cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Bayesian logistic regression in detection of gene-steroid interaction for cancer at PDLIM5 locus.

The PDZ and LIM domain 5 (PDLIM5) gene may play a role in cancer, bipolar disorder, major depression, alcohol dependence and schizophrenia; however, little is known about the interaction effect of steroid and PDLIM5 gene on cancer. This study examined 47 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within the PDLIM5 gene in the Marshfield sample with 716 cancer patients (any diagnosed cancer, excluding minor skin cancer) and 2848 noncancer controls. Multiple logistic regression model in PLINK software was used to examine the association of each SNP with cancer. Bayesian logistic regression in PROC GENMOD in SAS statistical software, ver. 9.4 was used to detect gene–steroid interactions influencing cancer. Single marker analysis using PLINK identified 12 SNPs associated with cancer (P < 0.05); especially, SNP rs6532496 revealed the strongest association with cancer (P = 6.84 × 10−3); while the next best signal was rs951613 (P = 7.46 × 10−3). Classic logistic regression in PROC GENMOD showed that both rs6532496 and rs951613 revealed strong gene–steroid interaction effects (OR = 2.18, 95% CI = 1.31−3.63 with P = 2.9 × 10−3 for rs6532496 and OR = 2.07, 95% CI = 1.24 −3.45 with P = 5.43 × 10−3 for rs951613, respectively). Results from Bayesian logistic regression showed stronger interaction effects (OR = 2.26, 95% CI = 1.2 −3.38 for rs6532496 and OR = 2.14, 95% CI = 1.14 −3.2 for rs951613, respectively). All the 12 SNPs associated with cancer revealed significant gene–steroid interaction effects (P < 0.05); whereas 13 SNPs showed gene–steroid interaction effects without main effect on cancer. SNP rs4634230 revealed the strongest gene–steroid interaction effect (OR = 2.49, 95% CI = 1.5 −4.13 with P = 4.0 × 10−4 based on the classic logistic regression and OR = 2.59, 95% CI = 1.4 −3.97 from Bayesian logistic regression; respectively). This study provides evidence of common genetic variants within the PDLIM5 gene and interactions between PLDIM5 gene polymorphisms and steroid use influencing cancer.
WE-AB-BRB-02: Methods and Applications of 3D Radiochromic Dosimetry

Despite widespread IMRT treatments at modern radiation therapy clinics, precise dosimetric commissioning of an IMRT system remains a challenge. In the most recent report from the Radiological Physics Center (RPC), nearly 20% of institutions failed an end-to-end test with an anthropomorphic head and neck phantom, a test that has rather lenient dose difference and distance-to-agreement criteria of 7% and 4 mm. The RPC report provides strong evidence that IMRT implementation is prone to error and that improved quality assurance tools are required. At the heart of radiation therapy dosimetry is the multidimensional dosimeter. However, due to the limited availability of water-equivalent dosimetry materials, research and development in this important field is challenging. In this session, we will review a few dosimeter developments that are either in the laboratory phase or in the pre-commercialization phase. 1) Radiochromic plastic. Novel formulations exhibit light absorbing optical contrast with very little scatter, enabling faster, broad beam optical CT design. 2) Storage phosphor. After irradiation, the dosimetry panels will be read out using a dedicated 2D scanning apparatus in a non-invasive, electro-optic manner and immediately restored for further use. 3) Liquid scintillator. Scintillators convert the energy from x-rays and proton beams into visible light, which can be recorded with a scientific camera (CCD or CMOS) from multiple angles. The 3D shape of the dose distribution can then be reconstructed. 4) Cherenkov emission imaging. Gated intensified imaging allows video-rate passive detection of Cherenkov emission during radiation therapy with the room lights on. Learning Objectives: 1.To understand the physics of a variety of dosimetry techniques based upon optical imaging 2.To investigate the strategies to overcome respective challenges and limitations 3.To explore novel ideas of dosimeter design Supported in part by NIH Grants R01CA148853, R01CA182450, R01CA109558. Brian Pogue is founder and president of the company DoseOptics LLC, dedicated to developing and commercializing the first dedicated Cerenkov imaging camera and system for radiation dose imaging. Work reported in this talk does not involve the use of DoseOptics technology.; H. Li, this work was supported in part by NIH Grant No. R01CA148853; S. Beddar, NIH funding R01-CA182450
Serum creatine kinase does not predict ectopic pregnancy

Objective To evaluate the discriminatory ability of maternal serum creatine kinase (SCK) as a test for ectopic pregnancy (EP). Design Serum creatine kinase concentrations were obtained prospectively from symptomatic patients being evaluated for early abnormal pregnancy. Serum creatine kinase concentrations from all patients and from a subset of these patients with maternal serum β -hCG concentrations Setting A university hospital emergency room. Patients Fifty-six patients with intrauterine gestations (25 with β -hCG concentrations β -hCG concentrations Results For all patients and the subgroup with β -hCG concentrations β- hCG concentrations β- hCG values Conclusions Maternal SCK concentrations do not reliably predict EP.
A Bipartisan Election Reform? Explaining Support for Online Voter Registration in the American States:

Online voter registration (OVR) is an election reform that has recently taken hold in more than half of the American states. Election administration observers have marveled at both the rapid diffusion and bipartisan support associated with legislative passage of OVR. We examine the likelihood a lawmaker voted in favor or against OVR in legislatures approving the reform. Despite the leading narrative of both parties overwhelmingly embracing OVR, we find that lawmaker support is clearly rooted in political calculations. Most prominent is a partisan divide, with Republicans in polarized legislatures with a Democratic majority decidedly less supportive of OVR. In addition, a host of contextual factors tied to the variation in partisan and electoral power affect the probability a state legislator votes in favor of this reform. We argue that the near-consensus position of Democrats (more than 90% voted “yea” on OVR) and the impressive supermajority of Republicans backing OVR (greater than 70%) have diverted att...
Viability Analysis for Endangered Metapopulations: A Diffusion Approximation Approach

Publisher Summary This chapter uses the diffusion approximation approach to model the long-run behavior of spatially structured populations. The focus is on stochastic metapopulations characterized by structured population size, density-independent local dynamics, and in keeping with the assumption of density independence, a metapopulation that is declining as a whole. The local populations are assumed to have patch-specific structured local dynamics and dispersal rates, with spatial structure among local populations in terms of both their local dynamics and dispersal patterns. The description of the long-run statistical behavior of the metapopulation trajectories using a diffusion approximation allows the estimation of population viability analysis (PVA) risk metrics such as the long-term rate of metapopulation decline and the probability of reaching different threshold declines over different time horizons (i.e., probabilities of extinction or quasi-extinction). These methods for estimating the metapopulation PVA metrics are illustrated using data from two chinook salmon metapopulations in the US Pacific Northwest.
Poems, Second Series (1854), Merope (1857), On Translating Homer (1861), The Popular Education of France (1861)

Arnold’s sensitivity concerning ‘Sohrab and Rustum’ during the composition process and his eagerness to seize upon praise of the poem after its publication revealed his anxiety about the new direction he was taking in his poetry. The years 1853–7 can be seen as an interregnum in his literary career. In 1853 Arnold was primarily a poet; four years later he would begin the prose phase of his career in earnest. This was not a calculated change, however. Arnold had every intention of vigorously pursuing his new poetic program as announced in the 1853 Preface. Once more he wrestled with his Lucretius materials to no avail, but by early October 1854 he had completed a poem which he thought ‘will consolidate the peculiar sort of reputation that I got by Sohrab and Rustum’ (SL 95). Again he had turned to legend and myth for his subject, basing ‘Balder Dead’ on the story of the Scandinavian sun god Balder from the Edda of Snorri Sturluson, through the French version given by Paul Henri Mallet in Northern Antiquaries.
The Use of Second Life for Deception Detection Research

Detecting deception in natural language is a problem amenable to economic analysis. Economics typically assumes that individuals are self-interested, which leads them to perform actions in accord with their own goals. The field of experimental economics emerged to construct environments wherein human subjects make decisions so as to test economic hypotheses. Experimental economists recently have developed virtual worlds to better situate experiment subjects in more realistic environments. Virtual word experiments represent an exciting new area for deception research as they offer insight into individuals both acting out and communicating in accord with their intentions. This paper describes the use of virtual world experiments for economic research incorporating the detection of deceptive individuals.
A Computer Visualization Model for the De Novo Sphingolipid Biosynthetic Pathway

The de novo biosynthesis pathway for sphingolipids has thousands of individual components. This creates difficulties for scientists who conduct “sphingolipidomic” analysis of cells and must deal with a very large dataset. This article reviews various visualization techniques for large datasets, and introduces a new visualization system for sphingolipid biosynthesis, SphingoViz.
Analytical hydrologic models and the design of policy instruments for groundwater-quality management

This paper explores how analytical hydrologic models can inform the effective design and choice of policy instruments to manage groundwater quality by coupling a social-planner’s problem of optimal groundwater-quality management with analytical solutions from the hydrology literature. A theoretical analysis is performed in order to characterize the properties of an optimal emissions policy. The model is then applied in a numerical analysis of groundwater contamination by chloride from highway deicers, demonstrating the relevance of the theoretical results to practical management settings. This analytical approach can help determine which policy instruments are likely to be effective in controlling groundwater pollution, especially if costly numerical groundwater models are not available for the aquifer in question. Unlike previous economic studies of groundwater contamination, this approach defines optimal emissions policies as a function of geophysical parameters employed by hydrologists such as distance between source and sink, groundwater velocity, and aquifer dispersivity. The theoretical section of this paper also demonstrates that the relationship between geophysical parameters and optimal emissions levels may be ambiguous.
Thematic linking in Hausa asymmetric coordination

