cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Empowerment of Promotoras as Promotora–Researchers in the Comidas Saludables & Gente Sana en las Colonias del Sur de Tejas (Healthy Food and Healthy People in South Texas Colonias) Program

Promotoras are trusted members of underserved, at-risk Hispanic communities experiencing social and health inequities. As promotora–researchers, promotoras have the unique ability and opportunity not only to provide outreach and education but also to be actively engaged in conducting research in their communities and serve as a cultural bridge between the community and researchers. In this article, we present a case study of personal and collective empowerment of six promotora–researchers who participated in seven community-based participatory research projects. Data sources included debriefing interviews with the promotora–researchers, milestone tracking and documentation completed during and after each study, and observations by the principal investigator and project managers regarding the role of the promotora–researchers in these studies. We qualitatively analyzed the data to identify the processes and decisions that were developed and implemented in a series of projects, which resulted in promotora–researcher empowerment. We found that active engagement empowered promotora–researchers personally and collectively in all phases of the research study. Common elements that contributed to the empowerment of promotora–researchers were valuing promotora–researchers’ input, enabling promotora–researchers to acquire and utilize new skills, and allowing promotora–researchers to serve as both researchers and traditional promotoras. Together, these elements enabled them to more fully participate in research projects, while allowing them to identify and address needs within their own communities.
Neurogenesis as a Factor in the Functional Plasticity of the Nervous System

The nervous system is composed of neurons and glia. Each cell type is essential for the system's function and has an intimate relationship that influences the function of other cells. Neurogenesis precedes gliogenesis in most organisms studied, and the bulk of the generation of neurons occurs before birth. In most instances, neurogenesis and gliogenesis slow down or become restricted as organisms reach maturity. The ability of an individual to generate new neurons in later stages of life has been thought to provide plasticity to the brain in which the process occurs. This chapter is an overview of the process by which the nervous system is formed and reviews some of the evidence for neurogenesis in adult mammals in the context of the olfactory system. The chapter also highlights work on how and whether adult neurogenesis influences the plasticity of the behaviors mediated by the olfactory system of rodents and humans.
Duhemian good sense and agent reliabilism.

Stump (2007) argues for a virtue epistemological reading of Duhem's good sense: according to him Duhem advanced good sense as a source of justified beliefs about theory choice and as a mark of the cognitive character of the physicist. Ivanova (2010) argues that Duhem proposed good sense as a post hoc explanation of theory choice rather than as a justification of it. Fairweather (2011) has advanced a "hybrid position" combining Stump's and Ivanova's views. I contend that Ivanova’s reading of Duhem is inaccurate and that good sense can indeed be accommodated within virtue epistemology. However Stump’s account is incomplete: I propose that within virtue epistemology, agent reliabilism best accommodates Duhemian good sense. Moreover, no hybrid reading is required: I argue that agent reliabilism fully accommodates Duhem's position on good sense. Finally I also explore the relevance of a reliabilist reading of Duhem to the debate on how to deal with the Problem of Induction in scientific practice.
Genome-wide transcription-coupled repair in Escherichia coli is mediated by the Mfd translocase.

We used high-throughput sequencing of short, cyclobutane pyrimidine dimer-containing ssDNA oligos generated during repair of UV-induced damage to study that process at both mechanistic and systemic levels in Escherichia coli. Numerous important insights on DNA repair were obtained, bringing clarity to the respective roles of UvrD helicase and Mfd translocase in repair of UV-induced damage. Mechanistically, experiments showed that the predominant role of UvrD in vivo is to unwind the excised 13-mer from dsDNA and that mutation of uvrD results in remarkable protection of that oligo from exonuclease activity as it remains hybridized to the dsDNA. Genome-wide analysis of the transcribed strand/nontranscribed strand (TS/NTS) repair ratio demonstrated that deletion of mfd globally shifts the distribution of TS/NTS ratios downward by a factor of about 2 on average for the most highly transcribed genes. Even for the least transcribed genes, Mfd played a role in preferential repair of the transcribed strand. On the other hand, mutation of uvrD, if anything, slightly pushed the distribution of TS/NTS ratios to higher ratios. These results indicate that Mfd is the transcription repair-coupling factor whereas UvrD plays a role in excision repair by aiding the catalytic turnover of excision repair proteins.
Mutual reinforcement between telomere capping and canonical Wnt signalling in the intestinal stem cell niche

Critical telomere shortening (for example, secondary to partial telomerase deficiency in the rare disease dyskeratosis congenita) causes tissue pathology, but underlying mechanisms are not fully understood. Mice lacking telomerase (for example, mTR-/- telomerase RNA template mutants) provide a model for investigating pathogenesis. In such mice, after several generations of telomerase deficiency telomeres shorten to the point of uncapping, causing defects most pronounced in high-turnover tissues including intestinal epithelium. Here we show that late-generation mTR-/- mutants experience marked downregulation of Wnt pathway genes in intestinal crypt epithelia, including crypt base columnar stem cells and Paneth cells, and in underlying stroma. The importance of these changes was revealed by rescue of crypt apoptosis and Wnt pathway gene expression upon treatment with Wnt pathway agonists. Rescue was associated with reduced telomere-dysfunction-induced foci and anaphase bridges, indicating improved telomere capping. Thus a mutually reinforcing feedback loop exists between telomere capping and Wnt signalling, and telomere capping can be impacted by extracellular cues in a fashion independent of telomerase.
Direct measurement of the inertial confinement time in a magnetically driven implosion

