cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Finding Truth in Lending

In 1968 the United States Congress passed and the President signed an act, ([2]), of which Title I has been generally called the Truth-in-Lending Law. Among the provisions of this part of the act is the requirement that the "costs" of certain installment loan contracts be described in terms of an "annual percentage rate". One intent of this regulation is to require creditors to provide a simple measure of the cost of a loan so that potential borrowers can have a reasonably easy way of comparing alternative loan opportunities. Finding the required annual percentage rate is not, in general, an easy problem; and the purpose of this note is to show that in some common loan situations, this rate may be found using a familiar algorithm often studied in elementary calculus the Newton-Raphson Method. The definition of the annual percentage rate can best be understood by considering the following simple model. There are more complex models which must be considered to answer all annual percentage rate questions, but the one we shall use is illustrative of very common kinds of installment loans, e.g., automobile loans and home mortgage loans. The notation which we use in this model is as follows:
Client-based projects in development settings: A practitioner's guide to running an ICTD field practicum

This paper describes key learnings from a project-based class at the University of Michigan in which student teams spent two semesters working on ICTD-related projects with partner organizations in India. These teams spent one semester in India with real users of their work. We highlight common challenges universities outside of ICTD field sites face in offering quality, grounded learning for technology and development students.
Intentional Self Regulation and Positive Youth Development: Implications for Youth Development Programs

Character education programs are mission-aligned with the positive youth development (PYD) perspective, which, in research with American youth suggests that intentional self-regulation (ISR) develops through mutually beneficial interactions between youth and their environment. Cross-cultural studies of Western youth suggest an adolescence-specific ISR process may exist. We begin to extend this work to assess the relationship between ISR and positive development in young Scottish adolescents (approximately 7th grade, N = 82; 50% male), a previously unexamined group. ISR was correlated with the Five Cs of PYD and OLS regression analyses demonstrated that ISR predicted two of the Five Cs: Character and Connection. We discuss implications for youth development programs of the findings that ISR and some indices of PYD were linked in a sample of Scottish youth.
Indentation recovery in GdPO4 and observation of deformation twinning

A series of nanoindentation tests on both single and polycrystalline specimens of a monazite rare-earth orthophosphate, GdPO4, revealed frequent observation of anomalous unloading behavior with a large degree of recovery, where previously this behavior had only been observed in xenotime-structure rare-earth orthophosphates. An indentation site in the polycrystalline sample was examined using TEM to identify the deformation mechanism responsible for recovery. The presence of a twin along the (100) orientation, along with a series of stacking faults contained within the deformation site, provide evidence that the mechanism of recovery in GdPO4 is the collapse of deformation twins during unloading.
Race and Ethnicity

Health disparities are prevalent across diseases of the respiratory system and are major sources of morbidity and mortality among disadvantaged populations in the United States. As the demographics of the United States shifts away from a white majority, the disparities related to race and ethnicity will become more apparent and widespread. Reducing disparities related to race and ethnicity is one of the goals for the Healthy People 2020 initiative. Approaching these differences in respiratory health as related to race and ethnicity requires a transparent understanding of the scope of the problem that will be described further in this chapter. The etiology and perpetuation of these disparities will be discussed with a life course perspective, which harnesses tools from sociology, epidemiology, population genetics, and molecular biology. An integrated approach will provide structure to the study of respiratory health disparities related to race and ethnicity and may present new directives to address, and with time, possibly eliminate these disparities.
Single-cell RNA sequencing identifies diverse roles of epithelial cells in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a lethal interstitial lung disease characterized by airway remodeling, inflammation, alveolar destruction, and fibrosis. We utilized single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) to identify epithelial cell types and associated biological processes involved in the pathogenesis of IPF. Transcriptomic analysis of normal human lung epithelial cells defined gene expression patterns associated with highly differentiated alveolar type 2 (AT2) cells, indicated by enrichment of RNAs critical for surfactant homeostasis. In contrast, scRNA-seq of IPF cells identified 3 distinct subsets of epithelial cell types with characteristics of conducting airway basal and goblet cells and an additional atypical transitional cell that contributes to pathological processes in IPF. Individual IPF cells frequently coexpressed alveolar type 1 (AT1), AT2, and conducting airway selective markers, demonstrating "indeterminate" states of differentiation not seen in normal lung development. Pathway analysis predicted aberrant activation of canonical signaling via TGF-β, HIPPO/YAP, P53, WNT, and AKT/PI3K. Immunofluorescence confocal microscopy identified the disruption of alveolar structure and loss of the normal proximal-peripheral differentiation of pulmonary epithelial cells. scRNA-seq analyses identified loss of normal epithelial cell identities and unique contributions of epithelial cells to the pathogenesis of IPF. The present study provides a rich data source to further explore lung health and disease.
Neuronal androgen receptor: Molecular gateway to polycystic ovary syndrome?

