cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Environmental variability and coccidioidomycosis (valley fever)

Coccidioidomycosis (valley fever) is a disease endemic to arid regions in the western hemisphere, and is caused by the soil-dwellingfungus Coccidioides immitis (C. immitis). In this paper, we provide an overview of the current state of knowledge regarding valley fever and C. immitis as related to climatic conditions and habitat requirements. Previous research shows there is a relationship between temperature and precipitation, and outbreaks of coccidioidomycosis. Incidence of the disease varies seasonally as well as annually due to changing climatic conditions. However, the specific environmental conditions that may produce an outbreak of coccidioidomycosis are not well understood in space and time. Previous studies have attempted characterize C. immitis' habitat. Temperature, moisture, salinity, and pH of the soil have all been considered separately in the geographic distribution of the fungus. Medical and proactive intervention are served best, however, by an integrative strategy that folds climate and surface variables into spatially-explicit models. We conclude with recommendations for future research directions.
An Organizational Coordinated Control Paradigm for Complex Systems based on Intelligent Agent Supervisory Loops

A coordinated control paradigm for complex systems, based on intelligent agent supervisory loops is being proposed. The main focus is to assess the strategy of multi-level organizational approach for the control of such systems using intelligent agents. The paper discuss some design methods for the intelligent control based on multi-agent systems acting on a supervisory loop with the overall goal of expandable organizational control. Further, how these agents can be utilized for scalable multi-agent coordination will be discussed. Subsequently, the issues related to the system stability and supervision based on global action evaluation strategy is illustrated. Main advantage and uniqueness of the proposed architecture is scalability, multi-level decision making and coordinated control of complex systems in the presence of external influences.
An Empirical Study of the Effect of Agent Competence on User Performance and Perception

We studied the role of the competence of an interface agent that helped users to learn and use a text editor. Participants in the study made a set of changes to a document with the aid of one of four interface agents. The agent would respond to participantsý spoken questions as well as make proactive suggestions using a synthesized voice. The agents varied in the quality of responses and suggestions. One group of participants could also access a help screen. Results revealed that the perceived utility of the agent was influenced by the types of errors it made, while participants' subjective impressions of the agent related to the perceptions of its embodiment. Additionally, allowing participants to choose their preferred assistance styles improved objective performance. We relate quantitative findings with qualitative interview data and discuss implications for the design and the implementation of systems with interface agents.
Technology scaling impact of variation on clock skew and interconnect delay

Variation has an increasingly negative impact on key interconnect applications, including clock skew and signal line delay. Here we consider both random and systematic variation in interconnect and device parameters as technology scales from 180 nm to 50 nm. For the case considered, we show that (1) clock skew increases from about 15% to 30% of the clock cycle, and (2) modeling systematic variation sources enables tighter tolerance design that can substantially reduce this skew as well as reduce wire length limitations.
Identifying and Remediating Failures of Selective Attention in Older Drivers

Older drivers are primarily overinvolved in crashes at intersections, and failure to attend to regions that contain relevant information about potential hazards is a major contributor to this problem. Corroborating this, we have found that older drivers in both controlled scenarios on a driving simulator and somewhat less controlled situations on the road attend to (i.e., fixate) target regions in intersections significantly less frequently than do younger experienced drivers. Moreover, we have developed a training program that substantially improves older drivers’ attention to these regions. Together, these findings indicate that older drivers’ less frequent scanning of regions at intersections from which hazards may emerge may be due to their developing something like an unsafe habit rather than to deteriorating physical or mental capabilities and thus that training may be effective in reducing crashes.
A bandwidth efficient block transmission with frequency-domain equalization

A bandwidth efficient block-transmission scheme with frequency-domain equalization that employs insufficient length of cyclic prefix at the transmitter is proposed. Since the the cyclic prefix for block based transmission systems decreases the bandwidth-utilization efficiency, it is desirable to limit the length of the cyclic prefix. The proposed scheme employs insufficient cyclic prefix, but performs near single-carrier systems with frequency-domain equalization (SC-FDE) (D. Falconer et al., 2002) employing sufficient length of cyclic prefix.
Cytokines as endogenous pyrogens

Cytokines are pleiotropic molecules mediating several pathologic processes. Long before the discovery of cytokines as immune system growth factors or as bone marrow stimulants, investigators learned a great deal about cytokines when they studied them as the endogenous mediators of fever. The terms "granulocytic" or "endogenous pyrogen" were used to describe substances with the biologic property of fever induction. Today, we recognize that pyrogenicity is a fundamental biologic property of several cytokines and hence the clinically recognizeable property of fever links host perturbations during disease with fundamental perturbations in cell biology. In this review, the discoveries made on endogenous pyrogens are revisited, with insights into the importance of the earlier work to the present-day understanding of cytokines in health and in disease.
Visualizing ultrafast nonlinear dynamics with X-FROG

