cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Integrated Modeling and Experimental Approaches to Control Silica Modification of Design Silk-Based Biomaterials

Mineralized polymeric biomaterials provide useful options toward mechanically robust systems for some tissue repairs. Silks as a mechanically robust protein-based material provide a starting point for biomaterial options, particularly when combined with silica toward organic–inorganic hybrid systems. To further understand the interplay between silk proteins and silica related to material properties, we systematically study the role of three key domains in bioengineered spider silk fusion proteins with respect to β-sheet formation and mineralization: (i) a core silk domain for materials assembly, (ii) a histidine tag for purification, and (iii) a silicification domain for mineralization. Computational simulations are used to identify the effect of each domain on the protein folding and accessibility of positively charged amino acids for silicification and predictions are then compared with experimental data. The results show that the addition of the silica and histidine domains reduces β-sheet structure in...
An Outline for a Critical History of Fürsprache: Synegoria and Advocacy

In Theodor Lipps’ Theorie der Einfuhlung lassen sich Spuren der Semantik von Affektion und Selbstaffektion aus der antiken Rhetorik aufzeigen. Von dieser Beobachtung aus beschreibt der Aufsatz die dreipolige rhetorische Szene der (Selbst-(Affektion (Sprechen-fur-den-andern-vor-dem-Andern) als Alternative und Erganzung zum modernen zweipoligen Begriff der Einfuhlung. Zwei antike Modelle werden dabei unterschieden: Synegorie (Sprechen-Mit) bei Aristoteles und Advokatur (Sprechen-Fur) bei Quintilian.
Transgenetics and Neuropathology of Prion Diseases

Many lines of experimental evidence have converged to show that the etiology and pathogenesis of scrapie in animals and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) and Gerstmann-Straussler-Scheinker disease (GSS) in humans are causally related to abnormalities of the prion protein (PrP). Furthermore, the infectious prions, which are formed in the sporadic, genetic, and infectious prion diseases, are composed largely, if not exclusively, of an abnormal isoform of PrP (PrPSc). The ability to mimic GSS in transgenic (Tg) mice expressing a mutant PrP gene and the successful manipulation of all of the characteristics of experimental scrapie in Tg mice by changing the amino acid sequence of PrP or its level of expression provide persuasive evidence that PrPSc formation features in both the etiology and pathogenesis of the prion diseases.
23 – THE SUPPLY OF AND DEMAND FOR PRODUCTIVE RESOURCES

Publisher Summary There are two different types of productive inputs—non-human and human resources. Economists differentiate between physical capital, land, and natural resources when they discuss nonhuman resources. This distinction is one of degree. Capital consists of man-made goods that are used to produce other goods. The demand for resources is derived from the demand for the products that the resources help to produce. The quantity of a resource demanded is negatively related to its price. If the price of a resource increases, less of it would be used for two reasons. First, producers would substitute other resources for the more expensive input. Second, the higher input price would lead to higher prices for products that the resource helps to make, causing consumers to reduce their purchases of these goods. The short-run market demand curve would be inelastic than the long-run curve. It would take time for producers to adjust their production process to use more of the less expensive resources and less of the more expensive resources.
Metric contraction of the cone divisor by the conical Kähler–Ricci Flow

We use the momentum construction of Calabi to study the conical Kahler–Ricci flow on Hirzebruch surfaces with cone angle along the exceptional curve, and show that either the flow Gromov–Hausdorff converges to the Riemann sphere or a single point in finite time, or the flow contracts only the cone divisor to a single point and Gromov–Hausdorff converges to a two dimensional projective orbifold. The limiting behaviour depends only on the cone angle, numerical properties of the initial Kahler class, and the degree of the Hirzebruch surface. This gives the first example of the conical Kahler–Ricci flow contracting the cone divisor to a single point, and shows that the conical flow may contract curves of self-intersection less than $$(-\,1)$$ , as opposed to the smooth Kahler–Ricci flow. At the end, we introduce a conjectural picture of the geometry of finite time non-collapsing singularities of the flow on Kahler surfaces in general.
Practical aspects of direct bypass of boost converter in traction inverter applications

Direct bypass of DC-DC boost converter in traction inverter has many advantages including increased efficiency and pass-through capability. This paper explains different practical aspects of direct bypass of the boost stage of traction inverter using diode. Bypass diode enters into the linear operating region (DC Q-point) when the battery discharges through the bypass diode to drive the electric motors. Therefore, thermal stress of the DC-link capacitor is shared between the input and DC-link capacitors through the bypass diode. During battery charging operation, the inverters introduce voltage ripple in the DC-link terminal which results in unwanted energy circulation through the bypass diode. Both of these phenomena have been investigated in details. In addition, this paper proposes and validates a control strategy to eliminate the energy circulation during battery charging mode using minimum boosting at a reduced frequency to optimize the power loss of the boost converter.
INTRATHYROIDAL THYROGLOSSAL DUCT CYST: A RARE CAUSE OF THYROIDITIS IN AN ADULT