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) afflicts ∼15% of women in their reproductive years (1). PCOS women exhibit high circulating levels of testosterone (T), intermittent or absent menstrual cycles, and polycystic ovaries on ultrasound, or at least two of these three diagnostic criteria (2). Hyperandrogenism is at the core of PCOS, its ∼70% heritability, and likely its pathogenic origin (1). PCOS pathophysiology, however, extends well beyond hirsutism and infertility to encompass hypothalamic neuroendocrine dysfunction, and of particular concern, increased risks for metabolic disease and cancer associated with long-term morbidity and mortality (3). PCOS origins are currently considered polygenic (4) and prepubertal (5), with over 21 replicated candidate genes affecting gonadotropin secretion and action, extracellular matrix formation, and various common cellular functions. Such PCOS risk genes, however, account for <10% of patient presentation. A definitive etiology for PCOS remains elusive and delays progress toward a cure. In contrast, evidence from animal models has consistently indicted T in the pathogenic origins of PCOS-like traits (6). Naturally occurring hyperandrogenic female monkeys spontaneously exhibit PCOS-like traits (7), and early development T or dihydrotestosterone (DHT) exposure in female rodents, sheep, and monkeys reproduces a variety of PCOS-like traits (8), demonstrating potential genetic, epigenetic, and developmental contributions to PCOS pathogenesis mediated by androgen receptor (AR) signaling. Caldwell et al. (9) recently took this molecular understanding to a new level by blocking AR gene expression in female mice and preventing PCOS-like trait development after fetal DHT exposure, specifically implicating AR action in PCOS developmental pathogenesis. In PNAS, the same group (10) refine this molecular precision and convincingly demonstrate how neuronal AR genomic excision, alone, protects female mice from certain PCOS-like traits induced by prepubertal onset of DHT excess. AR-enabled conversion to a PCOS-like phenotype therefore occurs predominantly in neurons, as protection provided by neuron-specific AR deletion (NeuroARKO) and not … [↵][1]1Email: abbott{at}primate.wisc.edu. [1]: #xref-corresp-1-1
Neuroclinical Framework for the Role of Stress in Addiction

Addiction has been conceptualized as a three-stage cycle-binge/intoxication, withdrawal/negative affect, and preoccupation/anticipation-that worsens over time and involves allostatic changes in hedonic function via changes in the brain reward and stress systems. Using the withdrawal/negative affect stage and negative reinforcement as an important source of motivation for compulsive drug seeking, we outline the neurobiology of the stress component of the withdrawal/negative affect stage and relate it to a derivative of the Research Domain Criteria research construct for the study of psychiatric disease, known as the Addictions Neuroclinical Assessment. Using the Addictions Neuroclinical Assessment, we outline five subdomains of negative emotional states that can be operationally measured in human laboratory settings and paralleled by animal models. We hypothesize that a focus on negative emotionality and stress is closely related to the acute neurobiological alterations that are experienced in addiction and may serve as a bridge to a reformulation of the addiction nosology to better capture individual differences in patients for whom the withdrawal/negative affect stage drives compulsive drug taking.
American Society of Clinical Oncology Strategic Plan for Increasing Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Oncology Workforce

In December 2016, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Board of Directors approved the ASCO Strategic Plan to Increase Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Oncology Workforce. Developed through a multistakeholder effort led by the ASCO Health Disparities Committee, the purpose of the plan is to guide the formal efforts of ASCO in this area over the next three years (2017 to 2020). There are three primary goals: (1) to establish a longitudinal pathway for increasing workforce diversity, (2) to enhance ASCO leadership diversity, and (3) to integrate a focus on diversity across ASCO programs and policies. Improving quality cancer care in the United States requires the recruitment of oncology professionals from diverse backgrounds. The ASCO Strategic Plan to Increase Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Oncology Workforce is designed to enhance existing programs and create new opportunities that will move us closer to the vision of achieving an oncology workforce that reflects the demographics of the US population it serves.
The impact of WIC on breastfeeding initiation and gestational weight gain: Case study of South Carolina Medicaid mothers

Abstract In this study, we estimate the effect of the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infant and Children (WIC) on breastfeeding initiation at hospital discharge and gestational weight gain, by relying on South Carolina birth certificates data for 2004–2013. The unique longitudinal feature of the data allows us to utilize maternal fixed effects to account for non-random selection into WIC. Contrary to the existing evidence, we find that WIC participation does not have a negative effect on breastfeeding initiation. We uncover an important heterogeneity in WIC's effect by race. More specifically, we find that WIC participation is associated with an increase in breastfeeding initiation among black mothers by nearly 7%, with no statistically significant effect among white mothers. We also document a reduction in the likelihood of an inadequate gestational weight gain of nearly 10% among white and black mothers.
Context-aware obstacle detection for navigation by visually impaired☆