Cross-correlation FROG is a versatile tool for observing complex nonlinear dynamics in waveguides. Structures ranging from femtosecond solitons to continuous waves to supercontinua as well as their interactions can be visualized in time-frequency simultaneously.
Architecture and prototyping of an 802.11-based self-organizing hierarchical ad-hoc wireless network (SOHAN)

This paper describes the design and implementation of a novel 802.11-based self-organizing hierarchical ad-hoc wireless network (SOHAN), and presents some initial experimental results obtained from a proof-of-concept prototype. The proposed network has a three-tier hierarchy consisting of low-power mobile nodes (MNs) at the lowest layer, forwarding nodes (FNs) with higher power and multi-hop routing capability at the middle layer, and wired access points (APs) without power constraints at the highest layer. Specifics of new protocols used for bootstrapping, node discovery, and multi-hop routing are presented, and the overall operation of the complete hierarchical ad-hoc network is explained. A prototype implementation of the SOHAN network is outlined in terms of major hardware and software components, and initial experimental results are given.
The eigenvalue spectrum of the Rayleigh equation for a plane shear layer

The eigenvalue spectrum of the Rayleigh equation is examined using three different solution techniques. In particular, a simple second-order finite difference scheme and two spectral methods, the Chebyshev tau and Chebyshev collocation methods, are used to discretize the equation. All of the approximation methods are shown to be capable of predicting the discrete spectrum as well as the continuous spectrum associated with the critical point singularity for the Rayleigh equation. The global eigenvalue methods considered here provide an efficient way of obtaining either an approximation to the complete eigenvalue spectrum or initial guesses for a local shooting procedure for the discrete part of the spectrum.
Conformational preferences in the Ser133-phosphorylated and non-phosphorylated forms of the kinase inducible transactivation domain of CREB.

Phosphorylation of Ser133 within the kinase inducible transactivation domain (KID) of the transcription factor CREB potentiates interaction with the KIX domain of coactivator CBP. Heteronuclear NMR spectroscopic analyses reveal that the KID domain is largely unstructured except for residues that comprise the αA helix in the pKID-KIX complex, which populate helical conformations to a significant extent (>50%). The helical content in the αB region is very small in the non-phosphorylated form (∼10%) although a small increase is detected upon Ser133 phosphorylation. The intrinsic bias towards helical conformations probably facilitates folding of the KID domain upon binding to KIX while the principal role of the phosphate group appears to be largely in mediating the intermolecular interactions in the pKID-KIX complex.
Transient Thermal Analysis of Parallel Translucent Layers by Using Green's Functions

An analysis is developed for computing transient thermal behavior in a composite of two parallel translucent layers with a space between them. The radiative two-flux equation is coupled with the transient energy equation, and both equations are solved by using Green's functions. Illustrative results are provided for transient heating of two parallel translucent layers that exchange radiation. The external boundaries of the two-layer combination are each exposed to a radiative environment, and all boundaries can be convectively heated or cooled. The layer refractive indices are larger than one, and internal reflections are included with boundaries assumed diffuse. The analysis includes internal emission, absorption, isotropic scattering, and heat conduction. Transient results from the present method are verified for a single gray layer by comparison with a finite difference solution that incorporates a numerical solution of the exact radiative transfer equations for the radiative heat source. Illustrative transient temperature distributions show the effects of an insulating gap between layers, when one side of the twolayer composite is subjected to heating by radiation and convection, while the other side is being cooled.
Nonlinear Dynamical Response of Impulsively Loaded Structures: A Reduced Basis Approach

The order of a dynamical system is reduced by a Rayleigh-Ritz technique using selective basis vectors. Numerical results are obtained using Ritz vectors and their derivatives as basis vectors. Both use of such derivatives and use of updating basis vectors provide excellent results
Bacterial Prostatitis Enhances 2-Amino-1-Methyl-6-Phenylimidazo[4,5-b]Pyridine (PhIP)-Induced Cancer at Multiple Sites

Dietary carcinogens, such as 2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo[4,5-b]pyridine (PhIP), and chronic inflammation have each been implicated as etiologic agents in prostate cancer. We hypothesized that bacterial prostatitis would accelerate PhIP-induced preinvasive lesions in the rat prostate. Male Fischer 344 rats were assigned into 4 groups: Control (untreated), PhIP (200 ppm in the diet for 20 weeks), Escherichia coli (E. coli, prostatic inoculation in week 10), or PhIP + E. coli. Study animals were monitored for a total of 52 weeks and were euthanized as necessary based on strict criteria for health status and tumor burden. Animals treated with E. coli initially developed acute and chronic inflammation in all lobes of the prostate, whereas inflammation was observed predominantly in the ventral lobe at time of death. PhIP + E. coli-treated animals exhibited a marked decrease in survival compared with PhIP-alone-treated animals as a result of an increase in the number of invasive cancers that developed at multiple sites, including the skin, small intestine, and Zymbal's gland. Despite their earlier mortality, PhIP + E. coli-treated animals developed an increased average number of precancerous lesions within the prostate compared with PhIP-treated animals, with a significantly increased Ki-67 index. Multiplexed serum cytokine analysis indicated an increase in the level of circulating IL6 and IL12 in PhIP + E. coli-treated animals. Elevated serum IL6 levels correlated with the development of precancerous lesions within the prostate. These results suggest that bacterial infections and dietary carcinogens, two conceivably preventable cancer risk factors, may synergistically promote tumorigenesis.
Psychological Dysfunction in the Intensive Care Unit Patient

