cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Correlation of fluorescence and electron microscopy of F‐actin‐containing sensory cells in the epidermis of Convoluta pulchra (Platyhelminthes: Acoela)

Phalloidin-stained whole mounts of acoel turbellarians show brightly fluorescing club-shaped structures distributed over the epidermis and concentrated especially at the anterior and posterior tips of the body. By correlating electron micrographic images and fluorescence images of Convoluta pulchra, these structures can be seen to be sensory receptors with a central cilium surrounded by a collar of microvilli. The other candidate for showing fluorescence in the epidermis, namely gland necks, can be ruled out since their distribution is too dense to resemble the distribution of the fluorescent structures seen here. The collared sensory receptors were inserted between epidermal cells, and each bore a central cilium surrounded by a collar of 6–18 microvilli and an additional centrally positioned 2–7 microvilli of which 2 or 3 were associated with a modified rootlet called the swallow’s nest. Confocal scanning laser microscopy resolved the core of actin filaments within the microvilli of the collar and their rootlet-like connections to the base of the sensory cell. Such receptors could also be identified by fluorescence microscopy in several other species of acoel turbellarians.
Attrition of on-line graduate nursing students before and after program structural changes.

This study assessed attrition rates and reasons for withdrawal among on-line graduate students before and after the implementation of program structural changes in 2008. A descriptive retrospective cohort study was conducted using the academic and advising records of 853 on-line graduate nursing students enrolled between 2005 and 2010. Three student cohorts were examined: (Cohort 1) students who entered and withdrew prior to 2008, (Cohort 2) students who entered before and withdrew after 2008, and (Cohort 3) students who entered and withdrew after 2008. The proportions of student attrition from each cohort were 43% (97 out of 225 students), 19% (52 out of 277 students), and 7.4% (26 out of 351 students), respectively. Results indicated that students' attrition rates in Cohorts 2 and 3 were significantly less than Cohort 1. Supported by Alexander Astin's input–experience–output model, 2 major themes emerged as reasons for withdrawal—personal and academic. Findings from this study provided a critical view for further investigation and serve as an evaluation tool to identify trends and develop appropriate supportive interventions that facilitate positive student outcomes. Further research is warranted to investigate the effects of the program structural changes on students' attitudes and program satisfaction.
Plate tectonics at an awkward junction: rules for the evolution of Sovanco Ridge area, NE Pacific

Summary. The elegant geometrical rules of plate tectonics do not allow for a gradual shift in plate motion directions, or the gradual, as opposed to sudden, cessation of subduction. At the scale of the small plates in the NE Pacific, imperfections in boundary processes have a large effect on the net torque on the plates, and heavily influence the evolution of the geometry. In this area, the rotation of the spreading directions and the diminution of true subduction along the southern Canadian coast has not occurred by the sudden switching of plate motions from one stable condition to another. Instead, it appears as if the dominant factor for the evolution is the resistance of the ocean floor to formation of new, smoothly slipping transform faults. Compressive deformation of even young lithosphere is not only mechanically unlikely, but is not helpful to the particular configurations found in this area. Instead, a migrating shear zone and an episode of highly en echelon spreading along a new axis nearly perpendicular to the present Juan de Fuca ridge have resulted: the present Sovanco ridge was never a transform fault. Neither is the Nootka fault a shear zone, but the locus of stretching between plates whose motions are congruent at the Juan de Fuca ridge, but diverge toward the continental margin.
Perioperative stimulation of residual cancer cells promotes local and distant recurrence of breast cancer

In vivo animal research (1-3) has demons t ra ted that cancer cells can have a dramatic and clinically significant interact ion with a fresh surgical wound. We have demons t ra t ed that circulating carc inoma cells can be di rected to a site that was historically refractory for that cancer by surgically injuring that site just before the intravenous injection of carc inoma cells. We have demons t ra ted that tum o r cells would implant and grow at a surgically injured liver, spleen, cecum, bone, or kidney in 50 to 75% of animals compared with essentially no metastatic rate to these sites in an un in ju red animal (1, 4, 5). The cancer cells would be attracted not just to the in jured organ, but to exactly the in jured site. Fur thermore , the injured area t ended to be the single site of greatest tumor b u r d e n of all metastatic foci. Fisher and colleagues have shown that factors locally released by the surgical resection of a carc inoma can stimulate cancer cells at a distant site (6, 7). This interact ion between cancer cells and the surgical wound env i ronment has impor tan t implications on results of surgical therapy of malignancies. The attraction to and stimulation of mal ignant ceils by the growth substances released f rom the surgical wound are felt to be a major obstacle to our ability to cure cancer by surgery alone. To ascertain whe the r the surgical extirpation of breast cancer facilitates local and distant tumor
The Prescription Opioid Abuse Crisis in America: Current Prescribing Patterns, Impact on Public Health, and the Role of the Anesthesiologist

