cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Evidence for a Ca2+-Specific Conformational Change in Avian Thymic Hormone, a High-Affinity β-Parvalbumin

Named for the capacity to stimulate differentiation and maturation of T-cell precursors, avian thymic hormone (ATH) is nonetheless a β-parvalbumin that is also expressed in the avian retina. With Ca2+- and Mg2+-binding constants in excess of 108 and 104 M−1, respectively, both EF-hand motifs qualify as Ca2+/Mg2+ sites. However, whereas addition of either apo- or Mg2+-bound ATH to 1,8-anilinonaphthalenesulfonic acid (ANS) causes a large increase in quantum yield and a pronounced blue shift, addition of the Ca2+-bound protein is without effect. These observations suggest that apo- and Mg2+-bound ATH adopt conformations distinct from the Ca2+-bound protein, exposing apolar surface for interaction with ANS. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) data imply that unfolding of apo-ATH is accompanied by diminished exposure of apolar surface, relative to Ca2+-free rat β-PV, perhaps due to greater solvent-accessible apolar surface in the native form. The fluorescence and DSC results, considered together, may indic...
Imputation methods for missing data for polygenic models

Methods to handle missing data have been an area of statistical research for many years. Little has been done within the context of pedigree analysis. In this paper we present two methods for imputing missing data for polygenic models using family data. The imputation schemes take into account familial relationships and use the observed familial information for the imputation. A traditional multiple imputation approach and multiple imputation or data augmentation approach within a Gibbs sampler for the handling of missing data for a polygenic model are presented. We used both the Genetic Analysis Workshop 13 simulated missing phenotype and the complete phenotype data sets as the means to illustrate the two methods. We looked at the phenotypic trait systolic blood pressure and the covariate gender at time point 11 (1970) for Cohort 1 and time point 1 (1971) for Cohort 2. Comparing the results for three replicates of complete and missing data incorporating multiple imputation, we find that multiple imputation via a Gibbs sampler produces more accurate results. Thus, we recommend the Gibbs sampler for imputation purposes because of the ease with which it can be extended to more complicated models, the consistency of the results, and the accountability of the variation due to imputation.
Reenactment and repair: couples therapy with survivors of childhood sexual abuse

(1996). Reenactment and Repair: Couples Therapy with Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse. Harvard Review of Psychiatry: Vol. 3, No. 6, pp. 351-355.
Cross-node occlusion in sort-last volume rendering

In the field of parallel volume rendering, occlusion is a concept which is already widely exploited in order to improve performance. However, when one moves to larger datasets the use of parallelism becomes a necessity, and in that context, exploiting occlusion to speed up volume rendering is not straightforward. In this paper, we propose and detail a new scheme in which the processors exchange occlusion information so as to speed up the rendering by discarding invisible areas. Our pipeline uses full floating point accuracy for all the intermediate stages, allowing the production of high quality pictures.We further show comprehensive performance results using this pipeline with multiple datasets and demonstrate that cross-processor occlusion can improve the performance of parallel volume rendering.
Towards an internet-scale XML dissemination service

Publish/subscribe systems have demonstrated the ability to scale to large numbers of users and high data rates when providing content-based data dissemination services on the Internet. However, their services are limited by the data semantics and query expressiveness that they support. On the other hand, the recent work on selective dissemination of XML data has made significant progress in moving from XML filtering to the richer functionality of transformation for result customization, but in general has ignored the challenges of deploying such XML-based services on an Internet-scale. In this paper, we address these challenges in the context of incorporating the rich functionality of XML data dissemination in a highly scalable system. We present the architectural design of ONYX, a system based on an overlay network. We identify the salient technical challenges in supporting XML filtering and transformation in this environment and propose techniques for solving them.
Analog/RF Performance and Optimization of Vertical III–V Double-Gate Transistor

Parasitics engineering on a GaAs vertical transistor is analyzed. Through separate control of source/drain (S/D) spacer and underlap, the individual impact of the parasitic components is unveiled. Thicker S/D spacer improves fT, fmax by reducing parasitic capacitance. Increased source-side underlap improves output resistance and gain as the virtual source point is shifted. Increased drain-side underlap improves fmax by reducing parasitic capacitance. Optimization of different analog/RF metrics can be easily implemented through asymmetric S/D spacer/underlap design in a vertical transistor.
Fibromyalgia in fragile X mental retardation 1 gene premutation carriers

