cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Laminoplasty versus laminectomy with fusion for the treatment of spondylotic cervical myelopathy: short-term follow-up

Laminoplasty and laminectomy with fusion are two common procedures for the treatment of cervical spondylotic myelopathy. Controversy remains regarding the superior surgical treatment. To compare short-term follow-up of laminoplasty to laminectomy with fusion for the treatment of cervical spondylotic myelopathy. Retrospective review comparing all patients undergoing surgical treatment for cervical spondylotic myelopathy by a single surgeon. All patients undergoing laminoplasty or laminectomy with fusion by a single surgeon over a 5-year period (2007–2011). Cervical alignment and range of motion on pre- and post-operative radiographs and clinical outcome measures including Japanese Orthopaedic Association (JOA) scores, neck disability index (NDI), short form-12 mental (SF-12M) and physical (SF-12P) composite scores and visual analog pain scores for neck (VAS-N) and arm (VAS-A). Patients undergoing laminoplasty or laminectomy with fusion by a single surgeon were reviewed. Cohorts of 41 laminoplasty patients and 31 laminectomy with fusion patients were selected based on strict criteria. The cohorts were well matched based on pre-operative clinical scores, radiographic measurements, and demographics. The average follow-up was 19.2 months for laminoplasty and 18.2 months for laminectomy with fusion. Evaluated outcomes included Japanese Orthopaedic Association (JOA) score, neck disability index (NDI), short form-12 (SF-12), visual analog pain scores (VAS), cervical sagittal alignment, cervical range of motion, length of stay, cost and complications. The improvement in JOA, SF-12 and VAS scores was similar in the two cohorts after surgery. There was no significant change in cervical sagittal alignment in either cohort. Range-of-motion decreased in both cohorts, but to a greater degree after laminectomy with fusion. C5 nerve root palsy and infection were the most common complications in both cohorts. Laminectomy with fusion was associated with a higher rate of C5 nerve root palsy and overall complications. The average hospital length of stay and cost were significantly less with laminoplasty. This study provides evidence that laminoplasty may be superior to laminectomy with fusion in preserving cervical range of motion, reducing hospital stay and minimizing cost. However, the significance of these differences remains unclear, as laminoplasty clinical outcome scores were generally comparable to laminectomy with fusion.
External validation in an intermediate unit of a respiratory decompensation model trained in an intensive care unit.

Background Preventing urgent intubation and upgrade in level of care in patients with subclinical deterioration could be of great utility in hospitalized patients. Early detection should result in decreased mortality, duration of stay, and/or resource use. The goal of this study was to externally validate a previously developed, vital sign-based, intensive care unit, respiratory instability model on a separate population, intermediate care patients. Methods From May 2014 to May 2016, the model calculated relative risk of adverse events every 15 minutes ( n = 373,271 observations) for 2,050 patients in a surgical intermediate care unit. Results We identified 167 upgrades and 57 intubations. The performance of the model for predicting upgrades within 12 hours was highly significant with an area under the curve of 0.693 (95% confidence interval, 0.658–0.724). The model was well calibrated with relative risks in the highest and lowest deciles of 2.99 and 0.45, respectively (a 6.6-fold increase). The model was effective at predicting intubation, with a demonstrated area under the curve within 12 hours of the event of 0.748 (95% confidence interval, 0.685–0.800). The highest and lowest deciles of observed relative risk were 3.91 and 0.39, respectively (a 10.1-fold increase). Univariate analysis of vital signs showed that transfer upgrades were associated, in order of importance, with rising respiration rate, rising heart rate, and falling pulse-oxygen saturation level. Conclusion The respiratory instability model developed previously is valid in intermediate care patients to predict both urgent intubations and requirements for upgrade in level of care to an intensive care unit.
Combined and Individual Effects of Washing and Sanitizing on Bacterial Counts of Meat - A Model System1,2

Strips of plate meat were sprayed with acetic acid, sodium hypochlorite, or tap water after they were washed with 0, 12.7, or 25.4 liters of tap water/min. Washing before sanitizing lowered bacteria counts significantly only when the higher volume of water, 1.4 ml/cm2, was applied, and this difference existed for samples taken immediately but not 48 h after treatment. Reductions in counts exceeded 99.9% when samples washed with 25.4 liters/min (1.4 ml/cm2) were sanitized with 3% acetic acid. This sanitizer was sprayed at the rate of 6.8 liters/min (1.9 ml/cm2) at a pressure of 14.0 kg/cm2 from a distance of 40 cm as the meat moved at 2 cm/sec through the spray. Under comparable conditions of application, both sodium hypochlorite (200 to 250 mg/liter) and tap water reduced counts by about 90%. Acetic acid had a much greater residual effect on numbers of viable bacteria than did hypochlorite. No effect of air drying was observed.
Engineering an IgG scaffold lacking effector function with optimized developability