Define the types of psychological dysfunction found in ICU patients. Know the medical and psychological problems that contribute to psychological dysfunction in the ICU patient. Be aware of environmental factors contributing to psychological impairment in the ICU patient. Define delirium and its assessment and treatment.
Imagisaurus: An Interactive Visualizer of Valence and Emotion in the Roget's Thesaurus

The form of a thesaurus often restricts its use to word look ups and finding related words. We present Imagisaurus, an online interactive visualizer for the Roget’s Thesaurus, which not only provides a way for word lookups but also helps users quickly grasp the nature and size of the thesaurus taxonomy. Imagisaurus connects thesaurus entries with a large valence and emotion association lexicon. Easy-to- use sliders give the user fine control over depicting only those categories with the desired strength of association with positive or negative sentiment, as well as eight basic emotions. A second interactive visualization is used to explore the emotion lexicon. Both the Roget’s Thesaurus and the emotion lexicon have tens of thousands of entries. Our visualizers help users better understand these lexical resources in terms of their make up as a whole.
III-Vs at scale: a PV manufacturing cost analysis of the thin film vapor-liquid-solid growth mode

The authors present a manufacturing cost analysis for producing thin-film indium phosphide modules by combining a novel thin-film vapor–liquid–solid (TF-VLS) growth process with a standard monolithic module platform. The example cell structure is ITO/n-TiO2/p-InP/Mo. For a benchmark scenario of 12% efficient modules, the module cost is estimated to be $0.66/W(DC) and the module cost is calculated to be around $0.36/W(DC) at a long-term potential efficiency of 24%. The manufacturing cost for the TF-VLS growth portion is estimated to be ~$23/m 2 ,as ignificant reduction compared with traditional metalorganic chemical vapor deposition. The analysis here suggests the TF-VLS growth mode could enable lower-cost, high-efficiency III-V photovoltaics compared with manufacturing methods used today and open up possibilities for other optoelectronic applications as well. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley &S ons, Ltd.
Inhibition of vascularization of the rabbit cornea by local application of cortisone.

SummaryThe subconjunctival injection of cortisone inhibits markedly the vascularization of the cornea caused by intracorneal injection of alkali.
Computing Shocked Flows with High-order Accurate Discontinuous Galerkin Methods

Shock capturing techniques for high-order methods have become a rich and intense area of research. However, significantly less attention has been paid to the effectiveness of capturing shock waves using high-order discretizations. This work examines the effectiveness of capturing shock waves using high-order discretizations from a robustness and error reduction point of view. Particular attention is paid to the most appropriate method of refinement for a shock wave. It is shown that when one considers exclusively shock capturing accuracy, mesh refinement employing a second-order discretization is significantly more effective at reducing error than order enrichment, despite the sub-cell shock wave resolution of high-order solutions. Furthermore, for flows involving shock waves in combination with smooth features, high-order discretizations are shown to be particularly effective when used as part of an hp-adaptation strategy. hp-adaptation is shown to yield superior efficiency compared with mesh refinement at second-order accuracy alone. To demonstrate the robustness of the proposed approach, hypersonic (M¥ 6:0) applications are considered exclusively. It is demonstrated that hp-adaptation combined with PDE-based artificial viscosity is capable of robustly obtaining low discretization error with accurate and smooth surface heating profiles.
Use of the shape memory polymer polystyrene in the creation of thin film stretchable sensors for wearable applications

The shape memory polymer polystyrene (PS) has been used to create complex hierarchical wrinkling in the fabrication of stretchable thin film bimetallic sensors ideal for wearable based gesture monitoring applications. The film has been bonded to the elastomer polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and operates as a strain gauge under the general notion of geometric piezoresistivity. The film was subject to tensile, cyclic, and step loading conditions in order to characterize its dynamic behavior. To measure the joint angle of the metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joint on the right index finger, the sensor was adhered to a fitted golf glove above said joint and a motion study was conducted. At maximum joint angle the sensor experienced roughly 23.5% strain. From the study it was found that two simple curves, one while the finger was in flexion and the other while the finger was in extension, were able to predict the joint angle from measured voltage with an average error of 2.99 degrees. © (2016) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Boundary condition model applie to antinucleon-nucleon scattering.-I

