cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Nitrogen and sulphur deposition and the growth of Sphagnum fuscum in bogs of the Athabasca Oil Sands Region, Alberta

One of the consequences of ongoing development of the oil sands reserve in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region (AOSR) near Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada (56° 39' N, 111° 13' W) is an increase in emissions of nitrogen (N) and sulphur (S), with an attendant increases in regional atmospheric N and S deposition. Regional land cover across northeastern Alberta is a mixture of Boreal Mixedwood, Boreal Highlands, and Subarctic areas. Peatlands occupy between 22 and 66% of these natural regions, and the land cover of bogs varies between 6.7% in the Mixedwood Region to 46% in the Subarctic Region. Ombrotrophic bog ecosystems may be especially sensitive to atmospheric deposition of N and S. Across 10 ombrotrophic bog sites in the AOSR over four years (2005– 2008), we found no evidence of elevated deposition of NH4 +-N, NO3 –-N, total inorganic nitrogen (TIN; NH4 +-N plus NO3 –-N), or SO4 2–-S, with values measured using ion exchange resin collectors averaging 0.61 ± 04, 0.20 ± 0.01, 0.81 ± 0.04, and 1.14 ± 0.06 kg ha–1 y–1, respectively. Vertical growth and net primary production of Sphagnum fuscum, an indicator of elevated deposition, did not differ consistently across sites, averaging 11.8 ± 0.2 mm y–1 and 234 ± 3.3 g m–2 y–1, respectively, over the four years. Neither vertical growth nor net primary production of S. fuscum was correlated with growing season atmospheric N or S deposition. Our data provide a valuable benchmark of background values for monitoring purposes in anticipation of increasing N and S deposition over a broader geographic region within the AOSR.
Development of a pharmacist-managed, telephone-based tobacco-cessation clinic for veterans.

A 2007 survey found that an estimated 22% of veterans are smokers, compared with 20.8% of the general population.[1][1],[2][2] However, smoking rates vary greatly across the Veterans Integrated Service Networks, from 16.5% to 27%.[2][2] The high percentage of veterans who are smokers indicates that
Estimation and Compensation of Frequency-Dependent I/Q Imbalances in OFDM Systems over Fading Channels

In this paper, the estimation and compensation of frequency-dependent In-phase/Quadrature-phase (I/Q) imbalances in an OFDM-based communication system is studied over fading channels. The input-output relation of this system is derived in closed-form in the frequency domain. Based on the result, two novel approaches are proposed to jointly estimate and compensate the distortion coefficients. The first method utilizes least square algorithm, while the second employs an adaptive normalized least mean square algorithm. The simulation results show that both approaches can almost reach the performance of the system without I/Q imbalances in the time-invariant multipath channels. By utilizing decision feedback scheme, the adaptive method outperforms the least square method in the time-varying fading channels at high signal-to-noise ratios.
Complexity Estimates for Representations of Schmüdgen Type

Let ?={?1, ?, ?j} and let K be a closed basic set in Rn given by the polynomial inequalities ?1?0, ?, ?j?0. Let ?{?} be the semiring generated by the ?k and the squares in Rx1, ?, xn]. For example, if ?={?1} then ?{?}=?1+?2?1, where ?1, ?2 are sums of squares of polynomials. Schmudgen has shown that if K is compact then any polynomial strictly positive on K belongs to ?{?}. This paper develops a result of Schmudgen type for functions in one dimension merely nonnegative on K. For this, it is necessary to add additional hypotheses, such as the proximity of complex zeros, to compensate for the loss of strict positivity necessary for Schmudgen's result.
Transposons that clean up after themselves

A transposon in the germline genome of the ciliate Oxytricha uses its transposase to remove itself, as well as other germline-limited DNA, from the differentiating somatic genome during development.
Nude by Nuala Ní Chonchuir

The third acclaimed short story collection by Dublin-bred Nuala Ni Chonchuir explores the complicated and precarious balance between exposure and concealment that composes so many of our human inte...
Islamic Finance as a Structured Products Business Line: Acute Complexity and the Need for Standardisation

Islamic finance and structured products are two of the most successful financial market innovations of the last 30 years. They have also become intertwined in the dealing rooms of the large western banks that treat Islamic finance as a kind of fixed income structured product. As a result, the Islamic fixed income products created by these banks share many of the same problems as conventional structured products, including complexity and a lack of transparency. In the article, I examine the impact of these problems on the development of the Islamic fixed income market, and argue for greater standardization of products as a cure for these problems.
Mixed reality for robotics

Mixed Reality can be a valuable tool for research and development in robotics. In this work, we refine the definition of Mixed Reality to accommodate seamless interaction between physical and virtual objects in any number of physical or virtual environments. In particular, we show that Mixed Reality can reduce the gap between simulation and implementation by enabling the prototyping of algorithms on a combination of physical and virtual objects, including robots, sensors, and humans. Robots can be enhanced with additional virtual capabilities, or can interact with humans without sharing physical space. We demonstrate Mixed Reality with three representative experiments, each of which highlights the advantages of our approach. We also provide a testbed for Mixed Reality with three different virtual robotics environments in combination with the Crazyflie 2.0 quadcopter.
Emerging Approaches for Targeting Metabolic Vulnerabilities in Malignant Glioma

