cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Roles of YqjH and YqjW, Homologs of the Escherichia coli UmuC/DinB or Y Superfamily of DNA Polymerases, in Stationary-Phase Mutagenesis and UV-Induced Mutagenesis of Bacillus subtilis

YqjH and YqjW are Bacillus subtilis homologs of the UmuC/DinB or Y superfamily of DNA polymerases that are involved in SOS-induced mutagenesis in Escherichia coli. While the functions of YqjH and YqjW in B. subtilis are still unclear, the comparisons of protein structures demonstrate that YqjH has 36% identity to E. coli DNA polymerase IV (DinB protein), and YqjW has 26% identity to E. coli DNA polymerase V (UmuC protein). In this report, we demonstrate that both YqjH and the products of the yqjW operon are involved in UV-induced mutagenesis in this bacterium. Furthermore, resistance to UV-induced damage is significantly reduced in cells lacking a functional YqjH protein. Analysis of stationary-phase mutagenesis indicates that absences of YqjH, but not that of YqjW, decreases the ability of B. subtilis to generate revertants at the hisC952 allele via this system. These data suggest a role for YqjH in the generation of at least some types of stationary-phase-induced mutagenesis.
Valuating service transformation alternatives using real options

Firms that grow through mergers and acquisitions often need to deal with duplicate and disparate business functions. Recently, 'shared services' is emerging as an innovative approach for addressing this challenge. Shared services is a business model in which a centralized workforce, either created in-house or provided by external vendors, performs common functions for multiple business units of a firm. To implement shared services, firms need to transform their IT and business processes through simplification, standardization, consolidation, insourcing, and/or outsourcing. In order to decide whether and how to implement shared services, firms need to estimate the value of different transformation alternatives. Conventional valuation approaches tend to focus on foreseeable cost savings and cannot adequately capture critical aspects such as managerial flexibility that may be embedded in certain types of transformation. In this work, we draw upon existing research in IT service, finance, and strategy, and introduce a novel valuation methodology that can help firms evaluate different transformation alternatives. The methodology is centered on a conceptual map for identifying transformation alternatives and a real-option based model that quantifies the value of managerial flexibility. We illustrate the methodology using a real-life based case study.
Modeling the Growth of Streamers During Liquid Breakdown

Earlier work by Fowler, Davaney, and Hagedorn showed that the morphology of an anode streamer could be modeled as stochastic growth of a branching fractal tree in point-plane geometry. This investigation reproduces the results of that earlier study. Because one of the concerns about the earlier work is that the electric field dependence appeared to be unphysical, the model was modified to operate under assumptions that are consistent with those that have proven useful in earlier investigations. Specifically, linear electric field dependence was assumed and there is an assumed variability in the number density of available electrons. Computations using this assumption also produce the same range of morphologies that has been measured in experiments. In addition, some assessments of sensitivity to other possible variables are made. First, the sharp cutoff in the electric field strength is replaced with a presumably more realistic exponential dependence on energy. Under this assumption, it is also possible to simulate the experimentally observed behavior of anode streamers. It is shown that three possible refinements to the model have small, and likely negligible, effects. The first is using variable streamer step lengths in the calculation rather than the fixed step length used in the earlier work. The second is to assume growth at one point in the streamer makes growth in other parts somewhat less likely. The third is the assumption that the probability of a streamer making the next step in growth is influenced by the distance of the inter-electrode gap that has already been traversed.
Satellite electronic attack of enemy air defenses

Satellite electronic attack on enemy air defense radars is a pioneering use of orbiting radar emitters that were once used for remote sensing. Electronic attack is not the same as remote sensing, so a detailed design analysis of candidate space radar systems is required. The Shuttle Radar Topographic Mapper Mission (SRTM) seems perfectly capable of electronic attack based upon ongoing engineering analysis. The electromagnetic propagation path is narrowly evaluated to answer the basic critique, “Isn't space too far away”. This evaluation establishes critical limits for key parameters: 1) number of satellites required in the enemy's field of view, 2) transmitter power, 3) transmitter gain, 4) transmitter bandwidth, and 5) assumed losses resulting in burnthrough ranges for various assumed design parameters.
A wedge-based approach to estimating health co-benefits of climate change mitigation activities in the United States

While it has been recognized that actions reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions can have significant positive and negative impacts on human health through reductions in ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations, these impacts are rarely taken into account when analyzing specific policies. This study presents a new framework for estimating the change in health outcomes resulting from implementation of specific carbon dioxide (CO2) reduction activities, allowing comparison of different sectors and options for climate mitigation activities. Our estimates suggest that in the year 2020, the reductions in adverse health outcomes from lessened exposure to PM2.5 would yield economic benefits in the range of $6 to $30 billion (in 2008 USD), depending on the specific activity. This equates to between $40 and $198 per metric ton of CO2 in health benefits. Specific climate interventions will vary in the health co-benefits they provide as well as in potential harms that may result from their implementation. Rigorous assessment of these health impacts is essential for guiding policy decisions as efforts to reduce GHG emissions increase in scope and intensity.
The golden age of the Chinese bourgeoisie, 1911-1937

