cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Nanoscale probing of dynamics in local molecular environments.

Vibrational spectroscopy can provide information about structure, coupling, and dynamics underlying the properties of complex molecular systems. While measurements of spectral line broadening can probe local chemical environments, the spatial averaging in conventional spectroscopies limits insight into underlying heterogeneity, in particular in disordered molecular solids. Here, using femtosecond infrared scattering scanning near-field optical microscopy (IR s-SNOM), we resolve in vibrational free-induction decay (FID) measurements a high degree of spatial heterogeneity in polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) as a dense molecular model system. In nanoscopic probe volumes as small as 103 vibrational oscillators, we approach the homogeneous response limit, with extended vibrational dephasing times of several picoseconds, that is, up to 10 times the inhomogeneous lifetime, and spatial average converging to the bulk ensemble response. We simulate the dynamics of relaxation with a finite set of local vibrational tra...
Definition der optischen Konstanten

Wenn Licht die Grenzflache zwischen einem optisch dunneren (1) und einem optisch dichteren Medium (2) uberschreitet, so zeigt die Erfahrung, das im dichteren Medium der Winkel β zwischen dem Lichtstrahl und dem „Einfallslot“ kleiner als der Einfallswinkel α ist. Diese wohlbekannte Erscheinung wird zur Definition des Brechungsvermogens einer Substanz (bezogen auf Vakuum, n 1 = 1) herangezogen (Snelliussches Brechungsgesetz).
The significance of drop non-sphericity in sprays

Abstract This paper presents a new framework to model drop dynamics in Lagrangian sprays. The framework builds on the Taylor Analogy Breakup (TAB) model. Real-fluid (gas-liquid) thermodynamics applicable to multicomponent systems are combined with Gradient Theory to facilitate detailed calculations of drop surface tension forces, oscillations, and breakup processes. This is combined with a more detailed treatment of deforming drop dynamics to construct more accurate representations of the local interfacial exchanges of mass, momentum, and energy. The framework is derived using an energy balance equation that explicitly enforces drop momentum conservation during the breakup process. This facilitates development of a refined set of drop equations that address current shortcomings in the prediction of drop properties over a wide range of relevant breakup conditions. The resulting drag forces, evaporation, and heating rates deviate significantly from the predictions given by contemporary drop models used in modern simulations. These deviations are quantified using Large Eddy Simulation (LES) with a Lagrangian-Eulerian modeling approach. The analysis demonstrates how the model improvements in the new framework provides a more detailed representation of physical complexities that are largely neglected in modern studies.
Executive Summary: Evaluation and Management of Children and Adolescents With Acute Mental Health or Behavioral Problems. Part I: Common Clinical Challenges of Patients With Mental Health and/or Behavioral Emergencies

* Abbreviation: ED — : emergency department The number of children and adolescents seen in emergency departments (EDs) and primary care settings for mental health problems has skyrocketed in recent years, with up to 23% of patients in both settings having diagnosable mental health conditions.1–4 Even when a mental health problem is not the focus of an ED or primary care visit, mental health conditions, both known and occult, may challenge the treating clinician and complicate the patient’s care.4 Although the American Academy of Pediatrics has published a policy statement on mental health competencies and a Mental Health Toolkit for pediatric primary care providers, no such guidelines or resources exist for clinicians who care for pediatric mental health emergencies.5,6 Many ED and primary care physicians report a paucity of training and lack of confidence in caring for pediatric psychiatry patients. The 2 clinical reports (www.pediatrics.org/cgi/doi/10.1542/peds.2016-1570 and www.pediatrics.org/cgi/doi/10.1542/peds.2016-1573) support the 2006 joint policy statement of the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Emergency Physicians on pediatric mental health emergencies,7 with the goal of addressing the knowledge gaps in this area. Although written primarily from the perspective of ED clinicians, they are intended for all clinicians who care for children and adolescents with acute mental health and behavioral problems. The clinical reports are organized around the common clinical challenges pediatric caregivers face, both when a child or adolescent presents with a psychiatric chief complaint or emergency (part I) and also when a mental health condition may be an unclear or complicating factor in a non–mental health clinical presentation (part II). Part II of the clinical reports (www.pediatrics.org/cgi/doi/10.1542/peds.2016-1573) includes discussions of somatic symptom and related disorders, adverse effects of psychiatric medications including neuroleptic malignant syndrome and serotonin syndrome, caring for children with special needs such as autism and developmental …
Vasodilator-Stimulated Phosphoprotein Activity Is Required for Coxiella burnetii Growth in Human Macrophages

