cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Verbal Explanation in Physics Classes.

This investigation was based on the assumption that a study of prevailing explanatory styles in science classrooms is a necessary, and hitherto much neglected, starting point in any attempt to improve teacher education programs in science. Fourteen high school physics teachers were requested to handle the explanation of some physics problems to their students in microteaching situations. A study of 70 such explanations revealed that universal laws, constructs, analogies, and historical accounts were frequently used as explanatory criteria. By far the most prevalent criterion was the use of constructs. A verbal explanation analysis instrument was developed to study the transcripts in terms of verbal styles and interpretation of physics as enquiry. Frequency counts of verbal communication units revealed a high predominance of teachers' lecturing behavior. Chi-square tests also revealed interactions among some explanatory approaches and physics content, while intercorrelation coefficients showed associations among various verbal factors. It was recommended that specific training in a number of technical skills should form part of physics teachers' education programs.
Tuberculous spondylitis and salmonella mycotic aneurysm in an immunocompromised patient. A case report.

Despite the proximity of the vertebral bodies and discs to the vascular structures of the retroperitoneum, the association of spinal osteomyelitis and aortic infection is a rare1, easily overlooked, but potentially lethal condition that requires prompt diagnosis and aggressive surgical therapy. The pathogens responsible for concurrent vertebral and aortic lesions include Salmonella species as well as other gram-negative bacilli, mycobacteria, gram-positive cocci, and fungi1-3. A delay in the start of appropriate antimicrobial therapy for infections involving these anatomic sites could result in bone and joint destruction and possibly death. We report the case of an elderly immunocompromised patient who had a mycotic aneurysm caused by Salmonella species. After aneurysmectomy, he experienced persistent back pain and progressive loss of lower-extremity neurological function. Further work up disclosed tuberculous lumbar spondylitis and an epidural abscess in the vicinity of the resected aneurysm. The case of this patient emphasizes the possibility of coexistent infection in vulnerable patients. The pitfalls in diagnosis and management are discussed, to enable clinicians to avoid potentially catastrophic complications. The patient was informed that data concerning the case would be submitted for publication. A seventy-nine-year-old man presented to our emergency service because of fever and chills that he had had for eight days. The history included the use of analgesics and a steroid (20 mg/day of prednisolone) for one year for the treatment of chronic low back pain. On arrival, the patient was febrile (38.4°C), with a blood pressure of 150/90 mm Hg. Physical examination revealed a cushingoid habitus (moon face, truncal obesity, and paper-thin skin), a pulsatile abdominal mass, and low back pain limiting his spinal flexibility. Plain radiographs of the lumbar spine showed multiple traction spurs along the anterior edges of the vertebrae and decreased disc height at L3-L4 without overt evidence …
The molecular size of the RNA genome of Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteriophage PP7.

Abstract The molecular size of Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteriophage PP7 RNA has been estimated by electron microscopy and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The length of the genome is estimated to be 1.16 μm, similar to R17 RNA (1.22 μm). After formaldehyde treatment under conditions in which R17 RNA has an estimated molecular weight of 1.3 × 106, the molecular weight of the PP7 genome is 1.24 × 106. Without formaldehyde treatment, under conditions in which R17 RNA has an apparent molecular weight of 1.1 × 106, PP7 RNA molecular weight is calculated as 1.03 × 106. PP7 RNA is therefore a very similar size to Group I Escherichia coli RNA bacteriophage genomes, being only 6% smaller than R17 RNA, but about 20% smaller than Group III Qβ RNA. This molecular size is consistent with the suggestion that the PP7 genome has only three cistrons.
Analysis of Hypomorphic KitlSl Mutants Suggests Different Requirements for KITL in Proliferation and Migration of Mouse Primordial Germ Cells

Germ cell development in mice is initiated when a small number of primordial germ cells (PGCs) are set aside from somatic cells during gastrulation. In the subsequent 4 to 5 days, PGCs enter the hindgut, undergo a directed migration away from the hindgut into the developing gonads, and undergo a massive increase in cell number. It is well established that Kit ligand (KITL, also known as stem cell factor and mast cell growth factor) is required for the survival and proliferation of PGCs. However, there is little information on a direct role for KITL in PGC migration. By comparing the effects of multiple Kitl mutations, including two N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea-induced hypomorphic mutations, we were able to distinguish stages of PGC development that are preferentially affected by certain mutations. We provide evidence that the requirements for KITL in proliferation are different in PGCs before and after they start migrating, and different levels of KITL function are required to support PGC proliferation and migration. This study illustrates the usefulness of an allelic series of mutations to dissect developmental processes and suggests that these mutants may be useful for further studies of molecular mechanisms of KITL functions in gametogenesis.
Targeted Therapy in Older Patients With Solid Tumors

The introduction of targeted therapy has ushered in the era of personalized medicine in cancer therapy. The increased understanding of tumor heterogeneity has led to the determination of specific targets that can be exploited in treatment. This review highlights approved drugs in different therapeutic classes, including tyrosine kinase inhibitors, mammalian target of rapamycin inhibitors, drugs targeted to the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2, BRAF-mutation targeted drugs, anti-epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors, and anti-vascular endothelial growth factor therapy. There have not been elderly patient-specific trials of these therapies. Most of the data are extrapolated from larger trials in which older patients generally were a fraction of the participants. Therapeutic recommendations are made on the basis of this analysis with the recognition that the older clinical trial participants may not be representative of patients seen in daily practice. Patient selection and geriatric evaluation are critical for appropriate drug selection, dosing, and monitoring. With care, these therapies are a major step forward in the safe and effective treatment of older patients with cancer.
Parent behavior, children's technology use and creativity: videogames count but parents don't!