Prologues Part I. Preludes Part II. The Emergence of a Bourgeois Class Part III. The Bourgeoisie and the Quest for Power and Modernity Notes Bibliography Index Series List.
M-Backs: Mobile backbones for multi-hop wireless networks

We present a new distributed protocol for setting up and maintaining a backbone for multi-hop mobile networks. Our solution, termed M-Backs, is effective in producing backbones with limited size, while being robust and reliable in the face of node mobility. We compare our protocol with previous solutions for mobile backbone set up and maintenance. M-Backs outperforms previous protocols, providing backbones of reasonable size, with superior connectivity, shorter route lengths, higher robustness and lower maintenance-related overhead. When running AODV over the backbones M-Backs obtains higher packet delivery ratio and lower latency than previous backbone protocols and than AODV run over the flat network topology.
Gauge theories and neutral currents

Abstract We consider neutral current effects in some gauge theoretic models of weak and electromagnetic interactions. Asymptotic invariance under the gauge group is proposed and used for estimating deep-inelastic cross sections. Our analysis underlines the need for a systematic search for hadronic threshold effects in the coupling of neutral currents.
Barrier energies in metal-silicon dioxide-silicon structures

Metal-silicon dioxide barrier energies have been determined for six metals, Ag, Al, Au, Cu, Mg and Ni, deposited on thermally oxidized silicon. Results obtained by two different measurement methods, the photoemission technique and the MOS capacitance-voltage technique, are in excellent agreement with one another. Values of the barrier energy ϕ_M range from 2.3 eV for Mg to 4.2 eV for Ag and are roughly proportional to the electronegativities of the metals. The siliconsilicon dioxide barrier energy (measured from the silicon valence band) has also been determined and was found to be 4.35 eV independent of silicon orientation or type.
Analysis of coefficient quantization errors in state-space digital filters

In this paper, we examine the sensitivity of state-space digital filters to coefficient quantization errors. A cost function using an L p norm criteria is used to measure the deviation in frequency response of the filter. The cost function is used to indicate the connection between roundoff noise and filter sensitivity to coefficient quantization errors. Then based on this cost function it is shown that low roundoff noise state-space digital filters, filters in balanced coordinates, and filters based on polynomials orthogonal on the unit circle have low sensitivity to coefficient quantization errors. Furthermore, the sensitivity of the filters is shown to depend on the second-order modes thereby exhibiting certain robustness and immunity to filter bandwidth.
Reduced YSZ deposition temperatures for YBa2Cu3Ox/YSZ thin films on sapphire

Thin films of Y-stabilized ZrO 2 (YSZ) were deposited by RF diode sputtering on R -plane sapphire as a buffer layer for the deposition of YBa 2 Cu 3 O 3 (YBCO). By increasing the partial pressure of oxygen in the sputter gas mixture from 20% to 50%, it was found that the substrate temperature required to obtain (100) oriented YSZ deposition could be lowered to 630 °C from 800 °C. This change is attributed to heating or mixing effects at the film surface, due to an increase in negative ion bombardment, which supplements the effects of external heating. Increases in the partial pressure of oxygen beyond 50% were found to be counterproductive. YBCO films, deposited on the YSZ buffer layers via magnetron sputtering, showed c -axis orientation and transition temperatures of 82 K. Orientation of both the YSZ and YBCO films was confirmed by x-ray diffraction and SEM characterization.
Long-term survival and renal transplantation in a monozygotic twin with cloacal dysgenesis sequence

Cloacal dysgenesis sequence (CDS) is a severe hindgut malformation occurring in 1:50,000 to 250,000 live births (Qureshi et al. Prenatal diagnosis of cloacal dysgenesis sequence: differential diagnosis from other forms of fetal obstructive uropathy. Fetal Diagn Ther 1998;13:69-74; Bargaje et al. Cloacal dysgenesis sequence. Ann Diagn Pathol 2008;12:62-66). It is characterized by a smooth perineum with no urethral, vaginal, or anal openings, and lack of labioscrotal development. Typically, the bladder, vagina, and colon each end blindly, although persistent cloaca without perineal orifice can be seen. With no egress for urine, infants have renal insufficiency and pulmonary hypoplasia, usually making CDS lethal (Sahinoglu Z et al. The prenatal diagnosis of cloacal dysgenesis in six cases: can the termination of pregnancy always be the first choice? Prenat Diagn 2004;24:10-16). Reported survivors have had a persistent urachus or have been spared the effects of oligohydramnios by the presence of a twin (Liang X. Cloacal dysgenesis sequence: observations in four patients, including three fetuses of second trimester gestation. Pediatr Dev Pathol 1998;1:281-288). We report a case of long-term survival, currently to 25 months of age, and renal transplantation in a monochorionic, diamniotic twin girl with CDS.
Importance of dose selection in novel oral anticoagulants for atrial fibrillation.

