cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Minimum rank and maximum eigenvalue multiplicity of symmetric tree sign patterns

Abstract The set of real matrices described by a sign pattern (a matrix whose entries are elements of {+, −, 0}) has been studied extensively but only loose bounds were available for the minimum rank of a tree sign pattern. A simple graph has been associated with the set of symmetric matrices having a zero–nonzero pattern of off-diagonal entries described by the graph, and the minimum rank/maximum eigenvalue multiplicity among matrices in this set is readily computable for a tree. In this paper, we extend techniques for trees to tree sign patterns and trees allowing loops (with the presence or absence of loops describing the zero–nonzero pattern of the diagonal), allowing precise computation of the minimum rank of a tree sign pattern and a tree allowing loops. For a symmetric tree sign pattern or a tree that allows loops, we provide an algorithm that allows exact computation of maximum multiplicity and minimum rank, and can be used to obtain a symmetric integer matrix realizing minimum rank.
Role of Matrix in an Early Postentry Step in the Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 Life Cycle

The matrix protein of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) has been reported to play a crucial role in the targeting of the Gag polyprotein precursor to the plasma membrane and in the incorporation of viral envelope glycoproteins into budding virions. In this report, we present evidence that mutation of a highly conserved Leu at matrix amino acid 20 blocks or markedly delays virus replication in a range of cell types, including T-cell lines, primary human peripheral blood mononuclear cells, and monocyte-derived macrophages. These mutations do not impair virus assembly and release, RNA encapsidation, or envelope glycoprotein incorporation into virions but rather cause significant defects in an early step in the virus life cycle, as measured by single-cycle infectivity assays and the analysis of viral DNA synthesis early postinfection. This infectivity defect is independent of the type of envelope glycoprotein carried on mutant virions; similar results are obtained in pseudotyping experiments using wild-type or truncated HIV-1 envelope glycoproteins, the amphotropic murine leukemia virus envelope, or the vesicular stomatitis G protein. Intriguingly, matrix residue 20 mutations also increase the apparent binding of Gag to membrane, accelerate the kinetics of Gag processing, and induce defects in endogenous reverse transcriptase activity without affecting virion density or morphology. These results help elucidate the function of matrix in HIV-1 replication.
Poroelastic Foams for Simple Fabrication of Complex Soft Robots

Open-celled, elastomeric foams allow the simple design of fully 3D pneumatic soft machines using common forming techniques. This is demonstrated through the fabrication of simple actuators and an entirely soft, functional fluid pump formed in the shape of the human heart. The device pumps at physiologically relevant frequencies and pressures and attains a flow rate higher than all previously reported soft pumps.
Physiological dependence on copulation in parthenogenetic females can reduce the cost of sex

Despite the two-fold reproductive advantage of asexual over sexual reproduction, the majority of eukaryotic species are sexual. Why sex is so widespread is still unknown and remains one of the most important unanswered questions in evolutionary biology. Although there are several hypothesized mechanisms for the maintenance of sex, all require assumptions that may limit their applicability. I suggest that the maintenance of sex may be aided by the detrimental retention of ancestral traits related to sexual reproduction in the asexual descendants of sexual taxa. This reasoning is based on the fact that successful reproduction in many obligately sexual species is dependent upon the behavioural, physical and physiological cues that accompany sperm delivery. More specifically, I suggest that although parthenogenetic (asexual) females have no need for sperm per se, parthenogens descended from sexual ancestors may not be able to reach their full reproductive potential in the absence of the various stimuli provided by copulatory behaviour. This mechanism is novel in assuming no intrinsic advantage to producing genetically variable offspring; rather, sex is maintained simply through phylogenetic constraint. I review and synthesize relevant literature and data showing that access to males and copulation increases reproductive output in both sexual and parthenogenetic females. These findings suggest that the current predominance of sexual reproduction, despite its well-documented drawbacks, could in part be due to the retention of physiological dependence on copulatory stimuli in parthenogenetic females.
Sagittaria Biomass Partitioning Relative to Salinity, Hydrologic Regime, and Substrate Type: Implications for Plant Distribution Patterns in Coastal Louisiana, United States

Abstract In coastal Louisiana, bulltongue (Sagittaria lancifolia L.) has greatly expanded its distribution while broadleaf arrowhead (Sagittaria latifolia Willd.) and delta duck potato (Sagittaria platyphylla Engelm.) have decreased in abundance. Several factors may be important in these distributional patterns, including increased salinities, altered hydrologic regimes, and changed substrate types. In this study, we simultaneously manipulated these three factors under controlled greenhouse conditions. This three-year study consisted of an experiment that included equal amounts of each of the three species of Sagittaria planted approximately 15 cm apart in 200 liter mesocosm vessels. Dead aboveground biomass was harvested regularly and above- and belowground biomass was harvested at the end of the study. All three species began with relatively high turnover across salinities. While S. latifolia and S. platyphylla only grew well in the freshwater treatments, S. lancifolia grew in all three salinity levels ...
Twenty-Eight Grams of Prevention Is Worth a Half Kilogram of Cure