This research focused on three questions. Is parent behavior related to children's technology use? Is children's technology use related to their creativity? Is parent behavior related to their children's creativity? The sample consisted of 490 parents and their 490 middle school children, 32% African American and 68% Caucasian American. Participants completed surveys as part of their participation in the Children and Technology Project. Findings indicated that parent behavior on the dimensions of warmth and control was unrelated to their child's technology use or creativity. One type of technology use was a strong predictor of multiple measures of creativity. Children who played videogames more were more creative than children who played videogames less.
Niels Bohr and the young scientists

Throughout the Manhattan Project, the Danish physicist raised questions about moral and political issues. But most of his associates failed to grasp his message of caution until the Alamogordo test.
Formation of Abdominal Heterotopic Bone Following the Utilization of Bone Morphogenetic Protein in Anterior Lumbar Spinal Fusion: A Case Report.

INFUSE (Medtronic), or recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-2 (rhBMP-2), was introduced in 2002 as an osteoinductive material to increase spinal fusion rates with the potential to eliminate the morbidity associated with bone-grafting of the iliac crest. This U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved indication is to use INFUSE as an adjuvant in achieving fusion with the LT-Cage Lumbar Tapered Fusion Device (Medtronic) in anterior lumbar interbody fusion (ALIF). Off-label use is widespread and includes implementation in anterior cervical fusion, anterior lumbar fusion with implants other than the LT-Cage, and posterior lumbar fusion1. Epstein and Schwall reported that 96% of their institution’s use of rhBMP-2 was off-label, with an estimated cost of $4,547,822 for one year2. A number of reports have recently cited complications, including hematoma and seroma formation; soft-tissue swelling; heterotopic bone formation; vertebral osteolysis; bowel, bladder, and sexual dysfunction; and neurologic deficit3. Another major concern is the potential association of malignancy arising in patients in whom rhBMP-2 has been used4-6. More studies are needed to further our understanding of this association. Formation of heterotopic bone with the use of rhBMP-2 has been well documented in posterior interbody procedures. An FDA investigational study by Haid et al. on the use of rhBMP-2 in posterior lumbar interbody fusion suspended enrollment early when an alarming rate of heterotopic bone formation was discovered posterior to the cages. At the two-year follow-up, nearly 75% of patients who had received rhBMP-2 were found to have such heterotopic bone formation7. Joseph and Rampersaud described epidural bone formation in 20.8% of their rhBMP-2 study group, but no associated neurological deficits8. Wong et al. reported five cases of neurologic impairment from the development of epidural heterotopic bone following the use of rhBMP-29. …
Magnon thermal mean free path in yttrium iron garnet

The magnetothermal properties of monocrystalline yttrium iron garnet (YIG) are reported. The magnon contribution to both the thermal conductivity and specific heat at low temperatures has been determined by measuring these properties under an applied magnetic field, which allows us to freeze the magnon modes and isolate the phonon contribution relative to the zero-field behavior. These results are interpreted within the framework of a simple kinetic gas model for magnon heat conduction that allows us to estimate the magnon thermal mean free path, i.e., the inelastic scattering length scale for thermally driven bulk magnons. We observe this parameter to reach as high as approximately 100 \ensuremath{\mu}m at 2 K. It tracks the acoustic phonon thermal mean free path closely and decreases rapidly as the temperature is increased. This relatively short length scale suggests that magnon modes at thermal energies in YIG are not solely or directly responsible for coherent macroscale thermal spin transport (e.g., in the spin Seebeck effect) at high temperatures. Instead, these results support a growing consensus that subthermal magnons, i.e., those at energies below about 30 \ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{} 10 K, are important for spin transport in YIG at all temperatures. These results also emphasize that magnon effects should be considered wavelength dependent, and that magnon-magnon interactions may be just as important for thermal spin transport as magnon-phonon scattering. This, in turn, has implications for understanding the characteristic temperature and length scales involved in spin caloritronic phenomena.
Design and implementation of Web information issuance system based on database

In this paper,we introduce the key technology of the design and implementation of the system,which issues information in web form but based on database.It takes database as the medium and combines C/S with B/S mode,which means an architecture constituted by Windows Application-Database-Web issuance program.To maintainers,the procedure of developing web programs is shielded. They only do operations on windows,but the web forms change in accordance with the alternation.During designing and implementing the system,we solved the following problems: Paragraphing the text information automatically,conveying parameters from one form to another and sharing data,operating the server remotely,etc.
Bleak Work: Role Morality in Dickens and in Practice

