cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
In Vitro Activity of Human-Simulated Epithelial Lining Fluid Exposures of Ceftaroline, Ceftriaxone, and Vancomycin against Methicillin-Susceptible and -Resistant Staphylococcus aureus

Staphylococcus aureus, including methicillin-susceptible (MSSA) and -resistant (MRSA) strains, is an important pathogen of bacterial pneumonia. As antibiotic concentrations at the site of infection are responsible for killing, we investigated the activity of human-simulated epithelial lining fluid (ELF) exposures of three antibiotics (ceftaroline, ceftriaxone, and vancomycin) commonly used for treatment of S. aureus pneumonia. An in vitro pharmacodynamic model was used to simulate ELF exposures of vancomycin (1 g every 12 h [q12h]), ceftaroline (600 mg q12h and q8h), and ceftriaxone (2 g q24h and q12h). Four S. aureus isolates (2 MSSA and 2 MRSA) were evaluated over 72 h with a starting inoculum of ∼106 CFU/ml. Time-kill curves were constructed, and microbiological response (change in log10 CFU/ml from 0 h and the area under the bacterial killing and regrowth curve [AUBC]) was assessed in duplicate. The change in 72-h log10 CFU/ml was largest for ceftaroline q8h (reductions of >3 log10 CFU/ml against all strains). This regimen also achieved the lowest AUBC against all organisms (P < 0.05). Vancomycin produced reliable bacterial reductions of 0.9 to 3.3 log10 CFU/ml, while the activity of ceftaroline q12h was more variable (reductions of 0.2 to 2.3 log10 CFU/ml against 3 of 4 strains). Both regimens of ceftriaxone were poorly active against MSSA tested (0.1 reduction to a 1.8-log10 CFU/ml increase). Against these S. aureus isolates, ELF exposures of ceftaroline 600 mg q8h exhibited improved antibacterial activity compared with ceftaroline 600 mg q12h and vancomycin, and therefore, this q8h regimen deserves further evaluation for the treatment of bacterial pneumonia. These data also suggest that ceftriaxone should be avoided for S. aureus pneumonia.
Flaw Generation During Constrained Sintering of Metal-Ceramic and Metal–Glass Multilayer Films

Sintering of symmetrical multilayer films has been studied theoretically and experimentally. Experiments were conducted on ceramic/metal/ceramic and glass/metal/glass films. The sintering rate of free films was compared to the sintering rate of multilayers. The origin of processing flaws was examined. The following results were obtained: (1) Differential sintering rates of the components in the multilayer give rise to in-plane tensile and compressive stresses. The film that is stressed in tension in the early stage of sintering is most susceptible to fracture. Experiments with ceramic/metal/ceramic multilayer are in agreement with this prediction. (2) A theoretical prediction that the glass/metal/glass multilayer will not develop defects because of a high value of the shear relaxation factor in glass is confirmed by experiments. (3) The likelihood of developing a tensile stress in the multilayer depends only on geometry, the green density, and the ratio of the intrinsic sintering pressures. (4) The in-plane shrinkage of the multilayer depends on the difference in the free-sintering rates and the shear relaxation factors, and is reasonably well predicted by the analysis. (5) We have evidence that the metal layer deforms plastically when it is placed in tension by differential sintering.
Indecomposable triple systems

A t-design (@l, t, d, n) is a system B of sets of size d from an n-set S, such that each t subset of S is contained in exactly @l elements of B. A t-design is indecomposable (written IND(@l, t, d, n)) if there does not exist a subset B @? B such that B is a (@l, t, d, n) for some @l, 1 = = 4 and n = 7 (designs of Bhattacharya are used here), (2) an IND(3; 2, 3, n) exists for n odd, n >= 5, (3) if an IND(@l, 2, 3, n) exists, n odd, then there exists an infinite number of indecomposable triple systems with that @l.
A techno-economical evaluation for energy exploitation of wastes from agro-processing industries: a case study of cotton processing wastes

The main objective of the present study was to evaluate the feasibility of obtaining energy from cotton processing waste oil and heating demand in the cotton oil processing. For the techno-economical feasibility, Cukobirlik cotton union, located in Adana, Turkey was selected considering capacity per annum. The techno-economical feasibility of cotton processing wastes for fossil fuel substitution running three scenarios was examined. The case study constitutes of the following parts, background information and description of the company activities, the existing facilities and its energy requirements, the second the technical options for the exploitation of biomass and the results of their financial appraisal, environmental considerations, risks and assumptions and finally conclusions and recommendations. The economic and financial assessment of the investment for biomass utilization in Cukobirlik cotton union includes the calculation of the economic viability parameters and cash flow analysis table and inv...
Self-Weighing Increases Weight Loss in Free-Living Adults: A Double-Blind Randomized Field Trial among 200,000 Health App Users

Self-weighing is closely associated with sustained weight loss, but randomized trials to test causality have been limited to small samples in controlled settings subject to Hawthorne effects. This ...
Sin, Gisela. Separation of Powers and Legislative Organization: The President, the Senate, and Political Parties in the Making of House Rules. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press, 2014. 212 pages. $90.00 (hardcover).