Benjamin Franklin, early American inventor, entrepreneur, author, politician, and diplomat, was known for his pithy expressions. One of his most famous, oft-quoted sayings is, “An ounce [28 g] of prevention is worth a pound [454 g] of cure.” Less well known is that Franklin's sage advice about prevention was given in the context of his organizing the first fire-fighting company in Philadelphia (1). At that time, fires posed an ever-present risk for the residents of Philadelphia and other cities. Meticulous handling of candles, lanterns, embers, and ashes helped avoid property loss, financial ruin, injury, and death. The safety of the populace was inextricably tied to the fire-handling practices of every individual. Today, clinical laboratories are essential components of healthcare systems, contributing invaluable information for the diagnosis, treatment, and avoidance of disease. Decades of research and development have yielded a wide array of sophisticated assays and analyzers. Simultaneously, societal trends and improvements in disease management have fueled an increase in the prevalence of chronic disease, which is driving a clinical demand for long-term consistency in laboratory test results. Assay suppliers attempt to minimize lot-to-lot variation in reagents via manufacturing processes and by conducting lot-release testing to avoid distributing unsuitable lots. Clinical laboratories perform lot-to-lot validation testing to verify a manufacturer's performance claims and assure the ongoing reliability of testing. Yet, practicing laboratorians know that far too much time is spent dealing with inconsistent results. In this issue of Clinical Chemistry , Algeciras-Schimnich and colleagues report multiple failures of lot-to-lot validation procedures to detect significant between-lot differences in an insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1)3 assay over a 5-year period in 2 laboratories, the Mayo Clinic and the University of Virginia (2). During this period, the Mayo Clinic used 32 reagent lots, and the University of Virginia used 16 lots. With every …
Sentencing, Punishment, and Appeals

This chapter will explore international criminal sentencing at the Trial Chamber and subsequent proceedings before the Appeals Chamber . The Rome Statute provides some boundaries for appropriate sentences, though it does not lay out guidelines. Consequently, this chapter discusses the risk of sentencing disparities among different panels of judges or with other international criminal tribunals. The chapter will also explore the range of punishment options that are available for international crimes, including transfer of a prisoner to a member country, issues related to early release or clemency, and the possibility of alternative sanctions for offenders.
Improving Upon Best Available Technology: A Clean Flex Fuel Snowmobile

The University of Wisconsin-Madison Snowmobile Team has designed and constructed a clean, quiet, high performance snowmobile for entry in the 2008 Society of Automotive Engineers’ Clean Snowmobile Challenge. Built on a 2003 cross-country touring chassis, this machine features a 750 cc fuel-injected four-stroke engine equipped with a fuel sensor which allows operation ranging from regular gasoline to an 85% blend of ethanol and gasoline (E85). The engine has been customized with a Mototron control system which allows for full engine optimization using a range of fuels from E10 to E85. Utilizing a heated oxygen sensor and a 3way catalyst customized for this engine by W.C. Heraeus-GmbH, this sled reduces NOx, HC and CO emissions by up to 89% to an average specific mass of 0.484, 0.154, 4.94 g/kW-hr respectively. Finally, the Mototron system also allowed Wisconsin to extract another 4 kW from the Weber 750cc engine; producing 45 kW and 65 Nm of torque. A two stage muffler system along with sound absorbing material under the hood combines to reduce the sound levels to 71 dbA using SAE test procedure J192. The entire engine and twostage muffler system is packaged in a manner that maintains the snowmobile’s aggressive OEM appearance.
Are antidepressants and psychotherapy equally effective in treating depression? A critical commentary

Deciding on the optimal treatment plan is crucial for individuals with depressive disorders. Specifically, pharmacotherapy (most commonly with antidepressant medications) and psychotherapy are far ...
Developmentally regulated lectins in Eimeria species and their role in avian coccidiosis.

Avian coccidiosis caused by Eimeria species is characterized by rather specific site infections of the intestine. We used hemagglutination and hemagglutination inhibition assays on various developmental stages of Eimeria tenella and on sporozoites of Eimeria acervulina and Eimeria maxima to assay for parasite lectins. Various monosaccharides, polysaccharides, and glycoproteins were used to demonstrate differences in sugar specificity of the lectins between these species. Surface lectins were found on the primary infective stage, i.e., sporozoites, but not on merozoites or unsporulated oocysts. Also, there were differences in the specificities of the various sugar lectins among the different parasite species. Furthermore, there was a dose-dependent reduction of infection of tissue culture cells by sporozoites of E. tenella that were continuously exposed to fetuin, 1 of the specific inhibitors of the lectin. The results of our study are unique in that in 3 species of avian Eimeria all have a lectin on their sporozoites, but the lectins for each species have different sugar specificities. We hypothesize that these lectins found on the surface of the sporozoites may play a role in determining the site of infection within the intestine of the host.
Methoprene: Residues in Fat of Cattle Treated With Methoprene Boluses

