cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Contrasting regional and national mechanisms for predicting elevated arsenic in private wells across the United States using classification and regression trees.

Arsenic contamination in groundwater is a public health and environmental concern in the United States (U.S.) particularly where monitoring is not required under the Safe Water Drinking Act. Previous studies suggest the influence of regional mechanisms for arsenic mobilization into groundwater; however, no study has examined how influencing parameters change at a continental scale spanning multiple regions. We herein examine covariates for groundwater in the western, central and eastern U.S. regions representing mechanisms associated with arsenic concentrations exceeding the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency maximum contamination level (MCL) of 10 parts per billion (ppb). Statistically significant covariates were identified via classification and regression tree (CART) analysis, and included hydrometeorological and groundwater chemical parameters. The CART analyses were performed at two scales: national and regional; for which three physiographic regions located in the western (Payette Section and the Snake River Plain), central (Osage Plains of the Central Lowlands), and eastern (Embayed Section of the Coastal Plains) U.S. were examined. Validity of each of the three regional CART models was indicated by values >85% for the area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve. Aridity (precipitation minus potential evapotranspiration) was identified as the primary covariate associated with elevated arsenic at the national scale. At the regional scale, aridity and pH were the major covariates in the arid to semi-arid (western) region; whereas dissolved iron (taken to represent chemically reducing conditions) and pH were major covariates in the temperate (eastern) region, although additional important covariates emerged, including elevated phosphate. Analysis in the central U.S. region indicated that elevated arsenic concentrations were driven by a mixture of those observed in the western and eastern regions.
Creating Disjunctive Logical Forms from Aligned Sentences for Grammar-Based Paraphrase Generation

We present a method of creating disjunctive logical forms (DLFs) from aligned sentences for grammar-based paraphrase generation using the OpenCCG broad coverage surface realizer. The method takes as input word-level alignments of two sentences that are para-phrases and projects these alignments onto the logical forms that result from automatically parsing these sentences. The projected alignments are then converted into phrasal edits for producing DLFs in both directions, where the disjunctions represent alternative choices at the level of semantic dependencies. The resulting DLFs are fed into the OpenCCG realizer for n-best realization, using a pruning strategy that encourages lexical diversity. After merging, the approach yields an n-best list of paraphrases that contain grammatical alternatives to each original sentence, as well as paraphrases that mix and match content from the pair. A preliminary error analysis suggests that the approach could benefit from taking the word order in the original sentences into account. We conclude with a discussion of plans for future work, highlighting the method's potential use in enhancing automatic MT evaluation.
Targets Need Their Own Personal Space: Effects of Clutter on Multiple-Target Search Accuracy:

Visual search is an essential task for many lifesaving professions; airport security personnel search baggage X-ray images for dangerous items and radiologists examine radiographs for tumors. Accuracy is critical for such searches; however, there are potentially negative influences that can affect performance; for example, the displays can be cluttered and can contain multiple targets. Previous research has demonstrated that clutter can hurt search performance and a second target is less likely to be detected in a multiple-target search after a first target has been found, which raises a concern-how does clutter affect multiple-target search performance? The current study explored clutter in a multiple-target search paradigm, where there could be one or two targets present, and targets appeared in varying levels of clutter. There was a significant interaction between clutter and target number: Increasing levels of clutter did not affect single-target detection but did reduce detection of a second target. Multiple-target search accuracy is known to be sensitive to contextual influences, and the current results reveal a specific effect wherein clutter disproportionally affected multiple-target search accuracy. These results suggest that the detection and processing of a first target might enhance the masking effects of clutter around a second target.
Usability Evaluation of Electronic Health Record System (EHRs) using Subjective and Objective Measures

The objective of this pilot study was to explore the applicability of various evaluation methods (subjective and objective) for assessing usability of electronic health record system (EHRs) during physician interaction on simple vs. complex tasks. Five physicians performed two simulated clinical scenarios consisting of 9 tasks using the EHR. Tasks were categorized into simple vs. complex tasks based on the user, task and context characteristics by the subject matter expert. Usability was assessed using four methods, (1) subjectively using subject's informal feedback and usability expert's heuristics, (2) workload measures using eye tracking, (3) behavior measures using clicks and navigation windows, and (4) performance measures using actual time on task and predictive time based on CogTool ©. Overall, the results suggest that heuristic methods (1) are highly effective in identifying usability issues, with other methods (2-4) providing complementary analysis to identify differences is task complexly and user experience with EHRs.
Water Deprival and Replenishment in Poults