ABSTRACT Objective: Thyroglossal duct cysts (TDCs) are remnants of the thyroglossal duct that typically present as an asymptomatic mass along the midline of the neck in children or adolescents. Most are located in association with the hyoid bone, superior to the thyroid gland. An intrathyroidal TDC presenting as a thyroid abscess has not been previously described. Methods: We describe a rare case of intrathyroidal TDC that presented as acute pyogenic thyroiditis. Results: A 36-year-old male patient with no history of prior thyroid disease or neck infections presented with acute thyroiditis. Physical exam revealed a tender anterior neck mass, and biochemical evaluation was consistent with hyperthyroidism. Thyroid imaging and fine-needle aspiration showed a cystic thyroid nodule with pyogenic infection and chronic inflammation. The thyroid abscess recurred following initial medical treatment, and the patient underwent thyroid lobectomy. Histopathology revealed an intrathyroidal TDC. Conclusion: The possibil...
Identification of a homogenous structural basis for oligomerization by retroviral Rev-like proteins.

Rev-like proteins are post-transcriptional regulatory proteins found in several retrovirus genera, including lentiviruses, betaretroviruses, and deltaretroviruses. These essential proteins mediate the nuclear export of incompletely spliced viral RNA, and act by tethering viral pre-mRNA to the host CRM1 nuclear export machinery. Although all Rev-like proteins are functionally homologous, they share less than 30% sequence identity. In the present study, we computationally assessed the extent of structural homology among retroviral Rev-like proteins within a phylogenetic framework. We undertook a comprehensive analysis of overall protein domain architecture and predicted secondary structural features for representative members of the Rev-like family of proteins. Similar patterns of α-helical domains were identified for Rev-like proteins within each genus, with the exception of deltaretroviruses, which were devoid of α-helices. Coiled-coil oligomerization motifs were also identified for most Rev-like proteins, with the notable exceptions of HIV-1, the deltaretroviruses, and some small ruminant lentiviruses. In Rev proteins of primate lentiviruses, the presence of predicted coiled-coil motifs segregated within specific primate lineages: HIV-1 descended from SIVs that lacked predicted coiled-coils in Rev whereas HIV-2 descended from SIVs that contained predicted coiled-coils in Rev. Phylogenetic ancestral reconstruction of coiled-coils for all Rev-like proteins predicted a single origin for the coiled-coil motif, followed by three losses of the predicted signal. The absence of a coiled-coil signal in HIV-1 was associated with replacement of canonical polar residues with non-canonical hydrophobic residues. However, hydrophobic residues were retained in the key ‘a’ and ‘d’ positions, and the α-helical region of HIV-1 Rev oligomerization domain could be modeled as a helical wheel with two predicted interaction interfaces. Moreover, the predicted interfaces mapped to the dimerization and oligomerization interfaces in HIV-1 Rev crystal structures. Helical wheel projections of other retroviral Rev-like proteins, including endogenous sequences, revealed similar interaction interfaces that could mediate oligomerization. Sequence-based computational analyses of Rev-like proteins, together with helical wheel projections of oligomerization domains, reveal a conserved homogeneous structural basis for oligomerization by retroviral Rev-like proteins.
Effect of thermomechanical loading on fracture properties of brittle materials: A fully-coupled transient thermoelastic analysis using a lattice approach

Abstract The influence of simultaneous thermomechanical loadings on the fracture behavior of linear thermoelastic brittle materials with a propagating crack and transient temperature diffusion is investigated. A planar two-way coupled thermoelastic lattice with a brittle erosion algorithm, implemented in MATLAB , is used in the context of LEFM to study two well-known classic fracture problems in Mode I, i.e., center and double-edge crack configurations, under thermal, mechanical, and thermomechanical loadings for a brittle crystalline Silicon, as an example material. The approach can also be applied to other brittle materials like brick or concrete. Validated by the well-developed analytical solutions for these configurations under separate thermal and mechanical loads, the numerical lattice analyzes the crack tip’s energy release rates and stress intensity factors based on the change of the global stiffness matrix of mesh before and after crack growth with no need for strain/stress calculations. Under the thermomechanical loading scenario, the response of the configurations in terms of the load-displacement and fracture toughness-crack length curves are then analyzed with respect to different loading rates and temperature gradients at crack surface and ambient environment. Having more pronounced effects on the toughness curves than the loading rate does, higher temperature difference results in lower values for the toughness curves. These curves also exhibit a rising jump for very short crack lengths and then approach to constant uniform values as a typical behavior for brittle materials. Considering the average trend of the toughness curves, it is observed that the thermomechanical fracture growth is highly unstable for very short cracks and it approaches a more stable condition as the crack length grows. Having a simple constitutive formulation and failure criterion, the proposed lattice approach is a convenient tool to obtain fracture properties of brittle materials under thermomechanical loading.
Sports Participation in High School and College Leads to High Bone Density and Greater Rates of Bone Loss in Young Men: Results from a Population-Based Study.