When Republicans took control of the House in 2011, contemporary party theories offered little reason to expect a change in the three-decade-long trend of strengthening House leadership. Polarizati...
Disturbing Aesthetics: Industrial Pollution, Moral Discourse, and Narrative Form in Rebecca Harding Davis’s “Life in the Iron Mills”

Jill Gatlin, “Disturbing Aesthetics: Industrial Pollution, Moral Discourse, and Narrative Form in Rebecca Harding Davis’s ‘Life in the Iron Mills’” (pp. 201–233) This essay reevaluates the historical, literary, cultural, and ecological significance of Rebecca Harding Davis’s “Life in the Iron Mills” (1861) in the context of industrial pollution. Situating the story in relation to contemporaneous debates regarding the benefits and hazards of coal smoke, I extend the work of historians who have overlooked the influence of moralizing rhetoric on early understandings of industrial waste and workers. As Davis contests idealized equations of smoke with economic equality, progress, and health, she also delineates the spatial stratification determining laborers’ debilitating exposure to smoke and censures the paternalistic proclivity to blame the poor for pollution and prescribe their moral improvement. I argue that Davis undermines moralizing pollution discourse by crafting an aesthetic of disturbance through her narrative form and construction of readers, which departs from sentimental, realist, gothic, and pastoral formal features that critics have associated with the story. Entering the frame story, readers must reconsider their spatial and social positionality as well as their affective response to pollution. Davis positions readers to move beyond self-stabilizing, dismissive disgust to interactive empathy that prompts them to confront their complicity in workers’ oppression and classification as waste. Intervening in nascent pollution discourse with more complexity than many nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century writers and reformers would, “Life in the Iron Mills” disrupts popular, gothic, and pastoral accounts of moral, corporeal, and spatial purity regulating the aesthetic and material category of the human in toxic industrial environments.
Mycobacterium tuberculosis Transcription Machinery: Ready To Respond to Host Attacks

Regulating responses to stress is critical for all bacteria, whether they are environmental, commensal, or pathogenic species. For pathogenic bacteria, successful colonization and survival in the host are dependent on adaptation to diverse conditions imposed by the host tissue architecture and the immune response. Once the bacterium senses a hostile environment, it must enact a change in physiology that contributes to the organism's survival strategy. Inappropriate responses have consequences; hence, the execution of the appropriate response is essential for survival of the bacterium in its niche. Stress responses are most often regulated at the level of gene expression and, more specifically, transcription. This minireview focuses on mechanisms of regulating transcription initiation that are required by Mycobacterium tuberculosis to respond to the arsenal of defenses imposed by the host during infection. In particular, we highlight how certain features of M. tuberculosis physiology allow this pathogen to respond swiftly and effectively to host defenses. By enacting highly integrated and coordinated gene expression changes in response to stress,M. tuberculosis is prepared for battle against the host defense and able to persist within the human population.
Effects of Fasting on the Ghrelin Immunopositive Cells in the Proventriculus in Growing Peking Ducks

This experiment was conducted to examine whether fasting affect ghrelin-immunopositive(ghrelin-ip) cells in the proventriculus in Peking ducks.This is a test-report of ghrelin-ip cells/mm2 in proventriculus from 25,35,50-day-old in Peking duck ad libitum and fasted for 72 hours by immunohistochemistry analysis.Datas showed that many strongly ghrelin-ip cells were observed in the compound tublar glands in the proventriculus whether in the fasting group or in the free feed group in above three periods.The numbers of ghrelin-ip cells/mm2 were significantly increased compared with the free feed group(P0.01).The results demonstrate that feeding status influence the immunopositive ghrelin levels.
Retrospective Analysis of Resources Utilization in Township Hospitals of China

Objective Retrospective analysis of resources utilization in township hospitals of China for the last 10 years to provide reference for the new healthcare reform. Method Literature review,investigation,and data analysis. Result Under the condition of lack of government investment and unsound mechanism,resources and utilization in township hospitals was influenced by external policy environment,and existed decline on medical services enthusiasm and inadequacy medical service. Conclusion Implementation of investment,perfecting mechanism,giving full role to township hospitals in providing basic medical services will benefit the achievement of the new healthcare reform goal.
The structures of interstitial hydrogen centers in VO2 in the dilute limit from their vibrational properties and theory