Malignant gliomas are intractable and among the most lethal human malignancies. Like other cancers, metabolic reprogramming is a key feature of glioma and is thought to accommodate the heightened nutrient requirements for tumor cell proliferation, growth, and survival. This metabolic rewiring, driven by oncogenic signaling and molded by the unique environment of the brain, may impose vulnerabilities that could be exploited therapeutically for increased tumor control. In this review, we discuss the prominent metabolic features of malignant glioma, the key pathways regulating glioma metabolism, and the potential therapeutic opportunities for targeting metabolic processes.
Character in Action: A Case of Authentic Educational Leadership That Advanced Equity and Excellence.

The third pillar of No Child Left Behind emphasizes determining which educational programs and practices have been proven effective through rigorous scientific research. This study addressed Davis,...
Letting Our Hearts Break: On Facing the "Hidden Wound" of Human Supremacy.

In this paper I argue that education must be defined by our willingness to experience compassion in the face of others’ suffering and thus by an ethical imperative, and seek to expose psycho-social processes of shame as dark matters that inferiorize and subjugate those expressing such compassion for the more-than-human world. Beginning with stories from my own life, I examine works of fiction including J. M. Coetzee’s The Lives of Animals (1999) and Wendell Berry’s Jayber Crow (2000), as well as Berry’s reflection on his family’s legacy of racism in The Hidden Wound (2010), to explore the deep cultural wound caused by human supremacy. I further argue the need for claiming deep love and thus heartbreak in the face of suffering as the foundations for a pedagogy of responsibility.
Effects of Gallium Arsenide Passivation on Scanning Tunneling Microscope Excited Luminescence

An ambient scanning tunneling microscope (STM) was used to excite luminescence in ptype epitaxial GaAs with four separate surface preparations: bare GaAs, Au layer, sulfurmonochloride layer, and one monolayer of octa-decyl-thiol. The STM with tungsten tip was operated at a constant tunnel current of 5 nA during a +1 V bias applied to the sample and the resulting tip to sample distance was fixed during a higher voltage bias pulse which excited luminescence. The luminescence intensity increased rapidly with increasing bias voltage for all passivation types with the octa-decyl-thiol passivation achieving the highest STM excited luminescence (STMEL) of 3500 photons/sec at 4 V bias. Above about 4 V the luminescence from the octa-decyl-thiol and sulfur-monochloride passivated samples fell off irreversibly, indicating that the sample surface had been modified. The Au passivated and unpassivated samples showed no such luminescence drop up to 4.8 V, the highest bias employed. Photoluminescence (PL) studies of the samples showed that PL intensities exhibited a weaker dependence upon passivation type than did STMEL intensities, a result consistent with the assertion that STMEL is more sensitive to the surface properties of the sample than is PL.
The Professions and Social Structure

C OMPARATIVE study of the social structures of the most important civilizations shows that the professions occupy a position of importance in our society which is, in any comparable degree of development, unique in history. Perhaps the closest parallel is the society of the Roman Empire where, notably, the Law was very highly developed as a profession indeed. But even there the professions covered a far narrower scope than in the modern Western world. There is probably in Rome no case of a particular profession more highly developed than in our own society, and there was scarcely a close analogy to modern engineering, medicine or education in quantitative importance, though all of them were developed to a considerable degree. It seems evident that many of the most important features of our society are to a considerable extent dependent on the smooth functioning of the professions. Both the pursuit and the application of science and liberal learning are predominantly carried out in a professional context. Their results have become so closely interwoven in the fabric of modern society that it is difficult to imagine how it could get along without basic structural changes if they were seriously impaired. There is a tendency to think of the development and application of science and learning as a socially unproblematical process. A vague sort of "curiosity" and beyond that mere possession of the requisite knowledge are held to be enough. This is evidenced by the air of indignant wonder with which technologically minded people sometimes cite the fact that actual technical performance is well below the theoretical potentialities of Ioo percent efficiency. Only by extensive comparative study does it become evident that for even a moderate degree either of the development or the application of science there is requisite a complex set of social conditions which the "technologically minded" seldom think of, but incline to take for granted as in the nature of things. Study of the institutional framework within which professional activities are carried on should help considerably to understand the nature and functions of some of these social "constants. " The professions do not, however, stand alone as typical or distinctive features of modern Western civilization. Indeed, if asked what were the most distinctive * A paper read at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Society held at Detroit, Michigan, December, 1938.
Multiscale strength (MS) models: their foundation, their successes, and their challenges