We report on direct, radiographic measurement of the stagnation phase of a magnetically driven liner implosion. The liner is filled with liquid deuterium and imploded to a minimum radius of 440 μm (radial convergence ratio of 7.7) over 300 ns, achieving a density of ≈10 g/cm3. The measured confinement time is ≈14 ns, compared to 16 ns from 1D simulations. A comparison of measured density profiles with 1D and 2D simulations shows a deviation in the reflected shock trajectory and the liner areal density. Additionally, the magneto Rayleigh-Taylor instability causes enhanced compression with shorter confinement in the bubble region compared to the spikes. These effects combine to reduce the pressure-confinement time product, Pτ, by 25% compared to the simulations.
Early Functional Outcomes of Periacetabular Osteotomy After Failed Hip Arthroscopic Surgery for Symptomatic Acetabular Dysplasia.

Background:Persistent acetabular dysplasia is a common reason for the failure of hip arthroscopic surgery; however, the effect of prior hip arthroscopic surgery on functional outcomes after subsequent periacetabular osteotomy (PAO) is unknown.Hypothesis/Purpose:The purpose of this study was to (1) compare demographic and radiological findings in patients who had and had not undergone previous hip arthroscopic surgery before PAO for symptomatic acetabular dysplasia and (2) compare the short-term, hip-specific patient-reported outcomes in these same patient populations. It was hypothesized that prior hip arthroscopic surgery is associated with worse early functional outcomes in PAO.Study Design:Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3.Methods:A retrospective cohort study design was utilized. Patients undergoing PAO were enrolled from a single-center, prospective hip preservation registry from March 2011 to April 2015. Patients with a minimum of 1-year clinical follow-up with preoperative and postoperative outcome...
Counting and Cardinality in Kindergarten

In this chapter, you will explore content-practice, teaching, and learning issues relevant to the Counting and Cardinality domain in the kindergarten (K) CCSSM. Table 3.1 shows the three clusters that comprise this domain, representing the seven individual content standards that every K student needs to learn by the end of the school year.
Integrating Principles of Positive Minority Youth Development with Health Promotion to Empower the Immigrant Community: A Case Study in Chicago

Growing vulnerabilities among immigrant families are further complicated by the context of US health care. This article discusses the critical need for health promotion initiatives that integrate p...
Addition of Audiovisual Feedback During Standard Compressions Is Associated with Improved Ability

Author(s): Aguilar, Steve A.; Asakawa, Nicholas; Saffer, Cameron; Williams, Christine; Chuh, Steven; Duan, Lewei | Abstract: Introduction: A benefit of in-hospital cardiac arrest is the opportunity for rapid initiation of “high-quality” chest compressions as defined by current American Heart Association (AHA) adult guidelines as a depth 2-2.4 inches, full chest recoil, rate 100 -120 per minute, and minimal interruptions with a chest compression fraction (CCF) ≥ 60%. The goal of this study was to assess the effect of audiovisual feedback on the ability to maintain high-quality chest compressions as per 2015 updated guidelines.Methods: Ninety-eight participants were randomized into four groups. Participants were randomly assigned to perform chest compressions with or without use of audiovisual feedback (+/- AVF). Participants were further assigned to perform either standard compressions with a ventilation ratio of 30:2 to simulate cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) without an advanced airway or continuous chest compressions to simulate CPR with an advanced airway. The primary outcome measured was ability to maintain high-quality chest compressions as defined by current 2015 AHA guidelines. Results: Overall comparisons between continuous and standard chest compressions (n=98) were without significant differences in chest compression dynamics (p’s g0.05). Overall comparisons between +/- AVF (n = 98) were significant for differences in average rate of compressions per minute (p= 0.0241) and proportion of chest compressions within guideline rate recommendations (p = 0.0084). There was a significant difference in the proportion of high quality-chest compressions favoring AVF (p = 0.0399). Comparisons between chest compression strategy groups +/- AVF were significant for differences in compression dynamics favoring AVF (p’s l 0.05). Conclusion: Overall, AVF is associated with greater ability to maintain high-quality chest compressions per most-recent AHA guidelines. Specifically, AVF was associated with a greater proportion of compressions within ideal rate with standard chest compressions while demonstrating a greater proportion of compressions with simultaneous ideal rate and depth with a continuous compression strategy.
Enigmas of Chance: An Autobiography. By Mark Kac. Harper & Row

(1988). Enigmas of Chance: An Autobiography. By Mark Kac. Harper & Row. The American Mathematical Monthly: Vol. 95, No. 1, pp. 61-62.
"White Cord Syndrome" of Acute Hemiparesis After Posterior Cervical Decompression and Fusion for Chronic Cervical Stenosis.