This paper investigates "asymmetric coordination" in Nigerian Hausa. A range of constructions is presented in which asymmetric coordination occurs, and their syntactic and semantic properties are established. A "regularizing" analysis is considered, in which asymmetric coordination is represented as a symmetric coordination headed by an empty category, but this is rejected due to the exceptional distributional properties which would have to be assumed for the construction. An interpretive analysis is proposed which has the effect of incorporating the feature information of an independent NP marked by a "linker" into a dependent plural argument, and symmetric and asymmetric coordination are distinguished as involving interpretive operations of set union and set unification, respectively.
Issues in Global Environmental Monitoring

A recent study by the National Academy of Sciences indicated that man’s activities definitely have an impact on the face of the Earth. Ten percent of the entire land surface is used for cultivation to grow crops and 30 percent of the Earth’s land surface is under some form of use by man. Prior to the dawn of the industrial age when we substituted machines for human and animal power, our ability to influence our global neighbors was limited but at the time of the industrial revolution and at an accelerating pace since then, our activities can influence our neighbors thousands of kilometers away from us.
Resistant pathogens as causes of traveller's diarrhea globally and impact(s) on treatment failure and recommendations.

Background : Diarrhea is a frequent clinical syndrome affecting international travellers. Bacterial etiologic agents have a long history of emergent antimicrobial resistance against commonly used antibiotics. Current approaches applying first-line antimicrobial therapy are being challenged by increasingly resistant organisms. This review summarizes recent epidemiological and clinical evidence of antibiotic resistance among enteropathogens causing traveller's diarrhea and the subsequent impact on current treatment recommendations. Methods : The PubMed database was systemically searched for articles related to antibiotic susceptibility and diarrheal pathogens. Results : Antibiotic resistance related to travellers' diarrhea has increased in recent years. Most notably, fluoroquinolone resistance has expanded from the Campylobacter -associated cases well documented in Southeast Asia in the 1990s to widespread occurrence, as well as increases among other common bacterial enteropathogens including, enterotoxigenic and enteroaggregative Escherichia coli , Shigella and non-typhoidal Salmonella . Multidrug resistance among enteropathogenic Enterobacteriacae and Campylobacter species create further challenges with the selection of empiric therapy. Treatment failures requiring early use of alternative agents, as well as delayed recovery comparable to placebo rates emphasize the impact of antimicrobial resistance on effective treatment. Conclusions : Although there are limitations in the available data, the increasing antibiotic resistance and adverse impact on clinical outcome require continued surveillance and reconsideration of practice guidelines.
Unravelling the function of dolphin leaps using the dusky dolphin (Lagenorhynchus obscurus) as a model species

The prevalence of leaping across delphinids indicates it has an adaptive benefit. I examined leaping behaviour in dusky dolphins (Lagenorhynchus obscurus) according to signalling, social facilitation, and prey capture hypotheses. I quantified the effect of leaping on group behaviour and fission-fusion and the behavioural context of leaping. I observed dolphins in Admiralty Bay, New Zealand during 171 focal follows totalling 157 h. Data were analysed using generalized estimating equations. Clean leaping had a positive effect on party fission (p<0.01) and foraging behaviour (p<0.001). Coordinated leaping caused a short-term wane in foraging behaviour (p<0.01) and had a positive effect on party fusion (p<0.05). Noisy leaping had a negative effect on perpetuating resting and traveling cessation (both p<0.001). The signalling hypothesis was the most strongly supported. The social facilitation and prey capture hypotheses were moderately supported. Leaping may provide adaptive benefits such as reduced scramble competition, increased foraging efficiency, and social bonding.
SLC7A11 Overexpression in Glioblastoma Is Associated with Increased Cancer Stem Cell-Like Properties.

System x_c^− is a sodium-independent electroneutral transporter, comprising a catalytic subunit xCT (SLC7A11), which is involved in importing cystine. Certain cancers such as gliomas upregulate the expression of system x_c^−, which confers a survival advantage against the detrimental effects of reactive oxygen species (ROS) by increasing generation of the antioxidant glutathione. However, ROS have also been shown to function as targeted, intracellular second messengers in an array of physiological processes such as proliferation. Several studies have implicated ROS in important cancer features such as migration, invasion, and contribution to a cancer stem cell (CSC)-like phenotype. The role of system x_c^− in regulating these ROS-sensitive processes in glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), the most aggressive malignant primary brain tumor in adults, remains unknown. Stable SLC7A11 knockdown and overexpressing U251 glioma cells were generated and characterized to understand the role of redox and system x_c^− in glioma progression. SLC7A11 knockdown resulted in higher endogenous ROS levels and enhanced invasive properties. On the contrary, overexpression of SLC7A11 resulted in decreased endogenous ROS levels as well as decreased migration and invasion. However, SLC7A11-overexpressing cells displayed actin cytoskeleton changes reminiscent of epithelial-like cells and exhibited an increased CSC-like phenotype. The enhanced CSC-like phenotype may contribute to increased chemoresistance and suggests that overexpression of SLC7A11 in the context of GBM may contribute to tumor progression. These findings have important implications for cancer management where targeting system x_C^− in combination with other chemotherapeutics can reduce cancer resistance and recurrence and improve GBM patient survival.
Commitments and weak resolve