Objective. FM is a disorder of altered pain regulation and is characterized by pain, fatigue, poor sleep and psychological impairments; thus, it is classified as a central sensitivity syndrome. Female carriers of a premutation in the fragile X mental retardation 1 (FMR1) gene frequently have widespread musculoskeletal pain and sometimes have been diagnosed with FM, especially if they have the motor signs of fragile X-associated tremor ataxia syndrome (FXTAS). Studies suggest that FM occurs in persons with a genetic predisposition. We describe the clinical features of female FMR1 premutation carriers with symptoms of FM. Methods. A sample of patients was selected that participated in studies at two tertiary referral academic centres on the phenotype and therapy of FXTAS. Results. This selected sample of patients, five female premutation carriers, has FM symptoms or diagnoses and other central sensitivity syndromes. Conclusion. Since FM affects 2–4% of the world's population and about 1 in 250 females are FMR1 carriers, a study screening females with FM for the presence of the FMR1 premutation is worthwhile. A finding of increased prevalence of FMR1 carriers among females with FM would impact the standard evaluation of FM. Presently, guidelines for FMR1 genetic testing includes early menopause, congenital intellectual disability, autism spectrum disorder, tremor or ataxia, and a family history of FXTAS or fragile X syndrome. The latter is a common cause of autism and developmental delay. Such testing is important because female carriers are at risk of having a child with fragile X syndrome.
Geophysical constraints on contaminant transport modeling in a heterogeneous fluvial aquifer

Approximately 3000 measurements of hydraulic conductivity in over 50 flowmeter boreholes were available at the Macro-Dispersion Experiment (MADE) site in Columbus, Mississippi, USA to quantify the heterogeneity in hydraulic conductivity at the site scale. This high-density measurement approach is perhaps infeasible for time and expense in typical groundwater remediation sites. A natural-gradient tracer experiment from the MADE site was simulated by a groundwater flow and solute transport model incorporating direct-current (DC) resistivity data collected over the observed plume location. Hydraulic conductivity from one borehole collected during the original site characterization was used to calibrate the electrical resistivity data to hydraulic conductivity using a previously derived log–log relationship. Application of this relationship, using site-specific empirical constants determined from the data, transforms the 3D electrical resistivity data into a 3D description of hydraulic conductivity that can be used in groundwater models. The validity of this approach was tested by using the geophysically derived hydraulic conductivity representation in numerical simulations of the natural-gradient tracer experiment. The agreement between the simulated and observed tracer plumes was quantified to gauge the effectiveness of geophysically derived and flowmeter based representations of the hydraulic conductivity field. This study demonstrates that a highly heterogeneous aquifer can be modeled with minimal hydrological data supplemented with geophysical data at least as well as previous models of the site using purely hydrologic data.
Spectra transformed for model-testing and visual exploration

The presence of highly tangled patterns in spectra and other serial data exacerbates the difficulty of performing visual comparison between a test model for a particular pattern and the data. The use of a simple map that plants peaks in the data directly onto their corresponding position in a residual plot with respect to a chosen test model not only retrieves the advantages of dynamic regression plotting, but in practical cases also causes patterns in the data to congregate in meaningful ways with respect to more than one reference curve in the plane. The technique is demonstrated on a polyphonic music signal.
Effects of Residual Stress and Loading Geometry on Single‐Edge Precracked‐Beam (SEPB) Fracture‐Toughness Test Results

The single-edge precracked-beam (SEPB) specimen test, using the “bridge indentation” method, is one of the standard test methods in the new ASTM standard for the determination of the fracture toughness of ceramics. In support of this effort, the effect of several test parameters on the fracture-toughness (KIC) values was established. The effect of the residual stress, because of the indent and the alignment in three- and four-point bending, on the KIC values was determined using aluminum nitride specimens. The results show that indent loads should be kept below 10 kgf, and the crack-plane angle should be <5°, to prevent artificially high KIC values.
Biochemical and thermodynamic analyses of Salmonella enterica Pat, a multidomain, multimeric N(ε)-lysine acetyltransferase involved in carbon and energy metabolism.

In the bacterium Salmonella enterica, the CobB sirtuin protein deacetylase and the Gcn5-related N(e)-acetyltransferase (GNAT) Pat control carbon utilization and metabolic flux via N(e)-lysine acetylation/deacetylation of metabolic enzymes. To date, the S. enterica Pat (SePat) acetyltransferase has not been biochemically characterized. Here we report the kinetic and thermodynamic characterization of the SePat enzyme using two of its substrates, acetyl coenzyme A (Ac-CoA) synthetase (Acs; AMP forming, EC 6.2.1.1) and Ac-CoA. The data showed typical Michaelis-Menten kinetic behavior when Ac-CoA was held at a saturating concentration while Acs was varied, and a sigmoidal kinetic behavior was observed when Acs was saturating and the Ac-CoA concentration was varied. The observation of sigmoidal kinetics and positive cooperativity for Ac-CoA is an unusual feature of GNATs. Results of isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) experiments showed that binding of Ac-CoA to wild-type SePat produced a biphasic curve having thermodynamic properties consistent with two distinct sites. Biphasicity was not observed in ITC experiments that analyzed the binding of Ac-CoA to a C-terminal construct of SePat encompassing the predicted core acetyltransferase domain. Subsequent analytical gel filtration chromatography studies showed that in the presence of Ac-CoA, SePat oligomerized to a tetrameric form, whereas in the absence of Ac-CoA, SePat behaved as a monomer. The positive modulation of SePat activity by Ac-CoA, a product of the Acs enzyme that also serves as a substrate for SePat-dependent acetylation, is likely a layer of metabolic control. IMPORTANCE For decades, N(e)-lysine acetylation has been a well-studied mode of regulation of diverse proteins involved in almost all aspects of eukaryotic physiology. Until recently, N(e)-lysine acetylation was not considered a widespread phenomenon in bacteria. Recent studies have indicated that N(e)-lysine acetylation and its impact on cellular metabolism may be just as diverse in bacteria as they are in eukaryotes. The S. enterica Pat enzyme, specifically, has recently been implicated in the modulation of many metabolic enzymes. Understanding the molecular mechanisms of how this enzyme controls the activity of diverse enzymes by N(e)-lysine acetylation will advance our understanding of how the prokaryotic cell responds to its changing environment in order to meet its metabolic needs.
Perceived Racial Discrimination and Self-Esteem in African American Youth: Racial Socialization as a Protective Factor