Background “White cord syndrome” is a very rare condition thought to be due to acute reperfusion of chronically ischemic areas of the spinal cord. Its hallmark is the presence of intramedullary hyperintense signal on T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging sequences in a patient with unexplained neurologic deficits following spinal cord decompression surgery. The syndrome is rare and has been reported previously in 2 patients following anterior cervical decompression and fusion. We report an additional case of this complication. Case Description A 68-year-old man developed acute left-sided hemiparesis after posterior cervical decompression and fusion for cervical spondylotic myelopathy. The patient improved with high-dose steroid therapy. Conclusions The rare white cord syndrome following either anterior cervical decompression and fusion or posterior cervical decompression and fusion may be due to ischemic-reperfusion injury sustained by chronically compressed parts of the spinal cord. In previous reports, patients have improved following steroid therapy and acute rehabilitation.
Prospective evaluation of fluciclovine (18F) PET-CT and MRI in detection of recurrent prostate cancer in non-prostatectomy patients

Abstract Purpose To investigate the disease detection rate, diagnostic performance and interobserver agreement of fluciclovine (18F) PET-CT and multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging (mpMR) in recurrent prostate cancer. Methods Twenty-four patients with biochemical failure after non-prostatectomy definitive therapy, 16/24 of whom had undergone brachytherapy, underwent fluciclovine PET-CT and mpMR with interpretation by expert readers blinded to patient history, PSA and other imaging results. Reference standard was established via a multidisciplinary truth panel utilizing histology and clinical follow-up (22.9 ± 10.5 months) and emphasizing biochemical control. The truth panel was blinded to investigative imaging results. Diagnostic performance and interobserver agreement (kappa) for the prostate and extraprostatic regions were calculated for each of 2 readers for PET-CT (P1 and P2) and 2 different readers for mpMR (M1 and M2). Results On a whole body basis, the detection rate for fluciclovine PET-CT was 94.7% (both readers), while it ranged from 31.6–36.8% for mpMR. Kappa for fluciclovine PET-CT was 0.90 in the prostate and 1.0 in the extraprostatic regions. For mpMR, kappa was 0.25 and 0.74, respectively. In the prostate, 22/24 patients met the reference standard with 13 malignant and 9 benign results. Sensitivity, specificity and positive predictive value (PPV) were 100.0%, 11.1% and 61.9%, respectively for both PET readers. For mpMR readers, values ranged from 15.4–38.5% for sensitivity, 55.6–77.8% for specificity and 50.0–55.6% for PPV. For extraprostatic disease determination, 18/24 patients met the reference standard. Sensitivity, specificity and PPV were 87.5%, 90.0% and 87.5%, respectively, for fluciclovine PET-CT, while for mpMR, sensitivity ranged from 50 to 75%, specificity 70–80% and PPV 57–75%. Conclusion The disease detection rate for fluciclovine PET-CT in non-prostatectomy patients with biochemical failure was 94.7% versus 31.6–36.8% for mpMR. For extraprostatic disease detection, fluciclovine PET-CT had overall better diagnostic performance than mpMR. For the treated prostate, fluciclovine PET-CT had high sensitivity though low specificity for disease detection, while mpMR had higher specificity, though low sensitivity. Interobserver agreement was also higher with fluciclovine PET-CT compared with mpMR.
Silicon Decreases Dimethylarsinic Acid Concentration in Rice Grain and Mitigates Straighthead Disorder

While root Si transporters play a role in the uptake of arsenite and organic As species dimethylarsinic acid (DMA) and monomethylarsonic acid (MMA) in rice ( Oryza sativa L.), the impact of Si addition on the accumulation of DMA and MMA in reproductive tissues has not been directly evaluated, particularly in isolation from inorganic As species. Furthermore, DMA and MMA are suspected causal agents of straighthead disorder. We performed a hydroponic study to disentangle the impact of Si on accumulation of DMA and MMA in rice grain. At 5 μM, MMA was toxic to rice, regardless of Si addition, although Si significantly decreased root MMA concentrations. Plants dosed with 5 μM DMA grew well vegetatively but exhibited straighthead disorder at the lowest Si dose, and this DMA-induced yield loss reversed with increasing solution Si. Increasing Si also significantly decreased DMA concentrations in roots, straw, husk, and grain, particularly in mature plants. Si restricted grain DMA through competition for root uptake and downregulation of root Si transporters particularly at later stages of growth when Si uptake was greatest. Our finding that DMA causes straighthead disorder under low Si availability but not under high Si availability suggests Si as a straighthead management strategy.
Associations of Father's Lifetime Cannabis Use Disorder with Child's Initiation of Cannabis Use, Alcohol Use, and Sexual Intercourse by Child Gender

