cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Lookahead revisited in wireless network simulations

Rapid growth in wireless communication systems motivates the development of technology supporting the simulation of large-scale wireless systems. However, it is widely recognized that wireless communications do not have substantial "lookahead" needed by conservative synchronization protocols. This paper focuses on identifying and exploiting lookahead for such models. We find lookahead in three ways, exploiting characteristics of low power networks, the transceiver logic, and the way in which protocol stacks are typically constructed. We show how these observations allow a variety of conservative synchronization protocols to take advantage of lookahead, describe a synchronization method we use, and empirically examine the performance this method offers on a large-scale simulation of a sensor network intended for homeland defense scenarios
Feasibility of estimating leaf water content using spectral indices from WorldView-3’s near-infrared and shortwave infrared bands

A recently-launched high-resolution commercial satellite, DigitalGlobe’s WorldView-3, has 8 bands in the shortwave infrared SWIR wavelength region, which may be capable of estimating canopy water content at 3.7-m spatial resolution. WorldView-3 also has 8 multispectral bands at 1.24-m resolution with two bands in the near-infrared NIR. The relative spectral response functions for WorldView-3 were provided by DigitalGlobe, Inc., and band reflectances were determined for reflectance spectra of PROSPECT model simulations and leaf data from maize, trees, grasses, and broadleaf herbaceous eudicots. For laboratory measurements, the range of leaf water contents was extended by including drying leaves and leaf stacks of corn, soybean, oaks, and maples. Correlations between leaf water content and spectral indices from model simulations suggested that indices using SWIR band 1 center wavelength 1210 nm had low variability with respect to leaf water content, but also low sensitivity. Other indices using SWIR band 5 2165 nm had the highest sensitivity, but also had high variability caused by different values of the leaf structure parameter in PROSPECT. Indices using SWIR bands 2, 3 and 4 1570, 1660, and 1730 nm, respectively had high correlations and intermediate variability from the leaf structure parameter. Spectral indices calculated from the leaf data had the same overall patterns as the simulations for variation and sensitivity; however, indices using SWIR band 1 had low correlations, and the best correlations were from indices that used SWIR bands 2, 3 and 4. Spectral indices for maize, grasses, and herbaceous crops and weeds had similar responses to leaf water content; tree leaves had higher index values and saturated at lower leaf water contents. The specified width of NIR band 2 860–1040 nm overlaps the water absorption feature at 970 nm wavelength; however, the normalized difference of NIR band 1 and 2 was insensitive to water content because NIR band 2’s spectral response was most heavily weighted to wavelengths less than 930 nm. The high spatial resolution of the WorldView-3 SWIR data will help analyze how variation among plant species and functional groups affects spectral responses to differences in canopy water content.
Sound Radiation Control Resulting from Tire Structural Vibration

The objective here was to study the control of sound radiation resulting from the structural vibration of a tire excited at one point. First, the tire was modeled as an orthotropic shell by using finite elements and the effect of various tire material parameters on structural wave propagation and the associated sound radiation was estimated. The parameters that were effective at controlling structural wave propagation were then identified. In addition, the radiation field characteristics in the space surrounding a tire placed on a rigid ground were analyzed by using radiation mode analysis. Based on these analyses, a strategy for reducing the radiated sound levels by modifying the tire parameters from a base set was determined. An improved set of material parameters was identified that resulted in reduced sound radiation within a specified target frequency region. That reduction was achieved by an increase of treadband circumferential stiffness that was found to move the onset of longitudinal wave motion within the treadband into a higher frequency region. Secondly, flexural wave propagation was found to be mainly controlled by inflation pressure and cross-sectional treadband stiffness. By appropriate adjustment of these three parameters, it was found possible to substantially reduce sound radiation in a mid-frequency region.
Emotionally focused therapy for couples recovering from sexual addiction

ABSTRACTSexual addiction is described as a pathological relationship with sexual behaviors. Similar to addictions to substances, sexual addiction is commonly associated with dependency, tolerance, and withdrawal. The treatment of sexual addiction within the romantic couple relationship is significantly absent from existing literature. The presence of sexual addiction in a romantic relationship can result in lack of trust, feelings of shame, anger or betrayal, and ultimately the deterioration of the relationship. Emotionally focused therapy (EFT) is a couples therapy modality in which both partners are validated and helped by the therapist to develop a secure attachment to one another. This theoretical treatment model addresses recovery from a sexual addiction within the couple relationship through the incorporation of empirically validated addictions literature and EFT techniques. Both partners simultaneously participate in the modified steps of EFT treatment to address underlying needs of each partner. T...
Development and Mortality of the Citrus Snow Scale (Homoptera: Diaspididae) Under Constant Temperature and Relative Humidity

