cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Epidemiologic Findings in Congenital Anemia, Dyserythropoiesis, and Dyskeratosis in Polled Hereford Calves

Congenital dyserythropoiesis and dyskeratosis occur within certain lines of Polled Hereford cattle. Eighty-nine of 90 alleles in 45 affected calves had a mechanism in which they could be identical by descent from an identified common ancestor. The line allele may have been a recurrence of the mutation, or the mutation may have occurred earlier in the breed's history and been distributed throughout the breed by the extensive use of several ancestors. No evidence of disease has been identified in sire and dams of affected calves, suggesting that the allele is not acting in a dominant or incompletely dominant manner. Even distribution of cases between sexes suggests that the disease is not sex linked or sex influenced. A higher degree of inbreeding in the affected calves and temporal and spatial features that separated individual cases also suggest a genetic cause. Segregation ratios were not significantly different from those of the hypothesized simple autosomal recessive inheritance.
Terms of Belonging

Progressive reformers have been increasingly drawn to citizenship as a way to advance their agenda. Confronted with civil rights reversals in the 1980s and 1990s, progressives hope that citizenship can provide not only a new rallying cry that generates popular support but also a sound constitutional foundation that advances law and policy. This essay sounds a cautionary note, building on Alexander Bickel’s observation that “[i]t has always been easier, it always will be easier, to think of someone as a noncitizen than to decide that he is a nonperson.” Historically, citizenship has been deployed in profoundly exclusionary ways, and there are good reasons to doubt that today’s efforts, however well-intentioned, will yield a different result. The essay critically analyzes some proposed reform initiatives and offers suggestions for ensuring that they account for the United States’ substantial immigrant population. Without an awareness of the dangers that a citizenship agenda poses, the essay concludes, nativist impulses could be unleashed in ways that are dehumanizing and damaging to a democracy by, for, and of the people.
High-Power Pulse Propagation in Optical Fibers

The operation of fiber lasers and amplifiers in new higher-power regimes for machining applications is limited by several nonlinear effects that must be understood and mitigated against for further development of these sources.
Human Chemical Ecology

I find myself in the corner of the local coffeehouse. This store is located on the campus of the university, and I come here certain mornings to write and think at least when I am not at the bakery. In between surges of writing, I like to pause to think about the next paragraph, section, or page that needs to be written. As I mentioned in Chap. 6, I like to watch social interactions among people which is probably driven by the behavioralist that I have become. So, pausing to contemplate thoughts in a coffeehouse lends itself to the observation of dynamic human social groups. This coffeehouse goes through incredible waves of activity and at times, I feel sorry for the baristas in attempting to keep up with the incredible and periodic influx of customers. The patronage is as predictable as Old Faithful because the driving force is the timing of the class schedule on campus. On most days, the classes at this university start at the half hour and end at 20 minutes past the hour. Starting at 21 minutes after the top of the hour, a slow trickle of students increase into a downpour of coffee drinkers. At peak times, the line is easily 50 people deep, and it is this 50 person social group that often catches my attention.
Decoupling of Structural and Electronic Phase Transitions in VO 2

Using optical, TEM, and ultrafast electron diffraction experiments we find that single crystal ${\mathrm{VO}}_{2}$ microbeams gently placed on insulating substrates or metal grids exhibit different behaviors, with structural and metal-insulator transitions occurring at the same temperature for insulating substrates, while for metal substrates a new monoclinic metal phase lies between the insulating monoclinic phase and the metallic rutile phase. The structural and electronic phase transitions in these experiments are strongly first order and we discuss their origins in the context of current understanding of multiorbital splitting, strong correlation effects, and structural distortions that act cooperatively in this system.
Widespread basement erosion during the late Paleocene–early Eocene in the Laramide Rocky Mountains inferred from 87Sr/86Sr ratios of freshwater bivalve fossils

Reconstruction of the timing and pattern of exhumation of basement-involved uplifts during the Laramide is essential to the understanding of the mechanisms of crustal shortening and thickening in the region. We use reconstructions of the 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ratios of Late Cretaceous–early Cenozoic river water from fossil shells in six basins of the Rocky Mountains contextualized by modern river-water Sr chemistry studies to trace the erosion of Precambrian basement cores in the Laramide ranges. The 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ratios and Sr concentration of modern river water in the Rocky Mountains are controlled by river bedrock lithology. Weathering of Precambrian silicate rocks in the cores of Laramide ranges produces high 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ratios in highland rivers. Weathering of Paleozoic and Mesozoic carbonates along the basin margins reduces the 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ratios and increases Sr concentration of rivers as they flow basinward. Lowland rivers that have headwaters in Precambrian basement mostly have 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ratios >0.711, whereas rivers confined to or with very long reaches in basins have 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ratios between 0.709 and 0.711. River-water δ 18 O values do not change in response to changes in catchment elevation. Our results from fossil shells show that carbonate weathering dominated the river-water Sr chemistry in the Alberta Foreland, Williston, and Crazy Mountains Basins, and that Proterozoic low-grade metamorphic carbonates in the Belt-Purcell Supergroup were not exposed in the Canadian Rocky Mountains during Late Cretaceous–early Paleocene time. Silicate weathering influenced the Sr chemistry of surface waters in the Powder River Basin during the late Paleocene and the Washakie Basin during the early Eocene, suggesting Precambrian silicate basement rock was extensively exhumed and eroded. The observation that Precambrian basement was eroded earlier around the Powder River Basin than around the Washakie Basin is consistent with a previous study that suggests Laramide ranges in northeast Wyoming reached high elevation earlier than the ranges adjacent to the Sevier thrust belt. Widespread basement erosion in late Paleocene–early Eocene time was controlled by tectonic exhumation, and may have been intensified by the wet and warm global climate.
Marinobufagenin, an endogenous ligand of alpha-1 sodium pump, is a marker of congestive heart failure severity.

