cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Resolving the ray-finned fish tree of life.

When it comes to vertebrate evolutionary history, our understanding of lobe-finned fishes—the branch of the vertebrate tree leading to coelacanths plus the tetrapods (amphibians, turtles, birds, crocodiles, lizards, snakes, and mammals)—far outstrips our knowledge of ray-finned fishes (Actinopterygii). Actinopterygians exhibit extraordinary species richness (>33,000 described species) and have evolved a staggering diversity in morphology and ecology over their 400+ million y history. Ray-finned fishes include some of the smallest vertebrates [the adult cyprinid Paedocypris progenetica measure just under 8 mm (1)], some of the largest (adult ocean sunfish weigh more than 2,000 kg), some of the longest (oarfishes may reach a length of more than 13 m), some of the longest lived [rougheye rockfishes, Sebastes aleutianus , may live for more than 200 y (2)], and some of the shortest lived [the coral reef pygmy goby, Eviota sigillata , has a maximum lifespan of 59 d (3)]. In marine waters, ray-finned fishes include the tremendously diverse and ecologically rich coral reef fish families, such as wrasses, angelfishes, butterfly fishes, and damselfishes, and they comprise most important commercial and recreational fishing stocks. Within freshwaters, ray-finned fishes have produced several ecologically dominant radiations, including cyprinids, characiforms, catfishes, and cichlids. Efforts to reconstruct the phylogenetic history of this group have proven extremely challenging (4, 5), especially within acanthomorphs (6, 7), a hyperdiverse subclade comprising almost two-thirds of all ray-finned fish species. One of the major impediments to understanding higher-level ray-finned fish relationships has been the lack of obvious morphological characters that unite major lineages (reviewed in ref. 8). Within the last 5 y, large-scale multilocus sequencing efforts have produced novel insights in the ray-finned fish backbone phylogeny, including unexpectedly close relationships among morphologically disparate … [↵][1]1Email: michaelalfaro{at}ucla.edu. [1]: #xref-corresp-1-1
Thermodynamic Information from Ion-Molecule Equilibrium Constant Determinations

According to the principles of thermodynamics, the equilibrium constant of any chemical equilibrium gives information about the thermochemistry of the chemical reactions in the forward and reverse directions: $$ - RT\ln {K_{eq}} = \Delta {G^o} = \Delta {H^o} - T\Delta {S^o}$$ (I) Equation I has been applied extensively to the derivation of thermochemical information, particularly in the liquid phase.
THE MOLECULAR BIOLOGY OF HEPATITIS B VIRUS

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is a major infectious cause of morbidity and mortality throughout the world (1). Despite the availability of an effective vaccine for 2 decades, approximately 1.2 million people still die each year from HBV-related diseases. HBV usually causes only mild symptoms upon acute infection, although rarely fatal fulminant hepatitis can occur. The great majority of infected adults successfully clear the virus and acquire life-long immunity to HBV. However, others fail to mount an effective immune response, and the virus replicates for long periods (years to decades) in their livers. Children are even more susceptible to chronic HBV infection, probably because of the immaturity of their immune system. Chronically infected people are at high risk for developing chronic hepatitis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). They also serve as the reservoir for further spread of infection. Transmission is by contact with blood and other bodily fluids, although the exact route shows geographic variation and is not always well defined. In Western countries, sexual activity and needle sharing constitute the major routes of transmission, while in Asia mother-to-infant transmission via blood at the time of birth is common. In addition, close contact with infected people is a major risk factor, and indeed is the major route of transmission among children in Africa. Health care workers, especially surgeons, dentists, and nurses, are also highly susceptible to infection.
Men’s Coercive Condom Use Resistance: The Roles of Sexual Aggression History, Alcohol Intoxication, and Partner Condom Negotiation

Condom use resistance (CUR) through coercive tactics is a significant public health concern. The present study investigated CUR risk factors through an alcohol administration experiment using a sexual risk analog with a community sample of male nonproblem drinkers ( N = 321). Utilizing a path analysis framework, results demonstrated that men with more severe sexual aggression histories displayed stronger in-the-moment power and control responses, which was associated with greater coercive CUR and unprotected sex intentions. A significant interaction between sexual aggression history, risk rationale, and alcohol condition also predicted coercive CUR intentions. These findings emphasize the relationship between sexual aggression and sexual risk behaviors and highlight the importance of targeting these constructs in intervention and prevention efforts.
Dynamic Optical Coherence Elastography of Soft Tissue

Optical coherence elastography (OCE) is relatively new emerging method allowing to assess biomechanical properties of tissues in situ and in vivo in 3D. In this talk I will overview recent progress made in the quantitative assessment of viscoelasticity of ocular and cardiac tissues
Security Vulnerabilities in Mobile Health Applications