IgG isotypes can differentially bind to Fcγ receptors and complement, making the selection of which isotype to pursue for development of a particular therapeutic antibody important in determining the safety and efficacy of the drug. IgG2 and IgG4 isotypes have significantly lower binding affinity to Fcγ receptors. Recent evidence suggests that the IgG2 isotype is not completely devoid of effector function, whereas the IgG4 isotype can undergo in vivo Fab arm exchange leading to bispecific antibody and off-target effects. Here an attempt was made to engineer an IgG1-based scaffold lacking effector function but with stability equivalent to that of the parent IgG1. Care was taken to ensure that both stability and lack of effector function was achieved with a minimum number of mutations. Among the Asn297 mutants that result in lack of glycosylation and thus loss of effector function, we demonstrate that the N297G variant has better stability and developability compared with the N297Q or N297A variants. To further improve the stability of N297G, we introduced a novel engineered disulfide bond at a solvent inaccessible location in the CH2 domain. The resulting scaffold has stability greater than or equivalent to that of the parental IgG1 scaffold. Extensive biophysical analyses and pharmacokinetic (PK) studies in mouse, rat, and monkey further confirmed the developability of this unique scaffold, and suggest that it could be used for all Fc containing therapeutics (e.g. antibodies, bispecific antibodies, and Fc fusions) requiring lack of effector function or elimination of binding to Fcγ receptors.
Thrombolysis for Massive Pulmonary Embolism in Pregnancy

Pregnant women are at high risk for venous thromboembolism, including pulmonary embolism (PE), given expected changes in coagulation, fibrinolysis, and venous blood flow. In fact, PE is the leading cause of maternal death in the United States. Nonpregnant patients who develop PE with hypotension or show signs of deterioration after anticoagulation receive thrombolytics as a standard of care. Pregnant women, however, have been excluded from clinical trials with thrombolytics, and all data available in this population are published as case reports or case series. We reviewed all reports of thrombolytics, systemic or catheter directed, used in pregnant patients with massive PE. This article summarizes the risks for thromboembolism in pregnancy, compares and contrasts thrombolytic agents in this setting, and provides a recommendation for management of massive PE in this special population. Overall, reports suggest that the use of these agents is associated with beneficial outcomes and a relatively low risk of complications. The quality of this evidence is low, and clinical judgment is required to assess individual patients for risks versus benefits of thrombolysis.
Developing a Strategic Roadmap for Policy and Decision Making: Case Study of ICT and Disaster Risk Reduction in Public Safety Networks

Globally, disaster risk management (DRM) and disaster risk reduction (DRR) are recognized as key areas of concern and planning and are embedded in multiple United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The scope is broad and varied. To communicate and coordinate the efforts to realize the goals and policies, a strategic roadmap can be an effective method. However, roadmaps tend to include only general and broad goals, guidelines, and priorities. This can lead to confusion for the policy implementers and practitioners. To avoid this, the roadmap can include multiple layers that translate the policy roadmap elements to specific practical elements to implement policy. This is accomplished by combining roadmapping with the house of quality (HoQ) method. HoQ uses a planning matrix to bridge the relationships. HoQ is used in complex production environments such as automotive but is novel to DRR. One important aspect of DRR is information and communications technologies (ICT) and includes public safety and emergency networks such as FirstNet and SafeNet. ICT for DRR may be defined as the ICT services, applications, infrastructure, systems, and technologies for disaster prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery and may include regional and international communications networks. This research provides an initial roadmap framework of ICT for DRR.
Characteristics of bacterial repression-derepression systems

This chapter provides an overview of the characteristics of bacterial repression–derepression systems. It discusses an unsolved problem of the actual nature of the genomic regulation machinery operating in differentiated cells. Frequent attempts have been made to apply to this problem the bacterial repression–derepression models of gene regulation originally suggested by Jacob and Monod. The chapter describes polycistronic messenger RNA, the operator gene concept, and regulatory genes in coordinate and other systems. Where coordinate control exists, it is based on the synthesis of polycistronic messenger RNA. Polycistronic template R N A products of the lac operon in E. coli have been demonstrated by Kiho and Rich, who utilized various deletion mutants lacking certain regions of the operon. Sedimentation analyses of the polysomal populations in induced cells show that s-galactosidase is synthesized on polysomes and that these polysomes are of larger size in wild-type E. coli than in mutants synthesizing galactosidase but bearing deletions in the transacetylase region.
Bacterial selenoenzymes and mechanisms of action