Background A reduced cardiac output in chronic heart failure (CHF) evokes renal NaCl and water retention, and, therefore, activates mechanisms promoting natriuresis. Atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) is one such factor. We hypothesized that another NaCl sensitive endogenous natriuretic factor, i.e.,
THE EFFECTS OF KINSHIP ON GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT IN TADPOLES OF RANA CASCADAE.

Tadpoles of the frog, Rana cascadae can discriminate between kin and nonkin (kin recognition) and preferentially associate with kin in laboratory and field experiments (e.g., O'Hara and Blaustein 1981, 1985; Blaustein and O'Hara 1982, 1987). Such association, combined with rapid metamorphosis from small, ephemeral breeding sites and the tendency to form aggregations in nature may lead to intense intraspecific competition among R. cascadae tadpoles (O'Hara 1981; Blaustein 1988). Kin recognition may allow tadpoles to direct competitive interactions away from kin, perhaps by altering behavioral interference or by selectively releasing chemical growth inhibitors (Waldman 1986, 1991; Blaustein 1988; Blaustein and Waldman 1992). In tadpoles, the effects of kin association on growth and development remain controversial (Shvarts and Pyastolova 1970; Travis 1980; Waldman 1986, 1991; Jasienski 1988; Smith 1990; reviewed by Blaustein and Waldman 1992). In particular, the direction of the kinship effect (i.e., whether individuals in kin groups grow faster/larger or slower/smaller than those in mixed groups) appears to depend upon the species examined and the experimental conditions. For example, kinship effects vary for American toads (Bufo americanus). Some family groups show increased larval growth rate when reared with siblings, whereas the growth rate in other families is slower when reared with sibling competitors (Waldman 1986). Individual growth rate is greater in sibling groups of the chorus frog (Pseudacris triseriata) than in mixed groups but only at high density (Smith 1990). However, with the exception of B. americanus (Waldman 1986, 1991), none of the species previously examined for kinship effects on growth and development are known to discriminate kin from nonkin. Using R. cascadae, we examined whether individuals within groups of full-sibling tadpoles and groups of tadpoles of mixed relatedness differ in several key components of reproductive success including the lengths of the larval period, proportions of metamorphs produced, and body lengths and masses at metamorphosis. These traits correlate with fitness in some amphibians (e.g., Berven and Gill 1983; Smith 1987; Semlitsch et al. 1988).
Entropy-Driven Clustering in Tetrahedrally Bonded Multinary Materials

Clustering of certain structural motifs leads to fluctuations of the electrostatic potential in an entire class of materials that are of interest as solar absorbers, and controlling such fluctuations is important for photovoltaic applications. The authors show that this clustering is driven by entropy and leads to narrowing of the band gap, and may occur even under low-temperature growth conditions. They also note that this cluster formation could actually be advantageous for thermoelectric applications.
Airway Complications of Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is associated with a variety of pulmonary disorder. Although disorders of central airways are the most common form of respiratory diseases, recent epidemiological studies also suggest a higher than expected prevalence of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in patients with IBD. Clinical presentation of central airway obstruction in IBD varies from chronic cough and sputum production to acute respiratory failure needing intubation and mechanical ventilation. Many patients develop respiratory complications for the first time months to years after undergoing colectomy. A high index of suspicion is needed for early recognition of airway disease associated with IBD. Pulmonary function tests (PFTs) may be normal or may reveal airflow obstruction and abnormal flow volume loop. Chest computed tomography (CT) is the most useful imaging modality. Bronchoscopy provides most critical diagnostic information and should be performed without delay when involvement of central airways is clinically suspected. Systemic corticosteroids are the mainstay of treatment. Inhaled corticosteroids may be sufficient in patients with mild disease. A careful clinical follow-up supplemented by PFTs, radiological imaging, and bronchoscopy is essential for optimal outcome.
89 – Nobel Laureates in Surgery