Estimated lifetime risk of an osteoporotic fracture in men over the age of 50 years is substantial and lifestyle factors such as physical activity may explain variation in bone mass and bone loss associated with aging. Men (n = 253) aged 20–66 years were followed for 7.5 years and factors that influence changes in means and rates of change in bone mass, density, and size using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT) were investigated; in particular, seasons of sports participation during high school and college. Men with greater sports participation had higher total hip bone mineral content (BMC) (48.4 ± 0.9 and 48.6 ± 0.9 g for 7–12 and 13+ seasons vs. 45.6 ± 0.8 and 45.4 ± 0.7 g for 0 and 1–6 seasons, respectively p < 0.05) and areal bone mineral density (aBMD) (1.082 ± 0.015 and 1.087 ± 0.015 g/cm2 for 7–12 and 13+ seasons vs. 1.011 ± 0.015 and 1.029 ± 0.013 g/cm2 for 0 and 1–6 seasons, respectively p < 0.05) than men who participated in less sport-seasons. However, men with higher sports participation also had greater rates of bone loss in their mid-twenties at the hip (BMC − 0.8 and − 1.2% and aBMD − 0.8 and − 0.9% for 7–12 and 13+ seasons of sport participation, respectively) compared to those with 0 seasons of sport participation (BMC − 0.6% and aBMD − 0.6%) (all p < 0.05). Similar results were observed for femoral neck aBMD. Men with 7+ seasons of sport participation had higher cross-sectional area at the 20% distal radius site than those with no sports participation (all p < 0.05). These findings support significant effects of high school and/or college sports participation on bone mass and geometry in men throughout adulthood.
Distributed optimal power flow using feasible point pursuit

The AC Optimal Power Flow (OPF) is a core optimization task in the domain of power system operations and control. It is known to be nonconvex (and, in fact, NP-hard). In general operational scenarios, identifying feasible (let alone optimal) power-flow solutions remains hard. This paper leverages the recently proposed Feasible Point Pursuit algorithm for solving the OPF problem to devise a fully distributed procedure that can identify AC OPF solutions. The paper considers a multi-area setting and develops an algorithm where all the computations are done locally withing each area, and then the local controllers have to communicate to only their neighbors a small amount of information pertaining to the boundary buses. The merits of the proposed approach are illustrated through an example of a challenging transmission network.
Is the internet spatial

One of the internet’s design principles is to make physical distance transparent, which has made it a motor of globalization and economic development. However, the physical world within which it operates is spatial, and reduction of actual spatial distance is a factor of high impact leveraged, e.g., in today’s commercially successful content distribution networks as well as new technologies, such as edge computing. Predictable network behavior is key for reliable intelligent environments. It is therefore worthwhile to study whether and how spatial the internet actually is. We studied a small set of globally dispersed public universities on six continents, recording delays reported by the ping tool to a server in the Pacific Northwest area of the U.S. at four different times of the day (morning, noon, evening, midnight) and over both weekends and weekdays, thus retrieving more than 17,210 data points. We then determined the Pearson’s correlations between distance and delay and between hop count and delay. The experiment yielded that there is an overall correlation of 0.57 (a border case strong correlation) between distance and delay and a weaker correlation of 0.4 (medium strength correlation) between hop count and delay. The results suggest that there is a physical distance effect and that this effect is stronger than the hop count effect.
Pre-conception susceptibility to endocrine disruptors.

Do our grandparents’ environmental exposures and experiences shape our health and wellbeing? In a ground-breaking study, Marianthi-Anna Kioumourtzoglou and colleagues show that this might be the case. In their study, a woman’s use of the pharmaceutical diethylstilbestrol during pregnancy increased the risk of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in her grandchildren.
Enhancement of Time-Resolved Fluorescence Spectroscopy by Overdetermination

Gregorio Weber pointed out over 25 years ago (Weber, 1961) that there are many ways in which the properties of the excited state can be utilized to study points of ignorance of the structure and function of protein molecules. He and his co-workers have led the way in finding new ways to use intrinsic and extrinsic fluorescent probes, with both steady-state and nanosecond time-resolved techniques, to investigate the static and dynamic structures of biological macromolecules. We are thankful to Gregorio, not only for pointing us in the right scientific direction, but also for showing us, by example, how scientists ought to interact with each other. This continues to make biochemical fluorescence an enjoyable field to work in.
A Bayesian Framework for Online Classifier Ensemble