An improved boundary condition plus elastic potential has been developed for calculating the elastic, charge exchange and anihilation cross-sections for the antinucleon-nucleon system in the non-relativistic energy region ((50÷300) MeV in the laboratory system). The boundary condition is taken to maximize the absorption crosssection ineach channel of specified isotopic spin, ordinary spin, and total angular momentum. The elastic potential is constructed by modifying the one-pion and two-pion nucleon-nucleon potentials in the usual manner. The results fit the available data reasonably well for both the differential elastic cross-section and the total annihilation cross-section, using a single core, however best fit is obtained sperately when one chooses to fit the annihilation a larger core than the elastic cross-section. Charge-exchange scattering is found to be quite sensitive to the size of the core region.
Market Orientation,Strategic Flexibility and Performance:the Moderating Effect of Environmental Uncertainty

Based on the extant literature,this study attempts to provide a conceptual model using strategic flexibility as a mediator and environmental uncertainty as moderator.An empirical study with a sample of 133 firms from Hunan Province is conducted.The result shows that strategic flexibility partly mediates the relationship between market orientation and performance;environmental uncertainty negatively moderates the relationship between market orientation and performance,and positively moderates the relationship between strategic flexibility and performance.
Lifestyle Medicine in an Academic/Hospital Context

The effective integration of lifestyle medicine into allopathic practices is an evolving necessity driven by limited resources and escalating costs. Efforts in the Florida Hospital system graduate medical education (GME) department to meet this challenge may be instructive to others. Efforts include the hiring of an experienced dietician with a focus on a whole food plant based diet and a patient engagement tool to identify areas where patients are ready to make change. Billing is done using existing finance structure with the goal of decreasing the overall cost of providing care within a Clinically Integrated Network (CIN) context. Additionally, one GME clinician's experience in clinical lifestyle based intervention identifies and comments on several practical clinical factors for bringing effective behavior change to individual patients: patient readiness, a knowledgeable health care provider, adequate time, as well as the effectiveness of the intervention.
Epigenetic and Posttranscriptional Regulation of CD16 Expression during Human NK Cell Development

The surface receptor FcγRIIIA (CD16a) is encoded by the FCGR3A gene and is acquired by human NK cells during maturation. NK cells bind the Fc portion of IgG via CD16a and execute Ab-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity, which is critical for the effectiveness of several antitumor mAb therapies. The role of epigenetic regulatory mechanisms controlling transcriptional and posttranscriptional CD16 expression in NK cells is unknown. In this study, we compared specific patterns of DNA methylation and expression of FCGR3A with FCGR3B, which differ in cell type-specific expression despite displaying nearly identical genomic sequences. We identified a sequence within the FCGR3A promoter that selectively exhibits reduced methylation in CD16a+ NK cells versus CD16a- NK cells and neutrophils. This region contained the transcriptional start site of the most highly expressed CD16a isoform in NK cells. Luciferase assays revealed remarkable cell-type specificity and methylation-dependent activity of FCGR3A- versus FCGR3B-derived sequences. Genomic differences between FCGR3A and FCGR3B are enriched at CpG dinucleotides, and mutation of variant CpGs reversed cell-type specificity. We further identified miR-218 as a posttranscriptional negative regulator of CD16a in NK cells. Forced overexpression of miR-218 in NK cells knocked down CD16a mRNA and protein expression. Moreover, miR-218 was highly expressed in CD16a- NK cells compared with CD16a+ NK cells. Taken together, we propose a system of FCGR3A regulation in human NK cells in which CpG dinucleotide sequences and concurrent DNA methylation confer developmental and cell type-specific transcriptional regulation, whereas miR-218 provides an additional layer of posttranscriptional regulation during the maturation process.
Efficient Scalable Median Filtering Using Histogram-Based Operations

Median filtering is a smoothing technique for noise removal in images. While there are various implementations of median filtering for a single-core CPU, there are few implementations for accelerators and multi-core systems. Many parallel implementations of median filtering use a sorting algorithm for rearranging the values within a filtering window and taking the median of the sorted value. While using sorting algorithms allows for simple parallel implementations, the cost of the sorting becomes prohibitive as the filtering windows grow. This makes such algorithms, sequential and parallel alike, inefficient. In this work, we introduce the first software parallel median filtering that is non-sorting-based. The new algorithm uses efficient histogram-based operations. These reduce the computational requirements of the new algorithm while also accessing the image fewer times. We show an implementation of our algorithm for both the CPU and NVIDIA's CUDA supported graphics processing unit (GPU). The new algorithm is compared with several other leading CPU and GPU implementations. The CPU implementation has near perfect linear scaling with a 3.7× speedup on a quad-core system. The GPU implementation is several orders of magnitude faster than the other GPU implementations for mid-size median filters. For small kernels, 3 × 3 and 5 × 5, comparison-based approaches are preferable as fewer operations are required. Lastly, the new algorithm is open-source and can be found in the OpenCV library.
Mechanotransduction by the Actin Cytoskeleton: Converting Mechanical Stimuli into Biochemical Signals

Force transmission through the actin cytoskeleton plays a central role in cell movements, shape change, and internal organization. Dynamic reorganization of actin filaments by an array of specializ...
The Validated Embryonic Stem Cell Test with Murine Embryonic Stem Cells