Abstract There are several excellent alternatives to warfarin on the horizon for atrial ﬁbril-lation. Results from the trials, as well as pharmacokinetic data from the edoxaban studies,suggest that dose selection, based on pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties, is acritical component in the development of novel anticoagulants. Greater ﬂexibility in dosingwith edoxaban and the opportunity for dose adjustment throughout the ENGAGE AF-TIMI 48trial may be advantageous in the competitive ﬁeld of novel oral anticoagulants.© 2012 Instituto Nacional de Cardiologia Ignacio Chavez. Published by Masson Doyma MexicoS.A. All rights reserved. PALABRAS CLAVE Fibrilacion auricular;Anticoagulantesorales;Warfarina;Sangradointracraneal;EUA Importancia de seleccionar la dosis de los nuevos anticoagulantes orales paraﬁbrilacion auricular Resumen Existen excelentes alternativas al tratamiento con warfarina en el campo de laﬁbrilacion auricular. Los resultados de los ensayos con RE-LY, ROCKET-AF y ARISTOTLE, asi comolos datos farmaco cineticos obtenidos en estudios con edoxaban, sugieren que la seleccion de ladosis, basada en propiedades farmaco cineticas y farmaco dinamicas, es un componente criticoen el desarrollo de nuevos anticoagulantes. Una mayor ﬂexibilidad en establecer la dosis deedoxaban y la oportunidad de ajustar la dosis mediante ENGAGE AF-TIMI 48, puede constituiruna ventaja en el campo de los nuevos anticoagulantes orales.© 2012 Instituto Nacional de Cardiologia Ignacio Chavez. Publicado por Masson Doyma MexicoS.A. Todos los derechos reservados.
Global Regulation of a Differentiation MAPK Pathway in Yeast

Cell differentiation requires different pathways to act in concert to produce a specialized cell type. The budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae undergoes filamentous growth in response to nutrient limitation. Differentiation to the filamentous cell type requires multiple signaling pathways, including a mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway. To identify new regulators of the filamentous growth MAPK pathway, a genetic screen was performed with a collection of 4072 nonessential deletion mutants constructed in the filamentous (Σ1278b) strain background. The screen, in combination with directed gene-deletion analysis, uncovered 97 new regulators of the filamentous growth MAPK pathway comprising 40% of the major regulators of filamentous growth. Functional classification extended known connections to the pathway and identified new connections. One function for the extensive regulatory network was to adjust the activity of the filamentous growth MAPK pathway to the activity of other pathways that regulate the response. In support of this idea, an unregulated filamentous growth MAPK pathway led to an uncoordinated response. Many of the pathways that regulate filamentous growth also regulated each other’s targets, which brings to light an integrated signaling network that regulates the differentiation response. The regulatory network characterized here provides a template for understanding MAPK-dependent differentiation that may extend to other systems, including fungal pathogens and metazoans.
Covering space for in-network sensor data storage

For in-network storage schemes, one maps data, indexed in a logical space, to the distributed sensor locations. When the physical sensor network has an irregular shape and possibly holes, the mapping of data to sensors often creates unbalanced storage load with high data concentration on nodes near network boundaries. In this paper we propose to map data to a covering space, which is a tiling of the plane with copies of the sensor network, such that the sensors receive uniform storage load and traffic. We propose distributed algorithms to construct the covering space with Ricci flow and Mobius transforms. The use of the covering space improves the performance of many in-network storage and retrieval schemes such as geographical hash tables (GHTs) or the double rulings (quorum based schemes), and provides better load balanced routing.
Social Networking Technology and Societal Expectations for Teachers as Role Models

Honorable character and virtuous behavior have always been associated with the noble title “teacher.” This is reflected in the high expectations society has for teachers that go well beyond effective teaching of subject matter content. Teachers work with students, often impressionable children, who are undeniably influenced by the behavior of adults—particularly those in close proximity to them.
Selective Blockade of Nucleoside Transport by NBMPR Attenuates Reperfusion-Mediated Ventricular Arrhythmias

Although reperfusion of ischemic myocardium is crucial for myocardial salvage, reperfusion-mediated ventricular dysfunction and arrhythmias may affect the outcome of coronary artery recanalization or surgical revascularization. In the clinical setting, prolonged recovery period is frequently observed during which the heart may require support using catecholamines and/or assist devices. Pharmacologic interventions capable of shortening this period of vulnerability have significant clinical significance. Infusion of exogenous adenosine has been shown to provide cardioprotection in models of coronary artery occlusion (1–5). Several mechanisms have been postulated to explain cardioprotective actions of exogenous adenosine and adenosine promoting agents, such as acadesine, including increased blood flow (6), activation of A1-receptors (7) and/or ATP-sensitive potassium channels (8), prevention of ATP depletion (9,10); reduction of catecholamine release (11); diminished calcium entry (12); inhibition of neutrophils (13), and decreased platelet (14) activation. Adenosine and adenosine derivatives also are known to inhibit phosphodiesterase activity (15).
Climate Variability and Food Grains Production in India

