cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Sensitivity of Limiting Hurricane Intensity to SST in the Atlantic from Observations and GCMs

A statistical model for the intensity of the strongest hurricanes has been developed and a new methodology introducedforestimatingthesensitivityofthestrongesthurricanestochangesinseasurfacetemperature.Here, the authors use this methodology on observed hurricanes and hurricanes generated from two global climate models (GCMs). Hurricanes over the North Atlantic Ocean during the period 1981‐2010 show a sensitivity of 7.9 6 1.19ms 21 K 21 (standard error; SE) when over seas warmer than 258C. In contrast, hurricanes over the same region and period generated from the GFDL High Resolution Atmospheric Model (HiRAM) show a significantly lower sensitivity with the highest at 1.8 6 0.42ms 21 K 21 (SE). Similar weaker sensitivity is found using hurricanes generated from the Florida State University Center for Ocean‐Atmospheric Prediction Studies (FSU-COAPS) model with the highest at 2.9 6 2.64ms 21 K 21 (SE). A statistical refinement of HiRAM-generated hurricane intensities heightens the sensitivity to amaximum of6.9 63.33ms 21 K 21 (SE), but the increase is offset by additional uncertainty associated with the refinement. Results suggest that the caution that should be exercised when interpreting GCM scenarios of future hurricane intensity stems from the low sensitivity of limiting GCM-generated hurricane intensity to ocean temperature.
Prefrontal Cortex–Projecting Glutamatergic Thalamic Paraventricular Nucleus-Excited by Hypocretin: A Feedforward Circuit That May Enhance Cognitive Arousal

The paraventricular thalamic nucleus (PVT) receives one of the most dense innervations by hypothalamic hypocretin/orexin (Hcrt) neurons, which play important roles in sleep-wakefulness, attention, and autonomic function. The PVT projects to several loci, including the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), a cortical region involved in associative function and attention. To study the effect of Hcrt on excitatory PVT neurons that project to the mPFC, we used a new line of transgenic mice expressing green fluorescent protein (GFP) under the control of the vesicular glutamate-transporter-2 promoter. These neurons were retrogradely labeled with cholera toxin subunit B that had been microinjected into the mPFC. Membrane characteristics and responses to hypocretin-1 and -2 (Hcrt-1 and -2) were studied using whole cell recording (n > 300). PVT neurons showed distinct membrane properties including inward rectification, H-type potassium currents, low threshold spikes, and spike frequency adaptation. Cortically projecting neurons were depolarized and excited by Hcrt-2. Hcrt-2 actions were stronger than those of Hcrt-1, and the action persisted in TTX and in low calcium/high magnesium artificial cerebrospinal fluid, consistent with direct actions mediated by Hcrt receptor-2. Two mechanisms of Hcrt excitation were found: an increase in input resistance caused by closure of potassium channels and activation of nonselective cation channels. The robust excitation evoked by Hcrt-2 on cortically projecting glutamate PVT neurons could generate substantial excitation in multiple layers of the mPFC, adding to the more selective direct excitatory actions of Hcrt in the mPFC and potentially increasing cortical arousal and attention to limbic or visceral states.
Shortwave Flux from Satellite-Measured Radiance: A Theoretical Study over Marine Boundary Layer Clouds

Abstract Earth radiation budget measurements, important to climate monitoring and to validating climate models, require that radiances measured by satellite instruments be converted to hemispherical flux. This paper examines that problem theoretically, using inhomogeneous cloud models constructed from Landsat scenes of marine boundary layer clouds. The spherical harmonics discrete ordinates method (SHDOM) code is applied to the model scenes to compute full two-dimensional radiation fields, which then simulate measured radiances. Inversion to flux is performed by several different methods, including plane-parallel table lookup and empirical angular distribution models with three different ways of determining scene identification, to examine error sources and relative magnitudes. Using a simple plane-parallel table lookup results in unacceptably large flux bias errors of 11%–60%, depending on the orbital viewing geometry. This bias can be substantially reduced, to no more than 6%, by using empirical angular...
Health-Related Quality of Life in Children on Dialysis

Kidney dialysis remains a life-sustaining treatment for youth who have kidney failure. Optimum renal replacement therapy (RRT) results require strict adherence to dialysis prescription, to diet requirements/restrictions, and close follow-up with medical providers. While clinical markers of dialysis patient’s health status (e.g., growth, infection rates, hospitalization, and survival) are necessary indicators of health outcomes, health care providers have become increasingly interested in patient and family perception of quality of life (QOL) as an adjunctive measure of treatment efficacy.
Complex oxide growth using simultaneous in situ reflection high-energy electron diffraction and x-ray reflectivity: When is one layer complete?