Racial socialization was examined as a protective factor that might buffer African American youth from the negative effects of perceived racial discrimination. Two types of racial socialization were examined: messages about race pride and preparation for bias. One hundred twenty-eight eighth-grade African American students participated in the study. As anticipated, both types of socialization moderated the relationship between discrimination and self-esteem. The negative relationship between perceived discrimination and self-esteem was mitigated for youth who reported more messages about race pride and a moderate amount of preparation for bias from their parents. In contrast, low race pride socialization and both high and low preparation for bias were associated with a negative relationship between perceived discrimination and self-esteem.
Technical Considerations for Establishing Requirements Pertaining to Broad-Band EMI from Data-Processing Equipment and Office Machines

This paper extends the scope of earlier narrow-band work to include control of broad-band emission sources which can exist independently of, or in conjunction with, narrow-band sources in electronic data-processing (EDP) and office-machine (OM) equipment (products). While both narrow-band and broad-band noise sources have the potential for RF interference with communication services, our experience with broad-band problems has shown this class of sources to be much less significant than the low incidence of actual narrow-band component EDP interference problems examined in the initial paper [1]. Limits are discussed considering the empirical data base and need for international harmonization of interference requirements
Histology of the Pituitary, Testis, and Adrenal in Relation to Reproduction in the Bull

The relation between the histology of the endocrine organs and reproduction in bulls has not been studied extensively. Most of the reports dealing with normal and impaired fertility have been limited to the changes occurring in a single organ. In order to estimate the relative importance of the several possible causes of impaired fertility, the histology of the pituitary, adrenal, and testis in bulls is being studied at this station. Smith and Smith (11) described the separation of the anterior lobe of the bovine pituitary into a central and peripheral zone. Bassett (1) described the central portion of the anterior lobe as a core running through the gland. She also stated that the peripheral portion of the lobe contains many alpha cells, whereas the central portion is devoid of alpha cells but rich in beta cells. Bassett (1) and Hall (6) described two kinds of beta cells in the anterior pituitary of cattle. Garm (4) described the following cell types in the anterior lobe of normal dairy cows: acidophils with small nucleus, acidophils with large nucleus, small basophils, large basophils, hyaline basophils, and heterotrophic amphophils. He believed that the last type of cell represents a late functional stage of hyaline basophils. He described the hyaline basophils as large basophils with pale pink homogenous areas in the cytoplasm. Cows with nymphomania showed no change in acidophils but an increase in frequency of large basophils, chromophobes with a large nucleus, hyaline basophils, and hypertrophic amphophils. Gilmore et al. (5) have studied the bovine hypophysis in relation to breed, age, milk production, and sex. They studied the gland by making statistical analyses of cell counts on comparable sections of the gland. They described an acidophil that seemed to be related to the sexual activity of the animal. Friedman and Hall (3) and Smelser (10), studying the pituitary of the steer, reported higher concentrations of gonadotrophin in the central core and of prolactin in the peripheral zone of the anterior lobe. These differences in the concentrations of hormones were not noted in the pituitaries of cows. Bassett (1) reported that the small basophil cells were virtually absent in steer glands but were increased and prominent in cows treated with stilbestrol and in pregnant
Numerical diffusion for flow-aligned unstructured grids with application to estuarine modeling

SUMMARY The benefits of unstructured grids in hydrodynamic models are well understood but in many cases lead to greater numerical diffusion compared with methods available on structured grids. The flexible nature of unstructured grids, however, allows for the orientation of the grid to align locally with the dominant flow direction and thus decrease numerical diffusion. We investigate the relationship between grid alignment and diffusive errors in the context of scalar transport in a triangular, unstructured, 3-D hydrodynamic code. Analytical results are presented for the 2-D anisotropic numerical diffusion tensor and verified against idealized simulations. Results from two physically realistic estuarine simulations, differing only in grid alignment, show significant changes in gradients of salinity. Changes in scalar gradients are reflective of reduced numerical diffusion interacting with the complex 3-D structure of the transporting flow. We also describe a method for utilizing flow fields from an unaligned grid to generate a flow-aligned grid with minimal supervision. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Personal Learning Assistant Agents in the Business Process Domain