We propose a Bayesian framework for recursively estimating the classifier weights in online learning of a classifier ensemble. In contrast with past methods, such as stochastic gradient descent or online boosting, our framework estimates the weights in terms of evolving posterior distributions. For a specified class of loss functions, we show that it is possible to formulate a suitably defined likelihood function and hence use the posterior distribution as an approximation to the global empirical loss minimizer. If the stream of training data is sampled from a stationary process, we can also show that our framework admits a superior rate of convergence to the expected loss minimizer than is possible with standard stochastic gradient descent. In experiments with real-world datasets, our formulation often performs better than online boosting algorithms.
Pelvic Osteotomy for Bladder Exstrophy

Classic bladder exstrophy is a developmental defect resulting in pubic diastasis and bladder protrusion through the abdominal wall. Within this spectrum of disease is cloacal exstrophy, defined by the development of omphalocele in addition to diastasis and bladder protrusion. This spectrum of diseases is caused by the failure of mesoderm tissue growth around the cloacal membrane during development, resulting in the described midline defects. This may include undergrowth of the pubic rami and external orientation of the anterior and posterior parts of the pelvis, contributing to a diastasis. Patients can also be born with neural tube defects and peripheral defects such as clubfoot. Long-term effects of bladder exstrophy may include incontinence, renal dysfunction, genital and body appearance dissatisfaction, impaired fertility, hip pain, and impaired gait. Treatment involves surgical closure of the bladder, repair of epispadias, and closure of the anterior abdominal wall with subsequent bladder neck reconstruction. The anterior pelvic and abdominal wall closure often benefits from bilateral pelvic osteotomies, which allow for improved pubic symphysis approximation. The anterior innominate osteotomy with posterior iliac osteotomy is the corrective osteotomy commonly performed in this procedure. It has been shown to improve initial exstrophy closure success and benefit future urogenital repairs.
Seroprevalence for the tick-borne relapsing fever spirochete Borrelia turicatae among small and medium sized mammals of Texas

Background In low elevation arid regions throughout the southern United States, Borrelia turicatae is the principal agent of tick-borne relapsing fever. However, endemic foci and the vertebrate hosts involved in the ecology of B. turicatae remain undefined. Experimental infection studies suggest that small and medium sized mammals likely maintain B. turicatae in nature, while the tick vector is a long-lived reservoir. Methodology/principal findings Serum samples from wild caught rodents, raccoons, and wild and domestic canids from 23 counties in Texas were screened for prior exposure to B. turicatae. Serological assays were performed using B. turicatae protein lysates and recombinant Borrelia immunogenic protein A (rBipA), a diagnostic protein that is unique to RF spirochetes and may be a species-specific antigen. Conclusions/significance Serological responses to B. turicatae were detected from 24 coyotes, one gray fox, two raccoons, and one rodent from six counties in Texas. These studies indicate that wild canids and raccoons were exposed to B. turicatae and are likely involved in the pathogen’s ecology. Additionally, more work should focus on evaluating rodent exposure to B. turicatae and the role of these small mammals in the pathogen’s maintenance in nature.
Lichen planus-like keratosis: clinicopathological evaluation of 1366 cases.

Background Lichen planus-like keratosis (LPLK) is a frequent skin lesion usually biopsied to rule out basal cell carcinoma (BCC). Because of overlapping histopathological characteristics, LPLK is frequently muddled with lichen planus (LP), lichenoid actinic keratosis (LAK), and lupus erythematosus (LE). Objective To investigate the clinical and histopathological characteristics of LPLK. Methods A clinicopathologic review was performed of all LPLK cases (1366) signed in one calendar year in a busy academic practice. Results LPLK occurs mostly as a single lesion (97%) with the chest (41.4%) being the most common site. It is almost equally present in women and men (51.5%-48.5%). The most common clinical concern (65%) is basal cell carcinoma. Parakeratosis, red blood extravasation, and presence of dermal eosinophils and plasma cells, usually not seen in lichen planus, are helpful signs to suggest LPLK but are seen only in a minority of cases. Conclusion Clinicopathologic correlation is necessary to diagnose lichen planus-like keratosis, as the most consistent feature is a clinical history of a lesion/neoplastic process rather than an inflammatory process. There are histopathologic features that can help distinguish lichen planus-like keratosis from lichen planus; however, these features are nonspecific and lacking in almost half of the cases.
A Generalized Time Transformation Method for Finite-Time Control*

This paper introduces a new class of scalar, time-varying gain functions entitled as “generalized finite-time gain functions” for converting a (original) baseline control algorithm into a time-varying one, which can be used for time-critical applications. That is, the convergence time $\tau$ can be directly assigned by users. The relationship between a generalized finite-time gain function and its corresponding generalized time transformation function is established such that one can be obtained using the other one. Thanks to the generalized time transformation function, the resulting time-varying algorithm over the time interval $[0,\tau)$ is transformed to an equivalent algorithm over the stretched infinite-time interval $[0,\infty)$ for stability analysis. In addition, conditions to guarantee the convergence of the state as well as the boundedness of its time derivative are given. Finally, we present a numerical example to illustrate the efficacy of the proposed finite-time control methodology.
Erythrophagocytosis by leukemic blasts in acute myeloid leukemia with a normal karyotype and no detectable mutations