The introduction of a large concentration of H into VO2 is known to suppress the insulating phase of the metal-insulator transition that occurs upon cooling below 340 K. We have used infrared spectroscopy and complementary theory to study the properties of interstitial H and D in VO2 in the dilute limit to determine the vibrational frequencies, thermal stabilities, and equilibrium positions of isolated interstitial H and D centers. The vibrational lines of several OH and OD centers were observed to have thermal stabilities similar to that of the hydrogen that suppresses the insulating phase. Theory associates two of the four possible OH configurations for Hi in the insulating VO2 monoclinic phase with OH lines seen by experiment. Furthermore, theory predicts the energies and vibrational frequencies for configurations with Hi trapped near a substitutional impurity and suggests such defects as candidates for additional OH centers that have been observed.
An Informal Introduction to Language Equations

We give a very informal overview of language equations; this is done by drawing on analogies between them and well-known, ordinary arithmetic equations, such as linear equations. The purpose of this chapter is to provide motivation for our study of language equations; more exact definitions are provided in the next chapter.
Addressing the sample preparation challenges in failure analysis of wafer level chip scale package mounted inside a customer camera module

One significant application of Wafer Level Chip Scale Package (WLCSP) is in opto-electronics and CCD image processing. This includes cellphone camera module, notebook or computer camera module, video telephone and many more. Its package size represents a real advantage for designers of camera modules and is the ideal choice for highly space-constrained camera applications. One complex part though, is when the WLCSP unit failed during customer electrical testing or in the field. Failure analysis of the failing WLCSP unit mounted inside a camera module will be very challenging. The camera module needs to be opened to gain access on the WLCSP part, demount it and proceed to reballing process to enable further electrical verification and fault isolation analysis. This paper discusses the evaluations done in demounting the WLCSP unit mounted inside a customer camera module. Combinations of thermo-mechanical process and parallel lapping were used to demount the WLCSP unit. The established process enabled the electrical verification, fault isolation and further destructive analysis of WLCSP customer return mounted inside a camera module.
Resource Aggregation for Collaborative Video from Multiple Projector enabled Mobile Devices

In this paper, we will explore and develop an embedded real time system and associated algorithms that enable an aggregation of limited resource, low-quality, projectionenabled mobile devices to collaboratively produce a higher quality video stream for a superior viewing experience. Such a resource aggregation across multiple projector enabled devices can lead to a per unit resource savings while moving the cost to the aggregate. The pico-projectors that are embedded in mobile devices such as cell phones have a much lower resolution and brightness than standard projectors. Tiling (putting the projection area of multiple projectors in a rectangular array overlapping them slightly around the boundary) and superimposing (putting the projection area of multiple projectors right on top of each other) multiple of such projectors, registered via automated registration through the cameras residing within those mobile devices, result in different ways of aggregating resources across these multiple devices. Evaluation of our proof-of-concept system shows significant improvement for each mobile device in two primary factors of bandwidth usage and power consumption when using a collaborative federation of projection-embedded mobile devices. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time aggregation of resources across a federation of low-cost, low power mobile devices can be achieved completely and automatically in real-time that can result in a viewing experience of as high as 4K (3840x2160) content with integrated four mobile devices playing 1080p content.
Intra-peritoneal Resuscitation in Trauma and Sepsis: Management Options for the Open Abdomen

Damage control surgery has been utilized as a means to provide life-saving bleeding and infection source control while limiting operative time to provide opportunities for ongoing resuscitation of the patient once the initial problem has been controlled. It is commonly used in trauma care for the massively injured patient but recently has been deployed in the field of acute care surgery. The problem for both these groups of patient is the resultant open abdomen and despite all efforts to close the abdomen primarily, many of these patients never achieve native tissue closure and require a variety of prosthetic techniques to provide closure. Short-term complications are from massive resuscitation. The long-term complications for the survivors are almost always related to the abdominal wall defect. The development of enterocutaneous fistulae, intra-abdominal infections, and chronic complex abdominal wall hernias are common outcomes for these patients. We describe here a novel resuscitation technique to assist in the management of damage control surgery to reduce the need for prosthetic closure. Using peritoneal dialysis solution, we have developed a protocol for direct peritoneal resuscitation (DPR) that decreases time to primary fascial closure and thus limits the complications associated with the open abdomen.
Tumor Associated Macrophages (TAM) in Skeletal Plasmacytomas of Patients with Multiple Myeloma.