Multiscale strength (MS) models are constructed to capture a natural hierarchy in the deformation of metals such as V and Ta starting with atomic bonding and extending up through the mobility of individual dislocations, the evolution of dislocation networks and so on until the ultimate material response at the scale of an experiment. In practice, the hierarchy is described by quantum mechanics, molecular dynamics, dislocation dynamics, and so on, ultimately parameterizing a continuum constitutive model. We review the basic models and describe how they operate at extremely high pressures and strain rates, such as in RayleighTaylor plastic flow experiments. The models use dislocation density as a state variable, and describe time-dependent, as well as rate-dependent, plasticity. They make interesting and testable predictions about transients in plastic flow. There are also clear challenges, however. The current MS models do not include a variety of mechanisms known to be important at low rates. Still, MS models provide compelling insight into plastic deformation of metals under extreme pressures and strain rates.
Phosphorylation modulates direct interactions between the Toll receptor, Pelle kinase and Tube

Determination of dorsal/ventral polarity in Drosophila requires 12 genetically defined, maternally encoded proteins. These include Toll, a transmembrane receptor, Pelle, a ser/thr protein kinase and Tube, all of which function intracytoplasmically to initiate the cascade that ultimately activates Dorsal, an NF-kappaB family transcription factor. Here we describe biochemical interactions between recombinant Toll, Pelle and Tube that provide insights into early events in activation of the signaling cascade. We first show that Pelle binds directly to a region within the Toll intracytoplasmic domain, providing the first evidence that these two evolutionarily conserved molecules physically interact. We then demonstrate that Pelle can be autophosphorylated, and that this prevents binding to Toll as well as Tube. Autophosphorylation occurs in the N-terminal, death-domain-containing region of Pelle, which is dispensable for binding to Toll but required for enzymatic activity. We also show that Pelle phosphorylates Toll, within the region required for Pelle interaction, but this phosphorylation can be blocked by a previously characterized inhibitory domain at the Toll C terminus. These and other results allow us to propose a model by which multiple phosphorylation-regulated interactions between these three proteins lead to activation of the Dorsal signaling pathway.
Marrow purging in autologous bone marrow transplantation for T-lineage acute lymphoblastic leukemia: efficacy of ex vivo treatment with immunotoxins and 4-hydroperoxycyclophosphamide against fresh leukemic marrow progenitor cells

A lymphoblast progenitor cell assay was used to evaluate the antileukemic efficacy of marrow-purging protocols that employed intact ricin immunotoxins (IT) and 4-hydroperoxycyclophosphamide (4-HC) against clonogenic primary T-lineage marrow blasts freshly obtained from 12 T-lineage acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) patients. Residual T-lineage blast colonies were observed after treatment with 1 micrograms/mL T101 (anti-CD5)-Ricin (R) + G3.7 (anti-CD7)-R in eight of 12 cases and after 100 micrograms/mL 4-HC in six of nine cases. By comparison, a combination of IT and 4-HC proved very effective against T-lineage leukemic progenitor cells, and no residual blast colonies were observed in any of the eight cases studied. We conclude that future trials should consider combined treatment protocols such as IT + 4-HC for more effective purging of autologous marrow grafts.
Direct spectral phase measurement of femtosecond optical pulses by using multiple-slit interference

Recently, we developed a simple technique1 for measuring the spectral phase of femtosecond optical pulses, we called it direct optical spectral phase measurement (DOSPM). This technique measures the phase of the temporal interference between two frequency components selected by a movable double-slit mask in a zero-dispersion pulse shaper. Here we report a new method using a nine-slit mask that yields spectral phase measurement for eight spectral-frequency components with a single temporal scan.
The Demand Side

Humans are by nature risk-averse. This is a simple consequence of the way we derive pleasure, and is well explained by economic theories that allow us to model human economic satisfaction and happiness.
Identifying systematic spatial failure patterns through wafer clustering

In this paper, we propose a novel methodology for detecting systematic spatial failure patterns at wafer level for yield learning. Our proposed methodology takes the testing results (i.e., pass or fail) of a number of dies over different wafers, cluster all these wafers according to their failures, and eventually identify the underlying spatial failure patterns. Several novel machine learning algorithms, including singular value decomposition, hierarchical clustering, dictionary learning, etc., are developed in order to make the proposed methodology robust to random failures. The efficacy of our proposed approach is demonstrated by an industrial data set.
How Do Some Field Tests Really Work? The Case of the NX-Borehole Jack

Publisher Summary The NX-borehole jack was introduced in the U.S. in the mid-1960s. The instrument, also known as the Goodman jack or hard-rock jack, is used to estimate the in situ modulus of rock masses. Two steel platens, 20.3 cm (8 in) long, apply a unidirectional load to a borehole wall. The nominal borehole size is 76.2 mm (3 in). The maximum applied force is 703 kN (158000 lb), when the hydraulic line pressure is 69 MPa (10000 psi). The theory was first presented in 1968 [1]. It assumes the rock mass to be a linearly elastic, isotropic medium. In principle, one needs only to obtain a record of applied hydraulic pressure versus borehole diameter change and to know the rock's Poisson's ratio to calculate a modulus estimate.
Using Aggregate Root Cause Analysis to Reduce Falls and Related Injuries