Each time an employee enters a new business endeavor, he/she is required to learn new tasks and processes. Learning in the workplace can be as simple as learning the task of logging onto your computer and as complex as learning a multi-week business process. Across an enterprise organization, many individuals will be required to learn the same or similar operational processes. Since human beings are unique in there learning styles, it is essential that training techniques be customized to enhance human learning performance across a diverse workforce. Intelligent agents represent an emerging paradigm where adaptive task selection is coupled with autonomous control. Agents represent a promising technology for delivering specialized training to their human counterparts by customizing instructions in multiple modalities. Insight into how an individual learns a specific business process can be used to enhance that business process for the best performance. This paper discusses the rationale for a personal learning assistant agent customized for business processes.
A GEOMETRIC APPROACH TO STRAIN-DISPLA CEMENT MAPPING FOR SPACE TRUSS STRUCTURES

A strain-displacement mapping algorithm has been developed to estimate the deformation of space truss structures using the measurements of strains of individual struts. The algorithm relies solely on the geometry of the structure and does not require any knowledge of the material properties or dynamic characteristics of the structure. This algorithm is expected to be useful in estimating deformation of long booms which are employed to enhance the accuracy of the Global Positioning System based attitude determination systems. To examine the performance of the algorithm, experimental studies were conducted using a laboratory truss. The results indicate that the algorithm is capable of estimating accurately the displacements at various locations in the truss under static, dynamic and thermal loads. In order to reduce the number of strain gauges required, a sensor placement strategy was also investigated.
Experiments—Decision Spaces

The basic structure which underlies most of the present notes, as well as a large part of what is called decision theory, is a mathematical abstraction intended to represent an “experiment”.
Competition in State Supreme Court Elections, 1946-2009

There has been much debate over changes in state supreme court elections. However, most of the research that debate refers to considers a relatively short time span. This paper reports an analysis of contestation and competitiveness in state supreme elections for the entire post-World War II period. The paper considers both primary and general elections (other than retention elections). The central finding of the paper is that outside the South there has in fact been surprising little change, either in whether incumbents are challenged for reelection or in the competitiveness of the elections that are contested (looking separately at open seat elections and elections involving incumbents). The analysis suggests that the apparent increase in contestation and competitiveness reflects factors other than changes to the nature of campaigns and expenditures on state supreme court elections; specifically, those changes are largely a product of the end of the one-party South.
Big impact of microRNAs on central B cell tolerance.

The silencing of autoreactive immature B cells is regulated by the binding of self antigens to B cell antigen receptors. New findings show that microRNAs control mechanisms of B cell tolerance.
A NEW RAPID IMMUNOFLUORESCENT STAINING TECHNIQUE FOR IDENTIFICATION OF TREPONEMA PALLIDUM AND NEISSERIA GONORRHOEAE.

SummaryAn immunofluorescent staining technique has been devoloped which specifically stains T. pallidum or N. gonorrhoeae in less than one minute. Application of the technique to direct smears of either organism has demonstrated its practicability as a diagnostic tool.
TU-B-201-01: An Overview of TG-180

Radiotherapy is in the era of image guided radiation therapy (IGRT) in which imaging procedures are routinely performed for patient positioning, and target localization. The additional imaging dose delivered may increase risk to the patient and therefore needs to be managed. This lecture provides an overview of the AAPM TG-180 which is charged with: providing an overview on imaging dose including megavoltage electronic portal imaging (MV EPI), kilovoltage digital radiography (kV DR), Tomotherapy MV-CT, megavoltage cone-beam CT (MV-CBCT) and kilovoltage cone-beam CT (kV-CBCT) as well as providing general guidelines for commissioning and managing imaging dose calculations. The dose to radiotherapy (RT) patients resulting from different image guidance procedures is reviewed and recommendations for managing the imaging dose are provided. Different techniques for reducing the image guidance dose are summarized. A recommended threshold beyond which imaging dose should be considered in the treatment planning process is discussed. This lecture also discusses kilovoltage imaging dose determination by calculation and estimation, and inclusion in treatment planning as well as accounting for MV imaging dose and the future of MV imaging. Learning Objectives: 1. Learn the different image guidance modalities, typical organ doses resulting from different image procedures, and techniques to reduce the imaging dose; 2. Understand the imaging dose threshold and rationale for accounting for the imaging dose; 3. Learn how to account for kV imaging dose 4. Learn how to account for MV imaging dose and understand the future of MV imaging
Islam and the Americas

Islam and the Americas is part of the series New World Diasporas, edited by Kelvin A. Yelvington, which engages critical perspectives on diaspora in the New World and concomitant issues such as ide...
Acceptability of a telecare intervention for persistent musculoskeletal pain.