Citrus snow scale development was studied under 9 combinations of constant temperature and relative humidity. An effect of temperature and relative humidity on the rate of development was observed. Optimal temperatures for development ranged between 25 and 38°C and developmental thresholds were estimated at 12°C. There were no differences in developmental time between sexes, nor on values of sex ratio between temperatures. Development on grapefruit leaves reported here was faster than that reported previously for development on lemon fruits. A nonlinear model of development was fit to the stage duration data and a gamma distribution model was fit to the mortality data.
Structural Sources of Threat to Negro Membership in Militant Voluntary Associations in a Southern City

T he object of this study is to examine the hypothesis that where Negroes fail to participate in instrumental voluntary associations it will be found that, among other things, the conditions of employment make joining too great a risk. Employers are frequently expressly concerned about what their workers do with their spare time. In Lewis' study of Kent, a small Piedmont town, many Negroes were afraid to belong to the NAACP.1 Wherever Negroes work for whites or perceive that whites have relatively unchecked power over them, we would expect that they would be unwilling to risk open affiliation with protest organizations which violate white norms for Negro behavior.2 On the other hand, a Negro might feel safe in joining a militant instrumental association if he could command countervailing power in support of his deviance from white norms of conduct. We will define the command of countervailing power as "job support." In a complementary sense, lack of countervailing power is called "job threat." Our hypothesis, then, is: the more supportive the job situation, the more likely Negroes are to join militant instrumental associations. The data were obtained from questionnaires administered by white students in the six Negro residential areas of Tampa, Florida, in November 1965.3 A two-stage area probability sample was employed and of 318 interviews attempted, 291 were completed. About 53 percent *of all respondents belonged to at least one voluntary association (excluding church and union).4
Influence of Dietary Phosphorus on Performance of Hy-Line W36 Hens

Abstract Two experiments were conducted to determine the effect of nonphytate phosphorus (NPP) on hen performance in an environmentally controlled house. In Experiment 1, 21-wk-old Hy-Line W36 hens (n = 1,248) were randomly assigned to 13 dietary treatments (0.1 to 0.7% NPP, at graded increments of 0.05%) for 17 wk. In Experiment 2, 45-wk-old Hy-Line W36 hens (n = 960) were randomly allocated to eight diets in a 2 × 4 factorial arrangement of treatments. Two levels of Ca (3 and 4%) and four levels of NPP (0.1, 0.2, 0.3, and 0.4%) were fed for 8 wk. Feed consumption (FC), egg production (EP), egg weight (EW), egg specific gravity (ESG), bone density (BD), bone mineral content (BMC), bone breaking strength (BBS), BW and mortality were evaluated to determine performance. Results of Experiment 1 indicated that FC, EP, and BW increased as NPP was increased from 0.1 to 0.7% (77 to 588 mg/hen/d). During Week 12, a sharp decrease in FC and EP was observed in hens fed the most deficient level of 0.1% NPP. Egg weight and ESG decreased linearly (P
Development: Lifelong Journeys

The theories of creativity covered so far have focused on individuals, as idea generators and problems solvers in Chapters 2 and 3, and then as self-actualizing organisms and existential individuals in Chapters 4 and 5. As previously discussed, all creativity theories concern people, ideas and change in the world but to varying degrees and differing conclusions. This chapter and the next cover theories that focus more directly on changing the world. This chapter discusses theories of individual, cognitive development across lifespan with emphasis on how people make contributions to their domains of expertise. Chapter 7 examines sociocultural theories, the social dynamics of change in groups and across history. Chapter 8 then discusses the worldmaking implications for both sets of theories.
Pragmatic reasoning through semantic inference

A number of recent proposals have used techniques from game theory and Bayesian cognitive science to formalize Gricean pragmatic reasoning (Frank & Goodman, 2012; Franke, 2009; Goodman & Stuhlmuller, 2013; Jager, 2012). We discuss two phenomena which pose a challenge to these accounts of pragmatics: M-implicatures (Horn, 1984) and embedded implicatures which violate Hurford’s constraint (Chierchia, Fox, & Spector, 2012; Hurford, 1974). While techniques have been developed for deriving M-implicatures, Hurford-violating em- bedded implicatures pose a more fundamental challenge, because of basic limitations in the models’ architecture. In order to explain these phenomena, we propose a realignment of the division between semantic content and pragmatic content. Under this proposal, the semantic content of an utterance is not fixed independent of pragmatic inference; rather, pragmatic inference partially determines an utterance’s semantic content. We show how semantic inference can be realized as an extension to the Rational Speech Acts framework (Goodman & Stuhlmuller, 2013). The addition of lexical uncertainty derives both M-implicatures and the relevant embedded implicatures, and preserves the derivations of more standard implicatures. We use this principle to explain a novel class of implicature, non-convex disjunctive implicatures, which have several theoretically interesting properties. In particular, these implicatures can be preserved in downward-entailing contexts in the absence of accenting, a property which is predicted by lexical uncertainty, but which violates prior generalizations in the literature (Fox & Spector, in press; Horn, 1989). EARLY ACCESS VERSION
Global Burden of Neonatal Invasive Pneumococcal Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Background:This study aimed to estimate the global burden of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) incidence among neonates during the pre-pneumococcal conjugate vaccine era.Methods:A systematic search of published and unpublished data was undertaken. Bias assessment and qualitative synthesis of the i
Glomerular filtration rate and electrolyte handling in response to sodium loading and depletion. A twin study.