A large part of the Indian agriculture depends on monsoon so that the market of agriculture, essential commodities shows fluctuation due to early/ delayed arrived of monsoon. The rapid increase in population and economic development has led to severe environmental degradation that undermines the environmental resource base upon which sustainable development depends. The economics of environmental pollution, depletion and degradation of resources have in fact been neglected as compared to the issues of growth and expansion. India has been no exceptions to this worldwide phenomenon. The trends of environmental deterioration in India, because of the substantial increase in its population, have been far more prominent as compared to other developing economies. This paper reviews evidences on the climate change challenge; and assesses the impact of climate change on agriculture and food security in India. This paper also estimates the impact of climate change on Indian agriculture.Estimations predict that the area under food grain, for instance fell from 126.18 mha to 122.23 mha during the period from 1975–76 to 2008–09, the production registered an increase from 121.03 Mt. to 234.47 Mt. during that period. The food grain production looked quite impressive in 2008-09, which is more than thrice the production of 74.23 million tons in the year 1966-67. However the country faces major challenges to increase its food production to the tune of 300 million tonnes by 2020 in order to feed its ever-growing population, which is likely to reach 1.30 billion by the year 2020. To meet the demand for food from this increased population, the country’s farmers need to produce more food grains by 2020. The study also indicates that there is a large scale fluctuation in the area under the cultivation in the Kharif season.
Medical identity theft: prevention and reconciliation initiatives at Massachusetts General Hospital

Article-at-a-Glance Background Medical identity theft refers to the misuse of another individual's identifying medical information to receive medical care. Beyond the financial burden on patients, hospitals, health insurance companies, and government insurance programs, undetected cases pose major patient safety challenges. Inaccuracies in the medical record may persist even after the theft has been identified because of restrictions imposed by patient privacy laws. Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH; Boston) has conducted initiatives to prevent medical identity theft and to better identify and respond to cases when they occur. Methods Since 2007, MGH has used a notification tree to standardize reporting of red flag incidents (warning signs of identity theft, such as suspicious personal identifiers or account activity). A Data Integrity Dashboard allows for tracking and reviewing of all potential incidents of medical identity theft to detect trends and targets for mitigation. An identity-checking policy, VERI-(Verify Everyone's Identity) Safe Patient Care, requires photo identification at every visit and follow-up if it is not provided. Results Data from MGH suggest that an estimated 120 duplicate medical records are created each month, 25 patient encounters are likely tied to identity theft or fraud each quarter, and 14 patients are treated under the wrong medical record number each year. As of December 2013, 80%–85% of patients were showing photo identification at appointments. Conclusion Although an organization's policy changes and educational campaigns can improve detection and reconciliation of medical identity theft cases, national policies should be implemented to streamline the process of correcting errors in medical records, reduce the financial disincentive for hospitals to detect and report cases, and create a single point of entry to reduce the burden on individuals and providers to reconcile cases.
A Case of Leukocytoclastic Vasculitis Caused by Listeria monocytogenes Bacteremia

Importance. Infections can cause leukocytoclastic vasculitis. Observations. We report the case of a patient with a left ventricular assist device who presented with acute kidney injury and biopsy proven leukocytoclastic vasculitis. Blood cultures grew Listeria monocytogenes. The patient's rash improved with treatment of the underlying Listeria infection. Conclusion. Clinicians should be aware that there are a number of broad categories of disease associated with the histologic finding of vasculitis, including infection. It is important to keep in mind the risk factors of a particular patient when formulating a differential diagnosis. This is the first reported case of Listeria bacteremia causing leukocytoclastic vasculitis.
Formulary of common equine drugs.

This article presents in easily accessible form a collection of drug names and dose rates for the dmgs recommended or referred to by the authors of the individual articles in this issue. Although the formulary provides recommendations for drug use, the reader is cautioned that the responsibility for the choice of agent, formulation, dose, and dose interval lies with the clinician. The author also addresses regulations that govern the use of dmgs in competition horses.
The Liberty of William Blackstone

Thomas Hobbes disparaged the common law, republican institutions, and liberty itself, whenever they weakened the sovereign’ s prerogative to regulate the state. Where Hobbes derived justice from power, Locke and Coke sought laws in human reason, above the power of the king. This English tradition of liberty through law diminished in later years, without ever losing its resonance completely. When William Blackstone restated the common law in his Commentaries1 he accepted the Hobbesian language of sovereignty, while insisting that England’s sovereign power rested equally in three balanced branches of king, lords and commons,2 as provided in the “free constitution of Britain.”3
Teachers’ perceptions of the benefits and challenges of three-dimensional virtual worlds for social skills practice

