cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Forced Air Plasma Treatment (FAPT) of Hybrid Wood Plastic Composite (WPC)–Fiber Reinforced Plastic (FRP) Surfaces

Forced atmospheric (air) plasma treatment (FAPT) was applied to wood plastic composite (WPC) and continuous glass fiber reinforced plastic (FRP) surfaces to improve their adhesive bonding properties. The FRP was composed of oriented continuous E-glass fibers in a polypropylene matrix, while the WPC was fabricated using wood flour, polypropylene and additives. The FAPT was applied using two levels of discharge length projected from the discharge head (2.5″ and 1″) to ionize the air, oxidize the surfaces and improve wettability. The treatment was performed by passing the electrode over either surface, five or ten times. Surface characterization consisted of thermodynamic (surface energy determination), chemical (X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy), mechanical (shear strength) and microscopic (atomic force microscopy (AFM)) analysis. The results indicate that the acid–base component of the surface energy for both WPC and FRP after FAPT correlates with an increase in wettability. X-ray photoelectron spectroscop...
Acoustic fall detection using Gaussian mixture models and GMM supervectors

We present a system that detects human falls in the home environment, distinguishing them from competing noise, by using only the audio signal from a single far-field microphone. The proposed system models each fall or noise segment by means of a Gaussian mixture model (GMM) supervector, whose Euclidean distance measures the pairwise difference between audio segments. A support vector machine built on a kernel between GMM supervectors is employed to classify audio segments into falls and various types of noise. Experiments on a dataset of human falls, collected as part of the Netcarity project, show that the method improves fall classification F-score to 67% from 59% of a baseline GMM classifier. The approach also effectively addresses the more difficult fall detection problem, where audio segment boundaries are unknown. Specifically, we employ it to reclassify confusable segments produced by a dynamic programming scheme based on traditional GMMs. Such post-processing improves a fall detection accuracy metric by 5% relative.
A reconfigurable op-amp/DDA CMOS amplifier architecture

A simple architecture for a configurable op-amp or differential difference amplifier (DDA) is presented. The circuitry can be configured as an input/output rail to rail high-speed op-amp, or as a DDA. The circuit was simulated using SPICE and fabricated in a 2- mu m CMOS process through MOSIS. Configured as an op-amp, it achieves a positive and negative slew rate of 16 V/ mu s, a unity gain frequency of 14 MHz, and an open loop differential gain of 68 dB with a power consumption of 6 mW at 5-V supply. The circuit was also tested and found to work satisfactorily as a differential difference amplifier for frequencies up to about 10 MHz with a differential input range limited to 200 mV. >
Aphid-encoded variability in susceptibility to a parasitoid

Many animals exhibit variation in resistance to specific natural enemies. Such variation may be encoded in their genomes or derived from infection with protective symbionts. The pea aphid, Acyrthosiphon pisum, for example, exhibits tremendous variation in susceptibility to a common natural enemy, the parasitic wasp Aphidius ervi. Pea aphids are often infected with the heritable bacterial symbiont, Hamiltonella defensa, which confers partial to complete resistance against this parasitoid depending on bacterial strain and associated bacteriophages. That previous studies found that pea aphids without H. defensa (or other symbionts) were generally susceptible to parasitism, together with observations of a limited encapsulation response, suggested that pea aphids largely rely on infection with H. defensa for protection against parasitoids. However, the limited number of uninfected clones previously examined, and our recent report of two symbiont-free resistant clones, led us to explicitly examine aphid-encoded variability in resistance to parasitoids. After rigorous screening for known and unknown symbionts, and microsatellite genotyping to confirm clonal identity, we conducted parasitism assays using fifteen clonal pea aphid lines. We recovered significant variability in aphid-encoded resistance, with variation levels comparable to that contributed by H. defensa. Because resistance can be costly, we also measured aphid longevity and cumulative fecundity of the most and least resistant aphid lines under permissive conditions, but found no trade-offs between higher resistance and these fitness parameters. These results indicate that pea aphid resistance to A. ervi is more complex than previously appreciated, and that aphids employ multiple tactics to aid in their defense. While we did not detect a tradeoff, these may become apparent under stressful conditions or when resistant and susceptible aphids are in direct competition. Understanding sources and amounts of variation in resistance to natural enemies is necessary to understand the ecological and evolutionary dynamics of antagonistic interactions, such as the potential for coevolution, but also for the successful management of pest populations through biological control.
LIP SEPARATION AND INLET FLOW DISTORTION CONTROL IN DUCTED FANS USED IN VTOL SYSTEMS

