cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Toll-like receptor 8 functions as a negative regulator of neurite outgrowth and inducer of neuronal apoptosis

Toll receptors in Drosophila melanogaster function in morphogenesis and host defense. Mammalian orthologues of Toll, the Toll-like receptors (TLRs), have been studied extensively for their essential functions in controlling innate and adaptive immune responses. We report that TLR8 is dynamically expressed during mouse brain development and localizes to neurons and axons. Agonist stimulation of TLR8 in cultured cortical neurons causes inhibition of neurite outgrowth and induces apoptosis in a dissociable manner. Our evidence indicates that such TLR8-mediated neuronal responses do not involve the canonical TLR–NF-κB signaling pathway. These findings reveal novel functions for TLR8 in the mammalian nervous system that are distinct from the classical role of TLRs in immunity.
Existence and the number of solutions of nonresonant semilinear equations and applications to boundary value problems

In this paper, we study the existence and the finiteness of the number of solutions to nonlinear equations and to nonresonant semilinear equations involving nonlinear perturbations of Fredholm maps of index zero. Applications are given to semilinear elliptic boundary value problems and to semilinear parabolic and hyperbolic periodic-boundary value problems.
Pattern formation due to interballoon spatial mode coupling

We analyze new types of transverse interactions in nonlinear-optical systems with a Kerr slice and diffractive feedback. Results demonstrate that interactions between the most unstable modes that have wave vectors belonging to different mode instability bands (interballoon interactions) cause the formation of new types of patterns. Mode amplitude equations for these patterns that account for interactions between these patterns are obtained. Analysis of amplitude equations is confirmed by numerical simulation.
Fertility Level of Bull Semen Diluted at 1:400 with and without Sulfanilamide

Summary In one investigation it was found that the practical limit of dilution rate was about 1:100 when the yolk-citrate diluter was used. In another experiment involving 7,343 inseminations when sulfanilamide was added to the yolk-citrate diluter at the rate of 300 mg. per 100 ml., no difference was found in fertility level between dilution rates of one part of semen to 100, 150, 200, 300 and 400 parts of the yolk-citrate-sulfanilamide diluter. However, a trend downwards amounting to 0.8 per cent in fertility level for each decrease of 1 million spermatozoa inseminated was observed, over the range of 2.36 to 15.30 millions of spermatozoa inseminated. The probable reasons for the different results of the two experiments are discussed. With present handling and insemination techniques, it is suggested that the minimum number of spermatozoa consistent with optimum fertility rests at 5 to 10 millions from bulls of known fertility.
Use of modified ultrafiltration after repair of congenital heart defects.

The use of cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) for repair of congenital heart defects exposes children to extremes of hemodilution and hypothermia. Exposure of blood to the foreign surfaces of the oxygenator and bypass circuit initiates a systemic inflammatory response. Adverse effects of CPB include increased capillary permeability and increased total body water (TBW), which often results in tissue edema and multiple organ dysfunction. A variety of techniques have been developed for reversing tissue edema and hemodilution after CPB, including ultrafiltration during CPB, postoperative peritoneal dialysis, postoperative continuous arterial venous hemofiltration, and aggressive use of diuretics. A technique termed modified ultrafiltration (MUF) has been developed at the Hospital for Sick Children in London. Unlike conventional ultrafiltration, MUF is performed in the immediate post-CPB period and removes excess water from the patient as well as provides a method of salvaging blood from the circuit. MUF has been shown to modulate the inflammatory response to CPB by removing inflammatory mediators including interleukin (IL)-6, IL-8, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF). A prospective randomized trial of MUF showed improved hemodynamics with a reduction in TBW and decreased need for blood transfusion when compared with nonfiltered controls. MUF has been shown to improve left ventricular systolic function after CPB, resulting in increased systolic blood pressure and cardiac index. In a recent study, use of MUF significantly reduced the incidence of pleural effusions after cavopulmonary connection and the Fontan procedure. MUF is a useful adjunct to CPB in children and significantly decreases perioperative morbidity.
Spontaneous oscillations in a model for active control of microvessel diameters.

A new theory is presented for the origin of spontaneous oscillations in blood vessel diameters that are observed experimentally in the microcirculation. These oscillations, known as vasomotion, involve time-varying contractions of the vascular smooth muscle in the walls of arterioles. It is shown that such oscillations can arise as a result of interactions between the mechanics of the vessel wall and the dynamics of the active contraction of smooth muscle cells in response to circumferential tension in the wall. A theoretical model is developed in which the diameter and the degree of activation in a vessel are dynamic variables. The model includes effects of wall shear stress and oxygen-dependent metabolic signals on smooth muscle activation and is applied to a single vessel and to simplified network structures. The model equations predict limit cycle oscillations for certain ranges of parameters such as wall shear stress, arterial pressure and oxygen consumption rate. Predicted characteristics of the oscillations, including their sensitivity to arterial pressure, are consistent with experimental observations.
Food allergy and additives: triggers in asthma