There are two types of bacterial selenoenzymes known at present: those that contain selenium in the form of selenocysteine residues in the polypeptide chains and those that instead contain a catalytically essential selenium in a dissociable cofactor form. Among the latter are the molybdopterin containing enzymes, nicotinic acid hydroxylase, xanthine dehydrogenase and the recently discovered purine hydroxylase. The crystal structure of a related enzyme, carbon monooxide dehydrogenase, has been determined. This enzyme, unlike the other three, is present in various aerobic bacteria. Escherichia coli formate dehydrogenase is a selenium-dependent enzyme that contains selenocysteine, molybdenum, a molybdopterin-guanine dinucleotide and an iron-sulfur center. The crystal structures of the oxidized and reduced enzymes have been reported. This enzyme differs from classical molybdenum hydroxylases in that oxygen from water is not incorporated in the product. Clostridial glycine reductase is a selenocysteine-dependent enzyme that reduces glycine to acetylphosphate and ammonia. The reaction mechanism of this enzyme involves the cleavage of a carbon-nitrogen bond of the Schiff base derivative of the glycine substrate and represents a new role of the ionized selenol group of the selenocysteine residue in metabolism. Selenium-carboxymethylselenocysteine is formed as the enzyme-bound intermediate on the selenoprotein A subunit of the enzyme complex in this reaction. Reductive cleavage of the selenoether, transfer to a cysteine residue of another subunit forming an acetylthioester and reaction with phosphate results in the formation of acetylphosphate.
A Rejoinder to Nord

Nord raises several important points regarding “Functionalism as a Basis for Midrange Theory in Organizational Behavior/Theory,” four of which clearly deserve some sort of response. He holds that: 1. The applicability of functional analysis may be severely limited if we require that functional unity be demonstrated before it is applied to a particular organization or phenomenon. 2. Functionalism emphasizes the merits of particular activities for managers who control the organization, rather than leading to an understanding of their merits for a variety of additional interests. 3. Functionalism has a conservative bias; that is, it tends to be used to justify the continuation of present practices in the face of challenges to the existing order. 4. The benefits of functional analysis as an alternative to more conventional frameworks for the study of organizations needs to be demonstrated more clearly.
ACCURATE THEORETICAL RESULTS FOR THE GROUND STATE OF THE HYDROGEN MOLECULE

Abstract Self-consistent-field, correlated orbital and extended James and Coolidge type wave functions were applied to the ground state of the H 2 molecule. Potential energy curve was computed. Using the nonrelativistic Hamiltonian for clamped nuclei the best calculated binding energy was 38287 cm –1 and the equilibrium internuclear distance 0.74127 a. The experimental values are 38286 × 6 cm –1 and 0.74116 a re spectively. Quadrupole moment and the Larmor term of magnetic susceptibility were calculated using both the SCF and the accurate wave functions. The SCF method has been found to give reliable expectation values of operators that do not depend explicitly on r 12 .
Injectable, redox-polymerized carboxymethylcellulose hydrogels promote nucleus pulposus-like extracellular matrix elaboration by human MSCs in a cell density-dependent manner.

Low back pain is a major cause for disability and is closely linked to intervertebral disc degeneration. Mechanical and biological dysfunction of the nucleus pulposus in the disc has been found to initiate intradiscal degenerative processes. Replacing or enriching the diseased nucleus pulposus with an injectable, stem cell-laden biomaterial that mimics its material properties can provide a minimally invasive strategy for biological and structural repair of the tissue. In this study, injectable, in situ-gelling carboxymethylcellulose hydrogels were developed for nucleus pulposus tissue engineering using encapsulated human marrow-derived mesenchymal stromal cells (hMSCs). With the goal of obtaining robust extracellular matrix deposition and faster construct maturation, two cell-seeding densities, 20 × 106 cells/ml and 40 × 106 cells/ml, were examined. The constructs were fabricated using a redox initiation system to yield covalently crosslinked, cell-seeded hydrogels via radical polymerization. Chondrogenic culture of the hydrogels over 35 days exhibited high cell viability along with deposition of proteoglycan and collagen-rich extracellular matrix, and mechanical and swelling properties similar to native human nucleus pulposus. Further, the matrix production and distribution in the carboxymethylcellulose hydrogels was found to be strongly influenced by hMSC-seeding density, with the lower cell-seeding density yielding a more favorable nucleus pulposus-specific matrix phenotype, while the rate of construct maturation was less dependent on the cell-seeding density. These findings are the first to demonstrate the utility of redox-polymerized carboxymethylcellulose hydrogels as hMSC carriers for potential minimally invasive treatment strategies for nucleus pulposus replacement.
Kwaito’s promise: music and the aesthetics of freedom in South Africa

What are the historical and future relationships between African electronic music, African sound art, and international popular and underground music scenes? In Kwaito’s Promise, Gavin Steingo has ...
Inexact alternating direction methods of multipliers for separable convex optimization

Inexact alternating direction multiplier methods (ADMMs) are developed for solving general separable convex optimization problems with a linear constraint and with an objective that is the sum of smooth and nonsmooth terms. The approach involves linearized subproblems, a back substitution step, and either gradient or accelerated gradient techniques. Global convergence is established. The methods are particularly useful when the ADMM subproblems do not have closed form solution or when the solution of the subproblems is expensive. Numerical experiments based on image reconstruction problems show the effectiveness of the proposed methods.
VERTICAL MIGRATION OF EUGLENA SP. ON THE SAND BANKS OF A NORTH CAROLINA PIEDMONT STREAM