Residues of methoprene, an insect growth regulator, were determined in omental fat taken by biopsy from cattle at 30, 60, 90, and 180 days after either one or two boluses containing 1% methoprene had been placed into the reticulum. Residues of methoprene ranged from 0.02 to 0.159 ppm. At 90 days posttreatment, only two animals contained residues in fat above the lower limit of detection (0.02 ppm), and no residues were detected at 180 days posttreatment.
Investigation of Deformation Characteristics of Micropins Fabricated Using Microextrusion

Microextrusion has recently emerged as a feasible manufacturing process to fabricate metallic micropins having characteristic dimensions of the order of less than 1 mm. At this length scale the deformation of the workpiece is dominated by the so-called ‘size effects’, e.g. material properties and frictional behavior vary at small length scales. In recent extrusion experiments performed to produce sub-millimeter sized pins having a base diameter of 0.76 mm and an extruded diameter of 0.57 mm, certain interesting deformation characteristics were observed. When a workpiece with a relatively large grain size of 211 μm was used, the billet tended to deform inhomogenously, and the extruded pins showed a tendency to curve. This phenomenon was not seen when workpieces with a smaller grain size of 32 μm were used. It is believed that the relative size and orientation of the large grains in the 211 μm grain size sample are responsible for this behavior and the aim of this paper is to investigate this phenomenon. Microindentation tests were performed on micropins extruded from workpieces of both grain sizes to obtain a measure of the distribution of induced strain. The results obtained from this analysis show that the deformation characteristics of the extruded pins are dominated by the size and location of specific grains leading to a non-uniform distribution of plastic strain and measured hardness.Copyright © 2005 by ASME
Mitochondrial oxidative stress during cardiac lipid overload causes intracellular calcium leak and arrhythmia.

Background Diabetes and obesity are associated with an increased risk of arrhythmia and sudden cardiac death. Abnormal lipid accumulation is observed in cardiomyocytes of obese and diabetic patients, which may contribute to arrhythmia, but the mechanisms are poorly understood. A transgenic mouse model of cardiac lipid overload, the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPARg) cardiac overexpression mouse, has long QT and increased ventricular ectopy. Objective The purpose of this study was to evaluate the hypothesis that the increase in ventricular ectopy during cardiac lipid overload is caused by abnormalities in calcium handling due to increased mitochondrial oxidative stress. Methods Ventricular myocytes were isolated from adult mouse hearts to record sparks and calcium transients. Mice were implanted with heart rhythm monitors for in vivo recordings. Results PPARg cardiomyocytes have more frequent triggered activity and increased sparks compared to control. Sparks and triggered activity are reduced by mitotempo, a mitochondrial-targeted antioxidant. This is explained by a significant increase in oxidation of RyR2. Calcium transients are increased in amplitude, and sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) calcium stores are increased in PPARg cardiomyocytes. Computer modeling of the cardiac action potential demonstrates that long QT contributes to increased SR calcium. Mitotempo decreased ventricular ectopy in vivo. Conclusion During cardiac lipid overload, mitochondrial oxidative stress causes increased SR calcium leak by oxidizing RyR2 channels. This promotes ventricular ectopy, which is significantly reduced in vivo by a mitochondrial-targeted antioxidant. These results suggest a potential role for mitochondrial-targeted antioxidants in preventing arrhythmia and sudden cardiac death in obese and diabetic patients.
Diquat and endothall: Their fates in the environment

In recent years, the increasing use of herbicides in the U.S. has been accentuated by the aquatic weed problem caused by eutrophication. Certain herbicides developed mainly for agriculture are being used successfully to control aquatic weed nuisances. Among the herbicides gaining wide acceptance for the control of terrestrial and aquatic vegetation are diquat and endothall.
Technological support system for the development of high-yield,high-quality and highly efficient agriculture in Fujian

Scientific and technological advancements and innovation are essential for the development of high-yield,high-quality and highly efficient agriculture.The current development characteristic of agriculture in Fujian and the technological support system were studied.Measures that might foster the agricultural progress for the province are proposed.
Food Hygiene Surveillance in Guangyuan City From 2004 to 2007

Objective To explore the situation of food hygiene,the measures of improving health quality of food in Guangyuan,and provide scientific basis for the measures of food-related disease prevention and control.Methods Samples from food production and operation units were tested.The results were analyzed according to "Hygienic Standard of Food" and "Methods of Food Hygienic Analysis" issued by China.Results The results showed that the total qualification rate of 3 106 samples was 83.58% during 2004-2007.The mean annually qualification rate was 81.63%,82.65%,84.58% and 88.99%,respectively.The mean qualification rate of alcohol was 96.00%,and that of meat products was 79.61%.Conclusion The qualification rate of food remained at a stable level and raised year after year in the 4 years,though the management of food hygiene surveillance should continue to be strengthened.
What Nonprofit Executives Want and What They Get from Board Members