Coxiella burnetii is an intracellular bacterial pathogen that causes human Q fever, an acute flu-like illness that can progress to chronic endocarditis and liver and bone infections. Humans are typically infected by aerosol-mediated transmission, and C. burnetii initially targets alveolar macrophages wherein the pathogen replicates in a phagolysosome-like niche known as the parasitophorous vacuole (PV). C. burnetii manipulates host cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA) signaling to promote PV formation, cell survival, and bacterial replication. In this study, we identified the actin regulatory protein vasodilator-stimulated phosphoprotein (VASP) as a PKA substrate that is increasingly phosphorylated at S157 and S239 during C. burnetii infection. Avirulent and virulent C. burnetii triggered increased levels of phosphorylated VASP in macrophage-like THP-1 cells and primary human alveolar macrophages, and this event required the Cα subunit of PKA. VASP phosphorylation also required bacterial protein synthesis and secretion of effector proteins via a type IV secretion system, indicating the pathogen actively triggers prolonged VASP phosphorylation. Optimal PV formation and intracellular bacterial replication required VASP activity, as siRNA-mediated depletion of VASP reduced PV size and bacterial growth. Interestingly, ectopic expression of a phospho-mimetic VASP (S239E) mutant protein prevented optimal PV formation, whereas VASP (S157E) mutant expression had no effect. VASP (S239E) expression also prevented trafficking of bead-containing phagosomes to the PV, indicating proper VASP activity is critical for heterotypic fusion events that control PV expansion in macrophages. Finally, expression of dominant negative VASP (S157A) in C. burnetii-infected cells impaired PV formation, confirming importance of the protein for proper infection. This study provides the first evidence of VASP manipulation by an intravacuolar bacterial pathogen via activation of PKA in human macrophages.
CHAPTER 20:Magnetic Resonance in the Assessment of Tissue Engineered Cartilage

Magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) and imaging (MRI) are routinely used for non-invasive monitoring and assessment of cartilage regeneration in vitro and in vivo. Cartilage tissue engineering utilizes a combination of three-dimensional porous scaffold, chondrocytes or stem cells, growth factors such as transforming growth factor-β, and growth stimulating conditions to obtain a neocartilage tissue that contains a high level of chondrogenic extracellular matrix proteins, proteoglycans and collagen, type II. Water proton (1H) parametric MRI is commonly applied for monitoring and assessing tissue-engineered cartilage growth at the bench and for in vivo settings. The change in relaxation times (T1, T2 and T1ρ) and apparent diffusion coefficient are correlated with the change in the amount of proteoglycan and collagen in tissueengineered cartilage. In stem cells and scaffold-based engineered cartilage, it has been shown that once the scaffold’s contribution is removed, both T1 and T2 correlate with the amount of matrix regeneration. The cartilage tissue’s functional properties depend on its special composition of extracellular matrix proteins. This arrangement of extracellular matrix is highly anisotropic and one that is the source of cartilage health. In engineered cartilage, tissue anisotropy can be measured using the sodium triple quantum coherence nuclear magnetic resonance-based average quadrupolar coupling (ωQ) or the diffusion tensor imaging based fractional anisotropy parameters. Using these techniques, it has been shown that the engineered cartilage tissues are less anisotropic than the natural cartilage. Glycosaminoglycan (GAG) of proteoglycan is negatively charged and sodium MRI can be used for assessing the GAG amount. The sodium MRI-based fixed charge density (FCD) is found to strongly correlate with the FCD derived from the GAG assay in a tissue-engineered matrix created from stem cell chondrogenesis in polymer–hydrogel hybrid scaffolds. In summary, magnetic resonance technologies offer tools to non-invasively assess the engineered cartilage tissue growth at all stages, in vitro and in vivo, from cell seeding to post-implantation.
Dynamic full-body interactions in virtual reality: understanding effects of display and locomotion modality on perception and action

Many practical applications of Virtual Reality (VR) technology rely on adequate immersive representations of 3D spaces and support of embodied, dynamic interactions with the virtual world. Evaluation of these properties remains an important research problem. This thesis aims at developing a method of conducting user evaluations of dynamic, full-body interactions in VR systems based on using support for perception and action coupling as a criterion for comparison. The thesis has three main components. First, the thesis starts by presenting an experimental perceptual evaluation study looking at distance perception in real and virtual environments. The results indicate that the choice of the method to report perceived distances (i.e. the type of action used to express perceptual variable of interest) may have a significant effect on the outcome of the study. We argue for the need to develop an approach to VR evaluation that holistically considers both perception and action. Second, we propose a theoretical framework to conduct such user evaluations based on the notion of affordances. The thesis presents the second experimental study that explores perception of affordances in a complex, realistic task of bicycling across two lanes of opposing traffic in a VR simulator. This experiments highlights methodological approach to studies of user's perception of dynamic affordances. Finally, we present an experimental study that builds on theoretical and methodological frameworks developed in the thesis to explore the effects of display type and locomotion modality on user performance in a dynamic VR task that involves synchronization of self-motion with motion of virtual objects. The results inform our understanding of the trade-offs involved in selecting major components of the VR system.
Stable estimation of Granger-causal factors of country-level innovation