This paper describes a novel ducted fan inlet flow conditioning concept that will significantly improve the performance and controllability of ducted fan systems operating at high angle of attack. High angle of attack operation of ducted fans is very common in VTOL (vertical take off and landing) UAV systems. The new concept that will significantly reduce the inlet lip separation related performance penalties in the edgewise/forward flight zone is named DOUBLE DUCTED FAN (DDF). The current concept uses a secondary stationary duct system to control inlet lip separation related momentum deficit at the inlet of the fan rotor occurring at elevated edgewise flight velocities. The DDF is self-adjusting in a wide edgewise flight velocity range and its corrective aerodynamic effect becomes more pronounced with increasing flight velocity due to its inherent design properties. Most axial flow fans are designed for an axial inlet flow with zero or minimal inlet flow distortion. The DDF concept is proven to be an effective way of dealing with inlet flow distortions occurring near the lip section of any axial flow fan system, especially at high angle of attack. In this present paper, a conventional baseline duct without any lip separation control feature is compared to two different double ducted fans named DDF CASE-A and DDF CASE-B via 3D, viscous and turbulent flow computational analysis. Both hover and edgewise flight conditions are considered. Significant relative improvements from DDF CASEA and DDF CASE-B are in the areas of vertical force (thrust) en
Circular permutation and receptor insertion within green fluorescent proteins

Many areas of biology and biotechnology have been revolutionized by the ability to label proteins genetically by fusion to the Aequorea green fluorescent protein (GFP). In previous fusions, the GFP has been treated as an indivisible entity, usually appended to the amino or carboxyl terminus of the host protein, occasionally inserted within the host sequence. The tightly interwoven, three-dimensional structure and intricate posttranslational self-modification required for chromophore formation would suggest that major rearrangements or insertions within GFP would prevent fluorescence. However, we now show that several rearrangements of GFPs, in which the amino and carboxyl portions are interchanged and rejoined with a short spacer connecting the original termini, still become fluorescent. These circular permutations have altered pKa values and orientations of the chromophore with respect to a fusion partner. Furthermore, certain locations within GFP tolerate insertion of entire proteins, and conformational changes in the insert can have profound effects on the fluorescence. For example, insertions of calmodulin or a zinc finger domain in place of Tyr-145 of a yellow mutant (enhanced yellow fluorescent protein) of GFP result in indicator proteins whose fluorescence can be enhanced severalfold upon metal binding. The calmodulin graft into enhanced yellow fluorescent protein can monitor cytosolic Ca2+ in single mammalian cells. The tolerance of GFPs for circular permutations and insertions shows the folding process is surprisingly robust and offers a new strategy for creating genetically encodable, physiological indicators.
TRANSPOSITION AND REPLICATION OF MODULATOR IN MAIZE

RIOR to the discovery of transposable elements it would have seemed absurd pto discuss a chromosomal specificity other than in the context of a fixed position on a chromosome (barring gross rearrangement). It is now well recognized that a chromosomal specificity may indeed not enjoy a fixed locus in a linear array (MCCLINTOCK 1950, 1951, 1956; BRINK et al. 1952; BRINK 1954; PETERSON 1961). It would also seem axiomatic to depict the replication cycle of a chromosomal specificity as the same as that of the entire chromosome, but again, a transposable element seems to be able to replicate more often than the chromosome on which it resides (GREENBLATT and BRINK 1962, 1963). What follows, provides additional evidence in support of an hypothesis that a transposable element, specifically, Modulator, may replicate twice, by reason of transposition, while the chromosome on which it resides replicates once during a single mitosis. Modulator ( M p ) , when conjoined with the P.. allele (red pericarp and cob) suppresses the pigment-producing potential of this allele. M p may transpose away from the Prr locus to one or another site, usually on the same chromosome, resulting in full expression of the fixed chromosomal gene. Since transposition occurs only in some cell lineages, the resultant phenotype is a variegation of red and colorless areas in the pericarp tissue. A single M p element, when initially present in a variegated plant at the P locus, results in a degree of variegation known as medium variegated ( P “ M p ) . An effect of a transposed Modulator ( t r -Mp) in a plant also carrying a P M p complex is to reduce markedly the frequency with which the M p at the P locus transposes. The ear phenotype is thus altered to one with few red stripes known as light variegated ( P r M p 4tr-Mp) . The red or light variegated phenotype may occur over the whole of an ear in the progeny of a medium variegated parent. These two “mutant” phenotypes may also occur as sectors on otherwise medium variegated ears-often as recognizable and well defined sectors of red twinned with light variegated. It was originally believed that the M p element lacking from the P locus in a twinned red sector was the tr-Mp element found in the contiguous light variegated tissue (BRINK and NILAN 1952). Further genetic analysis of such twinned red-light variegated sectors ( GREENBLATT and BRINK 1962; GREENBLATT, unpublished) led to the following observations and conclusions: 1. Two types of twin mutations occur with respect to the presence or absence of a ti--Mp element in the red co-twin. While phenotypically indistinguish-
Women and the Profession of Technical Writing: Social and Economic Influences and Implications

In the United States, the majority of technical writers and technical writing teachers are women. Their dominance of the profession has several causes, including the attractiveness of writing jobs for women, widespread associations of women and superior writing ability, the social acceptability of women in writing jobs, and occupational segregation. Women's dominance of the profession brings with it the risk of diminishing wages and prestige. To avoid this depreciation of the field, professional associations ought to equip technical writers and technical writing teachers with information regarding satisfactory salaries and working conditions, and teachers ought to communicate this information to their students.
The Benefits of Farm Programs: Incidence, Shifting, and Dissipation