In theory, nonprofit boards of directors exist to perform mission-setting and oversight functions that help to ensure organizational accountability. Yet there is evidence that board behavior often falls short of this ideal. Using survey data from a sample of 241 executive directors of nonprofit agencies, we investigated whether nonprofit boards are meeting executive directors’ expectations, and if not, what factors explain this? We find that although board behavior tends to align closely with executive directors’ preferences for involvement in administration and management tasks, there is a greater disconnect between board behavior and executive directors’ preferences for involvement in mission-setting and oversight duties. Factors that mitigate this gap include organizational professionalization and stability, whereas more extensive reliance on government funding exacerbates it. Female executive directors experience a greater disconnect in their preferences for board involvement and actual board involvement than male executive directors. We conclude by discussing the implications of our findings for both theory and practice.
Security and Privacy Issues in Agent-Based Location-Aware Mobile Commerce

Mobile commerce and location-aware services promise to combine the conveniences of both online and offline bricks-and-mortar services. Just as agent-enabled desktop computers can be used to improve a user's e-commerce experience, so can agent-enabled mobile devices be used to improve a user's mobile commerce experience. Agent-enabled mobile devices can perform complex and time-consuming tasks not well-suited for the small and cumbersome user interfaces available on most mobile devices, can interact with other mobile devices over more than one interface, and can accompany users under circumstances in which the desktop computers cannot. Agent-enabled mobile devices, however, present new security challenges and risks. While e-commerce agents run the risk of disclosing one's identity in cyberspace, agent-enabled mobile devices running location-aware applications, run the risk of disclosing one's actual physical location in addition to other personal information. This paper outlines security and privacy issues and provides security guidelines for agent-based location-aware mobile commerce.
Defining Duty in the Civil War: Personal Choice, Popular Culture, and the Union Home Front

Review of: "Defining Duty in the Civil War: Personal Choice, Popular Culture, and the Union Home Front," by J. Matthew Gallman.
Biogeographic relationships between Macaronesia and the Americas

Abstract. A vicariance model is presented for the origin of Macaronesian endemics and their allopatric American relatives. Trans-Atlantic relationships are identified for 21 taxa in which an endemic Macaronesian clade either has a sister group in the New World or is part of a larger monophyletic group that includes representatives in the New World. Historical implications of this pattern are discussed in relation to current tectonic and geological models for the Central Atlantic and the Macaronesian Islands. The proposed vicariance model identifies a local origin for the Macaronesian endemics from ancestral distributions that already encompassed ancestral Macaronesia and parts of the New and Old World before formation of the Atlantic. The present-day existence of Macaronesian endemics is attributed to sequential colonisation of newly formed islands within the Atlantic from Mesozoic time.
Comments on: “Basilar membrane vibration data and their relation to theories of frequency analysis” (J. P. Wilson)

It is worth mentioning that in a paper recently submitted for publication, Geisler et al. compare the basilar membrane response obtained by Rhode with single auditory nerve fiber data from squirrel monkeys obtained by them. From their comparison of iso-amplitude contours of basilar membrane displacement with iso-rate contours of auditory nerve fibers having best frequencies in the same frequency range, they concluded that, even though there are striking similarities between both sets of data, the neural data can not be explained directly by the displacement response of the basilar membrane. They suggest, as Dr. Wilson in this paper, that some transformation of the basilar membrane displacement must be involved in the generation of the neural responses.
A six-year longitudinal PET study of (+)-[11C]DTBZ binding to the VMAT2 in monkey brain.

Abstract Introduction The longitudinal reproducibility of in vivo binding potential measures for [ 11 C]dihydrotetrabenazine ([ 11 C]DTBZ) binding to the vesicular monoamine transporter 2 (VMAT2) site in primate brain was examined using a unique dataset of repeated control PET imaging studies. Methods Forty-one dynamic [ 11 C]DTBZ PET studies were completed in a single rhesus monkey. Imaging equipment (microPET P4), personnel, radiotracer characteristics (injected mass amounts, molar activity) and image data analysis (BP ND-Logan ) were consistent throughout the entire sequence of PET studies. Results Same day reproducibility of BP ND-Logan estimates of specific binding was very good (-3 and -7% changes) for two control-control sessions. Over the full 74 months, the average BP ND-Logan value for [ 11 C]DTBZ-PET studies was 4.19 +/- 0.52, for a variance of 12%. No age-dependent change in binding potentials was observed over the six-year period. Conclusions If the technical variables associated with PET scanner are consistently maintained, including PET scanner, imaging procedures and radiotracer preparation, in vivo biochemistry can be reproducibly measured in the primate brain over a multi-year period of time.
Vitamin D and the Cardiovascular System

Abstract Vitamin D has recently been shown not only to be important for bone and calcium metabolism but also for homeostasis of critical tissues involved in vascular disease. The vitamin D receptor (VDR) and the 1α-hydroxylase enzyme are present in critical cells implicated in the development of vascular disease. Vitamin D influences multiple mechanisms to decrease vascular inflammation; it suppresses the renin-angiotensin system, promotes endothelial nitric oxide release, decreases vascular inflammatory markers and cholesterol deposition, and imbues immune cells with antiinflammatory properties. Studies in mouse models of diet-induced insulin resistance show that vitamin D deficiency or VDR deletion promotes renin-dependent hypertension and accelerates atherosclerosis. However, the effects of vitamin D supplementation on blood pressure and atherosclerosis have been mixed and depend on baseline vitamin D status, dose and vitamin D compound administered, and animal model. Human observational studies indicate consistent associations between low 25(OH)D levels and increased cardiovascular disease, but the effects of vitamin D supplementation for prevention are conflicting and study design limitations preclude adequate conclusions.
Beyond Pulmonary Vein Isolation for Persistent Atrial Fibrillation: Don't Just Do Something, Stand There.