AbstractThis case study describes how a systematic 7-Step Virtual Worlds Teacher Training Workshop guided the enculturation of 18 special education teachers into three-dimensional virtual worlds. The main purpose was to enable these teachers to make informed decisions about the usability of virtual worlds for students with social skills challenges, such as students with autism. A 10-point rating scale was used to measure the perceived usability of virtual worlds for social skills practice. Although the mean usability was higher after the intervention, a Wilcoxon signed-rank test did not reveal a statistically significant difference between the mean ratings (p = .14). A majority of the participants (76%) tended to be supportive of the idea of using virtual worlds in special education. Three key themes emerged from the qualitative instruments, namely, Virtual World Pedagogy, Virtual World Benefits, and Virtual World Challenges, encompassing 18 codes overall. This article focuses on the benefits and challeng...
The application of nanoindentation for determination of cellulose nanofibrils (CNF) nanomechanical properties

Nanocellulose is a polymer which can be isolated from nature (woods, plants, bacteria, and from sea animals) through chemical or mechanical treatments, as cellulose nanofibrils (CNF), cellulose nanocrystals or bacterial celluloses. Focused global research activities have resulted in decreasing costs. A nascent industry of producers has created a huge market interest in CNF. However, there is still lack of knowledge on the nanomechanical properties of CNF, which create barriers for the scientist and producers to optimize and predict behavior of the final product. In this research, the behavior of CNF under nano compression loads were investigated through three different approaches, Oliver–Pharr (OP), fused silica (FS), and tip imaging (TI) via nanoindentation in an atomic force microscope. The CNF modulus estimates for the three approaches were 16.6 GPa, for OP, 15.8 GPa for FS, and 10.9 GPa for TI. The CNF reduced moduli estimates were consistently higher and followed the same estimate rankings by analysis technique (18.2, 17.4, and 11.9 GPa). This unique study minimizes the uncertainties related to the nanomechanical properties of CNFs and provides increased knowledge on understanding the role of CNFs as a reinforcing material in composites and also improvement in making accurate theoretical calculations and predictions.
Analysis of the impact of craft labour availability on North American construction project productivity and schedule performance

AbstractThe North American construction industry has experienced periods of craft shortages for decades. While this problem has received significant attention from researchers, less attention has been given to quantifying the impact of availability of craft labour on project performance. The primary contribution of the current work to the body of knowledge is the quantification of the relationship between craft labour availability and project performance, as measured by project productivity and schedule. Data from 97 construction projects completed in the U.S. and Canada between 2001 and 2014 were collected from two industry databases. The primary analysis shows that projects that experienced craft shortages underwent substantial and statistically lower productivity compared to projects that did not. The analysis also shows a significant growth in schedule overrun due to the craft labour shortages among the same population of projects. Further exploration by means of several regression analyses shows a st...
The Attitudinal and Behavioral Impact of School Law Courses

Although past research has documented that school leaders and teachers lack legal knowledge, this study is the first to ask the critical question whether legal training affects educators’ actions a...
Intraoperative Conversions in Minimally Invasive Colorectal Surgery

Minimally invasive colon and rectal surgery has evolved in parallel with case complexity, and while advances in technology mitigate some degrees of complexity, intraoperative conversion to a “more invasive” surgery is sometimes necessary. A misconception has arisen that deviation from the initially planned minimally invasive approach should be viewed with a negative light. Intraoperative conversion, however, is an efficacious adjunct in the surgeon’s armamentarium that provides added benefit to the patient when used judiciously. This manuscript focuses on the incidence of intraoperative conversion, optimizing a minimally invasive approach to decrease the incidence of conversion, identifying when conversion should be considered, and outlining techniques to maximize patient benefit when conversion is performed.
Linking Nitrogen Losses With Crop Productivity in Maize Agroecosystems

To meet sustainable intensification goals in the US Midwest, strategies which maintain or increase yields while minimizing negative impacts on water quality are needed. In this study maize yield response and potential nitrogen (N) leaching losses were simultaneously quantified to test the hypothesis that N rates which produced maximum yields would result in minimum yield-scaled N leaching potential. Field experiments were conducted at two sites in 2015 and 2016 to determine the effect of N rate (0, 79, 179, 269 kg N ha-1) on yield, crop N uptake, potential N leaching losses, and post-harvest soil N concentrations. Results show that a significant yield response (up to 179 kg N ha-1) occurred in all years compared to the control. Nitrogen leaching potential increased at 269 kg N ha-1 compared to the control in 2015 but not 2016. Yield-scaled N leaching potential was not statistically different among treatments in three of four site-years. There was no improvement in crop N uptake or N recovery efficiency for 269 kg N ha-1 compared to 179 kg N ha-1 in three of four site-years, which coincided with a trend of increasing post-harvest soil N concentrations, further escalating the risk of environmental N losses. These results did not support our hypothesis that yield-scaled N leaching potential is minimized at N rates that optimize yields (on a normalized basis yield-scaled N leaching potential increased by 28% compared to the control). However, normalized data indicate that 179 kg N ha-1, the N rate most closely aligned with current recommendations in this region, resulted in 96% of maximum yield while preventing a 25% increase in yield-scaled N leaching potential compared to 269 kg N ha-1, underscoring the potential for achieving high yields while avoiding increased N leaching potential on an environmental efficiency basis.
Measuring and Comparing Extinction Events: Reconsidering Diversity Crises and Concepts