Abstract Possible genetic influences on glomerular filtration rate and electrolyte excretion were investigated in 55 (37 monozygotic, 18 dizygotic) young adult white twin pairs. Subjects were studied during a five-day hospitalization involving sodium loading and sodium depletion. No evidence of genetic variability was found in the control levels of serum or urine sodium and potassium. Following a saline infusion it was possible to detect genetic influence in electrolyte handling. Creatinine clearance, used as a measure of glomerular filtration rate, did not appear to be genetically mediated. The results indicate that genetic factors are important in sodium handling in normal individuals and that this is independent of glomerular filtration rate.
Evaluation of anticoagulation selection for acute venous thromboembolism

Treatment of venous thromboembolism (VTE) has been confined to parenteral agents and oral vitamin K antagonists for decades; however, with the approval of the direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs), clinicians now have more options. This study aims to evaluate the real world prescribing practices of all oral anticoagulants for VTE at a single center. A retrospective cohort analysis of all adult patients diagnosed with acute onset VTE was conducted. Of the 105 patients included in the analysis, 45 (43 %) patients received warfarin and 60 (57 %) patients received a DOAC. Rivaroxaban and apixaban were the most common DOACs initiated. There were significantly more patients in the warfarin group with an eCrCl of <60 ml/min compared to patients who received a DOAC (77.8 % vs. 15 %; P < 0.05). There were significantly less patients in the warfarin group with serum aminotranferase concentrations three times the upper limit of normal compared to those who received a DOAC (15.6 % vs. 55 %; P < 0.05). Patients who received a DOAC had less days on parenteral anticoagulation compared to patients who received warfarin (median 2.5 days [IQR 0–4] vs. 6 days [IQR 5–7], p < 0.05). Patients who received a DOAC had a shorter hospital length of stay compared to patients who received warfarin (median 3 days [IQR 2–4] vs. 8 days [IQR 6–10], p < 0.05). This analysis showed that DOACs are being prescribed more than warfarin for treatment of new onset VTE. Renal and liver function may influence the agent prescribed. Utilization of DOACs may decrease the hospital length of stay.
Multi-tiered Reorganization of the Genome during B Cell Affinity Maturation Anchored by a Germinal Center-Specific Locus Control Region

Summary During the humoral immune response, B cells undergo a dramatic change in phenotype to enable antibody affinity maturation in germinal centers (GCs). Using genome-wide chromosomal conformation capture (Hi-C), we found that GC B cells undergo massive reorganization of the genomic architecture that encodes the GC B cell transcriptome. Coordinate expression of genes that specify the GC B cell phenotype—most prominently BCL6 —was achieved through a multilayered chromatin reorganization process involving (1) increased promoter connectivity, (2) formation of enhancer networks, (3) 5′ to 3′ gene looping, and (4) merging of gene neighborhoods that share active epigenetic marks. BCL6 was an anchor point for the formation of GC-specific gene and enhancer loops on chromosome 3. Deletion of a GC-specific, highly interactive locus control region upstream of Bcl6 abrogated GC formation in mice. Thus, large-scale and multi-tiered genomic three-dimensional reorganization is required for coordinate expression of phenotype-driving gene sets that determine the unique characteristics of GC B cells.
Reconstructed and Unfolded Event Yields

After subtracting the backgrounds according to the methods in Chap. 9, the numerator of Eq. (7.1) is almost completely known: $$\displaystyle{ \sigma _{i} = \frac{U_{ij}\left (d_{j} - b_{j}\right )} {\Delta _{i}\,\epsilon _{i}\,\Phi _{i}\,N}. }$$ The difference (d j − b j ) is the number of true DIS events in each E ν and x bj bin i in each nucleus A. Plots of the event yields are described in Sect. 11.2. The final necessary piece of the numerator before calculating a cross-section is the unsmearing matrix U ij . U ij is needed to transform events from the reconstructed j bin to their true origin bin i. This process is referred to as unfolding and is explained in this chapter.
General Experiences + Race + Racism = Work Lives of Black Faculty in Postsecondary Science Education.