With the growth of mobile health (mHealth) applications, it is imperative to make sure that users' health records and their privacy are safeguarded properly. In this paper, twenty five mobile health applications are analyzed for security and privacy vulnerabilities. Each of these applications is available from the Google Play Store, has a medical tag, requests permission for full network access, and connects to a medical device. Network security and authentication vulnerabilities together with various Man in the Middle attacks, and HIPAA noncompliance for all applications are inspected. The results of the security and privacy tests indicate that each application suffers from security and/or privacy vulnerabilities. The application security and privacy vulnerabilities results of the analyzed applications was subsequently shared with their development teams. The results from analysis are beneficial for mHealth application developers to be more cognizant of such vulnerabilities. Furthermore mHealth users are encouraged to be more diligent in choosing a robust and secure mHealth application.
Liquidity, Investment Style, and the Effect of Fund Size on Fund Performance

This paper empirically examines the effect of liquidity and investment style on the relation between fund size and fund performance. Consistent with Chen, Hong, Huang, and Kubik (2004), I find a significant inverse relation between fund size and fund performance. More importantly, this inverse relation is stronger among funds that hold less liquid portfolios. The inverse relation between fund size and fund performance is also more pronounced among growth and high turnover funds which tend to have high demands for immediacy. Overall, this paper's findings support the hypothesis that fund size erodes performance because of liquidity.
Dynamic customer interdependence

In managing today’s customer base, firms need to consider not only interactions with customers but also interactions among customers. Much like the interactions between customers and firms, the interactions among customers are dynamic in nature and thus create a dynamic structure of preference interdependencies between customers. This research proposes a Bayesian spatio-temporal model that simultaneously captures the effects of the interactions between customers and the firm, the static interdependence due to customers’ inherent similarities, and the dynamic interdependence arising from observed interactions among customers. The model is applied to a rich dataset of university alumni donation and event attendance spanning 27 years. The results yield significant static and dynamic interdependence among the group as well as synergistic effects between static and dynamic structures. This research demonstrates that not accounting for such interdependence, when such interdependence exists, would provide a biased view of firms' marketing effectiveness, yield inferior prediction of customer behaviors in group settings, and miss opportunities to develop group marketing strategies.
Implementation of the IPACK (Infiltration between the Popliteal Artery and Capsule of the Knee) block into a multimodal analgesic pathway for total knee replacement

Background The Infiltration between the Popliteal Artery and Capsule of the Knee (IPACK) block is a new anesthesiologist- administered analgesic technique for controlling posterior knee pain that has not yet been well studied in total knee arthroplasty (TKA) patients. We compared pain outcomes in TKA patients before and after implementation of the IPACK with the hypothesis that patients receiving IPACK blocks will report lower pain scores on postoperative day (POD) 0 than non-IPACK patients. Methods With Institutional Review Board approval, we retrospectively reviewed data for consecutive TKA patients by a single surgeon 4 months before (PRE) and after (POST) IPACK implementation. All TKA patients received adductor canal catheters and peri-operative multimodal analgesia. The primary outcome was pain on POD 0. Other outcomes were daily pain scores, opioid consumption, ambulation distance, length of stay, and adverse events within 30 days. Results Post-implementation, 48/50 (96%) of TKA patients received an IPACK block, and they were compared with 32 patients in the PRE group. On POD 0, the lowest pain score (median [10th-90th percentiles]) was significantly lower for the POST group compared to the PRE group (0 [0-4.3] vs. 2.5 [0-7]; P = 0.003). The highest patient-reported pain scores on any POD were similar between groups with no differences in other outcomes. Conclusions Within a multimodal analgesic protocol, addition of IPACK blocks decreased the lowest pain scores on POD 0. Although other outcomes were unchanged, there may be a role for new opioid-sparing analgesic techniques, and changing clinical practice change can occur rapidly.
Newer biological agents: CAR T cells, PARP inhibitors, and ALK inhibitors:

The oncology world is awash with a steady flow of new and exciting biologic agents and targeted immune therapies. Chimeric antigen receptor T cells are a new class of “living drugs” that are design...
Itching for an answer: A review of potential mechanisms of scalp itch in psoriasis

Scalp psoriatic itch is a common complaint and often poses a therapeutic challenge. The pathophysiology of this phenomenon is unclear. The unique anatomy of the scalp contains richly innervated hair follicles, abundant vasculature and perifollicular inflammatory cytokines which may all contribute to this common sensory complaint. The mast cell, in particular, is portrayed as one of the main itch conductors for its ability to trigger neurogenic inflammation, activate the peripheral hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal-axis, process and integrate itch signalling through its interactions with the scalp hair follicles. Herein, we explain and speculate upon potential mechanisms underlying itchy scalp psoriasis, involving interconnections between the neuroimmune, neurovascular and neuroendocrine systems. Many factors may play roles in itchy scalp psoriasis including the scalp hair structure, immune system, endocrine system, nervous system and vascular system. These may warrant further exploration as therapeutic targets that go beyond the application of mere anti-inflammatory agents.
Using an Evidence Based Practice Informatics Safety Intervention to Improve Medication Safety among Community Dwelling Older Adults