Weak resolve can make agents forgo normatively desirable commitments and succumb to temptations later. Anticipating such failures, agents may use strategies like promises or deadlines to help themselves make proper commitments before temptations strike. We identify such behaviors via a three-period extension of Gul and Pesendorfer’s (Econometrica 69:1403–1435, 2001) model. Our main utility representation portrays an agent who is confident ex ante about her normative goals, but her resolve wavers at the interim stage leading her to relax these goals toward future temptations and possibly other directions. All components of our representations are derived in an essentially unique way from axioms imposed on choice behavior.
Selective Hydrogenation of Acrolein to Propanal on a Pseudomorphic Pt/Ru(001) Bimetallic Surface

The selective hydrogenation of acrolein has been studied on different pseudomorphic Pt/Ru(001) bimetallic surfaces with platinum coverages of 0.28, 1.1, and 3.7 ML, using temperature-programmed reaction spectroscopy (TPRS), reflection absorption infrared spectroscopy (RAIRS), and Auger electron spectroscopy (AES). The submonolayer (0.28 ML) Pt/Ru(001) surface was found to be inactive towards acrolein hydrogenation and behaves mostly like a clean Ru(001) surface with the platinum layers enhancing the decarbonylation and decomposition pathways. The multilayer (3.7 ML) Pt/Ru(001) surface behaved like a Pt(111) surface with the acrolein mostly decomposing to CO and surface carbon with no observable hydrogenation activity. However, the 1 ML Pt/Ru(001) pseudomorphic surface was found to display properties different from those of Ru(001) and Pt(111) surfaces with the desorption of propanal, the only hydrogenation product, around 330 K, and propylene around 370 K. A submonolayer (0.67 ML) PtRu/Ru(001) alloy system prepared to study the effect of surface mixing (with small amounts of subsurface platinum) gave results similar to those of surface platinum at submonolayer coverages. This suggests that, at submonolayer coverages, there is little difference in the properties of these surfaces with respect to the location of the platinum atoms in the Pt/Ru(001) system.
Leucocyte telomere shortening is associated with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease-related advanced fibrosis.

BACKGROUND & AIM Telomere length and telomerase have been linked with cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. However, the impact of telomere length on nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and advanced fibrosis in a large national population sample is not well understood. METHODS Cross-sectional data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999-2002 were utilized. Suspected nonalcoholic fatty liver disease was diagnosed if serum alanine aminotransferase was >30 IU/L for men and >19 IU/L for women in the absence of other causes of chronic liver disease. Presence of advanced fibrosis was determined by the nonalcoholic fatty liver disease fibrosis score, aspartate aminotransferase to platelet ratio index and FIB-4 score. RESULTS Of the 6738 participants (mean age 46.3 years, 48.4% male), suspected nonalcoholic fatty liver disease prevalence was inversely associated with leucocyte telomere length in young adults aged 20-39 years, though this was not seen in the overall population. Percentage of participants with advanced fibrosis increased corresponding with leucocyte telomere length (longest to shortest). The shortest quartile of leucocyte telomere length was associated with a significantly higher odds ratio (95% confidence interval) of advanced fibrosis of 2.36 (1.32-4.24) in a univariate model compared to the longest quartile, and 2.01 (1.13-3.58) in a multivariate model adjusted for age, gender, ethnicity, waist circumference, smoking, diabetes, hypertension, total cholesterol and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (P for trend <.05 respectively). CONCLUSIONS In this large nationally representative sample of American adults, leucocyte telomere shortening was associated with increased risk of advanced fibrosis in the setting of suspected nonalcoholic fatty liver disease independent of other known risk factors.
A Comparison Between Subjective and Objective Methods of Predicting Health Care Expenses to Support Consumers’ Health Insurance Plan Choice:

Objective. Numerous electronic tools help consumers select health insurance plans based on their estimated health care utilization. However, the best way to personalize these tools is unknown. The ...
CONTEXTS, CONCEPTS AND CONTENTIONS: GENDER LEGISLATION AS POLITICS IN THE MIDDLE EAST

Debates over gender relevant legislation such as family law have led to serious conflict in many periods of Middle Eastern history, especially in recent times. One way to understand the intensity of the current debates is to recognize that gender issues raise fundamental questions about the relationship between individual and society and the role of states. In this article I argue that, in considering gender relevant legislation in the Middle East, we need to develop a framework that is different from the paradigms anchored in the politics of western liberal democracies in the U.S. and Western Europe. The frame of reference I propose is built upon the following propositions. (1) We should treat gender legislation in the Middle East as an inherently political matter that goes to the heart of the organization of power. Such a perspective opens up the possibility of considering the role of multiple and complex political processes including pressures from below by social movements and top down reforms. (2) We need to reformulate the concepts of tradition and modernity that have pervaded the study of gender in the Islamic world. Tradition and modernity as two distinct, well-defined cultural forms should be dropped altogether. Instead, the discourses of tradition and modernity should be taken as political constructs and the following question should be asked: who benefits from each discourse in given political contexts? (3) The role of kin-based solidarities should be considered in the nexus of conflicts and alliances that shape the process of state formation. The individualistic model of politics in western liberal democracies has limited value for the understanding of political processes in the historical development of the Middle East. The focus should be instead on the role of identities based in communities that define themselves in collective and ascriptive terms of common kinship.
Música y palabras en Nietzsche: Sobre la cuestión de la ciencia, el estilo y la música de la tragedia griega antigua