Exposure to food allergens can cause a varied pattern of respiratory symptoms, with allergic responses ranging from asthma symptoms to occupational asthma. Food allergy in a patient presenting as asthma tends to indicate a more severe disease constellation. Patients with underlying asthma experience more severe and life-threatening allergic food reactions. When a food reaction involves respiratory symptoms, it is almost always a more severe reaction compared with reactions that do not involve the respiratory tract. Susceptible patients may even react to a causative food on inhalation without ingestion. However, isolated asthma or rhinitis symptoms without concomitant cutaneous or gastrointestinal symptoms are rare events.
Exploring power-performance tradeoffs in database systems

With the total energy consumption of computing systems increasing in a steep rate, much attention has been paid to the design of energy-efficient computing systems and applications. So far, database system design has focused on improving performance of query processing. The objective of this study is to experimentally explore the potential of power conservation in relational database management systems. We hypothesize that, by modifying the query optimizer in a DBMS to take the power cost of query plans into consideration, we will be able to reduce the power usage of database servers and control the tradeoffs between power consumption and system performance. We also identify the sources of such savings by investigating the resource consumption features during query processing in DBMSs. To that end, we provide an in-depth anatomy and qualitatively analyze the power profile of typical queries in the TPC benchmarks. We perform extensive experiments on a physical testbed based on the PostgreSQL system using workloads generated from the TPC benchmarks. Our hypothesis is supported by such experimental results: power savings in the range of 11% - 22% can be achieved by equipping the DBMS with a query optimizer that selects query plans based on both estimated processing time and power requirements.1
Measurement of hip extension strength with a portable device: Description, reliability and validity of a procedure

Although adequate hip extension strength is necessary for the successful performance of weight-bearing activities, practical quantitative procedures for measuring hip extension strength are lacking. We sought, therefore, to describe a practical procedure and the reliability and validity of measurements obtained with it. Apparently healthy individuals (10 men, 10 women) of 18–27 years participated. One male and one female examiner tested all subjects in supine with a hand-held dynamometer during 2 sessions, 1 week apart. Inter-tester and test-retest reliability of measurements were good to excellent (intraclass correlation coefficients = 0.827–0.949). Known groups validity was supported by a demonstration of significant differences in the strength of men and women participants. Based on the findings of this study we can recommend the procedure for testing with other
Feldhamer, G. A., B. C. Thompson, and J. A. Chapman (eds.). 2003. Wild Mammals of North America: Biology, Management, and Conservation, 2nd ed. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, Maryland, xiii + 1216 pp. ISBN 0-8018-7416-5, price (hardbound), $165.00

G. A. Feldhamer, B. C. Thompson, J. A. Chapman (eds.). 2003. Wild Mammals of North America: Biology, Management, and Conservation, 2nd ed. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, Maryland, xiii + 1216 pp. ISBN 0-8018-7416-5, price (hardbound), $165.00. The 2nd edition of Wild Mammals of North America (WM IT) is an ambitious volume. Weighing in at 2.67 kg (the 1st edition— WM I —was 1.99 kg), this book is a larger format than the 1st edition (22.4 x 28.2 cm compared with 18.9 x 26.3 cm) and is 69 pages longer; the price has more than tripled (but remains under $0.07/p.). Much has been learned in the intervening 22 years, however, so perhaps these quantitative differences are to be expected. What about the qualitative? The first edition of this book (Chapman and Feldhamer 1982) was met with positive reviews (e.g., Jones 1983; Koplin 1983; Seidensticker 1983) and has been a stalwart in many libraries for a number of years. I beheve the 2nd edition will carry on this tradition. Like its predecessor, this volume focuses on “pertinent life history and management information for mammalian species or species groups of management significance in North America” (p. ix). H^M/presented 57 chapters by 87 authors, whereas WM II presents 55 chapters by 100 authors; only 26 authors from WM I remain in WM II . Two chapters have been added (black-tailed prairie dogs, eastem woodrats), 1 deleted (Norway rat and allies), and 3 pairs of chapters have been combined (2 chapters on foxes, 2 on skunks, and separate chapters on fisher and marten; the latter 2 had identical author lines in WM I) . As with WM I , these chapters are followed by 2 appendices, a brief glossary, and an index. All chapters have been updated with recent literature, albeit to differing extents. Some chapters have similar author lines as in the 1982 edition, but are genuine updates on the earlier edition, with extensive updates and recent citations. Many other chapters have entirely new authors and generally represent …
Video as a Tool in Teacher Learning

The use of video as a tool to aid reflection in teacher practice is certainly not novel. Its use as a means to provide feedback—feedback that often surprises and reveals—has long been recognized ac...
Binary logics and the discursive interpretation of organizational policy: Making meaning of sexual harassment policy