To understand our present diversity crisis, it is natural to look to past crises for parallels and indicators. This is difficult because the present crisis is unlike the "Big Five" of the past: it is mostly terrestrial (with an increasing marine component), involves widespread habitat destruction and alteration of climate, and is largely anthropogenic, with confounding effects of differences in loss of diversity among continents and the difficulty of separating anthropogenic extinctions from natural Pleistocene and post-Pleistocene extinctions. In contrast, the "Big Five" crises of the geologic record are mainly marine (in the first two, no land vertebrates existed), and because marine taxa outnumber terrestrial taxa by a margin of about 25:1, global analyses of diversity crises have tended to lump together all phyla and environments. As a result, terrestrial evidence has been "swamped" statistically by the marine data. Both synchroneity and causality of terrestrial and marine events have usually been assumed, but without decisive data. Terrestrial vertebrate faunas do not seem to have been suddenly and catastrophically affected at the ends of the Permian, the Triassic, and the Cretaceous; rather, the pattern generally seems to be of steady turnover and replacement of groups and sometimes of slow decline. Here I suggest a revision of the concept of "mass extinction," which has no definitional limits on the application of the term with respect to duration, geography, ecology, or taxa affected. Unusual drops in taxonomic diversity have traditionally focused on increases in extinction rates, with scarce consideration of origination rates and their interplay with extinction rates. Analyses of hypothesized diversity crises should be operationally and situationally defined and statistically normalized through the histories of taxa and biotas, and should explicitly include both origination and extinction rates. The term "mass extinctions" would be usefully replaced by "diversity crises." These parameters require not absolute numerical (or percentage) limits but situational ones.
5 What’s Special About Medical Writing?

There are written works—such as the Bible and the Quran, the American Declaration of Independence and Quotations From Chairman Mao Tse-Tung, the latter known to many of us as “The Little Red Book”—that have changed the world. There is also writing that is lost, or has not been deciphered yet. We know little about early central African cultures because no one recorded what happened at the time. Our knowledge of Mayan and Inca cultures is deficient because most of their writing was destroyed by zealous Christian conquerors. Native American languages were first written in 1921, when a phonetic alphabet of 86 symbols was developed by a Cherokee named Sequoyah; this feat was honored when the redwood tree was named Sequoia [2]. It was 1952 when we began to decipher the written language of ancient Crete [3].
Discovery of Fuzzy Temporal Associations in Multiple Data Streams

Temporal antecedent and implicative constraints are required to ensure the relevancy of events in analyzing temporal data from multiple sources. Fuzzy predicates are used to represent imprecise temporal constraints and durations and a fuzzy partitions provide a hierarchy that allows the analysis of implicative constraints on several levels of granularity. In this paper we have outlined how standard data mining strategies can be adapted to utilize fuzzy representations in the discovery of imprecise temporal relationships between data obtained from multiple sources.
In situ and operando probing of solid-solid interfaces in electrochemical devices

Solid-state electrolytes can offer improved lithium-ion battery safety while potentially increasing the energy density by enabling alkali metal anodes. There have been significant research efforts to improve the ionic conductivity of solid-state electrolytes and the electrochemical performance of all-solid-state batteries; however, the root causes of their poor performance—interfacial reaction and subsequent impedance growth—are poorly understood. This is due to the dearth of effective characterization techniques for probing these buried interfaces. In situ and operando methodologies are currently under development for solid-state interfaces, and they offer the potential to describe the dynamic interfacial processes that serve as performance bottlenecks. This article highlights state-of-the-art solid–solid interface probing methodologies, describes practical limitations, and describes a future for dynamic interfacial characterization.
High Technology Totalitarianism: The Ultimate Dystopia; Manufactured Charisma in the Cyberworld

Orwell already envisioned this in 1984 – “Big Brother is watching you.” Dictatorial regimes, like that of China, are already using the newest technology to surveille their people. Dictators can and will use television and the internet to enhance their charisma to make them look like “gods.” It is the divine Kingship all over again, magnified in the cyber world.
A Theoretical and Experimental Study of the Vibratory Behavior of a High-Precision Optical Positioning Table