See Article by Mohanty et al Paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF) is typically treated by eliminating the initiating triggers. Specifically, durable pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) and ablation of non-PV triggers are generally sufficient to control paroxysmal AF. However, a similar approach is less successful in patients with nonparoxysmal forms of AF. This deficit in outcomes has been attributed to substrate abnormalities that are posited to underlie nonparoxysmal AF. Accordingly, strategies have been developed to modify the arrhythmogenic substrate, including ablation of complex fractionated atrial electrograms, linear lesions, and extensive ablation or isolation of the posterior left atrium (LA).1–3 Although early reports were generally promising for these techniques, when subjected to more rigorous examination, these approaches have not consistently improved outcomes.4,5 For example, the STAR AF II trial (Substrate and Trigger Ablation for Reduction of Atrial Fibrillation Trial Part II) randomized patients with persistent AF to PVI alone, PVI plus complex fractionated atrial electrogram ablation and PVI plus linear ablation across the LA roof and mitral isthmus. Not only was the procedure shorter in the PVI alone arm, but there was also a nonsignificant trend toward better arrhythmia-free survival.6 Despite the failure of substrate modification strategies to improve long-term arrhythmia-free survival beyond PVI, the electrophysiology community has not given up its quest to enhance the efficacy of catheter ablation for nonparoxysmal AF. Focal impulse and rotor modulation (FIRM) mapping is another such attempt to improve ablation success through better understanding of AF mechanisms. AF manifests clinically as a highly disorganized rhythm and many investigators have attempted to find order within this chaos, with the ultimate goal of identifying and targeting its perpetuating source(s). Although the seminal …
Effect of Coverage on Catalytic Selectivity and Activity on Metallic and Alloy Catalysts; Vinyl Acetate Monomer Synthesis

The repulsive lateral interactions that occur at the high coverages present on catalysts under reaction conditions are likely to exert a significant influence on the reaction energetics. The effect of such lateral interactions are explored for the synthesis of vinyl acetate monomer (VAM) on Pd(111) and Au/Pd(111) alloy model single-crystal catalysts, where the reaction kinetics are monitored by reflection–absorption infrared spectroscopy (RAIRS). It is shown by comparing the reactivity of ethylene and its deuterated isotopomers, and by trapping reaction intermediates, that VAM is formed on Pd(111) by a mechanism first proposed by Samanos, where the reaction is initiated by coupling between ethylene and adsorbed acetate species to form an acetoxyethyl intermediate, followed by a rate-limiting β-hydride elimination step to produce VAM. The reaction comprises two sequential steps; a bond-forming reaction, followed by a bond-breaking step. Repulsive lateral interactions are expected to facilitate bond-forming reactions that reduce the total coverage, but inhibit bond-breaking steps, so that VAM formation provides an ideal reaction to explore these effects. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations confirm the proposed coverage effects and yield energy barriers for the reaction of ethylene with acetate-saturated Pd(111) surfaces that are in excellent agreement with experiment. It is also found that bond-breaking in VAM decomposition is inhibited on a crowded Pd(111) surface, indicating that high adsorbate coverages influence both reactivity and selectivity. VAM formation is also explored on Au/Pd(111) alloys. The catalytic activity of alloys is conventionally discussed by invoking ensemble (geometric) and electronic (ligand) effects. However, the acetate coverage also decreases with increasing gold content of the Au/Pd(111) alloy, thereby decreasing the repulsive lateral interactions. The coverage effects on alloys are found to be as large as the ensemble + electronic effects and induce a change in the rate-limiting step for VAM formation from β-hydride elimination to the ethylene-acetate coupling step.
Significance of Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) Heat-Labile Toxin (LT) Enzymatic Subunit Epitopes in LT Enterotoxicity and Immunogenicity

Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) strains producing heat-labile toxin (LT) and/or heat-stable toxin (STa) are a top cause of children's diarrhea and travelers' diarrhea. Holotoxin-structured GM1-binding LT is a strong immunogen and an effective adjuvant, and can serve a carrier or a platform for multivalent vaccine development. However, the significance of peptide domains or epitopes of LT particularly enzymatic LTA subunit in association with LT enterotoxicity and immunogenicity has not been characterized. In this study, we identified B-cell epitopes in silico from LTA subunit and examined epitopes for immunogenicity and association with LT enterotoxicity. Epitopes identified from LTA subunit were individually fused to a modified chicken ovalbumin carrier protein, and each epitope-ovalbumin fusion was used to immunize mice. Data showed all 11 LTA epitopes were immunogenic; epitope 7 (105SPHPYEQEVSA115) induced greater titers of anti-LT antibodies which neutralized LT enterotoxicity more effectively. To examine these epitopes for the significance in LT enterotoxicity, we constructed LT mutants by substituting each of 10 epitopes at the toxic A1 domain of LTA subunit with a foreign epitope and examined LT mutants for enterotoxicity and GM1-binding activity. Data showed that LT mutants exhibited no enterotoxicity but retained GM1-binding activity. The results from this study indicated that while not all immunodominant LTA epitopes were neutralizing, LT mutants with an individual epitope substituted lost enterotoxicity but retained GM1-binding activity. These results provided additional information to understand LT immunogenicity and enterotoxicity and suggested the potential application of LT platform for multivalent vaccines against ETEC diarrhea and other diseases.IMPORTANCE No vaccine is licensed for enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) strains, which remain a leading cause of diarrhea in children from developing countries and international travelers. GM1-binding heat-labile toxin (LT) which is a key virulence factor of ETEC diarrhea is a strong vaccine antigen and a self-adjuvant. LT can also serve a backbone or platform for MEFA (multiepitope fusion antigen), a newly developed structural vaccinology technology, to present heterogeneous epitopes (by replacing LT epitopes) and to mimic epitope antigenicity for development of broadly protective vaccines. Data from this study identified neutralizing LT epitopes and demonstrated that substitution of LT epitopes eliminated LT enterotoxicity without altering GM1-binding activity, suggesting LT is potentially a versatile MEFA platform to present heterogeneous epitopes for multivalent vaccines against ETEC and other pathogens.
Team-Based Learning: A Model for Democratic and Culturally Competent 21st Century Public Administrators

This article presents key literature on team-based learning, a research-based teaching method derived from the cooperative learning paradigm. Team-based learning is presented as a means to teach pu...
Flow Injection Microsystems — There is a Past but Where is the Future ?

The paper will review past and present efforts to miniaturize flow injection systems, will discuss the principles of sequential injection and its advantages for microminiaturization. New type of detector — the jet ring cell will be introduced and its use in cytoanalysis and for flow injection on renewable surfaces will be demonstrated. Merits of novel class of chemical sensors with renewable surfaces will be discussed.
Zur Anwendung der Elementaren Katastrophentheorie

Das zentrale Theorem der elementaren Katastrophentheorie - das Klassifikationstheorem aus der Sicht der qualitativen Theorie dynamischer Systeme - beschaftigt sich mit folgender Frage: Welchen Einfluss uben Parameteranderungen auf die Gleichgewichtskonfigurationen (= Mengen und dynamische Stabilitatseigenschaften der Gleichgewichtszustande) typischer bzw. strukturell stabiler Gradientensysteme aus? Diese Fragestellung ist offensichtlich komparativ-dynamischer bzw. komparativ-statischer Natur.
Supported Employment: Promises Deferred for Persons with Severe Disabilities:

The extent of supported employment participation by individuals with severe or profound disabilities was investigated through an analysis of the employment histories and functional characteristics of 1,411 individuals involved in supported employment programs in eight states. Results indicated that individuals currently participating in supported employment possessed very limited previous employment experience, yet did not possess functional characteristics indicative of individuals with severe or profound disabilities. Persons with severe or profound disabilities were found to be minimally represented in current supported employment efforts, representing less than 8% of all individuals investigated. Based upon the results of the study, recommendations are offered to enhance the opportunities of individuals with severe or profound disabilities to benefit from the national supported employment initiative, including the need for further research and demonstration activities and the necessity of immediate mo...
DD45: Haben Sie das Recht zum Rat? (August 2007)

„Warum luftest du nicht am Morgen? Wie oft habe ich es gesagt! Hallo? Horst du mich? Bin ich Luft? Du ignorierst mich, ja? Ich mache das Fenster auf. Du machst es gleich wieder zu, wenn ich rausgehe, oder? Darf ich dir noch einen Rat geben, welche Socken du anziehen solltest? Warum schaust du immer so leidend? Fruher warst du wenigstens aufbrausend. Du wirst schlapp.“
The Morphogenesis and Biochemical Characteristics of Ceroid Isolated from Cases of Neuronal Ceroid-Lipofuscinosis