IntroductionPersistent musculoskeletal pain is a prevalent, disabling, and often undertreated condition. This paper examines the acceptability of a telecare intervention for this condition.MethodsThe Stepped Care to Optimize Pain Care Effectiveness (SCOPE) intervention couples automatic symptom monitoring (ASM) with optimized analgesic care management by a nurse-physician team. Data from participants in the telecare intervention arm (n = 124) of a randomized control trial of SCOPE were analysed to determine the acceptability of the telecare intervention as indicated by patient use and satisfaction.ResultsMost (93.5%) patients completed at least one ASM report, selecting equally web-based (49%) or interactive voice-recorded (51%) reporting. The median number of ASM reports and nurse contacts per patient was 15 and 12, respectively. Of 12 demographic and clinical factors examined, none predicted the number of ASM reports, whereas nurse contacts were more frequent in patients with higher pain severity or rec...
Teaching Psychotherapy with Phaedrus

Phaedrus has come from a meeting with his teacher, Lysias, who delivered a speech to his students on love. Socrates believes that Lysias is attracted to Phaedrus and is trying to make an argument as to why it would be better for the young Phaedrus to be sexual with older Lysias. Socrates delivers two speeches that are starkly opposed to Lysias’. Love and sexual attraction can lift the souls involved to better places. Further, words should be used to liberate souls from ignorance. Words, Socrates believes, can really help. Students also read sections from the introductory textbook where they learn about various modern techniques for using words to help. Students compare and contrast Socrates’ view of helping with more modern views.
Abstract 16203: Deletion of Foxp Repressors Induces Rapid-Onset Cardiomyopathy in Adult Mice

Transcriptomic studies in the human and murine heart have demonstrated that forkhead (FOX) binding motifs are enriched within the promoters of regulated heart failure genes, but a functional link between FOX repressors and adult heart failure has not been established. Here we demonstrate that disruption of Foxp signaling in the adult heart is sufficient to cause heart failure. Quantitative RT-PCR studies in isolated myocytes demonstrate that Foxp1 and Foxp4 are among the most highly expressed FOX transcription factors (TFs) in myocytes. As these TFs are known to repress transcription via formation of homo- and hetero-dimers, we used the MerCreMer system to delete both factors in the adult mouse heart. We created tamoxifen- inducible cardiac-specific knockout (KO) mice (alphaMHC-MerCreMer het /Foxp1 flox/flox /Foxp4 flox/flox ) and, to account for potential nonspecific Cre-mediated cardiotoxicity, we compared them to alphaMHC-MerCreMer het controls. After treatment with intraperitoneal tamoxifen at ∼3 months of age, controls remained normal, but KO animals developed signs of heart failure and a profound cardiomyopathy characterized by a drop in ejection fraction (KO 27 % vs. control 55%; p
Atomic layer deposition surface functionalized biochar for adsorption of organic pollutants: improved hydrophilia and adsorption capacity

Atomic layer deposition (ALD) thin film coating was applied to improve the hydrophilia of biochar derived from black willow. 2 (2Al, 0.82 wt% Al2O3), 5 (5Al, 1.40 wt% Al2O3), and 10 (10Al, 2.36 wt% Al2O3) cycles of alumina ALD were applied. The biochars were characterized by inductively coupled plasma–atomic emission spectroscopy, nitrogen adsorption and desorption, scanning electron microscopy, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The adsorbents were utilized for the removal of methylene blue (MB) from an aqueous solution to evaluate their adsorption capacities. The 5Al biochar showed the highest adsorption capacity, compared to the uncoated biochar and other Al2O3 coated biochars, due to its improved hydrophilia. The amount of MB adsorbed onto the 5Al biochar was almost three times that adsorbed onto the uncoated biochar during the first hour of adsorption experiments. Adsorption isotherms were modeled with the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms. The data fit well with the Langmuir isotherm, and the maximum adsorption capacities were found to be 26.8 and 35.0 mg/g at 25 °C for the uncoated biochar and 5Al biochar, respectively. The adsorbed MB amount per square meter achieved 1.3 mg/m2 onto the 5Al biochar, and it was twice the amount on the uncoated biochar. The experimental data were analyzed by pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order kinetics models of adsorption. The pseudo-second-order model better describes adsorption kinetic data for the uncoated biochar and 5Al biochar than the pseudo-first-order model does.
Compressively Sampled Two-Dimensional Infrared Spectroscopy That Preserves Line Shape Information

Two-dimensional infrared (2D IR) spectroscopy is a powerful tool to investigate molecular structures and dynamics on femtosecond to picosecond time scales and is applied to diverse systems. Current technologies allow for the acquisition of a single 2D IR spectrum in a few tens of milliseconds using a pulse shaper and an array detector, but demanding applications require spectra for many waiting times and involve considerable signal averaging, resulting in data acquisition times that can be many days or weeks of laboratory measurement time. Using compressive sampling, we show that we can reduce the time for collection of a 2D IR data set in a particularly demanding application from 8 to 2 days, a factor of 4×, without changing the apparatus and while accurately reproducing the line-shape information that is most relevant to this application. This result is a potent example of the potential of compressive sampling to enable challenging new applications of 2D IR.
Impact of multiple-path interference on the performance of coherent transmission systems employing distributed Raman amplification