Abstract In multiple myeloma, the neoplastic plasma cells are either dispersed throughout the red marrow spaces of the axial and proximal appendicular skeleton or concentrated in discrete, well vascularlized plasmacytomas that stimulate osteoclastic bone resorption and erode into cortical bone. Interactions between bone marrow stromal cells (BMSC) and myeloma cells are clearly important in the pathogenesis of myeloma that diffusely infiltrates the bone marrow and where plasmacytomas are in contact with the bone marrow space. However, these interactions cannot be of major relevance at the centers of expanding plasmacytomas since these sites are devoid of osteoclasts, osteoblasts and other BMSC. Histological sections of skeletal plasmacytomas from 22 patients with multiple myeloma were therefore examined after immunostaining with anti-macrophage antibodies. Hematoxylin and eosin stained sections showed sheets of plasma cells interspersed with numerous small blood vessels. Immunostained sections revealed abundant CD68+, CD163+ macrophage infiltrates in all tumors, and scattered collections of CD3+ T lymphocytes. Tumor-associated macrophages (TAM) accounted for 2 to 12 percent of nucleated cells in these plasmacytomas and were evenly distributed through the parenchyma or clustered around CD34+ blood vessels. In general the TAM had dendritic morphology, and each dendrite was in close contact with multiple plasma cells. In a small percentage of cases, there was a subpopulation of TAM strikingly clustered around CD34+ positive blood vessels. However, vascular mimicry was not seen. Abundant murine CD68+ TAM were also found in subcutaneous KAS6/1 and MM1 myeloma xenografts in SCID mice. To determine whether cells of the monocytic lineage might be exploitable as carriers for systemic delivery of therapeutic agents to plasmacytomas, monocyte-derived dendritic cells were infected with oncolytic measles viruses and administered intravenously to SCID mice bearing subcutaneous KAS6/1 xenografts. Immunostaining for human MHC II antigen revealed that the infused DCs could localize to the KAS6/1 tumors where they heterofused with and transferred MV infection to the myeloma cells. This is the first report of TAM in skeletal plasmacytomas of myeloma patients. Further research into the role of TAM in supporting myeloma growth is warranted since they may offer many potential opportunities for the development of novel approaches to myeloma therapy.
An Overlooked Approach in Survey Research: Total Survey Error

Social scientists are increasingly using surveys to collect data on behaviors, knowledge, perceptions, attitudes, and opinions from various population of interest. Most of the time, researchers are aware of survey limits to provide population estimates due to sampling error; however, social researchers are less aware of survey limits due to nonsampling errors. This chapter discusses the most defining characteristics of sampling and nonsampling errors in surveys. In particular, the chapter uses the Total Survey Error (TSE) approach as a way of helping social scientists to think comprehensively about the impact of different sources of error on survey estimates. The TSE is a valuable survey methodology theoretical framework which conceives the concept of survey error as a function of four factors: sampling error, coverage error, nonresponse error, and measurement error. This chapter emphasizes the importance of thinking inclusively about survey errors and data quality, with the ultimate purpose of minimizing the impact of error sources on survey estimates.
CIE Color Specifications Calculated from Reflectance or Transmittance Spectra

Food color is one of the most important determinants of acceptability, and an important specification for most food products. The development of compact and easy-to-use colorimeters and spectrophotometers has made the quantitative measurement of color a routine part of product development and quality assurance. There are several widely employed systems of color specification: Munsell, Commission Internationale de l’Eclairage (CIE) tristimulus, and the more recent CIEL*a*b* system. Available software, often incorporated into modern instruments, enables the investigator to report data in any of the above notations. Understanding the different color specification systems, and the means of interconversion, aids the food scientist in selecting an appropriate means of reporting and comparing color measurements. This laboratory exercise provides example data to calculate the following CIE color specifications from reflectance and transmission spectra: (a) Tristimulus values X, Y, and Z; (b) chromaticity coordinates x and y and luminosity, Y; and (c) dominant wavelength (λd) and % purity (using the chromaticity diagram). Using readily available software, interconversion can be done between the CIE Y and chromaticity coordinates and other color specification systems including Munsell and CIEL*a*b*.
Multisubunit RNA Polymerase Cleavage Factors Modulate the Kinetics and Energetics of Nucleotide Incorporation: An RNA Polymerase I Case Study

All cellular RNA polymerases are influenced by protein factors that stimulate RNA polymerase-catalyzed cleavage of the nascent RNA. Despite divergence in amino acid sequence, these so-called “cleavage factors” appear to share a common mechanism of action. Cleavage factors associate with the polymerase through a conserved structural element of the polymerase known as the secondary channel or pore. This mode of association enables the cleavage factor to reach through the secondary channel into the polymerase active site to reorient the active site divalent metal ions. This reorientation converts the polymerase active site into a nuclease active site. Interestingly, eukaryotic RNA polymerases I and III (Pols I and III, respectively) have incorporated their cleavage factors as bona fide subunits known as A12.2 and C11, respectively. Although it is clear that A12.2 and C11 dramatically stimulate the polymerase’s cleavage activity, it is not known if or how these subunits affect the polymerization mechanism. In...
Chronic Pain Rehabilitative Programs

The multidimensional experience of chronic pain results in individualized perceptions and coping mechanisms that reflect the complex biopsychosocial aspects of a patient in chronic pain. Interdisciplinary pain rehabilitation utilizes the biopsychosocial model of care which approaches health as best understood in terms of a combination of biological, psychological, and social factors rather than purely in biological terms. Dedicated functional restoration programs often have a defined duration and schedule of daily activities. Interventional pain management techniques such as sympathetic blocks for complex regional pain syndrome may be appropriate to facilitate physical and occupational therapies. This chapter provides an introduction and overview of chronic pain rehabilitation.
Volumetric analysis of respiratory gated whole lung and liver CT data with motion-constrained graph cuts segmentation