Medication safety and prevention of medication related problems are important issues in promoting and maintaining health and safety in one’s home for community dwelling older adults. Assessment of medications and management of a medication schedule are essential elements of medication safety, medication review, and medication care coordination. The Framework for Geriatric Homecare Excellence (Collaboration for Home Care Advances and Practices, 2009) is used as the foundation of this project to improve medication management, and promote and maintain health and safety at home. An in-home medication assessment was completed, using a medication management software informatics system to review medications, identify medication related problems, and convey this information to the Primary Care Provider, case manager, and client. Evidence based patient-centered educational interventions on management and understanding of medications were provided to participants to emphasize the correct use of medications and use of a personal medication record. The goal of this health promotion and health maintenance project was to improve medication safety through focused assessment and medication related education interventions for community dwelling older adults. This informatics based medication safety intervention showed considerable strength in completing and sharing medication home assessments enhanced by the software abilities. Significant outcome improvements were associated with the pre-post test comparison in provision of an up-to-date medication list and comprehension by clients of specific medication safety education.
All Bound Up Together: The Woman Question in African American Public Culture, 1830-1900

The place of women's rights in African American public culture has been an enduring question, one that has long engaged activists, commentators, and scholars. "All Bound Up Together" explores the roles black women played in their communities' social movements and the consequences of elevating women into positions of visibility and leadership. Martha Jones reveals how, through the nineteenth century, the "woman question" was at the core of movements against slavery and for civil rights. Unlike white women activists, who often created their own institutions separate from men, black women, Jones explains, often organized within already existing institutions - churches, political organizations, mutual aid societies, and schools. Covering three generations of black women activists, Jones demonstrates that their approach was not unanimous or monolithic but changed over time and took a variety of forms, from a woman's right to control her body to her right to vote. Through a far-ranging look at politics, church, and social life, Jones demonstrates how women have helped shape the course of black public culture.
iTRAQ-Based Quantitative Proteomic Analysis of the Arabidopsis Mutant opr3-1 in Response to Exogenous MeJA.

Jasmonates (JAs) regulate the defense of biotic and abiotic stresses, growth, development, and many other important biological processes in plants. The comprehensive proteomic profiling of plants under JAs treatment provides insights into the regulation mechanism of JAs. Isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification (iTRAQ)-based quantitative proteomic analysis was performed on the Arabidopsis wild type (Ws) and JA synthesis deficiency mutant opr3-1. The effects of exogenous MeJA treatment on the proteome of opr3-1, which lacks endogenous JAs, were investigated. A total of 3683 proteins were identified and 126 proteins were differentially regulated between different genotypes and treatment groups. The functional classification of these differentially regulated proteins showed that they were involved in metabolic processes, responses to abiotic stress or biotic stress, the defense against pathogens and wounds, photosynthesis, protein synthesis, and developmental processes. Exogenous MeJA treatment induced the up-regulation of a large number of defense-related proteins and photosynthesis-related proteins, it also induced the down-regulation of many ribosomal proteins in opr3-1. These results were further verified by a quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) analysis of 15 selected genes. Our research provides the basis for further understanding the molecular mechanism of JAs’ regulation of plant defense, photosynthesis, protein synthesis, and development.
Pediatric Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Tasks and Hands-Off Time: A Descriptive Analysis Using Video Review

OBJECTIVES To characterize tasks performed during cardiopulmonary resuscitation in association with hands-off time, using video recordings of resuscitation events. DESIGN Single-center, prospective, observational trial. SETTING Twenty-six bed cardiac ICU in a quaternary care free standing pediatric academic hospital. PATIENTS Patients admitted to the cardiac ICU with cardiopulmonary resuscitation events lasting greater than 2 minutes captured on video. INTERVENTIONS None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS Videos of 17 cardiopulmonary resuscitation episodes comprising 264.5 minutes of cardiopulmonary resuscitation were reviewed: 11 classic cardiopulmonary resuscitation (87.5 min) and six extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitations (177 min). A total of 209 tasks occurred in 178 discrete time periods including compressor change (36%), rhythm/pulse check (18%), surgical pause (18%), extracorporeal membrane oxygenation preparation/draping (9%), repositioning (7.5%), defibrillation (6%), backboard placement (3%), bagging (<1%), pacing (<1%), intubation (<1%). In 31 time periods, 62 tasks were clustered with 18 (58%) as compressor changes and pulse/rhythm check. In the 178 discrete time periods, 135 occurred with a pause in compressions for greater than or equal to 1 second; 43 tasks occurred without pause. After accounting for repeated measures from individual patients, providers were less likely to perform rhythm or pulse checks (p < 0.0001) or change compressors regularly (p = 0.02) during extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation as compared to classic cardiopulmonary resuscitation. The frequency of tasks occurring during cardiopulmonary resuscitation interruptions in the classic cardiopulmonary resuscitation group was constant over the resuscitation but variable in extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation, peaking during activities required for cannulation. CONCLUSIONS On video review of cardiopulmonary resuscitation, we found that resuscitation guidelines were not strictly followed in either cardiopulmonary resuscitation or extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation patients, but adherence was worse in extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Clustering of resuscitation tasks occurred 23% of the time during chest compression pauses suggesting attempts at minimizing cardiopulmonary resuscitation interruptions. The frequency of cardiopulmonary resuscitation interruptions task events was relatively constant during classic cardiopulmonary resuscitation but variable in extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Characterization of resuscitation tasks by video review may inform better cardiopulmonary resuscitation orchestration and efficiency.
Safe Reinforcement Learning with Mixture Density Network: A Case Study in Autonomous Highway Driving.