Background: Early initiation of alcohol use, cannabis use, and sexual intercourse among adolescents is an important public health concern in the United States. Parents' history of substance use dis...
Tissue Interactions in Long Bone Development

Most skeletal elements of the adult vertebrate are composed of several tissues: cartilage, bone, bone marrow, and blood vessels. Tissue organization within the skeletal elements is established during embryonic development through various stages of patterning, cellular condensation, differentiation, and morphogenesis. The tissues at the sites of skeletogenesis constitute a unique microenvironment that coordinates the development of each bone [14, 44, 45, 51, 72]. Coordination among bone, cartilage, vasculature, and hematopoietic cells is mediated by conserved signaling pathways, including those initiated by the hedgehog, Wnt, fibroblast growth factor (FGF), transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β), and bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) family ligands. The fact that the function of all resident cell types is controlled by a common set of regulatory pathways is integral to the inter-tissue interactions that are required for skeletal development. Growth factor cues from the microenvironment intersect with cell-intrinsic factors, such as growth factor receptors or the lineage-specific transcription factors, Sox9 and Runx2. Each cell type expresses a unique complement of cell-intrinsic factors that dictate its response to the same growth factor signal. In addition, the specific localization or compartmentalization of the receptors and ligands establishes feedback loops that finely tune skeletal growth and development.
Impact of privacy on free online service markets

The emerging marketplace for online free services in which service providers (SPs) earn revenue from using consumer data in direct and indirect ways has led to significant privacy concerns. This begs understanding of the following question: can the marketplace sustain multiple SPs that offer privacy differentiated free services? This paper studies the impact of privacy on free online service markets by augmenting the classical Hotelling model for market segmentation analysis. A parametrized game-theoretic model is proposed which captures: (i) the fact that for the free service market, consumers value service not in monetized terms but by the quality of service (QoS); (ii) the differentiator of services is not product price but the privacy risk advertised by an SP; and (iii) consumer’s heterogeneous privacy preference for SPs. For the two-SP problem with uniformly distributed consumer privacy preference and linear SP profit function, the results suggest that: (i) when consumers place a higher value on privacy, it leads to a larger market share for the SP providing untargeted services and a “softened” competition between SPs; (ii) SPs offering high privacy risk services are sustainable only if they offer sufficiently high QoS; and (iii) SPs that are capable of differentiating on services that do not directly use consumer data gain larger market share. Similar results are observed when the consumer’s privacy preference is modeled as a truncated Gaussian distribution.
Investigating the Efficiency of Teaching Mathematics to Students by Using the Double Ranked Set Sampling

The main objective of this paper is to evaluate the efficacy of double ranked set sampling method in teaching mathematics to the students. The notion of ranked set sampling for estimating the mean of a population and its advantage over the use of a simple random sampling for the sampling is established in the literature. Furthermore, the double ranked set sampling has proven to be even more efficient than RSS. In this research, we review the use of the DRSS to estimate the intercept, the slope, and the standard deviation of the error terms as parameters of a simple linear regression model of teaching mathematics to students, when replications exist at each value of the predictor. Finally, we illustrate the proposed procedure by applying it when the underlying distribution of the error terms is normal or Laplace. Regardless of the assumed number of replications in the experiment, we observe a substantial gain in relative precision while using DRSS procedure over using RSS technique.
Continuous data assimilation reduced order models of fluid flow

Abstract We propose, analyze, and test a novel continuous data assimilation reduced order model (DA-ROM) for simulating incompressible flows. While ROMs have a long history of success on certain problems with recurring dominant structures, they tend to lose accuracy on more complicated problems and over longer time intervals. Meanwhile, continuous data assimilation (DA) has recently been used to improve accuracy and, in particular, long time accuracy in fluid simulations by incorporating measurement data into the simulation. This paper synthesizes these two ideas, in an attempt to address inaccuracies in ROM by applying DA, especially over long time intervals and when only inaccurate snapshots are available. We prove that with a properly chosen nudging parameter, the proposed DA-ROM algorithm converges exponentially fast in time to the true solution, up to discretization and ROM truncation errors. Finally, we propose a strategy for nudging adaptively in time, by adjusting dissipation arising from the nudging term to better match true solution energy. Numerical tests confirm all results, and show that the DA-ROM strategy with adaptive nudging can be highly effective at providing long time accuracy in ROMs.
Operation of a Flexible Dynamic Boundary Microgrid with Multiple Islands

A microgrid with dynamic boundary can expand or shrink its boundary depending on available local distributed energy resources (DER). Compared to conventional microgrid with fixed boundary, it can lead to better DER utilization and improved reliability. Previous literature has only considered the operation of a microgrid with a single island that is energized by stable voltage sources. This paper introduces control function designs that can effectively synchronize islands inside a dynamic boundary microgrid, depending on the operation status of each voltage source inside the islands. An overview of the components and rationale within the control function designs is provided, and hardware-in-the-loop simulation results are analyzed to demonstrate the effectiveness of the control functions.
Abstract 88: Stable luciferase expressing cell lines forin vivo xenograft and syngeneic tumor model bioluminescence imaging