The phagocytosis of erythrocytes by leukemic blasts is a rare finding in acute myeloid leukemia and has been reported most commonly in monocytic and megakaryocytic morphologies. In the reported cases, erythrophagocytosis by leukemic blasts has been associated with t(8;16). This translocation is associated with a poor outcome independent of erythrophagocytosis. There has only been one reported case of erythrophagocytosis by leukemic blasts occurring in a patient with a normal karyotype. We report a 62-year-old woman with acute myeloid leukemia with monocytic features and a normal karyotype noted to have erythrophagocytosis by leukemic blasts.
AR-IoMT Mental Health Rehabilitation Applications for Smart Cities

Augmented Reality (AR) applications provide major opportunities for healthcare. Mental health rehabilitation in particular is an area that stands to gain from innovations in this field. Debilitating medical conditions related to traumatic brain injuries, aging, and drug abuse, can take advantage from the benefits that these applications provide. Coupled with IoMT (Internet of Medical Things) sensors and machine learning, effective system implementations that predict mental rehabilitation outcomes can be built. This can help in administering better treatment protocols. The collective use of these technologies for therapeutic approaches to alter patient behaviour at a physiological level falls in the emerging field of Digital Therapeutics (DT). In this paper, the current state of AR for mental health rehabilitation is described and used to motivate the implementation of a proof of concept mental DT rehabilitation system developed by us. Similar AR-IoMT systems can reduce inpatient counts in smart cities where an increase in aging populations is already a concern, and existing healthcare resources may be clogged up due to minor inpatient health checkups. In addition, the paper discusses the deployment challenges of the implemented system, which include the lack and need thereof of a standardized protocol for IoMT data collection and analysis for cross interoperability across different healthcare providers and vendors.
Basic Smoothing Techniques

In order to appreciate fully the application of wavelets to various function estimation problems in statistics, it is first useful to examine some of the existing techniques in use. Though there are many methods currently in use for these applications, this chapter will focus on only two of them: kernel smoothing and orthogonal series estimation. This background should provide a useful lead-in to a discussion of wavelet methods for function estimation, since standard techniques in these two areas can be modified in a straightforward manner to use wavelets.
A Systematic Review of Law Enforcement Training Related to Autism Spectrum Disorder

Although research confirms the effectiveness of training to improve law enforcement officers’ (LEOs) awareness and knowledge of people with intellectual disability and learning disabilities, review...
Uttering Moorean Sentences and the pragmatics of belief reports

Moore supposedly discovered that there are sentences of a certain form that, though they can be true, no rational human being can sincerely and truly utter any of them. MC and MO are particular instances: In this paper, I show that there are sentences of the same form as MC and MO that can be sincerely and truly uttered by rational agents. We call sentences of the same form as MC and MO “Moorean Sentences”. In Part II, we go over a standard argument for why sentences of the same form as MC and MO cannot be sincerely and truly uttered, and we explain why this argument is unsound. In explaining why this argument is unsound, we rely on the context-sensitivity of belief-reports and show that the premises of the argument are not all true in the same context. We then employ a general theory of belief reports that incorporates guises to explain why our examples are sincerely utterable while Moore’s sentences are typically not sincerely utterable. The answer will turn on the suggestion that belief reports carry a hidden quantifier over guises, where the domain of quantification is determined by context. We conclude with general lessons about Moore’s Paradox and the supposed limits of first-person belief reports.
A 1-Year Outcome of Uphold Vaginal Mesh for Correction of Anterior Vaginal Wall Prolapse at a Single Center

Introduction: The Uphold® transvaginal mesh is a lightweight mesh with only two fixation points to the sacrospinous ligaments. Aims and Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess the outcomes ...
Detroit 1967 Riot, Applied Theatre and Older Adults

The purpose of this applied theatre essay was to observe effects and impacts on older adults engaging in theatre activities and storytelling surrounding the horrors of Detroit’s 1967 Riots. Classes...
Trade multilateralism and U.S. National Security: the making of the GATT Security Exceptions

Today, there are an unprecedented number of disputes at the World Trade Organization (“WTO”) involving national security. The dramatic rise in trade disputes involving national security has resuscitated debate over the degree of discretion afforded to WTO Members as to when and how to invoke Article XXI, the Security Exception, of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (“GATT”), with binding effect. The goal of this article is to shed light on contemporary questions and concerns involving national security and international trade, particularly questions involving the appropriate invocation of Article XXI GATT, through careful attention to the article’s historical context. The article elucidates the diverse strategic and economic considerations that shaped the meaning of U.S. national security interests at the time when national delegations were drafting the post-war multilateral trade system, the ITO. It demonstrates how these interests, in turn, created the language, phrasing, and placement of the security exception within the ITO Charter, and details when and how this was adopted in the GATT. This article argues that analyzing internal U.S. practice into the making of Article XXI is relevant for current and future efforts to interpret the exception, thereby contributing to existing literature on Article XXI GATT. It provides the internal deliberations of U.S. officials who served as key architects of the multilateral trade system and of the ITO Charter’s security exception. Additionally, the article captures a fascinating story as to how different U.S. agencies competed to define U.S. foreign and economic policies at the time and shows how the compromises struck help to explain the making of article XXI GATT.
Second Modified Student Presentation Based Effective Teaching (SPET) Method Tested in COVID-19 Affected Senior Level Mechanical Engineering Course