Existent research indicates that postsecondary Black faculty members, who are sorely underrepresented in the academy especially in STEM fields, assume essential roles; chief among these roles is diversifying higher education. Their recruitment and retention become more challenging in light of research findings on work life for postsecondary faculty. Research has shown that postsecondary faculty members in general have become increasingly stressed and job satisfaction has declined with dissatisfaction with endeavors and work overload cited as major stressors. In addition to the stresses managed by higher education faculty at large, Black faculty must navigate diversity-related challenges. Illuminating and understanding their experiences can be instrumental in lessening stress and job dissatisfaction, outcomes that facilitate recruitment and retention. This study featured the experiences and perceptions of Black faculty in science education. This study, framed by critical race theory, examines two questions: What characterizes the work life of some Black faculty members who teach, research, and serve in science education? How are race and racism present in the experiences of these postsecondary Black faculty members? A phenomenological approach to the study situates the experiences of the Black participants as valid phenomena worthy of investigation, illuminates their experiences, and seeks to retain the authenticity of their voices.
Zinc regulates Nox1 expression through a NF-κB and mitochondrial ROS dependent mechanism to induce senescence of vascular smooth muscle cells

Abstract Aims The role of oxidative stress and inflammation in the development and progression of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) is well established. Increases in oxidative stress can further exacerbate the inflammatory response and lead to cellular senescence. We previously reported that angiotensin II (Ang II) and zinc increase reactive oxygen species (ROS) and cause senescence of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) and that senescence induced by Ang II is a zinc-dependent process. Zinc stimulated NADPH oxidase (Nox) activity; however, the role of Nox isoforms in zinc effects was not determined. Results Here, we show that downregulation of Nox1, but not Nox4, by siRNA prevented both Ang II- and zinc-induced senescence in VSMCs. On the other hand, overexpression of Nox1 induced senescence, which was associated with reduced proliferation, reduced expression of telomerase and increased DNA damage. Zinc increased Nox1 protein expression, which was inhibited by chelation of zinc with TPEN and by overexpression of the zinc exporters ZnT3 and ZnT10. These transporters work to reduce cytosolic zinc, suggesting that increased cytosolic zinc mediates Nox1 upregulation. Other metals including copper, iron, cobalt and manganese failed to upregulate Nox1, suggesting that this pathway is zinc specific. Nox1 upregulation was inhibited by actinomycin D (ACD), an inhibitor of transcription, by inhibition of NF-κB, a known Nox1 transcriptional regulator and by N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) and MitoTEMPO, suggesting that NF-κB and mitochondrial ROS mediate zinc effects. Supporting this idea, we found that zinc increased NF-κB activation in the cytosol, stimulated the translocation of the p65 subunit to the nucleus, and that zinc accumulated in mitochondria increasing mitochondrial ROS, measured using MitoSox. Further, zinc-induced senescence was reduced by inhibition of NF-κB or reduction of mitochondrial ROS with MitoTEMPO. NF-κB activity was also reduced by MitoTEMPO, suggesting that mitochondrial ROS is upstream of NF-κB. Innovation and conclusion Our data demonstrate that altered zinc distribution leading to accumulation of zinc in the mitochondria increases mitochondrial ROS production causing NF-κB activation which in turn upregulates Nox1 expression inducing senescence of VSMCs.
Security in wireless sensor networks

Wireless sensor networks (WSN) are envisioned to consist of large numbers of minimum capacity devices operating in demanding real-world environments. These issues, together with the inherent problems of wireless communication, make security an especially difficult problem. Many WSN also need to operate under real-time constraints. We discuss three routing protocols for WSN that have good real-time performance properties: SPEED, RAP and IGF. We suggest extensions to these protocols that improve their security properties. Denial of service is another key problem facing WSN. We discuss a highly decentralized algorithm for the detection and mapping of jammed regions of a WSN. The solution is robust to failures and can operate on partial information (a type of anytime algorithm). We conclude by considering several potential future directions for security solutions, including: secure groups based on relaxed semantics, exploiting physical properties, exploiting time validity intervals for data, and the interaction between security and privacy.
Detection of High-Risk Histologic Features and Tumor Upstaging of Nonmelanoma Skin Cancers on Debulk Analysis: A Quantitative Systematic Review.

BACKGROUNDHistologic analysis of tumor debulks from Mohs micrographic surgery (MMS) or wide local excision may lead to the detection of adverse features missed on initial biopsy.OBJECTIVEDetermine the incidence of (1) high-risk features on debulk analysis compared with initial biopsy and (2) upstagi
Improving metabolome coverage and data quality: advancing metabolomics and lipidomics for biomarker discovery

This Feature Article highlights some of the key challenges within the field of metabolomics and examines what role separation and analytical sciences can play to improve the use of metabolomics in biomarker discovery and personalized medicine. Recent progress in four key areas is highlighted: (i) improving metabolite coverage, (ii) developing accurate methods for unstable metabolites including in vivo global metabolomics methods, (iii) advancing inter-laboratory studies and reference materials and (iv) improving data quality, standardization and quality control of metabolomics studies.
Improving Spatial Resolution Using Incoherent Subtraction of Receive Beams Having Different Apodizations