Although workplace policies are written in neutral terms that give the appearance of rationality, research shows that policy meanings are in fact constructed and negotiated through discursive practices. Sexual harassment policies illustrate this phenomenon. Sexual harassment is a highly complex and fluid phenomenon that is dependent on context and culture for its meaning. Although sexual harassment policies tend to use language that appears to lie outside of the interpretive stream, these policies are in fact always subject to discursive interpretation. One particularly powerful form of discursive interpretation lies in the interplay between binary logics and binary language. This study explored the interplay between macro-level binary logics, mezzo-level sexual harassment policy and micro-level binary language during organizational members’ discussions about their organization’s sexual harassment policy. Our analysis of focus group and interview data revealed that participants discursively produced what ...
Design of the Servomechanism's Integration Software Based on the Knowledge

According the instruction of the problem of Servomechanism's integration,the passage built the architecture model,system model and information model based on the knowledge of the servomechanism's integration software,designed the servomechanism's integration software based on the knowledge,expatiated the key technology of the software implementation,and expounded the software application at last.
Psychometric Evaluation of the Patient Health Questionnaire–4 in Hispanic Americans:

The present study evaluated the psychometric properties of the Patient Health Questionnaire–4 (PHQ-4), a screener of psychological distress, in English- and Spanish-speaking Hispanic Americans. Hispanic American adults (N = 436) completed the PHQ-4, which yields two subscales (Anxiety and Depression) that can be summed to create a total score. Multiple-group confirmatory factor analysis was used to evaluate structural validity. The two-factor structure was the best fit to the data for both English- and Spanish-speaking Hispanic Americans, and items loaded equivalently across groups, demonstrating measurement invariance. Internal consistency reliability was good as measured by coefficient alpha. Construct validity was evidenced by significant expected relationships with perceived stress. These findings provide support for the reliability and validity of the PHQ-4 as a brief measure of psychological distress for English- or Spanish-speaking Hispanic Americans.
Kamau Brathwaite’s Rhythms of Migration:

This article considers Kamau Brathwaite’s formal articulation of the migrant experience in Rights of Passage (1967). More specifically, it demonstrates how Brathwaite uses patterns of repeated soun...
Fluoride: The Family Physician's Role.

Fluoride is an important aspect of good oral care. With 181 million Americans not visiting the dentist annually, family physicians have an essential role in oral health care.
Non-Epileptic Seizures with Interictal Spikes

Long-term EEG-video-monitoring (LTM) detected 12 (8%) patients with non-epileptic seizures (NESs) among 145 temporal lobectomy candidates with medically refractory seizures and interictal temporal EEG spikes in a study at Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA.
Estimation of pseudo-relative permeability curves through an analytical approach for steam assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) and solvent aided-steam assisted gravity drainage

Abstract Fluid flow through the reservoir is defined on the basis of the relative permeability which essentially captures the preferential flow of any specific fluid. Utilization of steam assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) presents challenges to the conventional understanding of relative permeability due to the introduction of heat to the reservoir. The presence of three distinct fluid phases (steam, water, and oil) in conjunction with a temperature dependency has many implications for the modelling of complex fluid dynamics. However, effective characterization of relative permeability curves is integral to successful simulation and so a model capable of representing three-phase flow is required. By implementing a simplified fractional flow analysis, this study is able to regress three-phase flow in the laboratory to a pseudo two-phase relative permeability. Modifications of conventional fractional flow theory allow for the extension of the analysis to the SAGD and solvent aided-SAGD (S-SAGD) process. Overall displacement is defined on the basis of both a microscopic component represented by modified capillary number and a macroscopic component represented by mobility ratio. Negation of the liquid-gas interaction through the assumption of waterflooding enables the generation of pseudo two-phase relative permeability curves that result in comparable performance to lab scale experiments. Because the experimentally obtained SAGD and S-SAGD results are used to construct the pseudo-relative permeability curves, our model includes the many complex fundamental changes occur in viscosity and relative permeability during SAGD and S-SAGD in the newly constructed relative permeability curves. Thus, our results offer a simplistic way to ease the compositional simulation of SAGD and S-SAGD through waterflooding approach.
Multifocal Neuropathy: Expanding the Scope of Double Crush Syndrome

Double crush syndrome (DCS), as it is classically defined, is a clinical condition composed of neurological dysfunction due to compressive pathology at multiple sites along a single peripheral nerve. The traditional definition of DCS is narrow in scope because many systemic pathologic processes, such as diabetes mellitus, drug-induced neuropathy, vascular disease and autoimmune neuronal damage, can have deleterious effects on nerve function. Multifocal neuropathy is a more appropriate term describing the multiple etiologies (including compressive lesions) that may synergistically contribute to nerve dysfunction and clinical symptoms. This paper examines the history of DCS and multifocal neuropathy, including the epidemiology and pathophysiology in addition to principles of evaluation and management.
The Enigma of T.S. Eliot