Key points � More patients are arriving to the operating room for elective and emergent surgery with a previous history of opioid exposure. This can cause significant challenges in management of acute pain, which traditionally responds well to opioid-based therapy. However, when patients have significant tolerance, the risk of complication is increased as opioid doses are further increased in the perioperative period. � The United States is in the midst of an opioid epidemic and many patients with chronic pain are being treated with analgesics primarily designed for the treatment of acute pain. Lack of familiarity with these medications can lead to significant difficulty in pain management in the perioperative period. � The anesthesiologist has an opportunity to become part of the care team that develops a comprehensive care plan and is integral in the transition of care for opioid-exposed patients.
Mechanism of anoxia-induced atrial natriuretic peptide release in the isolated rat atria

Our laboratory has recently shown that locally produced endothelin (ET) is involved in the atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) response to a physical stimulus, stretch. The aim of this study was to determine if factors locally produced in the atria were involved in the ANP response to a chemical stimulus, anoxia. Reduced oxygen tension is a potent stimulus of ANP release, and our results show that, when isolated perfused atria were exposed to anoxic conditions, the ANP secretion rate increased by a maximum of 129 +/- 8% of the baseline. Exposure to anoxia caused neither an elevation in perfusate creatinine phosphokinase, a change in atrial morphology detectable by electron microscopy, nor interfered with the return toward the baseline ANP secretion rate with reoxygenation, suggesting that this response was not due to myocyte damage. When the atria were pretreated with either 3 microM BQ-123, an endothelin receptor inhibitor, or 10 microM indomethacin, a cyclooxygenase inhibitor, the ANP response to anoxia was nearly abolished. To clarify the association between ET and prostaglandins, we showed that the ANP response to 50 nM ET-1 was totally blocked at both high and low pressure by 10 microM indomethacin, but the increased contractility response to ET was unaffected. Therefore, we have concluded that the anoxia-induced ANP response is mediated by locally produced ET, which, in turn, stimulates the production of prostaglandins. Prostaglandins appear to be responsible for the increased ANP secretion rate.
DBSeer: Resource and Performance Prediction for Building a Next Generation Database Cloud

Cloud computing is characterized by shared infrastructure and a decoupling between its operators and tenants. These two characteristics impose new challenges to databases applications hosted in the cloud, namely: (i) how to price database services, (ii) how to isolate database tenants, and (iii) how to optimize database performance on this shared infrastructure. We argue that today’s solutions, based on virtual-machines, do not properly address these challenges. We hint at new research directions to tackle these problems and argue that these three challenges share a common need for accurate predictive models of performance and resource utilization. We present our approach, called DBSeer, with our initial results on predictive models for the important class of OLTP/Web workloads and show how they can be used to address these challenges.
Binary Quadratic Programing for Online Tracking of Hundreds of People in Extremely Crowded Scenes

Multi-object tracking has been studied for decades. However, when it comes to tracking pedestrians in extremely crowded scenes, we are limited to only few works. This is an important problem which gives rise to several challenges. Pre-trained object detectors fail to localize targets in crowded sequences. This consequently limits the use of data-association based multi-target tracking methods which rely on the outcome of an object detector. Additionally, the small apparent target size makes it challenging to extract features to discriminate targets from their surroundings. Finally, the large number of targets greatly increases computational complexity which in turn makes it hard to extend existing multi-target tracking approaches to high-density crowd scenarios. In this paper, we propose a tracker that addresses the aforementioned problems and is capable of tracking hundreds of people efficiently. We formulate online crowd tracking as Binary Quadratic Programing. Our formulation employs target's individual information in the form of appearance and motion as well as contextual cues in the form of neighborhood motion, spatial proximity and grouping, and solves detection and data association simultaneously. In order to solve the proposed quadratic optimization efficiently, where state-of art commercial quadratic programing solvers fail to find the solution in a reasonable amount of time, we propose to use the most recent version of the Modified Frank Wolfe algorithm, which takes advantage of SWAP-steps to speed up the optimization. We show that the proposed formulation can track hundreds of targets efficiently and improves state-of-art results by significant margins on eleven challenging high density crowd sequences.
The lost-foam casting of aluminum alloy components

In the lost-foam casting process, liquid metal is poured directly onto a refractory-coated, foamed polymer pattern which is buried in loose sand. The polymer pattern undergoes thermal degradation and is gradually replaced by the molten metal, which solidifies and produces the casting. The inherent operating advantages of this innovative technique have generated considerable interest among casting manufacturers. Currently, the process is being utilized to manufacture a wide variety of ferrous and nonferrous components catering primarily to the automotive industry. Because the process is relatively new, there is a compelling need to quantify the influence of process parameters on microstructure and mechanical properties. Furthermore, the interaction of the thermal degradation products with the solidifying metal may produce several unique defects in the casting.
SEX CHANGE WITH INBREEDING: EXPERIMENTS ON SEPARATE VERSUS COMBINED SEXES.