On summer days, visible patches of green appeared on the aerially-exposed sand banks of a small tributary of Mays Lake in Burlington, North Carolina. These green patches became visible approximately 3 hours after sunrise and disappeared 2 hours prior to sunset. Microscopic examination of sediment samples revealed that the appearance of color was due to the upward migration of Euglena sp. that attained densities of 2200 cells per square millimeter around solar noon. Triplicate sediment cores revealed the presence of live Euglena cells as deep as 6 cm below the sediment surface. During the day, over 80% of the population was located between the surface and a depth of 2 mm. During the night, 75% of the population was found between 2 and 6 cm below the surface. Artificially darkening the sediment surface during the day stimulated downward migration of the population. Controlled experiments with neutral density filters indicated that the number of cells on the sediment surface was directly related to incident irradiance. The results of these experiments on Euglena sp. living on the banks of a freshwater stream in central North Carolina will be contrasted with those of previous experiments conducted on Euglena proxima living on the intertidal sand flats of the Newport River estuary in coastal North Carolina.
How to estimate expected shortfall when probabilities are known with interval or fuzzy uncertainty

To gauge the risk corresponding to a possible disaster, it is important to know both the probability of this disaster and the expected damage caused by such potential disaster (“expected shortfall”). Both these measures of risk are easy to estimate in the ideal case, when we know the exact probabilities of different disaster strengths. In practice, however, we usually only have a partial information about these probabilities: we may have an interval (or, more generally, fuzzy) uncertainty about these probabilities. In this paper, we show how to efficiently estimate the expected shortfall under such interval and/or fuzzy uncertainty.
Estimating and Calibrating MFMod : A Panel Data Approach to Identifying the Parameters of Data Poor Countries in the World Bank's Structural Macro Model

This paper summarizes the World Bank's approach to identifying parameters for key equations in its macro structural model for countries where short sample sizes or major structural changes render traditional time-series approaches infeasible or yield unstable estimates. To identify parameters that could be used in such cases, a cointegrating panel approach is followed that yields a common long-run estimate of parameters for key equations (to test the theoretical restrictions imposed in the model) and short-run disequilibrium estimates that vary by country. This approach is preferred to pure calibration or Bayesian estimation, because the functional forms imposed in the panel are consistent with those used in the macro structural model.
Global Analysis of Human mRNA FOlding Disruptions in Synonymous Variants Demonstrates Significant Population Constraint

BACKGROUND: In most organisms the structure of an mRNA molecule is a crucial determinant of its speed of translation, half-life, splicing propensities and final configuration as a protein. Synonymous mutations which distort this wildtype mRNA structure may be pathogenic as a consequence. However, current clinical guidelines classify synonymous or "silent" single nucleotide variants (sSNVs) as largely benign unless a role in RNA splicing can be demonstrated. RESULTS: We developed novel software to conduct a global transcriptome study in which RNA folding statistics were computed for 469 million SNVs in 45,800 transcripts using an Apache Spark implementation of the ViennaRNA software package in the cloud. Focusing our analysis on the subset of 17.9 million sSNVs we discover that variants predicted to disrupt mRNA structure have lower rates of incidence in the human population. Given that the community lacks tools to evaluate the potential pathogenic impact of sSNVs, we introduce a "Structural Predictivity Index" (SPI) to quantify this constraint due to mRNA structure. CONCLUSION: Our findings support the hypothesis that sSNVs may play a role in human genetic diseases due to their effects on mRNA structure. The SPI score and our computed Vienna metrics provide a means of gauging the structural constraint operating on any sSNV. Given that up to 75% of patients with a suspected rare genetic disease lack a molecular diagnosis, our score has the potential to enable discovery of novel etiologies in human genetic disease. Our RNA Stability Pipeline as well as Vienna structural metrics and SPI scores for all human synonymous SNPs can be downloaded from GitHub https://github.com/nch-igm/rna-stability.
Managing Constraints in Interdisciplinary Teams: Tactics for Continued Learning and Progress

Interdisciplinary teamwork has been recognized as a major driver of innovation across many industries, with teamwork influencing and influenced by contextual factors. External constraints, includin...
‘Have to See It, Yet Boring’: Disney’s Robot Dramas Revisited

Cornfeld unpacks the “spectacle of contradictions” that is the Carousel of Progress, focusing on the varying narratives that surround this attraction. While some laud the attraction for its connections to Walt Disney himself—it is rumored to have been his personal favorite attraction—others celebrate it solely as a place to enjoy air conditioning or a mid-day nap. Guided by fan cultures that celebrate the Carousel as both Walt Disney’s brainchild and an object lesson in American history, this essay analyzes corporate histories that shed light on the formation of these narratives: a television broadcast through which Disney introduced Audio-Animatronics to the nation and a series of textual revisions made to the Carousel script throughout its half-century run. Attention to these histories underscores the production practices that shape what visitors “have to see” on the Carousel of Progress—and the promotional practices that shape how we look.
Influence of Tip Speed Ratio on wake features of a Vertical Axis Wind Turbine