Abstract THE NEED of turkeys for an adequate and continuous supply of drinking water often is emphasized in practical treatises on turkey raising. Although no supporting data are offered, Asmundson and Kratzer (1951) warn against allowing poults to go without water even for short periods. Likewise, Marsden and Martin (1955) suggest care in making changes in water supply to insure uninterrupted water consumption; Gooding and Risher (1956) specify a careful and very gradual change from small waterers to larger ones. That such recommendations are well founded is indicated by the present report. On Friday, May 31, 1963, an automatic waterer in one corner of each of two floor brooding rooms was connected for two groups of about 100 poults each, mostly Beltsville Small Whites from the Station breeding flock, one group 22 days old, the other 15. Each group was being watered from two 2-gallon galvanized-iron circular fountains which were filled…
Endoscopic tube Insertion in treatment of secretory otitis media after following radiotherapy for nasopharyngeal carcinoma

Objective To explore the clinical curative effect and the optimal indwelling time of the endoscopic tube Insertion in treatment of nasopharyngeal carcinoma(NPC) complicated with secretory otitis media after radiotherapy(SOM). Method Endoscopic tube Insertion in treatment of patients with SOM after radiotherapy NPC patients in 52 cases(87 ears),group A in 17 cases with 28 ears,the indwelling time lower than 6 months,group B in 18 cases with 30 ears,the indwelling time from 6 months to one year,group C in 17 cases with 29 ears,the indwelling time longer than 6 months. Results All cases of catheter was completed,the total effective rate was 77%(67/87 ears),the rate in group B was 90%,it was significantly higher than that in A and C group(P 0. 05),the rate of recurrence after operation and the main complications in B group was lower than other groups(P 0. 05). Conclusion Tube Insertion in the treatment of nasopharyngeal carcinoma after radiotherapy concurrent SOM is effective,and the indwelling time from 6 to 12 months is appropriate.
Diaphragmatic hernia: An unusual cause of dyspnea in a patient with Marfan syndrome

We describe a case of acute dyspnea in a patient with Marfan syndrome secondary to bowel herniation into the thoracic cavity.
Neurologic Complications of Fetal Cocaine Exposure

The effects of prenatal cocaine exposure on intrauterine growth and neurologic function of 253 infants was evaluated prospectively at 1 to 7 days of age at the Division of Pediatric Neurology, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York.
Small cache lookaside table for fast DRAM cache access

Large off-die stacked DRAM caches have been proposed to provide higher effective bandwidth and lower average latency to main memory. Designing a large off-die DRAM cache with conventional block size requires a large tag array which is impractical to fit on-die. Placing the large directory off-die prolong the latency since a tag access is necessary before the data can be accessed. This additional trip also generates extra off-die traffic. In this paper, we present a novel design called Cache Lookaside Table (CLT) to reduce the average access latency and to lessen off-die tag array accesses. The basic approach is to cache a small amount of recently referenced tags on-die. An off-die tag access is avoided when a requested block's tag hits a cached tag. To save on-die space, cached tags are recorded in a large sector for sharing tags with multiple blocks. However, due to the loss of one-to-one physical mapping of the cached tags and the data array, a way pointer is added for each block to indicate its way location. The proposed CLT exploits memory reference locality and provides a fast alternative tag path to capture most of the DRAM cache requests. In comparison with other proposed DRAM caching mechanisms, the on-die CLT approach shows an average performance improvement in the range of 4–15%.
Fluctuation effects in the ac impedance of one-dimensional superconductors

This paper describes the present status of a continuing study1’2 of the ac complex impedance Z(T) of filamentary tin whisker crystals in the transition region. Measurements of Z(T) probe the mean-field behavior in the superconductor well below T c , and they provide an extra dimension of information over dc measurements in the fluctuation region. From Z(T) well below T c cne can determine the mean-field transition T c0 within 0.1 m°K and measure directly |Ψ(T)|2 or n s (T). In the fluctuation region information related to the fluctuation-induced |Ψ|2 can be obtained as well as the fluctuation resistance and paraconductivity.
A Vignette from Michigan State University’s Student Organic Farm

Laurie Thorp explores the liminal space between vegetarian and non-vegetarian diets when she describes caring for pigs as ultimately “killed yes, but no, not killable,” in an account that stimulates the kinds of reflection Heldke calls for.
C-Reactive Protein as an Independent Cardiovascular Risk Predictor in HIV+ Patients: A Focused Review of Published Studies