Ipomopsis rubra plants grown in the laboratory initially produced hermaphrodite flowers, but some self- or sib-mated individuals switched to produce large numbers of pistillate (male sterile) flowers. The sex change did not occur with outcrossing. Plants with extreme male sterility were also observed in natural populations, usually in smaller individuals. Male sterility may be compensated by more seeds (resource reallocation), better seeds (avoidance of selfing), or both. Pistillate flowers were smaller, so savings could be used for additional seeds. Selfed seeds had reduced survival and fecundity, so avoidance of selfing could produce better quality offspring. We explored costs and benefits of sex change with two fitness models. The first assumes randomoutcross matings. Estimates of resource reallocation and inbreeding (selfing) depression are sufficient for pistillate inflorescences to have equal or greater fitness than hermaphrodite inflorescences if the selfing rate is high. Frequencies of sex change with intensive self-pollination were consistent with this model. The second model assumes all nonself matings are between sibs in "local mating" groups. Parents may benefit by male sterility in offspring, but gains would be higher if sex change occurred earlier and at higher than observed frequencies.
Construction of DNA vaccine encoding the small envelope protein of SARS coronavirus and the experimental immunization study in mice

To construct the eukaryotic expression plasmid of gene fragment of envelope protein of SARS coronavirus (E) and to observe its immune responses in Balb/c mice, the specific gene of E was amplified by PCR, and was subcloned to the eukaryotic expression plasmid pVAC. Then the recombinant plasmid was transfected into Vero cell line with lipofectamine 2000. The expression of E protein was detected by western blotting. The plasmid was inoculated into Balb/c mice by gene gun injection. The specific antibody to E protein was detected by ELISA, and the proliferation activity of T lymphocytes was tested by MTT assay. The percentage of spleen CD~ + _4/CD~ + _8 T cells were analyzed by flow cytometry. It was found that the recombinant plasmid pVAC-E was successfully constructed, and the expression of E protein was detected in vitro. Specific antibodies cannot be detected after immunization. The proliferate responses between control and immunized spleen cells showed no difference (P0.05). The number of CD~ + _4 T cells in the immunized group was significantly increased compared with that of the control ones. Whereas the number of CD~ + _8 T cells was higher than that of the control, but with no significant difference(P0.05). It demonstrated that the recombinant pVAC-E can be expressed in mammalian cell, and induce cellular immunity in mice.
Effects of Pine and Hardwood Basal Areas After Uneven-Aged Silvicultural Treatments on Wildlife Habitat

Uneven-aged management (UEAM) is becoming increasingly popular in the southeastern United States. HoweLter. effects of UEAM on wildlije habitat have not been adequately documented. We examined response ofhabitat within stands of varying levels ofpine and hardwood basal area underan uneven- aged tnanagement regime in southern Mississippi. Summer and kl,inter trends in understor? biomass were similar across treatments. Time since disturbance injluencedplantproductivity. Stands with lower basal areas tended to have hi,qher browse production, denser and higher vertical habitat structure, more kvoodyV vine, and fern biomass, greater total biomass, and higher plant species diversi and richness. Pine basal area haa' little injluence on browse production relative to eflects of hardwood basal area. Although stands w,ith higher basal area hud less biomass. u higherproportio n oj-biomass was composed ofpreferred browse. We recommend that lbrest managerr create standy of va?ing levels ofpine and hardrvood basal areas to prorridefor dirverse needs oj-man! wildlife species. South. .I. Appl. For. 23(3/: 151-157.
The Effects of Locality and Asymmetry in Large-Scale Multiagent MDPs

As multiagent systems scale up, the complexity of interactions between agents (cooperative coordination in teams, or strategic reasoning in the case of self-interested agents) often increases exponentially. In particular, in multiagent MDPs, it is generally necessary to consider the joint state space of all agents, making the size of the problem and the solution exponential in the number of agents. However, often interactions between the agents are only local, which suggests a more compact problem representation. We consider a subclass of multiagent MDPs with local interactions where dependencies between agents are asymmetric, meaning that agents can affect others in a unidirectional manner. This asymmetry, which often occurs in large-scale domains with authority-driven relationships between agents, allows us to make better use of the locality of agents’ interactions. We discuss a graphical model that exploits this form of problem structure and use it to analyze the effects of locality and asymmetry on the complexity and structure of optimal policies. For problems where the solutions retain some of the compactness of problem representation, we present computationally-efficient algorithms for constructing optimal multiagent policies.
The Balance of Power

Behind the idea of the balance of power lies a protest against the achievement of unity through uniformity, and the balance of power is thus properly put in antithesis to the idea of universal monarchy. As such, the balance of power is akin to a belief in the virtues of diversity and freedom. The very idea of balance also implies a form of equality. Thus, because the idea of balance of power is seen to be rather closely related to both the idea of freedom and the idea of equality, one might expect the notion to be one congenial to the liberal tradition. How are we then to account for the somewhat surprising fact that the notion of the balance of power has been subjected to the most severe criticism in that tradition?
CRITIQUE - OF “SOIL AND OTHER SOURCES OF NITROUS OXIDE”