This paper presents a safe reinforcement learning system for automated driving that benefits from multimodal future trajectory predictions. We propose a safety system that consists of two safety components: a heuristic safety and a learning-based safety. The heuristic safety module is based on common driving rules. On the other hand, the learning-based safety module is a data-driven safety rule that learns safety patterns from driving data. Specifically, it utilizes mixture density recurrent neural networks (MD-RNN) for multimodal future trajectory predictions to accelerate the learning progress. Our simulation results demonstrate that the proposed safety system outperforms previously reported results in terms of average reward and number of collisions.
Prominent Longitudinal Strain Reduction of Basal Left Ventricular Segments in Patients With Coronavirus Disease-19.

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) has been associated with overt and subclinical myocardial dysfunction. We observed a recurring pattern of reduced basal left ventricular (LV) longitudinal strain on speckle-tracking echocardiography in hospitalized patients with COVID-19 and subsequently aimed to identify characteristics of affected patients. We hypothesized that patients with COVID-19 with reduced basal LV strain would demonstrate elevated cardiac biomarkers. METHODS AND RESULT: Eighty-one consecutive patients with COVID-19 underwent speckle-tracking echocardiography. Those with poor quality speckle-tracking echocardiography (nâ¯=â¯2) or a known LV ejection fraction of <50% (nâ¯=â¯4) were excluded. Patients with an absolute value basal longitudinal strain of <13.9% (2 standard deviations below normal) were designated as cases (nâ¯=â¯39); those with a basal longitudinal strain of ≥13.9% were designated as controls (nâ¯=â¯36). Demographics and clinical variables were compared. Of 75 included patients (mean age 62 ± 14 years, 41% women), 52% had reduced basal strain. Cases had higher body mass index (median 34.1; interquartile range 26.5-37.9 kg/m2 vs median 26.9, interquartile range, 24.8-30.0 kg/m2, Pâ¯=â¯.009), and greater proportions of Black (74% vs 36%, Pâ¯=â¯.0009), hypertensive (79% vs 56%, Pâ¯=â¯.026), and diabetic patients (44% vs 19%, Pâ¯=â¯.025) compared with controls. Troponin and N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide levels trended higher in cases, but were not significantly different. CONCLUSIONS: Reduced basal LV strain is common in patients with COVID-19. Patients with hypertension, diabetes, obesity, and Black race were more likely to have reduced basal strain. Further investigation into the significance of this strain pattern is warranted.
Shrinking the Accountability Deficit in Capital Charging

The price of capital trials, appeals, and clemency proceedings have skyrocketed since the U.S. Supreme Court lifted its moratorium on the death penalty, but this has not translated to more reliable case outcomes—the rate of serious reversible error and wrongful convictions has steadily increased during the same time period. The overly aggressive use of the death penalty by prosecutors has not only been convincingly linked to these high reversal rates, but may also increase crime, decrease the likelihood of arrests for homicides, and lead to heightened risks of miscarriages of justice for non‐capital defendants. It follows that limiting hawkish prosecutorial decision‐making in potentially capital cases may be particularly effective in reducing the prevalence of error and reducing unnecessary expense. Curbing the virtually unfettered discretion of prosecutors is not a new idea, but extant proposals tend to suffer from shortcomings that are likely to render them impractical or ineffective. Any viable legal intervention must increase prosecutorial accountability for inadequate charge‐screening in capital cases while still permitting prosecutors to retain discretion in seeking the death penalty. This essay describes a reform that consists of two primary components: (1) an advisory (i.e., non‐binding) opinion from a reviewing authority assessing the appropriateness of a prosecutor’s decision to seek the death penalty in a case based on the totality of evidence, and (2) financial and administrative cost-shifting mechanisms capable of disincentivizing prosecutorial overreaching in capital charging.
Waste respirator processing system for public health protection and climate change mitigation under COVID-19 pandemic: Novel process design and energy, environmental, and techno-economic perspectives

Abstract The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic leads to a surge on consumption of respirators. This study proposes a novel and effective waste respirator processing system for protecting public health and mitigating climate change. Respirator sterilization and pre-processing technologies are included in the system to resist viral infection and facilitate unit processes for respirator pyrolysis, product separation, and downstream processing for greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction. We evaluate the system’s environmental performance through high-fidelity process simulations and detailed life cycle assessment. Techno-economic analysis results show that the payback time of the waste respirator processing system is seven years with an internal rate of return of 21.5%. The tipping fee and discount rate are the most influential economic factors. Moreover, the unit life cycle GHG emissions from the waste respirator processing system are 12.93 kg CO2-eq per thousand waste respirators treated, which reduces GHG emissions by 59.08% compared to incineration-based system so as to mitigate climate change.
Fundamental limit of single-mode integral-field spectroscopy