It is well known that distributed Raman amplification (DRA) may suffer from multiple-path interference, which is mainly due to double back-reflections (DBR) at discontinuities such as connectors/splices and double Rayleigh backscattering (DRB) within the fiber amplifier. In this work, the impact of DBR and DRB noise on the system performance is analytically assessed for standard single mode and large effective area low loss fiber links employing PDM-16QAM and DRA. Performance prediction errors due to negligence of DRB noise are estimated, and operation criteria are provided for mitigating back-reflection induced impairments.
The Growing Need for Diverse Blood Donors

: Research shows that phenotype matching can improve the outcomes of people who receive repeated transfusions. In addition, the demographics of the United States are shifting, and more ethnically and racially diverse donors are needed. These factors have health implications and require ongoing efforts to ensure a safe and adequate U.S. blood supply. Nurses can help to develop and implement strategies to increase the number and diversity of blood donors, ensuring donations better match the needs of transfusion recipients daily and in the event of a public health emergency.
The ODC 3′-Untranslated Region and 5′-Untranslated Region Contain cis-Regulatory Elements: Implications for Carcinogenesis

It has been hypothesized that both the 3'-untranslated region (3'UTR) and the 5'-untranslated region (5'UTR) of the ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) mRNA influence the expression of the ODC protein. Here, we use luciferase expression constructs to examine the influence of both UTRs in keratinocyte derived cell lines. The ODC 5'UTR or 3'UTR was cloned into the pGL3 control vector upstream or downstream of the luciferase reporter gene, respectively, and luciferase activity was measured in both non-tumorigenic and tumorigenic mouse keratinocyte cell lines. Further analysis of the influence of the 3'UTR on luciferase activity was accomplished through site-directed mutagenesis and distal deletion analysis within this region. Insertion of either the 5'UTR or 3'UTR into a luciferase vector resulted in a decrease in luciferase activity when compared to the control vector. Deletion analysis of the 3'UTR revealed a region between bases 1969 and 2141 that was inhibitory, and mutating residues within that region increased luciferase activity. These data suggest that both the 5'UTR and 3'UTR of ODC contain cis-acting regulatory elements that control intracellular ODC protein levels.
Orbit-Based Mobility

The semi-deterministic orbit-based mobility model that is based on macro-level sociological orbits involving a set of hubs is described. We also present a series of sociological orbit-aware location approximation and routing algorithms, which leverage upon the underlying orbital mobility information to efficiently route data within a MANET. In addition, the theoretical analysis of the SOLAR framework has been presented and has been supported with extensive simulation results.
Nutrient Translocation in the Outer Canopy and Understory of an Eastern Deciduous Forest

The translocation of nutrients into and out of outer canopy leaves of ten eastern deciduous forest species was calculated from the temporal patterns of foliar nutrient pools sampled through a growing season. The calculations accounted for average chemical leaching effects due to rainfall. There were no significant differences in translocation rate between species within the evergreen, understory, or overstory-deciduous tree groups. Evergreen species had lower translocation rates than deciduous trees. Translocation rates into leaves of deciduous species showed a very rapid increase during spring; however, by late May, foliar phosphorus was being translocated at a slow rate back to stems. A similar trend was established for nitrogen by mid-June. An internal storage pool is suggested as the major source of foliar nitrogen during the spring flush since a simulation of nitrogen uptake from soil could only account for one-fourth of the quantity of nitrogen transported to leaves by the end of May. Simulation further showed that trace levels of soluble nitrogen (0.01 ppm) in soil were sufficient to supply a deciduous forest with an estimated nitrogen uptake of 100 kg N ha/sup -1/ year/sup -1/.
An Example of Seminegative Curvature

The present chapter gives a prototype for a Cartan-Hadamard manifold, so complete, with seminegative curvature, simply connected, namely the space of symmetric positive definite real matrices of a given dimension. The example is obtained by “bending” a flat euclidean space by an exponential map. The chapter is essentially elementary, and could be read after the reader is acquainted with Riemannian metrics.
Forward chaining logic programming with the ATMS

Two powerful reasoning tools have recently appeared, logic programming and assumption-based truth maintenance systems (ATMS). An ATMS offers significant advantages to a problem solver: assumptions are easily managed and the search for solutions can be carried out in the most general context first and in any order. Logic programming allows us to program a problem solver declaratively--describe what the problem is, rather than describe how to solve the problem. However, we are currently limited when using an ATMS with our problem solvers, because we are forced to describe the problem in terms of a simple language of forward implications. In this paper we present a logic programming language, called FORLOG, that raises the level of programming the ATMS to that of a powerful logic programming language. FORLOG supports the use of "logical variables" and both forward and backward reasoning. FORLOG programs are compiled into a data-flow language (similar to the RETE network) that efficiently implements deKleer's consumer architecture. FORLOG has been implemented in Interlisp-D.
Probing Substrate Preferences of Depalmitoylases.