ABSTRACT The variable concentrations of N 2 O in air given by Delwiche et al. (1) can be partially explained by physical diffusion processes at work in the soil and above the ground. Mass flow of soil air coupled with pressure fluctuations in the above-ground atmosphere plays a role and adds to the complexities of N 2 O exchange and its measurement. Turbulent diffusion processes over the ground affect N'0 concentration and flux above the surface too. By measuring vertical gradients of N 2 O above the ground, exchange rates can be calculated from micrometeorological methods. Preliminary measurements demonstrate the soil to be both a sink for and a source of N 2 O in the field. Use of the method is limited by capability for analyzing N 2 O.
A New Theoretical Model of Plasma Cell Differentiation

Over the last several years, investigations in our laboratories have centered around the problem of differentiation and development of the plasma cell line. The chicken has been the primary animal model used because this cell line can be easily manipulated by bursectomy in this species (1). Stem cells, originally located in the yolk sac, begin migration into the bursa of Fabricius around the 13th day of incubation and assume lymphoid features in that environment (2). Removal of the bursa on or before the 17th day of incubation can prevent seeding of its lymphoid cells to extra-bursal sites. As a consequence, subsequent germinal center and plasma cell development is prevented and agammaglobulinemia ensues (3). Chemical bursectomy, produced by testosterone administration early in embryonic life, can similarly abort development of the plasma cell line (4). Consistent with this and other evidence indicating that the bursa is the site of induction for the immunoglobulin-producing line of cells (5–7), immunoglobulin synthesis occurs in the bursa several days prior to its appearance in other lymphoid organs (8).
The Fracture and Yield Strengths of Diamond, Silicon and Germanium

This paper describes the elastic and plastic behavior of Group IV B covalent elements having the diamond cubic structure: germanium, silicon and diamond. Their elastic behavior is reviewed and provides a useful reference point for the discussion to follow. The state of stress beneath paraboloidal indentors is also reviewed to provide the background needed in this discussion.
Regulation of Hematopoietic Stem Cell Mitochondrial Metabolism

Abstract Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) like most, if not all, adult stem cells are primarily quiescent but have the potential to become highly active on demand. HSC quiescence is maintained by glycolytic metabolism and low levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which indicate that mitochondria are relatively inactive in quiescent HSC. However, HSC cycling - and exit of quiescence state - require a swift metabolic switch from glycolysis to mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation. To improve our understanding of mechanisms that integrate energy metabolism with HSC homeostasis, my laboratory has been focused on the transcription factor FOXO3, which is critical for the maintenance of HSC quiescence and redox state and is implicated in HSC aging. We showed recently that FOXO3 is key to HSC mitochondrial metabolism, independent of its inhibition of ROS or mTOR signaling. Mitochondria divide and fuse constantly in part to segregate and dispose of their damaged counterparts. These processes are influenced by and highly linked to mitochondrial metabolism. We have recently developed imaging approaches to study HSC mitochondrial divisions. Mechanisms by which FOXO3 regulates HSC mitochondria and the impact of impaired FOXO3 on the HSC health and activity, and mitochondrial network will be discussed. Detailed understanding of the mitochondrial metabolism and divisions in HSC and their relationship to nuclear transcription are likely to have broad implications for the state of HSC fitness, regenerative capacity and aging. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
Testing methods of promoting critical listening skills in the service learning classroom

This experience report presents the results of a year-long case history of testing strategies of introducing critical listening processes to technical communication students. The study investigates two graduate introductory technical writing courses (a total of 41 students, 4 clients) over two semesters. The report traces learning the institution's typical service learning process as a co-teacher, and again as a solo teacher, determining that collaborative writing skills, personnel management, and research skills were the main objectives in my construct of service learning outcomes. Using Kastman Breuch's [1] framework on critical listening, I assess students' experiences with clarity of 1. information received from client and 2. students' interpretation of the client's needs. The report describes students' experiences identifying/not identifying key themes in the verbal exchange, views about debriefing, and misinterpreting clients' wishes. The report concludes with lessons learned from the experience and what I would do differently in subsequent service learning courses.
ε- and β-LiVOPO4: Phase Transformation and Electrochemistry.

e- and β-LiVOPO4 were synthesized from the same precursor at different temperatures in an air atmosphere. e-LiVOPO4 is obtained at 400 and 700 °C. The 700 °C sample has better purity and crystallinity, but the 400 °C sample has a little better electrochemical performance due to its smaller particle size and the conducting carbon residue in the sample. β-LiVOPO4 is formed between the above two temperatures, which gives slightly lower capacity than that of the e-LiVOPO4 sample, indicating higher kinetics of the lithium reaction for the e phase than those of the β one. The phase transformation from e to β then back reversibly to e was also observed by ex situ X-ray diffraction. This thermal study verifies that e-LiVOPO4 is the more stable phase for LiVOPO4; however, reaction kinetics control the phases formed at lower temperatures.
Calmodulin is required for cell-cycle progression during G1 and mitosis.