Article-at-a-Glance Background In certain categories of adverse events, Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facilities may combine data to produce an aggregate review of the data. Individual root cause analyses are still required for the more serious adverse events. About 100 of the VA acute and long term care facilities contributed data to an analysis of results of 176 root cause analyses (RCAs) for patient falls occurring in the VA system. Methods Success was measured through a decreased report of falls and major injures due to falls after each organization's action plans were implemented. In addition, telephone interviews were conducted to understand success factors as well as barriers to implementation of clinical improvements. Results Of the 745 actions generated (that addressed the root cause), 435 (61.4%) had been fully implemented and another 148 (20.9%) had been partially implemented; 34.4% of the facilities reported reducing falls and 38.9% reported reducing major injuries due to falls. Discussion The action plans associated with these reductions focused on making specific clinical changes at the bedside rather than policy changes or educating staff. Specific interventions most highly associated with reductions in falls and injuries included environmental assessments, toileting interventions, and interventions that directly addressed the root cause and were the responsibility of a single person (as opposed to a group).
Magnetism in Carbon Nanostructures

Magnetism in carbon nanostructures is a rapidly expanding field of current materials science. Its progress is driven by the wide range of applications for magnetic carbon nanosystems, including transmission elements in spintronics, building blocks of cutting-edge nanobiotechnology, and qubits in quantum computing. These systems also provide novel paradigms for basic phenomena of quantum physics, and are thus of great interest for fundamental research. This comprehensive survey emphasizes both the fundamental nature of the field, and its groundbreaking nanotechnological applications, providing a one-stop reference for both the principles and the practice of this emerging area. With equal relevance to physics, chemistry, engineering and materials science, senior undergraduate and graduate students in any of these subjects, as well as all those interested in novel nanomaterials, will gain an in-depth understanding of the field from this concise and self-contained volume.
Strategic Patent Acquisition of Patent Assertion Entities and Defensive Patent Aggregators

Defensive Patent Aggregators (DPA) are a new patent intermediary that aim to counter the threat of Patent Assertion Entities (PAEs) against technology practicing firms with its unique business mode...
The association of health literacy with illness perceptions, medication beliefs, and medication adherence among individuals with type 2 diabetes.

Abstract Background Beliefs in medications and illness perceptions is associated with medication adherence among individuals with diabetes and several adherence interventions focus on patients' beliefs in medicines and illnesses. Though health literacy is important in medication adherence, the relationship between health literacy and medication adherence remains inconclusive; thus raising the question as to whether health literacy has an amplifying or reducing effect on the relationship between beliefs and adherence. Objective The study examined (1) the association between health literacy, beliefs in medicines, illness perceptions, and medication adherence in individuals with type 2 diabetes and (2) the moderating effects of health literacy (including numeracy and document literacy) on the relationship between illness perceptions, beliefs in medicines, and medication adherence. Methods Adults ≥20 years taking oral diabetes medicines at two family medicine clinics, completed a cross-sectional survey. Participants were assessed on beliefs in medicines, illness perceptions, health literacy, self-efficacy, and medication adherence. Multiple linear regressions examined the effect of health literacy, beliefs and self-efficacy, and the moderator effect of health literacy in the relationship between beliefs and adherence. Results Of the 174 participants, more than half were women (57.5%) and white (67.8%). There was a significant positive association between self-efficacy and adherence (β = 0.486, p Conclusions Health literacy, especially numeracy, needs to be initially addressed before diabetes adherence interventions that address individual concerns about medicines and threatening illness perceptions can work.
The Effects of Syringaldehyde and Vanillin on Butyric Acid Production by Fermentation Using Clostridium tyrobutyricum

Butyric acid is a valuable chemical that has various applications in the chemical, pharmaceutical, food, and biofuel industries. Its bio-fermentation from lignocellulosic materials may be affected by some unwanted substrates that are generated during biomass pretreatment processes. In the present study, the potential inhibitory effects of two phenolic aldehydes (syringaldehyde and vanillin) on butyric acid fermentation by Clostridium tyrobutyricum were evaluated. The toxicity of syringaldehyde and vanillin on cell growth, xylose consumption, and butyric acid production was dosage-dependent. The butyric acid productivity decreased significantly with increasing concentrations of syringaldehyde and vanillin. C. tyrobutyricum demonstrated a broad tolerance to both syringaldehyde and vanillin and only moderate reductions in the maximum cell density were observed with up to 2.4 g L-1 of syringaldehyde or vanillin in the medium. Both syringaldehyde and vanillin were assimilated by C. tyrobutyricum, and the metabolite products from vanillin caused considerable inhibition of the fermentation.
Comparative social grooming networks in captive chimpanzees and bonobos