Partiendo de un analisis de la condicion postuma de la obra nietzscheana, el trabajo desentrana las caracteristicas peculiares de su estilo, por las que pensamiento y lenguaje se hallan imbricados de tal manera que cada obra nietzscheana esta construida calculando muy cuidadosamente los efectos que puede producir en los diversos tipos de lectores. De aqui que el trabajo reexamine tambien las distintas formas basicas de leer y considerar a Nietzsche, alejandose de los dos extremos representados por la tendencia historicista dedicada a resaltar las influencias en la obra nietzscheana, y por la tendencia retoricista que insiste en considerar su obra como un puro juego metaforico. La autora encuentra la mejor via hermeneutica en la consideracion que hace el mismo Nietzsche de como debemos leer la tragedia griega antigua: ‘oyendo con nuestros ojos’, es decir, buscando la musica que hay detras de las palabras.
Military Uses of The Ocean

The oceans have been used for military purposes at least since the times of the early Egyptian Dynasties. Perhaps surprisingly, however, the oceans in a military sense offer some peaceful advantages not found with land-based operations. For example, before radar, two navies could easily pass each other (or even pass through each other) without being aware of each other’s presence. With radar and other methods of detection, this is now rarely possible. Ships nowadays may closely tail or “challenge” each other (like a marine version of chicken) with little chance of this leading to any armed confrontation. In most instances the important thing is who controls the seas or, in other words, who maintains the largest fleet in an area with sufficient logistic backup. Nuclear submarines and their detection are probably the most important aspects of the military use of the sea.
[Detection of co-infection with Lyme spirochetes and Spotted fever group rickettsiae in a group of Haemaphysalis longicornis].

Objective The present study was conducted to investigate the infection of Lyme disease, Spotted fever, Ehrlichiosis (anaplasmosisin) in wild animals and ticks in the mountain areas of Zhejiang province. Methods Nested polymerase chain reaction was used to amplify specific DNA sequences of Lyme spirochetes, Spotted fever group rickettsiae, Ehrlichia (anaplasma) from samples of mice and ticks. Results 14 positive samples were identified from 121 mice and 105 groups of ticks. Among mice samples, one positive 5S-23S rDNA intergenic spacer of Borreia burgdorferi and two 5' fragments of Ehrlichia (anaplasma) 16S rDNA were obtained. 11 positive results were detected from tick samples including three 5S-23S rDNA intergenic spacer regions of Borreia burgdorferi and eight 5' fragments of Spotted fever group rickettsiae outer member protein A gene. One group of adult ticks, Haemaphysalis longicornis, which had been collected from eastern mountain area were detected to have co-infected with Lyme spirochetes and Spotted fever group rickettsiae. The positive sequences of 5S-23S rDNA intergenic spacer and ompA gene were tested and analyzed as Lyme spirochetes while rickettsia which was closely related to Borrelia valaisiana and R. massilliae. Conclusion This was the first report about co-infection of Lyme spirochetes and Spotted fever group rickettsiae found in the same group of adult Haemaphysalis longicornis. It is very important to strengthen the surveillance program on tick-borne infectious disease and their pathogenic in vectors, wild animals and targeted high risk groups and to differentiate the clinical manifestation and diagnosis to extend the knowledge of tick-borne infectious diseases in Zhejiang. Key words: Haemaphysalis longicornis ; Borreia burgdorferi ; Spotted fever group rickettsiae; Co-infection
ALLOZYME VARIATION IN E. COLI OF DIVERSE NATURAL ORIGINS

ABSTRACT . The results of an electrophoretic analysis of allozyme (allelic isozyme) variation at 5 loci in E. coli from diverse natural sources are incompatible with the “neutral” hypothesis, that electrophoretic mobility variation is due largely to the random genetic drift of many adaptively equivalent alleles. The effective number of mobility classes is small, and they are distributed discontinuously over a considerable range. Neither the relationship of charge change to amino acid substitution, nor a sharp reduction in the number of possible equivalent alleles, nor any of the likely spatiotemporal population structures of the species E. coli can provide a way out of this conclusion.
Pareto optimal spectrally selective emitters for thermophotovoltaics via weak absorber critical coupling (Conference Presentation)