Birth defects are the leading cause of infant mortality in the USA, yet the causes of most of these conditions are unknown. While a combination of genetic and environmental factors are suspected in most cases, little information exists about the health risks that prenatal exposure to many common chemicals poses for the fetus. Thus, development and refinement of procedures that can accurately predict embryotoxicity of compounds is important for curtailing the number of infants born with birth defects. The embryonic stem cell test (EST) is a procedure that utilizes comparison of cytotoxicity in embryonic and adult cells and inhibition of differentiation to predict embryotoxicity of compounds tested. Because of its use of existing cell lines, the EST dramatically reduces the need for animal test subjects in toxicity testing. In addition, because of its use of inhibition of differentiation as an endpoint, the EST is extremely versatile in the range of complications it can test for. In this chapter, procedures for use of the validated embryonic stem cell test with the traditional cardiomyocyte differentiation endpoint are explained. The protocol includes discussion of routine stem cell culture, the cardiomyocyte differentiation procedure, and methods for utilization of molecular endpoints for assessing embryotoxicity of compounds.
Thixotropic Mechanics in Soft Hydrated Sliding Interfaces

Soft hydrated permeable surfaces exhibit unique lubrication behaviors, including recently discovered frictional hysteresis. This duration-dependent frictional effect can be analogous to the thixotropic fluid response under shear-driven Couette flow. We illustrate torque-speed hysteresis loops using tribo-rheometry measurements between an aluminum annulus and polyacrylamide surface. Frictional torque response was measured under stepwise sliding speed increments at five different step durations. The torque-sliding speed curves exhibit hysteresis loops and the shape of the hysteresis loops depends on step durations. Longer duration shows greater hysteresis with higher average friction. Torque curves at highest speeds converge to one line with a power law exponent of α = 0.7. Based on the experimental data, a hydrogel lubrication model was developed using a thixotropic fluid model, where viscosity change is described as a competition between structural buildup and breakdown. Simulation using the model correlates well with the experimental results, indicating the existence of effective structural change on the hydrogel surface.
The effects of cross-flow fuel injection on the reacting jet in vitiated cross-flow

Abstract The effects of cross-flow fuel injection on a slotted jet flame consisting of an ethylene-air premixture are investigated experimentally. Cross-flow conditions of 900 K and 100 m/s were chosen to closely simulate the environment of a secondary combustor in a staged combustion system. It was found that increasing the cross-flow equivalence ratio (Φ∞) requires a consequent reduction in the jet equivalence ratio (Φj) for jet flame stabilization in order to avoid the formation of locally rich mixtures beyond the flammability limits of the flame. Stable flames were achieved for a low cross-flow equivalence ratio of Φ∞ = 0.4 across a range of jet equivalence ratio values and momentum flux ratios, demonstrating the ability of the transverse jet to extend the flammability limits of the cross-flow mixture. Significantly, as Φ∞ is increased beyond a certain point, no ethylene is required to be present in the jet mixture, and a jet consisting only of air is able to stabilize the flame. Due to the fluidic nature of the flame stabilization mechanism of these flames, they are dubbed fluidically stabilized flames (FSF). OH* chemiluminescence and high-speed particle image velocimetry were utilized to gain deeper understanding of the flame behavior and flow field features of the FSF. In contrast to bluff-body stabilized flames, it was found that the FSF provides increased control of the flame shape, with increasing flame width and penetration for higher jet momentum flux ratios (J). The FSF was also demonstrated to be a highly dynamical phenomenon, characterized by a dominant peak frequency that is dependent on both Φj and Φ∞. Proper orthogonal decomposition of the time-resolved velocity fields shows that heat release affects the dynamics of the FSF in a similar manner to the reacting jet in cross-flow (RJICF), as demonstrated in a previous study. Finally, the flame behavior was found to be highly dependent on the cross-flow fueling mechanism, with coherent flame oscillations present when the fuel injection point is closely-coupled to the flame stabilization location.
The role of neuro‐immune interactions in cancer‐related fatigue: Biobehavioral risk factors and mechanisms

Fatigue is a common and distressing symptom in both patients with cancer and cancer survivors. There is substantial variation in the severity and persistence of cancer-related fatigue that may be driven by individual differences in host factors, including characteristics that predate the cancer experience as well as responses to cancer and its treatment. This review examines biobehavioral risk factors linked to fatigue and the mechanisms through which they influence fatigue across the cancer continuum, with a focus on neuro-immune processes. Among psychosocial risk factors, childhood adversity is a strong and consistent predictor of cancer-related fatigue; other risk factors include history of depression, catastrophizing, lack of physical activity, and sleep disturbance, with compelling preliminary evidence for loneliness and trait anxiety. Among biologic systems, initial work suggests that alterations in immune, neuroendocrine, and neural processes are associated with fatigue. The identification of key risk factors and underlying mechanisms is critical for the development and deployment of targeted interventions to reduce the burden of fatigue in the growing population of cancer survivors. Given the multidimensional nature of fatigue, interventions that influence multiple systems may be most effective.
Back-surface recombination, electron reflectors, and paths to 28% efficiency for thin-film photovoltaics: A CdTe case study