Human and mouse cancer cell lines are used in xenograft and syngeneic models, respectively, for the in vivo study of tumor formation and development, metastases, measuring tumor burden in whole animals and monitoring response to therapeutic treatment. Whole animal in vivo imaging has been widely applied by researchers due to the ease of operation in visualizing in vivo biological events, eliminating the requirement for animal subject sacrifice, allowing for continual monitoring/imaging of a single individual animal and reducing the amount of inter-animal variation. Luciferase reporters provide a relatively simple, robust, and highly sensitive means to measure biological processes and to assess drug efficacy in animal models through in vivo bioluminescence imaging. Here we report on the generation of a large panel of cell lines which express high levels of luciferase and -have broad applications for in vitro and in vivo studies. The panel includes human and mouse cell lines, which represent various common cancer and tissue types, such as breast, colon, lung, pancreas, prostate, and skin. After introduction of a Lenti-LUC2 luciferase reporter into the parental cell lines, single cell cloning was performed to isolate stable clones with high luciferase expression. We quantified both the relative and absolute in vitro bioluminescence signals within the cells and analyzed the signal-to-noise ratio. In addition, the cell lines were characterized and authenticated using cell morphology, growth kinetics, and STR analysis. In addition, luciferase labeled human cell lines were administered into immune-deficient mice either by subcutaneous or orthotropic injection to establish xenograft models. Luciferase labeled mouse cell lines were tested in the associated breed of mice to evaluate tumor growth in the syngeneic mouse model. The bioluminescence live imaging was performed using the Xenogen IVIS imaging system and the in vivo bioluminescent radiance was analyzed. Although growth can be evaluated by both traditional caliper measurement and bioluminescence in subcutaneous mouse models, only live bioluminescent imaging enables continuous monitoring tumor metastasis or analysis of tumor growth of the intracranial brain tumor models. In summary, luciferase expressing cell lines are valuable tools for elucidating mechanisms involved in tumorigenesis, studying tumors in vivo, and screening anti-cancer compounds for drug discovery and development. Citation Format: John Foulke, Luping Chen, Alexei Miagkov, Elizabeth Turner-Gillies, Lysa-Anne Volpe, Fang Tian. Stable luciferase expressing cell lines for in vivo xenograft and syngeneic tumor model bioluminescence imaging [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2019; 2019 Mar 29-Apr 3; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 88.
CognitiveEMS: a cognitive assistant system for emergency medical services

This paper presents our preliminary results on development of a Cognitive assistant system for Emergency Medical Services (CognitiveEMS) that aims to improve situational awareness and safety of first responders. CognitiveEMS integrates a suite of smart wearable sensors, devices, and analytics for real-time collection and analysis of in-situ data from incident scene and delivering dynamic data-driven insights to responders on the most effective response actions to take. We present the overall architecture of CognitiveEMS pipeline for processing information collected from the responder, which includes stages for converting speech to text, extracting medical and EMS protocol specific concepts, and modeling and execution of an EMS protocol. The performance of the pipeline is evaluated in both noise-free and noisy incident environments. The experiments are conducted using two types of publicly-available real EMS data: short radio calls and post-incident patient care reports. Three different noise profiles are considered for simulating the noisy environments: cafeteria, people talking, and emergency sirens. Noise was artificially added at 3 intensity levels of low, medium, and high to pre-recorded audio data. The results show that the i) state-of-the-art speech recognition tools such as Google Speech API are quite robust to low and medium noise intensities; ii) in the presence of high noise levels, the overall recall rate in medical concept annotation is reduced; and iii) the effect of noise often propagates to the final decision making stage and results in generating misleading feedback to responders.
Factors Predisposing to Catheter Reinsertion Following Holmium Laser Enucleation of the Prostate

Abstract Objective To determine if preoperative catheter dependence or specimen weight is associated with failed trial without catheter (TWOC) following holmium laser enucleation of the prostate (HoLEP). Material and Methods The study population consisted of 143 consecutive men who underwent HoLEP by a single surgeon over 10 months. Ten were excluded from analysis because they did not have a TWOC on the morning following surgery. Preoperative catheter dependence and specimen weight as well as catheter reinsertions were analyzed. Results Of 133 men included in analysis, 23 (17.3%) required catheter reinsertion. Of the 23 requiring catheter reinsertion, 6 were catheter dependent preoperatively and 17 were not. Men who were catheter dependent had a lower overall rate of failed TWOC compared to those who were not catheter dependent (15.0% vs 18.3%, P = .647). Mean specimen weight for men requiring catheter reinsertion was significantly lower than men who passed their TWOC (49.9 gm vs 73.1 gm, P = .013). Conclusion Very few studies exist on factors associated with short-term catheter reinsertion following HoLEP or other prostatic hyperplasia procedures. We hypothesized that preoperative catheter dependence and small specimen weight would predispose to catheter reinsertion. Specimen weight was inversely related to risk of catheter reinsertion after HoLEP and preoperative catheter dependence was not associated with catheter reinsertion. In men with small prostates, consideration should be given to delayed TWOC to allow resolution of capsular edema and accumulation of clot in the prostatic fossa. Transition zone volume below which delayed TWOC should be considered is the subject of future studies.
Using Nudges to Enhance Clinicians’ Implementation of Shared Decision Making With Patient Decision Aids:

Background. Although effective interventions for shared decision making (SDM) exist, there is a lack of uptake of these tools into clinical practice. “Nudges,” which draw on behavioral economics an...
Useful Signs and Symptoms for Diagnosing Hip Osteoarthritis

Although plain radiographs are often used to diagnose hip OA, the correlation between radiographic indicators of hip arthritis and hip pain is low.
Bach or Mock? A Grading Function for Chorales in the Style of J.S. Bach

Deep generative systems that learn probabilistic models from a corpus of existing music do not explicitly encode knowledge of a musical style, compared to traditional rule-based systems. Thus, it can be difficult to determine whether deep models generate stylistically correct output without expert evaluation, but this is expensive and time-consuming. Therefore, there is a need for automatic, interpretable, and musically-motivated evaluation measures of generated music. In this paper, we introduce a grading function that evaluates four-part chorales in the style of J.S. Bach along important musical features. We use the grading function to evaluate the output of a Transformer model, and show that the function is both interpretable and outperforms human experts at discriminating Bach chorales from model-generated ones.
Insulin Mediators and the Mechanism of Insulin Action

Publisher Summary This chapter deals primarily with the second messenger hypothesis. It provides a comprehensive view of the nature and mechanisms of action of these second messengers. Insulin has been one of the best studied mammalian proteins. After 1955, insulin became the first mammalian protein to be chemically synthesized. The molecular mechanisms underlying the multiple cellular responses to insulin have been the subject of intensive research and, since the discovery of the chemical basis of the insulin-regulated activation of glycogen synthase, the idea that insulin's effects are associated with changes in the state of phosphorylation. However, the molecular mechanisms that link tyrosine-kinase activity of the receptor with the subcellular events that follow still remain obscure. The signal-transduction pathways associated with insulin function are only partially understood. Insulin, on binding, induces autophosphorylation of the β subunit of its receptor and results in the stimulation of the tyrosine-kinase activity of the receptor toward exogenous substrates.
Pyrazinamide Resistance and Mutation Patterns Among Multidrug-Resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis from Henan Province.

Purpose This study was designed to identify the phenotypic and genotypic characteristics of pyrazinamide (PZA) resistance among multidrug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MDR-TB) from Henan and to evaluate the efficacy of pncA, rpsA, and panD mutations in predicting PZA resistance. Materials and methods A total of 152 MDR strains were included in this study. The Bactec MGIT system was used to determine PZA susceptibility for all strains. The pncA, rpsA, and panD genes were sequenced to identify any mutations, and the sequences were then aligned with the sequence of standard strain H37Rv. Moreover, the correlations between PZA-resistant phenotypes and treatment outcomes were analysed. Results Of the152 strains, 105 had a PZA-resistant phenotype, and 102 harboured the pncA mutation. The PZA resistance rate was higher in the strains with resistance to all four first-line drugs and those that were pre-extensively drug-resistant (pre-XDR) and extensively drug-resistant (XDR). A total of 100 different pncA mutation patterns were identified, including 80 point mutations and 20 insertions/deletions, and 32 new pncA mutation patterns were detected. In this study, 13 strains had multiple mutations. Of the11 PZA-resistant strains without pncA mutations, two harboured the rpsA mutation, and one harboured the panD mutation. With PZA susceptibility results as the reference, single-gene pncA sequencing had sensitivity of 89.52% and specificity of 89.36%. With the combination of rpsA and panD, the sensitivity increased to 92.38%, and the specificity remained the same. No significant differences were observed in the sputum smear/culture conversion rate between PZA-resistant patients and PZA-sensitive patients. However, PZA resistance was related to the time to sputum smear/culture conversion (P = 0.018). Conclusion The combination of pncA, rpsA, and panD was beneficial for the timely diagnosis of PZA resistance and could provide a laboratory basis for customizing treatment regimens for MDR-TB patients.
The correlates of teacher turnover: An updated and expanded Meta-analysis of the literature

Abstract Rigorous research examining the correlates of teacher turnover has grown in recent years. However, the most recent meta-analytic synthesis of this literature was published over a decade ago. To update our collective understanding and highlight advances in this literature, this meta-analysis reviews findings from 120 studies of factors associated with teacher turnover. In addition to providing a novel synthesis using the most up-to-date meta-analytic methods and better quality data than ever before, we contribute evidence to support an expanded conceptual framework for understanding teacher turnover. This framework adds several underexamined factors influencing teacher turnover, provides more nuance to factors previously studied, highlights the growing influence of educational policies external to the school, and accounts for an emerging awareness of the interplay between teacher and school characteristics. This paper reports both results for how various teacher, school, and workforce factors are associated with teacher turnover and discusses the policy implications using our expanded theoretical framework.
Multilateralism Restored? City Diplomacy ;in the COVID-19 Era