The conventional graph cuts technique has been widely used for image segmentation due to its ability to find the global minimum and its ease of implementation. However, it is an intensity-based technique and as a result is limited to segmentation applications where there is significant contrast between the object and the background. We modified the conventional graph cuts method by adding shape prior and motion information. Active shape models (ASM) with signed distance functions were used to capture the shape prior information, preventing unwanted surrounding tissue from becoming part of the segmented object. The optical flow method was used to estimate the local motion and to extend 3D segmentation to 4D by warping a prior shape model through time. The method has been applied to segmentation of whole lung boundary and whole liver boundary from respiratory gated CT data. 4D lung boundary segmentation in five patients, and 4D liver boundary segmentation in five patients were performed and in each case, results were compared with the results from expert-delineated ground truth. 4D segmentation for five phases of CT data took approximately ten minutes on a PC workstation with AMD Phenom II and 32GB of memory. An important by-product is quantitative whole organ volumes from respiratory gated CT from end-inspiration to end-expiration which can be determined with high accuracy.
Introduction: Studies of Queens in Honor of Carole Levin

The studies in this collection are a tribute to Carole Levin, a cultural historian and public intellectual whose work has been instrumental in fostering the study of queens. The scope of this book spans two centuries of queens and their afterlives, from the historical Elizabeth of York to the fantastical Empress from Cavendish’s Blazing World. We study these queens from so many angles and do so by freely crossing the boundaries of our various disciplines partly because of Carole’s fearless interdisciplinary scholarship, mentoring, and editing. The essays in this volume are grouped in the categories that mark some of Carole’s deepest research interests and the hallmarks of her methodology. Gender, marriage, religion, national identity, and diplomacy and, above all, the interplay between the historical and the literary have been at the center of Carole’s research projects as well as the studies of numerous scholars whom Carole mentored and encouraged or collaborated with. This volume brings all these facets of Carole’s interests to bear on her greatest love: queenship.
Dose‐Response Effects of Tai Chi and Physical Therapy Exercise Interventions in Symptomatic Knee Osteoarthritis

Abstract Background Therapeutic exercise is a currently recommended nonpharmacological treatment for knee osteoarthritis (KOA). The optimal treatment dose (frequency or duration) has not been determined. Objective To examine dose-response relationships, minimal effective dose, and baseline factors associated with the timing of response from 2 exercise interventions in KOA. Design Secondary analysis of a single-blind, randomized trial comparing 12-week Tai Chi and physical therapy exercise programs (Trial Registry #NCT01258985). Setting Urban tertiary care academic hospital Participants A total of 182 participants with symptomatic KOA (mean age 61 years; BMI 32 kg/m2, 70% female; 55% white). Methods We defined dose as cumulative attendance-weeks of intervention, and treatment response as ≥20% and ≥50% improvement in pain and function. Using log-rank tests, we compared time-to-response between interventions, and used Cox regression to examine baseline factors associated with timing of response, including physical and psychosocial health, physical performance, outcome expectations, self-efficacy, and biomechanical factors. Main Outcome Measures Weekly Western Ontario and McMasters Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) pain (0-500) and function (0-1700) scores. Results Both interventions had an approximately linear dose-response effect resulting in a 9- to 11-point reduction in WOMAC pain and a 32- to 41-point improvement in function per attendance-week. There was no significant difference in overall time-to-response for pain and function between treatment groups. Median time-to-response for ≥20% improvement in pain and function was 2 attendance-weeks and for ≥50% improvement was 4-5 attendance-weeks. On multivariable models, outcome expectations were independently associated with incident function response (hazard ratio = 1.47, 95% confidence interval 1.004-2.14). Conclusions Both interventions have approximately linear dose-dependent effects on pain and function; their minimum effective doses range from 2-5 weeks; and patient perceived benefits of exercise influence the timing of response in KOA. These results may help clinicians to optimize patient-centered exercise treatments and better manage patient expectations. Level of Evidence II
Cold-Season Tornadoes: Climatological and Meteorological Insights

AbstractTornadoes that occur during the cold season, defined here as November–February (NDJF), pose many societal risks, yet less attention has been given to their climatological trends and variability than their warm-season counterparts, and their meteorological environments have been studied relatively recently. This study aims to advance the current state of knowledge of cold-season tornadoes through analysis of these components. A climatology of all (E)F1–(E)F5 NDJF tornadoes from 1953 to 2015 across a domain of 25°–42.5°N, 75°–100°W was developed. An increasing trend in cold-season tornado occurrence was found across much of the southeastern United States, with a bull’s-eye in western Tennessee, while a decreasing trend was found across eastern Oklahoma. Spectral analysis reveals a cyclic pattern of enhanced NDJF counts every 3–7 years, coincident with the period of ENSO. La Nina episodes favor enhanced NDJF counts, but a stronger relationship was found with the Arctic Oscillation (AO). From a meteor...
Long-term fire management history affects N-fertilization sensitivity, but not seasonality, of grassland soil microbial communities