Abstract Dependence of wake features of a Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT) on Tip Speed Ratio ( T S R ) is studied in the present work, using a computational approach, based on Large-Eddy Simulation (LES). The overall methodology was validated in an earlier study, via comparison with Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) wind-tunnel measurements on the same turbine. Results are analyzed in terms of both ensemble-averaged and phase-averaged statistics. They demonstrate a strong dependence of wake properties on T S R . Increasing values of such parameter produce a higher momentum deficit in the wake, but also a faster wake recovery, triggered by the instability of the shear layers at both leeward and windward edges of the wake of the turbine. Both turbulent kinetic energy and turbulent production display their maxima at the leeward and windward sides of the wake, where the largest velocity gradients occur. Turbulent production was found higher at higher T S R s , making turbulent kinetic energy few diameters downstream of the turbine an increasing function of T S R . The level of coherence of the wake was instead usually a decreasing function of T S R , with the largest cylindrical vortices populating the leeward side of the wake.
Nucleotide-Dependent Dimerization and Conformational Switching of Atlastin.

A common feature of dynamin-related proteins (DRPs) is their use of guanosine triphosphate (GTP) to control protein dynamics. In the case of the endoplasmic- reticulum- (ER)-resident membrane protein atlastin (ATL), GTP binding and hydrolysis result in membrane fusion of ER tubules and the generation of a branched ER network. In this chapter, we describe two independent methods for dissecting the mechanism underlying nucleotide-dependent quaternary structure and conformational changes of ATL, focusing on size-exclusion chromatography coupled with multi-angle light scattering (SEC-MALS) and Forster resonance energy transfer (FRET), respectively. The high temporal resolution of the FRET-based assays enables the ordering of the molecular events identified in structural and equilibrium-based SEC-MALS studies. In combination, these complementary methods report on the oligomeric states of a system at equilibrium and timing of key steps along the enzyme's catalytic cycle. These methods are broadly applicable to proteins that undergo ligand-induced dimerization and/or conformational changes.
A rare case of emphysematous pyelonephritis caused by Candida parapsilosis and Finegoldia magna complicated by medical care avoidance

Emphysematous pyelonephritis (EPN) is a necrotizing gas producing infection of the renal parenchyma that commonly occurs in patients with diabetes. EPN requires early diagnosis and treatment due to the possible life-threatening septic complications. We report a rare case of EPN caused by an unfavorable mixed infection of Candida parapsilosis and Finegoldia magna. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of EPN caused by Finegoldia magna. A 62-year-old male with diabetes mellitus (DM) presented with abdominal pain, shortness of breath, and nausea in which a diagnosis of septic shock was made due to EPN. Our patient first noticed abdominal pain 3 weeks prior to hospital presentation; however, he avoided getting treatment due to a fear of contracting severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). This patient exhibited deterioration and expired after surgical intervention despite uneventful nephrectomy. This case suggests that medical care avoidance behaviors among patients could potentially complicate their clinical course.
Development and application of a United States-wide correction for PM 2.5 data collected with the PurpleAir sensor

Abstract. PurpleAir sensors, which measure particulate matter (PM), are widely used by individuals, community groups, and other organizations including state and local air monitoring agencies. PurpleAir sensors comprise a massive global network of more than 10 000 sensors. Previous performance evaluations have typically studied a limited number of PurpleAir sensors in small geographic areas or laboratory environments. While useful for determining sensor behavior and data normalization for these geographic areas, little work has been done to understand the broad applicability of these results outside these regions and conditions. Here, PurpleAir sensors operated by air quality monitoring agencies are evaluated in comparison to collocated ambient air quality regulatory instruments. In total, almost 12 000 24 h averaged PM 2.5 measurements from collocated PurpleAir sensors and Federal Reference Method (FRM) or Federal Equivalent Method (FEM) PM 2.5 measurements were collected across diverse regions of the United States (US), including 16 states. Consistent with previous evaluations, under typical ambient and smoke-impacted conditions, the raw data from PurpleAir sensors overestimate PM 2.5 concentrations by about 40 % in most parts of the US. A simple linear regression reduces much of this bias across most US regions, but adding a relative humidity term further reduces the bias and improves consistency in the biases between different regions. More complex multiplicative models did not substantially improve results when tested on an independent dataset. The final PurpleAir correction reduces the root mean square error (RMSE) of the raw data from 8 to 3 µ g m −3 , with an average FRM or FEM concentration of 9 µ g m −3 . This correction equation, along with proposed data cleaning criteria, has been applied to PurpleAir PM 2.5 measurements across the US on the AirNow Fire and Smoke Map ( https://fire.airnow.gov/ , last access: 14 May 2021) and has the potential to be successfully used in other air quality and public health applications.
Adaptive Identification of Legged Robotic Kinematic Structure.