Social roles help define acceptable and unacceptable behavior. They tell persons occupying the role what is expected, and they tell those who encounter such persons what to expect. Roles are sometimes used to deflect moral criticism. When that happens, role proponents assert strong conceptions of a role, in which persons acting within the bounds of the role are supposed to be immune to moral criticism. Their morality inheres in fidelity to the role. Such thick constructions have no valence, however. If criminal defense lawyers may work to free factually guilty clients without moral condemnation there is no logical reason why lawyers helping landlords evict poor people could be subject to moral condemnation. The cases might be distinguished on political grounds, but the strong conception of the lawyer's role is supposed to trump such grounds. This strong conception of roles may lead to moral criticism being reframed as professional criticism. Lawyers advising government officials on interrogation techniques may be criticized as bad lawyers, for example, and thus as not entitled to the moral cover of the role. Such moves try to reconcile thick conceptions of various lawyer roles with the social harms acts within such roles can cause. In separate work I will argue that this attempt at reconciliation cannot succeed.This paper uses Bleak House to illustrate a different conception of lawyers' roles. In this "thin" conception, the various roles lawyers play are permeable. Persons working within the role are meant to feel the social effects of their acts, and are rightly praised or condemned for those effects. On this view, "thick" conceptions of roles leads to a blinkered social view, and a form of professional indifference if not blindness. The thick conception of lawyers' roles impedes the sentiment of common decency which Dickens hope would serve as a defense against abuses of power.
Outcomes with volume-based dose specification in CT-planned high-dose-rate brachytherapy for stage I-II cervical carcinoma: A 10-year institutional experience

Abstract Objective To determine prognostic factors for progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) for stage I-II cervical-cancer patients treated using computed-tomography (CT)-planned high-dose-rate (HDR) intracavitary brachytherapy (BT). Methods A total of 150 patients were treated for Stage I-II cervical cancer using CT-planned BT between 4/2004 and 10/2014. Of these, 128 were eligible for inclusion. Kaplan-Meier local control (LC), pelvic control (PC), overall survival (OS), and PFS estimates were calculated. Results After a median follow-up of 30months, the 2-year LC rate was 96%, PFS was 88%, and OS was 88%. Overall, 18 patients (14%) experienced any recurrence (AR), 8 had distant recurrence only and 10 had a combination of local, pelvic, regional, and distant recurrence. No patients had LR only. A prognostic factor for AR was tumor size >4cm ( p =0.01). Patients with tumors >4cm were 3.3 times more likely to have AR than those with tumors ≤4cm (hazard ratio [HR]=3.3; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.28–9.47). Point A was 85% of prescription for tumors 4 cm that decreased approximately 4% over 5 fractions. Two patients (2%) experienced grade≥2 late toxicity. There were no acute or late grade≥3 toxicities. Conclusion CT-planned BT resulted in excellent local control and survival. Large tumor size was associated with an increased risk of recurrence outside the radiation field and worse PFS and OS. A volume-optimized plan treated a smaller area than a point A standard plan for patients with Stage I-II cervical cancer that have received chemoradiation. Given the outstanding LC achieved with modern therapy including chemoradiation, HDR, and image-based BT, further efforts to combat spread outside the radiation field with novel therapies are warranted.
Circumferential fusion for degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis complicated by distal junctional grade 4 spondylolisthesis in the sub-acute post-operative setting.

Surgical management for lumbar stenosis is generally safe and provides significant improvements in pain, disability, and function. Successful lumbar decompression hinges on removing an appropriate amount of lamina and other compressive pathology in the lateral recess. Too little bony decompression can result in persistent pain and disability, while over resection of the pars and/or facets may jeopardize spinal stability. In this unique report, we present for the first time an acute iatrogenic grade 4 L5–S1 spondylolisthesis distal to a L3–5 laminectomy and circumferential instrumented fusion due to bilateral iatrogenic L5 pars fractures and its management and clinical outcomes after revision operation. The patient presented with worsening pain, neurologic compromise, and severe sagittal imbalance. The iatrogenic, high-grade spondylolisthesis was urgently addressed with a L5–S1 anterior lumbar interbody fusion and extension of posterior instrumentation to the pelvis, which resulted in considerable pain relief, resolution of neurologic deficits, and reconstitution of acceptable sagittal imbalance. All attempts during a lumbar decompression should be made to prevent iatrogenic pars fractures, as they may result in severe sagittal imbalance, neurologic compromise, and persistent disability. Iatrogenic, high-grade L5–S1 spondylolisthesis can be successfully treated with reduction using circumferential fusion of the lumbosacral junction.
The Impact of Protective Factors on Posttraumatic Growth for College Student Survivors of Childhood Maltreatment