Increasing the innovativeness of a country is a known way to uplift its people, but how to increase the innovativeness of a country is not well understood. In this paper, we develop such an understanding by analyzing time series of global competitiveness index data and of development indicators data. Specifically, we estimate causative factors of innovation that countries can invest in or otherwise pursue through policy decisions. We take a sparse multivariate regression approach to find Granger-causal development indicators for an innovation index, which is based on group orthogonal matching pursuit. Due to high correlation between various indicators, small perturbations can cause the support of the sparse regression solution to change drastically with nonzeros shifting among correlated sets of indicators. Such behavior does not detract from predictive accuracy, but is undesirable for interpretation and decision making. To address this issue, we use randomization and stability selection techniques. We show favorable empirical results.
The Agreement to Arbitrate and the “Applicable Law”

The present article is an expanded version of one lecture in a series of lectures given at the Hague Academy of International Law in August 2017; the general subject of the series is the “allocation of power between arbitral tribunals and national courts.” I have tried to minimize here any cross-references to any of the other lectures, but as these are intended to form an integrated whole, and as all will eventually be published together, this could not be avoided entirely.
Nuclear deterrence and cyber warfare: coexistence or competition?

ABSTRACTNuclear deterrence and cyber war seem almost antithetical in their respective intellectual pedigrees. Nuclear weapons are unique in their ability to create mass destruction in a short time. Information or “cyber” weapons, at least for the most part, aim at sowing confusion or mass disruption instead of widespread physical destruction. Nevertheless, there are some intersections between cyber and nuclear matters, and these have the potential to become troublesome for the future of nuclear deterrence. For example, cyber attacks might complicate the management of a nuclear crisis. As well, information attacks on command-control and communications systems might lead to a mistaken nuclear launch based on false warnings, to erroneous interpretations of data or to panic on account of feared information blackout. It is not inconceivable that future nuclear strike planning will include a preliminary wave of cyber strikes or at least a more protracted “preparation of the battlefield” by roaming through enemy...
Compact multiband printed monopole antenna for PCS and WiMAX applications

This paper presents the design of a compact tri-band printed monopole antenna for personal communication system (PCS) and worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) applications. The proposed design consists of C-shape element and a semicircular arc with a rectangular ground plane to achieve resonance in three bands. A prototype is designed and fabricated based on the proposed design methodology. The antenna has a compact size of 33 × 18.5 mm2 which corresponds to 0.20λ ×0.11λ. The measured result show that the proposed antenna is operating in three bands i.e. 1.82–1.97 GHz, 3.35–3.95 GHz and 4.95–6.8 GHz covering both the PCS band and WiMAX 3.5/5.5 GHz bands. Measured result is in agreement with the simulations and show the antenna is capable of obtaining three distinct bands. The antenna exhibits omnidirectional radiation patterns and acceptable gain.
Middle Powers’ Crucial Peace Dividend: Networking Development

Abstract This research provides insights into regional middle powers’ postures and constraints, showing evidence of a gradually structured peace dividend resulting from networking economic development in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Using three case studies, Turkey/Israel, Iran/Pakistan, and Turkey/Iran, this research demonstrates that external regional constraints and internal capacity needs have facilitated strategic economic relations, including joint electricity, gas, and water projects, joint infrastructure and technology initiatives, and joint R&D and military industries. In turn, this strategic networking of economic development projects has restricted these states’ reactions to tension and conflict, prompting them to negotiate and engage in diplomacy to resolve bilateral disagreements so as to not compromise their mutual economic interests. This research contends that the security dilemma faced by middle power states in MENA is a motivator for economic integration even when there is no...
Elucidating EU engagement: rethinking dimensions of supranational participation

Concerns about the quality of the EU’s democratic participation are reflected in much of the research on EU attitudes and voting behavior in European Parliament elections or EU referendums. Yet few...
Generalizability of a traditional social cognitive model of prosocial behaviors to U.S. Latino/a youth.

Objectives We hypothesized that parental and peer support, empathy-related traits, and prosocial moral reasoning would positively predict altruistic prosocial behaviors, and negatively predict selfish-motivated prosocial behaviors, in U.S. Latino youth. Method Three-hundred and 6 U.S. Latina/o adolescents (M age = 15.50 years; SD = .42 years; 46% girls; 81.0% self-identified as U.S. Mexican) from communities in the Northern Great Plains completed measures of parental and peer support, perspective taking and empathic concern, prosocial moral reasoning, and two types of prosocial behaviors. Results In general, parental support was directly and indirectly related to empathic traits, prosocial moral reasoning, and prosocial behaviors. Peer support was indirectly related to prosocial behaviors via perspective taking, empathic concern, and prosocial moral reasoning. Conclusions Discussion focuses on the generalizability of traditional models of moral socialization and prosocial development to U.S. Latina/o youth from communities in the Northern Great Plains. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).
A comparison of elastic and plastic contact models for the prediction of thermal contact conductance

Experimentally determined thermal contact resistance (conductance) data are compared with predictions based on two different theories. One of the theories assumes elastic contact, while the other theory is based on the assumption of plastic contact. Even though the high plastic index calculated for the contacting surface suggested that contacting asperities would deform plastically, the experimental data generally agree better with the predictions obtained using the elastic contact model than with the predictions obtained using the plastic contact model.
Genetic variation in the transforming growth factor-β-signaling pathway, lifestyle factors, and risk of colon or rectal cancer.