The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine is the most prestigious award for a physician-scientist. The field of surgery is fortunate to have had nine distinguished individuals receive this recognition during the twentieth century. Their accomplishments have varied from clinical to scientific and from the technical to the theoretic. The recipients were most deserving of the recognition of the award; nevertheless, it remains unsettling that other remarkably gifted surgeons have not yet received such Nobel Prize recognition. Examples of such oversight include no winners in the field of cardiac surgery, despite its multiple advances; no recognition in the field of metabolism and nutrition along with the care of the critically ill; no recognition in the field of artificial organs; and no recognition, to date, in the field of angiogenesis and vascular biology.
Sacred, Sublime, and Supernatural: Religion and the Spanish Capital in Nineteenth-Century Fantastic Narratives

In this chapter, Wan Sonya Tang refutes the idea that the process of modernization necessarily secularizes the city. Building on theories of the urban sublime, the author asserts that fantastic short fictions of the late nineteenth century perfectly capture the inherently awe-inducing aspect of the modern Spanish capital. Tang argues that, beyond an aesthetic effect, the supernatural is introduced into each story as a means of infusing Madrid with traditionally Christian moral values. The chapter examines “La mujer alta” by Pedro Antonio de Alarcon and “Celin” by Benito Perez Galdos as examples of how nineteenth-century Spanish authors portray the capital city as an enduringly sacred place.
A National Survey of the Perceived Value of American Association of Family and Consumer Science Accreditation

The purpose of this study was to measure the perceived value of the American Association of Family and Consumer Science (AAFCS) accreditation. The overarching research question was how faculty and administrators at institutions in the United States perceived the value of AAFCS accreditation. The study used an exploratory research method to determine whether there were barriers to institutions obtaining or retaining AAFCS accreditation. A survey was developed and e-mailed to faculty and administrators in higher education in accredited and unaccredited academic units. Of the 1,910 e-mail invitations, 345 returned survey responses, leaving 317 useable surveys. Questions focused on the purposes and benefits as stated by the AAFCS accreditation program. Also, the survey included questions on whether the resources required to obtain certification were worth the benefits from being certified. Results showed that the perceived benefit of accreditation did not differ by participants who were employed in accredited programs, but results differed by AAFCS membership status. Implications suggest support is needed from AAFCS and that there are concerns in regard to competing associations' accreditations.
Use of a Penicillin Allergy Screening Algorithm and Penicillin Skin Testing for Transitioning Hospitalized Patients to First Line Antibiotic Therapy

Background Penicillin allergy is the most commonly reported antibiotic allergy. Avoidance of β-lactam antibiotics in hospitalized patients leads to the use of second-line therapies. Objective The utility of a penicillin allergy history algorithm (PAHA) and subsequent penicillin skin testing (PST) in transitioning hospitalized patients from second- to first-line antibiotic therapy is described. Methods Through an electronic medical record report, pharmacists identified adult inpatients with penicillin allergy receiving moxifloxacin, intravenous vancomycin, aztreonam, daptomycin, or linezolid, in which a β-lactam antibiotic was preferred. The PAHA was administered to identify patients for PST. Skin-test negative patients were transitioned to first-line β-lactam antibiotic therapy. Results Fifty patients consented to the study. Historical reactions included hives (16 patients, 32%), angioedema (15, 30%), anaphylaxis (6, 12%), unknown (6, 12%), rash (6, 12%), and dyspnea (1, 2%). Pre-PST antibiotic regimens included vancomycin (82%), aztreonam (22%), moxifloxacin (6%), daptomycin (4%), and/or linezolid (2%). Forty-seven patients (94%) were skin-test negative and were subsequently transitioned to a β-lactam antibiotic. Two patients were skin-test positive and one was histamine nonreactive. No patients experienced an immediate adverse reaction when challenged with a penicillin-based antibiotic. A total of 982 days of second-line antibiotic therapy and at least 23 hospital days to administer the antibiotic were avoided. Conclusions The use of the PAHA and subsequent PST is a safe, effective multidisciplinary intervention that facilitates the transition to β-lactam antibiotics. Our approach is unique in that it prioritizes patients based on the use of second-line antibiotics, and then applies an algorithm to determine eligibility for PST.
Contradictions, consequences and the human toll of food safety culture