Model-based control usually relies on an accurate model, which is often obtained from CAD and actuator models. The more accurate the model the better the control performance. However, in bipedal robots that demonstrate high agility actions, such as running and hopping, the robot hardware will suffer from impacts with the environment and deform in vulnerable parts, which invalidates the predefined model. Thus, it is desired to have an adaptable kinematic structure that takes deformation into consideration. To account for this we propose an approach that models all of the robotic joints as 6-DOF joints and develop an algorithm that can identify the kinematic structure from motion capture data. We evaluate the algorithm's performance both in simulation - a three link pendulum, and on a bipedal robot - ATRIAS. In the simulated case the algorithm produces a result that has a 3.6% error compared to the ground truth, and on the real life bipedal robot the algorithm's result confirms our prior assumption where the joint deforms on out-of-plane degrees of freedom. In addition our algorithm is able to predict torques and forces using the reconstructed joint mode.
Instructed Reinforcement Learning Control of Safe Autonomous J-Turn Vehicle Maneuvers

This paper presents a safe control policy search for autonomous J-turn maneuvers inspired by professional car drivers. These drivers have been highly trained to achieve highly aggressive J-turn maneuvers that can be used as potential vehicle safety strategies in emergency situations. We take advantage of this knowledge by integrating an expert’s instruction into reinforcement learning design. The proposed safe reinforcement learning method uses constrained Markov decision processing to find a risk-free control policy for autonomous J-turn maneuver. The proposed algorithms realize the control of continuous action as a sequence of policies with safety constraints. We demonstrate experimentally the development of policy design for the safe J-turn maneuver from simulations to real-world applications.
Oxygen Redox Catalyst for Rechargeable Lithium-Air Battery

Non-aqueous electrolyte Li-air batteries are unique in that the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) products (Li2O2 and Li2O) are insoluble in liquid electrolyte and the ultimate ORR product (Li2O) is electrochemically irreversible. In order to make the Li-air batteries rechargeable with high specific capacity, it is required that the ORR must be strictly selective towards the two-electron reduction so as to form the reversible Li2O2, and that both the catalyst and air electrode are very porous to maximally accommodate the ORR products for high specific capacity. The knowledge learnt from aqueous electrolyte metal-air batteries and fuel cells can be shared to develop the ORR catalyst of the non-aqueous electrolyte Li-air batteries. In this chapter, the ORR in non-aqueous Li-ionic electrolyte is discussed in comparison with those occurring in the aqueous electrolytes. Recent advances and status in study of the electrocatalysts for non-aqueous electrolyte Li-air batteries are reviewed and discussed.
Romania at a Cross Roads : The Business Situation in Romania

Observations have suggested that results of initial elections were the single most important factor in determining central and eastern European progress after the U.S.S.R. breakup in 1991. Romania ...
Cutin from Plants

Introduction Historical Outline Occurrence and Ultrastructure of Cutin Isolation of Cutin Depolymerization of Cutin Chemical Depolymerization Enzymatic Depolymerization Monomer Composition of Cutin Structure of Cutin Biosynthesis of Cutin Biosynthesis of the C16 Family of Cutin Monomers Biosynthesis of the C18 Family of Cutin Monomers Synthesis of Cutin from Monomers Cutin Biodegradation Cutin Degradation in Plants Degradation of Cutin by Animals Cutin Degradation by Bacteria Fungal Degradation Function of Cutin Material Exchange with the Environment Low-temperature Adaptation Role of Cutin in the Interaction with Microbes Cutin Required for Proper Development of Plant Organs Potential Commercial Use for Cutin and Cutinase Outlook and Perspectives Patents Keywords: cutin; cuticle; cutinase; hydroxy fatty acids; epoxyfatty acids; biosynthesis; biodegradation; ω-hydroxylase; epoxidation; epoxide hydration; transcriptional regulation; cytochrome P450; esterification; lipase; fungal cutinase; bacterial cutinase; plant cutinase; environment; infection; O-glycosidic bonds; active serine; catalytic triad; nuclear magnetic resonance; mass spectrometry
AppCiter: A Web Application for Increasing Rates and Accuracy of Scientific Software Citation

program version can lead to significantly different outcomes and results. It is therefore in the interest of scientific advancement to properly reward and incentivize the creation of computational tools through full and accurate citation. Structural biology as a scientific discipline is especially reliant on computational tools. Some of the earliest uses of scientific computing were in elucidating the form and structures of biological molecules (Campbell, 2002). Many of these valuable computing tools are created by other practicing scientists who have long suspected that rates of citation do not accurately reflect rates of use (Morin and Sliz, 2013; Hannay et al., 2009). There are several potential reasons why proper citation of scientific software can be difficult to achieve. Proper citation for a given scientist-created piece of software is typically to reference the original journal article first describing the software. Although program developers often attempt to provide proper reference information in a window within the program, in program documentation, or in a text file included with program distribution, manuscript authors frequently encounter difficulty locating and parsing accurate and up-to-date citation information. Even when accurate information is found, it can be difficult to correlate multiple citations with distinct program versions. Successive versions of a program often have different contributors, each due credit for their work. Additionally, program collections or suites can contain numerous individual programs created by various contributors, where accurately citing the collection does not constitute proper citation of an individual program contained within.
A Tempting State: The Political Economy of Entrapment

