize in 2001 partly on the basis of an important paper of his (with Greenwald): "Externalities in Economies with Imperfect Information and Incomplete Markets." In that paper he says: "There exist government interventions (e.g., taxes and subsidies) that can make everyone better off." Stiglitz is a prolific, outspoken, and outstanding spokesman for the pro-government school. This paper of his is supposed to provide the intellectual and analytical foundation for government intervention. I will argue that this important and oft-cited paper, while containing no mathematical errors, completely fails to prove the potential worth of government interventions. It assumes the result that it attempts to prove. Stiglitz has given us an inadequate and incomplete theory with inconsistent and ad hoc assumptions. His equations contain no theory of government whatever and for that reason alone they cannot possibly provide us with real-world prescriptions. In addition, Stiglitz ignores a long list of serious issues that undermine his prescription in favor of government interventions.
Signal Design Rules in Animal Communication

Signal design is influenced by multiple sources of selection in the form of conspecific receivers, other species that signal at the same time and place, predators, and the physical environment. Chemical signals are designed for relatively rapid short-duration messages (alarm) or more durable markers of territorial boundaries by changes in molecular size and volatility. Visual signals are designed to be detected against the background in an environment with a clear line-of-sight between communicating individuals. The color, contrast, and movement that improve detection also increase the risks of predation, and so many signals can be hidden or turned off rapidly. Acoustic signals are often designed to maximize the range of communication and to minimize degradation in particular environments such as forests and open areas.
Resettled and unsettled: Syrian refugees and the intersection of race and legal status in the United States

In this article, I examine how the intersection of legal status and racialization shapes immigrant’s sense of security; or of legal and interpersonal safety. I draw on an ethnography of Syrian refu...