There are several high-performance adaptive optics systems that deliver diffraction-limited imaging on ground-based telescopes, which has renewed interest in single-mode fiber (SMF) spectroscopy for exoplanet characterization. However, the fundamental mode of a telescope is not well matched to those of conventional SMFs. With the recent progress in asphere manufacturing techniques, it may be possible to reshape the fundamental mode of a SMF into any arbitrary distribution. An optimization problem is set up to investigate what the optimal mode field distribution is and what the fundamental throughput limit is for SMF spectroscopy. Both single-object spectrographs and integral-field spectrographs are investigated. The optimal mode for single-object spectrographs is found to be the aperture function of the exit pupil; for integral-field spectrographs, the optimal mode depends on the spatial sampling of the focal plane. For dense sampling, a uniform mode is optimal; for sparse sampling, the mode of a conventional SMF is near optimal. With the optimal fiber mode, a high throughput (${\gt}{{80}}\%$) can be achieved when the focal plane is (super) Nyquist sampled. For Nyquist sampled cases, the optimal mode has almost 20% more throughput than a conventional SMF.
First record of the genus Oediceroides (Amphipoda: Amphilochidea: Oedicerotidae) for the Gulf of Mexico, with the description of a new species

The genus Oediceroides Stebbing, 1888 represents a group of 23 species of amphipods that live from shallow coastal areas to abyssal plains. Most of these species have been collected in deep waters from localities in the South Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, and only one species has been found in the Mediterranean Sea. Many oediceroids inhabit waters more than 200 meters deep with only four species confined to shallow waters. This is the first occasion in which a species belonging to the genus Oediceroides is recorded for the Gulf of Mexico. Here, we describe O. improvisus sp. nov., a species of marine deep-water amphipod collected in 925 meters of water. This species has carapace, mouthpart and pereopodal characters that unite it with other members of the genus. It differs from all other species due to unique rostral and pereopod seven characters, all discussed in detail further in this description. To date, only 20 deep-sea (>200 meters) benthic amphipods have been recorded in the Gulf of Mexico, in comparison with more than 200 species of shallow water representatives from the same region. Our study provides evidence that the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico still hold undescribed biodiversity.
Central Giant Cell Granuloma of the Head & Neck: A Case Report and Systematic Review

Abstract Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to describe a recent case of central giant cell granuloma (CGCG) that rapidly progressed post corticosteroid treatment while also providing a review of the existing literature on CGCG of the head and neck (HNCGCG), with particular emphasis on extra-mandibular and maxillary cases. Materials and Methods: The investigators designed and implemented a 32-year review of literature, using the online databases: PubMed, Google Scholar, Medline, and Proquest. The total number of cases analyzed was 55 (42 case reports; 3 case series; 8 comparative studies; 1 retrospective cohort). Case Presentation: We present a case of a CGCG in a 10-year old male. The lesion originated in the right anterior mandibular body and progressed after corticosteroid treatment. Diagnosis was made using a combination of imaging and histology. A timely debulking procedure of the hemi-mandible was performed and there was no recurrence of the lesion at follow up. Results: The average age at the time of diagnosis of CGCG was 27.5 years. HNCGCG was most commonly detected in the jaw (43.1%), but was also found in the temporal bone (33.3%). The most frequently employed treatment modality was complete surgical excision (76.9%). 93.2% of patients were alive with no evidence of disease at follow-up, while 6.8% of patients exhibited recurrence at follow-up. The median follow up was 13 months. Conclusion: It is important for clinicians to recognize that CGCGs are capable of manifesting outside of the jaw. CGCG should be considered in the differential diagnosis of non-odontogenic radiolucent lesions, especially in young patients. CGCGs also need to be distinguished from brown tumor of hyperparathyroidism (BTH) and giant cell tumors, which are histologically similar.
Architectes de leur mort : cimetières, tombes et rêves de (im)mortalité

Si, comme le disait Edmond Haraucourt dans Rondel de l’adieu (1890), « [p]artir, c’est mourir un peu », il est vrai aussi que mourir signifie quitter ce monde et, egalement, commencer a s’organiser en vue de ce que (peut-etre) il y aura juste apres le dernier souffle. Pour un nombre surprenant de personnes, cela signifie se preparer a sa propre mort en se consacrant a l’achat d’une concession funeraire et a la creation de sa derniere demeure : on choisit le cimetiere, le monument, les materiaux, les symboles, l’epitaphe… On construit, en fait, un dernier foyer pour soi-meme et, souvent, pour sa propre famille. Dans le cadre d’une plus vaste recherche anthropologique conduite dans des cimetieres en Italie, aux Etats-Unis et au Bresil, on a pu se confronter a des individus qui ont decide de passer leurs derniers mois ou annees de vie a choisir, acheter, decorer et personnaliser leur propre tombe. Qu’ils fassent cela pour realiser leurs derniers reves et volontes — avant qu’il ne soit trop tard et en ne se fiant pas trop au fait que les autres le fassent pour eux — ou, tout « simplement », pour ne pas penser a la maladie et a la destruction du corps, le resultat est souvent le meme : sous forme d’une chapelle, d’un buste, d’un petit jardin ou d’une photographie funeraire, et dans des espaces — les cimetieres — qu’on apprend a aimer chaque jour davantage, des individus pensent a la mort de facon constructive et, souvent, artistique. C’est surtout une maniere de ne pas la subir, la mort ; au contraire, on apprend a la connaitre et a la maitriser, jusqu’a en faire une oeuvre d’art ou juste un agreable espace de memoire.
Evidence for a Role of Post-Ovulatory Cumulus Components in Supporting Fertilizing Ability of Hamster Spermatozoa