Patients infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV+) are living longer and at heightened risk for developing cardiovascular events (CVEs). Commonly used prediction tools appear to misrepresent their CVE risk to varying degrees and in varying directions. Inclusion of markers of cellular infection, chronic immune activation and/or systemic inflammation into risk models might provide better predictive accuracy. Observational studies assessing the relationship of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) to CVE in HIV+ patients have reported inconsistent findings. This review of published studies attempted to determine if the available evidence supports its potential use in new models for stable, treated HIV+ patients. We searched the PubMed database using keywords and combinations of "HIV" AND "cardiovascular risk" AND "CRP". Papers presenting original analyses, associating hs-CRP concentration as an independent variable to hard cardiovascular outcomes (myocardial infarction and cardiovascular death), or to hard CVE as part of a composite endpoint, were included. Five observational studies met inclusion/exclusion criteria for review. Three papers identified an association between elevated hs-CRP and CVE, while two others failed to find any significant association. All reports were heterogeneous in terms of independent variables, controls, and designs. The larger and more rigorous studies, employing higher rates of confounder controls and more objective endpoints in their composites, showed positive associations. Though not conclusive, the preponderance of the evidence at this time supports CRP as a potentially valuable factor to be studied in prospective cardiovascular risk prediction investigations in HIV+ patients.
Model reduction for fast assessment of grid impact of high penetration PV

A key challenge in properly analyzing the impact of solar photovoltaics (PV) during planning, interconnection and operation in the distribution grid is computational complexity. Such studies require the use of Quasi-Steady-Time-Series (qSTS) power flow to capture the complex interaction of PV with voltage regulating equipment and protection devices and a large number of scenario studies are needed to capture location specific constraints and uncertainties. In addition, a typical distribution feeder can have thousands of nodes and there can be thousands of such feeders in a given utility system. To solve this problem, a new and systematic method for distribution network reduction is proposed. The objective is to reduce the size of distribution systems by more than 80% while preserving the accuracy of power flow results. To this end, an extended Ward-equivalent method has been proposed to create an equivalent circuit. Moreover, load and PV aggregation based on the backward sweep method has been developed to further simplify the feeder. The proposed method is tested with a modified IEEE 123-node distribution test system. The simulation results demonstrate the high efficiency and accuracy of the proposed approach for distribution network reduction.
First principles simulation of the dynamics of transient warm dense matter during the formation of ultrashort laser pulse induced damage using the particle-in-cell method

Understanding the warm dense matter (WDM) state is of fundamental importance in the modeling of femtosec- ond laser damage because laser electron coupling and subsequent electron lattice coupling can rapidly increase the material temperature at the laser focal region to on the order of an eV, producing WDM not well de- scribed by standard liquid and solid equations of state. We have developed a simulation approach based on the particle-in-cell (PIC) method capable of modeling the formation of warm dense matter via an ultrashort pulse on a mesoscopic scale by utilizing two temperature interionic potentials. The dynamics are simulated via two sequential stages, the first of which models the femtosecond laser-target interaction directly by solving Maxwell’s equations and the Lorentz force law, along with a sophisticated scheme for properly modeling the short range collisionality of particles. The second simultaneously models electron diffusion and electron-ion relaxation via the two temperature model and material ablation using the PIC pair potential model. Our simulation enables us to calculate the temporal and spatial dynamics of particles over the entirety of the laser affected material and to determine a crater profile which can be used to compare to experimental results.
A Field-Shaking System to Reduce the Screening-Current-Induced Field in the 800-MHz HTS Insert of the MIT 1.3-GHz LTS/HTS NMR Magnet: A Small-Model Study

In this paper, we present experimental results of a small-model study, from which we plan to develop and apply a full-scale field-shaking system to reduce the screening-current-induced field (SCF) in the 800-MHz high-temperature superconducting (HTS) Insert (H800) of the MIT 1.3-GHz low-temperature superconducting (LTS)/HTS nuclear magnetic resonance magnet (1.3 G) currently under construction—the H800 is composed of three nested coils, each a stack of no-insulation (NI) REBCO double pancakes (DP). In 1.3 G, H800 is the chief source of a large error field generated by its own SCF. To study the effectiveness of the field-shaking technique, we used two NI REBCO DPs, one from Coil 2 (HCoil2) and one from Coil 3 (HCoil3) of the three H800 coils, and placed them in the bore of a 5-T/300-mm room-temperature bore LTS background magnet. The background magnet is used not only to induce the SCF in the DPs, but also to reduce it by the field-shaking technique. For each run, we induced the SCF in the DPs at an axial location where the external radial field BR > 0, and then, for the field shaking, moved them to another location where the external axial field $Bz \gg B_{R}$ . Due to the geometry of H800 and L500, top DPs of three H800 coils will experience the considerable radial magnetic field perpendicular to the REBCO tape surface. To examine the effect of the field shaking on the SCF, we tested each NI REBCO DP in the absence or presence of a radial field. In this paper, we report 77-K experimental results and analysis of the effect and a few significant remarks of the field shaking.
Sustained Effectiveness of Two Brief Group Interventions: Comparing an Explicit Forgiveness-Promoting Treatment with a Process-Oriented Treatment