ABSTRACTMany college students experience traumatic life events in childhood, yet demonstrate personal growth following these experiences. Deriving benefit in the face of adversity has been termed “posttraumatic growth.” The relationship between posttraumatic growth and childhood experiences of abuse and neglect was investigated in a sample of 501 college students. The primary focus was on what protective factors moderated the relationship between childhood experiences of abuse and neglect and later posttraumatic growth. It was found that although the protective factors of acceptance, positive reframing, and emotional support all significantly predicted scores on the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory, only the factor of prosocial adults and the overall number of social and emotional resources experienced moderated the relationship between childhood maltreatment and posttraumatic growth. These findings have implications for designing effective interventions that foster growth in college students who report a h...
A Review of Girlshealth.gov

ABSTRACTThe Office on Women’s Health, a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, created a health literacy tool at Girlshealth.gov for adolescent girls to research reliable and useful information on health and well-being. Their mission is to promote healthy, positive behaviors in all girls. This instrument provides quizzes, interactive exercise mechanisms, and tips for navigating through the confusing teen years.
A Prospective Randomized Study Analyzing Preoperative Opioid Counseling in Pain Management After Carpal Tunnel Release Surgery.

Purpose Prescription opioid misuse has become increasingly prevalent in the United States. Preoperative opioid counseling has been proposed to decrease opioid consumption after surgery. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of preoperative opioid counseling on patients' pain experience and opioid consumption after carpal tunnel release (CTR) surgery. Methods A prospective comparison of consecutive patients scheduled to undergo CTR surgery was conducted. Patients were randomized to receive either formal preoperative opioid counseling or no counseling. All operations were performed with the same mini-open CTR surgical technique, and the same number of opioids were prescribed after surgery. Daily opioid pill consumption, pain levels, and any adverse reactions were recorded. Results During the day of surgery and the first day following surgery, patients in the group with counseling reported significantly fewer prescribed opioid pills consumed compared with patients in the group without counseling, while experiencing no significant difference in pain level experience. In addition, patients in the group with counseling reported a significantly lower number of total pain pills consumed over the course of the study than the group without counseling. No major adverse reactions were noted in either group. Conclusions Preoperative opioid counseling was found to result in a significant decrease in overall opioid consumption after surgery. Type of study/level of evidence Therapeutic II.
Highly sensitive biomolecular detection using compact high-Q silicon spiral resonators

We present highly-sensitive and compact label-free biosensors based on spiral resonators on SOI with high-Q TM-polarized resonant modes, which provide high-sensitivity and relatively large sensing area. The sensor performance is characterized using avidin-biotin surface chemistries.
Bodies in flux: scientific methods for negotiating medical uncertainty, C. Teston. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 2017, 243 pp., Paperback – $35/Hardcover – $105/E-Book – $35

As its title, Bodies in Flux, suggests, the conceptual thread running through Christa Teston’s collection of case studies is flux—especially as it relates to indeterminacy in cancer care. Our bodie...
Molecular genetic classification in Prader-Willi syndrome: a multisite cohort study

Background Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) is due to errors in genomic imprinting. PWS is recognised as the most common known genetic cause of life-threatening obesity. This report summarises the frequency and further characterises the PWS molecular classes and maternal age effects. Methods High-resolution microarrays, comprehensive chromosome 15 genotyping and methylation-specific multiplex ligation probe amplification were used to describe and further characterise molecular classes of maternal disomy 15 (UPD15) considering maternal age. Results We summarised genetic data from 510 individuals with PWS and 303 (60%) had the 15q11-q13 deletion; 185 (36%) with UPD15 and 22 (4%) with imprinting defects. We further characterised UPD15 findings into subclasses based on the presence (size, location) or absence of loss of heterozygosity (LOH). Additionally, significantly older mothers (mean age=32.5 years vs 27.7 years) were found in the UPD15 group (n=145) compared with the deletion subtype (n=200). Conclusions We report on molecular classes in PWS using advanced genomic technology in the largest cohort to date. LOH patterns in UPD15 may impact the risk of having a second genetic condition if the mother carries a recessive mutant allele in the isodisomic region on chromosome 15. The risk of UPD15 may also increase with maternal age.
An efficient revenue distribution method in a cyber-enabled manufacturing system

Abstract Considering a group of suppliers fulfilling the orders in an e-commerce platform, it is desirable for the platform operator to distribute the revenue in a way that the total net utilities of the platform and of each supplier are optimized. Based on the game theory, this paper presents a nonlinear revenue distribution rule to achieve Nash Equilibrium. Simulation studies show that, compared to the proportional and equal distribution rules, the proposed method yields the highest net utility for all. The present work demonstrates an approach to promoting broader participation of manufacturing activities in an internet-based platform enabled by cyber infrastructure.
SEXUAL DIMORPHISM IN RAT LEFT ATRIAL FUNCTION AND RESPONSE TO ADRENERGIC STIMULATION