T HE proximate beneficiary of most farm programs is the landowner per se. Farmers who are not landowners, like the migrant harvesters who get down to 25 cents an hour in some places, do not gain, but suffer from lower demand for their services. Landowners who are not farmers, such as the matinee idols, senators, industrial executives and country bankers who sink their spare change in rural real estate, benefit hugely. In the short run, some tenants with long leases, or renewable ones under custombound crop shares, may gain a good deal. But these tenants really have a species of equity in land, and it hardly rises above the dignity of a quibble to cite them to refute what is otherwise too obvious for serious question.' Agricultural economists are becoming increasingly vocal on this subject, which, as farmland values continue to soar in defiance of falling "farm" income, is increasingly apparent. The work inspired by Walter Chryst is outstanding. His findings really should not surprise us. The surprise is why it took the profession so long to catch up with Ricardo. In analyzing the corn laws -the farm price supports of his day-he made the same point, and on the side enunciated the law of rent and founded classical economics.
Suppression of Magnetic Coupling by in-Plane Buckling in SrFeO 2

${\mathrm{SrFeO}}_{2}$ is an insulating antiferromagnet with a remarkably high transition temperature in spite of its quasi-two-dimensional crystal structure. The magnetic exchange coupling is, however, very sensitive to a local mode involving transverse displacements of O and Fe, resulting in zigzag patterns of distortion. The buckling driven by rising temperatures is enhanced just as the Fe magnetic moment is reduced, implying a strong spin-lattice coupling. It is suggested that the undulations lead to orbital disorder by distorting the three possible paths to exchange interactions.
Experimental and Computational Studies of the Reaction of Carbon Dioxide with Pincer-Supported Nickel and Palladium Hydrides

A series of Ni(II) and Pd(II) hydrides supported by PNP and PCP ligands, including iPr2PNP(CH3)PdH (iPr2PNP(CH3) = N(2-PiPr2-4-MeC6H3)2), iPr2PNP(CH3)NiH, iPr2PNP(F)PdH (iPr2PNP(F) = N(2-PiPr2-4-C6H3F)2), CyPhPNPPdH (CyPhPNP = N(2-P(Cy)(Ph)-4-MeC6H3)2), tBu2PCPPdH (tBu2PCP = 2,6-C6H3(CH2PtBu2)2), tBu2PCPNiH, Cy2PCPPdH (Cy2PCP = 2,6-C6H3(CH2PCy2)2), and Cy2PCPNiH, were prepared using literature methods. In addition, the new Ni and Pd hydrides Cy2PSiPMH (M = Ni, Pd; Cy2PSiP = Si(Me)(2-PCy2-C6H4)2) supported by PSiP ligands were synthesized. The analogous metal hydride complexes supported by the Ph2PSiP ligand (Ph2PSiP = Si(Me)(2-PPh2-C6H4)2) could not be prepared. Instead, the Ni(0) and Pd(0) η2-silane complexes Ph2PSiHPM(PPh3) (M = Ni, Pd; Ph2PSiHP = (H)Si(Me)(2-PPh2-C6H4)2), which have been proposed to be in equilibrium with Ph2PSiPMH (M = Ni, Pd) and PPh3, were prepared. Facile carbon dioxide insertion into the metal–hydride bond to form the metal formate complexes tBu2PCPM-OC(O)H (M = Ni, Pd) or Cy2PCPM...
Hybrid ballistic–diffusive solution to the frequency-dependent phonon Boltzmann Transport Equation

Abstract The phonon Boltzmann Transport Equation (BTE) is appropriate for modeling heat conduction in semiconductor materials at the nanoscale. However, the BTE is difficult to solve on account of the directional and spectral nature of the phonon intensity, which necessitates angular and spectral discretization, and ultimately results in a large number (typically few hundreds) of four-dimensional partial differential equations. In the ballistic (large Knudsen number) regime, the phonon intensity is highly anisotropic, and therefore, angular resolution is desirable. However, in the diffusive (small Knudsen number) regime, the intensity is fairly isotropic, and hence, angular discretization is wasteful. In such scenarios, the method of spherical harmonics (PN approximation) may be effectively used to reduce the large number of directional BTEs to a few partial differential equations. Since the Knudsen number is frequency dependent, the decision to preserve or eliminate angular discretization may be made frequency by frequency based on whether the spectral Knudsen number is large or small. In this article, a hybrid method is proposed in which for some frequency intervals (bands), full angular discretization is used, while for others, the P1 approximation is invoked to reduce the number of directional BTEs. The accuracy and efficiency of the hybrid method is tested by solving several steady state and transient nanoscale heat conduction problems in two and three-dimensional geometries. Silicon is used as the candidate material. It is found that hybridization is effective in significantly improving the efficiency of solution of the BTE—sometimes by a factor of three—without significant penalty on the accuracy.
Use of Heterogenous and Monospecific Antisera for the Diagnosis of Bladder Cancer