The present study is a two-year follow-up to an outcome study conducted by Wade and Meyer (2009) in 2004-05, in which participants were randomly assigned to an explicit forgiveness treatment, a processed-oriented treatment, and a wait list. The effectiveness of both treatments was maintained after two years. Participants'revenge ideation and psychological symptoms remained the same as when treatment terminated, but negative reactions to their offenders had continued to abate. Positive regard toward the offender was the same pre- and post-treatment but was reduced during the two-year period between termination and follow-up. No statistically significant differences in the outcome measures were found between the two treatment groups. However, in qualitative analyses of open-ended responses about their experiences with the treatments, participants seemed to favor the forgiveness-promoting one. Most participants, regardless of condition, identified group therapeutic factors as major contributors to their posi...
Suitability of Mehlich III method for assessing the plant nutrients in Erzurum plain and acid soils

The purpose of this investigation was to find out suitability of Mehlich HI. extraction method in determining some of the plant available nutrients (Ca, Mg, Na, K, Fe, Cu, Zn, Mn and P) in Erzurum plain and some acid soils. Dry matter yield, nutrient content and total nutrient uptake of the test plant were taken as biological index. The result of the statistical analysis indicate that, Mehlich III method was not interrelated with biological index for the plant available nutrients investigated in Erzurum plain and acid soils.
Metrization and Paracompactness

According to Urysohn's metrization theorem, every second axiom T 3 -space is metrizable. That is a compact Hausdorff space is metrizable if it has a countable base. This result is sometimes also called Urysohn's second metrization theorem. A family of subsets of a topological space is called locally finite. The countable union of locally finite (discrete) families is called σ-locally finite. Every discrete family is locally finite but not conversely. In a compact space, every locally finite or discrete family of subsets is finite. For every open covering of a metric space, there is a locally finite open cover that refines it. Every regular Lindelof space is paracompact and every regular space that is either second axiom or σ-compact is paracompact. However, there are many unsolved problems concerning paracompact spaces. For example, it is not known whether the product of a paracompact space with the closed unit interval is even normal.
Radiation Protection and Cancer Therapy by Linoleate

Linoleate (LA) injected i.p. into mice one day after the inoculation of Ehrlich ascites tumor cells prevented the growth of the tumor (1). It also protected mouse bone marrow cells against radiation damage even when injected an hour or more after exposure of the mice to gamma rays (2). It seems likely, therefore, that combined radiation and LA therapy may be useful for the control of selected cancers. We have begun an investigation of the combined therapy both by clinical studies of the safety and efficacy of LA therapy in 41 dogs and 12 cats with advanced cancer and by laboratory studies.
Prenatal Substance Exposure: Effects on Attention and Impulsivity of 6-Year-Olds

Attention and impulsivity of prenatally substance-exposed 6 year olds were assessed as part of a longitudinal study. Most of the women were light to moderate users of alcohol and marijuana who decreased their use after the first trimester of pregnancy. Tobacco was used by a majority of women and did not change during pregnancy. The women, recruited from a prenatal clinic, were of lower socio-economic status, and over half were African American. Attention and impulsivity were assessed using a Continuous Performance Task. Second and third trimester tobacco exposure and first trimester cocaine use predicted increased omission errors. Second trimester marijuana use predicted more commission errors and fewer omission errors. There were no significant effects of prenatal alcohol exposure. Lower Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale composite scores, male gender, and an adult male in the household also predicted more errors of commission. Lower SBIS composite scores, younger child age, maternal work/ school status, and higher maternal hostility scores predicted more omission errors. These findings indicate that prenatal substance use has an effect on attentional processes.
Pediatric clinical challenges

Pediatric patients present for a wide variety of ambulatory surgical procedures. In general, children are good candidates for ambulatory surgery, but the patient screening and selection process needs to ensure that significant associated conditions are avoided, particularly in the freestanding ambulatory setting. General patient selection concepts and overall risk information for the pediatric patient are presented. Specific clinical challenges presented by pediatric patients are summarized in this chapter, including respiratory issues such as respiratory infection and sleep apnea, gastrointestinal reflux, congenital heart disease, Down syndrome, neuromuscular disorders, and children with hematologic disorders and cancer.
Heterodyne quantum efficiency of a HgCdTe infrared Doppler detector

Quantum efficiency of a HgCdTe photodiode was measured for both direct and heterodyne detection. Both measurements employed a blackbody radiation source; the receiver bandwidth for the heterodyne measurements was 50 MHz to approximate a Doppler lidar receiver. The quantum efficiency of the detector in the heterodyne mode was ~0.3, nearly 40% lower than the direct detection efficiency.
Asymmetric synthesis of griffipavixanthone employing a chiral phosphoric acid-catalyzed cycloaddition