As for the poet, T.S. Eliot, another “conservative,” it was, like Kierkegaard’s thought, the dialogue between the transcendental and the finite domains, a dialogue that rendered these traditionally binary terms productively inoperative, that drew my attention to his writing. Eliot, I found, was not the Eliot of the New Critics, who read his poetry as the epitome of the worldless autotelism they espoused against the banality of modernity, but an Eliot who put his Christianity in an Auseinandersetzung, a loving strife, with the finite world that renders the prior binaries inoperative.
Dynamics and consequences of spliceosome E complex formation

Our genes contain coded instructions for making the molecules in our bodies, but this information must be extensively processed before it can be used. The instructions from each gene are first copied into a molecule called a pre-mRNA, before a process known as splicing removes certain sections to form a mature mRNA molecule. Splicing can remove different sections of the pre-mRNA to make different mRNA molecules from the same gene depending on the current needs of the cell. Splicing is controlled by a combination of proteins and other molecules, collectively called the spliceosome. A part of the spliceosome called U1 recognizes the start of pre-mRNA sections that need to be removed, which is referred to as the five-prime splice site (or “5’ SS” for short). The attachment of U1 to such a site allows other molecules to also attach to the pre-mRNA, which eventually assemble a spliceosome. The very first steps in this process involve U1 and a set of other proteins that create what is called the “Early” or “E” complex. Although there are many molecules involved in the E complex, it was not known how they interact with each other and how this affects which splice sites are used for splicing in different cells. Using advanced microscopy, Larson and Hoskins examined individual U1 molecules from yeast cells while the molecules formed E complexes and identified two different ways U1 can bind to five-prime splice sites. One process involved U1 attaching to pre-mRNA for a short time, whilst the other involved a longer association between U1 and pre-mRNA. Sometimes U1 could also transition between the first process and the second. The results showed that other parts of the E complex affected which process was used at different sites by affecting the type or duration of U1’s attachment. All U1 particles use the same components to attach to splice sites in all pre-mRNAs, but the most used splice sites are not always those that are predicted to have the strongest attachments to U1. This work helps to reveal how other proteins involved in splicing influence this effect, altering U1’s ability to attach to pre-mRNAs to suit each new situation. This also allows cells to change gene splicing to fit different situations. Many genes in our bodies rely on splicing and understanding this process in detail could be the key to diagnosing and treating a range of different illnesses.
Impacts of different radiation schemes on the prediction of solar radiation and photovoltaic power

The output power of a photovoltaic system largely depends on the amount of solar radiation that can be received by the photovoltaic panel, and the solar radiation energy reaching the ground is affe...
Framework for Using Risk Stratification to Improve Clinical Preventive Service Guidelines

People should only receive a preventive service if the potential benefits of the service outweigh the potential harms. Both benefits and risks may vary for different populations. Thus, it is clinically important to understand when and how guidelines for preventive services should be stratified according to the underlying risk of the population. For example, preventive services may be risk stratified with specific clinical recommendations based on age, sex, race/ethnicity, family history, genotype, behavior risks, or comorbidities. This paper articulates the conceptual approach and practical tools that were developed for consideration by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force to determine if and how risk stratification should be incorporated into clinical guidelines. This approach is described in an algorithm with six sequential questions: (1) Are there clinically relevant subpopulations? (2) Are there credible subgroup analyses for these subpopulations? (3) Do subgroup analyses show clinically important differences? (4) Do these differences result in variation of net benefit, or does the evidence only exist in persons with a narrow spectrum of risk? (5) Can the subpopulations be easily identified? and (6) Does a well-validated multivariate risk tool improve identification of clinically relevant subpopulations compared with a simpler approach? This framework allows for a systematic approach to determine if and how to incorporate evidence for specific populations, a consistent application of critical thinking about this evidence, and transparent communication about the derivation of risk-stratified recommendations or evidence gaps.
Autonomous navigation in drone racecourse

This paper reports the challenges and solutions to autonomously navigate in a drone racecourse with adjustable course gates and reconfigurable obstacles. The work fulfills the educational goals of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) through the Autonomous Unmanned Air Vehicle Racing program by MIT Beaver Works, a joint venture between Lincoln Laboratory and School of Engineering. Rising high-school seniors are selected nationwide. After completing an online course in the spring, offered by multidisciplinary experts from all over the world, the students develop team projects in the summer through a four-week residential program. The tasks include the coding of a quadrotor with sensors and controllers, aided by a ground station, as well as the development of a sensing, control, and planning system with efficient algorithms. The experiments show the quadrotor's capability of autonomous navigation in unknown racecourses while avoiding obstacles. The final race day leverages the lessons learned and challenges the students to test their new skills against the clock. Future work will incorporate research skills into this world-class STEM program.
Glossoptosis in Pierre Robin sequence.