During layer-by-layer homoepitaxial growth, both the Reflection High-Energy Electron Diffraction (RHEED) intensity and the x-ray reflection intensity will oscillate, and each complete oscillation indicates the addition of one monolayer of material. However, it is well documented, but not well understood, that the phase of the RHEED oscillations varies from growth to growth and thus the maxima in the RHEED intensity oscillations do not necessarily occur at the completion of a layer. We demonstrate this by using simultaneous in situ x-ray reflectivity and RHEED to characterize layer-by-layer growth of SrTiO3. We show that we can control the RHEED oscillation phase by changing the pre-growth substrate annealing conditions, changing the RHEED oscillation phase by as much as 137°. In addition, during growth via pulsed laser deposition, the relaxation times between each laser pulse can be used to determine when a layer is complete, independent of the phase of the RHEED oscillation.
Serratia liquefaciens bloodstream infections from contamination of epoetin alfa at a hemodialysis center.

Background In one month, 10 Serratia liquefaciens bloodstream infections and 6 pyrogenic reactions occurred in outpatients at a hemodialysis center. Methods We performed a cohort study of all hemodialysis sessions on days that staff members reported S. liquefaciens bloodstream infections or pyrogenic reactions. We reviewed procedures and cultured samples of water, medications, soaps, and hand lotions and swabs from the hands of personnel. Results We analyzed 208 sessions involving 48 patients. In 12 sessions, patients had S. liquefaciens bloodstream infections, and in 8, patients had pyrogenic reactions without bloodstream infection. Sessions with infections or reactions were associated with higher median doses of epoetin alfa than the 188 other sessions (6500 vs. 4000 U, P=0.03) and were more common during afternoon or evening shifts than morning shifts (P=0.03). Sessions with infections or reactions were associated with doses of epoetin alfa of more than 4000 U (multivariate odds ratio, 4.0; 95 percent ...
Combinatorial signals from the neural tube, floor plate and notochord induce myogenic bHLH gene expression in the somite

The neural tube, floor plate and notochord are axial tissues in the vertebrate embryo which have been demonstrated to play a role in somite morphogenesis. Using in vitro coculture of tissue explants, we have monitored inductive interactions of these axial tissues with the adjacent somitic mesoderm in chick embryos. We have found that signals from the neural tube and floor plate/notochord are necessary for expression of the myogenic bHLH regulators MyoD, Myf5 and myogenin in the somite. Eventually somitic expression of the myogenic bHLH genes is maintained in the absence of the axial tissues. In organ culture, at early developmental stages (HH 11-), induction of myogenesis in the three most recently formed somites can be mediated by the neural tube together with the floor plate/notochord, while in more rostral somites (stages IV-IX) the neural tube without the floor plate/notochord is sufficient. By recombining somites and neural tubes from different axial levels of the embryo, we have found that a second signal is necessary to promote competence of the somite to respond to inducing signals from the neural tube. Thus, we propose that at least two signals from axial tissues work in combination to induce myogenic bHLH gene expression; one signal derives from the floor plate/notochord and the other signal derives from regions of the neural tube other than the floor plate.
A comprehensive formulation for volumetric modulated arc therapy planning.

Purpose: Volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) is a widely employed radiation therapy technique, showing comparable dosimetry to static beam intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) with reduced monitor units and treatment time. However, the current VMAT optimization has various greedy heuristics employed for an empirical solution, which jeopardizes plan consistency and quality. The authors introduce a novel direct aperture optimization method for VMAT to overcome these limitations. Methods: The comprehensive VMAT (comVMAT) planning was formulated as an optimization problem with an L2-norm fidelity term to penalize the difference between the optimized dose and the prescribed dose, as well as an anisotropic total variation term to promote piecewise continuity in the fluence maps, preparing it for direct aperture optimization. A level set function was used to describe the aperture shapes and the difference between aperture shapes at adjacent angles was penalized to control MLC motion range. A proximal-class optimization solver was adopted to solve the large scale optimization problem, and an alternating optimization strategy was implemented to solve the fluence intensity and aperture shapes simultaneously. Single arc comVMAT plans, utilizing 180 beams with 2° angular resolution, were generated for a glioblastoma multiforme case, a lung (LNG) case, and two head and neck cases—one with three PTVs (H&N3PTV) and one with foue PTVs (H&N4PTV)—to test the efficacy. The plans were optimized using an alternating optimization strategy. The plans were compared against the clinical VMAT (clnVMAT) plans utilizing two overlapping coplanar arcs for treatment. Results: The optimization of the comVMAT plans had converged within 600 iterations of the block minimization algorithm. comVMAT plans were able to consistently reduce the dose to all organs-at-risk (OARs) as compared to the clnVMAT plans. On average, comVMAT plans reduced the max and mean OAR dose by 6.59% and 7.45%, respectively, of the prescription dose. Reductions in max dose and mean dose were as high as 14.5 Gy in the LNG case and 15.3 Gy in the H&N3PTV case. PTV coverages measured by D95, D98, and D99 were within 0.25% of the prescription dose. By comprehensively optimizing all beams, the comVMAT optimizer gained the freedom to allow some selected beams to deliver higher intensities, yielding a dose distribution that resembles a static beam IMRT plan with beam orientation optimization. Conclusions: The novel nongreedy VMAT approach simultaneously optimizes all beams in an arc and then directly generates deliverable apertures. The single arc VMAT approach thus fully utilizes the digital Linac’s capability in dose rate and gantry rotation speed modulation. In practice, the new single VMAT algorithm generates plans superior to existing VMAT algorithms utilizing two arcs.
Wound Closure with Tissue Adhesive

Small superficial skin incisions or laceration repairs which require 5.0 or smaller-diameter sutures.
Local cholinergic-GABAergic circuitry within the basal forebrain is modulated by galanin.