In an intensifying climate of scrutiny over food safety, the food industry is turning to “food safety culture” as a one-size-fits-all solution to protect both consumers and companies. This strategy focuses on changing employee behavior from farm to fork to fit a universal model of bureaucratic control; the goal is system-wide cultural transformation in the name of combatting foodborne illness. Through grounded fieldwork centered on the case of a regional wholesale produce market in California, we examine the consequences of this bureaucratization of food safety power on the everyday routines and lived experiences of people working to grow, pack, and deliver fresh produce. We find that despite rhetoric promising a rational and universal answer to food safety, fear and frustration over pervasive uncertainty and legal threats can produce cynicism, distrust, and fragmentation among agrifood actors. Furthermore, under the cover of its public health mission to prevent foodborne illness, food safety culture exerts a new moral economy that sorts companies and employees into categories of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ according to an abstracted calculation of ‘riskiness’ along a scale from safe to dangerous. We raise the concern that ‘safety’ is usurping other deeply held values and excluding cultural forms and experiential knowledges associated with long-standing food-ways. The long-term danger, we conclude, is that this uniform and myopic response to real risks of foodborne illness will not lead to a holistically healthy or sustainable agrifood system, but rather perpetuate a spiraling cycle of crisis and reform that carries a very real human toll.
A Screen for Protein–Protein Interactions in Live Mycobacteria Reveals a Functional Link between the Virulence-Associated Lipid Transporter LprG and the Mycolyltransferase Antigen 85A

Outer membrane lipids in pathogenic mycobacteria are important for virulence and survival. Although the biosynthesis of these lipids has been extensively studied, mechanisms responsible for their assembly in the outer membrane are not understood. In the study of Gram-negative outer membrane assembly, protein–protein interactions define transport mechanisms, but analogous interactions have not been explored in mycobacteria. Here we identified interactions with the lipid transport protein LprG. Using site-specific photo-cross-linking in live mycobacteria, we mapped three major interaction interfaces within LprG. We went on to identify proteins that cross-link at the entrance to the lipid binding pocket, an area likely relevant to LprG transport function. We verified LprG site-specific interactions with two hits, the conserved lipoproteins LppK and LppI. We further showed that LprG interacts physically and functionally with the mycolyltransferase Ag85A, as loss of either protein leads to similar defects in c...
Universal deformation rings, endo-trivial modules, and semidihedral and generalized quaternion 2-groups

Abstract Let k be a field of characteristic p > 0 , and let W be a complete discrete valuation ring of characteristic 0 that has k as its residue field . Suppose G is a finite group and G ab , p is its maximal abelian p-quotient group. We prove that every endo-trivial kG-module V has a universal deformation ring that is isomorphic to the group ring W G ab , p . In particular, this gives a positive answer to a question raised by Bleher and Chinburg for all endo-trivial modules. Moreover, we show that the universal deformation of V over W G ab , p is uniquely determined by any lift of V over W. In the case when p = 2 and G is a 2-group that is either semidihedral or (generalized) quaternion, we give an explicit description of the universal deformation of every indecomposable endo-trivial kG-module V.
An analytical method to estimate the total installed cost of structural steel building frames during early design

Abstract This paper presents a new method to quickly and accurately estimate the material, fabrication, and erection cost of steel frames based on early-design information. To use the proposed Integrated Steel Design (ISD) method, engineers first upload a structural model consisting of a frame layout with preliminary member sizes and connection types specified. The frame connections are then automatically detailed to produce a bill of quantities suitable for fabrication. Next, the total installed cost is estimated based on unit rates maintained by suppliers on a secure web portal. Finally, the cost feedback is provided in the context of the 3-D model in near real-time. We apply the proposed analytical method to several moment frames to illustrate its advantages compared to more approximate approaches. These initial results demonstrate the potential of the ISD method to improve early stage design decision-making through better vertical integration of project information in the AEC industry.
SWS 2016 Feminist Lecture: Reducing Gender Biases In Modern Workplaces: A Small Wins Approach to Organizational Change:

The accumulation and advancement of gender scholarship over past decades has led us to the point where gender scholars today can leverage our deep understanding of the reproduction of gender inequa...
Optimizing the spatial location of medical drones

Abstract Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) or drones are increasingly proposed for medical uses due to their potential to transport medical supplies quickly and efficiently. A prototype medical drone that is equipped with an on-board automated external defibrillator (AED) was announced recently to significantly reduce the time it takes for an AED to arrive to a patient's side. As drones are battery-operated and have limited service range, a network of medical drones is required to adequately provide service to a large area. This paper developed a new spatial optimization model, the backup coverage location problem with complementary coverage (BCLP-CC), to aid in the deployment of a network of AED enabled medical drones. By explicitly integrating backup coverage and continuously distributed demand, the BCLP-CC can optimally place drones and the corresponding launch sites while significantly improving backup coverage with minimal loss of primary coverage. Our results show that 90.4% of historical out-of-hospital cardiac arrests in Salt Lake County can be responded to within 1 min by using 71 drones and 68 launch sites. In addition, 58.9% of incidents can be served by two or more drones, a significant improvement over existing models. This study shows that drones could significantly reduce life-saving equipment travel times for victims of cardiac arrest by appropriately siting them, which will motivate further research in using UAVs or drones for emergency medical purpose.
Association of Plasma Cortisol Levels with Clinical Characteristics of Suicide Attempters.