A newborn baby presented with cleft palate in association with Pierre Robin sequence, a triad of micrognathia, cleft palate (typically U-shaped rather than V-shaped) and glossoptosis. Initial airway management required temporary nasogastric feeding and placement of a nasopharyngeal airway. Unusually, the nasopharyngeal airway was insufficient for stable control of the airway and a tracheostomy was required. With control …
3.01 – Genomics

The human genome sequence has revealed a vast number of potential new drug targets. Given the increase in putative targets, the topic of prioritization and selection of the most attractive targets has taken a more prominent role in the pharmaceutical industry. This chapter explores what criteria constitute a good drug target, including discourse on “druggability” and target function in light of recent advances in genomics and technology. The chapter also explores the historical use of model organisms and genetic manipulation of these systems to define the function of genes within their respective genomes, limitations of these systems, and how they may serve as models for functional gene definition in human cells.
Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stromal Cell Transplantation: A Neurorestorative Therapy for Stroke

A decade long focus on neuroprotection for stroke and neural injury, and its failure to translate into the clinical setting has led to a major shift of focus from neuroprotection to neurorestoration. Neurorestoration involves the remodeling and rekindling of neurovascular plasticity within the central nervous system which drive neurological recovery. Bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cell (BMSC) therapy is a promising cell-based neurorestorative therapy for stroke. This chapter provides an update on the use of BMSCs to promote neurorestorative effects in the sub-acute and chronic phases after stroke. The biological processes involved in promoting neurorestorative effects post ischemia are outlined, molecular mechanisms that promote neurogenesis, synaptogenesis, vascular and white matter remodeling, and neurovascular interactions and plasticity are discussed, the involvement of microRNA’s in regulating neurorestorative mechanisms is introduced, and an update on clinical trials for BMSC treatment of stroke is presented.
Nitric oxide attenuates lung endothelial injury caused by sublethal hyperoxia in rats

Inhaled nitric oxide (NO) has been shown to prevent oxidant-induced lung injury in isolated-perfused lung models, whereas NO-derived oxidants may contribute to acute lung injury secondary to hyperoxia. Whether inhaled NO improves or contributes to oxidant-mediated lung injury may depend on the timing of NO administration or how lung injury is assessed. The objective of these studies was to determine whether inhaled NO (20 ppm) was protective or harmful to the different lung barriers when it was administered with 95% O2 for 60 h in Sprague-Dawley rats by measuring fluid transport and permeability to protein across the lung endothelium and the alveolar epithelium. Inhaled NO significantly attenuated the O2-mediated lung endothelial injury and abolished the increase in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid content of rTI40, a specific and sensitive marker of alveolar epithelial type I cell injury, that occurs secondary to hyperoxia. In conclusion, inhaled NO administered with high concentrations of O2 may protect the lung endothelium and the alveolar epithelium against O2-mediated injury.
GoCJ: Google Cloud Jobs Dataset for Distributed and Cloud Computing Infrastructures

Developers of resource-allocation and scheduling algorithms share test datasets (i.e., benchmarks) to enable others to compare the performance of newly developed algorithms. However, mostly it is hard to acquire real cloud datasets due to the users’ data confidentiality issues and policies maintained by Cloud Service Providers (CSP). Accessibility of large-scale test datasets, depicting the realistic high-performance computing requirements of cloud users, is very limited. Therefore, the publicly available real cloud dataset will significantly encourage other researchers to compare and benchmark their applications using an open-source benchmark. To meet these objectives, the contemporary state of the art has been scrutinized to explore a real workload behavior in Google cluster traces. Starting from smaller- to moderate-size cloud computing infrastructures, the dataset generation process is demonstrated using the Monte Carlo simulation method to produce a Google Cloud Jobs (GoCJ) dataset based on the analysis of Google cluster traces. With this article, the dataset is made publicly available to enable other researchers in the field to investigate and benchmark their scheduling and resource-allocation schemes for the cloud. The GoCJ dataset is archived and available on the Mendeley Data repository.
Psychiatric and medical correlates of DSM-5 eating disorders in a nationally representative sample of adults in the United States.