BACKGROUND:The transforming growth factor-β-signaling pathway has been identified as being involved in colorectal cancer.OBJECTIVE:The aim of this study was to determine how diet and lifestyle factors in combination with genetic variation in the transforming growth factor-β-signaling pathway alters
Neurohormones in Advanced Heart Failure

There has been a major change in concepts regarding the pathophysiology of heart failure over the past 15–20 years. The hemodynamic model, popularized in the 1960s and 1970s, was responsible for the development of drugs primarily designed to enhance the inotropic state of the failing heart. However, drugs, such as milrinone, which increase intracellular cAMP and myocardial contractile strength, have demonstrated no propensity to improve patient survival. Rather, drugs that enhance the inotropic state may actually increase mortality. On the contrary, drugs designed to block neuroendocrine systems, such as angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors and β-adrenergic blockers, have proven to be effective in halting the progression of heart failure and in improving patient survival. These observations give support to the neurohormonal hypothesis and suggest that excessive neurohormones and cytokines must be very important in the pathogenesis of heart failure.
The Mechanism of Mo-Dependent Nitrogenase: Thermodynamics and Kinetics

The biological fixation of N2 occurs in select prokaryotes, with representatives in both the bacteria and the archaea (Madigan et al., 2003). In all cases, the initial reduction of N2 to ammonia is catalyzed by the enzyme nitrogenase. There are two distinct classes of nitrogenase currently known. One class is represented by the recently discovered superoxide-utilizing nitrogenase from Streptomyces thermoautotrophicus (Ribbe et al., 1997). This fascinating nitrogenase is the topic of Chapter 12 in this volume. The other class of nitrogenase (Burgess and Lowe, 1996; Eady, 1996; Howard and Rees, 1996; Christiansen et al., 2001) is composed of two component proteins, with one component being a homodimer with a single [4Fe-4S] cluster bridging the subunits and containing a nucleotide (e.g., ATP) binding site on each subunit. This protein has been called the Fe protein, component II, dinitrogenase reductase, or azoferredoxin. An alternative nomenclature for this component employs a two-letter abbreviation of the source organism followed by 2 (e.g., Cp2 for the Fe protein from Clostridium pasteurianum). The Fe protein serves as a one-electron reductant of the other nitrogenase component protein in a reaction that is coupled to the hydrolysis of at least two molecules of MgATP.
You've got the power.

If your institution won’t break down barriers for you, do it yourself, say Tom Logan and James Arnott. If your institution won’t break down barriers for you, do it yourself, say Tom Logan and James Arnott.
The idea of the Muslim world: a global intellectual history

Cemil Aydin's The Idea of the Muslim World is an ambitious book that takes up the concept of the “Muslim world” with a wide-angle lens, interrogating how this idea entered the vernacular through in...
Shifting Trends in Modern Physics, Nobel Recognition, and the Histories That We Write

Since the late-nineteenth century, scientists have been labeled with disciplinary fields and scientific achievements have been identified largely with heroic individuals. Reward systems such as the highly visible Nobel Prizes have reinforced such a view of science. This paper examines long-term trends in Nobel Physics awards since 1901 and asks whether the awards have registered the increasing specialization, collaboration, and transdisciplinary research that mark the course of modern physics. A second major question is the extent to which, in turn, histories of physics since the 1960s have reflected trends in physics or in Nobel recognition. Historians of physics appear to have favored accounts of particle physics and relativity theory over other areas of physics, with biography remaining a strong tradition in the history of physics, even while institutional and social history has become significant. Concluding remarks address hierarchies of prestige in science, the accessible and emotional appeal of heroic and revolutionary accounts of science, and the perennial appeal of fundamental questions, like reductionism and emergence.
Operator Transformation of Probability Densities

We describe an operator relation that relates two arbitrary probability densities. The relation may be thought of as a generalization of the Edgeworth and Gram–Charlier series of probability theory. We apply the relation to a number of issues. We generalize to relate a probability distribution with itself but at different times and show that it can be used to obtain approximate solutions. We apply the scale operator to the case of the product of two independent random variables, and generalize the concept of cumulants for that case. An operator relation between the energy density of a signal and the energy density of the spectrum is obtained. In addition, we show that the spectral moments of a signal may be expressed in terms of the Bell polynomials.
Oncogenic protein kinase Cι signaling mechanisms in lung cancer: Implications for improved therapeutic strategies.