Asymmetric synthesis of the biologically active xanthone dimer griffipavixanthone is reported along with its absolute stereochemistry determination. Synthesis of the natural product is accomplished via dimerization of a p-quinone methide using a chiral phosphoric acid catalyst to afford a protected precursor in excellent diastereo- and enantioselectivity. Mechanistic studies, including an unbiased computational investigation of chiral ion-pairs using parallel tempering, were performed in order to probe the mode of asymmetric induction.
Restricted normal mode analysis and chaotic response of p-mode intrinsic localized mode

Nonlinearities in arrays of discrete oscillators can cause energy localizations called intrinsic localized modes (ILMs). Two spatial physical manifestations of localization within the array are the ST-mode ILM (a symmetric mode) and the P-mode ILM (an asymmetric mode). The free response and forced response of the asymmetric vibratory P-mode are discussed within this paper, with particular attention given to the linear coupling between the oscillators. The free, undamped response is studied by means of the restricted normal mode approach, which gives the amplitude profile of the P-mode ILM. The initial P-mode ILM amplitude profile, as calculated from the restricted normal mode approach, is capable of creating both forced and unforced persistent ILMs. For the unforced and undamped free response, the P-mode ILM is stable with and without linear coupling, and its response frequency is incommensurate with the response of the surrounding oscillators. It was found that the frequency of oscillation of this mode has a strong relationship to the amplitude of vibration. Moreover, the amplitude profiles generated by the restricted normal mode approach are used to generate initial conditions for the forced, damped case. The existence of the damped and forced P-mode ILM is strongly dependent upon the linear coupling term. It is shown that if linear coupling does not exist, then this mode is persistent but chaotic. To the author’s knowledge, this is the first pinned and persistent chaotic ILM to be observed, which is not predicted from local analysis.
Toward an effective theory of quarkonium production in nuclear matter.

These proceedings are dedicated to Miklos Gyulassy's 70$^{\rm th}$ birthday. In his long and distinguished career he has made seminal contributions to many areas of heavy ion theory, including early papers on quarkonium phenomenology in fixed-target heavy ion experiments. Theoretical and experimental studies of the $J/\psi$ and $\Upsilon$ states have evolved considerably in the past decades, and I describe a recent generalization of non-relativistic Quantum Chromodynamics to include interactions in a generic nuclear medium. NRQCD with Glauber gluons aims to provide a universal microscopic description of the interaction of heavy quarkonia in a range of phases that include cold nuclear matter, dense hadron gas, and quark-gluon plasma. Such effective field theory is an important step toward understanding the common trends in proton-nucleus and nucleus-nucleus data on quarkonium suppression.
Chemotherapy-Induced Distal Enhancers Drive Transcriptional Programs to Maintain the Chemoresistant State in Ovarian Cancer.

Chemoresistance is driven by unique regulatory networks in the genome that are distinct from those necessary for cancer development. Here, we investigate the contribution of enhancer elements to cisplatin resistance in ovarian cancers. Epigenome profiling of multiple cellular models of chemoresistance identified unique sets of distal enhancers, super-enhancers (SEs) and their gene targets that coordinate and maintain the transcriptional program of the platinum-resistant state in ovarian cancer. Pharmacologic inhibition of distal enhancers through small molecule epigenetic inhibitors suppressed the expression of their target genes and restored cisplatin sensitivity in vitro and in vivo. In addition to known drivers of chemoresistance, our findings identified SOX9 as a critical SE-regulated transcription factor (TF) that plays a critical role in acquiring and maintaining the chemoresistant state in ovarian cancer. The approach and findings presented here suggest that integrative analysis of epigenome and transcriptional programs could identify targetable key drivers of chemoresistance in cancers.
Talking Politics and Engaging in Activism: The Influence of Publics’ Social Networks on Corporations in the Public Sphere

Scholars have extensively theorized how citizens’ political discussion networks have implications for elected political actors and can affect political and civic participation and knowledge. We shi...
Virginia Gordon as Servant Leader

Virginia Gordon was a teacher, scholar, practitioner, and leader who also served as a role model and mentor to others. Her insight and research informed the many innovative initiatives she pursued ...
Analysis of onset age and cutaneous lesions in 54 patients with tuberous sclerosis

Objective To analyze the features of cutaneous lesions and age of onset of tuberous sclerosis(TS).Methods A total of 54 TS patients were recruited;their clinical data were analysed.Results The occurance of facial angiofibromas,periungual fibromas,hypomelanotic macules and shark macules was 72.5%,26%,70%and 48%,respectively,and the median age of onset of these lesions was 7,14,0.2 and 6 years,respectively,with a peak at 1-9,10-19,＜1 and 1-9 years,respectively.Conclusions Cutaneous lesions are commonly seen in TS,and most of them develop early in life. Key words: Tuberous sclerosis; Skin manifestation; Age of onset
Stress-Induced Increases in Locus Coeruleus Norepinephrine Underlie Extinction Learning Deficits.