Abstract In order to examine the consequences of a transient increase or decrease in intracellular calmodulin (CaM) levels, two bovine-papilloma-virus (BPV)-based expression vectors capable of inducibly synthesizing CaM sense (BPV-MCM) or anti-sense (BPV-CaMAS) RNA have been constructed and used to stably transform mouse C127 cells. Upon addition of Zn2+, cells containing the BPV-MCM vector have transiently increased CaM mRNA and protein levels. Cells carrying the BPV-CaMAS vector transiently produce CaM anti-sense RNA resulting in a significant decrease in intracellular CaM concentration. Increased CaM caused a transient acceleration of proliferation, while the anti-sense RNA induced decrease in CaM caused a transient cell cycle arrest. Flow cytometric analysis showed that progression through G1 and mitosis was affected by changes in CaM levels. These data indicate that CaM levels may limit the rate of cell-cycle progression under normal conditions of growth.
Interlayer coupling and gate-tunable excitons in transition metal dichalcogenide heterostructures

Bilayer van der Waals (vdW) heterostructures such as MoS2/WS2 and MoSe2/WSe2 have attracted much attention recently, particularly because of their type II band alignments and the formation of interlayer exciton as the lowest-energy excitonic state. In this work, we calculate the electronic and optical properties of such heterostructures with the first-principles GW+Bethe–Salpeter Equation (BSE) method and reveal the important role of interlayer coupling in deciding the excited-state properties, including the band alignment and excitonic properties. Our calculation shows that due to the interlayer coupling, the low energy excitons can be widely tuned by a vertical gate field. In particular, the dipole oscillator strength and radiative lifetime of the lowest energy exciton in these bilayer heterostructures is varied by over an order of magnitude within a practical external gate field. We also build a simple model that captures the essential physics behind this tunability and allows the extension of the ab i...
Growth and Decline in Language and Phonological Memory Over Two Years Among Adolescents With Down Syndrome

Abstract Forty-two adolescents with Down syndrome (DS) ages 10 to 21 years completed a battery of language and phonological memory measures twice, 2 years apart. Individual differences were highly stable across two years. Receptive vocabulary scores improved, there was no change in receptive or expressive grammar scores, and nonword repetition scores declined. Digit memory and expressive vocabulary scores improved among younger adolescents, but generally held steady among older adolescents. These patterns may reveal key points in development at which interventions may be best applied. Further research is needed to understand specific processes in tasks that appear to be slowing or declining during adolescence. They may be important for understanding early aging and dementia in DS.
Serum Vitamin D Status and Breast Cancer Risk by Receptor Status: A Systematic Review

ABSTRACTBackground: The association between vitamin D status and breast cancer risk is equivocal. No systematic reviews or meta-analyses have examined this association stratified by receptor status. Our objective is to conduct a systematic review to answer the question, “Is there a relationship between lower serum/plasma vitamin D levels and increased risk of triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) specifically?” Methods: We systematically searched Embase and PubMed databases for published original research studies examining the risk of a breast cancer diagnosis according to vitamin D status. We excluded studies that did not provide risk estimates stratified by receptor status. Results: Fourteen studies met our criteria, including case-control, nested case-control, and case-series studies, reflecting the cumulative results of 13,135 breast cancer cases. When grouped by relevancy to TNBC, the proportion of analyses across all study types showing a significant association between vitamin D status and breast ca...
The Structure of Bargaining Sequences

Researchers agree that plea bargaining refers to courtroom transactions in which there is an exchange between the prosecution and defense in criminal cases. A consistent and common observation is that defendants who plead guilty receive some dispositional “consideration” from the state, which, in turn, gets sure convictions with less expenditure of time and money than going to trial (Alschuler, 1968: 50; Baldwin and McConville, 1977: 23; Bottoms and McClean, 1976: 123; Feeley, 1979c: 185; Grosman, 1969: Chapter 7; Klein, 1976: Chapter 1; Miller et al., 1978: xii).1 However, such a definition does not cover the gamut of activities that actually occur as part of plea bargaining (Feeley, 1979a: 199–200). For example, the definition covers situations in which charges and/or sentences are reduced in exchange for guilty pleas. But district attorneys and defense lawyers also use the term to refer to negotiating charge dismissals, continuances, and trials, where a consideration or concession is not traded for a guilty plea (McDonald, 1979: 289; Feeley, 1979b: 462). The definition also fails to capture distinctions between (a) perfunctory discussions in which there is an exchange that is standard or routine procedure but where no overt discussion of the offense and the offender occurs (Feeley, 1979c: 190), and (b) protracted negotiations in which seemingly adversarial sides are taken on these issues before an agreement is reached (e.g., Buckle and Buckle, 1977: 86; Eisenstein and Jacob, 1977: 32). In summary, as Feeley (1979a: 200) has observed, “If plea bargaining is the generic term for negotiation in the criminal process, then we need a richer vocabulary for generating typologies and exploring in greater detail the process of nontrial.”
The Asian Origin of Anthropoidea Revisited