Abstract Protein Kinase Cι (PKCι) is a major oncogene involved in the initiation, maintenance and progression of numerous forms of human cancer. In the lung, PKCι is necessary for the maintenance of the transformed phenotype of the two major forms of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), lung adenocarcinoma (LADC) and lung squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC). In addition, PKCι is necessary for both LADC and LSCC tumorigenesis by establishing and maintaining a highly aggressive stem-like, tumor-initiating cell phenotype. Interestingly however, while PKCι signaling in these two major lung cancer subtypes shares some common elements, it also drives distinct, sub-type specific pathways. Furthermore, recent analysis has revealed both PKCι-dependent and PKCι-independent pathways to LADC development. Herein, we discussion our current knowledge of oncogenic PKCι signaling in LADC and LSCC, and discuss these findings in the context of how they may inform strategies for improved therapeutic intervention in these deadly diseases.
Difficult to treat epilepsy: Could it be Dravet?

Dravet syndrome remains relatively unknown and under-diagnosed. Neil Williamson provides a brief overview of the condition and a diagnosis and management guide for school nurses.
Prenatal Drinking in the Northern Plains: Differences Between American Indian and Caucasian Mothers

Introduction Prenatal alcohol exposure is associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes such as fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. The study characterizes the pattern and risk factors of alcohol use during pregnancy for American Indian and Caucasian mothers in the Northern Plains. Methods A general population of pregnant women was recruited from 5 sites, including 2,753 Caucasians and 2,124 American Indians (2006–2017). Alcohol consumption was based on self-report using a modified Timeline Followback interview, administered 3–4 times during pregnancy and 1 month postpartum. Risk for prenatal drinking was calculated using logistic regression models after controlling for demographics, reproductive history, prenatal care, mental health, and SES. The analysis was conducted in 2019. Results More Caucasian mothers consumed alcoholic beverages during pregnancy than American Indians (63% vs 52%), whereas more American Indian mothers were binge drinkers than Caucasians (41% vs 28%). American Indian mothers had a lower risk of drinking in the second and third trimesters and postpartum, but a higher risk of binge drinking in the first trimester compared with Caucasians. Frequent relocation increased the risk of prenatal alcohol use among American Indian mothers, whereas age, marriage, income, parity, and fertility treatment affected the risk of prenatal drinking among Caucasian mothers. Conclusions Alcohol use was more prevalent among Caucasian mothers. Among those who consumed alcohol during pregnancy, American Indian mothers consumed larger quantities. Change of residence was found to be the sole risk factor for prenatal drinking among American Indian mothers, whereas different and multiple risk factors were found for Caucasian mothers.
Positive Emotion Skills Intervention to Address Burnout in Critical Care Nurses

Critical care nurses experience high levels of workplace stress, which can lead to burnout. Many medical centers have begun offering wellness programs to address burnout in their nursing staff; however, most of these programs focus on reducing negative states such as stress, depression, and anxiety. A growing body of evidence highlights the unique, independent role of positive emotion in promoting adaptive coping in the face of stress. This article describes a novel approach for preventing burnout in critical care nurses: an intervention that explicitly aims to increase positive emotion by teaching individuals empirically supported skills. This positive emotion skills intervention has been used successfully in other populations and can be tailored for critical care nurses. Also discussed are recommendations for addressing burnout in intensive care unit nurses at both the individual and organizational levels.
Lineage dynamics of the endosymbiotic cell type in the soft coral Xenia

Many corals harbour symbiotic dinoflagellate algae. The algae live inside coral cells in a specialized membrane compartment known as the symbiosome, which shares the photosynthetically fixed carbon with coral host cells while host cells provide inorganic carbon to the algae for photosynthesis1. This endosymbiosis—which is critical for the maintenance of coral reef ecosystems—is increasingly threatened by environmental stressors that lead to coral bleaching (that is, the disruption of endosymbiosis), which in turn leads to coral death and the degradation of marine ecosystems2. The molecular pathways that orchestrate the recognition, uptake and maintenance of algae in coral cells remain poorly understood. Here we report the chromosome-level genome assembly of a Xenia species of fast-growing soft coral3, and use this species as a model to investigate coral–alga endosymbiosis. Single-cell RNA sequencing identified 16 cell clusters, including gastrodermal cells and cnidocytes, in Xenia sp. We identified the endosymbiotic cell type, which expresses a distinct set of genes that are implicated in the recognition, phagocytosis and/or endocytosis, and maintenance of algae, as well as in the immune modulation of host coral cells. By coupling Xenia sp. regeneration and single-cell RNA sequencing, we observed a dynamic lineage progression of the endosymbiotic cells. The conserved genes associated with endosymbiosis that are reported here may help to reveal common principles by which different corals take up or lose their endosymbionts. Single-cell RNA sequencing identifies the pattern of gene expression during lineage progression in endosymbiotic cells of the fast-growing soft coral Xenia, revealing principles that underlie uptake and maintenance of endosymbionts by this coral.
Efficacy and safety of DSA-guided percutaneous sclerotherapy for venous malformations of penile region in children.