Objective To examine psychiatric and somatic correlates of DSM-5 eating disorders (EDs)-anorexia nervosa (AN), bulimia nervosa (BN), and binge-eating disorder (BED)-in a nationally representative sample of adults in the United States. Method A national sample of 36,309 adult participants in the national epidemiologic survey on alcohol and related conditions III (NESARC-III) completed structured diagnostic interviews (AUDADIS-5) to determine psychiatric disorders, including EDs, and reported 12-month diagnosis of chronic somatic conditions. Prevalence of lifetime psychiatric disorders and somatic conditions were calculated across the AN, BN, and BED groups and a fourth group without specific ED; multiple logistic regression models compared the likelihood of psychiatric/somatic conditions with each specific ED relative to the no-specific ED group. Results All three EDs were associated significantly with lifetime mood disorders, anxiety disorders, alcohol and drug use disorders, and personality disorders. In all three EDs, major depressive disorder was the most prevalent, followed by alcohol use disorder. AN was associated significantly with fibromyalgia, cancer, anemia, and osteoporosis, and BED with diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, and triglycerides. BN was not associated significantly with any somatic conditions. Conclusions This study examined lifetime psychiatric and somatic correlates of DSM-5 AN, BN, and BED in a large representative sample of U.S. adults. Our findings on significant associations with other psychiatric disorders and with current chronic somatic conditions indicate the serious burdens of EDs. Our findings suggest important differences across specific EDs and indicate some similarities and differences to previous smaller studies based on earlier diagnostic criteria.
A Careerography of John F. Kennedy Jr.

This article presents a careerography of John F. Kennedy Jr. (JFK Jr.), a late 20th-century iconic personality. Careerography adapts psychobiography by anchoring its interpretive lens in establishe...
Carbonized Polymer Nanostructures for Biosensing

We have implemented carbonized nanostructures on metalized silica substrates as a step towards their integration on CMOS chips. The substrates were metallized successively with Ti and Au to provide electrical contact to the carbonized structures. Polymeric structures have been formed using 3D printing based on 2-photon polymerization. Carbonization of the polymeric structures has been achieved through a sequence of two thermal annealing steps in oxidative and inert atmospheres, respectively. Carbonization has been verified by Raman spectroscopy. Scanning electron microscopy images confirm the formation of structures and their morphology on the substrate. Integration of the demonstrated carbon structures with CMOS circuitries offer great promise for electrochemical biosensors.
Situational systematicity: A role for schema in understanding the differences between abstract and concrete concepts.

Abstract concepts differ from concrete concepts in several ways. Here, we focus on what we refer to as situational systematicity: The objects and relations that constitute an abstract concept (e.g....
Black Women’s Sex Lives Matter: Tips for Talking with Your Healthcare Provider

This lesson plan is designed to help participants learn how to partner with their healthcare providers to improve their sexual health. This lesson plan describes how to achieve this goal with cis-g...
The pull-to-stay effect: influence of sales managers’ leadership worthiness on salesperson turnover intentions

Given that salesperson turnover is a significant problem for sales organizations, sales researchers have devoted a lot of attention toward explicating various drivers and mitigators of salesperson ...
Pattern Recognition to Objectively Differentiate the Etiology of Cognitive Decline: Analysis of the Impact of Stroke and Alzheimer’s Disease

BACKGROUND Undetected Alzheimer's disease (AD) and stroke neuropathology is believed to account for a large proportion of decline in cognitive performance that is attributed to normal aging. This study examined the amount of variance in age-related cognitive change that is accounted for by AD and stroke using a novel pattern recognition protocol. METHOD Secondary analyses of data collected for the Health and Retirement Study (N = 17,579) were used to objectively characterize patterns of cognitive decline associated with AD and stroke. The rate of decline in episodic memory and orientation was the outcome of interest, while algorithms indicative of AD and stroke pathology were the predictors of interest. RESULTS The average age of the sample was 67.54 ± 10.45 years at baseline, and they completed, on average, 14.20 ± 3.56 years of follow-up. After adjusting for demographics, AD and stroke accounted for approximately half of age-associated decline in cognition (51.07-55.6% for orientation and episodic memory, respectively) and explained variance attributed to random slopes in longitudinal multilevel models. DISCUSSION The results of this study suggested that approximately half of the cognitive decline usually attributed to normal aging are more characteristic of AD and stroke.
Carboniferous Manning Canyon Formation, northern Utah, USA: A carbonate-mud-dominated cyclothem motif recording the main onset of the late Paleozoic Ice Age

Abstract A poorly understood Mississippian to basal Pennsylvanian succession is preserved in parts of northern Utah, western USA. The mudrock- and carbonate-dominated Manning Canyon Formation and lateral equivalents have been referred to as “cyclothems” and might therefore be expected to preserve a record of repeated, late Paleozoic sea-level excursions similar to cyclothemic successions elsewhere in the paleotropics. In this paper, we document the sedimentology and stratigraphy of the Serpukhovian to earliest Bashkirian Manning Canyon Formation, focusing on surface exposures in the Oquirrh and Uinta Mountains and a cored subsurface intersection from central Utah. Four facies associations were identified in the Manning Canyon Formation: Mid-Shelf, Muddy Inner Shelf, Deltaic, and Coastal Plain, which are herein interpreted in the context of a muddy, semi-enclosed, epicontinental carbonate shelf fringed by a low-relief coastal plain. These facies associations are broadly comparable to recent and extant environments from a range of equatorial, clay-rich, deltaic, coastal plain, and offshore carbonate-producing environments in the Caribbean Sea, northern Australia, and SE Asia, which can be used as first-order analogues for the Manning Canyon Formation. These modern analogues suggest that several relative sea-level excursions of
A single-scale fractal feature for classification of color images: A virus case study