Abstract Nitrogen (N) availability is a driver of soil microbial diversity and function, and is affected by prescribed burning (N removal through volatilization) and fertilization (N addition). Because soil microbes control critical feedbacks to ecosystem function, it is important to understand the dynamics and responses of microbial populations under conditions of contrasting N availability. This study took place at a long-term field manipulation in which native tallgrass prairie was annually burned or not burned, and annually fertilized or not fertilized, in a factorial design, since 1986. Composite surface soil samples (0–15 cm) were collected monthly between November 2014 and December 2015 from replicate plots to evaluate event-based (post-fire, post-fertilization), seasonal, and long-term responses of soil microbial communities to management and environmental changes. Bacterial 16S rRNA gene and fungal ITS population sizes were estimated using qPCR, and bacterial community composition (BCC) was measured using Illumina MiSeq sequencing of 16S rRNA genes. We expected seasonal and event-based change in all parameters, and that total microbial population sizes and diversity would be lower in soils with higher N availability, due to greater competitive dominance of nitrophilic or copiotrophic taxa. Bacterial and fungal population sizes varied significantly by sampling month, in that bacterial populations were approximately 10× greater in summer (June–August), but did not change in response to management events or long-term treatments. In contrast, very few individual taxonomic groups displayed seasonal or event-based responses, and there was no significant whole-community turnover on weekly or monthly time-scales; instead, BCC was strongly impacted by both the long-term fire and fertilization treatments. Specifically, there were increases and decreases in putatively "copiotrophic" and "oligotrophic" prokaryotic Phyla in response to long-term N fertilization, which were significantly stronger and more predictable in soils following long-term fire suppression. These results reveal that while long-term grassland management changes BCC beyond the detected range of seasonal variability, total bacterial populations change coherently month-to-month, potentially due to significant plant inputs of labile carbon during the growing season. Furthermore, because prescribed burning reduces soil N availability, the interactive responses to fire suppression plus fertilization suggest that higher background levels of soil N availability may increase the magnitude of soil microbial sensitivity to N fertilization.
Hair Regeneration under Stress.

The phenomenon of wound-induced hair neogenesis in adult mice and rabbits offers a tantalizing window into the mechanisms of regeneration. By comparing wounds in mice and several rat strains, Guerrero-Juarez et al. attempted to identify factors that may contribute to the failure of wound-induced hair neogenesis to occur in the rat. In addition to biochemical, cellular, and molecular variation, worthwhile comparisons could include the magnitude, distribution, and source of tensional forces within the wound environment.
The growth of energy of a free particle of small mass with multiplicative real noise

Aim. Considering a particle under the influence of multiplicative noise η t , i.e. myy(t) = η t y(t), we know that the exponential growth rate λ m of its energy (y(t)2 + y(t)2)1/2 is positive, if the mass m is finite. If m tends to zero, does this growth rate or Lyapunov exponent λ m tend to infinity or stay bounded?
The Association of Alcohol Consumption and Incident Heart Failure : The Cardiovascular Health Study

Objectives We investigated the association between alcohol consumption and incident congestive heart failure (CHF) both overall and after adjusting for incident myocardial infarction (MI). Background Moderate alcohol consumption has been associated with lower risk of CHF and MI. Methods The Cardiovascular Health study, a prospective cohort study of cardiovascular disease risk factors and outcomes, followed 5,888 subjects ≥65 years old for 7 to 10 years. Cox models were used to estimate the adjusted risk of CHF by reported alcohol consumption. Results There were 5,595 subjects at baseline at risk for incident CHF with alcohol data and 1,056 events during follow-up. Compared with abstainers, the adjusted risk of CHF was lower among subjects who reported consuming 1 to 6 drinks per week (hazard ratio [HR] 0.82, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.67 to 1.00, p = 0.05) and 7 to 13 drinks per week (HR 0.66, 95% CI 0.47 to 0.91, p = 0.01). Time-dependent adjustment for incident MI altered only slightly the association between moderate alcohol consumption and CHF (for 1 to 6 drinks per week, HR 0.84, 95% CI 0.65 to 1.04; for 7 to 13 drinks per week, HR 0.69, 95% CI 0.49 to 0.99). Baseline former drinkers had a higher risk of CHF than abstainers (HR 1.51, p Conclusions Moderate alcohol use is associated with a lower risk of incident CHF among older adults, even after accounting for incident MI and other factors.
Accurate timetrees require accurate calibrations.