The basal forebrain (BF) is an important regulator of hippocampal and cortical activity. In Alzheimer’s disease (AD), there is a significant loss and dysfunction of cholinergic neurons within the BF, and also a hypertrophy of fibers containing the neuropeptide galanin. Understanding how galanin interacts with BF circuitry is critical in determining what role galanin overexpression plays in the progression of AD. Here, we examined the location and function of galanin in the medial septum/diagonal band (MS/DBB) region of the BF. We show that galanin fibers are located throughout the MS/DBB and intermingled with both cholinergic and GABAergic neurons. Whole-cell patch clamp recordings from MS/DBB neurons in acute slices reveal that galanin decreases tetrodotoxin-sensitive spontaneous GABA release and dampens muscarinic receptor-mediated increases in GABA release in the MS/DBB. These effects are not blocked by pre-exposure to β-amyloid peptide (Aβ1–42). Optogenetic activation of cholinergic neurons in the MS/DBB increases GABA release back onto cholinergic neurons, forming a functional circuit within the MS/DBB. Galanin disrupts this cholinergic-GABAergic circuit by blocking the cholinergic-induced increase in GABA release. These data suggest that galanin works in the BF to reduce inhibitory input onto cholinergic neurons and to prevent cholinergic-induced increase in inhibitory tone. This disinhibition of cholinergic neurons could serve as a compensatory mechanism to counteract the loss of cholinergic signaling that occurs during the progression of AD.
Publishing in Computopia, May 1991

I have just finished writing a short technical article that ties together two old, important, and previously unrelated results in a surprising way that simplifies and elucidates them both. It is self-contained and readable, and the formal analysis it employs is extremely simple; it will be cited in textbooks. I make a list of people I think might be interested. The field is a small one, so I start from memory. Next, I go through some conference proceedings I happen to have at hand, to get addresses and catch people I might have missed. I end up with about 50 names and addresses. I fiddle around with the formatting parameters to squeeze the paper into only eight pages, so that my secretary can print it reduced on just two sheets of paper to save postage and copying costs—my grant has been cut. When all the copies are in the mail I return to my computer, unsqueeze the paper, move the footnotes from the bottoms of the pages, where they are easy to read, to the end of the manuscript, as the rules require, and make four more copies that I send off to Physical Review Letters. What's wrong with this story? What strange, irrational, one might even say unprofessional act have I just described? Was it wasteful of me to inflict this burden on so many in-baskets, knowing that considerably fewer than half the recipients will look at my paper? Not at all! I will be content if a dozen people take a serious look—that will be enough for my message to propagate—and I have followed the best strategy to bring that about. Was I, then, foolish to waste paper, postage, and secretarial time in this old-fashioned effort at communication, when email would have done the trick effortlessly? Not yet! Not all my correspondents communicate in that way, I lack the electronic addresses of many of those who do, and surely somebody (though I have no idea who) is paying for all those email transmissions, so the monetary savings to society as a whole may be at least in part illusory. Was it, perhaps, absurd of me to lavish extreme care on these preprints, rearranging the footnotes for easier reading, and even worrying about the proper choice of fonts to convey to my readers as clearly as possible the relations between the tiny sections and subsections?
EphA2 proteomics in human keratinocytes reveals a novel association with afadin and epidermal tight junctions

EphA2 is a receptor tyrosine kinase that helps to maintain epidermal tissue homeostasis. A proximity-dependent biotin identification (BioID) approach was used to identify proteins in close proximity to EphA2 within primary human keratinocytes and three-dimensional (3D) reconstituted human epidermis (RHE) cultures to map a putative protein interaction network for this membrane receptor that exhibits a polarized distribution in stratified epithelia. Although a subset of known EphA2 interactors were identified in the BioID screen, >97% were uniquely detected in keratinocytes with over 50% of these vicinal proteins only present in 3D human epidermal culture. Afadin (AFDN), a cytoskeletal and junction-associated protein, was present in 2D and 3D keratinocyte cultures, and validated as a so-far-unknown EphA2-interacting protein. Loss of EphA2 protein disrupted the subcellular distribution of afadin and occludin in differentiated keratinocytes, leading to impairment of tight junctions. Collectively, these studies illustrate the use of the BioID approach in order to map receptor interaction networks in 3D human epithelial cultures, and reveal a positive regulatory role for EphA2 in the organization of afadin and epidermal tight junctions.
Quark soup for starters