A number of investigations in humans and animals suggest that there may be intrinsic sex-associated differences in cardiac function. Using left atrial preparations from male and female rat hearts, we examined differences in myocardial function and response to adrenergic agonists. Contractile parameters were measured in isolated atria by conventional isometric methods in the absence or presence of isoproterenol or phenylephrine. Responsiveness to Ca2+ was measured in detergent-skinned atrial fibers and actomyosin ATPase activity was measured in isolated myofibrils. Tetanic contractions were generated by treating the atrium with ryanodine followed by high frequency stimulation. Developed force was greater and maximal rates of contraction and relaxation were more rapid in the female atrium. The relationship between Ca2+ concentration and force in both intact atria and detergent-skinned atrial fibers in females fell to the left of that for males. At low Ca2+ concentrations, skinned fibers from female atria generated more force and myofibrils from female atria had higher myosin ATPase activity than males. Tetanic contraction in the presence of high extracellular Ca2+ was greater in female atria. Male atrium had larger inotropic responses to isoproterenol and to phenylephrine, but drug-elicited cAMP and inositol phosphate production did not differ between sexes. The results demonstrate sex-related differences in atrial function that can be partially explained by greater myofibrillar Ca2+-sensitivity in females. A potential contribution of sarcolemmal Ca2+ influx is suggested by greater tetanic contraction in ryanodine-treated female atrium. The larger response of males to adrenergic stimulation does not appear to be explained by higher production of relevant second messengers. Future studies will investigate the role of sex hormones in these sexually dimorphic responses and may indicate a need for gender-specific therapeutic interventions for myocardial dysfunction.
Aggregate implications of the tax reform of 2017: Can taxes guide technology?

Abstract This paper analyzes the effects of the US tax reform of 2017 using a model of endogenous technological adoption. The lower tax levels induce large human capital investments that are augmented by the endogenous transition towards skill biased technologies.
Variations in Opioid Prescribing Behavior by Physician Training.

Author(s): Leventhal, Evan L.; Nathanson, Larry A.; Landry, Alden M. | Abstract: Introduction: Opioid abuse has reached epidemic proportions in the United States. Patients often present to the emergency department (ED) with painful conditions seeking analgesic relief. While there is known variability in the prescribing behaviors of emergency physicians, it is unknown if there are differences in these behaviors based on training level or by resident specialty.Methods: This is a retrospective chart review of ED visits from a single, tertiary-care academic hospital over a single academic year (2014-2015), examining the amount of opioid pain medication prescribed. We compared morphine milligram equivalents (MME) between provider specialty and level of training (emergency medicine [EM] attending physicians, EM residents in training, and non-EM residents in training).Results: We reviewed 55,999 total ED visits, of which 4,431 (7.9%) resulted in discharge with a prescription opioid medication. Residents in a non-EM training program prescribed higher amounts of opioid medication (108 MME, interquartile ratio [IQR] 75-150) than EM attendings (90 MME, lQR 75-120), who prescribed more than residents in an EM training program (75 MME, IQR 60-113) (pl0.01).Conclusion: In an ED setting, variability exists in prescribing patterns with non-EM residents prescribing larger amounts of opioids in the acute setting. EM attendings should closely monitor for both over- and under-prescribing of analgesic medications.
PIQ: Persistent Interactive Queries for Network Security Analytics

Network monitoring is an increasingly important task in the operation of today's large and complex computer networks. In recent years, technologies leveraging software defined networking and programmable hardware have been proposed. These innovations enable operators to get fine-grained insight into every single packet traversing their network at high rates. They generate packet or flow records of all or a subset of traffic in the network and send them to an analytics system that runs specific applications to detect performance or security issues at line rate in a live manner. Unexplored, however, remains the area of detailed, interactive, and retrospective analysis of network records for debugging or auditing purposes. This is likely due to technical challenges in storing and querying large amounts of network monitoring data efficiently. In this work, we study these challenges in more detail. In particular, we explore recent advances in time series databases and find that these systems not only scale to millions of records per second but also allow for expressive queries significantly simplifying practical network debugging and data analysis in the context of computer network monitoring.
Expert Consensus Systems of Care Proposal to Optimize Care for Patients With Valvular Heart Disease Review of the 2019 Document for the Cardiac Anesthesiologist.

Valvular heart disease requiring intervention is increasing in prevalence in the adult population. With advancement in transcatheter and surgical procedures for valvular heart disease, optimization of patient selection, availability of resources and personnel, appropriate training and certification, and optimal periprocedural management rely on clinical evaluation, accurate echocardiographic interpretation, and understanding of valvular pathophysiology by the cardiac anesthesiologist. To optimize care and improve access for patients with valvular heart disease the Expert Consensus Systems of Care Document by Nishimura et al. 1 was recently published. The authors propose a protocol with guidelines and performance metrics to create tiered-level valve centers. This review focuses and expands on aspects discussed in Nishimura et al.’s Expert Consensus Systems of Care Document that are relevant to the cardiac anesthesiologist in the periprocedural setting.
Virally derived peptide inhibitors of the herpes simplex virus type 1 nuclear egress complex