The concept of an Asian origin for the Anthropoidea has surfaced repeatedly in our attempts to discern the biogeographic and phyletic origins of the suborder (e.g., Pilgrim, 1927; Ba Maw et al., 1979; Gingerich, 1980; Ciochon and Ghiarelli, 1980; Ciochon et al., 1985). The primary evidence for such an Asian origin traditionally lies in the poorly known and phylogenetically enigmatic primate genera Amphipithecus and Pondaungia from the late middle Eocene Pondaung deposits of Burma (now Myanmar).
Nickel complexes of primary amido-functionalized N-heterocyclic carbene ligands: Synthesis, characterization, and base-free transfer hydrogenation

Abstract Three new nickel complexes featuring primary amido-functionalized N-heterocyclic carbene ligands have been synthesized and characterized using NMR spectroscopy, combustion analysis, and, in one case, single crystal x-ray diffraction. Each complex serves as a pre-catalyst for base-free transfer hydrogenation of aryl ketones in air using 2-propanol or 2-butanol as the solvent and hydrogen donor. Furthermore, in methanol-d4 solutions of the nickel complexes, hydrogen-deuterium exchange is observed on the ligands at moderate temperatures. These nickel complexes represent rare examples of transfer hydrogenation catalysts that operate under base-free and aerobic conditions.
On the Inherent Explainability of Pattern Theory-Based Video Event Interpretations

The ability of artificial intelligence systems to offer explanations for its decisions is central to building user confidence and structuring smart human-machine interactions. Expressing the rationale behind such a system’s output is an important aspect of human-machine interaction as AI continues to be prominent in general, everyday use-cases. In this paper, we introduce a novel framework integrating Grenander’s pattern theory structures to produce inherently explainable, symbolic representations for activity interpretations. These representations provide semantically rich and coherent interpretations of video activity using connected structures of detected (grounded) concepts, such as objects and actions, that are bound by semantics through background concepts not directly observed, i.e. contextualization cues. We use contextualization cues to establish semantic relationships among concepts to infer a deeper interpretation of events than what can be directly sensed. We propose the use of six questions that can be used to gain insight into the models ability to justify its decision and enhance its ability to interact with humans. The six questions are designed to (1) build an understanding of how the model is able to infer interpretations, (2) enable us to walk through its decision-making process, and (3) understand its drawbacks and possibly address them. We demonstrate the viability of this idea on video data using a dialog model that uses interpretations to generate explanations grounded in both video data and semantics.
A dynamic games approach to proactive defense strategies against Advanced Persistent Threats in cyber-physical systems

Abstract Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs) have recently emerged as a significant security challenge for a cyber-physical system due to their stealthy, dynamic and adaptive nature. Proactive dynamic defenses provide a strategic and holistic security mechanism to increase the costs of attacks and mitigate the risks. This work proposes a dynamic game framework to model a long-term interaction between a stealthy attacker and a proactive defender. The stealthy and deceptive behaviors are captured by the multi-stage game of incomplete information, where each player has his own private information unknown to the other. Both players act strategically according to their beliefs which are formed by the multi-stage observation and learning. The perfect Bayesian Nash equilibrium provides a useful prediction of both players’ policies because no players benefit from unilateral deviations from the equilibrium. We propose an iterative algorithm to compute the perfect Bayesian Nash equilibrium and use the Tennessee Eastman process as a benchmark case study. Our numerical experiment corroborates the analytical results and provides further insights into the design of proactive defense-in-depth strategies.
Assessment of the contribution of utility vault water to surface water pollution.

Utility vaults and underground structures house essential telecommunications, gas, and electrical infrastructure (e.g., transformers, copper wiring) that could contaminate water which accumulates in them. Water is removed from utility vaults during routine infrastructure maintenance. That water is typically released to the storm drain system, raising concerns that polluted water could reach receiving waters. However, no one has measured pollutants in utility vault water. The State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) has mandated such measurements as a condition of renewing the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Utility Vault Permit. We analyzed 126 priority pollutants in 20 utility vault water samples collected throughout California by Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E). We also estimated the volume of utility vault water discharged and calculated loads. Twenty-one priority pollutants were detected. Metals were commonly found. Only copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) exceeded water quality criteria. Their maximum concentrations were 791 and 386 μg/L, respectively. Median Cu and Zn concentrations of 9.66 and 81.6 μg/L were representative of urban stormwater, suggesting runoff is a source of metals in utility vault water. For San Francisco Bay, Cu and Zn loads from PG&E's utility vault water (0.06 and 0.5 kg/year) were inconsequential compared to previously reported total loads (74,000 and 320,000 kg/year) from stormwater, wastewater treatment plants, etc. For California, utility vault water loads were 5 and 40 kg/year of Cu and Zn. We are the first to report pollutant concentrations in utility vault water. Utility vaults are not a major source of pollutants to receiving waters.
From national indices to regional action—An Analysis of food, energy, water security in Ecuador, Bolivia, and Peru