When I complained recently to a physicist colleague about the enormous extrapolations necessary in cosmology, viewing a system after it has expanded by more than 12 orders of magnitude in linear dimensions and trying to draw inferences about its state and composition at the beginning, he surprised me by pointing out that the situation is much worse in particle physics experiments. There, he said, the volume within which all the action occurs is less than a Fermi or so across and you try to piece together the events that took place by examining their effects on detector elements that are several metres away – an extrapolation of maybe 15 orders of magnitude. What he did not have to say is that in spite of this, and the phenomenal expense of running accelerators, many physicists still prefer to do actual experiments because they at least have some control over what goes into the collision.
Cause-Related Marketing and Shareholder Value: An Event Study Analysis (Extended Abstract)

Over the past few decades, the corporation’s social responsibility (CSR) has been thrust into the limelight as an expected business practice. CSR is defined as “the policy and practice of a corporation’s social involvement over and beyond its legal obligations for the benefit of the society at large (Enderle and Travis 1998). Although the increased focus of this practice was the result of financial scandals, investor losses, and corporate reputational damage, the social norms ultimately levied on corporations make not engaging in CSR behaviors extremely risky. However, conventional economic theory posits that executives are required to make decisions that maximize the wealth of their shareholders by making decisions that maximize the present value of the firm’s future cash flows (Friedman 1962; Copeland et al. 1994). In other words, executives have a fiduciary responsibility to their shareholders every time they make an investment, and social investments are no exception. They must be justified by an extensive process of reasoning as having a realistic chance of manifesting a long-term economic gain (Davis 1960).
Fertility, pregnancy, and prolactinoma: A survey of pituitary surgeons' view and review of the literature.

Abstract Objective Pituitary surgeons frequently encounter female prolactinoma patients seeking treatment to restore fertility. Current medical guidelines recommend using dopamine agonist (DA) for this, but for fetal safety, DA should stop upon pregnancy confirmation. The probability that prolactinoma may grow during pregnancy makes this last recommendation imperfect. With the advances in endoscopic surgery, we queried the potential role for surgery in these infertile patients, who may be ambivalent about both stopping and continuing DA while pregnant. Methods An anonymous survey was sent to pituitary surgeons to investigate how they would advise prolactinoma patients on treatment of infertility, and counsel them about pregnancy. Directories from various US-based neurosurgical societies were culled. Surgeons who designated themselves as “skull base”/“pituitary” were surveyed. Results Seventy-six surgeons responded (41%). The majority (67%) adhered to medical guidelines for microprolactinoma, but 26% recommended surgery. However, for a macroprolactinoma at diagnosis, the number of surgeons who recommended DA treatment vs. surgical treatment were almost evenly split (χ2 p = 0.06). The practice setting of a multidisciplinary clinic with endocrinologists did not significantly influence our respondents’ choice. For a patient who presented after becoming pregnant on DA, our respondents were against surgery to prevent tumor growth (96%). Conclusion A review of the current literature shows that both medical and surgical therapy have flaws. Significant numbers of surgeons considered surgery a legitimate option for prolactinoma patients seeking to be pregnant. The divergence between these surgeons’ opinion and current medical guidelines warrants further investigation and discussion.
Effects of Subject Characteristics, Experimenter-Model Characteristics, and Vicarious Praise on Imitative Learning

The purpose of the present study was to examine the role of subject, model, and experimenter characteristics on imitative learning of preadolescent children. The race of the subject, model, and reinforcing agent (experimenter) was manipulated as well as the class of the subject and the presence/absence of vicarious reinforcement. A difference between performance and recall of the model’s behavior was found. In addition, the results revealed an interaction which suggested that race of experimenter, race of model, and class of subject are important variables in determining the effects of vicarious reinforcement on imitation.
Prediction of Insurance Claim Severity Loss Using Regression Models

The objective of this work is to predict the severity loss value of an insurance claim using machine learning regression techniques. The high dimensional data used for this research work is obtained from Allstate insurance company which consists of 116 categorical and 14 continuous predictor variables. We implemented Linear regression, Random forest regression (RFR), Support vector regression (SVR) and Feed forward neural network (FFNN) for this problem. The performance and accuracy of the models are compared using mean squared error (MSE) value and coefficient of determination (Rsquare) value. We predicted the claim severity loss value with a MSE value of 0.390 and a Rsquare value 0.562 using bagged RFR model. In addition where applicable, the final loss value was also predicted with an error of 0.440 using FFNN regression model. We also demonstrate the use of lasso regularization to avoid over-fitting for some of the regression models.
Multi-level charging control algorithm of electric vehicle in EVs-grid system

In order to satisfy the needs of the clean energy usage and the rapid development of the smart micro grid and electric vehicle industry under the energy internet environment, an effective and highly applicable control algorithm which could ensure the safe and stable operation of smart micro grid with the large access of the electric vehicles is desperately needed. This paper firstly built the agent-based model of the electric vehicle by analyzing the autonomous operation of the electric vehicles, and then proposes a multilevel charging control algorithm oriented to the regional smart micro grid and the EVs' different kinds of power supplement, which includes the micro grid-level centralized control for the batteries' centralized charging and the user-level active control for the EVs' dispersed charging. The optimization goal is to minimize the fluctuation of the load in the regional smart micro grid under the premise that it does not affect the normal operation of electric vehicles. Finally, the corresponding case scene simulation is carried out in order to verify the effect of the proposed algorithm.
A New Approach for Developing Neutral Redistricting Plans