Herpesviruses infect a majority of the human population, establishing lifelong latent infections for which there is no cure. Periodic viral reactivation spreads infection to new hosts while causing various disease states particularly detrimental in the immunocompromised. Efficient viral replication, and ultimately the spread of infection, is dependent on the nuclear egress complex (NEC), a conserved viral heterodimer that helps translocate mature viral capsids from the nucleus to the cytoplasm where they mature into infectious virions. Here, we have identified peptides capable of inhibiting NEC activity in vitro. Biophysical characterization of these peptides using circular dichroism suggests that secondary structure, rather than amino acid sequence, influences the extent of inhibition. Current therapeutics that target viral DNA replication machinery are rendered ineffective by drug resistance due to viral mutations. Our results establish a basis for the development of an alternative class of inhibitors against nuclear egress, an essential step in herpesvirus replication, potentially expanding the current repertoire of available therapeutics.
Elastin in the Tumor Microenvironment

Elastic fibers are found in the extracellular matrix (ECM) of tissues requiring resilience and depend on elasticity. Elastin and its degradation products have multiple roles in the oncologic process. In many malignancies, the remodeled ECM expresses high levels of the elastin protein which may have either positive or negative effects on tumor growth. Elastin cross-linking with other ECM components and the enzymes governing this process all have effects on tumorigenesis. Elastases, and specifically neutrophil elastase, are key drivers of invasion and metastasis and therefore are important targets for inhibition. Elastin degradation leads to the generation of bioactive fragments and elastin-derived peptides that further modulate tumor growth and spread. Interestingly, elastin-like peptides (ELP) and elastin-derived peptides (EDP) may also be utilized as nano-carriers to combat tumor growth. EDPs drive tumor development in a variety of ways, and specifically targeting EDPs and their binding proteins are major objectives for ongoing and future anti-cancer therapies. Research on both the direct anti-cancer activity and the drug delivery capabilities of ELPs is another area likely to result in novel therapeutic agents in the near future.
You're Fired: The Original Meaning of Presidential Impeachment

With just the third impeachment of a President in the nation’s history, questions about the Constitution’s original meaning of impeaching a President are again salient. Unlike other constitutional provisions, because the Supreme Court has deemed impeachment the ultimate political question, neither much historical practice nor case law informs our understanding of the Impeachment Clause. Thus, the original meaning takes on great weight. Further, previous scholarships has only either incidentally or in piecemeal fashion looked at the originalist evidence, and thus been akin to the tale of the blind men each feeling a different part of an elephant and consequently coming to wildly differing views as to what was before them. This article systematically examines that original meaning in light of the Philadelphia Convention debates, the Federalist Papers (and Anti-Federalist responses), and the state ratifying conventions. What is more, this article becomes the first in American legal scholarship to both provide a corpus linguistic analysis of the term “high crimes and misdemeanors” and to publish findings from the Corpus of Early Modern English (COEME). In short, the article finds that the original meaning of presidential impeachment was both narrower and broader than the criminal law in that not every crime was an impeachable offense, but not every impeachable offense was a crime. Further, the corpus analysis shows that the term the Founders adopted was not by accident but was an established term of art in Britain. The article then applies these findings to the impeachment of President Trump, providing an in-depth analysis of the proceeding in light of the Constitution’s original meaning, critiquing arguments made on both sides.
High local mutual information drives the response in the human language network

Traditionally, syntactic operations are thought of as the core computational machinery that sets human language aside from other animal communication systems. Here, we tested an alternative hypothesis: the primary driver of the response in the language-selective regions of the brain is semantic composition. Using formal machinery from information theory, we estimated the likelihood of semantic composition via mutual information among words in a local linguistic context. Across two fMRI experiments, we examined the processing of veridical sentences as well as syntactically degraded sentences, including sentences where the local context does not support semantic composition. Consistent with behavioral/computational modeling work, syntactic degradedness did not lead to lower responses in the fronto-temporal language-selective network, except for when mutual information among words was low. These results challenge the primacy of syntax in the human language architecture, instead supporting the idea that successful semantic composition is what drives the language network in the brain.
Excitation of Putative Glutamatergic Neurons in the Rat Parabrachial Nucleus Region Reduces Delta Power during Dexmedetomidine but not Ketamine Anesthesia.