Abstract Current methods of fractal analysis rely on capturing approximations of an images’ fractal dimension by distributing iteratively smaller boxes over the image, counting the set of box and fractal, and using linear regression estimators to estimate the slope of the set count line. To minimize the estimation error in those methods, our aim in this study was to derive a generalized fractal feature that operates without iterative box sizes or any linear regression estimators. To do this, we adapted the Minkowski-Bouligand box counting dimension to a generalized form by fixing the box size to the smallest fundamental unit (the individual pixel) and incorporating each pixel's color channels as components of the intensity measurement. The purpose of this study was twofold; to first validate our novel approach, and to then apply that approach to the classification of detailed, organic images of viruses. When validating our method, we a) computed the fractal dimension of known fractal structures to verify accuracy, and b) tested the results of the proposed method against previously published color fractal structures to assess similarity to comparable existing methods. Finally, we performed a case study of twelve virus transmission electron microscope (TEM) images to investigate the effects of fractal features between viruses and across the factors of family (Orthomyxoviridae, Filoviridae, Paramyxoviridae and Coronaviridae) and physical structure (whole cell, capsid and envelope). Our results show that the presented generalized fractal feature is a) accurate when applied to known fractals and b) shows differing trends to comparable existing methods when performed on color fractals, indicating that the proposed method is indeed a single-scale fractal feature. Finally, results of the analysis of TEM virus images suggest that viruses may be uniquely identified using only their computed fractal features.
Discovery of epiphytic lichens in Connecticut suggests novel introduction and reintroduction via horticultural practices

The discovery of Teloschistes chrysophthalmus in Connecticut more than one hundred years since its last known occurrence is argued to result from human introduction. The species only occurred on the horticultural tree, Gleditsia triacanthos var. inermis, planted on the University of Connecticut campus. Gleditsia triacanthos is not indigenous to northeastern North America but is widespread in the central United States. Other epiphytic macrolichens also recorded on this phorophyte include Punctelia bolliana and Parmotrema austrosinense, both widespread in the central United States, and new to Connecticut and New England, respectively. This is likely the first reported case of combined introductions of lichenized fungi in North America through the import of ornamental trees.
Getting to Know the Community: Using Raymond Williams’s Concept of “Knowable Communities” to Teach Wharton’s Summer

This chapter approaches teaching Wharton’s Summer from the vantage point of Williams’s concept of “knowable communities.” Doing so, it argues, enlarges our understanding of what we see when we examine Wharton’s fictional setting for this novel. In creating the town of North Dormer, Massachusetts, Wharton illustrates the perceived cultural and social differences between “country” and “city,” lending credence to many of the claims that Williams makes with reference to nineteenth-century British writers such as George Eliot and Jane Austen. Williams observes that the central difference between “city fiction” and “country fiction” is the extent to which the community involved is presented as knowable, or known, by the writer. This chapter, therefore, focuses on guiding students toward an assessment of Wharton’s own experience with—and position within—the type of community she describes in her novel. It presents practical suggestions for reading, interpreting, and presenting the arguments, so that they support and enhance students’ interactions with the primary text.
Plan generosity in health insurance exchanges: what the Affordable Care Act can teach us about top-down versus bottom-up policy implementation

The landmark United States healthcare reform law – the Affordable Care Act – provides an opportunity to study the dynamics of implementation for complex, politically contentious policies. Matland’s Ambiguity-Conflict Model suggests that bottom-up models will dominate in such cases. I exploit variation across states in the implementation of online health insurance marketplaces to test whether the federal- (top-down) or state-managed (bottom-up) implementation model produced better outcomes. Specifically, the study examines if state, federal or partnership exchanges were most effective at offering generous plans for consumers based on premiums, deductibles and copayments in 2014, the first year of operation. The results unambiguously indicate that state exchanges were most successful. The findings provide evidence for what Matland suspected – that bottom-up models, by providing more discretion to local implementers to adapt to contexts and build coalitions, are superior for high-conflict, high-ambiguity policies.
Quote: Judgements from Our Brain

In 1938 Wittgenstein gave some lectures on aesthetics. Notes were taken by students and these notes have been published.1 I shall comment on some aspects of the lectures as indicated by the notes.
Bridging the North/South Divide: International Redistribution and Tax Competition