Despite similar dispersal patterns, models of Pan sociality emphasize sex differences in social bonding between the two species. Such disparities are attributed to hypothesized differences in environmental selective pressures that structure association patterns. However, recent research documents greater within-species variation in social bonds in both species. Here, we examine grooming networks in captive chimpanzees at the North Carolina Zoo, and captive bonobos at the Columbus Zoo. We hypothesized that male–female grooming relationships would be the strongest in both species, but that males and females of both species would not significantly differ between centrality, strength, or clustering. Via Mantel tests, we found that neither bonobos (t = − 0.070, r = − 0.009, two-tailed p = 0.942) nor chimpanzees (t = − 0.495, r = − 0.0939, two-tailed p = 0.6205) had significant differences in grooming between or within sexes. Neither species had significant sex differences in centrality, strength, or clustering. To account for idiosyncratic factors affecting grooming distribution, we examined the effect of origin, kinship, and group tenure on social network position. We found that wild-born bonobos exhibited greater eigenvector centrality (t = − 2.592, df = 9, p = 0.29) and strength (t = − 2.401; df = 9, p = 0.040), and group tenure was significantly correlated with strength (r = 0.608; N = 11, p − 0 = 0.47). None of these factors varied with social network position in chimpanzees. Our findings suggest that in captive settings, idiosyncratic factors related to individual history play a greater role in structuring social networks. Such variation may point to the behavioral flexibility inherent in fission–fusion networks, and mirror between-site variation found in wild chimpanzees. However, some idiosyncratic factors shaping captive networks may be an artifact of captivity.
Models and Approximations for Call Center Design

A call center is a facility for delivering telephone service, both incoming and outgoing. This paper addresses optimal staffing of call centers, modeled as M/G/n queues whose offered traffic consists of multiple customer streams, each with an individual priority, arrival rate, service distribution and grade of service (GoS) stated in terms of equilibrium tail waiting time probabilities or mean waiting times. The paper proposes a methodology for deriving the approximate minimal number of servers that suffices to guarantee the prescribed GoS of all customer streams. The methodology is based on an analytic approximation, called the Scaling-Erlang (SE) approximation, which maps the M/G/n queue to an approximating, suitably scaled M/G/1 queue, for which waiting time statistics are available via the Pollaczek-Khintchine formula in terms of Laplace transforms. The SE approximation is then generalized to M/G/n queues with multiple types of customers and non-preemptive priorities, yielding the Priority Scaling-Erlang (PSE) approximation. A simple goal-seeking search, utilizing SE/PSE approximations, is presented for the optimal staffing level, subject to GoS constraints. The efficacy of the methodology is demonstrated by comparing the number of servers estimated via the PSE approximation to their counterparts obtained by simulation. A number of case studies confirm that the SE/PSE approximations yield optimal staffing results in excellent agreement with simulation, but at a fraction of simulation time and space.
Molecular Imaging of Cancer with Superparamagnetic Iron-Oxide Nanoparticles

Publisher Summary The field of molecular imaging has been defined as the noninvasive, quantitative, and repetitive imaging of biomolecules and biological processes in living organisms. Magnetic resonance (MR) is a particularly attractive platform for molecular imaging due to the ability of MR instruments to acquire high-resolution anatomical images, merely by relying on inherent differences between tissues and tissue states. Contrast agents are seen as essential to the task of molecular imaging to increase both the sensitivity and specificity of imaging. Superparamagnetic iron-oxide (SPIO) nanoparticles are spin-spin relaxation (T2) enhancers. Typically they are comprised of an iron-oxide core enveloped in a polysaccharide or synthetic polymer coating. SPIOs are expedient contrast agents thanks to their ease of synthesis, low cost, capacity for derivatization to targeting molecules, and small size. A plethora of molecular imaging applications, both in vivo and in vitro, has been developed to facilitate the use of SPIO for the purposes of diagnostics. Iron is an essential element for human beings and is critical for the delivery of oxygen and the proliferation/survival of all cells; SPIO can enter the body's normal iron metabolism cycle following uptake by the reticuloendothelial system. Passive targeting relies on exploitation of natural pharmacokinetic and phagocytic mechanisms to localize and accumulate SPIO particulates. Active targeting provides a means to image the presence and localization of an immense library of biomedically relevant molecules.
A Comparative Study of 2QBF Algorithms.

2QBF is the problem of evaluating a Quantified Boolean Formula (QBF) with two levels of quantification. Many practical problems in sequential verification can be formulated as instances of 2QBF. Techniques that are not applicable to general QBF evaluation may be useful for 2QBF evaluation. In particular, decision order in search based algorithms may not obey quantification order for 2QBF evaluation algorithms. Different branching strategies in search based algorithms together with a resolution based method are described and compared. Experimental results on both random benchmarks and 2QBFs formulated from sequential circuit state space diameter problems are analyzed. Experiments show solvers specially tuned for 2QBF can be more efficient than similar general QBF solvers.
Effect of Intracoronary Metformin on Myocardial Infarct Size in Swine.