Tailoring the emission spectra of a thermophotovoltaic emitter away from that of a blackbody has the potential to minimize transmission and thermalization loss in a photovoltaic receiver. Selective thermophotovoltaic emitters could lead to solar energy conversion with efficiency greater than the Shockley-Queisser limit and could facilitate the generation of useful energy from waste heat. We introduce a new design to radically tune thermal emission that leverages the interplay between two resonant phenomena in a simple planar structure – absorption in weakly-absorbing thin films and reflection in multi-layer dielectric stacks. We will discuss a virtual screening approach based on Pareto optimality to identify a small number of promising structures for a selective thermal emitter from a search space of millions, several of which approach the ideal values of a step-function selective thermal emitter. We will also discuss the experimental realization of several simple and optimal structures, estimates of their device-level performance, and ongoing efforts to close the gap between theoretical estimates and experimentally-realized performance of these structures.
“It brings the community together”: Benefits from local park and recreation renovations

As public dollars for parks and recreation become increasingly scarce, empirical evidence of community benefits from capital investments becomes more important. However, measuring impacts of parks ...
Long-Term Outcomes After Surgical Treatment of Malignant/Borderline Phyllodes Tumors of the Breast

Malignant/borderline phyllodes tumors (PTs) are rare, and little is known about their long-term prognosis. This study sought to evaluate recurrence rates and identify factors associated with local and distant failure. From 1957 to 2017, we identified 124 patients with 125 PTs (86 malignant and 39 borderline). Recurrence rates and survival were assessed using the Kaplan–Meier method, and correlated with clinicopathologic factors using the log-rank test. The median age of the patients was 44 years, and the median tumor size was 5 cm. Breast-conserving surgery was performed for 57% of the patients. At a median follow-up of 7.1 years, 14 patients experienced a locoregional recurrence (LRR), with a 10-year cumulative LRR incidence of 12%. On univariable analysis, age younger than 40 years (p = 0.02) and close/positive margins (p = 0.001) were associated with increased risk of LRR. Seven patients developed distant disease, all occurring in malignant PTs. The 10-year distant recurrence-free survival was 94%. Uniformly poor pathologic features consisting of marked stromal cellularity, stromal overgrowth, infiltrative borders, and 10 or more mitoses per 10 high-power fields (hpf) were identified in 25 PTs (20%), and all distant recurrences occurred in this group. For the patients who did not have uniformly poor features, the 10-year disease-specific survival was 100%, and the overall survival was 94% compared with 66% and 57%, respectively, among those with poor features. Malignant/borderline PTs without uniformly poor histologic features have an excellent prognosis after surgical resection, with a 10-year disease-specific survival of 100%. The presence of uniformly poor pathologic features predicts a poor prognosis. Efforts should be directed toward new treatment approaches for these tumors.
Studies of Fundamental Processes in Thyratrons

Recently there has been a need to develop an improved basic understanding of the physical processes in high-power thyratrons. This is based on the current need for significant development in thyratron switch technology beyond the state of the art in the 1940s. In addition, understanding of fundamental processes important in thyratron operation has improved only marginally since that time. Thus, the physical theory on which switch design might be based is somewhat dated.
By-products from seafood processing for aquaculture and animal feeds

Publisher Summary Fish processing by-products refer to the tissues that remain after much of the fish muscle has been removed and include heads, frames, viscera, and skin, among others. Edible parts such as heads, milt, and stomachs are on occasion collected and sold and some fish skin is made into gelatin or fish leather. By-products can be used to make fertilizer and other products; however, most of the fish by- products produced in large shore-side fish processing operations are used to make fish meal and fish oil. Primary uses of fish meals and oils are as aquaculture feed ingredients for fish and shrimp, and as livestock and poultry feed ingredients. This chapter discusses the making of aquaculture and animal feed ingredients from fish processing by-products and focuses on the by-products currently produced from marine finfish. Ocean fish is used for human consumption as well as the production of feed ingredients for aquaculture and livestock. If aquaculture growth continues and supplies of fish meal and oil remain constant, fish meal and fish oil in aquaculture feeds will shift from being primary sources of protein and energy to being specialty product. Fish meal is a good aquaculture feed ingredient because it is a high quality protein and compliments most vegetable proteins in feed formulations. Fish meals usually have a high content of long chain omega-3 fatty acids and minerals, and have good palatability characteristics.
GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance

This year's Lasker-Bloomberg Public Service Award goes to GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance, for providing sustained access to childhood vaccines around the globe, saving millions of lives, and highlighting the power of immunization to prevent disease.
Mycorrhizal Fungi as Mediators of Soil Organic Matter Dynamics

Inhabiting the interface between plant roots and soil, mycorrhizal fungi play a unique but underappreciated role in soil organic matter (SOM) dynamics. Their hyphae provide an efficient mechanism f...
Utilizing Technology to Support Scientific Argumentation in Active Learning Classrooms

Argumentation can enhance science learning, and modern technologies can enhance the ability of instructors to support student argumentation. The purpose of this chapter is threefold. First, it provides an overview of the fundamental components of arguments and how the complexity of these arguments can be visualized. Second, it summarizes empirical studies from different bodies of literature each supporting the notion that argumentation can enhance science learning. Finally, it presents a three-step On/Beneath/Beyond-the-Screen heuristic that college science instructors can utilize to support argumentation in their classrooms with current technologies. Through a case study of a classroom response technology designed to promote argumentation, we demonstrate how to apply this heuristic when considering which argumentation technologies to use and how to use them.
PartLy: learning data partitioning for distributed data stream processing