Finding ways to help bridge the North/South divide in terms of life expectancy, health, and living conditions may be the most important task facing humanity at the beginning of the 21st century. The Millennium Development Goals adopted by the UN are a beginning step toward that goal, and require additional funding of about $50 billion per year (over existing aid). However, under current conditions, it seems extremely unlikely that democratic approval can be given in developed countries to such an increase in aid, and certainly not to the level of redistribution required to bridge the gaps. Nor are new methods of financing, such as the Tobin Tax, likely to be enacted given rich world opposition. In these circumstances, the best policy approach is for the rich countries to help developing countries help themselves. In order to do that, they need to restrict harmful tax competition among developing countries and competition to attract flight capital by developed countries.
A New Approach to the Problem of Unauthorized Access: Raising Perceptions of Accountability through User Interface Design Features

A persistent problem of information security is the threat of organizational insiders, an example of which is the unauthorized access of information. A long-standing solution to this problem is the principle of least privilege, which requires that systems users be given the minimum amount of access privilege required to complete a task. However, this solution is partial. While it limits access and therefore the risk of unauthorized access, it does not prevent the abuse of access privileges properly granted. In addition, in many financial, medical, and customer records systems, granularly restricting access privileges is not practical. This study presents accountability — the expectation that one will be required to answer for one's actions — as an alternative solution to the problem of unauthorized access. We apply accountability theory to the context of system access privileges to predict that three aspects of accountability — identifiability, evaluation, and social presence — will reduce instances of unauthorized access. We develop a factorial survey to determine the effects of user interface design features relating to these aspects of accountability. The results demonstrate the potential of accountability mechanisms within systems to prevent unauthorized access.
Education, Economics of

The explosion of research work on the economics of education has covered a wide range of issues. A key element of modern analyses is a focus on the outcomes of schooling and how various factors affect outcomes. Along with this, there has been considerable attention to production relationships and particularly to efficiency of production. The existing work suggests that variations in how well schools convert resources and inputs into student learning are a very important issue that has direct implications for education policy. Because commonly measured characteristics of teachers and schools – such as teacher experience, teacher degree levels, or class size – are not consistently related with student outcomes, the research suggests that these are not good policy instruments. On the other hand, the strong evidence about the importance of teacher quality points toward noticeable changes in the finance and governance of schools.
Roller Coaster Economics: Why Energy Price Volatility Hurts Families, Businesses, and the Economy

It is one thing for gas prices to be high, but there is another factor—price volatility. The two factors gyrate, and such inconsistent price behavior sends inefficient signals to consumers and business.
Longest wait first for broadcast scheduling [extended abstract]

We consider online algorithms for broadcast scheduling. In the pull-based broadcast model there are n unit-sized pages of information at a server and requests arrive online for pages. When the server transmits a page p, all outstanding requests for that page are satisfied. There is a lower bound of Ω(n) on the competitiveness of online algorithms to minimize average flow-time; therefore we consider resource augmentation analysis in which the online algorithm is given extra speed over the adversary. The longest-wait-first (LWF) algorithm is a natural algorithm that has been shown to have good empirical performance [2]. Edmonds and Pruhs showed that LWF is 6-speed O(1)-competitive using a novel yet complex analysis; they also showed that LWF is not O(1)-competitive with less than 1.618-speed. In this paper we make two main contributions to the analysis of LWF and broadcast scheduling. We give an intuitive and easy to understand analysis of LWF which shows that it is O(1/e2)-competitive for average flow-time with (4+e) speed. We show that a natural extension of LWF is O(1)-speed O(1)-competitive for more general objective functions such as average delay-factor and Lk norms of delay-factor (for fixed k). These metrics generalize average flow-time and Lk norms of flow-time respectively and ours are the first non-trivial results for these objective functions in broadcast scheduling.
A Piece of Place: Modeling the Digital on the Real in Second Life

Digital worlds exist as synthetic models and have no need for the constraints of the real world. This freedom allows digital worlds a vast design space of representational choices, ranging from near correspondence to the real world to complete abstraction. The digital world Second Life was designed to allow its residents enormous creative freedom and to be as broadly appealing as possible. Second Life chose to mirror the real world in many important aspects in order to provide a place that felt familiar and comfortable, while granting freedoms not possible in the real world. This Article will cover the environment of Second Life, the reasons for the choice and the challenges that arose.
Coverage of Energy Issues in Principles of Economics Textbooks

Access to cheap and plentiful fossil fuels has enabled the industrialized world, particularly the United States to enjoy unprecedented living standards, while lack of energy, particularly in Africa has perpetuated poverty. Global warming, heavy reliance on fossil fuels, increased dependency on imported oil and natural gas, and a possible transition to hydrogen will assume greater importance during our student's lifetimes. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how energy is portrayed in principles of economics texts. Section one will briefly discuss the importance of energy in the US economy. Section two will survey principles texts to ascertain coverage of energy issues and section three will offer suggestions to holistically integrate energy issues into the principles curriculum.