Fear triggers behavioral responses that help us avoid imminent threats. When stimuli or environmental contexts no longer pose a risk, we typically learn new behaviors and extinguish fear responses. Thus, both fear learning and extinction are important processes that help us navigate our environment
Parametric Study of SO 3 Conversion to SO 2 in Tubular Reactor for Hydrogen Production via Sulfuric Cycle

Hybrid sulfur (HyS) cycle or Westinghouse cycle is among the main candidates for full-scale solar hydrogen production. This cycle is one of the most attractive and simplest thermochemical processes, because it comprises only two global reaction steps and has only fluid reactants. The decomposition of sulfuric acid is a vital step in the sulfuric hybrid cycle process for the production of hydrogen from water. For this, the temperature needed for SO3 to be converted into SO2 and O2 is very high. It requires operating temperatures above 800 °C. Thus, SO2 compound resulting from the decomposition reactor is the key compound used to feed the electrolyser where it is oxidized to regenerate H2SO4 and produce H2. This work focused on the sulfuric acid decomposition step in suggested tubular plug flow reactor with possible use of solar energy. A parametric study on the effects of temperature and pressure on the thermodynamics conversion of SO3 to SO2 was investigated. The theoretical sulfur trioxide conversion calculation was applied where a plug flow reactor model was assumed.
Assessment of Naloxone as a Therapeutic for Inhaled Carfentanil in the Ferret.

Abstract Carfentanil is a powerful synthetic opioid that is approximately 100 times more potent than fentanyl and 10,000 times more potent than morphine. Carfentanil was originally intended to be used as a sedative for big game animals in a veterinary setting, but it is becoming increasingly recognized as a public health concern. We set out to investigate the effectiveness of naloxone against a potentially lethal dose of inhaled carfentanil in male ferrets. Ferrets were implanted with telemetry devices to study cardiac parameters and exposed to aerosolized carfentanil in a whole-body plethysmography chamber to record respiratory parameters. We observed profound respiratory depression in exposed animals, which led to apneic periods constituting 24–31 % of the exposure period. Concomitant with these apneic periods, we also observed cardiac abnormalities in the form of premature junctional contractions (PJCs). At our acute exposure dose, lethal in 3 % of our animals, naive ferrets were unresponsive and incapacitated for a total of 126.1 ± 24.6 min. When administered intramuscularly at human equivalent doses (HEDs) of either 5 mg or 10 mg, naloxone significantly reduced the time that ferrets were incapacitated following exposure, although we observed no significant difference in the reduction of time that the animals were incapacitated between the treatment groups. Naloxone was able to quickly resolve the respiratory depression, significantly reducing the frequency of apneic periods in carfentanil-exposed ferrets. Our results suggest that naloxone, when administered via intramuscular injection following incapacitation, is a viable treatment against the effects of a potentially lethal dose of inhaled carfentanil.
Case 32-2020: A 63-Year-Old Man with Confusion, Fatigue, and Garbled Speech

A Man with Confusion, Fatigue, and Garbled Speech A 63-year-old man with a history of primary membranous nephropathy presented with fever, confusion, headache, garbled speech, vision changes, lymph...
KALRN: A central regulator of synaptic function and synaptopathies.

Abstract The synaptic regulator, kalirin, plays a key role in synaptic plasticity and formation of dendritic arbors and spines. Dysregulation of the KALRN gene has been linked to various neurological disorders, including autism spectrum disorder, Alzheimer’s disease, schizophrenia, addiction and intellectual disabilities. Both genetic and molecular studies highlight the importance of normal KALRN expression for healthy neurodevelopment and function. This review aims to give an in-depth analysis of the structure and molecular mechanisms of kalirin function, particularly within the brain. These data are correlated to genetic evidence of patient mutations within KALRN and animal models of Kalrn that together give insight into the manner in which this gene may be involved in neurodevelopment and the etiology of disease. The emerging links to human disease from post-mortem, genome wide association (GWAS) and exome sequencing studies are examined to highlight the disease relevance of kalirin, particularly in neurodevelopmental diseases. Finally, we will discuss efforts to pharmacologically regulate kalirin protein activity and the implications of such endeavors for the treatment of human disease. As multiple disease states arise from deregulated synapse formation and altered KALRN expression and function, therapeutics may be developed to provide control over KALRN activity and thus synapse dysregulation. As such, a detailed understanding of how kalirin regulates neuronal development, and the manner in which kalirin dysfunction promotes neurological disease, may support KALRN as a valuable therapeutic avenue for future pharmacological intervention.
COVID-19 and Big Data: Multi-faceted Analysis for Spatio-temporal Understanding of the Pandemic with Social Media Conversations.