OBJECTIVE There is evidence that suicidal behavior, among others, is an abnormal response to stress caused by a dysfunction in the activity of hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis, and that cortisol levels are low in a considerable number of people attempting suicide. In this study, we aimed to search for associations of plasma cortisol levels with the clinical characteristics of a group of psychiatric suicide attempters. METHOD The cortisol was measured in the morning in 200 psychiatric patients hospitalized after a suicide attempt, with diagnoses of major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, psychosis, and personality/adjustment disorder, and compared to the levels of 138 healthy controls. Comparisons were also made for diagnostic subgroups and across diagnoses, with regard to depressive symptomatology, mode of attempt, suicide intent, number of attempts, and age. RESULTS Cortisol levels were significantly lower for the whole group of attempters compared to controls. Furthermore, low cortisol levels characterized attempters with personality/adjustment disorder, higher depressive symptomatology, low suicide intent, non-violent attempt mode, repeated attempts, and of younger age. CONCLUSIONS Certain clinical characteristics were identified in attempters with low cortisol levels. In previous studies, low cortisol levels have been associated with impairments in cognitive control, decision-making, and emotional processing that may lead, in the presence of stressors, to suicidal behavior, frequently with non-fatal outcome. Adding plasma cortisol levels to demographic and psychopathological data may help in identifying a subpopulation of attempters with neurocognitive deficits linked to dysfunction of Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal-axis activity, with implications for treatment.
Monitoring changes in individual surgeon’s workloads using anesthesia data

We investigated whether changes in the number of cases performed by surgeons can be used as an appropriate surrogate for anesthesia departments’ billed units. We used both number of cases performed and the American Society of Anesthesiologists’ Relative Value Guide™ (ASA RVG) units to assess all operating room anesthetics of an anesthesia group for two sets of 13 four-week periods. The units correspond to Canadian basic units and time units. Although the number of ASA RVG units is an economically important variable that quantifies perioperative workload, the number of cases is a suitable surrogate for ASA RVG units when used to monitor individual surgeons. The pooled mean Pearson correlation coefficient between the two variables was r = 0.95, with 95% confidence interval 0.94 to 0.96. In addition, there were essentially none to very weak pairwise correlations among surgeons. Informal hospital analyses of relative changes in a surgeon’s caseload over one year using anesthesia workload data or anesthesia billing data will generally give equivalent results. The principal importance of our findings is that they can be used by anesthesiologists, specifically department heads, in their role as part of operating room committees. Such committees institute plans to revise the caseload of one or a few surgeons, and they then evaluate the results of those plans. The findings of this study are applicable to all anesthesia groups and may be especially valuable to the heads of anesthesiology departments who do not have the data to repeat our analyses.
Die Rolle der Voraussetzungen

Ich komme nun zu dem zweiten Gesichtspunkt, unter welchem die landlaufige Auffassung von der Mathematik einer Korrektur bedarf. Man sagt da, in der Mathematik werden alle Satze bewiesen. Danach wurde also die Mathematik eine ganzlich voraussetzungslose Wissenschaft sein, in der es keinerlei prinzipielle Schwierigkeiten gibt. Die tatsachlichen Schwierigkeiten bei den Beweisen, von denen ja die Rede war, wurden nur darauf beruhen, das wir oft die fur die Schlusse notigen Gedankenkombinationen nicht finden.
Interconnection Technology Innovations in 2.5D Integrated Electronic Systems

Vertical interconnections, called through‐silicon vias (TSVs), play a key role in enabling silicon interposer‐based 2.5D integration (and 3D chip stacking). HIST 2.5D integration forms concatenated ICs using heterogeneous IP blocks (from multiple foundries) enabled by a combination of 2.5D integration and face‐to‐face 3D integration technologies. This chapter first discusses silicon interposer TSV technologies with improved thermomechanical and high frequency electrical properties. To reduce TSV stresses and electrical losses, polymer‐enhanced TSVs are used. The polymer‐enhanced TSVs described here include polymer‐clad TSVs (which feature thick polymer liners) and polymer‐embedded vias (which feature an array of copper vias formed within a polymer well). Then, the chapter describes the HIST approach in more detail and share key features, by proposing an alternate TSV‐less heterogeneous integration technology. For forming concatenated ICs using heterogeneous IP blocks, a combination of solder bumps and mechanically elastic and fine‐pitch CMIs is utilized to robustly assemble the ICs.
Continual Learning with Self-Organizing Maps

Despite remarkable successes achieved by modern neural networks in a wide range of applications, these networks perform best in domain-specific stationary environments where they are trained only once on large-scale controlled data repositories. When exposed to non-stationary learning environments, current neural networks tend to forget what they had previously learned, a phenomena known as catastrophic forgetting. Most previous approaches to this problem rely on memory replay buffers which store samples from previously learned tasks, and use them to regularize the learning on new ones. This approach suffers from the important disadvantage of not scaling well to real-life problems in which the memory requirements become enormous. We propose a memoryless method that combines standard supervised neural networks with self-organizing maps to solve the continual learning problem. The role of the self-organizing map is to adaptively cluster the inputs into appropriate task contexts - without explicit labels - and allocate network resources accordingly. Thus, it selectively routes the inputs in accord with previous experience, ensuring that past learning is maintained and does not interfere with current learning. Out method is intuitive, memoryless, and performs on par with current state-of-the-art approaches on standard benchmarks.
Congenital Epidermoid Cyst of the Liver: A Rare Entity Characterized by Antenatal Onset, Slow Postnatal Growth, and Consistent Histologic and Immunohistologic Features