A completely chemically defined culture medium was used to investigate the role of egg-cumulus complex (ECC) components in supporting sperm fertilizing ability. Defined sperm motility-stimulating factors (hypotaurine and epinephrine), with polyvinylalcohol as the macromolecular component, were included in the defined medium. Freshly-ovulated hamster ECCs were incubated with washed epididymal spermatozoa under different conditions designed to evaluate the ability of ECC components to support sperm capacitation, acrosome reactions, and the ability to penetrate the ova. The major conclusions from the data are that ECC components are capable of supporting these physiologic events, and that these components are present in the soluble (fluid) compartment of the ECC. This work is the first in a series of steps aimed at the localization, characterization, and eventual identification of the natural acrosome reaction-inducing stimulus associated with the ECC.
“LONGING TO SEE DOCUMENTS”: Writing and Desire in Alice Munro's Longest Stories

Alice Munro's longest stories share a specific period in her career (1998–2009) as well as common inclusion of character-authored documents. Munro's treatment of these stories' writers is unlike her other fictional reflections on writers and writing. This important shift in her practice is explicable with recourse to Mikhail Bakhtin's theory of heteroglossia, which helps link the documents to the formal extension of length for which the stories are notable.
A mixed integer programming model for timed deliveries in multirobot systems

We present a solution that enables robots to operate in long-duration missions with minimal interruption for recharging or refreshing other resources. Consider a set of deployed “task robots” that request resources (e.g. batteries) from a distribution center, which can deploy “delivery robots” to fulfill those requests. We address the scheduling problem with multiple incoming time-bound requests from the task robots. Our proposed framework incorporates priorities on working robots that can be adjusted by a human operator during scheduling, since mission priorities can change over time. The framework allows a relaxed delivery schedule when available resources are scant and permits dynamic re-routing of delivery robots. The problem is posed as a variant of the Vehicle Routing Problem with Time Windows, and solved as a Mixed Integer Quadratic Program using a branch and bound based solver. We present the specific case of a battery distribution system and validate the results in simulation.
A biologist's guide to synchrotron facilities: the BioSync web resource.

Research at synchrotron radiation facilities, once the domain of high energy physics, now has a major impact on fields as diverse as immunology, neurobiology, physiology, molecular biology, medicine and biotechnology. This article describes the development of a comprehensive synchrotron portal and informational website (http://www.biosync.sdsc.edu) for biologists engaged in research at synchrotrons. The site automatically provides timely and accurate information in a unified format by gathering technical descriptions of synchrotron beamlines using modern information management practices.
Relationship Between High-Energy Physical Phenomena on the Sun and in Astrophysics

High energy phenomena on the surface of the Sun are manifestations of part of the solar dynamo cycle. Convection and magnetic field give rise to unstable, twisted flux loops that become solar flares when the resistive tearing mode proceeds to the nonlinear limit. If such twisted flux loops did not dissipate rapidly due to an enhanced resistivity, then the dynamo would not work. The act of dissipation leads to intense heating and acceleration leading to X-rays and accelerated particles. The particles in turn give rise to hard X-rays, gamma rays, neutrons, and solar cosmic rays. In high-energy astrophysics such phenomena occur in accretion disks around compact objects like black holes in quasars and SS433. The resulting acceleration may explain the observed extremely high-energy cosmic rays of up to 1020 eV and the high-energy gamma rays of 1012 to 1015 eV. These high energies are more readily explained by acceleration E parallel to B as opposed to stochastic shock acceleration. The anisotropy and localization of gamma rays from solar flares potentially may indicate which mechanism is prevalent.
Factors related to recovery after mild traumatic brain injury

Primary objectives: To study the variables that relate to outcome after mild traumatic brain injury (TBI).Methods and procedures: Sixty-seven adults with disappointing recoveries after mild TBI most occurring in a compensation or litigation context were studied with regard to pre-injury, neuro-trauma, physical, emotional and cognitive variables on outcome. Validity of physical, emotional and cognitive symptoms was controlled for.Main outcomes and results: Except for prior psychological traumatization, neither pre-injury, neuro-trauma or cognitive variables were related to outcome. Variables most consistently related to outcome were depression, pain and symptom invalidity on measures of response bias. These factors accounted for the majority of variance in outcome.Conclusions: In cases of poor recovery after mild TBI where compensation or litigation may be a factor, most of the variance in recovery seems to be explained by depression, pain and symptom invalidity, rather than by the injury variables themselves.
On the universality of the nonphase transition singularity in hard-particle systems

Activity series for hard-particle lattice gases and hard particles in continuous space are examined with respect to the singularity on the negative activity axis. For approximately spherical particles it is found that the nature of the singularity depends only on the dimensionality of space.
Sample sizes based on exact unconditional tests for phase II clinical trials with historical controls.