Rationale Metformin has been demonstrated to decrease infarct size (IS) and prevent postinfarction left ventricular (LV) remodeling in rodents when given intravenously at the time of reperfusion. It remains unclear whether similar cardioprotection can be achieved in a large animal model. Objective The objective of this study was to determine whether intravascular infusion of metformin at the time of reperfusion reduces myocardial IS in a porcine model of acute myocardial infarction. Methods and results In a blinded and randomized preclinical study, closed-chest swine (n=20) were subjected to a 60-minute left anterior descending coronary artery occlusion to produce myocardial infarction. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography was performed during left anterior descending coronary artery occlusion to assess the ischemic area-at-risk. Animals were randomized to receive either metformin or vehicle as an initial intravenous bolus (5 mg/kg) 8 minutes before reperfusion, followed by a 15-minute left coronary artery infusion (1 mg/kg per minute) commencing with the onset of reperfusion. Echocardiography and computed tomographic imaging of LV function were performed 1 week later, at which time the heart was removed for postmortem pathological analysis of area-at-risk and IS (triphenyltetrazolium chloride). Baseline variables including hemodynamics and LV function were similar between groups. Peak circulating metformin concentrations of 374±35 µmol/L were achieved 15 minutes after reperfusion. There was no difference between the area-at-risk as a percent of LV mass by computed tomography (vehicle: 20.7%±1.1% versus metformin: 19.7%±1.3%; P=0.59) or postmortem pathology (22.4%±1.2% versus 20.2%±1.2%; P=0.21). IS relative to area-at-risk averaged 44.5%±5.0% in vehicle-treated versus 38.2%±6.8% in metformin-treated animals ( P=0.46). There was no difference in global function 7 days after myocardial infarction as assessed by echocardiography or computed tomographic ejection fraction (56.2%±2.6% versus 56.3%±2.4%; P=0.98). Conclusions In contrast to rodent hearts, postconditioning with high-dose metformin administered immediately before reperfusion does not reduce IS or improve LV function 7 days after myocardial infarction in swine. These results reinforce the importance of rigorously testing therapies in large animal models to facilitate clinical translation of novel cardioprotective therapies.
Isolated Abducens Nerve Palsy Associated with Ruptured Posterior Inferior Cerebellar Artery Aneurysm: Rare Neurologic Finding

Background Isolated abducens nerve palsy can be the presenting sign of a ruptured PICA aneurysm. Few cases have been reported in the literature. In the majority of cases, cranial nerve VI resolved following microsurgical clipping. Case Description Here, we report a 56-year-old female who presented with a ruptured 4 mm × 3 mm left PICA aneurysm associated with a left abducens nerve palsy. The patient underwent endovascular coil embolization of the aneurysm and had complete resolution of her abducens nerve palsy. Conclusions Here, we present the first case of an abducens nerve palsy associated with a ruptured PICA aneurysm to completely resolve following endovascular coil embolization. The direction and amount of subarachnoid hemorrhage extravasation from the ruptured aneurysm are most likely responsible for cranial nerve palsy.
Texture Classification Framework Using Gabor Filters and Local Binary Patterns

In this paper, a novel method towards rotation, scale and illumination invariant texture image classification is introduced. We exploit the useful rotation and scale characteristics of Gabor filters and illumination invariance characteristics of LBP, proposing image features which are invariant to the above mentioned imaging dynamics. The images are first filtered using Gabor filters followed by a summation of filter responses across scales. An LBP of the resulting features is calculated followed by an integral histogram of LBPs across various orientations of the Gabor filters. An experimental validation of the invariance of the descriptor is shown on a texture classification problem using two publicly available datasets: the USC-SIPI, and CUReT texture datasets. Our experiments show that the proposed descriptor outperforms the other methods that have been considered in this paper.
Canna spp. Cultivar Response to the Lesser Canna Leafroller, Geshna cannalis (Quaintance), and the Japanese Beetle, Popillia japonica (Newman)

Abstract Twenty-two cultivars of canna lilies, Canna × generalis, were evaluated for potential resistance to the lesser canna lily leafroller, Geshna cannalis, and the Japanese beetle, Popillia jap...
How Do Openness of Internal Reporting and Shared Interest with an Employee Affect Managerial Collusion and Subsequent Cooperation

Collusion between managers who share private information represents a significant control concern for firms. Prior research suggests that mutual monitoring contracts that incentivize honest reporting and whistleblowing do not prevent all collusion, making it important to understand how elements of the control environment facilitate or prohibit collusion, as well as how these control choices – and the act of collusion itself – affect subsequent behavior within the firm. In a two-stage experiment, I predict and find that the frequency of collusion between managers is greatest when one can view the other’s reports to the firm before making their own (“open internal reporting”) and any slack obtained from misreporting is shared with an employee (“shared interest”). Evidence suggests this stems from managers’ less positive perceptions of the firm and the reporting environment, which also result in decreased cooperation on a subsequent task. I further predict and find that successful collusion improves managers’ perceptions of trust, control in reporting decisions, and group identification, resulting in greater cooperation on a subsequent task and potentially reducing the costs of some collusion. The implications of my findings for management accounting research and practice are discussed.
Three-dimensional wave packet in a Mach 6 boundary layer on a flared cone