AbstractA rabbit antibody to antigens present in urine from bladder cancer patients was prepared and used in conjunction with various monospecific antisera to detect urine components related to bladder cancer. All urine samples were centrifuged routinely, dialyzed and concentrated 10 times before assay by gel diffusion versus the various antisera. Urine was considered positive when it showed reactivity with 2 or more antibodies. This method of analysis resulted in the diagnosis of 64 per cent of the bladder papillomas and 77 per cent of the bladder cancers tested, compared to only a 7 per cent falsely positive rate with normal urine. These data support the potential usefulness of an antiserum panel in the immunological diagnosis of bladder cancer in the general population and in high risk individuals.
A humanized mouse model of anaphylactic peanut allergy

Background Food allergy is a growing health problem with very limited treatment options. Investigation of the immunologic pathways underlying allergic sensitization to foods in humans has been greatly constrained by the limited availability of intestinal tissue and gut-resident immune cells. Although mouse models have offered insights into pathways of food sensitization, differences between rodent and human immune physiology limit the extension of these findings to our understanding of human disease. Objective We sought to develop a strategy for the generation of mice with humanized adaptive immune systems, complete with tissue engraftment by human mast cells that are competent to mount specific IgE-mediated responses and drive systemic anaphylaxis on ingestion challenge. Methods Nonobese diabetic severe combined immunodeficient mice lacking the cytokine receptor common gamma chain (γ c −/− ) and carrying a human stem cell factor transgene were engrafted with human hematopoietic stem cells. The impact of peanut (PN) feeding and IgE neutralization on the development of immune responses, mast cell homeostasis, and anaphylactic food allergy was assessed in these animals. Results Humanized nonobese diabetic severe combined immunodeficient common gamma chain–deficient stem cell factor (huNSG) mice exhibited robust engraftment with functional human T and B lymphocytes and human mast cells were found in significant numbers in their tissues, including the intestinal mucosa. Following gavage feeding with PN, they mounted specific antibody responses, including PN-specific IgE. When enterally challenged with PN, they exhibited mast-cell–mediated systemic anaphylaxis, as indicated by hypothermia and increases in plasma tryptase levels. Anti-IgE (omalizumab) treatment ablated this anaphylactic response. Conclusions huNSG mice provide a novel tool for studying food allergy and IgE-mediated anaphylaxis.
Exploration of the Effects of Medicaid Home and Community-Based Services Waiver Services on Outcomes for People With Intellectual Disability

Abstract Medicaid home and community-based services waiver programs provide important long-term care services and supports for millions of eligible Americans with intellectual disability. The purpo...
Escape from the Maze of Twisty Classes

Programmers demand more extensive class libraries so they can reuse more code and write less of their own. However, these libraries are often so large that programmers get lost in deep hierarchies of classes and their members that are very broad in number. Yet language designers continue to focus on computation, leaving tools to solve library exploration problems without much help from the language. This paper applies language design to improve IDE code completion that enables in-situ library exploration. Inference tackles depth by listing completions as long as the program can be “fixed” to support their selection; e.g. “pressed” can be listed as a widget completion since a widget can be a button. Influence mitigates breadth by leveraging types as completion selection models; e.g. a pressed event is more likely to be used on a button than a mouse event. We apply this design to YinYang, a language for programming simulations on tablets using touch-based menus.
RpbA Functions in Transcriptional Control of the Constitutive Phycocyanin Gene Set in Calothrix sp. PCC 7601

Cyanobacteria harvest light energy for photosynthesis with phycobilisomes (PBS). These macromolecular antenna complexes consist of two structural domains: a core which associates with the photosynthetic membrane, and a series of rods that radiate from the core [1]. Both domains are composed of different chromophoric phycobiliproteins and nonchromophoric linker polypeptides. The major cyanobacterial phycobiliproteins are allophycocyanin (AP), phycocyanin (PC), and phycoerythrin (PE), each consisting of an α and β subunit. AP is localized to the core domain, whereas PC and PE are localized to the rods. The linker polypeptides specifically associate with each phycobiliprotein to maintain PBS structure and facilitate efficient energy transfer within the antenna complex.
Psychosocial Interventions for Older Adults with Dementia and Their Caregivers

Dementia affects over 35 million older adults worldwide with more individuals affected each year. While primarily a disease of cognitive decline, the behavioral, functional and emotional sequelea of dementia profoundly and adversely affect the day-to-day experience and quality of life for both persons suffering with dementia and their caregivers. Effective psychosocial treatment of these problems is essential if we are to reduce the ever-growing financial and emotional burden this disease takes on these affected individuals, their caregivers, and the larger society in which they live. This chapter provides a review of the current evidence on psychosocial approaches to reducing behavioral problems among persons with dementia (PWD), with particular emphasis on state-of-the-science randomized controlled trials that assess outcomes of direct relevance to the PWD and/or their caregiver. This review encompasses the array of settings providing care for PWD (e.g., private homes, congregate care), the diversity of providers (family, professional and nonprofessional staff), and the common disabling problems of both the PWD (depression, agitation, and other behavioral problems) and their caregiver (depression and burden).
SHOCK AND WEAR MODELS AND MARKOV ADDITIVE PROCESSES

Abstract. Our objective is to introduce a general shock and wear model which extends the available models in several directions. The model can be used to study fatigue loading due to random vibrations, wear in vacuum tubes due to hits by electrons whose energy levels vary stochastically, and quite generally, to study the damage process in situations where individual shocks do not cause any measurable damage, but there are very many shocks during even very small intervals.
Formation control implementation using Kobuki TurtleBots and Parrot Bebop drone