This paper presents a context-aware smartphone-based based visual obstacle detection approach to aid visually impaired people in navigating indoor environments. The approach is based on processing two consecutive frames (images), computing optical flow, and tracking certain points to detect obstacles. The frame rate of the video stream is determined using a context-aware data fusion technique for the sensors on smartphones. Through an efficient and novel algorithm, a point dataset on each consecutive frames is designed and evaluated to check whether the points belong to an obstacle. In addition to determining the points based on the texture in each frame, our algorithm also considers the heading of user movement to find critical areas on the image plane. We validated the algorithm through experiments by comparing it against two comparable algorithms. The experiments were conducted in different indoor settings and the results based on precision, recall, accuracy, and f-measure were compared and analyzed. The results show that, in comparison to the other two widely used algorithms for this process, our algorithm is more precise. We also considered time-to-contact parameter for clustering the points and presented the improvement of the performance of clustering by using this parameter.
Theory of Systems Efficiency

Over the last decade the nonparametric method of data envelopment analysis (DEA) has found extensive applications in efficiency measurement in public sector enterprises. Recent generalizations of DEA models in operations research and econometrics have emphasized several new aspects of the concept of efficiency employed in DEA models, e.g., vector efficiency, dynamic efficiency and stochastic efficiency. However the broader concept of systems efficiency, which comprises DEA efficiency as a component has not been so far explored in the DEA framework. Even in the static input-output systems where most DEA models have been applied, the concept of efficiency has ignored or under emphasized several key factors which may cause systems inefficiency. For example if some of the data set are fuzzy or imprecise, the DEA efficiency concept no longer holds. A second example is provided by the flexible manufacturing systems (FMS), where the input and output mixes can change frequently. Finally, changes in technology frequently affect the input and output compositions over time. Hence a system which is efficient in the DEA sense at the static level may not be so over time in a dynamic sense.
Ion Velocity Measurements for the Ionospheric Connections Explorer

The Ionospheric Connections Explorer (ICON) payload includes an Ion Velocity Meter (IVM) to provide measurements of the ion drift motions, density, temperature and major ion composition at the satellite altitude near 575 km. The primary measurement goal for the IVM is to provide the meridional ion drift perpendicular to the magnetic meridian with an accuracy of 7.5 ms-1 for all daytime conditions encountered by the spacecraft within 15° of the magnetic equator. The IVM will derive this parameter utilizing two sensors, a retarding potential analyzer (RPA) and an ion drift meter (IDM) that have a robust and successful flight heritage. The IVM described here incorporates improvements in the design and operation to produce the most sensitive device that has been fielded to date. It will specify the ion drift vector, from which the component perpendicular to the magnetic field will be derived. In addition it will specify the total ion density, the ion temperature and the fractional ion composition. These data will be used in conjunction with measurements from the other ICON instruments to uncover the important connections between the dynamics of the neutral atmosphere and the ionosphere through the generation of dynamo currents perpendicular to the magnetic field and collisional forces parallel to the magnetic field. Here the configuration and operation of the IVM instrument are described as well as the procedures by which the ion drift velocity is determined. A description of the subsystem characteristics, which allow a determination of the expected uncertainties in the derived parameters, is also given.
Automating WiFi Fingerprinting Based on Nano-Scale Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

Explosive growth in the number of portable devices like smartphones, tablets, and smart-watches has escalated the demand for localization-based services, spurring development of numerous indoor localization techniques. Especially, widespread deployment of wireless LANs prompted ever increasing commercial interests in WiFi-based indoor localization mechanisms. However, a critical shortcoming of such localization techniques is that collecting WiFi fingerprints of an entire target area is an extremely time and labor intensive task. In this paper, we propose to automate this WiFi fingerprint collection process using a group of nano-scale unmanned aerial vehicles. Since these vehicles explore a 3D space, the WiFi fingerprints of a 3D space can be obtained without user intervention. The proposed system is implemented on a commercially available miniature open-source quadcopter platform by integrating a contemporary WiFi-fingerprint-based localization system. Experimental results demonstrate that the localization error is about 2m, which exhibits only about 20cm of accuracy degradation compared with manual WiFi fingerprint survey methods.
Meaning, Analysis, and Exposition: Bentham on the Technology of Thought

First and foremost a social and legal reformer, Bentham undertook philosophical reflection on language—its nature, use and abuse—in an effort to understand and improve the world. His intellectual energy was trained primarily on law and political ordering, but he looked to every mode of inquiry (“science”) available for analytic and normative tools with which to “rear the fabric of felicity.” The most important of his theoretical innovations, in his view, was his theory of meaning, the heart of which was his analysis of language in terms of “real” and “fictitious” entities. This theory mapped the relations between the domain of thought and physical reality and devised a method of analysis—definition by “paraphrasis”—that enabled systematic ordering of thought. Late in his life, Bentham set out the metaphysical and epistemological foundations of his life’s work, articulating and grounding the philosophical principles that had governed his thinking from the beginning of his career. Reflecting on language and its relation to thought and reality, he produced sophisticated theories of meaning and of the technology of thought—the techniques and principles by which the active mind populates and orders the domain of thought. With this technology, Bentham sought to discipline potentially wayward language and thereby to deprive arbitrary power of one of its favorite weapons.
Quantifying protocol evaluation for autonomous collision avoidance