Student presentation based effective teaching (SPET) approach was designed to engage students with different mindsets and academic preparation levels meaningfully and meet several ABET student learning outcomes SPET method requires that students prepare themselves by guided self-study before coming to the class and make presentations to teach the whole class by (a) presenting complex concepts and systems appealingly and engagingly, and most importantly (b) serving as the discussion platform for the instructor to emphasize on complex concepts from multiple angles during different presentations In class, SPET presentations address the conceptual questions that are assigned 1-2 weeks before the presentation day However, the SPET approach becomes impractical for large class sizes because (i) during one class period all the students can not present, (ii) many students do not make their sincere efforts This paper focuses on the second modification of SPET to make it practical for large classes The method reported in this paper was tested on MECH 462 Design of Energy System Course Unlike the first modified approach, all the students were expected to submit the response to the preassigned questions before coming to the class In class, SPET group presentations were prepared by the group of 3-6 students, who prepared themselves by doing SPET conceptual questions individually Students communicated with each other to make a cohesive presentation for ~30 min In two classes per week, we covered 5-6 group presentations to do enough discussions and repetition of the core concepts for a more indepth understanding of the content During the presentation, each student was evaluated for (a) their depth of understanding, (b) understanding other parts of the presentation covered by other teammates, and (c) quality of presentation and content The student who appeared unprepared in the class group presentation were provided direct feedback and resources to address concerning areas SPET approach was applied in the online mode during the campus shut down due to COVID-19 SPET was immensely effective and helped to complete the course learning outcomes without interruptions SPET could be customized for the online ver sionwithout any additional preparation on the instructor part © 2020 ASME
DFT Study on the Electrocatalytic Reduction of CO2 to CO by a Molecular Chromium Complex

A variety of molecular transition metal-based electrocatalysts for the reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) have been developed to explore the viability of utilization strategies for addressing its rising atmospheric concentrations and the corresponding effects of global warming. Concomitantly, this approach could also meet steadily increasing global energy demands for value-added carbon-based chemical feedstocks as nonrenewable petrochemical resources are consumed. Reports on the molecular electrocatalytic reduction of CO2 mediated by chromium (Cr) complexes are scarce relative to other earth-abundant transition metals. Recently, our group reported a Cr complex that can efficiently catalyze the reduction of CO2 to carbon monoxide (CO) at low overpotentials. Here, we present new mechanistic insight through a computational (density functional theory) study, exploring the origin of kinetic selectivity, relative energetic positioning of the intermediates, speciation with respect to solvent coordination and spin state, as well as the role of the redox-active bipyridine moiety. Importantly, these studies suggest that under certain reducing conditions, the formation of bicarbonate could become a competitive reaction pathway, informing new areas of interest for future experimental studies.
Health Impacts of the Stay-at-Home Order on Community-Dwelling Older Adults and How Technologies May Help: Focus Group Study

Background: As of March 2021, in the USA, the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in over 500,000 deaths, with a majority being people over 65 years of age. Since the start of the pandemic in March 2020, preventive measures, including lockdowns, social isolation, quarantine, and social distancing, have been implemented to reduce viral spread. These measures, while effective for risk prevention, may contribute to increased social isolation and loneliness among older adults and negatively impact their mental and physical health. Objective: This study aimed to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting “Stay-at-Home” order on the mental and physical health of older adults and to explore ways to safely increase social connectedness among them. Methods: This qualitative study involved older adults living in a Continued Care Senior Housing Community (CCSHC) in southern California, USA. Four 90-minute focus groups were convened using the Zoom Video Communications platform during May 2020, involving 21 CCSHC residents. Participants were asked to describe how they were managing during the “stay-at-home” mandate that was implemented in March 2020, including its impact on their physical and mental health. Transcripts of each focus group were analyzed using qualitative methods. Results: Four themes emerged from the qualitative data: (1) impact of the quarantine on health and well-being, (2) communication innovation and technology use, (3) effective ways of coping with the quarantine, and (4) improving access to technology and training. Participants reported a threat to their mental and physical health directly tied to the quarantine and exacerbated by social isolation and decreased physical activity. Technology was identified as a lifeline for many who are socially isolated from their friends and family. Conclusions: Our study findings suggest that technology access, connectivity, and literacy are potential game-changers to supporting the mental and physical health of older adults and must be prioritized for future research.
Local and Regional Recurrences of Clinically Localized Renal Cell Carcinoma after Nephrectomy: A 15 Year Institutional Experience with Prognostic Features and Oncologic Outcomes