High-resolution direct numerical simulations (DNS) were carried out to investigate the nonlinear breakdown process of a three-dimensional wave packet initiated by a short-duration pulse in a flared cone boundary layer at Mach 6 and zero angle of attack. For these simulations the cone geometry of the flared cone experiments conducted in the Boeing/AFOSR Mach 6 Quiet Tunnel (BAM6QT) at Purdue University was considered. The computational domain covered a large extent of the cone in the azimuthal direction to allow for a wide range of azimuthal wavenumbers () second-mode waves for a large downstream extent. Towards the downstream end of the computational domain a rapid broadening of the disturbance amplitude spectra was observed, which is an indication that the wave packet reached the strongly nonlinear stages. The disturbance spectra of the nonlinear regime, and the downstream amplitude development of the dominant disturbance wave components, provided conclusive evidence that the so-called fundamental breakdown was the dominant nonlinear mechanism. Furthermore, contours of the time-averaged Stanton number exhibited ‘hot’ streaks within the wave packet on the surface of the cone. Hot streaks have also been observed in the Purdue flared cone experiments using temperature sensitive paint (TSP) and in numerical investigations using DNS. The azimuthal streak spacing obtained from the wave packet simulation agrees well with that observed in the Purdue quiet tunnel experiments.
Enantioselective radical C-H amination for the synthesis of β-amino alcohols.

Asymmetric, radical C–H functionalizations are rare but powerful tools for solving modern synthetic challenges. Specifically, the enantio- and regioselective C–H amination of alcohols to access medicinally valuable chiral β-amino alcohols remains elusive. To solve this challenge, a radical relay chaperone strategy was designed, wherein an alcohol was transiently converted to an imidate radical that underwent intramolecular H-atom transfer (HAT). This regioselective HAT was also rendered enantioselective by harnessing energy transfer catalysis to mediate selective radical generation and interception by a chiral copper catalyst. The successful development of this multi-catalytic, asymmetric, radical C–H amination enabled broad access to chiral β-amino alcohols from a variety of alcohols containing alkyl, allyl, benzyl and propargyl C–H bonds. Mechanistic experiments revealed that triplet energy sensitization of a Cu-bound radical precursor facilitates catalyst-mediated HAT stereoselectivity, enabling the synthesis of several important classes of chiral β-amines by enantioselective, radical C–H amination. The synthesis of chiral amino alcohols from simple alcohol starting materials can be achieved through a catalytic, asymmetric radical relay. Multiple catalysts work in concert to harness a H-atom transfer mechanism to enable enantio- and regioselective C–H amination by transient N-centred radicals.
Lessons learned in several states eight years after states legalized marijuana.

There are over 20 000 peer-reviewed research articles linking marijuana use to severe mental health outcomes, ranging from depression to psychosis, and inhibited cognitive development, as well as consequences for physical health, and even negative outcomes for neonates exposed in utero. The connections between marijuana use and consequences to mental and physical health, and brain development, among other risks are often lost in conversations on legalization. Marijuana-legal states have higher rates of marijuana-related driving fatalities, greater emergency room visits, hospitalizations, and exposures, expansive criminal markets, as well as exacerbated racial disparities in industry participation and criminal justice enforcement. We compiled eight years’ worth of publicly available state-level data, reports, investigatory findings, peer-reviewed studies, and government health surveys to assemble this ‘lessons learned’ report to bring these harms to light.
Internalized Messages: The Role of Sexual Violence Normalization on Meaning-making after Campus Sexual Violence

The impact of violence normalization on the perpetration of sexual violence against women is well known. What is less known, however, is how survivors of campus sexual violence recognize, internali...
Analysis of Language Errors in Speakers Who Are Bilingual Under Quiet and Background Noise Conditions

Purpose This study discusses the ways in which the presence of background noise may adversely affect bilingual students' ability to repeat speech, specifically, whether the presence of background n...
Resolution of Chronic Immune Thrombocytopenia Purpura after Autologous Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation for Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma

Immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) is a hematological disorder characterized by immune-mediated destruction of platelets that could be triggered by a number of causes. ITPs are usually treated with steroid, immunomodulators or immunosuppressors, and intravenous immunoglobulin therapy though refractory/relapsed status frequently occurs. It was suggested that autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) after high-dose chemotherapy conditioning might improve ITP patients' peripheral blood platelet counts via reorganizing disrupted immune balance in the hematopoietic and hematologic systems. In this case report, we describe how a patient, who suffered from both severe thrombocytopenia due to chronic ITP and refractory/relapsed diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), was managed to successfully receive autologous HSCT using carmustine, etoposide, cytarabine and melphalan (BEAM) conditioning regimens and how his chronic ITP was eventually cured after receiving autologous HSCT. This is the first clinical case in the world demonstrating that high-dose BEAM chemotherapy conditioned autologous HSCT could cure chronic ITP while successfully managing refractory/relapse DLBCL. The clinical hematology professionals and the patients will benefit from our experience in managing severe thrombocytopenia while conducting high-dose chemotherapy conditioning and autologous HSCT for DLBCL.
Fashion Editorial Styling Showcasing a Sustainability Narrative: An Inter-Disciplinary Approach

As educators, it is important to bring timely and relevant world issues to the classroom. This practice not only informs our curriculums significance to the industry but helps develop critical thinkers in the new workforce. The fashion industry has substantial concerns in terms of its environmental and economic sustainability. To assist students in expressing their thoughts and opinions regarding climate change, an editorial styling project was assigned to a class of ‘Styling for Apparel’ students who collaborated with commercial photography students to execute a story-telling photoshoot.
Pediatric Gunshot Wound to Visual Cortex with Retained Bullet: Case Report and Review of the Literature.