Morris et al. (1) estimate divergence times for land plants (embryophytes), concluding that they originated in the early Phanerozoic (515 to 473 Ma; midpoint, 494 Ma). In contrast, other molecular clock studies have placed that event 40% earlier, in the Precambrian (707 to 670 Ma) (2⇓–4). Knowing the correct time bears on understanding how land plants have impacted the biosphere (2). Morris et al. (1) conclude that the tree topology and size of the dataset had little impact on their results. They also suggest that their results were robust to “dating strategies,” which included removing a single maximum calibration while keeping all other maximum and minimum calibrations. The 37 minimum … [↵][1]1To whom correspondence should be addressed. Email: sbh{at}temple.edu. [1]: #xref-corresp-1-1
First Demonstration of Compact, Ultra-Thin Low-Pass and Bandpass Filters for 5G Small-Cell Applications

Package-integrated and ultra-thin low-pass filter (LPF) and bandpass filter (BPF) with footprint smaller than $0.5\lambda _{0}\times 0.5\lambda _{0}\times 0.025\lambda _{0}$ at the operating frequencies of 28- and 39-GHz bands are presented for 5G and mm-wave small-cell application. Such package integration of 5G filters with ultrashort 3-D interconnects allows for low interconnect losses that are similar to that of on-chip filters, but low component insertion loss of off-chip discrete filters. These thin-film filters exhibit a cross-sectional height of $188.5~\mu \text{m}$ and can be utilized either as embedded components or integrated passive devices in module packages. Three topologies of LPF and BPF in total are modeled, designed, and fabricated on precision thin-film buildup layers on glass substrate as a core. Large-area panel-compatible semiadditive patterning (SAP) process is utilized to form high-precision topologies to aid the low-cost fabrication of ultraminiaturized filters. SAP also enables the realization of ultra-thin traces to precisely model high-impedance inductive lines compared to conventional subtractive etching and printing techniques. This results in filters with low insertion loss, low VSWR, and high selectivity. The simulated and measured results of filters show an excellent correlation.
Ca2+ Release Channel of Sarcoplasmic Reticulum: Characterization of the Regulatory Sites

This chapter focuses on an unresolved aspect of muscle function, namely, how does sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) release calcium ions, thereby causing muscle to contract? A schematic drawing of a small segment of a muscle cell is depicted in the upper part of Fig. 1. Two key structures in excitation-contraction coupling—the surface membrane, composed of the sarcolemma and transverse (T-)system, and the SR—are shown. SR is an intracellular membrane system whose main function is to regulate muscle contraction and relaxation by releasing and taking up again the released Ca2+. Rapid release from skeletal muscle SR is triggered by a surface membrane potential that is thought to be communicated to SR at specialized areas where the SR comes in close contact with the T-tubule, and protein bridges (“feet”) are present which span the gap between the two membrane systems. However, how calcium ions are released from SR has remained an enigma(1,2) (also see Chapter 22, this book). One hypothesis is that T-tubule depolarization increases in the junctional gap the concentration of a chemical messenger such as Ca2+, which then opens a Ca2+ -channel in the SR membrane. Another popular hypothesis suggests that the feet are in direct contact with a voltage-sensing molecule in the T-tubule membrane. During T-tubule depolarization the feet undergo a conformational change which regulates the opening of the SR Ca2+-channels.
Dealing with the struggling learner

Every resident will inevitably struggle with some aspect of training. The degree and severity of the struggle, however, will vary and the struggling residents will fall along a continuum. The struggles of a few will not be evident to those in program leadership. One of the most challenging aspects of managing a struggling resident's remediation is the early identification of one who is faltering. We identify best practices in identification and remediation.
Aztlán: From Mythos to Logos in the American Southwest

This article advances the idea of “Aztlan” as a hybrid border identity that developed over time from ancient myth into a complex mode of social and political ontology. The cultural symbol of Aztec mythology was once the homeland of the Aztec people and eventually served a role in Aztec philosophy, functioning as truth for peoples throughout time, as seen in both Latin American and American philosophy and literature. It also helped the mixed-race Chicano/a population resist complete Americanization into the contemporary period, through the reclamation of original myth into a geopolitical homeland. The theory of “double hybridization,” similar to “double colonization,” must be further assessed and taken into consideration as the natural progression and understanding of Aztlan and border identity.
Microbial Chemical Ecology in the Human Microbiome