COVID-19 has been devastating the world since the end of 2019 and has continued to play a significant role in major national and worldwide events, and consequently, the news. In its wake, it has left no life unaffected. Having earned the world's attention, social media platforms have served as a vehicle for the global conversation about COVID-19. In particular, many people have used these sites in order to express their feelings, experiences, and observations about the pandemic. We provide a multi-faceted analysis of critical properties exhibited by these conversations on social media regarding the novel coronavirus pandemic. We present a framework for analysis, mining, and tracking the critical content and characteristics of social media conversations around the pandemic. Focusing on Twitter and Reddit, we have gathered a large-scale dataset on COVID-19 social media conversations. Our analyses cover tracking potential reports on virus acquisition, symptoms, conversation topics, and language complexity measures through time and by region across the United States. We also present a BERT-based model for recognizing instances of hateful tweets in COVID-19 conversations, which achieves a lower error-rate than the state-of-the-art performance. Our results provide empirical validation for the effectiveness of our proposed framework and further demonstrate that social media data can be efficiently leveraged to provide public health experts with inexpensive but thorough insight over the course of an outbreak.
Neurodegeneration: 2021 update

This article reviews a collection of manuscripts in the field of neurodegenerative disease chosen from what are considered by the author to be among the 10 most important and potentially impactful topics or research trends of 2020 relevant to the field of experimental and diagnostic neuropathology. A deliberate effort was made to provide balance among disease categories covered. The result is a varied selection that includes not just individual papers but also research topics and trends. The association of COVID-19 with longer-term neurological symptoms has launched a research trend fueled by speculation that the SARS-CoV-2 might trigger neurodegenerative changes. The onslaught of transcriptomic studies has begun to give way to proteomics, with three transformative studies published examining glial contributions to Alzheimer disease, cerebral atherosclerosis in cognitive decline, and the complex sequence of post-translational modifications of the tau protein. Plasma biomarkers for Alzheimer disease have continued to make rapid advances, especially around highly sensitive assays capable of detecting different forms of abnormal hyperphosphorylated tau in peripheral blood. Two studies using cryo-electron microscopy showed the power of the approach by continuing to elucidate the diversity of filamentous tau inclusions, and a third study gave the first glimpse of α-synuclein aggregates at near atomic resolution. Another study continued to delineate how different α-synuclein conformers (“strains”) target specific brain regions and lead to neurodegeneration. In Huntington’s disease, we saw compelling molecular data showing how cells adapt to endoplasmic reticulum stress through the unfolded protein response. Finally, the role of astrocytes in chronic traumatic encephalopathy has emerged as a critical area of interest.
Search for a Short-Lived Dibaryon in Au + Au Collisions: Status of AGS Experiment E896

A new high-rate experiment has been initiated at the AGS to search for a shortlived H 0-dibaryon in 11.6 A GeV/c Au + Au collisions. The heart of the detection system is a large distributed-drift-chamber (DDC) in a 1.7 T magnetic field, which will provide tracking of charged particles from H 0 decay. Directly upstream of the DDC is a 6.8 T superconducting dipole sweeper magnet and a high-Z collimator system, which combine to remove most charged particles produced in the target and yield a low background in the critical tracking region of the DDC. The implementation of the system, including additional detectors, is described, and our experience from the recently ended first run is reported.
Analyst Compensation and Forecast Bias

In a recent paper, Bernhardt et al. (2004) developed a non-parametric test for bias in forecasts by professional financial analysts that is robust to correlated information amongst analysts and information arrival over the forecasting cycle. The tests show that analysts anti-herd: Analysts systematically issue biased contrarian forecasts that overshoot the publicly-available consensus forecast in the direction of their private information. In this campanion paper, we show that for those analysts that report later in the forecast-horizon, a reward scheme that is convex in relative performance may shed some light on this strategic behavior. The pattern and magnitude of the forecast bias in the last forecast are identical to the results in Bernhardt et al., and slightly higher in some sub-samples. An analysis of daily returns around the date of earnings announcement reveals that investors do not fully unravel the bias in late forecasts.
Feline Immunodeficiency Virus as a Model For Development of Molecular Approaches to Intervention Strategies Against Lentivirus Infections