Abstract Investigated in the setting of phase II clinical trials is the two-sample binomial problem of testing H 0 : p e = p c H 1 : p e > p c , where p e and p c are the unknown target population response rates for the experimental and control groups, respectively, using the usual Z-statistic with pooled variance estimator. The cornerstones that make this paper unique are as follows. First, the emphasis is on determining the sample size given that the control group information has already been collected (historical control). Second, exact unconditional inference, rather than an asymptotic method, is utilized. Sample size tables, contrasting the exact and asymptotic methods, are provided. Although asymptotic results were usually fairly close to the exact results, some important differences were observed.
Fear of Persecution: Forced Migration, 1952-1995

Why would people abandon their homes in favor of an uncertain life elsewhere? The short answer, of course, is violence. More specifically, the authors contend that people monitor the violent behavior of both the government and dissidents and assess the threat such behavior poses to their lives, physical person, and liberty. The greater the threat posed by the behavior of the government and dissidents, the larger the number of forced migrants a country will produce. To test hypotheses drawn from this argument the authors use a global sample of countries over more than forty years. Their findings are held to be consistent with their argument, showing that violent behavior has a substantially larger impact on forced migration than variables such as the type of political institution or the average size of the economy.
Gender Affirmation: A Framework for Conceptualizing Risk Behavior Among Transgender Women of Color

Experiences of stigma, discrimination, and violence as well as extreme health disparities and high rates of sexual risk behavior and substance use have been well-documented among transgender women of color. Using an intersectional approach and integrating prominent theories from stigma, eating disorders, and HIV-related research, this article offers a new framework for conceptualizing risk behavior among transgender women of color, specifically sexual risk behavior and risky body modification practices. This framework is centered on the concept of ‘gender affirmation,’ the process by which individuals are affirmed in their gender identity through social interactions. Qualitative data from 22 interviews with transgender women of color from the San Francisco Bay Area in the United States are analyzed and discussed in the context of the gender affirmation framework.
Suppressive and enhancing effects of ultraviolet B radiation on expression of contact hypersensitivity in man.

Ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation has multiple effects on the immune system, and these effects contribute to the development of UVB-induced skin cancers in mice, and probably man. Depending upon dose and duration of UVB exposure, the resultant immune aberrations may be strictly local (at the irradiated skin site) or systemic. One important local effect of acute, low-dose UVB regimens is impaired induction of contact hypersensitivity (CH). Because a significant proportion of humans who develop CH when hapten is painted on UVB-exposed skin fall to display a primary allergic reaction at that site, we inquired into the effects of UVB radiation on the expression of CH in man. A high proportion of individuals who were first exposed to a sensitizing dose of hapten via UVB-exposed skin displayed CH when challenged on unirradiated (normal) skin 11 d later. However, only 50% of these subjects developed CH when challenged simultaneously on skin that had been exposed to UVB radiation 11 d previously. Because the density of epidermal antigen-presenting cells was comparable in both responders and non-responders, we interpret these findings to mean that UVB radiation can create a sustained Immunosuppressive microenvironment that inhibits the expression of CH. In separate experiments, when normal volunteers were sensitized with hapten via unirradiated (normal) skin, expression of CH at UYB-exposed challenge sites 11 d later was found to be enhanced, at least in sonic individuals, compared to expression of CH at unirradiated challenge sites, Thus, the local effects of UVB radiation on expression of CH in man may be enhancing or inhibitory, depending upon whether initial sensitization occurred through normal or through UVB-exposed skin.
SU‐E‐T‐512: Monte Carlo Dose Verification of Pencil Beam Scanning Proton Therapy