Abstract The food-energy-water (FEW) nexus has emerged over the past decade to build understanding around interlinked resources as a tool for achieving sustainable development. Various frameworks developed to implement nexus thinking however, do not always consider both access and availability of resources in a security perspective. Moreover, indices that calculate FEW measures on a national scale may not adequately describe regional variation within a country. To further understanding of these coupled natural resources and tools for development, this paper presents an approach to quantify FEW security and highlights cases in Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia where national statistics leave out important regional variation. The outcome is an integrated approach to quantify security measures that can be implemented at multiple spatial scales and institutional levels. This approach can not only provide insight into FEW security in Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia but can also be an effective tool for assessing multiple development priorities simultaneously throughout the world.
Degradable Controlled Release Fertilizer Composite Prepared via Extrusion: Fabrication, Characterization, and Release Mechanisms

In this work, biodegradable polymers were melt compounded with urea phosphate to fabricate "smart fertilizers" for sustainable agriculture. Urea phosphate (UP) is typically applied as a water-soluble fertilizer to treat phosphorus deficiency in high pH soils. Due to the low diffusion rate of phosphate through slow-release fertilizer coatings, phosphate supply has been considered the "bottleneck" for nitrogen-phosphorous-potassium (NPK) nutrients supply. We study the influence of polymer matrix structure on release kinetics in deionized water using novel polyesters including poly (hexamethylene succinate) (PHS), poly (30% butylene succinate-co-70% hexamethylene succinate) (PBHS 30/70), and PBHS 70/30. Melt processed composites of UP and polyester were analyzed to determine UP loading efficiency and dispersion and distribution of the salt in the polymer matrix. A combined empirical model involving diffusion and erosion mechanisms was found have a good agreement with the experimental release curve. This work provides a solution for environmentally friendly controlled release phosphate fertilizer with good release performance using bio-based and biodegradable polymers.
Robot sensor system for supervised rehabilitation with real-time feedback

Numerous assistive robot approaches have been proposed to rehabilitate individuals with impaired upper-limb function. However, to the best of our knowledge, none of these are fully supervised by the robotic system. In this research, we intend to use a robot as a tool to provide robot-guided supervised rehabilitation. A humanoid robot, NAO, was used for this purpose. To demonstrate rehabilitation exercises with NAO, a library of recommended rehabilitation exercises involving the shoulder (abduction/adduction, vertical flexion/extension, and internal/external rotation), and elbow (flexion/extension) joint movements were created. An Xbox Kinect sensor was used to analyze the subject upper arm movement during rehabilitation. For this purpose, a complete geometric solution was developed to find a unique inverse kinematic solution of human upper-arm from the Kinect data. A control algorithm was developed in MATLAB for the proposed robot guided supervised rehabilitation protocol. Experimental results show that the NAO and Kinect sensor can effectively be used to supervise and guide the subjects in performing active rehabilitation exercises for the shoulder and elbow joint movements.
Semantic Labeling of Large-Area Geographic Regions Using Multiview and Multidate Satellite Images and Noisy OSM Training Labels

We present a novel multiview training framework and convolutional neural network (CNN) architecture for combining information from multiple overlapping satellite images and noisy training labels derived from OpenStreetMap (OSM) to semantically label buildings and roads across large geographic regions (100 km $^2$ ). Our approach to multiview semantic segmentation yields a 4%–7% improvement in the per-class Intersection over Union (IoU) scores compared to the traditional approaches that use the views independently of one another. A unique (and, perhaps, surprising) property of our system is that modifications that are added to the tail-end of the CNN for learning from the multiview data can be discarded at the time of inference with a relatively small penalty in the overall performance. This implies that the benefits of training using multiple views are absorbed by all the layers of the network. Additionally, our approach only adds a small overhead in terms of the GPU-memory consumption even when training with as many as 32 views per scene. The system we present is end-to-end automated, which facilitates comparing the classifiers trained directly on true orthophotos vis-a-vis first training them on the off-nadir images and subsequently translating the predicted labels to geographical coordinates. With no human supervision , our IoU scores for the buildings and roads classes are 0.8 and 0.64, respectively, which are better than state-of-the-art approaches that use OSM labels and that are not completely automated.
Outcomes of Hormone-Receptor Positive, HER2-Negative Breast Cancers by Race and Tumor Biological Features.