At the Advanced Photon Source (APS), a state-of-the-art synchrotron radiation facility at Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), high-precision optical positioning systems are needed to conduct a wide range of experiments using the high-brilliance X-ray beam. Precision may be compromised by low-level, low- frequency vibrations from flow-structure interactions in the cooling systems and from facility-based disturbances propagating through the floor. To predict the vibratory response of the positioning systems, a linearized multibody formulation has been developed. It has been applied to specific example cases--an optical table and a mirror support system--used at the experimental stations of the APS. Comparisons of resonant frequency and mode shape predictions based on the theoretical formulation with experimental measurements illustrate the crucial importance of properly modeling the kinematic joints and components that comprise these multibody structures. Improved experimental and theoretical methods have been introduced to estimate their dynamic properties. The results obtained by theory compare well with experimental findings. The proposed methodology is precise and generic in predicting the coupled multidimensional, multi-degree-of-freedom vibratory motion of the positioning systems for the given positioning configurations. It is easily adaptable to numerous systems at the APS and similar facilities.
Responsive Asthma Care for Teens (ReACT): Development protocol for an adaptive mobile health intervention for adolescents with asthma

Introduction Asthma is a leading cause of youth morbidity in the USA, affecting >8% of youth. Adherence to inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) can prevent asthma-related morbidity; however, the typical adolescent with asthma takes fewer than 50% of their prescribed doses. Adolescents are uniquely vulnerable to suboptimal asthma self-management due to still-developing executive functioning capabilities that may impede consistent self-regulation and weaken attempts to use problem solving to overcome barriers to ICS adherence. Methods and analysis The aims of this project are to improve adherence to ICS as an important step towards better self-management among adolescents aged 13–17 years diagnosed with asthma by merging the efficacious behaviour change strategies found in behavioural health interventions with scalable, adaptive mobile health (mHealth) technologies to create the Responsive Asthma Care for Teens programme (ReACT). ReACT intervention content will be developed through an iterative user-centred design process that includes conducting (1) one-on-one interviews with 20 teens with asthma; (2) crowdsourced feedback from a nationally representative panel of 100 adolescents with asthma and (3) an advisory board of youth with asthma, a paediatric pulmonologist and a behavioural health expert. In tandem, we will work with an existing technology vendor to programme ReACT algorithms to allow for tailored intervention delivery. We will conduct usability testing of an alpha version of ReACT with a sample of 20 target users to assess acceptability and usability of our mHealth intervention. Participants will complete a 4-week run-in period to monitor their adherence with all ReACT features turned off. Subsequently, participants will complete a 4-week intervention period with all ReACT features activated. The study started in October 2018 and is scheduled to conclude in late 2019. Ethics and dissemination Institutional review board approval was obtained at the University of Kansas and the University of Florida. We will submit study findings for presentation at national research conferences that are well attended by a mix of psychologists, allied health professionals and physicians. We will publish study findings in peer-reviewed journals read by members of the psychology, nursing and pulmonary communities.
Virtue, royalty, dreams and power: Exploring the appeal of Disney Princesses to preadolescent girls in the United States

For years the Disney Princesses have been at the top in box office tickets and their merchandising sales have reached into the billions. With this success there has been concern about the influence...
Evaluation of prophylactic antibiotics in penetrating brain injuries at an academic level 1 trauma center.

Abstract Objective Infections from penetrating brain injuries (PBI) lead to higher morbidity and mortality rates. The results of this research will be evaluated to develop institutional guideline for antibiotic prophylaxis in this patient population. The objective was to characterize the prophylactic antibiotic usage for patients presenting with PBI. Patients and methods This retrospective chart review included patients with a PBI identified through the institution’s trauma center registry between December 2015 and July 2018. The primary outcome was the proportion of patients that received prophylactic antibiotics. Secondary outcomes included antibiotic administration timing, selection and duration of antibiotic regimens, infection rates and patient outcomes. Results The study population included 33 patients, with 82 % males and an average age of 32 years. The most common mechanism of injury was a gunshot wound (94 %). Of the 33 patients, 24 (73 %) received at least one dose of prophylactic antibiotics. The median time to antibiotic administration was 52.8 min (IQR, 18-120), while the median duration of prophylaxis was 24 h (IQR, 7-84). The most common antibiotic regimen was a single cefazolin dose, with the next most common regimen included scheduled ceftriaxone and metronidazole. Overall, there were no documented central nervous system or skin and soft tissue infections during the initial admission, while 4 patients (12 %) were treated for pneumonia. Survivors (67 %) had a median hospital length of stay of 5.8 days. Conclusion The median duration of prophylaxis was shorter than the current data suggesting antibiotics for 5 days; however, there were no documented central nervous system infections, which is less than previously reported in the literature.
An update on the pharmacotherapeutic options and treatment strategies for systemic sclerosis.

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a multi-dimensional connective tissue disease of unknown etiology. Given the immense clinical complexity of SSc, the treatment of this condition is not standardized and ...
Confidence Intervals for a Population Size Based on Capture-Recapture Data

Capture-recapture is a popular sampling method to estimate the total number of individuals in a population. This method is also used to estimate the size of a target population based on several inc...
Decisional capacity determination and serious mental illness in oncology: Implications for equitable and beneficent care.