Formation control of a collection of vehicles is a topic that has generated a lot of interest in the research community. This interest primarily stems from the increased performance and robustness that is provided by a swarm of agents as compared to an individual member. Formation control can be achieved through many approaches. The approach used by this paper is based on a leader-follower premise. A network of agents can be controlled by assigning a leader for each agent in the formation. The group as a whole will be capable of following either a Virtual Leader (VL) or an agent within the group. The algorithm applied to a test-bed consisting of three Kobuki TurtleBot2 robots. Each Turtlebot2 is programmed to follow a pre-defined virtual point in the formation. The test space is monitored by a Parrot Bebop drone hovering overhead that identifies agents uniquely through image processing techniques. The agents can then move in the test space, based on the leader's position, while maintaining a formation.
In Vitro-In Vivo Discordance with Humanized Piperacillin-Tazobactam Exposures against Piperacillin-Tazobactam-Resistant/Pan-β-Lactam-Susceptible Escherichia coli.

ABSTRACT Recent findings have identified Escherichia coli strains that are pan-β-lactam susceptible (PBL-S) but piperacillin-tazobactam resistant (TZP-R) in vitro. We assessed the in vivo significance of this resistance profile in a neutropenic murine pneumonia model using humanized exposures of TZP with 18 clinical E. coli isolates, 8 TZP-S/PBL-S and 10 genotypically confirmed TZP-R/PBL-S. Despite phenotypically and genotypically defined resistance, TZP displayed efficacy against these isolates. Additional studies are required to define the clinical implications of these TZP-R/PBL-S strains.
Endovascular Treatment for Patients With Acute Stroke Who Have a Large Ischemic Core and Large Mismatch Imaging Profile

Importance Endovascular therapy (ET) is typically not considered for patients with large baseline ischemic cores (irreversibly injured tissue). Computed tomographic perfusion (CTP) imaging may identify a subset of patients with large ischemic cores who remain at risk for significant infarct expansion and thus could still benefit from reperfusion to reduce their degree of disability. Objective To compare the outcomes of patients with large baseline ischemic cores on CTP undergoing ET with the outcomes of matched controls who had medical care alone. Design, Setting, and Participants A matched case-control study of patients with proximal occlusion after stroke (intracranial internal carotid artery and/or middle cerebral artery M1 and/or M2) on computed tomographic angiography and baseline ischemic core greater than 50 mL on CTP at a tertiary care center from May 1, 2011, through October 31, 2015. Patients receiving ET and controls receiving medical treatment alone were matched for age, baseline ischemic core volume on CTP, and glucose levels. Baseline characteristics and outcomes were compared. Main Outcomes and Measures The primary outcome measure was the shift in the degree of disability among the treatment and control groups as measured by the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) (with scores ranging from 0 [fully independent] to 6 [dead]) at 90 days. Results Fifty-six patients were matched across 2 equally distributed groups (mean [SD] age, 62.25 [13.92] years for cases and 58.32 [14.79] years for controls; male, 13 cases [46%] and 14 controls [50%]). Endovascular therapy was significantly associated with a favorable shift in the overall distribution of 90-day mRS scores (odds ratio, 2.56; 95% CI, 2.50-8.47;P = .04), higher rates of independent outcomes (90-day mRS scores of 0-2, 25% vs 0%;P = .04), and smaller final infarct volumes (mean [SD], 87 [77] vs 242 [120] mL;P .99). The rates of hemicraniectomy (2 [7%] vs 6 [21%];P = .10) and 90-day mortality (7 [29%] vs 11 [48%];P = .75) were numerically lower in the intervention arm. Sensitivity analysis for patients with a baseline ischemic core greater than 70 mL (12 pairs) revealed a significant reduction in final infarct volumes (mean [SD], 110 [65] vs 319 [147] mL;P 3) at 90 days. Conclusions and Relevance In properly selected patients, ET appears to benefit patients with large core and large mismatch profiles. Future prospective studies are warranted.
The mechanism determining the voltage life of cross-linked polyethylene insulation (Part II. Derivation of theoretical equation)

In our previous paper,1 we reported on techniques to mea­sure the number and length of water trees occurring from voids in cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE). In this report, a theoretical equation describing the voltage life of XLPE insulation as a function of the deterioration due to water trees is derived. This theoretical equation, without arbitrary constants, closely matches the experimental data of voltage life from 154 kV XLPE insulated cables to 600 V butyl rubber insulated wires.
Patient-related predictors of poor-quality pain care in advanced lung cancer patients.