Collision avoidance protocols such as COLREGS are written primarily for human operators resulting in a rule set that is open to some interpretation, difficult to quantify, and challenging to evaluate. Increasing use of autonomous control of vehicles emphasizes the need to more uniformly establish entry and exit criteria for collision avoidance rules, adopt a means to quantitatively evaluate performance, and establish a “road test” for autonomous marine vehicle collision avoidance. This paper presents a means to quantify and subsequently evaluate the otherwise subjective nature of COLREGS thus providing a path toward standardized evaluation and certification of protocol-constrained collision avoidance systems based on admiralty case law and on-water experience. Notional algorithms are presented for evaluation of COLREGS collision avoidance rules to include overtaking, head-on, crossing, give-way, and stand-on rules as well as applicable entry criteria. These rules complement and enable an autonomous collision avoidance road test as a first iteration of algorithm certification prior to vessels operating in human-present environments. Additional COLREGS rules are discussed for future development. Both real-time and post-mission protocol evaluation tools are introduced. While the motivation of these techniques applies to improvement of autonomous marine collision avoidance, the concepts for protocol evaluation and certification extend naturally to human-operated vessels. Evaluation of protocols governing other physical domains may also benefit from adapting these techniques to their cases.
Mode of Delivery in Previable Births.

Objective Preterm birth before 23 weeks of gestation typically results in neonatal death (5% survival). Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine and American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists published consensus guidelines recommending cesarean delivery (CD) not be performed for fetal indications between 20 and 226/7 weeks given the lack of proven benefit. We sought to quantify the previable CD rate and identify characteristics associated with previable CD. Methods We performed a population-based retrospective cohort study of all live births in Ohio (2006–2015). Frequency of previable CD was stratified by week of gestation, defined as delivery between 16 and Results Of 1,463,506 live births in Ohio during the 10-year study period, 2,865 births (0.2%) occurred during the previable period of 16 to 22 weeks. Nearly 1 in 10 live births at less than 23 weeks was delivered by cesarean (n = 273/2,865), CD rate 9.5% (95% confidence interval, 8.5–10.7). At 16 to 22 weeks of gestation, the CD rates were 0, 5.5, 7.6, 3.5, 5.4, 10.1, and 15.1%, respectively. Factors associated with CD included increasing parity, increasing birth weight, maternal corticosteroid administration, and fetal malpresentation. Previable neonates born by CD were more likely to be admitted to the NICU, receive ventilator support, and more likely to be living at the time of birth certificate filing. Conclusion Nearly 1 out of 10 births during the previable period was delivered via cesarean. Factors associated with previable CD suggest intent for neonatal interventions, such as NICU admission and supportive therapies. Our findings support that education and adherence with guidelines for care of previable births are a potential area of focus for perinatal quality improvement efforts.
CRITIQUE - OF “FACTORS INFLUENCING NITRATE ACQUISITION BY PLANTS: ASSIMILATION AND FATE OF REDUCED NITROGEN”

ABSTRACT This chapter is, in part, a critique of research reported by Huffaker and Rains (this volume), but also includes supplementary data and discussion to complement their chapter, and identifies some areas that need further investigation. Several aspects of the genetic, physiological, biochemical, and environmental regulation of nitrate assimilation in plants are reviewed. Both interspecific and intraspecific differences in nitrate uptake are discussed. Evidence for nitrate accumulation in corn stems is presented. Nitrate assimilation in shoots including regulation, diurnal fluctuations, lability of nitrate reductase activity, and localization of the enzymes involved in nitrate assimilation, is reviewed. A discussion of transport of nitrogenous metabolites is included. Finally, the role of light in the induction of nitrate reductase and in providing reductant for nitrate assimilation, and the effect of CO2 on nitrate uptake and assimilation, are discussed.
Ecological Literacy (1992)

L teracy is the ability to read. Numeracy is the ability to count. Ecological literacy, according to Garrett Hardin, is the ability to ask “What then?” Considerable attention is properly being given to our shortcomings in teaching the young to read, count, and compute, but not nearly enough is being given to ecological literacy. Reading, after all, is an ancient skill. And for most of the twentieth century we have been busy adding, subtracting, multiplying, dividing, and now computing. But “What then?” questions have not come easy for us despite all of our formidable advances in other areas. Napoleon did not ask the question until he had reached Moscow, by which time no one could give any good answer except “Let’s get outta here.” If Custer asked the question, we have no record of it. His last known words at Little Big Horn were “Hurrah, boys, now we have them.” And economists, who are certainly both numerate and numerous, have not asked the question often enough. Asking “What then?” on the west side of the Niemen River, or at Fort Laramie, would have saved a lot of trouble. For the same reason, “What then?”is also an appropriate question to ask before the last rain forests disappear, before the growth economy consumes itself into oblivion, and before we have warmed the planet too much.
Responding to Ethnic and Religious Conflict in the Emerging Arab Order: The Promise and Limits of Rights