Abstract Objective To describe the effectiveness and security of DSA-guided percutaneous sclerotherapy for venous malformations of penile region in children. Methods A total of 9 cases children with penile venous malformations treated by DSA-guided percutaneous sclerotherapy from January 2017 to June 2018 were enrolled in this study. Local angiography was performed under DSA fluoroscopy, and the shape, extent and venous drainage of the tumor nest were judged. Then sclerosing agents (Pingyangmycin and Polidocanol) were selected according to the flow rate of angiography and treated by percutaneous injection under DSA monitoring. Imaging examination (MRI) was performed to evaluate clinical improvement. Results A total of 26 interventional sclerotherapy sessions were performed in 9 children, with an average of (2.3 ± 0.5) sessions per case. After a mean follow-up of 7.3 months, 6 cases were cured, and 3 cases were in basic remission. There were 9 cases of temporary edema secondary to the treatment site and 3 cases of mild pain. No serious complications such as ulceration, hemorrhage, infection and dysfunction occurred in any patients. Conclusion DSA-guided percutaneous sclerotherapy for venous malformations of penile region in children is safe and effective, does not affect the appearance and function of penis, and is worthy of clinical promotion. Type of study Treatment Study. Level of evidence Level IV, Case series with no comparison group.
Lateral inhibition in magnetic domain wall racetrack arrays for neuromorphic computing

Neuromorphic computing captures the quintessential neural behaviors of the brain and is a promising candidate for the beyond-von Neumann computer architectures, featuring low power consumption and high parallelism. The neuronal lateral inhibition feature, closely associated with the biological receptive field, is crucial to neuronal competition in the nervous system as well as its neuromorphic hardware counterpart. The domain wall - magnetic tunnel junction (DW-MTJ) neuron is an emerging spintronic artificial neuron device exhibiting intrinsic lateral inhibition. This work discusses lateral inhibition mechanism of the DW-MTJ neuron and shows by micromagnetic simulation that lateral inhibition is efficiently enhanced by the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (DMI).
Safer lithium-ion battery anode based on Ti3C2Tz MXene with thermal safety mechanistic elucidation

Abstract Thermal safety concerns of lithium ion batteries (LIBs) need to be solved urgently to facilitate their large-scale applications. Introducing safer anode materials can suppress the thermal runaway initiation but is usually compromising the cell performance due to their induced lower energy density. In this work, Ti3C2Tz MXene with tailored surface terminating groups is identified to be a safer LIB anode with improved capacity and lower operational potential. Calorimetric analyses demonstrate its significantly reduced heat generation (204 J g−1) with electrolyte compared to conventional graphite anode (995 J g−1). Detailed characterizations and thermal analyses reveal the great dependence of its thermal behavior on the lithiation states, surface morphology, and surface-terminating functional groups. Modifying the Ti3C2Tz surface functional groups via annealing can eliminate the irreversible lithium metal plating, which mitigates the parasitic exothermic reactions during thermal runaway and enhances the anode initial coulombic efficiency and cycling stability. The in-situ thermal analyses of LIB full cells demonstrate the obviously improved onset temperature of thermal runaway (195 °C) from the modified Ti3C2Tz-lithium cobalt oxide (LCO) full cell than the graphite-LCO full cell (169 °C), indicating a much safer LIB developed.
Station-level Demand Prediction for Bike-Sharing System

Bike-sharing programs have received increasing attention in the recent years due to their positive impact on the environment coupled with the awareness created by the environmental activists. In addition to the environmental advantages, cycling aids in improving public health, increasing cycling population and contributing to transit use. With the increasing number of bike-sharing service providers around the world, a real-time demand-supply tracking system which brings together the service providers and bike enthusiasts is implemented. Though there are several bike-sharing applications readily available for the users, currently there are no apps for the bike-sharing owners to track the demand-supply for bikes in real-time for any given station. We implemented a real-time demand-supply system that provides to the bike owner information regarding the demand-supply for bikes in any particular station at any particular time through a dashboard and also does forecasting of the bike demand. The Bike Demand forecasting uses the following classifiers: random forest, gradient boosting and linear regression, to predict the number of bikes in demand at a particular station in real-time. Results from the above-mentioned methods are compared and the method with the best results is chosen to supplement information provided by the dashboard to show the demand. For all three of our datasets, XGBoost on the dataset with all stations outperformed all the other models and hence XGBoost on trips data was chosen for the web application. Bike share providers will know the demand for any particular station which will enable them to fetch bikes from stations using the Web UI. Bike shortages due to uneven bike distribution are avoided with high accuracy due to fast prediction.
Summary of the Workshop

The poor devil selected as “summary speaker” is saddled with a daunting task: how to mention every speaker’s work (so nobody is angry with him!), and at the same time how to cram it all into 45 minutes or less (so that people leaving immediately by plane are able to get to the airport in time!). Obviously, there’s no solution: my selection of topics has to be personal and no doubt will be regarded as cranky.
An Engel condition with derivation for left ideals