As thin-film and silicon solar technologies mature, questions emerge about the upper bounds of thin-film solar performance and realistic experimental paths to reach them. Directions include increasing absorber hole density and bulk lifetime, improving the junction interface, reducing back-surface recombination, and implementing a back-surface electron reflector. Textbook solutions of idealized p-n junctions create a powerful conceptualization of solar cells as predominantly minority-carrier-driven devices. We demonstrate that thin films are distinct, and models often fail to capture the important role of majority-carrier lifetime, leading to contradictions with lifetime measurements and overestimates of potential device improvement from back-surface passivation and/or reflectors. Furthermore, we identify methods to probe majority-carrier lifetime and re-examine the degree to which back-surface passivation and electron reflectors can increase efficiency for a range of common thin-film interface and absorber properties, using current and emerging CdTe technology as an example. Results indicate that a practical approach is to focus first on improving front-interface recombination velocity and the absorber properties, and then on implementing the back-surface passivation or reflector, which can ultimately allow thin-film solar technology to reach 28% efficiency.
Intestinal-type adenocarcinoma of the vulva: A case study.

Abstract Approximately 5% of all gynecologic cancers are of the vulva, of which 90% are squamous cell in origin. Adenocarcinomas of the vulva are extremely infrequent with most relating to epithelial glands in the vulvar region. A 53 year old African American female presented to the emergency department complaining of a lesion on her left labia that had been present for the past 6 months. In the operating room, multiple biopsies were taken of the left labial lesion as well as the right, and sufficient tissue was sent to pathology for analysis. The pathology report demonstrated adenocarcinoma of the vulva with intestinal type features, CD20+, CK7-, mCEA+, vimentin -, p53+. These findings were consistent with a colorectal primary; however, no colorectal primary was discovered. The intestinal type of primary adenocarcinoma of the vulva is a rare variant, and only a few cases have been reported to date. It histologically resembles mucinous colonic carcinomas, but immunohistochemical workups with various tumor markers are needed before confirmation.
Response to the note to editor: Comments on “transcriptomic response of Arabidopsis thaliana exposed to hydroxylated polychlorinated biphenyls (OH-PCBs)”

AbstractIn response to Dr. Yang et al.'s comments on our article “Transcriptomic response of Arabidopsis thaliana exposed to hydroxylated polychlorinated biphenyls (OH-PCBs)”, additional details we...
A pigmented lesion on the eye.

A 46 year old white woman was referred for ophthalmologic evaluation of a pigmented lesion on the ocular surface of her left eye. The lesion had been noted during a routine eye examination by her general practitioner. She had first noticed the lesion six years earlier, believing it to be gradually increasing in size. Slit lamp biomicroscopy of the eye is shown in fig 1. No cysts were noted within the lesion and no other lesions were evident on complete ophthalmic examination, which included eversion of the eyelids and …
Early Childhood Professional Well-Being as a Predictor of the Risk of Turnover in Child Care: A Matter of Quality

Annually, approximately 27% of early childhood care and education professionals turnover, or leave their positions or the field, which may negatively impact quality in two ways. First, continuity i...
Studies of lincosamide formation complete the biosynthetic pathway for lincomycin A

The structure of lincomycin A consists of the unusual eight-carbon thiosugar core methyllincosamide (MTL) decorated with a pendent N-methylprolinyl moiety. Previous studies on MTL biosynthesis have suggested GDP-ᴅ-erythro-α-ᴅ-gluco-octose and GDP-ᴅ-α-ᴅ-lincosamide as key intermediates in the pathway. However, the enzyme-catalyzed reactions resulting in the conversion of GDP-ᴅ-erythro-α-ᴅ-gluco-octose to GDP-ᴅ-α-ᴅ-lincosamide have not yet been elucidated. Herein, a biosynthetic subpathway involving the activities of four enzymes-LmbM, LmbL, CcbZ, and CcbS (the LmbZ and LmbS equivalents in the closely related celesticetin pathway)-is reported. These enzymes catalyze the previously unknown biosynthetic steps including 6-epimerization, 6,8-dehydration, 4-epimerization, and 6-transamination that convert GDP-ᴅ-erythro-α-ᴅ-gluco-octose to GDP-ᴅ-α-ᴅ-lincosamide. Identification of these reactions completes the description of the entire lincomycin biosynthetic pathway. This work is significant since it not only resolves the missing link in octose core assembly of a thiosugar-containing natural product but also showcases the sophistication in catalytic logic of enzymes involved in carbohydrate transformations.
ACJS 2019 Presidential Address Taking Responsibility for Justice: transforming Criminal Justice at the Intersection of Human Rights and Activism