6062 Background: Unrelieved pain remains a major problem for all patients, including those with cancer, despite national standards for pain management. Screening and addressing pain is an integral part of oncology visits and an ASCO QOPI indicator of quality oncology care. The goal of this study was to assess associations between patient-related factors, particularly patient distress, and meeting ASCO quality metrics for appropriate management of pain in patients with advanced lung cancers. Identification of patient related factors could lead to targeted quality improvement efforts. Methods: From 8/07 to 9/10, we recruited consecutive new patients in a multidisciplinary thoracic oncology clinic to participate in a research database for which patients completed self-report instruments for distress, depression (PHQ-9) and anxiety (GAD-7), at their first oncology visit. We then performed a QOPI chart audit for patients with advanced lung cancer who received care at our institution. A composite measure of app...
Exploiting Asynchronous Signaling for Multiuser Cooperative Networks with Analog Network Coding

In this paper, we present an asynchronous analog network coding (AANC) scheme for multiuser cooperative communications. In particular, we consider a relay network comprised of multiple sources and one relay. With conventional analog network coding, i.e., synchronous analog network coding (SANC), perfect timing synchronization is assumed. In contrast, in AANC, the signals from the sources arrive at the relay and destination with different time delays. Then the relay amplifies the received asynchronous combination of the transmitted signals and forwards it to the destination. We present a simple decoding strategy at the destination and examine the diversity order by investigating the asymptotic performance at a high signal to noise ratio. Our results show that AANC achieves a greater diversity order compared to that of SANC with the same linear decoding complexity. In addition, we present the Viterbi decoding for AANC and use simulations to compare its performance with that of SANC with maximum likelihhood decoding. We show that AANC has a better symbol error rate performance compared to that of SANC.
Molecular phylogenetics of western deer mice (Peromyscus): Taxonomic and biogeographic implications

Abstract The deer mouse species group centers around Peromyscus maniculatus and contains four peripherally distributed species. In order to address phylogenetic, taxonomic, and biogeographic questions concerning the westernmost deer mice, we analyzed mitochondrial sequence variation for 174 specimens from California to Washington and compared these to relevant reference specimens. These analyses confirm the genetic distinction of a clade of physiographically bounded deer mouse populations from Southern and Baja California and the close affinity of this clade to the endangered and island-endemic Peromyscus sejugis. In accordance with the phylogenetic species concept and taxonomic priority, we recommend that all populations currently recognized as Peromyscus maniculatus coolidgei (Baja California) and those of Peromyscus maniculatus gambelii from south of the San Francisco Bay and west of the Sierra Nevada mountains be recognized as Peromyscus gambelii. Despite its low level of mitochondrial sequence diverg...
The Deluge: The Great War, America and the Remaking of the Global Order, 1916–1931. By Adam Tooze. (New York, NY: Viking, 2014. Pp. xxiii, 644. $40.00.)

Many historians have portrayed the Great War as a tragedy that left a lasting scar on European life. The author, one suspects, would not take issue with this interpretation—indeed, his book is titl...
Global Optimization of Ventricular Myocyte Model to Multi-Variable Objective Improves Predictions of Drug-Induced Torsades de Pointes

In silico cardiac myocyte models present powerful tools for drug safety testing and for predicting phenotypical consequences of ion channel mutations, but their accuracy is sometimes limited. For example, several models describing human ventricular electrophysiology perform poorly when simulating effects of long QT mutations. Model optimization represents one way of obtaining models with stronger predictive power. Using a recent human ventricular myocyte model, we demonstrate that model optimization to clinical long QT data, in conjunction with physiologically-based bounds on intracellular calcium and sodium concentrations, better constrains model parameters. To determine if the model optimized to congenital long QT data better predicts risk of drug-induced long QT arrhythmogenesis, in particular Torsades de Pointes risk, we tested the optimized model against a database of known arrhythmogenic and non-arrhythmogenic ion channel blockers. When doing so, the optimized model provided an improved risk assessment. In particular, we demonstrate an elimination of false-positive outcomes generated by the baseline model, in which simulations of non-torsadogenic drugs, in particular verapamil, predict action potential prolongation. Our results underscore the importance of currents beyond those directly impacted by a drug block in determining torsadogenic risk. Our study also highlights the need for rich data in cardiac myocyte model optimization and substantiates such optimization as a method to generate models with higher accuracy of predictions of drug-induced cardiotoxicity.
An Introduction to General Nonstandard Analysis

In this chapter, we develop the general framework of nonstandard analysis and the necessary logic for the transfer principle. The reader who has read the first chapter of this book will appreciate that Skolem functions will no longer be needed to replace the existential quantifier. The results obtained in the last chapter using our simple transfer principle will still be valid, since the transfer principle used here extends that simple one. The outline of this chapter is similar to that of Chapter 2 of the author’s book with Albert E. Hurd, [4].
CAUSES OF TECHNOLOGICAL STAGNATION IN MANUFACTURING DURING EARLY INDUSTRIALIZATION