Two distinctly different groups of disorders have emerged from the conditions generically classified as amaurotic familial idiocies. One is characterized by grossly abnormal profiles for cerebral sphingolipids, for example the GM1 and GM2 gangliosides. The other group is composed of patients with normal sphingolipid profiles, but with neuronal accumulation of lipopigments of the ceroid-lipofuscin type. The sphingolipidoses have been shown by a number of investigators to meet the classic concept of Hers (1965) for lysosomal diseases. This view has been repeatedly reinforced by continuing studies which show the lack or reduction of specific hydrolases, resulting in the accumulation of biochemical compounds which cannot be degraded to metabolically utilizable substances. The concept of lysosomal diseases has led many investigators to search for a single accumulating lipid or a deficient hydrolytic enzyme unique to neuronal ceroid-lipofuscinoses. Since many of the lysosomal disorders became better understood by the elucidation of the chemical properties of a specific lipid, present in unphysiologically large quantities, the pronouncement by Donahue et al. (1966) before this group, that the “chemical analysis of cytoplasmic lipopigment granules (from the brains of patients with Batten’s disease) will contribute little towards an understanding of this disease” was decidedly unwise. Although it is correct, that autofluorescent lipopigments lack chemical specificity and result from a great variety of pathogenetic situations (Porta and Hartroft, 1969), Donahue et al. (1966) failed to recognize the distinct possibility, that certain repetitive patterns in the chemical composition and ultrastructure of these residual bodies may indicate a specific formative pathogenesis. On the strength of this argument, we developed methods to isolate lipopigments in pure preparations and the first results have proved already the soundness of this concept. As it turned out, the previously held concept of a close relationship between lipofuscin and ceroid had to be abandoned and replaced by the theses that these classes of lipopigment are distinctly different entities, albeit both represent residual bodies and both contain polymeric substances (Siakotos et al., 1970).
Supply Chain Management: Competing Through Integration

The primary objective of supply chain management is the elimination of barriers that inhibit communication and cooperation among different members of the entire supply chain. To eliminate these interorganizational barriers, managers must understand and manage the flow of goods and information from the initial source of raw materials all the way to the final customer. The terminology commonly used to describe supply chain management is, “the management of the value-added process from the suppliers’ supplier to the customers' customer.” Given the difficulties that most firms encounter in their efforts to mitigate the adverse effects of functional barriers that are entirely within the firm, the challenge of supply chain integration is daunting. To achieve synergies among supply chain members companies must find answers to many questions, including: Why should I be concerned about how somebody else does business? Can we really trust the supply chain members not to take advantage of us? How is our role going to change in the new, integrated supply chain environment? Who are the best partners to align our competitive efforts with? How many different supply chains can we work with effectively?
A Stochastic Formulation of the Optimal Boundary Control Problem Involving the Lighthill Whitham Richards Model

Abstract It has been previously shown that the traffic control problem can be formulated as a Linear Programming (LP) problem when the corresponding initial conditions are fixed while they can be uncertain in actual control problems. This paper gives a stochastic programming formulation of the control problem, involving chance constraints to capture the uncertainty associated with the initial conditions. Different objective functions are explored using this framework and the solutions to the control problems agree well with the Monte Carlo simulation based control. To the authors’ best knowledge, this is the first time that the influence of initial condition uncertainty on traffic control is investigated through stochastic programming with chance constraints.
Charlotte Smith: Major Poetic Works / Women Wanderers and the Writing of Mobility, 1784–1814

Together Claire Knowles and Ingrid Horrocks are ideal editors for a new, much-needed, paperback edition of Charlotte Smith’s major poetic works. In their recent monographs, Knowles and Horrocks rec...
Understanding Particle Swarm Optimization: A Component-Decomposition Perspective

Particle Swarm Optimization is an effective algorithm because of the combination of the stochastic behavior of particles and the swarm structure. Unfortunately these features also make it difficult to understand the dynamics of PSO. Common methods of analyzing PSO rely on simplifying the algorithm, e.g., assuming stagnation (a state where the swarm ceases finding better solutions) or treating the stochastic factors as constants. In this paper, we expand on earlier work to understand the dynamics of PSO which used input-to-state stability analysis. In particular, we decompose PSO more completely and use the properties of combinations of input-to-state stable components to model convergence at all levels up to and including the entire swarm. This approach allows us to conceptualize the swam as a leader-follower structure and analyze the swarm under a variety of conditions including various fitness functions.
A CNTFET based Multi-Stage Transimpedance Amplifier for Blood Glucose Monitoring Systems

In this paper, the design of an ultra-low-power, low noise carbon nanotube field effect transistor (CNTFET) based transimpedance amplifier (TIA) is presented for an amperiometric based blood glucose monitoring system for wearable devices. The proposed cascode common source multistage transimpedance amplifier circuit is designed and implemented in CNTFET technology. It has been demonstrated that the performance of the proposed TIA can be enhanced by considering an optimum number of CNTs, the CNT pitch and CNT diameter. The TIA shows a significant increase in transimpedance gain, 572 MΩ, with a bandwidth of 200 MHz and an input referred current noise of 8.3 fA/⇃Hz for an input current of 2 nA. The total power consumption is 11 pW with a 1.8 V supply.
Prototype and Analytics for Discovery and Exploitation of Threat Networks on Social Media