In ultrasonic imaging, reduction of lateral sidelobes can result in an improved image with less distortion and fewer artifacts. In general, apodization is used to lower sidelobes in exchange for increasing the width of the main lobe, and thus decreasing lateral resolution. Null subtraction imaging (NSI) is a nonlinear image processing technique that uses different receive apodizations on copies of the same RF data to maintain low sidelobe levels while simultaneously improving lateral resolution. The images created with three different apodization functions are combined to form an image with low sidelobe levels and apparent improvements in lateral resolution compared to conventional rectangular apodization. To evaluate the performance of this technique for different imaging tasks, experiments were performed on an ATS539 phantom containing wire targets to assess lateral resolution and cylindrical anechoic and hyperechoic targets to assess contrast. NSI images were compared against rectangular apodized images and minimum variance beamformed images. In experiments, the apparent lateral resolution was observed to improve by a factor of more than $35\times $ when compared to rectangular apodization. Image quality was assessed by the estimation of lateral resolution (−6-dB receive beamwidth), main-lobe-to-sidelobe ratio, and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR). Imaging with NSI using a focal number of 2 (f/2), the −6-dB beamwidth on receive as measured from a small wire target in the ATS phantom was $0.03\lambda $ compared to $2.79\lambda $ for rectangular apodization. Sidelobes were observed to decrease by 32.9 dB with NSI compared to rectangular apodization. However, the ability to observe the contrast of anechoic and hyperechoic targets reduced when utilizing the NSI scheme, i.e., the CNR decreased from −3.05 to −1.01 for anechoic targets and 1.65 to 0.45 for the hyperechoic targets.
Incarcerated Umbilical and Ventral Hernia Repair

Incarcerated umbilical and ventral hernias require emergent surgical intervention in order to prevent life-threatening complications including strangulation and bowel perforation. Upon evaluation, a detailed history and physical exam should be performed with a focus on previous abdominal operations and history of ventral hernia repairs and to assess for signs of bowel obstruction, sepsis, or peritonitis. Both laparoscopic and open approaches may be used in the acute care setting. The choice of operative technique and the decision to use mesh and the type of mesh to employ are based on several factors including the presence or absence of a contaminated field, surgeon experience and preference, and patient factors. Timely recognition, early intervention, and informed intraoperative decision-making are critical to ensure optimal patient outcomes.
XRCreator: interactive construction of immersive data-driven stories

Immersive data-driven storytelling, which uses interactive immersive visualizations to present insights from data, is a compelling use case for VR and AR environments. We present XRCreator, an authoring system to create immersive data-driven stories. The cross-platform nature of our React-inspired system architecture enables the collaboration among VR, AR, and web users, both in authoring and in experiencing immersive data-driven stories.
The Other 23 Hours at 50: Some Personal Reflections

In October 2010, over 150 mental health and child welfare professionals, parents, policy makers and child care staff gathered for a 2 day symposium on the campus of Babson University in Wellesley, ...
Neurofilament light chain as an indicator of exacerbation prior to clinical symptoms in multiple sclerosis.

Abstract Background Biomarkers may be a sensitive measure of disease activity in patients with multiple sclerosis (pwMS). Objective A pwMS had a marked increase of neurofilament light chain (NfL) in CSF 9-weeks prior to a clinical exacerbation. Methods and results Brain MRI, CSF, EDSS were measured at baseline, 6 weeks and 28 weeks. The patient had an exacerbation at week 15 of study but the NfL measured at week 6 were found to show a nearly 3-fold increase of CSF NfL levels prior to symptoms when the NfL levels were later measured. Conclusion This is an example supporting the usefulness of NfL in monitoring disease activity in pwMS which may predict disease activity prior to a clinical exacerbation.
Abstract 3341: Rural and urban disparities in colonoscopy use persisted despite cost-sharing reduction among Medicare beneficiaries

Background: Due to passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), Medicare began waiving Part B deductibles and eliminating coinsurance for all colonoscopies in 2011. As rural populations have significantly lower income than urban, there is hope the cost reduction would decrease rural screening disparities. We thus examined rural-urban colonoscopy use pre-/post-ACA implementation. Methods: We used Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System data (2008-2016) to examine colonoscopy utilization for two years pre-ACA (2008 and 2010) and three years post-ACA (2012, 2014, and 2016) with stratification by rural/urban residence. Multivariate logistic regression was used to examine the differences in screening likelihood across rural and urban groups, while controlling for other factors such as age, sex, marital status, race/ethnicity, household income, educational attainment, gastroenterologist availability, exercise, smoking, and years. Results: Of the 302,941 eligible Medicare beneficiaries, 203,426 (67.2%) received a colonoscopy. Colonoscopy receipt increased from 62.8% pre-ACA to 70.2% post-ACA years (p Conclusions: Despite cost-sharing reduction of Medicare coverage for colonoscopy, rural and urban differences in colonoscopy use persisted over time among Medicare beneficiaries. Although the receipt of colonoscopy increased over time, the gap between rural and urban populations has remained. Citation Format: Min Jee Lee, Wiley Jenkins, Eric Adjei Boakye, Sabha Ganai. Rural and urban disparities in colonoscopy use persisted despite cost-sharing reduction among Medicare beneficiaries [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2019; 2019 Mar 29-Apr 3; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 3341.
Nonlinear dose-time-response functions and health-protective exposure limits for inflammation-mediated diseases