A POOR country may use its labour force unproductively and with a primitive technology because any of four inadequacies may hinder the technological diffusion and adoption process: inadequacies in the spectrum of techniques, in international and domestic information channels, in motivation and management, or in economic structure.1 1. An inadequate spectrum of techniques means better techniques have not been invented for exploiting a country's known natural resources, given its wealth and labour force. The only way of attacking the problem is with geological and other surveys and with a search for inventions. 2. Inadequate information channels. Suitable techniques exist abroad, but entrepreneurs do not learn about them, and workers lack the education for skilled operation. Needed are teachers, librarians, salesmen, consultants, and apprenticeship at home and abroad. 3. Inadequate motivation and management. Good advice and training for better techniques can be had but are wholly or partly rejected by entrepreneurs with a distaste for change, particularly if new machines mean strange forms of organization. Conditioning new tastes among adults is very difficult. What seems like enlightened persuasion to some is unpardonable brainwashing to others. 4. Inadequate economic 8tructure. Better techniques are available, entrepreneurs and employees are willing and able, but imperfections in markets and government policies keep the worse techniques more profitable and preserve industries less suited to a country's resources. Particularly in dual (or multiple) economies, wages may be kept unduly high for some large or foreign firms and capital costs unduly low. New laws, regulations, and different taxes can correct incentives. We shall begin with the third possibility, blocks in motivation and management. I
AppFlow: using machine learning to synthesize robust, reusable UI tests

UI testing is known to be difficult, especially as today’s development cycles become faster. Manual UI testing is tedious, costly and error- prone. Automated UI tests are costly to write and maintain. This paper presents AppFlow, a system for synthesizing highly robust, highly reusable UI tests. It leverages machine learning to automatically recognize common screens and widgets, relieving developers from writing ad hoc, fragile logic to use them in tests. It enables developers to write a library of modular tests for the main functionality of an app category (e.g., an “add to cart” test for shopping apps). It can then quickly test a new app in the same category by synthesizing full tests from the modular ones in the library. By focusing on the main functionality, AppFlow provides “smoke testing” requiring little manual work. Optionally, developers can customize AppFlow by adding app-specific tests for completeness. We evaluated AppFlow on 60 popular apps in the shopping and the news category, two case studies on the BBC news app and the JackThreads shopping app, and a user-study of 15 subjects on the Wish shopping app. Results show that AppFlow accurately recognizes screens and widgets, synthesizes highly robust and reusable tests, covers 46.6% of all automatable tests for Jackthreads with the tests it synthesizes, and reduces the effort to test a new app by up to 90%. Interestingly, it found eight bugs in the evaluated apps, including seven functionality bugs, despite that they were publicly released and supposedly went through thorough testing.
Does Political Turbulence Encourage Fight or Flight for Federal Employees? Examining Political Environments and Turnover Intent:

In a volatile political climate where agencies often become the stage for partisan battles, career employees pay the price for increased political attention to agencies. This study seeks to underst...
Force and freedom: black abolitionists and the politics of violence: by Kellie Carter Jackson, Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania Press, 2019, 216 pp., $34.95 (hardback), ISBN 978-0-8122-5115-9

One of the central questions in political thought concerns the role of violence in effecting social change. Kellie Carter Jackson, an assistant professor of Africana Studies at Wellesley College, s...
Data centric nanocomposites design via mixed-variable Bayesian optimization

With an unprecedented combination of mechanical and electrical properties, polymer nanocomposites have the potential to be widely used across multiple industries. Tailoring nanocomposites to meet application specific requirements remains a challenging task, owing to the vast, mixed-variable design space that includes composition (i.e. choice of polymer, nanoparticle, and surface modification) and microstructures (i.e. dispersion and geometric arrangement of particles) of the nanocomposite material. Modeling properties of the interphase, the region surrounding a nanoparticle, introduces additional complexity to the design process and requires computationally expensive simulations. As a result, previous attempts at designing polymer nanocomposites have focused on finding the optimal microstructure for only a fixed combination of constituents. In this article, we propose a data centric design framework to concurrently identify optimal composition and microstructure using mixed-variable Bayesian optimization. This framework integrates experimental data with state-of-the-art techniques in interphase modeling, microstructure characterization and reconstructions and machine learning. Latent variable Gaussian processes (LVGPs) quantifies the lack-of-data uncertainty over the mixed-variable design space that consists of qualitative and quantitative material design variables. The design of electrically insulating nanocomposites is cast as a multicriteria optimization problem with the goal of maximizing dielectric breakdown strength while minimizing dielectric permittivity and dielectric loss. Within tens of simulations, our method identifies a diverse set of designs on the Pareto frontier indicating the tradeoff between dielectric properties. These findings project data centric design, effectively integrating experimental data with simulations for Bayesian Optimization, as an effective approach for design of engineered material systems.
Prognostic profiling of children with serious post-operative complications: A novel probability model for failure to rescue.

Abstract Background Failure to rescue (FTR), mortality after a major postoperative complication, is a superior surgical quality metric compared to surgical mortality or complications rates alone. Our objective was to develop and validate a novel pediatric profiling to identify high-risk subjects among the subset of children who develop serious post-operative complications. Methods We performed a retrospective study of children who developed one or more serious postoperative complications following inpatient surgery across NSQIP-Pediatric hospitals (2012–2017). We evaluated the rate of FTR according to pre-operative comorbidity burden. Results We identified 45,504 surgical cases with major post-operative complications (FTR rates: 2.4%). Surgical cases with greater than six pre-operative comorbidities (n = 12,148;28%) accounted for 80% of FTR events. The expected probability of FTR was 0.1%(95%CI:0.1%–0.2%) among low-risk cases, 3.3%(95%CI:3.0%–3.5%) among intermediate-risk cases, and 22.6%(95%CI:20.9%–24.3%) among high-risk cases. About half of surgical cases in the high-risk profile group died within 48 h of surgery. Comparatively, cases in the intermediate-risk group had a much longer time to mortality (10 days). Conclusion We propose a prognostic index to accurately identify children at risk for FTR. The use of such an index may provide surgeons with a window of opportunity to implement aggressive monitoring and therapeutic strategies to reduce mortality. Level of evidence IV
A note on $k$-wise oddtown problems