Computers hold the potential to draw legislative districts in a neutral way. Existing approaches to automated redistricting may introduce bias and encounter difficulties when drawing districts of large and even medium-sized jurisdictions. We present a new algorithm that can neutrally generate legislative districts without indications of bias that are contiguous, balanced and relatively compact. The algorithm does not show the kinds of bias found in prior algorithms and is an advance over previously published algorithms for redistricting because it is computationally more efficient. We use the new algorithm to draw 10,000 maps of congressional districts in Mississippi, Virginia, and Texas. We find that it is unlikely that the number of majority-minority districts we observe in the Mississippi, Virginia, and Texas congressional maps of these states would happen through a neutral redistricting process.
Pre-image Backchaining in Belief Space for Mobile Manipulation

There have been several recent approaches to planning and control in uncertain domains, based on online planning in a determinized approximation of the belief-space dynamics, and replanning when the actual belief state diverges from the predicted one. In this work, we extend this approach to planning for mobile manipulation tasks with very long horizons, using a hierarchical combination of logical and geometric representations. We present a novel approach to belief-space preimage backchaining with logical representations, an efficient method for on-line execution monitoring and replanning, and preliminary results on mobile manipulation tasks.
Drug treatment options for premature ejaculation.

Introduction: Various drugs are available for lifelong and acquired premature ejaculation (PE), but only dapoxetine and FortacinTM have been officially registered. On the other hand, all sorts of p...
Learning and Multi-Objective Optimization for Automatic Identity Linkage

There has been exponential growth on the Internet connectable and connected devices in recent years. With the world becoming more connected than ever, each individual user accesses services from a range of devices, including personal desktops and laptop computers, tablets, mobile devices, vehicles, and entertainment systems. One fundamental problem is to identify the user using the fragmentation of identity and consumer profiles across these connected devices. Adobe Identity Graph solves this fundamental problem for the digital marketing domain. An Identity graph is built by discovering identity relationships using both online data traffic and offline data logs to establish links between different identities allowing for richer insights into the consumer. In this paper, we explore using a machine learning based approach for Identity Graph. In particular, we focus on linking identities using structured learning and multi objective optimization. Our proposed solution can help in improving current approaches in to give a complete holistic view of the consumer. Additionally, it can help learning about the consumer over time. Towards automatic identity linkage of the same natural person, we can study to construct statistical learning method based on massive user access logs. Our evaluation results show that our proposed approach can be very effective in linking identities and achieving a practical solution on a real data set.
Qubit regularization of the O (3 ) sigma model

We construct a qubit regularization of the $O(3)$ non-linear sigma model in two and three spatial dimensions using a quantum Hamiltonian with two qubits per lattice site. Using a worldline formulation and worm algorithms, we show that in two spatial dimensions our model has a quantum critical point where the well-known scale-invariant physics of the three-dimensional Wilson-Fisher fixed point is reproduced. In three spatial dimensions, we recover mean-field critical exponents at a similar quantum critical point. These results show that our qubit Hamiltonian is in the same universality class as the traditional classical lattice model close to the critical points. Simple modifications to our model also allow us to study the physics of traditional lattice models with $O(2)$ and $Z_2$ symmetries close to the corresponding critical points.
Inequalities in elevated depressive symptoms in middle‐aged and older adults by rural childhood residence: The important role of education

OBJECTIVES To quantify inequalities in the prevalence of elevated depressive symptoms by rural childhood residence and the extent to which childhood socioeconomic conditions and educational attainment contribute to this disparity. METHODS We identified the prevalence of depressive symptoms among US-born adults ages 50 years and older in the 1998 to 2014 waves of the Health and Retirement Study (n = 16 022). We compared prevalence of elevated depressive symptoms (>4/8 symptoms) by rural versus nonrural childhood residence (self-report) and the extent to which own education mediated this disparity. We used generalized estimating equations and marginal standardization to calculate predicted probabilities of elevated depressive symptoms. RESULTS In age, race/ethnicity, and sex-adjusted models, rural childhood residence was associated with elevated depressive symptoms (OR = 1.20; 95% CI, 1.12-1.29; marginal predicted probability 10.5% for rural and 8.9% for nonrural childhood residence). Adjusting for US Census birth region and parental education attenuated this association (OR = 1.07; 95% CI, 0.99-1.15; marginal predicted probability 9.9% for rural and 9.3% for nonrural). After additional adjustment for own education, rural childhood residence was not associated with elevated depressive symptoms (OR = 0.94; 95% CI, 0.87-1.01; marginal predicted probability 9.2% for rural and 9.8% for nonrural). CONCLUSIONS Rural childhood residence was associated with elevated depressive symptoms in middle-aged and older adults; birth region, parental education, and own education appear to contribute to this disparity.
Social Media Goes to the Movies: Fear of Missing Out, Social Capital, and Social Motivations of Cinema Attendance

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of participation in social media networks on theatrical movie attendance, with particular attention paid to the fear-of-missing-out (FoMO) and...
Structure of a bound peptide phosphonate reveals the mechanism of nocardicin bifunctional thioesterase epimerase-hydrolase half-reactions.

Nonribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPSs) underlie the biosynthesis of many natural products that have important medicinal utility. Protection of the NRPS peptide products from proteolysis is critical to these pathways and is often achieved by structural modification, principally the introduction of d-amino acid residues into the elongating peptide. These amino acids are generally formed in situ from their l-stereoisomers by epimerization domains or dual-function condensation/epimerization domains. In singular contrast, the thioesterase domain of nocardicin biosynthesis mediates both the effectively complete l- to d-epimerization of its C-terminal amino acid residue (≥100:1) and hydrolytic product release. We report herein high-resolution crystal structures of the nocardicin thioesterase domain in ligand-free form and reacted with a structurally precise fluorophosphonate substrate mimic that identify the complete peptide binding pocket to accommodate both stereoisomers. These structures combined with additional functional studies provide detailed mechanistic insight into this unique dual-function NRPS domain. NocTE is a nonribosomal peptide synthetase thioesterase that completes the biosynthesis of pro-nocardicin G, the precursor for nocardicin β-lactam antibiotics. Here the authors provide mechanistic insights into NocTE by determining its crystal structures in the ligand-free form and covalently linked to a fluorophosphonate substrate mimic.
Body motion detection and correction in cardiac PET: Phantom and human studies

Purpose Patient body motion during a cardiac positron emission tomography (PET) scan can severely degrade image quality. We propose and evaluate a novel method to detect, estimate, and correct body motion in cardiac PET. Methods Our method consists of three key components: motion detection, motion estimation, and motion-compensated image reconstruction. For motion detection, we first divide PET list-mode data into 1-s bins and compute the center of mass (COM) of the coincidences' distribution in each bin. We then compute the covariance matrix within a 25-s sliding window over the COM signals inside the window. The sum of the eigenvalues of the covariance matrix is used to separate the list-mode data into "static" (i.e., body motion free) and "moving" (i.e. contaminated by body motion) frames. Each moving frame is further divided into a number of evenly spaced sub-frames (referred to as "sub-moving" frames), in which motion is assumed to be negligible. For motion estimation, we first reconstruct the data in each static and sub-moving frame using a rapid back-projection technique. We then select the longest static frame as the reference frame and estimate elastic motion transformations to the reference frame from all other static and sub-moving frames using nonrigid registration. For motion-compensated image reconstruction, we reconstruct all the list-mode data into a single image volume in the reference frame by incorporating the estimated motion transformations in the PET system matrix. We evaluated the performance of our approach in both phantom and human studies. Results Visually, the motion-corrected (MC) PET images obtained using the proposed method have better quality and fewer motion artifacts than the images reconstructed without motion correction (NMC). Quantitative analysis indicates that MC yields higher myocardium to blood pool concentration ratios. MC also yields sharper myocardium than NMC. Conclusions The proposed body motion correction method improves image quality of cardiac PET.
Tutorial on extreme programming (XP)

For a long time now, teaching Software Engineering has focused on the Waterfall Model, which consists of a number of steps. These steps include analysis, specification, design, implementation, installation, and maintenance. This model is sometimes referred to as "Big Design Up Front" (BDUF) and its use will continue to be used in "first-time" projects where something new and different is being implemented.
Minimum Wage Hikes and Capital Deepening: Evidence from U.S. Establishments' IT Budget

This paper studies the effects of state minimum wage increases on information technology (IT) budget at the establishment level in the United States. We find establishments in states that experience significant minimum wage increases on average allocate $62,342 more per year to IT budgets. The effects are heterogeneous across industry, firm, or establishment characteristics. Additional evidence suggests that significant state minimum wage increases lead to higher IT capital. Our results suggest that establishments change production technology in response to increases in the wage floor.
Chapter 22 – Disorders of the portal and hepatic venous systems

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the clinical features and treatment of disorders of the portal and hepatic venous systems such as portal hypertension, portal vein obstruction, intrahepatic portal hypertension, post-hepatic portal hypertension, Budd-Chiari syndrome and veno-occlusive disease of the liver. Portal hypertension is the major feature of disorders of the portal and hepatic venous systems. Hepatic vein lesions also cause acute or chronic liver failure. Portal hypertension exists when the pressure in the portal venous system rises above 10–12 mmHg. Portal hypertension may arise due to pre-, intra-, or post-hepatic obstruction of blood flow to and through the liver. The intrahepatic block may be pre-sinusoidal, sinusoidal or post-sinusoidal. Rarely, portal hypertension results from increased blood flow to the liver from arteriovenous anastomosis. Cirrhosis, portal vein obstruction, congenital hepatic fibrosis, and hepatic vein outflow obstruction are the main causes of portal hypertension in children. It may also present with features of the underlying hepatic disease of which it is a complication. In portal vein obstruction the main portal vein or splenic vein is obstructed somewhere along its course, between the hilum of the spleen and the portahepatis. The portal vein may be replaced by a fibrous remnant, a sheaf of small channels usually described as cavernous transformation, or contain an organized blood clot, web or diaphragm or be compressed from outside. Portal vein obstruction may be strongly suspected if an experienced ultrasonographer is unable to demonstrate a patent portal vein in a patient with the above features and biochemical tests of liver function are normal.
ß2-Arrestin germline knockout does not attenuate opioid respiratory depression