As the 75th anniversary of the United Nations occurs during one of the worst health and economic crises in modern history, multilateralism is weakened by the renewed unilateralism of major powers International co-operation regarding the COVID-19 pandemic has been limited This mirrors similar gridlock in collective responses to migration, climate change and humanitarian situations Meanwhile, cities have been filling gaps in leadership In responding to the pandemic, cities have been leveraging global co-operation to ensure a successful immediate response and shape the economic recovery Yet as cities have attempted to insert an urban voice into the traditional multilateral system on global challenges, they have struggled to influence global policy-making This essay examines how the COVID-19 crisis exposes the implications for the multilateral system of the growing role of cities, and how cities and their networks can adjust their current activities to maximise progress in addressing transnational challenges
A-HRNet: Attention Based High Resolution Network for Human pose estimation

Recently, human pose estimation has received much attention in the research community due to its broad range of application scenarios. Most architectures for human pose estimation use multiple resolution networks, such as Hourglass, CPN, HRNet, etc. High Resolution Network (HRNet) is the latest SOTA architecture improved from Hourglass. In this paper, we propose a novel attention block that leverages a special Channel-Attention branch. We use this attention block as the building block and adopt the architecture of HRNet to build our Attention Based HRNet (A-HRNet). Experiments show that our model can consistently outperform HRNet on different datasets. Moreover, our model achieves the state-of-the-art performance on the COCO keypoint detection val2017 dataset (77.7 AP)1.
Compressibility-Near-Zero Directive Sound

A hallmark of a near-zero-index material is its constancy of field amplitude and phase as waves propagate with static-like properties in these materials. This feature has been exploited in electromagnetics for several applications, including for the realization of compact highly directive antennas illuminated by a single source. Here we show the promise of near-zero radiation in acoustics, where the equivalence between a waveguide operating near cutoff and the dispersion of compressibility leads to ideal aperture illumination. The near-zero behavior also makes the source robust to disorder, which is shown using a statistical description of the radiation patterns of randomly generated geometries.
Heat shock protein gene expression is higher and more variable with thermal stress and mutation accumulation in Daphnia

Abstract Understanding the genetic architecture of the stress response and its ability to evolve in response to different stressors requires an integrative approach. Here we quantify gene expression changes in response to two stressors associated with global climate change and habitat loss—heat shock and mutation accumulation. We measure expression levels for two Heat Shock Proteins (HSP90 and HSP60)—members of an important family of conserved molecular chaperones that have been shown to play numerous roles in the cell. While HSP90 assists with protein folding, stabilization, and degradation throughout the cell, HSP60 primarily localizes to the mitochondria and mediates de novo folding and stress-induced refolding of proteins. We perform these assays in Daphnia magna originally collected from multiple genotypes and populations along a latitudinal gradient, which differ in their annual mean, maximum, and range of temperatures. We find significant differences in overall expression between loci (10-fold), in response to thermal stress (~6x increase) and with mutation accumulation (~4x increase). Importantly, stressors interact synergistically to increase gene expression levels when more than one is applied (increasing, on average, >20x). While there is no evidence for differences among the three populations assayed, individual genotypes vary considerably in HSP90 expression. Overall, our results support previous proposals that HSP90 may act as an important buffer against not only heat, but also mutation, and expands this hypothesis to include another member of the gene family acting in a different domain of the cell.
On Neo-Colonialism and the Colonization of Accounting Research.

While assertions of the colonization of accounting research have occasionally been made in the accounting literature, not only has there been no systematic examination of the evidence that supports these conclusions, no evidence has yet been proffered. This paper explores whether accounting research has been colonized by considering sociologically the essential elements of colonization and whether they can be applied to accounting research. A critical examination of the elements of colonization — control over communication, capital, culture, and education; elitism; and English as the dominant language — finds that accounting research has been colonized by acts of symbolic violence which has resulted in misrecognized class distinctions and neo-colonial dependency relationships within accounting research. It urges accounting researchers recognize the neo-colonial power relationships that have been imposed upon them by the cultural imperialism of the dominant research culture.
Hyperglycemia in Acute COVID-19 is Characterized by Adipose Tissue Dysfunction and Insulin Resistance

COVID-19 has proven to be a metabolic disease resulting in adverse outcomes in individuals with diabetes or obesity. Patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 and hyperglycemia suffer from longer hospital stays, higher risk of developing acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), and increased mortality compared to those who do not develop hyperglycemia. Nevertheless, the pathophysiological mechanism(s) of hyperglycemia in COVID-19 remains poorly characterized. Here we show that insulin resistance rather than pancreatic beta cell failure is the prevalent cause of hyperglycemia in COVID-19 patients with ARDS, independent of glucocorticoid treatment. A screen of protein hormones that regulate glucose homeostasis reveals that the insulin sensitizing adipokine adiponectin is reduced in hyperglycemic COVID-19 patients. Hamsters infected with SARS-CoV-2 also have diminished expression of adiponectin. Together these data suggest that adipose tissue dysfunction may be a driver of insulin resistance and adverse outcomes in acute COVID-19.
Synthesis and Characterization of Divalent Samarium and Thulium N,N-Dimethylaminodiboranates.