We generalize a number of results in the literature by proving the following theorem: Let R be a semiprime ring, D a nonzero derivation of R, L a nonzero left ideal of R, and let [x, y] = xy yx. If for some positive integers tooth, ... , tn, and all x E L, the identity [[... [[D(xtO),xtl],xt2], . .],Xtn] -0 holds, then either D(L) = 0 or else the ideal of R generated by D(L) and D(R)L is in the center of R. In particular, when R is a prime ring, R is commutative. In this paper we prove a theorem generalizing several results, principally [20] and [9], which combine derivations with Engel type conditions. Before stating our theorem we discuss the relevant literature. If one defines [x, y]0 = x and [x, y]1 = [x, y] = xy yx, then an Engel condition is a polynomial [x, Y]n+l = [[X, Y]n, y] in noncommuting indeterminates. A commutative ring satisfies any such polynomial, and a nilpotent ring satisfies one if n is sufficiently large. The question of whether a ring is commutative, or nilpotent, if it satisfies an Engel condition goes back to the well known work of Engel on Lie algebras [15, Chapter 2], and has been considered, with various modifications, by many since then (e.g. [2] or [7]). The connection of Engel type conditions and derivations appeared in a well known paper of E. C. Posner [23] which showed that for a nonzero derivation D of a prime ring R, if [D(x),x] is central for all x C R, then R is commutative. This result has led to many others (see [19] for various references), and in particular to a result of J. Vukman [25] showing that if [D(x), X]2 is central for all x E R, a prime ring with char R + 2,3, then again R is commutative. We extended this result [20] by proving that if [D(x), X]n = 0 for all x c I, an ideal of the prime ring R, then R is commutative, and if instead, this Engel type condition holds for all x C U, a Lie ideal of R, then R embeds in M2(F) for F a field with char F 2. Recently, [9] proved that for a left ideal L of a semiprime ring R, either D(L) = 0 or R contains a nonzero central ideal if either: R is 6-torsion free and [D(x), x]2 is central for all x E L; or if [D(x), Xn] is central for all x C L and R is n!-torsion free. The first of these conditions generalized [1, Theorem 3, p. 99], which assumed that [D(x), x] is central for all x E L, with no restriction on torsion. The second, involving powers, is related to both [12], which showed that a prime ring R is commutative if D(Xk) = 0 for all x C R, and to [8], a significant extension of [12], showing that R is commutative if it contains no nonzero nil ideal and [D(xk(x)), Xk(x)]n = 0 on Received by the editors August 2, 1995. 1991 Mathematics Subject Classification. Primary 16W25; Secondary 16N60, 16U80. ?D1997 American Mathematical Society
A timer-based protocol for connected dominating set construction in IEEE 802.11 multihop mobile ad hoc networks

Connected dominating set has been used widely in multihop ad hoc networks (MANET) by numerous routing, broadcast and collision avoidance protocols. Although computing minimum connected dominating set is known to be NP-hard, many protocols have been proposed to construct a suboptimal dominating set. However, these protocols are either too complicated, needing nonlocal information, or not adaptive to topology changes. In this paper, we present a MAC-layer timer-based connected dominating set construction protocol. In our protocol, candidate nodes set up a timer based on the number of uncovered neighbors and determine whether or not to join the dominating set when the timer expires. The protocol is simple, distributed, inexpensive, and adaptive to station mobility. The simulation results show that our protocol can construct connected dominating set using 35% to 60% less nodes than other distributed connected dominating set protocols.
Constraint Based Action Rule Discovery with Single Classification Rules

Action rules can be seen as an answer to the question: what one can do with results of data mining and knowledge discovery? Some applications include: medical field, e-commerce, market basket analysis, customer satisfaction, and risk analysis. Action rules are logical terms describing knowledge about possible actions associated with objects, which is hidden in a decision system. Classical strategy for discovering them from a database requires prior extraction of classification rules which next are evaluated pair by pair with a goal to suggest an action, based on condition features in order to get a desired effect on a decision feature. An actionable strategy is represented as a term $r = [(\omega) \wedge (\alpha \rightarrow \beta)] \Rightarrow [\phi \rightarrow \psi]$, where i¾?, i¾?, β, i¾?, and i¾?are descriptions of objects or events. The term rstates that when the fixed condition i¾?is satisfied and the changeable behavior (i¾?i¾?β) occurs in objects represented as tuples from a database so does the expectation (i¾?i¾?i¾?). With each object a number of actionable strategies can be associated and each one of them may lead to different expectations and the same to different re-classifications of objects. In this paper we will focus on a new strategy of constructing action rules directly from single classification rules instead of pairs of classification rules. It presents a gain on the simplicity of the method of action rules construction, as well as on its time complexity. We present A*-type heuristic strategy for discovering only interesting action rules, which satisfy user-defined constraints such as: feasibility, maximal cost, and minimal confidence. We, therefore, propose a new method for fast discovery of interesting action rules.
Impaired Odour Discrimination on Desynchronization of Odour-Encoding Neural Assemblies