Why have occupational safety regulations in the United States not been more successful in protecting worker health from mesothelioma risks, while apparently succeeding relatively well in reducing silicosis risks? This paper briefly discusses biological bases for thresholds and nonlinearities in exposure-response functions for respirable crystalline silica (RCS) and asbestos, based on modeling a chronic inflammation mode of action (mediated by activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome, for both RCS and asbestos). It applies previously published physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) models to perform computational experiments illuminating how different time courses of exposure with the same time-weighted average (TWA) concentration affect internal doses in target tissues (lung for RCS and mesothelium for asbestos). Key conclusions are that (i) For RCS, but not asbestos, limiting average (TWA) exposure concentrations also tightly constrains internal doses and ability to trigger chronic inflammation and resulting increases in disease risks (ii) For asbestos, excursions (i.e., spikes in concentrations); and especially the times between them are crucial drivers of internal doses and time until chronic inflammation; and hence (iii) These dynamic aspects of exposure, which are not addressed by current occupational safety regulations, should be constrained to better protect worker health. Adjusting permissible average exposure concentration limits (PELs) and daily excursion limits (ELs) is predicted to have little impact on reducing mesothelioma risks, but increasing the number of days between successive excursions is predicted to be relatively effective in reducing worker risks, even if it has little or no impact on TWA average concentrations.
Randomized Policy Learning for Continuous State and Action MDPs.

Deep reinforcement learning methods have achieved state-of-the-art results in a variety of challenging, high-dimensional domains ranging from video games to locomotion. The key to success has been the use of deep neural networks used to approximate the policy and value function. Yet, substantial tuning of weights is required for good results. We instead use randomized function approximation. Such networks are not only cheaper than training fully connected networks but also improve the numerical performance. We present \texttt{RANDPOL}, a generalized policy iteration algorithm for MDPs with continuous state and action spaces. Both the policy and value functions are represented with randomized networks. We also give finite time guarantees on the performance of the algorithm. Then we show the numerical performance on challenging environments and compare them with deep neural network based algorithms.
Accuracy of older adults in judging self-generated elbow torques during multi-joint isometric tasks.

Successful execution of daily activities requires accurate perception of the torques one generates about multiple joints. Even so, previous studies are mostly limited to an individual’s perception when torques are generated about a single joint. Consequently, this study investigates how accurately individuals judge torques at their arm during a multi-joint task. The accuracy of fifteen right-hand dominant participants (age: 60 ± 10 years) in matching isometric elbow torques, within the same arm, was quantified during single- and/or multi-joint tasks. Participants generated and matched elbow torques when the shoulder was: (1) not abducted (single-to-single-joint), (2) abducted (multi-to-multi-joint), and (3) abducted and then not abducted (multi-to-single-joint). The constant error for the multi-to-single-joint condition (dominant: 6.9 ± 5.9 Nm, non-dominant: 6.0 ± 5.5 Nm) was greater than that for the single-to-single-joint condition (dominant: 2.7 ± 3.1 Nm, non-dominant: 3.4 ± 2.8 Nm) (p < 0.001) and multi-to-multi-joint condition (dominant: 3.0 ± 2.8 Nm, non-dominant: 3.9 ± 2.7 Nm) (p < 0.001). The constant error for the multi-to-multi-joint condition did not significantly differ from that of the single-to-single-joint condition (p $$=$$ 0.780). Findings indicate that in older adults the perception of a self-generated torque during a 2-degree-of-freedom (DOF), multi-joint task is largely influenced by the motor commands associated with the 2-DOF task and is not specific to the DOF at each joint.
Pitfalls of Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) Measurements by Fluorescent Probes and Mitochondrial Superoxide Determination Using MitoSOX

Intracellular and mitochondrial superoxide formation is detected using phenanthrene-based dyes such as hydroethidine, mitochondria-targeted hydroethidine, or MitoSOX. HE and MitoSOX are redox probes, which undergo two-electron oxidation forming ethidium (E+) and Mito-ethidium (Mito-E+). The two-electron oxidation products derived from these probes exhibit the characteristic fluorescence that aids in fluorescence microscopy or flow cytometry or related techniques that are used to detect and determine superoxide (sometimes referred to as ROS, mitochondrial ROS, or mROS). This chapter briefly addresses the pitfalls of fluorescence-based techniques for detecting the intracellular superoxide.
Violation of electromagnetic U1 symmetry by Yang–Mills gravity and deflection of light experiment

Within the gauge symmetry framework, the U1 symmetry of electrodynamics is violated in the presence of gravity with spacetime translational gauge symmetry in inertial frames. For a light ray, an ei...
(Mis)perceptions of HIV and HPV among female college students: a qualitative study.