Intercommunal conflict has marred the political transitions unfolding in a number of states in the Middle East, raising questions about the status and protection of ethnic and religious minorities in the region’s evolving political order. In view of the transnational character and regional scale of the problem, this essay considers the efficacy of one potential regional response – the development of an Arab convention on minority rights. The essay begins by describing three types of “minority problem” that have been sources of conflict in the Middle East: (1) religious minorities & Islamist majoritarianism; (2) nationalist minorities and territorial disputes; and (3) politically dominant minorities and survivalist minoritarianism. The essay then sketches the international legal context, focusing in particular on the Council of Europe’s Framework Convention on National Minorities. Turning back to the Middle East, the essay concludes that while a treaty exercise of that kind is probably premature, an effort to begin building consensus about regional norms would be a valuable means of promoting discourse about the contours of local norms and their harmonization – both with one another and with evolving international human rights standards.
Prosthetic rehabilitation of a maxillary defect with a bone anchored prosthesis: A clinical report

Mucormycosis is an opportunistic fungal infection that frequently infects sinuses, brain, or lungs and arises mostly in immunocompromised patients. Although its occurrence in the maxilla is rare, debridement and resection of the infected and necrotic area is often the best treatment but usually results in an extensive maxillary defect. Protocols for prosthetic obturation versus microvascular reconstruction have been established and used effectively in tertiary institutions for patients with such large defects. Aramany Class VI defects involving more than half of the palatal surface can be managed effectively by surgical reconstruction using microvascular free flaps as a platform for supporting bone-anchored prostheses. Providing fixed prostheses may offer advantages over a conventional obturator prosthesis in terms of hygiene, function, and esthetics. Nonetheless, fixed prostheses retained by endosseous implants in patients with reconstructive osteomyocutaneous flaps often require a sequential team approach by the surgeon and prosthodontist. This clinical report describes the reconstruction of a maxilla by using a scapular free flap with subsequent prosthetic rehabilitation in a patient with maxillary sinus infection secondary to mucormycosis.
Assessing BIBFRAME 2.0: Exploratory Implementation in Metadata Maker

As interest in linked data grows throughout the cultural heritage community, it is necessary to critically assess current tools for conversion and creation of linked data "records" and to explore new avenues for creating and encoding data using existing frameworks. This paper discusses the BIBFRAME 2.0 model and Library of Congress conversion specifications from MARC21 through the process of designing and implementing an adapted, minimal-level conversion framework into the cataloging web application, Metadata Maker. In the process of assessment, we identified and addressed local solutions for three key structural issues resulting from the Library of Congress conversion specifications: duplicated data, pervasiveness of blank nodes in RDF/XML, and prevalence of literal data values over URIs stemmed from the current MARC records environment. Additionally, we address concerns with how the BIBFRAME 2.0 model currently conceptualizes Work and linked data as a static "record."
Resort and Commercial Recreation Association - annual national conference 2019 reflections of a symbiotic conference – November 9–11, 2019

This article is an overview of the most recent annual conference, with attendees that included Educators, Practitioners, Students, and Vendors. The benefits of attendance are discussed.
Hanbury-Brown–Twiss interferometry and collectivity in p + p , p + Pb , and Pb + Pb collisions

Hanbury Brown--Twiss interferometry (HBT) provides crucial insights into both the space-time structure and the momentum-space evolution of ultrarelativistic nuclear collisions at freeze-out. In particular, the dependence of the HBT radii on the transverse pair momentum ${K}_{T}$ and the system charged multiplicity $d{N}_{\mathrm{ch}}/d\ensuremath{\eta}$ may reflect the mechanisms driving collective behavior in small systems. This paper argues that certain features observed in the multiplicity dependence of the HBT radii can be naturally understood if small systems evolve hydrodynamically at high multiplicity. This study thus establishes a baseline for the multiplicity dependence of HBT in hydrodynamics which may prove useful in discriminating between competing models of collectivity in nuclear collisions.
Characterization of Aggregate Angularity in the Frequency Domain

The morphology of aggregate particles used for pavement construction plays an essential role in the structural capacity and safety performance of pavement structures. Each of the three main compone...
Platforming Intersectionality: Networked Solidarity and the Limits of Corporate Social Media:

How do historically marginalized narratives spread on social media platforms? Developing research in collaboration with intersectional artists and community, or what we call “platforming intersecti...
Research Gate or Revolving Door? Uses and Gratifications of Academic Social Media Among Communication Scholars:

A survey of scholars in mass communication and related disciplines found that the academic social network ResearchGate is a popular platform for following like-minded academics, sharing one’s work,...
David Oliver: Should we bring the curtain down on NHS social media performances?