Introduction Pediatric gunshot wounds (GSWs) to the head are not well studied in the literature, especially in civilians. With a dearth of case-based and clinically relevant information, pediatric neurosurgeons may be challenged when considering the risks and benefits of removing retained bullet fragments in different intracranial locations. We explore the literature and highlight the key factors in the surgical decision-making case of a 16-year-old girl with GSW to the visual cortex. Case report A 16-year-old girl was shot in the head in a parieto-occipital trajectory with the bullet crossing midline, lodging in the occipital lobe into the straight sinus. Her initial Glasgow Coma Scale was 7, and she was urgently stabilized with intracranial pressure monitoring and external ventricular drainage. She underwent craniectomy, debridement, and irrigation and then a reoperation for further debridement and culture 2 weeks later for persistent fevers; cultures remained negative. The retained bullet was not removed. At 18 months post-injury, she had normal speech and motor function, moderate memory dysfunction, and 3-quadrant field loss with retained macular vision. Discussion/conclusion Pediatric penetrating GSWs to the head may be challenging to manage since literature is sparse. In this case, the primary focus of management was to maintain normal intracranial pressure, reduce risk of infection, and preserve potentially viable visual cortex. In the civilian context of available antibiotics and serial imaging, it may be possible to manage retained bullets conservatively without delayed complications.
A Transition-based Parser for Unscoped Episodic Logical Forms.

"Episodic Logic:Unscoped Logical Form" (EL-ULF) is a semantic representation capturing predicate-argument structure as well as more challenging aspects of language within the Episodic Logic formalism. We present the first learned approach for parsing sentences into ULFs, using a growing set of annotated examples. The results provide a strong baseline for future improvement. Our method learns a sequence-to-sequence model for predicting the transition action sequence within a modified cache transition system. We evaluate the efficacy of type grammar-based constraints, a word-to-symbol lexicon, and transition system state features in this task. Our system is available at this https URL We also present the first official annotated ULF dataset at this https URL.
Randomized trial comparing efficacy of pelvic floor muscle training with a digital therapeutic motion-based device to standard pelvic floor exercises for treatment of stress urinary incontinence (SUV trial): An all-virtual trial design.

Abstract Objective To compare the efficacy of an Intravaginal Motion-Based Digital Health System (PDHS) compared to standardized Pelvic Floor Muscle Training (PFMT) for the treatment of stress or stress-predominant urinary incontinence (SUI). Methods This is a virtually conducted prospective randomized controlled trial. The primary outcomes are change in urinary incontinence episodes by 3-day bladder diary and change in Urogenital Distress Inventory-6 score, measured at 8 weeks. Secondary outcomes include: Patient Global Impression of Severity (PGI-S), PGI-Improvement (PGI-I), Pelvic Floor Distress Inventory-20(PFDI-20), Pelvic Floor Impact Questionnaire-7(PFIQ-7), Pelvic Organ Prolapse-Urinary Incontinence Sexual Function Questionnaire (PISQ-IR), Short Form-2 (SF-20), and assessment of adverse event (AE). Subjects are randomized 1:1 to an intervention group using leva PDHS for PFMT or a control group, using a home Kegel exercise program. Sample size needed to identify a 60% difference in incontinence episodes from baseline to 8 weeks post-randomization using alpha = 0.05, and a power of 0.8 is 156 subjects. To identify a 30% difference in the UDI-6 score from Baseline to Week 8 (alpha = 0.05, power = 0.8, using a one-tailed t-test) the needed sample size is 278, and allowing for an attrition rate of 15%, will require approximately 350 subjects, providing power to detect differences in both primary outcomes. Results Recruitment was initiated September 2020 and is on target to date. The trial is projected to be complete in 2021and is registered at clinicaltrials.gov NCT04508153 . Conclusion This novel virtual recruitment approach may provide more efficient recruitment of large numbers of subjects and provide input into the use of app-based management of pelvic floor interventions.
Transport Properties of QCD Matter

In this chapter we review the state of the art of transport properties of strongly interacting matter from lattice QCD. All these quantities have a common problem: they require the inversion of an integral, calculated on a discrete set of points. We begin the chapter by reviewing the most common inversion methods used in the literature. We then focus on three main topics: electric diffusion coefficient, heavy quark diffusion coefficient and viscosity.