Background Black women have higher hormone receptor positive (HR+) breast cancer mortality than White women. Early recurrence rates differ by race, but little is known about genomic predictors of early recurrence among HR+ women. Methods Using data from the Carolina Breast Cancer Study (phase III, 2008-2013), we estimated associations between race and recurrence among nonmetastatic HR+/HER2-negative tumors, overall and by PAM50 Risk of Recurrence score, PAM50 intrinsic subtype, and tumor grade using survival curves and Cox models standardized for age and stage. Relative frequency differences (RFD) were estimated using multivariable linear regression. To assess intervention opportunities, we evaluated treatment patterns by race among patients with high-risk disease. Results Black women had higher recurrence risk relative to White women (crude hazard ratio = 1.81, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.34 to 2.46), which remained elevated after standardizing for clinical covariates (hazard ratio = 1.42, 95% CI = 1.05 to 1.93). Racial disparities were most pronounced among those with high PAM50 Risk of Recurrence score (5-year standardized recurrence risk = 18.9%, 95% CI = 8.6% to 29.1% in Black women vs 12.5%, 95% CI = 2.0% to 23.0% in White women) and high grade (5-year standardized recurrence risk = 16.6%, 95% CI = 11.7% to 21.5% in Black women vs 12.0%, 95% CI = 7.3% to 16.7% in White women). However, Black women with high-grade tumors were statistically significantly less likely to initiate endocrine therapy (RFD = -8.3%, 95% CI = -15.9% to -0.6%) and experienced treatment delay more often than White women (RFD = +9.0%, 95% CI = 0.3% to 17.8%). Conclusions Differences in recurrence by race appear greatest among women with aggressive tumors and may be influenced by treatment differences. Efforts to identify causes of variation in cancer treatment are critical to reducing outcome disparities.
Characteristics and Significance of Tricuspid Valve Prolapse in a Large Multidecade Echocardiographic Study

Background Characteristics of tricuspid valve prolapse (TVP) on transthoracic echocardiography are not well defined. As tricuspid valve interventions are increasingly considered, information on the definition and clinical significance of TVP is needed. Methods At the authors' institution, between January 26, 2000, and September 20, 2018, 410 patients (0.3%) were determined to have suspected TVP. These transthoracic echocardiograms and those of 97 age- and sex-matched normal control subjects were reviewed. Interrater agreement on TVP by visual inspection was assessed in a blinded subset. Leaflet atrial displacement (AD) > 2 SDs above the mean in normal control subjects was used to identify an empiric definition of TVP Features of patients meeting this definition were evaluated. Results Three hundred twelve transthoracic echocardiograms with available and interpretable images (76.1%) were included. Interrater agreement on TVP diagnosis by visual inspection was moderate. Normal values of AD were up to 4 mm in the right ventricular inflow view and 2 mm in all other views. AD > 2 mm in the parasternal short-axis view had the best accuracy against suspected TVP to identify TVP. Those with TVP by this definition more frequently had 3 to 4+ tricuspid regurgitation (22.2% vs 3.1%; P Conclusions In the largest study of TVP to date, interrater agreement on TVP diagnosis by visual inspection was moderate. A cutoff of >2-mm AD in the parasternal short-axis view was optimal to define TVP. Those with TVP by this definition had more significant tricuspid regurgitation, larger right ventricles, and more clinically significant MVP. Overall, these results suggest an increased role for surveillance for TVP and the need for clear diagnostic criteria in updated guidelines.
DENAS: automated rule generation by knowledge extraction from neural networks

Deep neural networks (DNNs) have been widely applied in the software development process to automatically learn patterns from massive data. However, many applications still make decisions based on rules that are manually crafted and verified by domain experts due to safety or security concerns. In this paper, we aim to close the gap between DNNs and rule-based systems by automating the rule generation process via extracting knowledge from well-trained DNNs. Existing techniques with similar purposes either rely on specific DNNs input instances or use inherently unstable random sampling of the input space. Therefore, these approaches either limit the exploration area to a local decision-space of the DNNs or fail to converge to a consistent set of rules. The resulting rules thus lack representativeness and stability. In this paper, we address the two aforementioned shortcomings by discovering a global property of the DNNs and use it to remodel the DNNs decision-boundary. We name this property as the activation probability, and show that this property is stable. With this insight, we propose an approach named DENAS including a novel rule-generation algorithm. Our proposed algorithm approximates the non-linear decision boundary of DNNs by iteratively superimposing a linearized optimization function. We evaluate the representativeness, stability, and accuracy of DENAS against five state-of-the-art techniques (LEMNA, Gradient, IG, DeepTaylor, and DTExtract) on three software engineering and security applications: Binary analysis, PDF malware detection, and Android malware detection. Our results show that DENAS can generate more representative rules consistently in a more stable manner over other approaches. We further offer case studies that demonstrate the applications of DENAS such as debugging faults in the DNNs and generating signatures that can detect zero-day malware.
Video Games & the Novel

In the last sixty years, the video game industry has grown from quite literally nothing to a behemoth larger than the film or television industries. This enormous change in the shape of cultural pr...