In this presidential address, Dr. Faith Lutze argues in order for criminal justice and criminology to remain relevant it is necessary for theorists, researchers, educators, and practitioners to tak...
Cutting Edge: Heterogeneity in Cell Age Contributes to Functional Diversity of NK Cells

Heterogeneity among naive adaptive lymphocytes determines their individual functions and fate decisions during an immune response. NK cells are innate lymphocytes capable of generating "adaptive" responses during infectious challenges. However, the factors that govern various NK cell functions are not fully understood. In this study, we use a reporter mouse model to permanently "time stamp" NK cells and type 1 innate lymphoid cells (ILC1s) to characterize the dynamics of their homeostatic turnover. We found that the homeostatic turnover of tissue-resident ILC1s is much slower than that of circulating NK cells. NK cell homeostatic turnover is further accelerated without the transcription factor Eomes. Finally, heterogeneity in NK cell age diversifies NK cell function, with "older" NK cells exhibiting more potent IFN-γ production to activating stimuli and more robust adaptive responses during CMV infection. These results provide insight into how the functional response of an NK cell varies over its lifespan.
Movement-oriented labor organizations in an authoritarian regime: The case of China:

How do labor organizations with a movement orientation arise in an authoritarian regime? How do they organize workers collectively in a repressive society? What movement roles do they play? What ch...
Lexical and acoustic features in speech relating to Alzheimer's disease pathology

Abstract INTRODUCTION Over 50% of logopenic variant primary progressive aphasia (lvPPA) cases are associated with AD pathology, yet their speech is not characterized compared to amnestic AD. In this study, we compared AD and lvPPA patients in a biologically confirmed cohort. METHODS We extracted language variables with automated lexical and acoustic pipelines from oral picture descriptions produced by 44 AD and 21 lvPPA patients. RESULTS LvPPA patients produced fewer verbs, adjectives, and more fillers with lower lexical diversity and higher pause rate than AD. Both groups showed some shared language impairments compared to HC, including more frequent and shorter words. Some of these measures were related to clinical test scores and CSF p-tau levels. DISCUSSION Our speech measures captured subtle differences between the two phenotypes. Also, shared speech markers were linked to the common underlying pathology. This work demonstrates the potential of natural speech in detection of underlying AD pathology.
“Otherwise We Would Be like an Island”: A Phenomenological Understanding of Intergenerational Engagement Aimed at Reducing Social Isolation

This phenomenological study involved individual, unstructured interviews with older adults. Eleven participants were recruited from independent living, assisted living, and community center setting...
Oxidizing Ethanol and 2-Propanol by Hypochlorous Acid Generated from Chloride Ions on HxWO3 Photoelectrodes

Photoelectrochemically oxidizing aqueous chloride electrolytes (1 M NaCl, pH 3) to hypochlorous acid proceeds on HxWO3 semiconducting photoelectrodes using 405 nm illumination at 100 mW/cm2 with 1....
A Suggested Approach for Developing Estuarine Water Quality Criteria for Management of Eutrophication

A conceptual approach for developing water quality criteria for eutrophication management is suggested. The three basic components of the framework include source ambient relationships, effects, and impact analyses. The approach focuses on a conceptual method for developing decision-making criteria as opposed to the classical water quality criteria of a single value of limitation. The approach to developing water quality criteria for eutrophication management provides an analysis framework of response relationships which can be readily incorporated into water quality standard-setting processes that include environmental considerations and technological and economic factors.
Aminoglycoside Antibiotics and Decoding

Aminoglycoside antibiotics bind directly to 16S rRNA in the 30S subunit of bacterial ribosomes and decrease the fidelity of translation. Aminoglycoside antibiotics remain important therapeutic agents and represent the archetype for RNA-targeted antibiotics. This chapter presents an overview of the investigations of how aminoglycoside antibiotics bind to rRNA and the insights these studies have provided into the decoding process. Throughout the chapter, the term "aminoglycoside" will implicitly refer to this subclass. It is within this conserved decoding region RNA that aminoglycoside antibiotics bind. The chemical groups that are common among aminoglycoside antibiotics direct specific interaction with the RNA. The major sequence difference between all prokaryotic ribosomes and all eukaryotic ribosomes in the aminoglycoside binding site is an A1408-toG1408 change. However, only low-level resistance was observed to G418 and paromomycin, which are the most effective aminoglycosides against eukaryotic organisms. The major mechanism of aminoglycoside resistance is enzymatic modification of the drug. Molecular contacts between A1492 and A1493 and mRNA during decoding may also explain the miscoding induced by aminoglycoside antibiotics. The work on aminoglycoside antibiotics has revealed the details of how aminoglycosides bind to the ribosome, how resistance occurs, and how selectivity for prokaryotes is achieved. Only the combination of structure determination, biochemical, and biophysical approaches provides true insights into the workings of the ribosome. The use of a small oligonucleotide was essential for this work.
Implementation of Admittance Test Techniques for High-Precision Measurement of Frequency Response Functions