BACKGROUND Patients with Serious Mental Illness (SMI) have worse survival compared to cancer patients without SMI after controlling for delayed diagnosis. Decision-making capacity (DMC) may be impaired in both populations (cancer or SMI). DMC may be further impaired based on coupled vulnerability factors that challenge Shared Decision Making (SDM) for patients with cancer and SMI. METHODS Psychiatric consultations for DMC in hospitalized patients with cancer (n = 97) were consecutively evaluated across a single institution cancer center. SMI data, demographic, and cancer-related variables were obtained from the medical record. Descriptive data were contrasted in patients with and without DMC and used for logistic regression modeling. RESULTS Overall, 42% had DMC with no significant differences based on SMI (χ2 = 2.60, p = 0.11). Patients with SMI were younger, receiving anticancer treatment, and were less likely facing end of life issues. Age (OR 1.03, p = 0.05) and no recent anticancer treatments (OR 0.34, p = 0.02) were associated with decisional incapacity. At 3 months post discharge, almost two-thirds were dead with no difference based on SMI (χ2 = 0.01, p = 0.91). But End of Life (EOL) concerns were documented in 63% of non-SMI patients and only 36% of SMI patients (χ2 = 5.63, p = 0.02). Healthcare proxy (16%), four determinates of DMC (22%), and repeated psychiatric DCM assessments (35%) were documented with no differences based on SMI. CONCLUSION SDM is not equitable for cancer patients with SMI. Advanced directives and a robust effort to provide value-congruent care for patient with SMI who develop cancer may lessen this health inequity for cancer patients with SMI.
The effects of delay interval, intertriai interval, amnestic drugs, and differential outcomes on matching-to-position in rats

A matching-to-position task was used to investigate the effects of numerous variables on spatial working memory in the rat. The primary interest was whether implementing the differential outcomes procedure (DOP), which correlates specific reinforcers with specific discriminative stimuli, would enhance memory performance under a variety of conditions (long delay intervals, short intertrial-intervals [ITIs], amnestic drugs). When working memory was taxed, either by excessive delay intervals or very short ITIs, the DOP did enhance performance. Scopolamine disrupted performance in a delay-dependent manner, regardless of either reinforcement or ITI condition; however, performance was worse in the group that was trained with nondifferential reinforcement. MK-801 also impaired performance, but the effect was different from that obtained with scopolamine. First, the effect of MK-801 was delay independent; second, the greatest disruption of performance was in the group of rats trained with differential reinforcement. These data suggest that scopolamine and MK-801 impair memory performance in very different ways, depending on the nature of the task.
Fourier Shape Analysis Of Anatomic Structures

In this paper we explore quantitative shape analysis by Fourier methods. Applications and examples of the techniques discussed are demontrated on anatomic data as presented in three-dimensional Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) imaging. There is a wide variety of common problems that can benefit from a quantitative method of shape analysis. Indeed, shape constitutes one of four major independent parameters of structural morphometry (volume, shape, geometric localization and composition), each of which require quantitative measures in order to provide a sensitive means of analysis. The Fourier method of shape analysis can be applied to two-dimensional structural surfaces. In short, the method involves representation of the surface in polar coordinates and Fourier transformation to obtain a measure of the spatial frequency constituents that comprise the structure. The limitations and technical considerations imposed both by the method and the primary data itself are discussed. Finally, two-dimensional applications of the method are presented, for example, in the evaluation of cerebral asymmetry of normal adults.
Nucleotide and nucleic acid metabolism in developing amphibian embryos. II. Composition and metabolic activity of ovarian egg nucleic acids.

Abstract A comparison is made of the nucleotide compositions and specific activities of nucleic acids of the ovarian egg and liver of the same animal ( Rana catesbeiana ) injected with 32 P-orthophosphate. The nucleotide compositions of the egg RNA and DNA are quite similar to those of the respective nucleic acids of the liver and do not vary significantly with age of the egg. At no time is the specific activity of ovarian RNA greater than that of liver RNA, but in mature ovarian eggs the specific activity of the DNA is much greater than the liver DNA. We confirmed the presence of DNA in the cytoplasm of mature ovarian eggs by combining microdissection with radioactivity techniques. After daily injections of 32 P-orthophosphate over a period of seven days, cytoplasmic DNA contains about twice the radioactivity of nuclear DNA, whereas the amount of radioactivity in cytoplasmic RNA is only one-third that of nuclear RNA.
A New Technique for Surface Measurements of Radio Telescopes

In order to optimize the surface figure of the parabolic primary mirror of the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory, holographic measurements of the dish surface are being carried out. A new holographic technique is currently under developement, which has a number of advantages over existing techniques. This measurement technique is based on the use of a shearing Fourier Transform Spectrometer (Malacara 1978; Steel 1983) to examine the shape of the wavefronts from a point-like astronomical source.