Should anyone care if NHS staff post a few loosely choreographed dances on TikTok, a healthcare themed choral routine on YouTube, or an unburdening rant on Facebook? NHS shop floor clinical teams have always bonded, laughed together, drunk together, and shared their frustrations in ward rest areas, accommodation blocks, and messes. But, until social media, we kept them among ourselves. The covid-19 pandemic has led to plenty of pressures on teams, so a desire to de-stress or unburden is understandable—but have we taken it too far? My immediate feeling is that it’s nobody’s business how frontline clinical staff in demanding roles let off steam, so …
Stability of aqueous Fe(III) chloride complexes and the solubility of hematite between 150 and 300 °C

Abstract Three sets of experiments were performed to test the stability and geologic importance of ferric (FeIII) chloride complexes in acidic, Cl-rich solutions at 150–300 °C, p = psat. Experiment Set A used the change in solubility of AgCl(s) in the presence of FeCl3 or FeCl2 to determine the stoichiometry of Fe(III) and Fe(II) chloride complexes at ΣCl = 0.1–3.0 molal. Results show that FeCl4− and FeCl2(aq) are the dominant Fe(III) and Fe(II) species, respectively, at T > 200 °C and ΣCl ≥ 1 m. Set B experiments used the solubility of elemental gold as a redox sensor to determine the aO2 of the FeCl4−/FeCl2(aq) boundary and log K values of +6.56 and +7.19 for the following reaction at 250 and 300 °C, respectively: FeCl2(aq) + ¼O2(g) + 2Cl− + H+ = FeCl4− + ½H2O(l). Ferric chloride complexes are stable under conditions of aCl−, aO2, and pH where gold is soluble as AuCl2−. Set C experiments measured the solubility of hematite in NaCl-HCl solutions at 200–300 °C by preparing a series of silica tubes with identical matrix chemistry (0.9 m NaCl + 0.1 m HCl) and increasing concentration of FeCl3. Hematite saturation was constrained by the tube with the lowest FeCl3 concentration that precipitated hematite at high temperature. Set C results were used to compute log K values of +3.6, +5.2, and + 7.4 for the following reaction at 200, 250 and 300 °C, respectively: 0.5Fe2O3(s) + 4Cl− + 3H+ = FeCl4− + 1.5H2O. Hematite solubility as FeCl4− is independent of redox state, and increases quickly with an increase in temperature, increase in Cl− concentration (power of 4), and decrease in pH (power of 3). Concentrations in excess of 100 mg/L ΣFe are attainable under geologically realistic conditions. Once formed, FeCl4− is an extremely effective oxidizing agent, capable of destabilizing any sulfide mineral and dissolving Fe, Au, and other metals (e.g., Cu, Pt, Pd) as chloride complexes. In deep hydrothermal systems, FeCl4− is a more viable oxidant than dissolved O2 gas, although its presence requires a source area with abundant hematite and a lack of reductants such as organic carbon, sulfides, or silicate minerals containing ferrous iron. Dissolved ferric chloride could be an important and previously overlooked reactant in the formation of certain types of hematite-rich hydrothermal mineral deposits, including iron oxide-copper–gold (IOCG) deposits.
Is educational attainment associated with young adult cardiometabolic health

Abstract Educational disparities in health and mortality are well-documented and evidence suggests that they may be widening. Yet, there is much unknown about when educational disparities begin to emerge and for whom. This paper investigates the association between educational attainment and cardiometabolic health in young adults with critical attention paid to differences across racial/ethnic and sex subgroups. We focus on cardiometabolic health in young adulthood as it is particularly relevant for understanding current population health trends. We used data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) when participants were aged 12–19 years (Wave I) and aged 24–32 years (Wave IV). Using a series of logistic regression models, we first estimated the association between education and five markers of cardiometabolic health (high-risk blood pressure, high-risk waist circumference, diabetes/pre-diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and high-risk inflammation). We then examined the extent to which this association was explained by adolescent health and both adolescent and young adult socioeconomic status (SES) (including parental education, participant educational attainment, household income, and employment status). Finally, we investigated whether the association between educational attainment and cardiometabolic health differed by race/ethnicity and sex. We found evidence of an association between educational attainment and cardiometabolic health that persisted net of adolescent health, adolescent SES, and young adult SES. We also found some evidence of modest differences in this association by race/ethnicity and sex. Our findings suggest that even as early as young adulthood there are disparities in cardiometabolic health by educational attainment, which may lead to even larger disparities in late life health.
The Effects and Implications of Kazakhstan's Adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards. A Resource Dependence Perspective