Abstract Objective To evaluate outcomes for patients with local recurrence (LR) of clinically localized renal cell carcinoma (RCC) without concurrent systemic metastasis from our institution, an event that occurs rarely (1%-3%) after surgery. LR may be a harbinger of poor outcomes, and the best management of these patients is unclear. Materials/Methods We retrospectively reviewed patients surgically treated for clinically localized RCC (cT1-2N0M0) with subsequent LR (in the partial or radical nephrectomy bed) and/or regional recurrence (RR; in the abdomen distant from the direct site of surgery) without concurrent metastasis from our institutional database (2004-2018). Comparative and survival analyses were performed. Results Out of 3038 total patients, 1895 had clinically localized RCC, with 30 patients (1.6%) having isolated LR/RR. Median time to recurrence was 26.5 months (IQR:16-35). Of 26 patients treated with local therapy, 14 (53.8%) recurred over a median follow-up time of 29.5 months (IQR:12-45). The 1-year and 2-year secondary recurrence-free survival rates are 60.7% and 49.7%, respectively. Two or more sites of locoregional recurrence significantly predicted secondary recurrence/metastasis after local therapy for local recurrence (hazard ratio: 2.22, P= .04). Conclusion Our results suggest local therapy is appropriate for select patients with LR/RR, with almost 50% of patients undergoing a second local therapy remaining alive with “local cure” and no secondary recurrence. The number of sites of recurrence can be used to better select patients that will benefit from local therapy or systemic/combination therapy. This work provides a framework onto which further studies regarding local therapy and locoregional recurrence of RCC can be performed.
Fully Implicit Spectral Boundary Integral Computation of Red Blood Cell Flow

An approach is presented for implicit time integration in computations of red blood cell flow by a spectral boundary integral method. The flow of a red cell in ambient fluid is represented as a boundary integral equation (BIE), whose structure is that of an implicit ordinary differential equation (IODE). The cell configuration and velocity field are discretized with spherical harmonics. The IODE is integrated in time using a multi-step implicit method based on backward difference formulas, with variable order and adaptive time-stepping controlled by local truncation error and convergence of Newton iterations. Jacobians of the IODE, required for Newton's method, are implemented as Jacobian matrix-vector products that are nothing but directional derivatives. Their computation is facilitated by the weakly singular format of the BIE, and these matrix-vector products themselves amount to computing a second BIE. Numerical examples show that larger time steps are possible and that the number of matrix-vector products is comparable to explicit methods.
Evolution and the Emergent Self: The Rise of Complexity and Behavioral Versatility in Nature

Evolution and the Emergent Self is an eloquent and evocative new synthesis that explores how the human species emerged from the cosmic dust. Lucidly presenting ideas about the rise of complexity in our genetic, neuronal, ecological, and ultimately cosmological settings, the author takes readers on a provocative tour of modern science's quest to understand our place in nature and in our universe. Readers fascinated with "Big History" and drawn to examine big ideas will be challenged and enthralled by Raymond L. Neubauer's ambitious narrative. How did humans emerge from the cosmos and the pre-biotic Earth, and what mechanisms of biological, chemical, and physical sciences drove this increasingly complex process? Neubauer presents a view of nature that describes the rising complexity of life in terms of increasing information content, first in genes and then in brains. The evolution of the nervous system expanded the capacity of organisms to store information, making learning possible. In key chapters, the author portrays four species with high brain:body ratios-chimpanzees, elephants, ravens, and dolphins-showing how each species shares with humans the capacity for complex communication, elaborate social relationships, flexible behavior, tool use, and powers of abstraction. A large brain can have a hierarchical arrangement of circuits that facilitates higher levels of abstraction. Neubauer describes this constellation of qualities as an emergent self, arguing that self-awareness is nascent in several species besides humans and that potential human characteristics are embedded in the evolutionary process and have emerged repeatedly in a variety of lineages on our planet. He ultimately demonstrates that human culture is not a unique offshoot of a language-specialized primate, but an analogue of fundamental mechanisms that organisms have used since the beginning of life on Earth to gather and process information in order to buffer themselves from fluctuations in the environment. Neubauer also views these developments in a cosmic setting, detailing open thermodynamic systems that grow more complex as the energy flowing through them increases. Similar processes of increasing complexity can be found in the "self-organizing" structures of both living and nonliving forms. Recent evidence from astronomy indicates that planet formation may be nearly as frequent as star formation. Since life makes use of the elements commonly seeded into space by burning and expiring stars, it is reasonable to speculate that the evolution of life and intelligence that happened on our planet may be found across the universe.
δ-Aminolevulinic Acid Dehydratase of Rhodopseudomonas spheroides: II. Association to Polymers and Dissociation to Subunits