Background This study aims to investigate college women’s misperceptions about the human papillomavirus virus (HPV) and the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Methods: Twenty college women from an urban, Midwestern university in the United States were recruited to participate in interviews exploring their beliefs about HIV and HPV. In-depth interviews were conducted and analysed via interpretive methods. Results: The college women in this study often conflated or confused HPV and HIV and revealed misperceptions about the severity and prevalence of HPV and HIV. Conclusion: The results have important implications for understanding college women’s sexual risk behaviour and, as a result, can inform the practices of both healthcare providers and public health professionals.
Shape-selective synthesis of 4,4′-dimethylbiphenyl. 1. Methylation of 4-methylbiphenyl over modified zeolite catalysts

Methylation of 4-methylbiphenyl with methanol was carried out using zeolites HY, HM, and HZSM-5 as catalysts under fixed-bed down-flow conditions. HY and HM display no shape selectivity, but HZSM-5 shows moderate selectivity to the target product, 4,4′-dimethylbiphenyl (4,4′-DMBP) under proper reaction conditions. Modification of the surface of HZSM-5 zeolite can improve the selectivity to 4,4′-DMBP, especially the simultaneous modification of external and internal surface with inorganic P compound. The selectivity to 4,4′-DMBP can be increased to as high as 65% over the HZSM-5 modified with a small amount of ammonium hydrogen phosphate.
Draft Genome Sequences of Blastococcus sp. Clones TML/M2B and TML/C7B, with Different Motilities, Isolated in a Laboratory.

ABSTRACT Two novel Blastococcus sp. clones, TML/M2B and TML/C7B, with 2 different stable growth phenotypes, were isolated from a laboratory tissue culture. The draft genome sequences generated through genomic sequencing of clones TML/M2B and TML/C7B contain 4 and 2 contigs, respectively. The respective genome sizes are 4.10 Mb and 4.11 Mb, with G+C contents of 74.17% and 74.14%, respectively.
Identification of volatile components in the headspace of pharmaceutical-grade fentanyl

Abstract The immense potency of fentanyl and its persistent use poses great danger to abusers and law enforcement personnel. With just a few milligrams capable of causing an overdose, most agencies advise personnel to avoid handling fentanyl or related materials directly. However, there are limited field-portable and non-contact methods for the detection of fentanyl. Thus, the development of a non-contact field portable detection method is essential. To facilitate the development of a non-contact detection method, the volatile signature of fentanyl was explored using a solid phase microextraction (SPME) coupled with gas chromatography and mass spectrometry (GC–MS) method. SPME-GC–MS was used to collect and establish the vapor signature of pure pharmaceutical-grade fentanyl and diluted pharmaceutical-grade fentanyl. The collection and analysis of these vapor signatures has provided an essential stepping-stone in the future development of a non-contact vapor detection method for fentanyl.
Optimal Aircraft Design Decisions Under Uncertainty Using Robust Signomial Programming

Aircraft design benefits from optimization under uncertainty since design feasibility and performance can have large sensitivities to uncertain parameters. Legacy methods of uncertainty protection ...
Semantic Convolutional Neural Network model for Safe Business Investment by Using BERT

The real estate market creates one of the significant business domains for investors, but a wise investment in real estate is more important for low-income people who have just one home as their life-time investment. So during the economic recession, many homeowners lose their homes because of two major factors: one, they could not pay their mortgages, and second, the house could not be rented to cover the mortgages. So real estate investment can be secured if the house could be an excellent rental property. Information from real estate websites can be a rich source of knowledge essential to detect the house's potential as a rental property. This work uses a natural language processing approach to propose a new real estate investment model based on online textual information. For the first time, we apply a transfer learning approach based on multiple online resources to recognize the house as valuable rental property in the real estate market. Bidirectional attention models based on transformers (BERT) are used to extract features for semantic convolutional neural network models to secure real estate investment. This research has three main points: (1) using transformers to implement semantic CNN based on Airbnb, Zillow data (2) performance evaluation of traditional Machine learning models with our new transfer learning model for rent prediction. (3) a new public data set for more than 5 million houses in the U.S based on semantic information that can be used for real estate market research. This research offers a new model for safe investment in the real estate market based on the transfer learning approach.
Accelerating Image Feature Comparisons using CUDA on Commodity Hardware

Given multiple images of the same scene, image registration is the process of determining the correct transformation to bring the images into a common coordinate system—i.e., how the images fit together. Featurebased registration applies a transformation function to the input images before performing the correlation step. The result of that transformation, also called feature extraction, is a list of significant points in the images, and the registration process will attempt to correlate these points, rather than directly comparing the input images. The Scale-Invariant Feature Transform [1], or SIFT, is a popular feature extraction algorithm. After finding significant points, it generates a descriptor for each point. These descriptors are a collection of circular histograms describing the intensity gradients of small regions surrounding the point. The structure of these descriptors, combined with multi-scale extraction, makes SIFT feature descriptors invariant to the rotation and scale of the input images. Georeferencing, which locates images in physical space, is one application of image registration. The location of an input image, for example an aerial photo, can be determined by registering it against other aerial images with known coordinates. When using featurebased registration, this is implemented by extracting features from the input image, searching for similar features in the existing images, and calculating a coordinate transformation that correlates the similar features. Searching for similar features implies the existence of a function to measure feature dissimilarity. One such function is the circular earth mover’s distance [2], or CEMD, which provides excellent feature comparison but requires more computation than other methods. Georeferencing frequently operates on large images, requiring searches among billions of features, so a method to quickly perform many CEMD comparisons is prerequisite to the use of CEMD in georeferencing applications.
A New Corrosion Resistant, Martensitic Stainless Steel for Improved Performance in Miniature Bearings