We analyze Kazakhstan’s strategic decision to become an early adopter of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and the consequences of this reform. Despite having a significantly underdeveloped supporting infrastructure, Kazakhstan was the first nation in the former Soviet Union (nowadays, CIS) to require IFRS in 2004. We depart from prior studies that almost exclusively relied on economic and legal explanations and adopt a novel framework to analyze the timing and strategy of this reform – the resource dependence theory of Pfeffer and Solancik (1978). Based on this framework, we argue that initially, in 1990s, Kazakhstan’s capital market reforms mirrored those of Russia due to two countries’ cooperating mode driven by a high level of resource interdependence and economic uncertainty, following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Nevertheless, by 2003, the dependence on external donors (IMF and World Bank) took precedence over the internal interdependence with Russia, and Kazakhstan unilaterally proceeded with adoption of IFRS, while Russia backed up from this initiative. Next, we find that reported information is value relevant to investors and that Kazakhstan’s inflow of Foreign Direct Investments was the greatest among the CIS nations post adoption of IFRS. Importantly, Kazakhstan was the first CIS nation to repay the external debt ahead of schedule. Consequently, this risky strategy of pioneering Western-style capital market reforms in an emerging market with not so distant communist past had a significantly positive outcome.
Alcohol Use and Problems at the Event Level: Theory, Methods, and Intervention

This chapter focuses on alcohol use and related problems at the event level. The chapter examines historical and current theoretical and methodological issues related to understanding drinking events. The chapter postulates drinking events as ecological systems where individual, social, and environmental factors interact in complex and dynamic ways to influence drinking and related problems. Current interventions related to preventing alcohol-related problems at the event level are discussed. The promise of developing real-time interventions designed to prevent in situ alcohol-related problems are also discussed. Finally, the chapter addresses potential future directions for research relating to drinking at the event level.
Customer Partition in Banking 5.0

The partition of the customers or market segmentation is essential in banking 5.0. New customers are entering the market, such as the so-called millennials. Their approach to banking is entirely different. Financial institutions need to rethink the customer segmentation strategy to tend toward one person’s segment. Banking 5.0 can introduce new customized services in this direction. This chapter underlines the partition or segmentation of the market and how to choose the customers’ targets and delight them. This chapter describes several methodologies on partitioning and analyzes the ones based on the customers’ age or using artificial intelligence tools. A tool which can help in servicing vastly different partition of the customers is the robo-advisor. It belongs to a class of automatic financial advisers supported by artificial intelligence. They give financial advice or wealth management online with moderate to minimal human interventions.
Circulating tumor DNA in identifying resistant subclones post EGFR blockade: Implications for EGFR rechallenge.

131Background: For patients with metastatic RAS/RAF wild-type refractory colorectal cancer anti-EGFR therapy can be reused in subsequent lines of therapy. However, it is not entirely clear if all p...
Detection of Intimal Macrophages in Atherosclerotic Lesions Using a CD36-Targeted Ligand Containing Nanoparticle

Objective: Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. Macrophages and lipid-laden macrophages (foam cells) are the predominant immune cells in the lesions. We have synthesized biocompatible and biodegradable nanoparticles (NP), and we incorporated CD36-targeting ligands on the surface of NP to make ligand-NP (L-NP). Our objective was to compare the target specificity of NP and L-NP to macrophages in vitro and in LDL receptor null (LDL r-/-) mice. Methods: THP-1 derived macrophages were incubated with florescence-dye labeled NP and L-NP and target specificity was measured using an EVOS® Fluorescence Microscope. Six male 6 week old LDL r-/- mice developed atherosclerotic lesions after feeding an atherogenic diet for 22 weeks. Fluorescence-dye labeled NP or L-NP were injected via tail veins. After 20 hours, fluorescence signals in aortic lesions were imaged in-situ and in isolated aortas using an IVIS® Lumina XR imaging system. Then dissected aortas were embedd...
Scanning pupil approach to aspheric surface slope error tolerancing in head-up display optics

We present a novel approach to tolerancing slope errors of aspheric surfaces in relay optics of typical avionics head-up displays (HUD). In these systems, a beamlet entering the pilot eye occupies only a tiny fraction of HUD entrance pupil/eyebox with a typical diameter of 125mm. Consequently the beam footprint on any HUD optical surface is a small fraction of its clear aperture. This presents challenges to HUD tolerancing which is typically based on parallax (angular difference in line of sight between left and right eyes) analysis. Aspheric surfaces manufactured by sub-aperture grinding/polishing techniques add another source of error – surface slope error. This type of error not only degrades image quality of observed HUD symbology but also leads to its “waviness” and “floating” especially noticeable when a pilot moves his head within the HUD eyebox. The suggested approach allows aspheric surface slope error tolerancing that ensures an acceptable level of symbology “waviness”. A narrow beamlet is traced from a pilot eye position backwards through the HUD optics until it hits the light source. Due to the small beamlet size, slope error of the aspheric surface acts primarily as an overall tilt/wedge that deviates the beam and causes it to shift. The slope error is acceptable when this shift is not resolved by a pilot eye. The beamlet is scanned over entire eyebox and field of view and the slope error tolerance is established for several zones in the aspheric surface clear aperture. The procedure is then repeated for each aspheric surface.
Remedying Discrimination: Limits of the Law and the Need for a Systemic Approach