Purpose: To verify a clinical pencil (PB) beam dose calculation algorithm for scanned beam intensity modulated proton therapy (IMPT), using TOPAS (TOol for PArticle Simulation), a GEANT4 based Monte Carlo (MC) simulation system. Methods: Seven patients, previously treated with IMPT for various treatment sites and prescriptions, were selected from our patient database. Proton fluence maps of the treated plans were exported for each field from our clinical treatment planning system (ASTROID) and imported to TOPAS along with the patient and beam geometry. The absolute dose distribution of each individual beam was calculated and compared to the PB algorithm‐based calculation from ASTROID. Results: The differences observed in mean and median target doses were less than ±1% for all cases, while D02 and D98 (surrogates for maximum and minimum dose values respectively) differed by less than ±3% for the majority of beams. Differences in the mean dose for the organs at risk (OARs) ranged from −8.9% to 3.7%, with reference to MC calculation, with an average over all the OARs of −0.1%, indicating no systematic over‐or under‐estimation of the dose by the PB algorithm. 3D gamma analysis (2%/2mm) for the PB to MC dose comparison resulted in an average 95.2% (±5.0) of the target volume having an absolute gamma value equal or less than 1 and 99.2% (±1.2%) equal or less than 2. For the healthy tissue receiving at least 5% of the target mean dose, the corresponding percentages were 99.6% (±0.3%) and 99.9% (±0.1%). Conclusion: We have clinically implemented MC for IMPT plan recalculation. Our PB calculation algorithm for IMPT was found to be in overall good agreement with MC calculations. Clinically significant deviations in OAR mean dose can be attributed to lung tissue or bone anatomy in the beam path.
A Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)-Inducing Factor from the Female Genital Tract Activates HIV-1 Gene Expression through the κB Enhancer

Virus-enhancing factors present in the female genital tract may influence the transmission of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). Previously, the presence of a heat-stable soluble factor in the cervicovaginal lavage (CVL) fluid of both HIV-infected and -uninfected women that induces HIV-1 expression in T cells and monocytes was reported. Now this CVL factor was shown to increase HIV-1 gene expression through the activation of the kappaB enhancer in the viral long terminal repeat (LTR). DNA binding studies, together with functional studies using mutant LTR reporter constructs, indicate the requirement for an NF-kappaB-dependent pathway in the CVL-mediated activation of HIV-1 expression. CVL samples that activated HIV-1 expression also stimulated AP-1-dependent transcription. These data demonstrate that an HIV-inducing factor, distinct from heat-labile cytokines, present in the female genital mucosa can activate AP-1 and NF-kappaB and increase HIV-1 gene expression through the kappaB enhancer, possibly contributing to HIV-1 transmission.
Caffeine in Parkinson disease Better for cruise control than snooze patrol

Caffeine, the world's most widely used psychomotor stimulant, potentiates the antiparkinsonian effects of levodopa in preclinical models, as noted nearly 40 years ago.[1][1] The findings prompted early placebo-controlled crossover studies of caffeine as an adjunct to levodopa or a dopamine agonist
A micromechanical model for extension of a tightly packed bundle of aligned short fibres

Abstract Micromechanical models for the interaction between discrete short fibres in idealized bundles are developed and are used to investigate fibre strain profiles, slippage behaviour with increasing extension, bundle load-extension, and tangent stiffness properties. The modeling approach permits abutting fibres to interact by elastic surface shear forces in gripping regions and inelastic frictional slip in slipping regions, where transition from gripping to slipping at a contact position occurs as a linear elastic–perfectly plastic function of the interfibre relative displacement. Results show that for typical staple fibre dimensions and physical properties, a short fibre composite model for the fibre strain profile provides a good approximation to the average fibre strain profile occurring along fibres embedded in bundles. For one fibre assembly considered, results for bundle tangent stiffness indicate that, with increasing extension, average bundle stiffness may be expected to decrease from about 0....
A review of refractory metal alloys and mechanically alloyed-oxide dispersion strengthened steels for space nuclear power systems

Abstract Mechanical and thermo-physical properties of refractory metal alloys and mechanically alloyed (MA)-oxide dispersion strengthened (ODS) steels are reviewed and their potential for use in space nuclear reactors is examined. Preferable refractory alloys for use in liquid metal and gas-cooled space reactors include Nb–1%Zr, PWC-11, Mo–TZM, Mo– x Re where x varies from 7% to 44.5%, T-111 and ASTAR-811C. These alloys are heavy, difficult to fabricate, and are not readily available. The advantages of the MA-ODS alloys are: (a) their strength at high temperatures (>1000 K), which decreases slower with temperature than those of niobium and molybdenum alloys; (b) relatively lightweight and less expensive; (c) low swelling and no embrittlement with exposure to high-energy neutrons (>0.1 MeV) up to 10 27 n/m 2 ; and (d) high resistance to oxidation and nitration. The few data available on compatibility of MA-ODS alloys with alkali liquid metals up to 1100 K are encouraging, however, additional tests at typical temperatures (1000–1400 K) in space nuclear reactors are needed. The anisotropy of MA-ODS alloys when cold worked, and particularly rolled into tubes, should not hinder their use in space nuclear power systems, in which operation pressure is either near atmospheric or as high as 2 MPa, but joints weldability is an issue.
Description of shape information for 2-D and 3-D objects

The description of the spatial characteristics of two- and three-dimensional objects, in the framework of MPEG-7, is considered. The shape of an object is one of its fundamental properties, and this paper describes an efficient way to represent the coarse shape, scale and composition properties of an object. This representation is invariant to resolution, translation and rotation, and may be used for both two-dimensional (2-D) and three-dimensional (3-D) objects. This coarse shape descriptor will be included in the eXperimentation Model (XM) of MPEG-7. Applications of such a description to search object databases, in particular the CAESAR anthropometric database are discussed.