Abstract Opioids are perhaps the most effective analgesics in medicine. However, from 1999 to 2018, they also killed more than 400,000 people in the United States by suppressing breathing, a common side-effect known as opioid induced respiratory depression. This doubled-edged sword has inspired the dream of developing novel therapeutics that provide opioid-like analgesia without respiratory depression. One such approach has been to develop so-called ‘biased agonists’ that activate some, but not all pathways downstream of the µ-opioid receptor (MOR), the target of morphine and other opioid analgesics. This hypothesis stems from a study suggesting that MOR-mediated activation of s2-Arrestin is the downstream signaling pathway responsible for respiratory depression, whereas inhibition of adenylyl cyclase produces analgesia. To further verify this model, which represents the motivation for the biased agonist approach, we examined respiratory behavior in mice lacking the gene for s2-Arrestin. Contrary to previous findings, we find no correlation between s2-Arrestin function and opioid-induced respiratory depression, suggesting that any effect of biased agonists must be mediated through an as-yet to be identified signaling mechanism.
Machine Learning-Aided Parametrically Homogenized Crystal Plasticity Model (PHCPM) for Single Crystal Ni-Based Superalloys

This article establishes a multiscale modeling framework for the parametrically homogenized crystal plasticity model (PHCPM) for single crystal Ni-based superalloys. The PHCPMs explicitly incorporate morphological statistics of the $$\gamma -\gamma '$$ intragranular microstructure in their crystal plasticity constitutive coefficients. They enable highly efficient and accurate calculations for image-based polycrystalline microstructural simulations. The single crystal PHCPM development process involves: (1) construction of statistically equivalent RVEs or SERVEs, (2) image-based modeling with a dislocation-density crystal plasticity model, (3) identification of representative aggregated microstructural parameters, (4) selection of a PHCPM framework and (5) self-consistent homogenization. Novel machine learning tools are explored at every development phase. Supervised and unsupervised learning methods, such as support vector regression, artificial neural networks, k-means, and symbolic regression, enhanced optimization, model emulation and sensitivity analysis methods are all critical components of the multiscale modeling pipeline. The integration of machine learning tools with physics-based models enables the creation of powerful single crystal constitutive models for polycrystalline simulations.
Low-Dose Tramadol as an Off-Label Antidepressant: A Data Mining Analysis from the Patients' Perspective.

Objectives: The purpose of this analysis was to assess, from the patients' perspective, the effectiveness and relative safety of tramadol as an off-label antidepressant and to determine if patients' views and experiences are consistent with the biomedical literature. Method: A data mining approach was used to analyze databases available at drugs.com. Results: Tramadol was reported to be an effective or very effective antidepressant by 94.6% of patients (123/130) who provided ratings submitted to User Reviews for Tramadol to Treat Depression (https://www.drugs.com/comments/tramadol/for-depression.html). When compared to 34 other antidepressants in the database titled Drugs Used to treat Depression (https://www.drugs.com/condition/depression.html), for which there were ≥100 individual reviews for each drug, tramadol was rated as being the most effective (effectiveness rating = 9.1/10). Phenelzine (effectiveness rating = 8.7/10) was the only other antidepressant having ≥100 individual reviews coupled with a very high (8.0-10.0) effectiveness rating. Eleven patients reported significant symptoms of withdrawal upon cessation of tramadol, and five patients reported loss or reduction of libido as a side effect. Most (57/72, 79.2%) patients who reported a dose consumed experienced relief from depression at low therapeutic doses (25-150 mg/day). Fourteen patients reported taking this antidepressant for 5-10 years, and four patients reported taking tramadol for 10 or more years. Results demonstrated that most patients' comments and beliefs are consistent with the biomedical literature. Conclusions: Patients' reviews coupled with a survey of the biomedical literature indicate that at low therapeutic doses in the absence of interactions with other drugs, adult patients found tramadol to be a generally safe, effective, and fast-acting medication for relief from depression.
Meeting unique requirements: Community consultation and public disclosure for research in emergency setting using exception from informed consent.