Identifying and profiling threat actors are high priority tasks for a number of governmental organizations. These threat actors may operate actively, using the Internet to promote propaganda, recruit new members, or exert command and control over their networks. Alternatively, threat actors may operate passively, demonstrating operational security awareness online while using their Internet presence to gather information they need to pose an offline physical threat. This paper presents a flexible new prototype system that allows analysts to automatically detect, monitor and characterize threat actors and their networks using publicly available information. The proposed prototype system fills a need in the intelligence community for a capability to automate manual construction and analysis of online threat networks. Leveraging graph sampling approaches, we perform targeted data collection of extremist social media accounts and their networks. We design and incorporate new algorithms for role classification and radicalization detection using insights from social science literature of extremism. Additionally, we develop and implement analytics to facilitate monitoring the dynamic social networks over time. The prototype also incorporates several novel machine learning algorithms for threat actor discovery and characterization, such as classification of user posts into discourse categories, user post summaries and gender prediction.
Is rod diameter associated with the rate of rod fracture in patients treated with magnetically controlled growing rods

Few risk factors for fracture in magnetically controlled growing rods (MCGR) have been identified. We hypothesize an increased rate of rod fracture in small diameter rods compared to large diameter rods in patients with early-onset scoliosis (EOS). The purpose of this study was to determine the association between the diameter of MCGR constructs and the rate of rod fracture. Patients with EOS who underwent MCGR implantation—primary or conversion—from 2013 to 2018 were identified from two registries including 40 centers. Rod diameter sizes greater than 5.0 mm or less than or equal to 5.0 mm were defined as “Large” and “Small” rods, respectively. Only dual-rod constructs were included. The primary outcome measure collected was rod fracture at any point in treatment up to the most recent follow-up. Cox regression was utilized for unequal follow-up to compare rate of breakage at the last follow-up between cohorts. 527 patients with 1,054 rods were included. 552 (52.4%) rods had a diameter of less than or equal to 5.0 mm and 461 (43.7%) rods had a diameter of greater than 5.0 mm. 41 (3.9%) rods were missing a recorded rod diameter and were not included in the analysis to determine the association between the rate of fracture and rod diameter. 20 (1.9%) total rod fractures occurred: 9 (1.6%) rods with diameters of ≤ 5.0 mm, 10 (2.2%) rods with diameters of > 5.0 mm, and 1 uncategorized rod (p = 0.529). No difference in the rate of rod fracture or survival distribution was found between rod diameters of > 5.0 mm and ≤ 5.0 mm even after stratification by ambulatory status, major coronal curve, weight, or location of anchors. Rod fracture appears to be a rare event in dual MCGR constructs and rod diameter does not seem to be associated with the incidence or rate of rod fracture. Surgeons may consider other criteria for selecting rod diameter in their patients such as patient size, amount of surgical correction, single vs. dual constructs, and risk of hardware prominence.
Factors Influencing the Reparability and Healing Rates of Rotator Cuff Tears

To discuss tear- and patient-related factors that influence the healing potential of rotator cuff tears and to clarify the terminology surrounding this topic. Over the last few years, further insight has been gained regarding rotator cuff tear features that are associated with poor healing rates after rotator cuff repair. Some of these features have been incorporated in prediction models developed to accurately predict rotator cuff healing rates utilizing preoperative risk factors weighted by importance. Rotator cuff tears may be considered functionally irreparable based on their size, chronicity, absence of adequate tendon length, atrophy, and fatty infiltration. Furthermore, advanced age, use of tobacco products, diabetes, and other patient-related factors may impair tendon healing. Careful analysis and discussion of all these factors with patients is essential to determine if surgical repair of a rotator cuff tear should be recommended, or if it is best to proceed with one of the several salvage procedures reviewed in this topical collection, including augmentation of the repair, superior capsular reconstruction, tendon transfers, and other.
A case study of symptomatic severe diffuse cranial hyperostosis

Abstract This case report discusses an incident of cranial hyperostosis that was discovered after an episode of syncope on imaging. A CT and MRI work-up revealed intracranial volume loss and cerebral herniation into the posterior fossa. Concomitant with the episode of syncope, the patient presented with deficits in delayed short-term memory, which was supported using the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS) test. As far as we are aware, this is the first report of severe memory dysfunction stemming from chronic herniation of the mesial temporal lobe due to severe hyperostosis. Hyperostosis has been shown to manifest as a wide variety of symptoms, but the delayed short-term memory impairment observed in this case is completely novel.
People As Data?: Developing an Ethical Framework for Feminist Digital Research

Abstract When conducting social media research, scholars inherently examine people’s personal lives due to the nature of social media engagement. While some social media platforms allow for efforts of anonymity to be made, due to facial recognition software and other technologies it can be difficult to truly be anonymous online as one shares details and photos from their lived experiences. Digital research ethics in the field currently advocate for a situational approach to inquiry rather than providing rigid rules and frameworks. However, I argue social media scholars need a more comprehensive research ethic, namely an ethic of care, when studying content so intimately tied to people’s lives. Drawing on digital research and feminist ethics, social media research guidelines from the Association of Internet Researchers, and on my experiences studying embodied performances on social media, I propose a feminist digital research ethic of care that further prioritizes the safety and care of those being studied due to the ease of searching and finding people online. Adopting more comprehensive ethics when conducting social media research becomes especially important when studying minority and vulnerable populations, such as may be the case when conducting social media research tied to gender, sexuality, and the LGBTQIA + community.