BACKGROUND Parabrachial nucleus excitation reduces cortical delta oscillation (0.5 to 4 Hz) power and recovery time associated with anesthetics that enhance γ-aminobutyric acid type A receptor action. The effects of parabrachial nucleus excitation on anesthetics with other molecular targets, such as dexmedetomidine and ketamine, remain unknown. The hypothesis was that parabrachial nucleus excitation would cause arousal during dexmedetomidine and ketamine anesthesia. METHODS Designer Receptors Exclusively Activated by Designer Drugs were used to excite calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase 2α-positive neurons in the parabrachial nucleus region of adult male rats without anesthesia (nine rats), with dexmedetomidine (low dose: 0.3 µg · kg-1 · min-1 for 45 min, eight rats; high dose: 4.5 µg · kg-1 · min-1 for 10 min, seven rats), or with ketamine (low dose: 2 mg · kg-1 · min-1 for 30 min, seven rats; high dose: 4 mg · kg-1 · min-1 for 15 min, eight rats). For control experiments (same rats and treatments), the Designer Receptors Exclusively Activated by Designer Drugs were not excited. The electroencephalogram and anesthesia recovery times were recorded and analyzed. RESULTS Parabrachial nucleus excitation reduced delta power in the prefrontal electroencephalogram with low-dose dexmedetomidine for the 150-min analyzed period, excepting two brief periods (peak median bootstrapped difference [clozapine-N-oxide - saline] during dexmedetomidine infusion = -6.06 [99% CI = -12.36 to -1.48] dB, P = 0.007). However, parabrachial nucleus excitation was less effective at reducing delta power with high-dose dexmedetomidine and low- and high-dose ketamine (peak median bootstrapped differences during high-dose [dexmedetomidine, ketamine] infusions = [-1.93, -0.87] dB, 99% CI = [-4.16 to -0.56, -1.62 to -0.18] dB, P = [0.006, 0.019]; low-dose ketamine had no statistically significant decreases during the infusion). Recovery time differences with parabrachial nucleus excitation were not statistically significant for dexmedetomidine (median difference for [low, high] dose = [1.63, 11.01] min, 95% CI = [-20.06 to 14.14, -20.84 to 23.67] min, P = [0.945, 0.297]) nor low-dose ketamine (median difference = 12.82 [95% CI: -3.20 to 39.58] min, P = 0.109) but were significantly longer for high-dose ketamine (median difference = 11.38 [95% CI: 1.81 to 24.67] min, P = 0.016). CONCLUSIONS These results suggest that the effectiveness of parabrachial nucleus excitation to change the neurophysiologic and behavioral effects of anesthesia depends on the anesthetic's molecular target. EDITOR’S PERSPECTIVE
Toward formally verifying congestion control behavior

The diversity of paths on the Internet makes it difficult for designers and operators to confidently deploy new congestion control algorithms (CCAs) without extensive real-world experiments, but such capabilities are not available to most of the networking community. And even when they are available, understanding why a CCA underperforms by trawling through massive amounts of statistical data from network connections is challenging. The history of congestion control is replete with many examples of surprising and unanticipated behaviors unseen in simulation but observed on real-world paths. In this paper, we propose initial steps toward modeling and improving our confidence in a CCA's behavior. We have developed CCAC, a tool that uses formal verification to establish certain properties of CCAs. It is able to prove hypotheses about CCAs or generate counterexamples for invalid hypotheses. With CCAC, a designer can not only gain greater confidence prior to deployment to avoid unpleasant surprises, but can also use the counterexamples to iteratively improvetheir algorithm. We have modeled additive-increase/multiplicative-decrease (AIMD), Copa, and BBR with CCAC, and describe some surprising results from the exercise.
Organizing Personnel Security

What does computer security have to do with personnel? Well, security experts are not likely to make simple security mistakes, whereas ordinary staff are. If a social engineer pretends to be system administrator and asks an employee to do some suspicious actions, the security staff will not likely be fooled, but some ordinary staff could. Since security is only as strong as the weakest link, all links must be made strong! Therefore, a major goal of personnel security is to ensure that all staff understand policies, know their security responsibilities, and are sufficiently trained to perform these security responsibilities. Thus, it is useful for the security designer (you) to have completed all of the previous chapters in the book. How can you assign security responsibilities and design security training unless you understand what each role involves?
FGF 19 and Bile Acids Increase Following Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass but Not After Medical Management in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes

This study aims to quantify changes in fibroblast growth factor 19 (FGF19) and bile acids (BAs) in patients with uncontrolled type 2 diabetes randomized to Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) vs intensive medical management (IMM) and matched for similar reduction in HbA1c after 1 year of treatment. Blood samples were drawn from patients who underwent a test meal challenge before and 1 year after IMM (n = 15) or RYGB (n = 15). Mean HbA1c decreased from 9.7 to 6.4 % after RYGB and from 9.1 to 6.1 % in the IMM group. At 12 months, the number of diabetes medications used per subject in the RYGB group (2.5 ± 0.5) was less than in the IMM group (4.6 ± 0.3). After RYGB, FGF19 increased in the fasted (93 ± 15 to 152 ± 19 pg/ml; P = 0.008) and postprandial states (area under the curve (AUC), 10.8 ± 1.9 to 23.4 ± 4.1 pg × h/ml × 103; P = 0.006) but remained unchanged following IMM. BAs increased after RYGB (AUC ×103, 6.63 ± 1.3 to 15.16 ± 2.56 μM × h; P = 0.003) and decreased after IMM (AUC ×103, 8.22 ± 1.24 to 5.70 ± 0.70; P = 0.01). No changes were observed in the ratio of 12α-hydroxylated/non-12α-hyroxylated BAs. Following RYGB, FGF19 AUC correlated with BAs (r = 0.54, P = 0.04) and trended negatively with HbA1c (r = −0.44; P = 0.09); these associations were not observed after IMM. BA and FGF19 levels increased after RYGB but not after IMM in subjects who achieved similar improvement in glycemic control. Further studies are necessary to determine whether these hormonal changes facilitate improved glucose homeostasis.
Expressive negotiation in settings with externalities