Depalmitoylases play a crucial role in regulating dynamic protein palmitoylation. In this issue of Cell Chemical Biology, Amara et al. (2019) present fluorogenic peptide probes to analyze the activity and substrate specificity of depalmitoylases and uncover that the amino acid residues distal to the palmitoylation site could regulate depalmitoylases activities.
Theoretical Model for Solvent-Induced Base Stacking Interactions in Solvent-Free DNA Simulations

Ultrahigh-throughput conformational sampling of biopolymers like nucleic acids are most effectively carried out without explicit solvents, but the physical origins of almost all inter- and intramolecular interactions controlling nucleic acid structures are rooted in water. Single-stranded (ss) DNAs or RNAs in water are characterized by ensembles of diverse conformations. To properly capture solvent-induced nucleobase stacking interactions in an otherwise solvent-free Monte Carlo algorithm, theoretical models are developed here to describe the solvent entropy and dispersion terms in base stacking free energies. To validate these models, equilibrium ensembles of ss (dA) n and (dT) n sequences ( n = 30, 40, and 50) were simulated, and they quantitatively reproduced experimental small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) data. Simulated dA ensembles show substantial stacking. While less prevalent, stacking in dT chains is not negligible. Analysis of SAXS profiles suggests that excess features between wavevector 0.03 and 0.18 A-1 correlate with stacking, and stacking in dA versus dT chains is chain length-dependent, where (dT)30 and (dA)30 chains have more similar structures, but longer dA chains show more stacking over dT. The average stack length in ss-dA chains is 5-10 nucleotides, yielding an estimate for the overall A|A stacking free energy at ∼1 kcal/mol.
Understanding Team Learning Dynamics Over Time

Organizations depend on the learning capabilities of teams in order to be competitive in today's information-laden business landscape. Hence, it is not surprising that there have been tremendous efforts made to understand team learning within the past two decades. These efforts, however, have produced a cluttered literature-base that overlooks a fundamental aspect of team learning: How do teams learn over time? In this paper, we first synthesize the literature to develop a shared vocabulary to understand team learning dynamics. We then leverage research investigating how teams operate within the context of time (e.g., team development, performance cycles, emergent state development) and combine it with the extant team learning literature in developing an unfolding model of team learning. This comprehensive model addresses a noticeable gap in the extant literature by illustrating how teams learn over time. Finally, we put forth three grand challenges for the future of team learning research.
Local Privacy and Minimax Bounds: Sharp Rates for Probability Estimation

We provide a detailed study of the estimation of probability distributions— discrete and continuous—in a stringent setting in which data is kept private even from the statistician. We give sharp minimax rates of convergence for estimation in these locally private settings, exhibiting fundamental trade-offs between privacy and convergence rate, as well as providing tools to allow movement along the privacy-statistical efficiency continuum. One of the consequences of our results is that Warner's classical work on randomized response is an optimal way to perform survey sampling while maintaining privacy of the respondents.
Evaluating The Ocean Cleanup, a Marine Debris Removal Project in the North Pacific Gyre, Using SWOT Analysis

Plastic pollution in oceans, also known as marine debris, is a growing problem at local and global scales. Anthropogenic marine debris poses a serious threat to many marine species, both through physical harm such as ingestion or entanglement and by carrying toxins and pathogens. This debris accumulates in oceanic gyres, concentrating these effects in some specific areas. In addition, marine debris may have devastating impacts on tourism and fishing-based economies, especially where ocean currents direct this debris. Recently, a nonprofit organization called The Ocean Cleanup proposed the first large-scale in situ marine debris removal project. The Ocean Cleanup is a project attempting to use large, floating, semi-fixed screens to harness ocean currents and accumulate debris, where it can be efficiently collected and disposed of or recycled. The project currently is working on implementing itself in the “Great Pacific Garbage Patch,” in the North Pacific Gyre. We examine this project case, as it is the first organization attempting to clean up marine debris at this scale. Understanding the potential efficacy and limitations of The Ocean Cleanup Project as a case study can give critical insights into how other projects could be created in the future to address marine plastic pollution worldwide. Using SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis to assess a marine debris cleanup can inform both a nuanced evaluation of the specific case as well as provide a means to explore marine debris as a complex, global environmental problem.
25.78-Gbit/s Burst-mode Receiver for 50G-EPON OLT

We report the world's first receiver optical sub-assembly equipped with 25G burstmode TIA which is applicable for 50G-EPON OLT transceiver. We demonstrate its 25G/10G dual-rate burst-mode receiver characteristics.
Why Consumers’ ‘New Power’ Will Change Marketing:

Because the sharing economy compels firm-stakeholder dynamics towards a multi-stakeholder market orientation (MSMO), the structures and power dynamics of sharing-economy firms differ markedly from ...
Flattening the learning curve of leadership development: reflections of five women higher education leaders during the Coronavirus pandemic of 2020

For an adult, non-traditional student focused college, the pandemic brought into stark reality the challenges that the dislocation brought ‘home,’ literally, for many people. This article presents ...
Making room for neutral affect: Evidence indicating that neutral affect is independent of and co-occurs with eight affective states

This project investigates four central issues concerning the nature of neutral affect. Specifically, whether neutral affect is (a) a common experience, (b) dependent on positive and negative affect, (c) occurs at all levels of activation, and (d) is discriminable from other, seemingly similar, affective states. In three studies, participants rated their neutral affect (e.g., feeling indifferent) and affective states that occupy major regions of the affective circumplex. First, neutral affect was a commonly reported experience. Second, neutral affect was independent of and co-occurred with both positive and negative affect, as well as all the other affective states. Third, the activation measures were problematic. The tentative data indicated that neutral affect occurred across the activation dimension, but it was more reflective of a deactivated than activated state. Finally, neutral affect was discriminable from both negative and positive deactivated states. The paper concludes by providing some methodological and theoretical recommendations regarding the conceptualization of neutral affect.
Intraoperative diagnosis and treatment of Achalasia using EndoFLIP during Heller Myotomy and Dor fundoplication.

Manometry is the gold standard diagnostic test for achalasia. However, there are incidences where manometry cannot be obtained preoperatively, or the results of manometry is inconsistent with the patient's symptomatology. We aim to determine if intraoperative use of EndoFLIP can provide a diagnosis of achalasia and provide objective information during Heller myotomy and Dor fundoplication. To determine the intraoperative diagnostic EndoFLIP values for patients with achalasia, we determined the optimal cut-off points of the distensibility index (DI) between patients with a diagnosis of achalasia and patients with a diagnosis of hiatal hernia. To evaluate the usefulness of EndoFLIP values during Heller myotomy and Dor fundoplication, we obtained a cohort of patients with EndoFLIP values obtained after Heller myotomy and after Dor fundoplication as well as Eckardt score before and after surgery. Our analysis of 169 patients (133 hiatal hernia and 36 achalasia) showed that patients with DI 99% probability of having achalasia, while DI > 2.3 have a >99% probability of having hiatal hernia. Patients with a DI 0.8–1.3 have a 95% probability of having achalasia, and patients with a DI of 1.4–2.2 have a 94% probability of having a hiatal hernia. There were 40 patients in the cohort to determine objective data during Heller myotomy and Dor fundoplication. The DI increased from a median of 0.7 to 3.2 after myotomy and decreased to 2.2 after Dor fundoplication (p < 0.001). The median Eckardt score went down from a median of 4.5 to 0 (p < 0.001). Our study shows that intraoperative use of EndoFLIP can facilitate the diagnosis of achalasia and is used as an adjunct to diagnose achalasia when symptoms are inconsistent. The routine use of EndoFLIP during Heller myotomy and Dor fundoplication provides objective data during the operation in a group of patients with excellent short-term outcomes.
Intersectionality for Contextualizing Teachers’ Work in Transnational Education Policy Research

The article argues for intersectionality as analytical concept for transnational education policy analyses of teachers’ work. We first lay out the conceptual and methodological groundwork, and then...
YOU’RE NICKED: INVESTIGATING BRITISH TELEVISION POLICE SERIES. By Ben Lamb. Manchester UP, 2020. 232 pp. $120 hardcover.

This highly focused book works through British television’s engagement with the police procedural genre, a mainstay of many national traditions. Ben Lamb makes careful distinctions about the geneal...
Utopia and civilization in the Arab Nahda: by Peter Hill, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2020, 308 pp., $99.99 (hardback), ISBN: 9781108491662

Over the past 20 years, scholars of the Arab Middle East have increasingly turned to the Nahda-defined in Peter Hill’s erudite and thought-provoking book as ‘the Arab cultural and intellectual “rev...
End of Life (Forensic Issues)

Advancements in clinical care have the potential to prolong survival and, at times, dramatically improve one's quality of life during the days, weeks, or months leading up to death. Yet these advancements have engendered considerable controversy regarding the optimal or appropriate implementation of the available alternatives. Important forensic issues that arise at the end of life include the use of advanced directives, the right to refuse or terminate life-sustaining treatment, and in many jurisdictions, the choice to use physician-assisted suicide or euthanasia to hasten one's death. Surrounding each of these potential interventions are questions as to when and how to determine whether individual patients possess the requisite capacity to make a legally valid (i.e., “informed”) decision regarding these options. The analysis and application of these potential end-of-life interventions necessitates a balance between preserving the decision-making autonomy of terminally ill patients while identifying and protecting that subset of individuals who may have impaired decision-making capacity. Keywords: forensic psychology; health psychology; suicide; death; decision making; euthanasia