Very few discrimination complaints reach the courts each year. As with other civil litigation, the reasons for this include the cost of pursuing litigation and, particularly for complainants, the risk of losing or receiving less than the complainant could have negotiated prior. Drawing on interviews with lawyers and non-legal advocates in Victoria and an analysis of successful cases in three jurisdictions, this article examines the remedy the court is likely to award in a successful discrimination complaint and considers the effect of this on the eradication of discrimination in society. A comprehensive examination of the remedies awarded in successful discrimination complaints in Victoria over a three year period shows that courts are most likely to order compensation at modest amounts and complainants are not regularly awarded their costs. A comparison with Queensland and the federal system reveals a similar experience. Even in those jurisdictions where wider remedies are available, courts rarely take the opportunity to make broad orders which could affect other similarly situated individuals or deter would-be respondents. While it is necessary to remedy the complainant’s experience, it is also necessary to address broader, systemic discrimination and a compensation award cannot do this. Remedying discrimination with compensation is primarily a problem because it is reactive. Compensation does not address other instances of discrimination in society or achieve systemic change nor does it encourage compliance because the respondent is not required to take anticipatory action to prevent another complaint. Based on the interpretive principles and extensive remedies provided in South Africa’s recent anti-discrimination and a study of remedies ordered by the South African Equality Courts and the Irish Equality Tribunal, the article proposes reforms to Australia’s anti-discrimination legislation to enable courts to make wider orders which target other instances of discrimination in addition to remedying the complainant’s experience.
Availability of bases and nucleosides as precursors of nucleic acids in L cells and in the agent of meningopneumonitis.

Abstract Tribby, Ilse I. E. (University of Chicago, Chicago, Ill.), and James W. Moulder. Availability of bases and nucleosides as precursors of nucleic acids in L cells and in the agent of meningopneumonitis. J. Bacteriol. 91:2362–2367. 1966.—Uninfected L cells and the meningopneumonitis agent propagated in L cells utilized exogenous adenine, guanine, and their ribonucleosides and deoxyribonucleosides for synthesis of both deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid. Cytosine, cytidine, and uridine were also incorporated into the nucleic acids of both host and parasite. L cells and the meningopneumonitis agent incorporated uracil, thymine, and deoxyuridine very poorly. L cells utilized thymidine and deoxycytidine almost exclusively for DNA synthesis, but the meningopneumonitis agent did not incorporate these nucleosides at all. Since the L cell had previously been shown to convert added thymidine to its nucleotides, mainly the triphosphate, it was concluded that the meningopneumonitis agent can utilize neither the thymidine nor the thymidine nucleotides of the L-cell pool, and that it can probably synthesize the thymidine triphosphate needed for DNA synthesis from the uridine of the L-cell pool.
ScoC Regulates Peptide Transport and Sporulation Initiation in Bacillus subtilis

Oligopeptides are transported into Bacillus subtilis by two ABC transport systems, App and Opp. Transcription of the operon encoding the Opp system was found to occur during exponential growth, whereas the app operon was induced at the onset of stationary phase. Transcription of both operons was completely curtailed by overproduction of the ScoC regulator from a multicopy plasmid and was enhanced in strains with the scoC locus deleted. ScoC, a member of the MarR family of transcription regulators, is known from previous studies to be a negative regulator of sporulation and of protease production that acts by binding directly to the promoters of the genes it regulates. Since peptide transport is essential for inactivation of the negative regulation of sporulation by Rap phosphatases, the control of ScoC transcription repression activity plays a crucial role in the initiation of sporulation.
The Cell Tropism of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 Determines the Kinetics of Plasma Viremia in SCID Mice Reconstituted with Human Peripheral Blood Leukocytes.

Most individuals infected with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) initially harbor macrophage-tropic, non-syncytium-inducing (M-tropic, NSI) viruses that may evolve into T-cell-tropic, syncytium-inducing viruses (T-tropic, SI) after several years. The reasons for the more efficient transmission of M-tropic, NSI viruses and the slow evolution ofT-tropic, SI viruses remain unclear, although they may be linked to expression of appropriate chemokine coreceptors for virus entry. We have examined plasma viral RNA levels and the extent of CD4+ T-cell depletion in SCID mice reconstituted with human peripheral blood leukocytes following infection with M-tropic, dual-tropic, or T-tropic HIV-1 isolates. The cell tropism was found to determine the course of viremia, with M-tropic viruses producing sustained high viral RNA levels and sparing some CD4+ T cells, dual-tropic viruses producing a transient and lower viral RNA spike and extremely rapid depletion of CD4+ T cells, and T-tropic viruses causing similarly lower viral RNA levels and rapid-intermediate rates of CD4+ T-cell depletion. A single amino acid change in the V3 region of gp120 was sufficient to cause one isolate to switch from M-tropic to dual-tropic and acquire the ability to rapidly deplete all CD4+ T cells.
Cooling to the recoil limit in an optical lattice

Summary form only given. A one-dimensional array of optical potential wells can be formed by interference of two counter-propagating linear and cross-polarized laser beams. This configuration is an example of an optical lattice, in which atoms are cooled to /spl mu/K temperatures and trapped in micron-sized potential wells. In this work Cs is cooled and trapped.