In recent years, certain formalizations of combinatorial negotiation settings, most notably combinatorial auctions, have become an important research topic in the AI community. A pervasive assumption has been that of no externalities: the agents deciding on a variable (such as whether a trade takes place between them) are the only ones affected by how this variable is set. To date, there has been no widely studied formalization of combinatorial negotiation settings with externalities. In this paper, we introduce such a formalization. We show that in a number of key special cases, it is NP-complete to find a feasible nontrivial solution (and therefore the maximum social welfare is completely inapproximable). However, for one important special case, we give an algorithm which converges to the solution with the maximal concession by each agent (in a linear number of rounds for utility functions that decompose into piecewise constant functions). Maximizing social welfare, however, remains NP-complete even in this setting. We also demonstrate a special case which can be solved in polynomial time by linear programming.
Opioid Peptides of The Gut

The sections in this article are: 1 Opioid Peptides 1.1 Pro-opiomelanocortin 1.2 Proenkephalin A 1.3 Proenkephalin B 1.4 Morphine 2 Opioid Receptors 3 Opioid Peptide Processing Enzymes 4 Localization of Opioid Peptides and Receptors in Gut 4.1 Proenkephalin A 4.2 Proenkephalin B 4.3 Pro-opiomelanocortin 5 Mechanism of Opioid Action in Gut 6 Physiological Functions of Endogenous Opioid Peptides 6.1 Gastrointestinal Motility 6.2 Antisecretory Actions of Opioid Peptides 6.3 Gallbladder and Bile Ducts 6.4 Opioid Effects on Pancreas
Relating information capacity to a biophysical model for blowfly retina

Our goal is to relate the structural and biophysical characteristics of blowfly visual neurons to their functional information processing aspects. Starting with the biophysics of information flow in the the early visual system of the blowfly, we construct a communication channel model that describes transmission and degradation of the visual signal in the photoreceptor and large monopolar cell. The channel model is a cascade of linear bandlimiting sections each followed by additive noise. Each section is modelled from first principles when possible, and parameters are determined from biophysical data available in the literature. The information capacity computed using our model compares favorably with empirical information rates derived from physiological experiments.
Defect limited reliability and transport in carbon nanotube and graphene devices

A recent report by the U.S. Energy Information Agency indicates that global energy consumption has increased by approximately 40% over the past 15 years, due in large part to advances in information technology and increased energy demand in residential and commercial buildings. Tackling such a looming challenges is going to require innovation and scientific discovery. Nanotechnology will be an important aspect of this process. In particular, carbon nanomaterials (e.g. 1-dimensional carbon nanotubes and 2-dimensional graphene) show great potential for the development of energy efficient nanoelectronics and thermal management materials. This is attributed to their inherent low-dimensions, high carrier mobility, and large thermal conductivity. The ability to tune these intrinsic properties by introducing defects or engineering external influences creates interesting fundamental challenges and new opportunities. In this talk I will discuss the role of such defects on reliability, power dissipation, and thermal transport in carbon nanotube and graphene based devices and films.
Discussion: Personal Distribution of Farmers' Income by Source and Region

[11] -, "Quantitative Aspects of the Economic Growth of Nations: VIII, Distribution of Income by Size," Econ. Development and Cultural Change 11:1-80, Jan. 1963, Part II. [12] MILLER, HERMAN P., Income Distribution in the United States: A 1960 Census Monograph, Washington, D.C., U.S. Bureau of the Census in cooperation with Social Science Research Council, 1966. [13] OKUN, BERNARD, AND RICHARD W. RICHARDSON, "Regional Income Inequality and Internal Population Migration," in Regional Development and Planning: A Reader, ed. John Friedmann and William Alunso, Cambridge, The M.I.T. Press, 1965, pp. 303-318. [14] President's National Advisory Commission on Rural Poverty, The People Left Behind, Washington, Government Printing Office, Sept. 1967. [15] RUTTAN, VERNON, "Agricultural Policy in an Affluent Society," J. Farm Econ. 48:1100-20, Dec. 1966. [16] U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Census of Agriculture. 1964. Statistics for the State and Counties, New Hampshire, Washington, 1966, and various other states. [17] , Current Population Reports, Series P-60, No. 48, Washington, April 1966. [18] , 1964 United States Census of Agriculture-Preliminary Report, Series AC 64-P1, Washington, 1966. [19] , Trends in the Income of Families and Persons in the United States: 1947-64, Tech. Paper 17, Washington, U.S. Government Printing Office, 1967. [20] U.S. Department of Agriculture, Farm Income Situation: State Estimates, 19491965, ERS FIS-203, Supp., Aug. 1966. [21] , Farm Real Estate Market Developments, ERS CD-67, Aug. 1965. [22] VERWAY, DAVID I., "A Ranking of States by Inequality Using Census and Tax Data," Rev. Econ. and Stat. 48:314-321, Aug. 1966. [2-3] WILLIAMSON, J. G., "Regional Inequality and the Process of National Development: A Description of the Patterns," Econ. Development and Cultural Change 13:1-84, July 1965, Part II. PAUL W. BARKLEY