BACKGROUND Exception from informed consent (EFIC) regulations for research in emergency settings contain unique requirements for community consultation and public disclosure. These requirements address ethical challenges intrinsic to this research context. Multiple approaches have evolved to accomplish these activities that may reflect and advance different aims. This scoping review was designed to identify areas of consensus and lingering uncertainty in the literature. METHODS Scoping review methodology was used. Conceptual and empirical literature related to community consultation and public disclosure for EFIC research was included and identified through a structured search using Embase, HEIN Online, PubMed, and Web of Science. Data were extracted using a standardized tool with domains for major literature categories. RESULTS Among 84 manuscripts, major domains included conceptual or policy issues, reports of community consultation processes and results, and reports of public disclosure processes and results. Areas of consensus related to community consultation included the need for a two-way exchange of information and use of multiple methods. Public acceptance of personal EFIC enrollment is commonly 64% to 85%. There is less consensus regarding how to assess attitudes, what "communities" to prioritize, and how to determine adequacy for individual projects. Core goals of public disclosure are less well developed; no metrics exist for assessing adequacy. CONCLUSIONS Multiple methods are used to meet community consultation and public disclosure requirements. There remain no settled norms for assessing adequacy of public disclosure, and there is lingering debate about needed breadth and depth of community consultation.
Infants’ neural responses to emotional faces are related to maternal anxiety

Background Postnatal maternal anxiety is common (estimates as high as 40% prevalence) and is associated with altered mother-infant interactions (e.g., reduced maternal emotional expression and engagement). Neural circuitry supporting infants' face and emotion processing develops in their first year. Thus, early exposure to maternal anxiety may impact infants' developing understanding of emotional displays. We examine whether maternal anxiety is associated with individual differences in typically developing infants' neural responses to emotional faces. Methods One hundred and forty two mother-infant dyads were assessed when infants were 5, 7, or 12 months old. Infants' electroencephalographic (EEG) data were recorded while passively viewing female happy, fearful, and angry faces. Three event-related potential (ERP) components, each linked to face and emotion processing, were evaluated: NC, N290, and P400. Infant ERP amplitude was related to concurrent maternal-report anxiety assessed with the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (Trait form). Results Greater maternal anxiety predicted more negative NC amplitude for happy and fearful faces in left and mid-central scalp regions, beyond covarying influences of maternal depression symptoms, infant negative emotionality, and infant age. Conclusions Postnatal maternal anxiety is related to infants' neural processing of emotional expressions. Infants of mothers endorsing high trait anxiety may need additional attentional resources to process happy and fearful faces (expressions less likely experienced in mother-infant interactions). Future research should investigate mechanisms underlying this association, given possibilities include experiential, genetic, and prenatal factors.
Apnea-hypopnea index severity as an independent predictor of post-tonsillectomy respiratory complications in pediatric patients: A retrospective study.

INTRODUCTION Despite the presence of clinical practice guidelines for overnight admission of pediatric patients following adenotonsillectomy, variance in practice patterns exists between pediatric otolaryngologists. The purpose of this study is to examine severity of apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) as an independent predictor of postoperative respiratory complications in children undergoing adenotonsillectomy. METHODS Retrospective chart review of all children undergoing adenotonsillectomy at a large tertiary referral center between January 2015 and December 2019 who underwent preoperative polysomnography and were admitted for overnight observation. Charts were reviewed for total adverse events and respiratory events occurring during admission. RESULTS Overall, respiratory events were seen in 50.6% of patients with AHI ≥10 and in 39.6% of patients with AHI <10. The overall mean AHI was 19.2, with a mean of 28.1 in the AHI ≥10 subgroup vs 4.6 in the AHI <10 subgroup. There was no statistical correlation or increased risk between an AHI ≥10 and having a pure respiratory event, with a relative risk of 1.19 (.77-1.83, P = .43). There was a statistically significant difference between the mean AHI of those with any adverse event and those without (21.6 vs 13.4, P = .008). There is additionally an increased risk of any event with an AHI over 10, with a relative risk of 1.51 (1.22-1.88, P < .0001). CONCLUSION Preoperative AHI of 10 events per hour was not a predictor of postoperative respiratory complications. However, there was a trend for those with a higher AHI requiring additional supportive measures or a prolonged stay. Practitioners should always use their best judgment in deciding whether a child warrants postoperative admission following adenotonsillectomy.
Uptake of Testing for HIV and Syphilis Among Men Who Have Sex with Men in Baltimore, Maryland: 2004–2011

Men who have sex with men (MSM) in Baltimore are at disproportionately high risk for HIV and syphilis infection. Testing and diagnosis are important first steps in receiving treatment and reducing transmission. We analyzed cross-sectional data collected in 2004–2005, 2008, and 2011 among MSM not reporting a previous positive HIV test (n = 1268) in Baltimore, Maryland as part of the National HIV Behavioral Surveillance System to determine the proportion of men tested for HIV and/or syphilis within the previous 12 months and examine the extent to which opportunities for testing were being missed in health care settings. Within the previous 12 months, 54 % of men had received an HIV test; 31 % had received a syphilis test; and only 23 % of men had received testing for both. Among 979 men who did not receive both tests, 72 % had seen a health care provider in the past year, suggesting missed testing opportunities.