Sandia National Laboratories has developed an experimental procedure for characterizing the input and transfer impedance functions of flight test units. Admittance relations that describe the force-acceleration relations can be derived from this procedure and used for a variety of purposes ranging from environmental response prediction to substructure coupling and numerical model validation. The theoretical developments described herein have been developed using substructure coupling methods. The method allows characterization in six degrees of freedom as well as the removal of fixture effects from the measured frequency response functions. This paper describes the basic theory, presents a numerical validation of the procedure, and illustrates a complete experimental example.
Receptor-specific Regulation of NF-κB, c-Myc and Fas-mediated Apoptosis in Primary B Cells

The NF-κB transcription factor complex plays a role in directing the inducible expression of a number of genes involved in the immune response, importantly including c-myc [1]. NF-κB consists of homo- or hetero-dimers drawn from a family of proteins, the members of which share a conserved 300 amino acid sequence, the Rel homology domain, originally identified as the transforming agent of the avian reticuloendotheliosis virus. Mammahan Rel-related proteins include NF-κB 1 (p50), NF-κB2 (p52), c-Rel, RelA (p65), and RelB. NF-κB 1 and NF-κB2 are derived from larger precursor proteins (pl05 and p 100, respectively) that can inhibit NF-κB. c-Rel, RelA and RelB contain transactivation domains at their carboxyl terminal ends that are capable of activating gene transcription. Transcriptionally active dimers are those in which one of the proteins contains a transactivation domain (for review see [2–4]).
Structure and assembly of simple RNA bacteriophages.

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the structure and assembly of simple RNA bacteriophages. It mentions that the components of the phage assembly system possess the intrinsic ability of forming a specific quaternary structure— namely, the phage. The versatility of the phage RNA is examined. Its 3000 nucleotides provide specific attachment sites for RNA replicase, ribosomes, coat protein, and A-protein thus enabling transcription, translation, regulation, and initiation of assembly. Besides the specific interactions with these proteins, the RNA acts catalytically in the capsid formation by a more unspecific mechanism. A special feature of phage RNA is the existence of nucleotide stretches that can be arranged in base paired loops. These are the providing sites for RNA-protein interactions. One of these loops, for instance, is located at one of the ribosome attachment sites; another near the 5’-terminus is a candidate for interaction with A-protein or RNA replicase. The chapter concludes that phage assembly is a promising tool for the study of the nature of protein-protein and protein-nucleic acid interactions.
Detecting Modern Groundwaters with 85Kr

Since the 1950s, anthropogenic contributions of 85Kr to the atmosphere (primarily the result of nuclear weapons testing and nuclear fuel rod reprocessing) have completely overwhelmed natural background concentrations. The relatively simple behavior of the atmospheric concentration history permits estimating exact recharge dates to approximately 1960 by measuring the amount of 85Kr activity in groundwater and accounting for radioactive decay. If dispersion is negligible, an age can be estimated by plotting the measured 85Kr activity in groundwater samples back to an intercept point on the atmospheric 85Kr activity curve. Alternatively, a decay-corrected 85Kr activity curve can be plotted for the sample collection date directly relating measured activity to an apparent groundwater age. For the 85Kr method, the “clock” begins at the seasonal high water table because it is assumed that the 85Kr concentration in the groundwater is in equilibrium with soil gas and the atmosphere. A primary advantage of 85Kr is that it is chemically inert in groundwater and is therefore affected only by the hydraulic properties of the aquifer and radioactive decay. Furthermore, age calculations do not require recharge temperature and krypton solubility information because the 85Kr activity is normalized to the total 85Kr present. This also implies that errors from excess air trapped in the aquifer or sample loss are negligible. However, because of the high current 85Kr activity in the atmosphere, care must be taken to prevent sample contamination during well installation and sample collection. Note that the 85Kr method may overestimate the groundwater age for deep-water tables (greater than 10 meters) due to a time lag through the unsaturated zone. Keywords: groundwater dating; krypton-85; recharge; hydrogeology
Real options and the informativeness of segment disclosures

This paper examines the informativeness of segment disclosures using a real-options framework. I study the relation between firm value and segment earnings when managers have options to adapt poorly-performing segments and to expand segments with investment opportunities. The segment adaptation option implies that segment losses should be less informative than segment profits about firm value. The segment expansion option implies that earnings will be capitalized at a higher rate for segments with higher investment opportunities. My empirical results are consistent with the hypotheses. This framework and supporting empirical evidence provide a direct link between the valuation and managerial-monitoring roles of segment disclosures.
Are bribe payments in Tanzania “grease” or “grit”?

This article uses empirical evidence from Tanzania to show that bribes there are not “greasing” but instead encumber economic transactions. The evidence suggests that bribe payments promote contacts with service providers, result in lower satisfaction with public service delivery, and result in less efficient public services. Further evidence against bribes as ‘facilitators’ is presented in the form of opinion polls and actions taken to reduce bribe payments.