BackgroundThere are only 15 reported hepatic epidermoid cysts; they include patients presenting congenitally through adulthood, with varied speculations about pathogenesis. Aside from recently repo...
Auctions in financial markets

Abstract In this article I discuss how auctions and tools developed for their empirical analysis can inform empirical analysis of financial markets. Since virtually all markets organized as auctions have well-specified and known rules that map nicely into game-theoretical models, I demonstrate using several applications that one can often leverage particular details to study issues that have nothing to do with the auction per se. To do so, I first review an estimation method, which is widely applicable in many settings where a researcher needs to recover agents’ beliefs, in order to establish a link between observables and unobservables using some version of a necessary condition for optimality. I then discuss applications to quantification of front-running, evaluation of quantitative easing operations and estimation of a demand system for financial products.
Digest: Propagule pressure might not matter in the establishment of invasive prokaryotes.

Lavigne et al. developed models to investigate the adaptive colonization of sink environments by asexual organisms. Their results have clear relevance to the spread of infectious disease, but they may also provide insights into prokaryotic invasions into natural communities. Their results show that propagule pressure might not be a good predictor of invasion success in prokaryotes, suggesting that more work is needed to understand how microbial invasions differ from those of plants and animals.
Oral health in hematopoietic stem cells transplantation survivors

Objectives Complications of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) are common and may negatively impact the quality of life of patients. The aim of this study was to characterize the oral health status of a cohort of HSCT survivors. Study Design A retrospective medical record review was conducted for a select group of HSCT survivors seen at the Oral Medicine Clinic at Dana Farber Cancer Institute from July 2014 until October 2018 as part of the HSCT survivorship clinic. Data included past medical history, information on HSCT, and oral health status pre-HSCT and in survivors. Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) was graded according to the National Institutes of Health Oral Mucosal Score. The Fox questionnaire was used to assess the severity of dry mouth. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the data. Results A total of 89 patients were included (53.9% males; median age 58 years). All patients received a dental evaluation and the necessary treatment in the 3 months before HSCT to achieve optimal oral health. Acute myeloid leukemia was the most frequent diagnosis (39.3%; n = 35) followed by myelodysplastic syndrome (19.1%; n = 17). All patients underwent allogeneic stem cell transplantation (SCT), and 12.3% (n = 11) received total body irradiation. On examination (performed 339 days after HSCT; range 262–566 days), 55 patients (61.7%) had oral cGVHD (mild: 55.3%; moderate: 28.6%; severe: 16.1%) with lichenoid features (92.8%) and erythema (64.3%), and 42.8% had extraoral GVHD. Topical steroids were prescribed to 45 patients (50.5%). A median pain score of 5 (range 1–9) was reported by 21.3% of patients; 46.1% (n = 42) needed to avoid certain foods because of oral pain/sensitivity. Sixty-one patients had dry mouth (68.5%; median dryness score: 4 [range 1–10]); 34.1% (n = 31) had difficulty swallowing food and drink because of dryness; and 44% (n = 40) needed to sip liquids to swallow. Jaw tightness and taste changes were reported by 9 patients (9.9%) and 33 patients (36.2%), respectively. Sialagogues were prescribed to 9 patients (10.1%). Caries were identified in 7 patients. Conclusions Oral complications in HSCT survivors are common and may include GVHD, dry mouth, and taste changes. All patients must be screened prior to HSCT and followed up by a dentist periodically to assess the oral health status and modify treatment, if needed.
The Impact of Preoperative Opioid Use Disorder on Complications and Costs following Primary Total Hip and Knee Arthroplasty

Introduction. Multiple studies have demonstrated that patients taking opioids in the preoperative period are at elevated risk for complications following total hip (THA) and knee (TKA) arthroplasty. However, the incidence and impact of opioid use disorder (OUD) among these patients—both clinically and fiscally—remain unknown. The purpose of this study was to investigate this relationship. Methods. The Nationwide Readmission Database (NRD) was used to identify patients undergoing THA and TKA from 2011 to 2015. Coarsened exact matching was used to statistically match the OUD and non-OUD cohorts. Further analysis was then conducted on matched cohorts with multivariate analysis. The incidence of OUD was also determined, and the costs associated with this comorbidity were calculated. Results. The incidence of OUD in arthroplasty patients increased 80% over the study period. OUD patients had higher odds of prosthetic joint infection (OR 1.55, 95% CI 1.23–1.94), wound complication (OR 1.40, 95% CI 1.12–1.76), prosthetic complication (OR 1.37, 95% CI 1.10–1.70), and revision surgery (OR 1.47, 95% CI 1.19–1.81). OUD patients also had longer length of stays (TKA: +0.67 days; THA: +1.09 days), higher readmission (OR 1.60, 95% CI 1.43–1.79), and increased 90-day costs (TKA: +$3,602 [95% CI $3,138–4,065]; THA: +4,527 [95% CI $3,593–4,920). Conclusion. Opioid use disorder is becoming a more common comorbidity among THA and TKA patients. This is concerning as it represents a significant risk factor for postoperative complication. It additionally confers increased perioperative costs. Patients with OUD should be counseled on their elevated risk, and future work will be needed to determine if this is a modifiable risk factor.
Visualizing Change in Ordinal Measures: Religious Attendance in the United States (1972–2018):