The entrapment defense is the primary regulation of undercover operations. Though courts and commentators say that the state should not punish an undercover defendant who does not offend outside such operations, no existing theory fully justifies this principle or the defense (without calling into question basic commitments of American criminal law): (1) Under retributive theory, the entrapped are blameworthy, given that a defendant who succumbs to the same temptation from a private party is blameworthy. (2) Fairness theories fail to justify the defense, given that existing law refuses to recognize unfairness in particular distributions of criminal temptations or in highly selective law enforcement. (3) Existing institutional theories fail to explain the precise political danger of entrusting officials with the power of undercover operations, given that targets can refuse criminal opportunities. (4) Among other problems, existing economic theories rest on a false dichotomy between true offenders who commit crimes outside of undercover operations and false offenders who don't. The paper reconstructs the latter two theories, overcoming existing weaknesses to fully justify the defense. The institutional theory rests on the high degree of fortuity to an individual's legal compliance, the state manipulation of which creates a serious risk of political abuse. The economic theory arises from the need to correct a principal-agent problem that motivates police to favor unproductive tactics yielding high numbers of low value arrests (even if the resulting offenders are not "false"). These theories reveal that the normative consensus is misguided; the defense should not be conceived as a way of protecting individual defendants who do not offend outside undercover operations. The two rationales point to the desirability of tailoring a specific entrapment defense to each crime, but the paper also describes the best unitary defense.
Visualizing the Execution of Java Programs

Jinsight is a tool for exploring a program’s run-time behavior visually. It is helpful for performance analysis, debugging, and any task in which you need to better understand what your Java program is really doing.
Learning More than Expected: The Influence of Teachers' Attitudes on Children's Learning Outcomes.

This study employed the concept of teachers’ sense of responsibility for students’ learning to examine the extent to which the gap in math learning growth is reduced and whether such attitudes can improve children's learning outcomes to a degree that is above and beyond their expected achievement relative to their initial academic skills. Analysis of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study – Kindergarten Cohort revealed that children who experienced high levels of teachers’ sense of responsibility displayed higher achievement growth than did their under-prepared peers who did not receive this support. Furthermore, academically disadvantaged children who were exposed to a high level of teachers’ responsibility were more likely to show a transitional shift in their learning development at the end of the first grade. These findings have implications for understanding how the attitudes that teachers hold within the classroom may play a role in reducing the stratified learning outcomes engendered at an early age.
CO2 fluxes of transitional bioenergy crops: effect of land conversion during the first year of cultivation

The present study examined the effect of land conversion on carbon (C) fluxes using the eddy covariance technique at seven sites in southwestern Michigan (USA). Four sites had been managed as grasslands under the Conservation Reserve Program of the USDA. Three fields had previously been cultivated in a corn/soybean rotation with corn until 2008. The effects of land use change were studied during 2009 when six of the sites were converted to soybean cultivation, with the seventh site kept as a grassland. In winter, the corn fields were C neutral while the CRP lands were C sources, with average emissions of 15gCm � 2 month � 1 . In April 2009, while the corn fields continued to be a C source to the atmosphere, the CRPs switched to C sinks. In May, herbicide (Glyphosate) was applied to the vegetation before the planting of soybean. After tilling the killed-grass and planting soybean in mid June, all sites continued to be C sources until the end of June. In July, fields previously planted with corn became C sinks, accumulating 15‐50gCm � 2 month � 1 . In contrast, converted CRP sites continued to be net sources of C despite strong growth of soybean. The conversion of CRP to soybean induced net C emissions with net ecosystem exchange (NEE) ranging from 155.7 (� 25) to 128.1 (� 27)gCm � 2 yr � 1 . The annual NEE at the reference site was � 81.6 (� 26.5)gCm � 2 yr � 1 while at the sites converted from corn/soybean rotation was remarkably different with two sites being sinks of � 91 (� 26) and � 56.0 (� 20.7)gCm � 2 yr � 1 whereas one site was a source of 31.0 (� 10.2)gCm � 2 yr � 1 . This study shows how large C imbalances can be invoked in the first year by conversion of grasslands to biofuel crops.
Electrochemical detection of catecholamine release using planar iridium oxide electrodes in nanoliter microfluidic cell culture volumes