Abstract δ-Aminolevulinic acid dehydratase of Rhodopseudomonas spheroides, which catalyzes the synthesis of the pyrrole, porphobilinogen, associates into an equilibrium mixture of three protein species, a monomer, dimer, and trimer in the presence of potassium, rubidium, or ammonium ions; whereas in the absence of these monovalent cations, only the monomer can be found. Sedimentation analysis in a sucrose gradient, containing 0.05 m potassium ions, of the isolated monomer or dimer revealed the establishment of a new equilibrium mixture of the three protein species. However, the isolated dimer recentrifuged in a sucrose gradient, free of potassium ions, dissociated into the monomer. The substrate, δ-aminolevulinic acid, which has a cooperative effect on the enzyme activity, appears also to cause some degree of association of the monomer. Sodium and magnesium ions, at concentrations which activate the enzyme to an activity of about 50 and 80%, respectively, of that found with potassium ions, do not promote an association of the monomer. The monomer can be dissociated by 1 m urea and by dialysis into subunits the molecular weight of which is about one-half of that of the monomer, and these subunits can be reassociated into monomer, dimer, and trimer in the presence of potassium ions. The kinetics of urea inhibition is competitive with the substrate, and sedimentation analysis in a sucrose gradient containing both urea and substrate revealed that the subunit is either associated into the monomer by the substrate or the monomer is not completely dissociated into its subunits by urea in the presence of high concentrations of substrate.
Cerebrovasculature permeability changes following experimental cerebral angiography

Abstract Morphological alterations of the cerebral vasculature as related to the permeability of plasma proteins and angiographic contrast media following unilateral cerebral angiography were studied. Both Evans blue albumin and horseradish peroxidase were employed as protein tracers for light and electron microscopy investigation respectively. Grey matter regions of the cerebral cortex, cerebellum, corpus striatum, hippocampus and midbrain showed the most extensive and consistent leakage of these protein tracers. The most extensive penetration of EBA was noted at 1 hr following cerebral angiography as compared to the 5 or 30 min sample times. Permeability changes were noted in small venules and arterioles as well as capillaries. The extent of permeability, however, was appreciably greater in the capillaries as evidenced by rapid extravasation of HRP into the surrounding neuropil extracellular spaces. The glial basement membrane surrounding the perivascular spaces of small venules and arterioles precluded rapid penetration of HRP into the neuropil interstitium. Opening of the tight junctions between the endothelial cells was primarily responsible for the extravasation of HRP in all vessel types. Furthermore, it is our opinion that the hyperosmolar nature of the contrast medium is responsible for opening of these tight junctions.
Sink tree-based bandwidth allocation for scalable qos flow set-up

Although the Differentiated Services architecture supports scalable packet forwarding based on aggregate flows, the detailed procedure of Quality of Service (QoS) flow set-up within this architecture has not been well established In this paper we explore the possibility of a scalable QoS flow set-up using a sink-tree paradigm The paradigm constructs a sink tree at each egress edge router using network topology and bandwidth information provided by a QoS extended version of Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) Simulation results are very encouraging in that our methodology requires significantly less communication overhead in setting up QoS flows compared to the traditional per-flow signaling-based methodology while still maintaining high resource utilization.
Type I IFN regulates non-canonical inflammasome activation and impairs protective immunity during fatal ehrlichia-induced toxic shock (MPF1P.762)

Inflammasome complexes such as NLRP3 play a major role in antimicrobial defense to infection. Canonical and non-canonical pathways activate caspase 1 and caspase 11 to secrete IL-1β and induce inflammatory cell death. Ehrlichia, obligate intracellular bacteria that cause fatal toxic shock in humans and mice, activate inflammasomes and induce expression of type 1 interferon (IFN1). The contribution of the NLRP3 and IFN1 to Ehrlichia-induced toxic shock is not known. We show that NLRP3-/- and Caspase 1-/- mice succumb to lethal Ehrlichia infection similar to wild type (WT) mice. Unlike caspase 1-/- and WT, NLRP3-/- mice have lower bacterial burdens with higher IFNγ, suggesting that NLRP3 impairs bacterial clearance in a caspase 1-independent manner. Unexpectedly, infected IFNαR-/- mice were protected against a normally lethal dose of Ehrlichia with effective bacterial clearance, altered pathology with less apoptosis, increased IFNγ, decreased IL-10 and IL-10 producing Treg cells, and increased number of protective CD4+ Th1 and NKT cells. Lack of IFN1 signaling abrogated caspase 11 activation and IL-1β secretion, suggesting that IFN1 activates the non-canonical inflammasome. Our data also show that WT, but not IFNαR-/-, cells exhibit defective autophagy. Together, these data demonstrate that IFN 1 signaling suppresses autophagy and activates the non-canonical inflammasome pathway contributing to impaired protective immunity and development of fatal Ehrlichia-induced toxic shock.