The figure plots self-reports of religious attendance using data from the General Social Survey (1972–2018), contributing to current debates about how religiosity is changing in the United States b...
Primary cilia control glucose homeostasis via islet paracrine interactions.

Pancreatic islets regulate glucose homeostasis through coordinated actions of hormone-secreting cells. What underlies the function of the islet as a unit is the close approximation and communication among heterogeneous cell populations, but the structural mediators of islet cellular cross talk remain incompletely characterized. We generated mice specifically lacking β-cell primary cilia, a cellular organelle that has been implicated in regulating insulin secretion, and found that the β-cell cilia are required for glucose sensing, calcium influx, insulin secretion, and cross regulation of α- and δ-cells. Protein expression profiling in islets confirms perturbation in these cellular processes and reveals additional targets of cilia-dependent signaling. At the organism level, the deletion of β-cell cilia disrupts circulating hormone levels, impairs glucose homeostasis and fuel usage, and leads to the development of diabetes. Together, these findings demonstrate that primary cilia not only orchestrate β-cell–intrinsic activity but also mediate cross talk both within the islet and from islets to other metabolic tissues, thus providing a unique role of cilia in nutrient metabolism and insight into the pathophysiology of diabetes.
Design and Fabrication of Flow-Based Edge Detection Memristor Crossbar Circuits 1

We design and fabricate a flow-based circuit for edge detection in images that exploits device-level parallelism in nanoscale memristor crossbars. In our approach, a corpus of human-labeled edges in BSDS500 images is used to learn an edge detection function with ternary values: true, false, and don’t-care. A Boolean crossbar design implementing an approximation of this ternary function using in-memory flow-based computing is then obtained using a massively parallel simulated annealing search executed on GPUs. We demonstrate the success of our approach by fabricating the memristor circuit on a 300mm wafer platform using a custom 65nm CMOS/ReRAM process technology. We demonstrate that our flow-based computing approach is either faster, more energy-efficient or produces fewer incorrect edges than other competing approaches. We show that our design has power and area requirements that are 3.3x and 2.5x lower, respectively, than the previous state-of-the-art.
Islet autotransplantation improves glycemic control in patients undergoing elective distal pancreatectomy for benign inflammatory disease.

Islet autotransplantation (IAT) is increasingly being performed to mitigate against the diabetic complications of pancreatic resection in patients with benign inflammatory pancreatic disorders; however, the glycemic benefit of IAT in patients undergoing partial pancreatic resection is not known. We aimed to determine whether IAT improved glycemic outcomes in patients undergoing distal pancreatectomy for benign inflammatory disease. We performed a multicenter, retrospective case-control study of patients who underwent distal pancreatic resection with IAT at two U S tertiary care centers. The primary outcome was the mean change in pre- vs post-operative HgA1c following transplant as well as the development of new post-operative diabetes. Nine patients requiring distal pancreatectomy for benign disease underwent IAT and were compared to 13 historical controls without IAT. Baseline characteristics were similar between groups. With a median follow-up of 22 months, those who received an IAT had a smaller increase in their pre- vs post-operative HgA1c (0.42 vs 2.83, P = .004), and one case patient (14.3%) vs three control patients (23.1%) developed new post-operative diabetes (P = .581). We conclude that patients undergoing distal pancreatic resection for benign inflammatory disease should be considered for IAT, as long-term glycemic outcomes appear to be improved in those undergoing transplant.
Support for the basic psychological needs and satisfaction with health and quality of life in college students with disabilities.