Stimulus-evoked oscillatory synchronization of neural assemblies has been described in the olfactory and visual systems of several vertebrates and invertebrates. In locusts, information about odour identity is contained in the timing of action potentials in an oscillatory population response, suggesting that oscillations may reflect a common reference for messages encoded in time. Although the stimulus-evoked oscillatory phenomenon is reliable, its roles in sensation, perception, memory formation and pattern recognition remain to be demonstrated--a task requiring a behavioural paradigm. Using honeybees, we now demonstrate that odour encoding involves, as it does in locusts, the oscillatory synchronization of assemblies of projection neurons and that this synchronization is also selectively abolished by picrotoxin, an antagonist of the GABA(A) (gamma-aminobutyric acid) receptor. By using a behavioural learning paradigm, we show that picrotoxin-induced desynchronization impairs the discrimination of molecularly similar odorants, but not that of dissimilar odorants. It appears, therefore, that oscillatory synchronization of neuronal assemblies is functionally relevant, and essential for fine sensory discrimination. This suggests that oscillatory synchronization and the kind of temporal encoding it affords provide an additional dimension by which the brain could segment spatially overlapping stimulus representations.
Acetohydroxy acid synthase I, a required enzyme for isoleucine and valine biosynthesis in Escherichia coli K-12 during growth on acetate as the sole carbon source.

Escherichia coli K-12 has two acetohydroxy acid synthase (AHAS) isozymes (AHAS I and AHAS III). Both of these isozymes catalyze the synthesis of alpha-aceto-alpha-hydroxybutyrate and alpha-acetolactate, which are key intermediates of the isoleucine-valine biosynthetic pathway. Strains lacking either isozyme but not both activities have been previously shown to grow well in minimal media in the absence of isoleucine and valine on any of several commonly used carbon sources (e.g., glucose or succinate). We report the characterization of mutants that were unable to grow on either acetate or oleate as a sole carbon source due to a defect in isoleucine-valine biosynthesis. The defect in isoleucine-valine biosynthesis was expressed only on these carbon sources and was due to the loss of AHAS I activity, resulting from lesions in the ilvBN operon. Previously identified ilvBN mutant strains also failed to grow on acetate or oleate minimal media. Our results indicated that AHAS I is an essential enzyme for isoleucine and valine biosynthesis when E. coli K-12 is grown on acetate or oleate as the sole carbon source. AHAS III was expressed during growth on acetate or oleate but was somehow unable to produce sufficient amounts of alpha-aceto-alpha-hydroxybutyrate and alpha-acetolactate to allow growth.
Scheduling over time varying channels with hidden state information

We consider the problem of scheduling transmissions over a wireless downlink when channel state information (CSI) is not available to the transmitter. We assume channel states are time varying and evolve according to a Markov Chain. We show that using current QLI does not stabilize the system due to correlations between backlog and channel state. We show that the throughput optimal scheduling policy in this context must use delayed queue length information (QLI). We characterize the extent to which QLI must be delayed as a function of the channel state statistics.
Nutritional Alteration of the Fatty Acid Composition of a Thermophilic Bacillus Species

The fatty acid composition of a thermophilic Bacillus sp. was altered by the addition of isobutyrate, isovalerate, α-methylbutyrate, leucine, and isoleucine to the growth medium. With isobutyrate, 81% of the fatty acids had 16 carbon atoms and 79% were iso-fatty acids with an even number of carbon atoms. With leucine, 58% of the fatty acids had 15 carbon atoms and 86% were iso-fatty acids with an odd number of carbon atoms. With isoleucine, 72% of the fatty acids had 17 carbon atoms and 88% were anteiso-fatty acids with an odd number of carbon atoms. Thus, by altering the composition of the growth medium, cells were produced in which the majority of the fatty acids had either 15, 16, or 17 carbons and belonged to each of the three groups of branched-chain fatty acids. The wide variation observed in the fatty acid composition makes it unlikely that any specific branched-chain fatty acid is required for vital functions.
The bobble-head doll syndrome: a "tic" with a neuropathologic basis.

A third patient with the "bobble-head doll syndrome" was reported. This is a "tic-like" movement disorder described thus far only in children. Its chief features are a 2 to 3 per second up-and-down or to-and-fro bobbing of the head, sometimes also of the trunk, which could be inhibited voluntarily and disappeared in sleep. Each child had chronic, slowly-progressive hydrocephaly, including marked enlargement of the third ventricle. In the patient presented here this was due to aqueductal stenosis, probably acquired; in the two patients presented previously a large cyst was found in the region of the third ventricle. Because surgical relief of hydrocephaly resulted in disappearance, or at least marked reduction of the head-bobbing, recognition of this "tic" with a neuropathologic basis is of therapeutic importance.