Abstract The human microbiome is an important contributor to human health and disease. Although the molecular mechanisms governing most of these contributions are yet to be discovered, several characterized examples were shown to involve the production of a biologically active small molecule by one or more members of the microbiome. Along the same lines, recent systematic analyses revealed a vast, diverse, and largely unexplored potential of the human microbiome to produce such molecules, providing a direct route towards investigating microbe-host and microbe-microbe interactions at the level of molecular mechanism. Since several papers have previously reviewed the role of microbiome-derived small molecules in mediating microbe-host interactions in the context of human health and disease, we will here explore their role in mediating microbe-microbe interactions instead, with a focus on two important processes in microbial chemical ecology: competition and cooperation. We will discuss recent advances in discovering small molecules from the human microbiome with potential roles in microbial ecology, and efforts to define these roles in a biologically relevant context. Since each site on the human body represents its own ecological niche, and harbors a largely unique set of microbial inhabitants, we will organize the molecules and interactions based on the human body site where they are located.
Ribosome heterogeneity in stem cells and development

Translation control is critical to regulate protein expression. By directly adjusting protein levels, cells can quickly respond to dynamic transitions during stem cell differentiation and embryonic development. Ribosomes are multisubunit cellular assemblies that mediate translation. Previously seen as invariant machines with the same composition of components in all conditions, recent studies indicate that ribosomes are heterogeneous and that different ribosome types can preferentially translate specific subsets of mRNAs. Such heterogeneity and specialized translation functions are very important in stem cells and development, as they allow cells to quickly respond to stimuli through direct changes of protein abundance. In this review, we discuss ribosome heterogeneity that arises from multiple features of rRNAs, including rRNA variants and rRNA modifications, and ribosomal proteins, including their stoichiometry, compositions, paralogues, and posttranslational modifications. We also discuss alterations of ribosome-associated proteins (RAPs), with a particular focus on their consequent specialized translational control in stem cells and development.
Locabulary: A Context Sensitive Mixed Reality Flashcard Alternative for Second Language Learning

Mixed reality creates exciting new opportunities for computer-aided language learning. By combining markerless tracking technology with a user's geolocation, software systems can dynamically locate and generate personalized interactive language practice exercises. The Locabulary mobile app uses a combination of markerless tracking and metadata from the user's location information to construct that utilize the learner's physical surroundings to provide unique and relevant content. Additionally, Locabulary employs context-aware spaced repetition to help language learners develop mastery over the material in the exercises it creates.
Maritime Paleoindian technology, subsistence, and ecology at an 11,700 year old Paleocoastal site on California's Northern Channel Islands, USA

During the last 10 years, we have learned a great deal about the potential for a coastal peopling of the Americas and the importance of marine resources in early economies. Despite research at a growing number of terminal Pleistocene archaeological sites on the Pacific Coast of the Americas, however, important questions remain about the lifeways of early Paleocoastal peoples. Research at CA-SRI-26, a roughly 11,700 year old site on California's Santa Rosa Island, provides new data on Paleoindian technologies, subsistence strategies, and seasonality in an insular maritime setting. Buried beneath approximately two meters of alluvium, much of the site has been lost to erosion, but its remnants have produced chipped stone artifacts (crescents and Channel Island Amol and Channel Island Barbed points) diagnostic of early island Paleocoastal components. The bones of waterfowl and seabirds, fish, and marine mammals, along with small amounts of shellfish document a diverse subsistence strategy. These data support a relatively brief occupation during the wetter "winter" season (late fall to early spring), in an upland location several km from the open coast. When placed in the context of other Paleocoastal sites on the Channel Islands, CA-SRI-26 demonstrates diverse maritime subsistence strategies and a mix of seasonal and more sustained year-round island occupations. Our results add to knowledge about a distinctive island Paleocoastal culture that appears to be related to Western Stemmed Tradition sites widely scattered across western North America.
Renewal Reward Perspective on Linear Switching Diffusion Systems in Models of Intracellular Transport

In many biological systems, the movement of individual agents is characterized having multiple qualitatively distinct behaviors that arise from a variety of biophysical states. For example, in cells the movement of vesicles, organelles, and other intracellular cargo is affected by their binding to and unbinding from cytoskeletal filaments such as microtubules through molecular motor proteins. A typical goal of theoretical or numerical analysis of models of such systems is to investigate effective transport properties and their dependence on model parameters. While the effective velocity of particles undergoing switching diffusion dynamics is often easily characterized in terms of the long-time fraction of time that particles spend in each state, the calculation of the effective diffusivity is more complicated because it cannot be expressed simply in terms of a statistical average of the particle transport state at one moment of time. However, it is common that these systems are regenerative, in the sense that they can be decomposed into independent cycles marked by returns to a base state. Using decompositions of this kind, we calculate effective transport properties by computing the moments of the dynamics within each cycle and then applying renewal reward theory. This method provides a useful alternative large-time analysis to direct homogenization for linear advection-reaction-diffusion partial differential equation models. Moreover, it applies to a general class of semi-Markov processes and certain stochastic differential equations that arise in models of intracellular transport. Applications of the proposed renewal reward framework are illustrated for several case studies such as mRNA transport in developing oocytes and processive cargo movement by teams of molecular motor proteins.