For integers $2 \leq t \leq k$, we consider a collection of $k$ set families $\mathcal{A}_j: 1 \leq j \leq k$ where $\mathcal{A}_j = \{ A_{j,i} \subseteq [n] : 1 \leq i \leq m \}$ and $|A_{1, i_1} \cap \cdots \cap A_{k,i_k}|$ is even if and only if at least $t$ of the $i_j$ are distinct. In this paper, we prove that $m =O(n^{ 1/ \lfloor k/2 \rfloor})$ when $t=k$ and $m = O( n^{1/(t-1)})$ when $2t-2 \leq k$ and prove that both of these bounds are best possible. Specializing to the case where $\mathcal{A} = \mathcal{A}_1 = \cdots = \mathcal{A}_k$, we recover a variation of the classical oddtown problem.
Mesenchymal stem cells anchored with thymidine phosphorylase for doxifluridine-mediated cancer therapy

Many tumors express thymidine phosphorylase (TYMP) with various levels, however due to tumor heterogeneity, the amount of TYMP is usually not enough to convert prodrug doxifluridine (5′-DFUR) to toxic drug 5-fluorouracil (5-FU). Since human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) have unique features of tumor-tropism and low immunogenicity, the purpose of this study is to use mesenchymal stem cells as carriers to deliver TYMP to cancer cells and then trigger their death by administrating doxifluridine. First, the TYMP gene sequence and core streptavidin (core SA) were constructed into pET-30a(+) plasmid. After bacterial transformation and colony screening, TYMP-SA fusion protein was expressed by IPTG induction and purified by immobilized metal affinity chromatography and characterized by SDS-PAGE and western blot with a clear band at 75 kDa. The characterized TYMP-SA was further anchored on the cell membrane of biotinylated hMSCs via biotin–streptavidin binding. hMSCs anchored with TYMP-SA were then co-cultured with adenocarcinoma A549 cells (with different ratios) and treated with 100 μM prodrug doxifluridine over the course of four days. Our results showed that a 2 : 1 ratio led to the eradication of A549 cells at the end of the experiment with less than 5% confluency, in comparison with the 1 : 1 and 1 : 2 ratios which still had about 13% and 20% confluency respectively. In conclusion, harnessing hMSCs as cell carriers for the delivery of TYMP enzyme to cancer cells could lead to significant cell death post-treatment of the prodrug doxifluridine.
Clinical factors associated with adverse outcomes in the acute period of management of submassive pulmonary embolism.

The majority of patients with intermediate-to-severe submassive pulmonary embolism are hemodynamically stable upon presentation. There is a lack of evidence for the clinical relevance and safety of initially employed therapies in this population. The objective of current analysis was to determine predictors associated with adverse outcomes in submassive pulmonary embolism patients. This was a single-center, retrospective chart review identifying patient characteristics and clinical factors associated with adverse outcomes within the management of patients presenting to the emergency department for submassive pulmonary embolism. A total of 122 admissions for submassive pulmonary embolism were included. Among these patients, 41% (n = 50) of admissions had an adverse outcomes. Fluid volume was associated with adverse events in an incremental manner (odds ratio 2.1, 95% confidence interval, 1.4-3.2). These findings demonstrate a significant incidence of adverse events in patients with submassive pulmonary embolism and an incremental increase in likelihood of adverse events with each liter of fluid.
Socio-technical-pedagogical usability of online courses for older adult learners

Given the increasing popularity of online learning, the study of the user experience in online courses is relevant for the design of meaningful online learning. While there exist many checklists fo...
Make bloom and let wither: Biopolitics of precision agriculture at the dawn of surveillance capitalism

Abstract Precision agriculture is an assemblage of data-driven agricultural technologies, discursively articulated as a clever gambit against climate-induced food insecurity. Agritech companies engage in data grabbing as an accumulation strategy and to influence farmers’ behaviors, opening new agrarian frontiers for surveillance capitalism. Wielding big data to manage and optimize species within food production systems becomes a biopolitical calculation of “make bloom and let wither,” with implications for the agrarian question of labor. Drawing on mixed methods fieldwork from South Dakota and Vermont, we document how different actors perform and contest agri-algorithmic subjectivities, producing novel terrains of food politics and neoliberal state-citizen relations.
What The Flock?: Fostering collaborative Active Breaks for Online Education

The sudden transition to online education due to the COVID-19 pandemic created a lack of informal embodied social interactions between children. To address this, we developed What The Flock?, an online game for Active Breaks for children in primary and elementary school. Children collaboratively create migratory bird flock formations by controlling a bird character through bodily movement captured by their webcam. A calibration process allows each child to define the thresholds of movements to control their bird. Each player also controls the volume of a sound track, resulting in a unique song for every instance of game play.