A new alloy, 440 N-DUR{trademark} has been developed which will provide the corrosion resistance of 440C with improved carbide size and distribution for noiseless miniature precision bearing operation. The alloy may be through hardened to achieve a minimum hardness of 60 HRC. Its nominal composition is 0.65 wt.% C, 14.5 wt.% Cr, 0.30 wt.% Si, 0.45 wt.% Mn and 0.10 wt.% N{sub 2}. The development of the alloy is a result of a factorial experimental design including 17 alloy variants. The optimum alloy provides a combination of the best carbide structure, corrosion resistance and heat treat response. The addition of nitrogen combined with this carbon and chromium content improves the alloy`s hardenability and corrosion resistance. The alloy successfully withstands copper sulfate exposure and is currently being tested in several bearing applications. It also has great potential to outperform 440C and other corrosion resistant alloys for other ambient and low temperature applications because of its improved microstructure and heat treat response.
Limits of strain compensation in MQW InGaAsP/InP 1.5 /spl mu/m lasers

The authors consider strain compensation for typical multiple quantum well (MQW) laser structures using an energy balance model and determine the theoretical limitations of structural stability based on uncompensated reliability data from the literature. Strain compensation is the technique used to balance tensile and compressive forces in alternating layers to render the stack strain neutral. Strain compensation must be given careful consideration in the design and synthesis of strain neutral structures. Strain compensation holds the promise of reduced defect densities with enhanced stability and should permit very highly strained QW optoelectronic devices to be fabricated which are predicted to have considerably enhanced performance and reliability. >
The reaction of β,γ-unsaturated acids with phenylselenenyl chloride.: Decarboxylative elimination vs phenylselenolactonization.

Abstract β,γ-Unsaturated acids react with phenylselenenyl chloride to form simple adducts, selenolactones (cyclization), or allylphenyl selenides (decarboxylation) depending on the substitution pattern of the starting acid.
Intracellular machinery for the transport of AMPA receptors

AMPA-type glutamate receptors are one of the most dynamic components of excitatory synapses. Their regulated addition and removal from synapses leads to long-lasting forms of synaptic plasticity, known as long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD). In addition, AMPA receptors reach their synaptic targets after a complicated journey involving multiple transport steps through different membrane compartments. This review summarizes our current knowledge of the trafficking pathways of AMPARs and their relation to synaptic function and plasticity.
Collaborative Heterogeneous Sensing: An Application to Contamination Detection in Water Distribution Networks

In this paper we consider sensor networks for detecting contamination in urban water distribution systems. We assume that the sensor nodes are installed at connection points only (through the manholes) and are driven by supercapacitors charged by water &#64258;ow. Although water systems may be affected by a large variety of contaminants, only a few sensors can be practically deployed. Thus many types of contaminants are sensed via "proxy sensing", which may not be 100% reliable. In this paper we consider such a situation and examine the problem of collaborative adaptation of heterogeneous set of sensors in order to maximize contamination detection, especially during periods of almost zero natural water &#64258;ow. The paper shows, through extensive simulations, that the proposed approach can drastically reduce the contamination reporting time from 3.5 hours to &#8764;6 minutes, compared to the case without adaptation.
Frequency domain data transmission using reduced computational complexity algorithms

In this paper we describe a frequency domain data transmission method to be used for digital data transmission over analog telephone lines which exploits recently derived reduced computational complexity algorithms, such as the Winograd Fourier Transform, to achieve a significantly lower computational rate than comparable time domain QAM modems implemented digitally using signal processing techniques. In addition to the lower computational rate, the proposed method also allows for better channel bandwidth utilization by allowing optimal signal power allocation based on the channel's signal to noise versus frequency characteristics. Experimental results on this method are presented, indicating that it may be possible to send over 10,000 BPS over an unconditioned telephone line while maintaining a 10-5BER.
Volume of separable states is super-doubly-exponentially small in the number of qubits

In this paper we give sharp two-sided estimates of the volume of the set of separable states on N qubits. In particular, the magnitude of the 'effective radius' of that set in the sense of volume is determined up to a factor which is a (small) power of N, and thus precisely on the scale of powers of its dimension. We also identify an ellipsoid that appears to optimally approximate the set of separable states. Additionally, one of the appendixes contains sharp estimates (by known methods) for the expected values of norms of the Gaussian unitary ensemble random matrices. We employ standard tools of classical convexity, high-dimensional probability, and geometry of Banach spaces.