Publisher Summary All model systems have certain limitations, because the conditions of immunological responsiveness and/or drug tolerance and metabolism may differ from those found in humans. However, every model has unique advantages, and each system will yield useful information regarding the treatment at hand. With the spread of the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) epidemic, driven by the spread of the causative agent, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), it has become necessary to develop model systems relevant to the treatment of lentivirus infections. Nonhuman primates offer valuable systems for study. The most prominent and feasible primate model is the simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) infection of rhesus macaques. Both HIV-1 and SIV use a common receptor, CD4, and host cell ranges are similar for the two viruses. Therefore, drug approaches that interrupt receptor interactions may be developed, using SIV as a model system. On the other hand, adult macaques have failed as a useful model for testing drug treatments, such as AZT, probably due to the differential metabolism of the drug. The chimpanzee primate model is closer to humans and is more useful in that; these primates are infectable by HIV directly. However, no disease has been observed and it may be that if any disease is caused at all, the latency will be similar to the decade-long time for the development of AIDS in humans. In addition, chimpanzees are an endangered species and expensive to maintain, and are thus impractical for extensive preliminary testing. There are numerous nonprimate lentiviruses that may serve admirably in the development of intervention strategies effective against HIV. The smallest and most easily manipulable natural model is feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV), a lentivirus found associated with a debilitating immunodeficiency syndrome in cats, similar to AIDS associated with HIV infection of humans. The purpose of this chapter is to report the genomic structure of FIV as it is currently known and to compare it with the structure of HIV. It is clear that there is substantial genomic diversity between these two lentiviruses that negates the utility of FIV for certain intervention approaches. However, it is equally clear that the similarities in the life cycle of HIV and FIV, as well as commonalities in particular structural motifs make FIV an attractive model for comparative study.
Fabrication and Properties of an Anode-Supported Tubular IT-SOFC Based on Lanthanum Gallate

In the search for new electrolyte materials, the perovskite-based systems (ABO 3 ) have been considered as one alternative option, particularly doped-LaGaO 3 , due to its high oxygen ion conductivity; La 0 . 8 Sr 0 . 2 Ga 0 . 8 5 Mg 0 . 1 5 (LSGM) has been reported as having a conductivity of 0.14 s/cm at 800°C. In this program, work the recently discovered anode material, LSCM (La 0 . 7 3 Sr 0 . 2 5 Cr 0 . 5 Mn 0 . 5 O 3 ) will be used as the anode support. We have demonstrated that the material is chemically stable in contact with LSGM at temperatures as high as 1600 °C for extended periods of time (200 h). After powder milling and/or mixing, the first step in cell fabrication, for this particular design, is the production of an anode support tube. Production of a robust ceramic-tube extrudate is a function of powder composition and mixing, extrusion pressure and speed, die configuration, and drying and firing times and temperatures. The extrudates were dried using a uniquely designed sample tube holder. The dried tube was then fired in a tube furnace. LSGM was then deposited onto the LSCM tube using a vacuum deposition technique. The cathode material, based on lanthanum (cobaltite) ferrite, was then deposited using a standard dip/spray coating technique, and fired to produce a single cell. The single anode support cell tubes were fully characterized and optimized for microstructural and chemical stability. The cells were then tested for electrical performance, and this paper will describe the preliminary results obtained from the single cells.
Responsibility, Intent, and Donor Behavior: Commentary on Who Helps Natural-Disaster Victims? Assessment of Trait and Situational Predictors

Intentional harms are perceived as more painful and more deserving of compensation than unintentional harms. In conjunction with research demonstrating that people are poor judges of intent, this observation may explain why people are more willing to help victims whose suffering appears to be caused by others. This account further explains the authors’ finding that people high in cognitive empathy are especially sensitive to other-caused harm, and aligns well with existing attributional accounts of why perceived victim responsibility reduces helping behavior. Finally, this account suggests a number of novel predictions about the determinants of donor behavior.
Preclinical evaluation of the PARP inhibitor, olaparib, in combination with cytotoxic chemotherapy in pediatric solid tumors

Background Poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) signals DNA damage and facilitates DNA repair. PARP inhibitors are being evaluated in cancers with defective DNA repair mechanisms or in combination with cytotoxic therapy or radiation. We evaluated the PARP inhibitor, olaparib, in combination with chemotherapy using in vitro and in vivo pediatric solid tumor models.
Performance and reliability comparison of power DMOSFET structures with and without an integral Schottky diode

This paper reports on the results obtained from a study of the performance and reliability characteristics of two low-voltage power MOSFET structures. Both structures were fabricated using ultrahigh cell density self-aligned refractory TiSi/sub 2/ gate and contact technology. In the power MOSFET structure with an integral Schottky diode (ISMOSFET), approximately 5% of the total number of cells were used for incorporating a Schottky diode in parallel with the parasitic PN-junction diode inherent in the MOSFET structure. Two-dimensional (2D) mixed device and circuit simulations were used to study the unclamped inductive switching (UIS) characteristics. It is shown that the ISMOSFET structure performs similarly to the MOSFET structure under UIS conditions. The former, however, results in more than 30% improvement in the reverse recovery performance with no degradation in the on-state power loss and off-state blocking voltage rating. The simulation results are shown to be in excellent agreement with the measured data. >