Data partitioning plays a critical role in data stream processing. Current data partitioning techniques use simple, static heuristics that do not incorporate feedback about the quality of the partitioning decision (i.e., fire and forget strategy). Hence, the data partitioner often repeatedly chooses the same decision. In this paper, we argue that reinforcement learning techniques can be applied to address this problem. The use of artificial neural networks can facilitate learning of efficient partitioning policies. We identify the challenges that emerge when applying machine learning techniques to the data partitioning problem for distributed data stream processing. Furthermore, we introduce PartLy, a proof-of-concept data partitioner, and present preliminary results that indicate PartLy's potential to match the performance of state-of-the-art techniques in terms of partitioning quality, while minimizing storage and processing overheads.
The Processes of Reciprocity and Reflection in Service-Learning Pedagogy

About 25 years ago, I honored the request of students in an Abnormal Psychology class for an experiential learning opportunity to complement lectures, readings, and class discussions, which functioned to launch my career-long use of service-learning pedagogy. At the time, I had no idea that service-learning pedagogy would flourish to become a high-impact educational practice by the Association of American Colleges and Universities, with numerous reviews—including five meta-analyses—demonstrating numerous benefits for students’ learning and civic development. With a scientist-practitioner perspective, I integrated service-learning with participatory community action research in a project in homeless shelters (ongoing since 2012), which has resulted in civic-related development in service-learning students and benefits in psychosocial development for shelter residents. In general, all aspects of my work (teaching, research, and service) became increasingly integrated and transdisciplinary in nature. Through two interrelated processes—reciprocity and reflection—my work continues to expand and increasingly characterize themes of experiential learning emphasized by David Kolb, such as action-oriented research, pragmatism, participatory democratic values (e.g., incorporation of multiple perspectives), purposeful development in self and students, change with experience via assimilation and accommodation. I endorse Kolb’s view: “The challenge of lifelong learning is above all a challenge of integrative development.”
Surfactant Perturbation of Cation Interactions at the Electrode-Electrolyte Interface in Carbon Dioxide Reduction

Interfacial properties at the boundary between the electrode and electrolyte have important effects on the surface reactivity in electrocatalysis. Ionic additives and electrolyte ions can serve as ...
Tautomycetin Synthetic Analogues: Selective Inhibitors of Protein Phosphatase I.

Ser/Thr protein phosphatases (PPs) regulate a substantial range of cellular processes with protein phosphatases 1 (PP1) and 2 A (PP2A) accounting for over 90 % of the activity within cells. Nevertheless, tools to study PPs are limited as PPs inhibitors, particularly those selective for PP1 inhibition, are relatively scarce. Two examples of PP1-selective inhibitors, which share structural similarities, are tautomycin (TTM) and tautomycetin (TTN). This work describes the development of PP1/PP2A inhibitors that incorporate key structural features of TTM and TTN and are designed to conserve regions known to bind the active site of PP1/PP2A but vary regions that differentially contact the hydrophobic groove of PP1/PP2A. In all 28 TTN analogues were synthetically generated that inhibit PP1/PP2A activity at <250 mM; seven possessed inhibition activity at 100 nM. The IC50 values were determined for the seven most active analogues, which ranged from 34 to 1500 nM (PP1) and 70 to 6800 nM (PP2A). Four of the seven analogues possessed PP1 selectivity, and one demonstrated eightfold selectivity in the nanomolar range (PP1 IC50 =34 nM, PP2A IC50 =270 nM). A rationale is given for the observed differences in selectivity.
Mapping Sex-Specific Neurodevelopmental Alterations in Neurite Density and Morphology in a Rat Genetic Model of Psychiatric Illness.

ABSTRACT Neurite orientation dispersion and density imaging (NODDI) is an emerging magnetic resonance (MR) diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) technique that permits non-invasive quantitative assessment of neurite density and morphology. NODDI has improved our ability to image neuronal microstructure over conventional techniques such as diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and is particularly suited for studies of the developing brain as it can measure and characterize the dynamic changes occurring in dendrite cytoarchitecture that are critical to early brain development. Neurodevelopmental alterations to the diffusion tensor have been reported in psychiatric illness, but it remains unknown whether advanced DWI techniques such as NODDI are able to sensitively and specifically detect neurodevelopmental changes in brain microstructure beyond those provided by DTI. We show, in an extension of our previous work with a Disc1 svΔ2 rat genetic model of psychiatric illness, the enhanced sensitivity and specificity of NODDI to identify neurodevelopmental and sex-specific changes in brain microstructure that are otherwise difficult to observe with DTI and further corroborate observed changes in brain microstructure to differences in sex-specific systems-level animal behavior. Together, these findings inform the potential application and clinical translational utility of NODDI in studies of brain microstructure in psychiatric illness throughout neurodevelopment and further, the ability of advanced diffusion weighted imaging methods such as NODDI to examine the role of biological sex and its influence on brain microstructure in psychiatric illness. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT This research presents the first demonstration of the ability of NODDI multicompartment diffusion imaging to uncover both neurodevelopmental and sex-specific alterations in brain microstructure in psychiatric illness. We show, in a genetic Disc1 svΔ2 rat model, sex-specific neurodevelopmental patterns of neural microstructural change with NODDI and corresponding evidence of sex differences in behavioral endophenotypes of anxiety, cognition, and general activity. Together, our results support the potential impact and translational utility of NODDI to identify salient neurodevelopmental and sex-specific changes in brain microstructure in psychiatric illness beyond traditional morphometric and diffusion tensor approaches currently employed.
Enterprise systems knowledge, beliefs, and attitude: A model of informed technology acceptance