The syntheses and molecular structures of new SmII and TmIIN,N-dimethylaminodiboranate (DMADB) complexes are described. Treating SmI2(THF)2 with Na(H3BNMe2BH3) in THF results in the formation of Sm(H3BNMe2BH3)2(THF)3 (1), which can be readily converted to Sm(H3BNMe2BH3)2(DME)2 (DME = 1,2-dimethoxyethane) or Sm(H3BNMe2BH3)2(diglyme) by exchange with the corresponding ether. We also show that Sm(H3BNMe2BH3)2(THF)3 can be prepared by reduction of the SmIII compound Sm(H3BNMe2BH3)3(THF) with KC8 and that addition of 18-crown-6 to this reaction mixture results in the formation of the SmII compound Sm(H3BNMe2BH3)2(18-crown-6). In a similar fashion, two new TmII complexes have been synthesized: treatment of TmI2 in THF with Na(H3BNMe2BH3) results in the formation of Tm(H3BNMe2BH3)2(THF)2 and Tm(H3BNMe2BH3)2(THF)3, which form a cocrystal. IR data and elemental analyses are reported for all the new compounds, as are their crystal structures. 1H and 11B NMR data are provided where available.
Bone Homeostasis and Repair: Forced Into Shape

Mechanical loading is a potent anabolic regulator of bone mass, and the first line of defense for bone loss is weight-bearing exercise. Likewise, protected weight bearing is the first prescribed physical therapy following orthopedic reconstructive surgery. In both cases, enhancement of new bone formation is the goal. Our understanding of the physical cues, mechanisms of force sensation, and the subsequent cellular response will help identify novel physical and therapeutic treatments for age- and disuse-related bone loss, delayed- and nonunion fractures, and significant bony defects. This review highlights important new insights into the principles and mechanisms governing mechanical adaptation of the skeleton during homeostasis and repair and ends with a summary of clinical implications stemming from our current understanding of how bone adapts to biophysical force.
Carbonates are a new class of deubiquitinating enzyme inhibitors (952.5)

Deubiquitinating enzymes (DUBs) have emerged as promising drug targets, but few small molecule DUB inhibitors have been identified. Herein we introduce carbonates as a novel class of mechanism-base...
Religious-School Financing and Educational Pluralism in the American Tradition

The pattern of church-state relations in the United States presents what many Europeans may see as a paradox. America is by far the most religiously observant of Western nations, yet it provides far less than many Western European nations in government support for religiously affiliated education at the primary and secondary levels, the most important years in forming children's minds. This article, written for a European audience, reviews two explanations for the American tradition of no financing. One is "pluralist," asserting that religious primary and secondary schools can better maintain their independence and identity without state aid because aid brings state regulation; and the second "cohesionist," asserting that while nonsectarian religion is socially valuable, schools of particular denominations undercut social unity by separating children in their formative years and therefore should not be encouraged with government support. I offer a few reasons why the pluralist approach to education is more attractive than the cohesionist approach. Finally, I assess whether the tradition against financing of religious primary and secondary schools does in fact promote educational pluralism, and I conclude that, on balance, it is better for pluralism that religious schools have the option to receive state financing.
Effects of mycorrhizal infection on drought tolerance and recovery in safflower and wheat

The influence of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi on drought tolerance and recovery was studied in safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) and wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Plants were grown with and without the mycorrhizal fungus, Glomus etunicatum Becker & Gerd., in nutrient-amended soil under environmentally-controlled conditions to yield mycorrhizal and nonmycorrhizal with similar leaf areas, root length densities, dry weights, and adequate tissue phosphorus. When drought stress was induced, mycorrhizal infection did not affect changes in leaf water, osmotic or pressure potentials, or osmotic potentials of leaf tissue rehydrated to full turgor in either safflower or wheat. Furthermore, in safflower, infection had little effect on drought tolerance as indicated by the level of leaf necrosis. Mycorrhizal wheat plants, however, had less necrotic leaf tissue than uninfected plants at moderate levels of drought stress (but not at severe levels) probably due to enhanced phosphorus nutrition. To determine the effects of infection on drought recovery, plants were rewatered at a range of soil water potentials from –1 to –4 MPa. We found that although safflower tended to recover more slowly from drought after rewatering than wheat, mycorrhizal infection did not directly affect drought recovery in either plant species. Daily water use after rewatering was reduced and was correlated to the extent that leaves were damaged by drought stress in both plant species, but was not directly influenced by the mycorrhizal status of the plants.