The purpose of the current study was to examine the relationship between the level of perceived support for the basic psychological needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness and satisfaction w...
Mergers Between Higher Education Institutions: Regulatory Considerations, Antitrust Concerns, and Best Practices

Colleges and universities are merging at a rate never before seen in U.S. history. The same is true of the failure rate of these higher education institutions. The legal literature has largely overlooked this significant trend, though a number of law firms have taken notice and expanded their practices accordingly, looking to advise institutions on such mergers. Much ink has been spilled on mergers between nonprofit institutions such as hospitals, but surprisingly little on those between higher education institutions. The trend among higher education will only accelerate as the number of high school graduates in the U.S. declines precipitously in the coming decade, with higher education institutions accordingly facing severe declines in enrollment, in addition to other significant financial pressures such as the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The overall pressure to merge appears to be mounting year by year, alongside increasing regulatory attention and scrutiny from state officials, especially in states such as Massachusetts. Some signs also point to the potential involvement of the federal government in the near future through the application of antitrust law. Adding fuel to this fire is the abject failure in some mergers to provide students with any semblance of continuity in their educational paths and goals, along with increasing scrutiny from news and media outlets. Amid this intensifying environment, this Article steps into the legal void to address the law and regulations in the area of mergers between higher education institutions. First, the Article dissects two prominent mergers with dramatically different outcomes, grounding the discussion in real-world examples and gleaning insights from these mergers. It then turns to the legal and regulatory aspects of mergers in higher education, focusing on Massachusetts as an example, and forecasts the future of regulation in this area. Focusing then on antitrust law, it argues that antitrust liability can and likely will attach to these mergers in the near future from the federal government. Lastly, it prescriptively proposes a set of best practices for higher education institutions pursuing mergers, in light of the prior sections of the Article. If the legal community fails to address these pressing issues, more higher education institutions will be lost to history, rather than continuing on as merged institutions with their traditions intact; and possibly worse, entire swaths of students will be left with nothing but the empty promises of their failed institutions and growing mountains of loan debt.
Mesoscopic fluorescence lifetime imaging: Fundamental principles, clinical applications and future directions.

Fluorescence lifetime imaging (FLIm) is an optical spectroscopic imaging technique capable of real-time assessments of tissue properties in clinical settings. Label-free FLIm is sensitive to changes in tissue structure and biochemistry resulting from pathological conditions, thus providing optical contrast to identify and monitor the progression of disease. Technical and methodological advances over the last two decades have enabled the development of FLIm instrumentation for real-time, in situ, mesoscopic imaging compatible with standard clinical workflows. Herein, we review the fundamental working principles of mesoscopic FLIm, discuss the technical characteristics of current clinical FLIm instrumentation, highlight the most commonly used analytical methods to interpret fluorescence lifetime data, and discuss the recent applications of FLIm in surgical oncology and cardiovascular diagnostics. Finally, we conclude with an outlook on the future directions of clinical FLIm. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Dressing the First Amendment in Drag: An Argument for Why Dress as a Protected Form of Symbolic Speech should be the Alternative Argument for Discrimination Claims under the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause

The depth of discrimination transcends past a claim under Equal Protection to the realm of the First Amendment through symbolic speech. The evolution of American constitutional law demonstrates that when an individual has been discriminated against based on a classification their only recourse is to make a Fourteenth Amendment, Equal Protection claim. What this author posits, and what this Article intends to establish, is that there are combative solutions to discrimination that can be drawn from other precepts of constitutional law. Through the use of an extreme situation, like Drag Queen Story Time, the author finds a commonsensical solution to discrimination based on conduct that we take advantage of each day—how we dress. This Article investigates the issue of men dressing as women (drag queens) when participating in reading days to children at public libraries. Some public libraries are finding methods to prohibit this activity from occurring at the library. The argument is if the participants of these reading days were not drag queens, there would likely be no controversy. The author concludes that if people believe that a topic needs to be discussed in a public environment, the government should not be able to censor that event based on the content or exterior look of the controversial topic. The author recommends that legislative bodies create regulations that prohibit the discriminatory practices of public libraries to prevent future injustice against symbolic speech. First, this Article explains the history of cross-dressing, shows trends of drag queens reading to children in both small towns and large cities, and discusses the controversy of Drag Queen Story Time that just ended in Lafayette, Louisiana. Second, this Article discusses the Marketplace of Ideas, Self-government, and Autonomy theories of speech to create an image of how the Supreme Court views the flow of conversation and ideas. Finally, this Article defines that libraries are limited public forums and analyzes how the library may regulate speech under intermediate scrutiny.
Earliest Evidence for Geophyte Use in North America: 11,500-Year-Old Archaeobotanical Remains from California's Santarosae Island

There is growing evidence for human use of geophytes long before the advent of agriculture. Rich in carbohydrates, geophytes were important in many coastal areas where protein-rich marine foods are abundant. On California's Channel Islands, scholars have long questioned how maritime peoples sustained themselves for millennia with limited plant resources. Recent research demonstrates that geophytes were heavily used on the islands for 10,000 years, and here we describe geophyte and other archaeobotanical remains from an approximately 11,500-year-old site on Santa Rosa Island. Currently the earliest evidence for geophyte consumption in North America, our data extend geophyte use on the Channel Islands by roughly 1,500 years and document a diverse and balanced economy for early Paleocoastal peoples. Experimental return rates for a key island geophyte support archaeological evidence that the corms of blue dicks (Dipterostemon capitatus) were a high-ranked staple resource throughout the Holocene.