Abstract Fostering positive attitudes and increasing knowledge are key success factors for enterprise systems. Training can improve knowledge, but little research has investigated the effects of domain-relevant knowledge on salient cognitive beliefs and attitude in technology acceptance. We highlight the critical role of domain-relevant knowledge in the formation of beliefs and the shaping of attitude by developing a model of informed technology acceptance. We hypothesize the positive effects of multi-dimensional enterprise resource planning (ERP) knowledge on salient cognitive beliefs (i.e., ERP self-efficacy, perceived ease of use, and perceived usefulness) and general affective attitude toward an ERP system. Using survey data from gamified ERP training of 248 professionals from three different organizations, results support the proposed model, suggesting that ERP knowledge is an important antecedent of ERP self-efficacy, perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, and attitude. We find that ERP knowledge exhibits both direct and indirect effects on attitude. Moreover, we find that gamified training is an effective means of improving ERP knowledge.
The Effect of a Web-Based Deep Breathing App on Stress of Direct Care Workers: Uncontrolled Intervention Study

Objectives: Studies have demonstrated success in reducing stress levels in complex interventions including deep breathing components. Breathing exercise interventions, however, tend not to be studi...
Efficient Red-Emitting Platinum Complex with Long Operational Stability

A tetradentate cyclometalated Pt(II) complex, PtN3N-ptb, was developed as an emissive dopant for stable and efficient red phosphorescent OLEDs. Devices employing PtN3N-ptb in electrochemically stable device architectures achieved long operational lifetimes with estimated LT97, of over 600 h at luminances of 1000 cd/m2. Such long operational lifetimes were achieved utilizing only literature reported host, transporting and blocking materials with known molecular structures. Additionally, a thorough study of the effects of various host and transport materials on the efficiency, turn on voltage, and stability of the devices was carried out. Ultimately, maximum forward viewing EQEs as high as 21.5% were achieved, demonstrating that Pt(II) complexes can act as stable and efficient dopants with operational lifetimes comparable or superior to those of the best literature-reported Ir(III) complexes.
Gamete and Zygote Transport

Regulation of transport of gametes and early embryos through the female tract is crucial to successful reproduction; however, there is a great deal of variation among species with regard to the details of transport. Basically, sperm are deposited into the anterior vagina or uterus. Those deposited in the vagina swim through the cervix or are drawn through by uterine contractions. Muscular contractions assist in moving sperm through the uterine cavity. When sperm reach the entrance to the uterotubal junction, they are required to have certain cell surface proteins in order to enter. While still within the junction, or upon reaching the oviductal isthmus, sperm are trapped by binding to the mucosal epithelium, forming a storage reservoir. As the time of ovulation approaches, sperm become capacitated, which enables them to release from the epithelium and escape from the reservoir shortly before oocytes, usually surrounded by cumulus, are released from the ovary. The cumulus mass adheres lightly to cilia on the mucosal surface of the fimbria and the enclosed oocytes are thereby transported by ciliary action through the oviductal ampulla. During this time, a few sperm reach the cumulus mass to fertilize the oocytes. After pausing at fertilization, the embryo resumes transport, probably by the actions of smooth muscle in the oviductal wall, and reaches the uterus in a few days.
WIRELESS SECURITY: AN OVERVIEW

The physical transport methods used in wireless communication differ from wired communication. These differences affect how a secure channel can be established in a wireless environment. The purpose of this tutorial is to provide an overview of how a secure channel is set up in a wireless environment that uses the 802.11 or WAP standards.
Cross-Cultural Issues in Assessment

A nuanced understanding of psychological assessment may be an important avenue for reducing observed disparities between ethnic groups. Psychological assessment plays an important role in clinical, educational, and legal settings. Bias inherent in clinical, intellectual, and neuropsychological assessment may contribute to disparate prevalence rates and invalidate the results for diverse populations. Excluding or ignoring diverse psychological experiences can affect the validity of assessment outcomes. Gaining a better understanding of how cultural issues relate to the assessment of mental health, intellectual, and cognitive functioning may increase diagnostic accuracy, as well as help address educational and mental health disparities. Keywords: mental health; assessment; cultural diversity; multiculturalism