Release of neurotransmitters and hormones by calcium regulated exocytosis is a fundamental cellular/molecular process that is disrupted in a variety of psychiatric, neurological, and endocrine disorders. Therefore, this area represents a relevant target for drug and therapeutic development, efforts that will be aided by novel analytical tools and devices that provide mechanistically rich data with increased throughput. Toward this goal, we have electrochemically deposited iridium oxide (IrOx) films onto planar thin film platinum electrodes (20 μm×300 μm) and utilized these for quantitative detection of catecholamine release from adrenal chromaffin cells trapped in a microfluidic network. The IrOx electrodes show a linear response to norepinephrine in the range of 0-400 μM, with a sensitivity of 23.1±0.5 mA/M mm(2). The sensitivity of the IrOx electrodes does not change in the presence of ascorbic acid, a substance commonly found in biological samples. A replica molded polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microfluidic device with nanoliter sensing volumes was aligned and sealed to a glass substrate with the sensing electrodes. Small populations of chromaffin cells were trapped in the microfluidic device and stimulated by rapid perfusion with high potassium (50mM) containing Tyrode's solution at a flow rate of 1 nL/s. Stimulation of the cells produced a rapid increase in current due to oxidation of the released catecholamines, with an estimated maximum concentration in the cell culture volume of ~52 μM. Thus, we demonstrate the utility of an integrated microfluidic network with IrOx electrodes for real-time quantitative detection of catecholamines released from small populations of chromaffin cells.
Simulated evaluation of an intraoperative surface modeling method for catheter ablation by a real phantom simulation experiment

In this work, we propose a phantom experiment method to quantitatively evaluate an intraoperative left-atrial modeling update method. In prior work, we proposed an update procedure which updates the preoperative surface model with information from real-time tracked 2D ultrasound. Prior studies did not evaluate the reconstruction using an anthropomorphic phantom. In this approach, a silicone heart phantom (based on a high resolution human atrial surface model reconstructed from CT images) was made as simulated atriums. A surface model of the left atrium of the phantom was deformed by a morphological operation – simulating the shape difference caused by organ deformation between pre-operative scanning and intra-operative guidance. During the simulated procedure, a tracked ultrasound catheter was inserted into right atrial phantom – scanning the left atrial phantom in a manner mimicking the cardiac ablation procedure. By merging the preoperative model and the intraoperative ultrasound images, an intraoperative left atrial model was reconstructed. According to results, the reconstruction error of the modeling method is smaller than the initial geometric difference caused by organ deformation. As the area of the left atrial phantom scanned by ultrasound increases, the reconstruction error of the intraoperative surface model decreases. The study validated the efficacy of the modeling method.
Reply to letter by Klaus and Weiss (00464-008-0163-y): Re: 'Esophageal dilation after laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding' (2008: 22(6)1482-1486).

Klaus et al. [3] described 164 (27.9%) of 587 patients with GERD-like symptoms before adjustable gastric banding. For 52 of these patients (8.8%), the symptoms persisted after surgery. These 52 patients were found to have poorer esophageal motility than those without symptoms postoperatively (20.7 vs. 12%). In the group with esophageal dysmotility, 18 patients (34.6%) (3% of the total series) experienced esophageal dilation after adjustable gastric banding, as did 20 patients (17.9%) in the group without dysmotility. Of the 18 patients, 3 (0.5%) required band removal.
A logistic process constructed using geometric minimization

Abstract A new stationary process with logistic marginals is described. The construction involves dependent geometric minima of independent logistic random variables. Closely related Pareto and exponential processes are introduced.
A summary of soil‐moisture data useful in soil‐ and water‐conservation investigations

This report summarizes some of the more important results obtained in soil-moisture investigations which were first begun at this station—the North Appalachian Experimental Watershed (Coshocton, Ohio)—in 1937 and which were carried on as a help in the evaluation of land-use effects on soil- and water-conservation and on floods. The importance that the soil-profile bears as a medium of water-storage capacity has long been recognized particularly in irrigation-practices. In the humid region where soil-moisture is often a limiting factor in crop-growth, the importance of the soil-profile is being recognized more fully both as a factor in providing moisture for the growth of crops a s well as for its effects on stream-flow in time of floods. In a recent study HURSH and FLETCHER [see 6 of “References” at end of paper” have concluded that the analogy of the storage-functions of the soil-profile to storage in artificial reservoirs is entirely justifiable. The use of such an analogy was stated to be advantageous in evaluating land-use effects upon stream-behavior in terms of are a inches of storage and runoff.
A Polarization-Independent Pulsed-Laser Energy Monitoring System with Analog Readout

Laser beam monitors commonly use a single optical plate placed at an angle to the beam to divert a fraction of the laser beam to a detector. If the beam is not polarized or is polarized in one direction only, the use of a single plate causes no sampling error for an energy measurement. However, if different lasing modes have different polarizations, each mode may be reflected to a different extent due to the nonzero angle of incidence. For instance, Fresnel’s laws of reflection’ predict that a glass plate with a refractive index of 1.55 at a 45° angle of incidence reflects 10.4% of parallel polarized light and 1.1% of perpendicularly polarized light at each surface, assuming that the reflections at the two surfaces of the plate do not interfere with each other.
A comparison of direct and indirect blood-pressure determinations.

In this study a comparison between direct and indirect methods of obtaining blood pressure has been made. A statistical analysis of the data supports the view that the muffling of sounds, or the fourth phase of Korotkow, bears a closer and more constant relationship to diastolic pressure measured directly. This report, therefore, recommends the acceptance of muffling of the sounds of Korotkow as the measure of diastolic pressure.